Starting with helping Zhao Kai ascend the throne in the snow

Shen Qing looked at Xuan Yuan Qingfeng with resentment. He wasn't injured by Lu Qi, but he was almost burned to death by her. The latter looked like a little wife who had done something wrong, and lowered her head in shame, not daring to speak.

Just moments before, as Lucci unleashed his Flying Finger Gun, Shen Qing's mind became unusually clear in his shock. He realized he couldn't dodge Lucci's attack, and only at the last moment did he think to summon the Black Ship, blocking the attack. He thus escaped certain death. What followed was the dramatic scene that just unfolded: Shen Qing had barely retrieved the Black Ship, his face still showing signs of shock, when he was burned by Xuan Yuan Qingfeng.

However, their attention was quickly drawn to the screams coming from the sea of ​​fire. Lucci had already freed his right foot from the spatial rift and, with his powerful vitality, rushed out of the fire. But he looked terrible; many parts of his body were charred by the flames, his ears were burned away, and his eyes were blinded. After emerging from the fire, he wandered around like a headless fly.

Old Sword God, Han Shengxuan, Wen Hua, Huang Qing, Wu Liuding, Cuihua, Li Yibai, and Hong Biao all rushed over at this time. Seeing Lu Qi's miserable appearance, they did not kill him directly.

"If I don't live, you won't have an easy time either. I'm going to expose your secret—your ability to travel between worlds..." Lucci, though blind and deaf, could sense the presence of many people around him using his Observation Haki. He immediately decided that he wouldn't let Shen Qing get away with it before he died. Although he didn't know how Shen Qing had managed to bring him here from the pirate world, he knew that revealing this ability to travel between worlds would be enough to cause Shen Qing a huge headache, and it was currently the only way he could retaliate.

"Qingfeng, kill him! Don't let him talk!" Shen Qing's expression changed drastically upon hearing Lu Qi's words, and he hurriedly shouted.

"Master chef, take action and finish him off." At the same time, Zhao Kai hurriedly said to Han Shengxuan.

At this stage, the secret of the Black Ship cannot be exposed. Shen Qing can allow others to speculate that he has secrets, but the news that the Black Ship can travel through the world must not be revealed publicly, otherwise the entire Yue Prince's Mansion will become the target of everyone's criticism.

At that time, the Yue King's Mansion would be coveted by the entire world. Even if they weren't afraid of their opponents, they would still be extremely bothered by them, and the entire Yue Prefecture would never have peace again. As someone who knew the secret of the Black Ship, Zhao Kai naturally thought of this situation as well, and he couldn't allow the secret of the Black Ship to be exposed and bring disaster to the Yue King's Mansion.

The next second, Han Shengxuan's three thousand red threads pierced through Lu Qi's vital points before Xuan Yuanqingfeng could, and several red threads even pierced through his facial features, interrupting Lu Qi's words.

Upon seeing Lu Qi's death, Xuan Yuan Qingfeng immediately threw out a ball of flame to incinerate his body, preventing him from leaving any clues.

Wen Hua, Wu Liuding, and Cuihua, seeing this, showed a hint of disappointment on their faces, but they didn't take it too seriously. For them, it would be best to hear the secret, but if they didn't, it would just be a little regrettable.

In contrast, Huang Qing was unwilling. Unlike these martial artists who roamed the Jianghu of Liyang, the martial artists of Northern Mang had close ties with the imperial court, and they served the court more than anything. If he could learn Shen Qing's secret, he would surely receive high praise from the Taiping Order and Empress Murong upon his return, which would elevate the status of the Chess and Sword Music Bureau. However, seeing the group of first-rank masters beside him, even if Huang Qing was unwilling, he could only stay obediently.

Looking at the dead Lu Qi, Shen Qing breathed a long sigh of relief. Exhaustion washed over him like a tide, making him sleepy in waves.

Just as he was about to return to the courtyard to rest, a sudden change occurred. A wisp of black, thread-like law suddenly emerged from Lu Qi's burned corpse. After this thread-like law appeared, it seemed to have a life of its own, moving back and forth in mid-air. However, it seemed to have lost its target and became like a headless fly, unable to find its direction.

"What is this?" Everyone stared in astonishment at the black, thread-like energy in mid-air, their hearts filled with a strange sense of awe.

"Could this be the true form of a Devil Fruit ability?" Shen Qing muttered to himself as he looked at the thread-like energy in mid-air.

The origins of Devil Fruits are currently unknown. Each Devil Fruit represents a mysterious ability. No one knows why Devil Fruits exist, nor why they reappear on the sea after the user's death. Everything is so mysterious and unpredictable. The people of the pirate world seem to have long been accustomed to all of this, and no one bothers to investigate the origins of Devil Fruits.

Just as Shen Qing was in shock, strange phenomena suddenly appeared in the sky. A sea of ​​clouds suddenly appeared in the void. The next moment, the sea of ​​clouds began to rotate rapidly, forming a huge vortex. Countless purple lightning bolts flashed continuously at the center of the vortex. At the very center of the vortex, a giant eye phantom made of lightning appeared. After seeing the black linear laws that appeared in mid-air, the thunder became even louder, as if it was overjoyed.

Conversely, after the appearance of the giant lightning eye, the black linear laws began to tremble, like mice encountering a cat.

"The Eye of Heaven." The moment the giant lightning eye appeared, Shen Qing automatically recalled its origins, knowing that it was the will of this world in the snow. And its appearance was for the Devil Fruit power that emerged from Lucci's body after his death.

As the Eye of Heaven appeared, an inexplicably powerful pressure surged in the sky, causing everyone present to tremble. The ordinary soldiers almost simultaneously lost consciousness. Only experts at the First Rank could remain conscious under this pressure, yet even they struggled to move. Shen Qing, who was also about to faint, was initially unable to withstand the pressure. Just then, the black ship trembled slightly, and the next second, Shen Qing immediately felt the pressure of heaven and earth seem to vanish.

Just when Shen Qing thought that the Eye of Heaven would be able to successfully capture the Devil Fruit's power, a loud dragon's roar suddenly rang out from not far away. Everyone hurriedly looked over and saw Xie Guanying appearing not far away, holding a white bowl.

The dragon's roar came from the white bowl in his hand. Immediately, a dragon with condensed fortune flew out of the bowl and transformed into a colossal creature tens of meters long in the blink of an eye. As soon as the dragon appeared, it first glanced fearfully at the Heavenly Eye of the Heavenly Dao, then flicked its tail and flew towards the Devil Fruit ability, clearly intending to seize the linear law.

"Boom!" The Heavenly Eye saw the dragon's movements and seemed to be enraged. The vortex spun even faster, and the giant lightning eye became clearer. Then, a purple lightning dragon descended from the clouds and struck the dragon's figure.

With a sharp crack, the purple lightning dragon struck the dragon, causing the sky to flicker with lightning and become dim. Under the attack of the purple lightning dragon, the dragon's form was instantly reduced to a small dragon only a few meters long. However, the Heavenly Eye in the clouds seemed unwilling to let it go, locking onto the dragon's figure again, preparing to launch another attack amidst flashes of lightning and thunder.

Just then, the white bowl suddenly shone brightly, and a stream of azure light emerged from within the bowl, instantly appearing above the dragon with the white bowl. Then, azure figure appeared, which was azure lotus flower.

The next second, the azure lotus drooped down, casting a hazy azure light that enveloped the dragon's body. At the same time, the Eye of Heaven reappeared, releasing a bolt of purple lightning that struck the dragon, but it was blocked by the hazy azure light emanating from the lotus.

The purple lightning, seemingly immense in its power, failed to penetrate the azure light's defenses. However, after the lightning subsided, the azure light noticeably dimmed. This outcome thoroughly enraged the Eye of Heaven, transforming the entire sky into a purple sea of ​​lightning. Countless lightning bolts formed divine beast shapes, appearing and disappearing within the sea of ​​lightning. The entire celestial phenomenon presented a terrifying spectacle of world-ending catastrophe.