King of Assassins

Hercules frowned deeply and said nothing. He was a little disgusted by his wife's selfishness, only thinking about letting her family gain more benefits, without considering the interests of the Sea Emperor Star Realm. Or considering his thoughts.

In Pan's eyes, everything in his family, including the wealth, power, and even their daughter, should be inherited by her family.

After all, he'll eventually die. After all, he doesn't have an outstanding son.

All this wealth and power, in the end, will have to be passed on to someone else.

Hercules understood his wife's thinking very well, but he couldn't change her mind.

He cared more about family inheritance, honor inheritance, and bloodline inheritance.

Of course, Pan's family had the Golden Bloodline, which was also why he married Pan. But that didn't mean he should transfer the inheritance rights to Pan's family.

As long as Helen became the Golden Sword Saint, she could protect the family's honor, wealth, and power.

Hercules thought Gao Xuan had no family background but was exceptionally talented, making him a very suitable candidate.

Unfortunately, Pan was too stubborn, putting too much value on her family's interests.

Hercules said, "I've arranged for Gao Xuan to go to Sea Dragon Star to quell the unrest. As long as he can solve the problems there, I'll hold an engagement ceremony for him and Helen. Maybe even a formal wedding."

Pan abruptly stood up, "You're crazy, our three-thousand-year Golden Bloodline cannot be tainted!"

"A Golden Bloodline without capability is just trash."

Hercules thought for a moment and said, "I'll give you a chance. If Talos can solve the problems on Sea Dragon Star, I'll marry Helen to him."

Pan had a slightly ferocious expression, "You actually want Talos and Gao Xuan to compete, this is an insult to our bloodline!"

"The opportunity is given to you. Whether you choose it is up to you."

Hercules closed his eyes, "I've decided on this. No need to say more."

Pan's beautiful face twisted, she glared at Hercules sullenly, her heart full of anger. She even wanted to kill this arrogant old man with a single sword.

But she also knew that drawing her sword would only result in her own death.

Hercules would become ruthless in the face of threats. She couldn't challenge Hercules's limits. Additionally, drawing a sword against a Golden Sword Saint was meaningless.

In extreme anger, Pan refused to hold the banquet.

The atmosphere within the Sea Emperor Palace also became very tense because of the agitated Pan.

There were some who didn't care about the hostess's anger. Like Helen, like Gao Xuan.

Helen had her own grand palace, spanning dozens of miles. The intricately decorative and magnificent palace even drew admiration from Gao Xuan, who had experience from two lifetimes.

In terms of enjoyment, Hercules's family was top tier within the Alliance.

Gao Xuan didn't quite understand this family's obsession with luxurious palaces.

The grandiose palace could be called beautiful, but as a home, the building was too big, lacking the basic warm atmosphere of a family.

However, Helen loved her palace, gleefully dragging Gao Xuan around, explaining the exquisite arrangements within the palace to him.

This was like a child showing their beloved toys to a friend, probably just that kind of emotion.

Gao Xuan even felt a little sorry for Helen, thinking this kid might have never had a friend growing up.

After strolling around with Helen, she also noticed Gao Xuan's lack of enthusiasm. Her green eyes sparkled, "I'll take you to see the marvels of our family. It's said there's even an ancestral Divine Artifact..."

A smile immediately appeared on Gao Xuan's face, "That might not be appropriate?"

"Look at you smiling so happily; there's no sense of inappropriateness at all."

Helen waved her hand generously, "It will all be ours in the future, so why not take a look? Taking it won't even be an issue!"

Gao Xuan nodded, "That's right, it'll be our stuff in the future. Why be afraid to look?"

Helen led Gao Xuan into the underground passage, taking a pipeline-style sliding cabin to reach the underground depths of the Sea Emperor Palace.

Even in the Underground Palace, the architecture style remained as resplendent as ever.

With very high privileges, Helen led Gao Xuan directly into the core Treasure Vault of the Underground Palace.

It should actually be called an exhibition hall. Various marvels were placed inside glass cabinets, with the huge exhibition hall containing thousands of marvels.

Of course, the marvels that could be exhibited in this manner were of relatively low level. The highest was only Silver Level. Moreover, there were almost no weapon-type marvels.

"Silver dining knife, paired with melodious classical music, will make cutting steak more delicious. Negative effect: The silver dining knife sometimes requires the owner to loudly recite verses. If the verses aren't recited timely, the knife may cut a finger or make the steak taste bad..."

The various marvels, with diverse shapes and functions, each seen individually, were quite interesting.

Gao Xuan, after wandering for a while, discovered a black mechanical-styled cicada.

This mechanical cicada had intricate gears inside, yet its overall style was somewhat coarse.

The contrast between coarse and intricate gave this mechanical cicada a unique charm.

The recorded information indicated it was an incomplete Mechanical Iron Cicada, occasionally emitting a chirping sound. Besides that, there was no other record.

Gao Xuan naturally had a particular interest in cicadas. What could be the use of this Mechanical Iron Cicada?

He asked Helen, "Can I take a look at it?"

Helen glanced at it indifferently and said, "If you like it, it's yours."

She gestured to the things in the hall, "In reality, they're all useless marvels. Just that some marvels have dangerous aspects, which is why they're placed here."

Helen affectionately hugged Gao Xuan's neck and said, "Take whatever you like. No need to be polite."

"Then I won't be polite."

Gao Xuan had Helen open the glass cover and took out the Mechanical Iron Cicada.

Holding it in his hand, the Six-winged Celestial Cicada in his spiritual sea immediately emitted a clear cry.

Gao Xuan's face remained impassive, as he turned the Mechanical Iron Cicada over, seeing a line of cryptic text inscribed on its abdomen.

With his perception, it was only after holding the Mechanical Iron Cicada that he discovered the cryptic text on its abdomen. Moreover, it couldn't be perceived directly through Spiritual Power.

This Iron Cicada was a bit peculiar.

It was the first time Gao Xuan discovered something that couldn't be detected with Spiritual Sensing. He gently ran his fingertip over it, and through the tactile sensation, he could read the inscription.

The inscription was a manifestation of a marvel law, not something carved by a person.

How to interpret the inscription was also a profound field of study.

The same inscription might be interpreted differently by everyone.

Different states, different times, and different locations might all lead to different interpretations of the same inscription.

As Gao Xuan's fingertip brushed across, the inscription manifested in his spiritual sea. The inscription was brief, yet extremely complex.

According to Gao Xuan's understanding, the inscription should be: Mechanical might, knowledge sacred, soul priceless.

Gao Xuan thought this inscription didn't quite make sense; maybe his understanding was off.

That was normal as well. Even though his Spiritual Power was strong, he was not particularly talented in inscription interpretation.

Noticing Gao Xuan's interest in the Iron Cicada, Helen explained, "I recall father said that this kind of mechanical cicada has no soul. Or rather, it's lost its core and is just a dead object."

Hercules, being a Golden Sword Saint from the Golden Bloodline, could naturally interpret inscriptions without issue.

Gao Xuan nodded in agreement; Hercules's statement was correct.

This Mechanical Iron Cicada might have a significant background or might be a powerful marvel. But missing its core made it useless.

Gao Xuan, however, felt a connection with this Mechanical Iron Cicada, or rather, it had a connection with the Six-winged Celestial Cicada.

Unfortunately, the Six-winged Celestial Cicada was ultimately just a marvel, though it merged with his Divine Soul, it didn't possess intelligence.

The Six-winged Celestial Cicada reacted to the Mechanical Iron Cicada, but it wouldn't communicate to Gao Xuan the reason behind its reaction.

For the Six-winged Celestial Cicada, all reactions were driven by natural instinct, not intelligence.

The Six-winged Celestial Cicada never was a truly intelligent being, even if it was claimed to be the top in Spiritual qualities.

Gao Xuan clutched the Mechanical Iron Cicada, feeling quite content with the unexpected find today.

However, just taking the Iron Cicada and leaving might arouse suspicions from Hercules or others.

Furthermore, there was no rush. The marvels here were worth a more detailed look.

Gao Xuan examined each marvel, most of which had detailed descriptions. Just reading these descriptions vastly broadened his horizons.

Some interesting marvels, Gao Xuan even took out and played with for a while.

"This cover is quite interesting. You can ask it simple questions with a pen, and it can answer. Unfortunately, for complex questions, it just remains silent."

Helen pointed at a slightly old piece of parchment, saying, "I used it for homework a lot while growing up. After I turned ten, I couldn't use it anymore..."

Helen spoke enthusiastically, while Gao Xuan silently stared at the parchment, calmly controlling the surge of emotions within. "Truly interesting, may I take a look?"