Stranger Danger

That's right. The Sea Burning Demonic Fire did not break out from one region and spread to other regions only. It could emerge from several or even dozens of sea regions at the same time.

This was another reason why the Sea Burning Demonic Fire was so feared.

If the Sea Burning Demonic Fire only broke out from one area and spread to other regions from there, then it would have been easy to deal with. As long as the outbreak was discovered in time, the Profound Alliance absolutely possessed the strength to confine it to a certain area and prevent it from spreading. Even if they couldn't, they would have more than enough time to evacuate the people and minimize the damage.

Unfortunately, that wasn't the case. The outbreak—especially a large-scale outbreak—usually happened at many different places at the same time. Not only did it happen suddenly, it affected large swathes of areas in very little time. It was simply impossible to defend against.

The infamous Sea Burning Demonic Fire incident from over four hundred years ago was one such case. It was estimated that the Sea Burning Demonic Fire had broken out of seven to eight hundred places at the same time and affected severalmillionkilometers of sea. The Profound Alliance only had so many elites, and it was far too easy to attend to one thing only to lose sight of another. They simply did not possess the numbers to save everyone. That was why it ended up being one of the most tragic and epic disasters in the history of the Profound Alliance.

Learning from past mistakes, the Profound Alliance came up with a series of emergency measures and countermeasures. One of them was that an outbreak must be reported to the headquarters at first notice. This was so that the Profound Alliance could measure the scale of the Sea Burning Demonic Fire accurately and plan accordingly.

Besides that, the Profound Alliance had set up observation points in many places to keep an eye out for the Sea Burning Demonic Fire.

Thanks to this, one could find out roughly how big and serious the outbreak was just by contacting the Profound Alliance.

"Manshan, it's bad..." It was at this moment Ming Yueying descended from the sky. Her voice reached them before her person.

Seeing his wife's pale complexion and panicked gestures, Jin Manshan felt his heart sink to the bottom. He had a bad feeling about this.

"I just contacted the Profound Alliance. Their Fire Watcher told me that, as of the latest update, at least four hundred outbreaks points had been spotted, and over hundreds of thousands of kilometers of sea have already been affected by the Sea Burning Demonic Fire. This includes the sea regions surrounding the Southern Sea Sword Sect, the Floating Light Celestial Island, the Sun Worship Divine Kingdom, and the Profound Moon Dynasty."

Ming Yueying spilled it all as soon as she landed on the tower. Her expression was fearful, and her body was trembling. She was so stunned and afraid she didn't even notice Ye Qing and Feng Qingyou standing right next to her husband.

"What? Four hundred?" Jin Manshan staggered on his feet, eyes wide and face turning as white as a sheet.

"How... How is this possible?"

He had experienced the Sea Burning Demonic Fire one time in his life, and the scale of that outbreak was, frankly, pretty small. There were only thirty or so outbreak points, and only tens of thousands of kilometers of sea were affected. Even so, tens of thousands of people had died as a result.

That was why he knew from the get go that this latest outbreak would be a big one. However, the ugly truth had completely exceeded his imagination!

Four hundred outbreak points, hundreds of thousands of kilometers of sea regions affected. What did this mean?

It meant that the scale of this outbreak was at least a dozen times bigger than the one before.

It meant that a hundred thousand, maybe even several hundred thousand lives would be lost.

It meant that Gold Island was most likely going to be on its own.

It meant that Gold Island was most likely going to bedestroyed.

The worst part? This was just the preliminary judgment. It was entirely possible that there were more outbreak points than this. It could be five hundred, six hundred, seven hundred, or more. It could be a reenactment of the tragedy from four hundred years ago.

Jin Manshan felt like he was about to faint. Despair was creeping all over him.

"It's over... it's over..."

"Island Lord Jin... now is not the time to be stunned." It was at this moment a hand patted him gently on the shoulder. The hand instantly chased away the coldness and despair in his heart, and the voice calmed down his rampant emotions.

Jin Manshan subconsciously looked up and met eyes with Ye Qing. His eyes were dazzling, hopeful, and wonderful like the morning sun.

"Everyone on Gold Island is counting on you. If you allow yourself to succumb to fear and despair, then what will happen to all the people on the island?"

"But... but... this outbreak is bigger than anything I could have dreamed of. What should I do? What can I do?" Jin Manshan mumbled.

Ye Qing replied quietly, "So what? Are you going to give up just because the scale of this outbreak is massive, and no one is going to help you? Are you just going to wait for death and destruction to claim you?"

"I... of course not."

Ashamed, Jin Manshan mustered himself and declared in a determined voice, "I won't give up."

Ye Qing smiled. "Good. The Sea Burning Demonic Fire is undeniably scary, but with effort and unity, who is to say we cannot overcome this crisis?"

Jin Manshan replied with deep shame, "You're right, warrior. I'm sorry I showed you my pathetic side."

"It's only human. You do not need to blame yourself."

Ye Qing consoled him. "Besides, as strange as this demonic fire is, it is not necessarily impossible to resolve it."

Jin Manshan's eyes lit up, and Ming Yueying looked at Ye Qing with anticipation. "Do you know a way to neutralize it, warrior?"

"Not yet." The light in Jin Manshan and Ming Yueying's eyes dimmed when they heard this. They were just feeling disappointed when Ye Qing added, "However, we made some interesting discoveries a while ago. It may lead us to locate the source of the demonic fire and a solution."

"Are you sure about this?" Jin Manshan exclaimed with pleasant surprise.

Ye Qing did not give him a promise. "It's possible, but I can't give you any guarantees."

"So long as there is a chance!" Hope lit up in Jin Manshan's heart once more. Although he didn't know if Ye Qing was telling the truth or lying to him, he would prefer to treat it as the truth.

Hope was necessary to pull one away from the jaws of despair.

"If the two of you really can locate the source of the demonic fire and the solution to neutralize it once and for all, then you will become the benefactor of Gold Island—no, the Profound Alliance and all humans who live on these seas, seniors. We will be forever grateful!"

Jin Manshan attempted to bow to Ye Qing and Feng Qingyou, but Ye Qing stopped him. "You flatter us, island lord. It is just our natural responsibility. Besides, we will do our best, but we do not yet know if we will succeed."

"Therefore, you should still take charge of Gold Island and organize the people to resist the demonic fire. Anything is better than losing oneself to panic and giving up."

"But of course. We will do our best, warrior, Miss." Jin Manshan promised.

"In that case, we shan't take up your time any longer."

Ye Qing saluted Jin Manshan. "Do not hesitate to seek us out if you encounter any problems, island lord."

"We will. Thank you, and please make yourself comfortable." Jin Manshan and Ming Yueying saluted them.

"Very well."

Ye Qing nodded and took his leave with Feng Qingyou.

With Jin Manshan at the helm, Gold Island should not collapse on its own in the short term. Their first priority right now was to discover the source of the demonic fire and find a solution.