...
“It really worked!!”
A moment later, the three of them departed from the desolate island. Hai Ying sat cross-legged on the flying boat, her face still filled with disbelief.
Tu Jiuxiao’s gaze remained fixed on Corn, who was scuffling and playing with Hongluo. He paused for a moment before remarking:
“This little pet of Ma Jiu’s should be a special kind of demon pet within the Demon race, known as a treasure-seeking mouse.
This mouse is native only to the South Province Continent and rarely appears in the North Province. Moreover, they are timid, distant with humans, and notoriously bad-tempered—so prone to explosive rage that they can burst their own lungs and die.
It is rare to see a treasure-seeking mouse so affectionate toward a human. That alone proves how genuinely Ma Jiu treats it.”
“Fellow Daoist Jiuxiao has a keen eye.”
Nan Zhi scratched Corn’s head and forcibly separated the little hedgehog and the treasure-seeking mouse, perching one on each of her shoulders.
“We don’t need the Off-Sea Rosy-Face Fruit to save our lives. We only need a single fruit to qualify for the trial. Taking just one makes things far smoother.”
Before she could finish her sentence, she suddenly knitted her brows and looked toward the desolate island in the distance.
“Bang, bang, bang!”
“Crash! Crash! Crash!”
Waves surged violently as dozens of ten-zhang-high crests churned up from the seabed. The waters thrashed in turbulent torrents, with figures flashing within the surge before vanishing beneath the waves just moments later.
“Dong, dong, dong!”
“Dong, dong, dong!”
The herd of Bo beasts roared, the reverberating clamor echoing like thunderous war drums, drowning out desperate screams.
—It seemed that after them, others had followed their example and landed on the island, only to enrage the Bo beasts.
The three exchanged glances, all the more grateful that they had not acted recklessly.
...
Riding the small boat, the three took turns steering. After traveling forward for more than two days, they finally sighted other landmasses, along with scattered islands dotting the various sea regions.
However, on their return journey, a talisman shot through the air from an angle, slamming heavily against the flying boat!
Tu Jiuxiao, who had been focusing on piloting the flying boat, lost his concentration for a fraction of a second, causing the flying boat to plummet rapidly from the sky!
“Steady!”
Nan Zhi immediately stepped forward to stabilize the flying boat and extended her divine sense. Sure enough, atop a nearby cliff, someone was blocking their path.
They were three rogue cultivators.
One was a yaksha, wearing a string of eight or nine bone tuzi across its chest. A bulging bump protruded from its forehead, its skin was greenish-blue all over, and its large fangs jutted outward from a hideous face.
Another was a Wen-cultivator holding a Judge's Pen, plain-looking and dressed simply, with two storage bags and a pair of flying daggers hanging from his waist.
The last was a Body-cultivator with a long saber resting across his shoulder, his bulging muscles straining against his clothes, a scar carved into his face, and a sinister, grotesque countenance.
Their cultivations were fairly similar: one was at the second-revolution demon core, while the remaining two were at Foundation Establishment Level 3 and Foundation Establishment Level 2.
The three seemed to have used some kind of concealment talisman. Unfortunately for them, the moment they attacked the flying boat, three massive red dots instantly appeared on the map.
“Leave the one with the Judge's Pen to me! You take the rest!”
In an instant, Nan Zhi stored away Hongluo and Corn. The Fish-Dragon Guillotine appeared in her hand, and leaping into the air, she slashed straight down!
Regardless of friend or foe, blocking the path and launching a surprise attack with talismans meant they were up to no good!
The Fish-Dragon Guillotine cleaved through the wind. Before the three could react, their expressions shifted dramatically, and all of them hastily retreated. Yet Nan Zhi rode the wind, moving even faster!
“Boom!!”
The Fish-Dragon Guillotine slammed heavily against the cliff, cleaving straight through the massive boulder behind which the three had been hiding. Stone shards shattered outward and dust billowed. Knowing things were amiss, the trio fled at once.
“Where do you think you’re running?! Yaksha! Leave your life behind!”
Seeing the Sea Dragon Eyes (bone tuzi) around the yaksha’s neck, Hai Ying felt her blood boil with rage. Drawing her twin blades, she leaped forward and used brute force to slam the yaksha straight into the sea!
One was a Sea Dragon, the other a yaksha. One possessed a human torso with a serpentine tail and infinite strength; the other had a terrifying, ghostly face with blue skin and protruding fangs.
The two demons clashed in the water, sending spray flying and churning the sea until nearby fish and shrimp floated belly-up!
On the other side, Tu Jiuxiao was equally swift and decisive. A flash of sword light surged, drawing the saber-wielding swordsman into a fierce duel.
“Not good! Tough targets, run!”
The Wen-cultivator with the Judge's Pen cried out. But before he could even catch his breath, flecks of blade light flashed before his eyes as Nan Zhi closed in by several inches, nearly severing the tendons in his wrist!
“What a ferocious fellow Daoist! It was just a talisman, is there any need for lethal strikes?!”
The Wen-cultivator gave a strained smile and threw out five talismans inscribed with Fire Curses. With a sharp grunt, his chest puffed up, and a blast of scorching flames spewed from his mouth!
“What foolish words! The three of you ambushed us along our path—could that possibly be with good intentions?!”
Unfazed, Nan Zhi advanced instead of retreating. Wielding the Fish-Dragon Guillotine with sweeping, powerful strokes, the blade tip, charged with Will to Fight, slashed down. It sliced straight through the flames and lopped off one of the man’s hands!
“Sir! Why press so hard and make every strike lethal?!”
The Wen-cultivator was no novice either. He immediately tapped his toes on the ground, leaping back more than a dozen zhang. Holding his brush in his mouth, he drew a talisman with his own blood to seal the acupoints on his severed wrist, shouting:
“Spare us today, and when we meet again in the future, we can—”
Before finishing his words, a sinister gleam flashed in the man’s eyes. The hand concealed behind his back flung a distinctively colored talisman. With a loud boom, a massive plume of dense smoke exploded, concealing his fleeing figure!
A foul, putrid stench rushed at her, its intense pungency causing Nan Zhi to reflexively wrinkle her nose.
That split second of hesitation allowed the silhouette behind the smoke to dive into the sea!
Down below!
Seeing the man flee into the water, Nan Zhi did not underestimate the enemy or dive rashly into the ocean. Instead, following closely behind, she pressed her fingers together as lightning flashed across her palm, and slammed a fist down onto the sea surface!
“Boom!!”
“Rumble, rumble, rumble!”
A full-strength Thunder Curse unleashed at Foundation Establishment Level 7 carried extraordinary power. Arcs of lightning surged in all directions and silver dragons writhed, leaving a burnt stench lingering across a hundred-meter radius of the water.
A second later, two silhouettes slowly floated to the surface.
The humanoid one was the Wen-cultivator with the Judge's Pen.
The demon beast was a massive Alligator Dragon.
The Judge's Pen cultivator was charred black all over, his storage bags reduced to ashes.
The Alligator Dragon, resembling a giant crocodile, was belly-up. Its bumpy, black-armored back faced downward, revealing its soft, pale belly.
—As it turned out, an accomplice had been lurking underwater all along.
The group ambushed passing cultivators with talismans while the Alligator Dragon concealed beneath the waves launched surprise attacks from below. Looking at how practiced they were, this was clearly not their first time.
【Congratulations to the cultivator for slaying the level 27 cultivator “Wen Shengbi.” Obtained: Talisman Brush (Green Quality) ×1, Upgrade EXP ×100】
【Congratulations to the cultivator for slaying the level 25 demon cultivator “Diao Ada.” Obtained: Alligator Dragon Armor (Blue Quality) ×1, Upgrade EXP ×100】
Nan Zhi severed the Wen-cultivator’s neck to ensure he would not revive before dragging the dead Alligator Dragon ashore.
“I still need more combat experience. If I hadn’t caught up just now, he likely would’ve escaped. In the future, I must first use formations to block the route and shut the door to beat the dog—that’s the only foolproof way.”
Nan Zhi tossed down the Alligator Dragon corpse and engaged in deep reflection.
Not all battles were the same.
Previously, when she fought Qinglong, she was facing a high-level cultivator and could only flee relentlessly, defeating him only by borrowing the intent of heavenly lightning.
Otherwise, she would have had zero chance of winning and might not have even escaped with her life.
As for slaying Sky Demons, humans and Sky Demons fought to the bitter end. Though the demons had superior numbers, they did not know how to use supplementary tools like talismans or formations.
Battling other cultivators was a completely different matter.
In a duel between cultivators, both sides competed to inflict maximum damage and secure victory within the limits of their spiritual energy reserves.
Simply put, it was about managing mana, controlling skill accuracy as much as possible, ensuring every skill hit the enemy, and depleting their health bar.
Just now, the Wen-cultivator had kept trying to divert her attention, and he was decisive: after losing a hand, his first thought was not revenge, but escape.
It seemed she still had a lot to learn.
Nan Zhi quietly noted the lesson and resolved to study talismans once she returned. Even if she couldn’t master them, she at least needed to understand their fundamental operating principles.
For example, the fire-breathing talisman from earlier, or that strange talisman emitting a foul stench.
Another item was added to her study checklist.
Rate on N.U.
