# Chapter 3: Sea God Cult Faction (If you choose this faction and are exposed, you will be hunted by the Assassins).
...
This sudden multiple-choice question, no, it should be a death sentence, caused Molei, Yueshitu, and Haomei to all choose the "Assassin Faction" without hesitation. For this assassination, their initial faction was this side. How to choose was naturally without hesitation.
As soon as they made their choice, the three received a prompt simultaneously.
[You have triggered the first ring of this mission: Witness.]
Mission Brief: Leave the Sea Clan Main City alive.
Mission Time Limit: None.
Mission Reward: Accumulated to the final stage. After completing the final stage, it will be distributed in the form of a settlement.
Mission Penalty: None.
...
Just as Molei and the other two were still considering how to proceed, a deep middle-aged male voice came from behind them.
"Are the three of you friends of the Secret Rune Master?"
"Ah? Ah, yes, yes."
Molei answered after being stunned for a moment. According to the original plan, this was indeed the case. However, the problem was that the current plan had a flaw. The assassination of the Sea King seemed to have succeeded. If so, should the plan continue?
To be safe, Molei checked the team channel to see if Su Xiao had posted any messages. She found that because she was within the event area and Su Xiao was outside this area, the two sides could not communicate through such means. To contact each other, they would have to bear the risk of exposure and use communication devices. This was the balance caused by the notarization mechanism.
"Three, follow me."
The contact person turned and walked away. Vaguely, Molei heard him muttering under his breath, "Making the assassination of the Sea King look like it was actually blasted to pieces," "Truly professionals," and similar words.
Molei, Yueshitu, and Haomei looked at each other. Now that the Sea Clan Main City was definitely sealed off, escaping was impossible. There were only two choices: one was to use expensive life-saving props to get out, and the other was to follow the contact person to leave this high-walled area that was about to be strictly inspected.
After winding through a secret passage and passing through several one-way teleportation arrays, the contact person finally brought Molei and the other two to the predetermined location. Upon arriving here, Haomei's gaze became extremely solemn. Just as she was about to speak, a squad of Sea Clan Imperial Guards approached. The captain among them sternly asked:
"Are these the two gem masters?"
"Yes, but you'd better watch your tone."
The contact person spoke with some dissatisfaction. Although the Imperial Guard squad leader's gaze became more dangerous, he ultimately did not flare up. He even nodded to Molei and the other two and scolded Haomei: "You were told to pick up two people, and you're dawdling. Hurry up. It seems something happened on the main street. After you enter the workshop district, don't wander around."
Haomei was from the Sea Clan faction and, under Kaisa's recommendation, held a position in a subordinate department of the Main City Imperial Guards. It was normal for the Imperial Guard captain to command her now.
Although Haomei looked unconvinced, she chose to endure it. This was the normal reaction of a contractor from the Paradise faction after joining the Sea Clan. If Haomei had actually obeyed obediently, the Imperial Guard captain would have immediately ordered the arrest of everyone present. This was the Sea Clan Main City, after all. Any suspicious behavior triggering a chain reaction was not an overreaction.
After passing through three checkpoints guarded by Sea Clan soldiers, Molei, Yueshitu, and Haomei entered the workshop district. Under the contact person's guidance, they arrived at a three-story small building. As soon as they entered, the three saw over a dozen craftsmen.
These craftsmen, both male and female, were all top experts in their respective fields, each with unique aura fluctuations. They shared one identity: disciples of the Dwarf King.
Seeing Molei and the others arrive, the dozen or so master-level craftsmen present stood up to welcome them. The leading blacksmith said, "You three have worked hard. It's a pity we cannot warmly entertain you. The most important thing now is how we escape this place."
As soon as these words were spoken, the gazes of everyone in the room focused on Molei and the other two. The atmosphere immediately became awkward. Molei checked the team channel again; there was still no message. Moreover, Kaisa, who was supposed to be the contact person, was nowhere to be seen. This made her share the same thought as the dozen or so craftsmen present: how were they going to get out of here?
...
"Hmm? Molei and the others went to the workshop district?"
Su Xiao frowned as he listened to Baha's narration. Originally, the plan's procedure was: assassinate the Sea King to throw the Main City into chaos, then take the opportunity to rescue the Dwarf King. At least, that was the plan on the surface.
But now, the assassination seemed to have succeeded. The reason for saying "seemed" was because Su Xiao was certain that the Sea King was not dead. The kill prompt was very strange. There was only one line: [You have killed the Sea King], with no corresponding rewards at all.
Without thinking, he knew this was Shenfu's doing.
"The Sea Clan Main City still hasn't made any moves?"
Su Xiao spoke with a hint of suspicion in his eyes. If Shenfu and the Sea King were in collusion, then the Sea Clan Main City should have taken action by now. Whatever the Sea King's reason for faking his death, his purpose should soon become apparent.
In reality, the Sea King and Shenfu's plan was indeed like this. However, the problem was that the Sea King's subordinates' spies had detected that Molei, Yueshitu, and Haomei, Su Xiao's accomplices, had already infiltrated the workshop district.
According to the Sea King and Shenfu's plan, after the fake assassination, all of Su Xiao's plans should have been thrown into disarray. There should have been no possibility of Molei and the others immediately infiltrating the workshop district.
The problem lay here. For some unknown reason, Molei and the others had acted according to the original plan. This not only confused Su Xiao but also left the Sea King and Shenfu at a loss. This caused both sides of old schemers to dare not act rashly, fearing that this was the other side's backup plan.
However, the problem was that Molei and the others' actions were really not a backup plan. On the contrary, they were now trapped in the workshop district.
In fact, Molei and the others were also quite helpless. After the assassination began, they thought they only had two choices: one was to use life-saving props to escape, and the other was to follow the contact person. They chose the latter, leading to the current situation.
In reality, there was another group that was even more bewildered: the Sea God Cult. This side had long since completely colluded with Arcane Eternal Star, planning to eliminate the current Sea King and install someone from the Sea God Cult in power.
In fact, the Sea God Cult was also somewhat forced into this. The current Sea King had indeed seized power opportunistically, but being able to contend with the Beast King for so many years, this was also a very ruthless ruler. Apart from military force, all his other abilities were maxed out.
The long-standing interweaving of royal power and divine power in the Sea Clan had been a thorn in the Sea King's side. He had long planned to eradicate the Sea God Cult.
The Sea God Cult naturally would not wait to die. The high-ranking members there discussed it and decided that since they were outmatched by the Sea King in every aspect and were being played by him, they might as well go for something drastic: eliminate him physically, i.e., assassinate the Sea King.
Coincidentally, a distinguished guest had recently arrived at the Sea Clan Main City, Yatuo Ancient City. The Sea God Cult decided to seize this opportunity to assassinate the Sea King.
Everything was ready. Just as the Sea King was about to arrive at the predetermined ambush location, a blood spear, surging with momentum and piercing through layers of space barriers, came flying. It bombarded the Sea King's carriage, blasting the "Sea King" inside to pieces.
Seeing this through a projection, the Sea God Cult's high-ranking members were extremely excited. One of them even laughed loudly and said, "I didn't expect our Sea God Cult to have such an assassination expert. Quickly bring this person to see me."
The Sea God Cult's high-ranking members were in a good mood, but the people below were confused. The Sea King had been blasted to pieces, but the problem was, they hadn't even made a move yet! Who did this?!
Overall, this matter could be divided into three factions.