Chapter 697: Storm Over the Misty Swamp: The Song Family’s Stand
by xennovel“Now that everyone’s here, let’s get this debriefing started!”
As always, Sato Kawa, the Star River-class Captain, was the first to speak. Right after, the Star-Annihilator-class Captain of the Fusang Imperial Family quickly chimed in.
“This time, the Fusang Imperial Family and the Sato Clan joined forces. We killed one Tier-8 Eight-Armed Serpent Demon, eight Tier-7 Eight-Armed Serpent Demons, and took over five secondary Serpent Demon Holy Cities.”
“The Yamashita Clan took down two Tier-7 Eight-Armed Serpent Demons and seized one secondary Serpent Demon Holy City.”
……
“The Song Family killed five Tier-7 Eight-Armed Serpent Demons and captured two secondary Serpent Demon Holy Cities.”
……
As each side reported their battle results, Sato Kawa began distributing the millions of Misty Snakefolk from the Misty Swamp according to each faction’s contribution.
“Based on contributions, our Sato Clan and the Fusang Imperial Family will split a million Misty Snakefolk, including two Tier-7 Misty Snakefolk among them.”
After the first round of allocations, the Star-Annihilator-class Captains glanced around at each other. Many seemed dissatisfied, but in the end, no one dared to voice their objections, all held back by Sato Kawa’s Star River-class Captain status.
“The Yamashita Clan gets eighty thousand Misty Snakefolk!”
“The Nohara Clan receives a hundred and twenty thousand Misty Snakefolk!”
……
“The Song Family of Longji gets a hundred and forty thousand Misty Snakefolk!”
……
Hearing that number, Song Wujian’s eyes narrowed coldly, a mocking smile curling at his lips.
By the previously announced results, the Nohara Clan had only contributed one secondary Serpent Demon Holy City and slain two Tier-7 Eight-Armed Serpent Demons. Yet, they were given only twenty thousand less than his own family. This allocation was blatantly unfair.
At this, quite a few Star-Annihilator-class Captains turned their gazes toward Song Wujian.
But Song Wujian acted as if he hadn’t heard a thing, showing no reaction at all.
The other representatives took this as the Song Family bowing to a Star River-class Captain’s authority. What they didn’t know was, Song Wujian wasn’t backing down at all—he was just waiting for the right moment.
‘Looking at these tactics, it’s obvious the Sato Clan and the Fusang Imperial Family never intended to share the Bronze Serpent Floating-land with anyone. Just wait, they’ll turn on each other soon enough.’
As Song Wujian mulled this over, the distribution for all the Misty Snakefolk was finalized.
Just as Song Wujian expected, after the allocations were announced, Sato Kawa had nothing further to say.
Seeing this, the other Immortal Houses began to lose patience.
It wasn’t long before a questioning voice rang out in the group chat from one of the Star-Annihilator-class Captains:
“Lord Sato, aren’t you forgetting something? The Misty Swamp keeps producing more Misty Snakefolk! My Tuoba Clan doesn’t need much, just 1% of the ongoing output will do!”
The speaker was a prince of the Tuoba Clan from the Silverplate Kingdom, which has no ties to the Fusang Dynasty. He may have feared a Star River-class Captain, but for the future strength of the Tuoba Clan, he stepped forward anyway.
With the first person speaking up, others quickly began to join in.
“Exactly. The Misty Swamp is huge! If it’s managed well, it could breed tens of millions of Misty Snakefolk in no time. There’s no way you two can hog such a treasure for yourselves.”
“That’s right, my Hong Clan doesn’t ask for much either—just 1%!”
……
As the other representatives voiced their objections in the chat, Sato Kawa’s eyes narrowed dangerously, a hint of lethal intent flickering within.
A chill ran through everyone’s heart at his look.
Still, the staggering wealth of the Misty Swamp for generations to come was too much to ignore. Pushing down their unease, the factions refused to back down, pressing for their cut.
(The Divine Dynasty already strictly forbids infighting, after all…)
That was the one thought ringing through every representative’s mind at that moment.
Just then, the sound of something slicing through the air exploded from the side. Everyone glanced over, saw it was just a humble Fusang Dynasty Dreadnought, and turned away without much interest.
But what no one expected was that this unremarkable Dreadnought was about to deliver a piece of news that would shake the entire gathering.
“Everyone, my little crew down here has picked up some breaking news. We all need to hear this!”
With that, Sato Kawa pulled the Dreadnought’s Captain directly into the group chat.
The Dreadnought Captain from the Fusang Dynasty wasted no time. As his avatar flickered into view, he announced:
“According to our Fusang Dynasty Shadow Division, there’s still one Tier-7 Eight-Armed Serpent Demon left hiding on this Bronze Serpent Floating-land!”
“Impossible!”
The revelation sent a jolt through the group. For the Star-Annihilator-class Captains, missing a Tier-7 Eight-Armed Serpent Demon wasn’t a minor oversight—it was a major blunder.
Of all those present, Song Wujian’s reaction was the most intense. The moment he heard it, his heart sank, and his gaze grew icier as he stared straight at Sato Kawa.
Sure enough, the Dreadnought Captain’s next words went straight for the Song Family.
“Our Shadow Division’s investigation tracked the origin of the Tier-7 Eight-Armed Serpent Demon to West Sector 3.”
Too convenient—so convenient that every faction’s face went dark.
At a time like this, everyone could spot the scheme, but their concern clearly wasn’t for the Song Family.
If Sato Kawa could deal with the Song Family so easily using such a blatant trick, what about the rest of them?
Each representative quickly imagined themselves in the Song Family’s place, and realized—if they angered Sato Kawa, he could do the exact same thing to them.
Before anyone could think further, Sato Kawa’s cold, sharp voice cut through the air.
“Song Family of Longji, you failed to eliminate a key target. I hereby revoke all allocations previously given to you. As a penalty, you will forfeit all gains made on the Bronze Serpent Floating-land!”
At that, Song Wujian’s grin turned openly contemptuous, not bothering to hide his scorn.
“Heh… such fine tactics, Lord Sato. Should I clap for you now?”
His disdainful, mocking words echoed straight through the group chat.
Was this actually clever? No, not at all. If anything, it was laughably crude.
Yet for the usual Immortal Houses, even a crude scheme like this was nearly impossible to counter.
At this moment, the Joint Fleet was under Sato Kawa’s direct command. He hadn’t made any secret moves. If you went against him by force, he had every excuse to crush you on the spot.
Report it to the Divine Dynasty? Ask the overseeing fleets to step in?
Don’t kid yourself. Without any close ties and with an official justification, why would a Star River-class Captain start a fight with another Star River-class Captain just for you?
Charm alone isn’t going to save you.
But that only applied to ordinary factions. The Song Family was different.
With dozens of eyes on him, Song Wujian radiated Dark Energy. The entire Calm-Sea Dragon-Xiang ship brimmed with Tier-7 pressure.
He spoke in the chat, enunciating every word:
“What if I say—the Song Family will not accept this verdict?”
A deep, uneasy silence fell over the chat.
No one spoke. Shock kept every representative quiet.
“Is the Song Family out of their minds?”
“Under these circumstances, Sato Kawa could suppress the Song Family claiming insubordination. Does Song Wujian really think a numbers advantage at Tier-7 can stand against a Star River-class Battleship?”
“He’s lost his mind, totally lost it. Still, I kind of want to see how this escalates. Maybe it’ll even draw in the Divine Dynasty’s inspection force!”
As for Sato Kawa, he remained silent, because inwardly he was laughing.
Since his rise to Star River-class Captain, few had ever dared challenge him so bluntly.
Buzz, buzz, buzz!
The Star River-class Battleship, thousands of kilometers long, began radiating an overwhelming aura. Its force was a hundred times greater than the pressure of any Star-Annihilator-class vessel.
And then, commotion erupted from the Song Family’s fleet. At the head of the Azure Dragon Fleet, the hatch of a gleaming silver-white Dreadnought swung open. In the next instant, a crimson blur shot forth.
Once free of the Dreadnought, the blood-red figure began to swell rapidly.
Within the blink of an eye, it had grown to over ten thousand kilometers tall, its aura nearly at the peak of Tier-7.
Gasps of disbelief spread among the dozens of Star-Annihilator-class Ships overhead.
“Another brand new Tier-7 enslaved creature? Just how does the Song Family get so many dominator-class beasts?”
“If I’m not mistaken, that’s a Tier-7 Ashura King. Among its rank, that’s considered top tier.”
“But it’s still just Tier-7. Even if it’s at the peak… Wait, no, it’s still growing!”
“A million kilometers! That’s already broken through to Tier-8!”
“Damn! That’s an Ashura Emperor, already half a step into Tier-8 peak. So this is the Song Family’s real trump card!”
……
Whoosh!
A stifling bloody wind swept by. The Ashura Emperor soared to the side of the Calm-Sea Dragon-Xiang, wielding a massive blood-colored blade. Its crimson eyes locked fiercely onto Sato Kawa’s Star River-class Battleship.
The Ashura Emperor never said a word, but its presence made the Song Family’s stance crystal clear.
Even against the blatant setup of a Star River-class Captain, the Song Family would never bow their heads. If pushed, they’d meet force with force.
Inside the ship’s control room of the Star River-class Battleship.
To Sato Kawa, it felt like real flames were rising behind his eyes as he stared at the Ashura Emperor, all warmth replaced by icy malice.
It wasn’t that he feared the Ashura Emperor. After thousands of years as a Star River-class Captain, his ship was more than a match for a typical Tier-8 peak creature. He simply understood the game—this showdown couldn’t drag on.
If he could crush the Song Family instantly, maybe the other patrol ships watching above would stay out of it.
But if things escalated into a battle of Tier-8 titans, then the situation would be another story entirely.