NOVEL ONLINE FREE Chapter 18: Chapter 18 The Drowned Palace
Recap:
After uncovering a spy from the Vault lurking within his inner circle, Long Tianyu discovered that the Sea Serpent Queen, Anahadra, was stirring beneath the Sapphire Trench. Once sealed away to maintain the balance of power among the fire dragons, her awakening now poses a serious threat to the elemental harmony. Determined to confront her before the Vault can intervene, Tianyu and his court set off on their mission.
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As dawn broke, the skies over Blackwood Hollow erupted with light.
Tianyu and his crew glided across the Eastern Range aboard their flame-carved skyships, slicing through the cloudbanks like blades through silk.
Their destination? The Sapphire Trench.
A place from which no fire cultivator had ever returned.
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As the ocean unveiled its depths—vast, still, and ancient—Long Shen spoke.
"There's more than just water down there. There are memories, and some of them long to be forgotten."
Tianyu peered down.
Beneath the waves, an entire city sparkled—a sunken palace lost to the ages.
He nodded once.
"Then let's remind them who we are."
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> [Location Discovered: Sapphire Trench Abyssal Class]
> [Entry Conditions Met Flame Reconciler Access: Granted]
> [Protective Seal Activated: Abyssal Breath Shell (5h)]
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They plunged into the depths.
The trench enveloped them in an instant. Pressure slammed against their spirit shields like relentless hammers, but Tianyu stood his ground.
Down, down they went, until light became nothing but a distant memory.
The Aqua Palace emerged from the shadows.
A city of spiraling towers, coral-clad halls, and forgotten monuments.
And at its heart—her..
Anahadra.
Not just any creature, but a queen. Half serpent, half goddess, she had silver-scaled limbs and eyes that mirrored frozen storms. Coiled around a throne made of bones, her presence radiated an ancient sorrow.
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But something felt off.
Her thoughts flickered, past and present colliding in a chaotic dance.
Flame.
Betrayer.
Husband?
Child?
Her voice flowed like a cascade of broken rivers.
Tianyu stepped forward, standing alone.
> [Optional Challenge: Calm the Sea Queen Without Combat]
> [Success: Water Alliance Possible]
> [Failure: Forced Battle High Fatality Risk]
He opened his palm, letting a gentle flame rise.
Not fierce.
Not consuming.
Just warm.
Anahadra flinched.
"Why bring this to me again?"
"It's not to hurt you," Tianyu replied softly. "It's to help you remember."
He offered her something else—a memory crystal.
Inside was a piece of his childhood, watching the last Phoenix Flower bloom while his mother smiled.
Fire as warmth.
Anahadra accepted it.
The trench fell silent.
---
She wept.
Water took shape—her children, her empire, her chains.
"I was sealed by the Vault because I once chose fire.
They feared that fire could forgive."
Tianyu knelt before her.
"Then let's burn away the lies, together."
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> [Mission Complete: Sea Queen Reconciled]
> Title Gained: Elemental Mediator
> Passive Effect: Water Techniques No Longer Weakened by Flame Aura
> Unique Reward: Water Flame Harmony Art Allows merging of techniques from opposing elements
Anahadra's palace began to pulse with color once more.
She lowered her massive head.
"I will grant you safe passage to the Second Chain—and a warning."
> "The one who forged the Vault is no longer sealed."
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Above, at the surface, Vault ships started to emerge on the horizon.
Ren Feilong was on one of them.
He narrowed his eyes.
He had gotten there first.
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Teaser for Chapter 19:
Anahadra sends Tianyu into the Veins of Salt, an ocean rift containing the Second Chain. But guarding it is a creature born from both dragon and serpent blood, and it knows Tianyu's father.