Where the Black Crow and Jiao People kingdoms converged lay the Nine Bends and Eighteen Gorges of the Jiao People Sea.
This area spanned seventeen thousand li from east to west and eight thousand li from south to north. Teeming with Sky Demons, human presence was scarcely seen.
Nan Zhi, Hai Ying, and Tu Jiuxiao had parted ways after leaving the Jiao People Kingdom to slay demons individually, agreeing to report that they were safe once every ten days.
The Sea Market had issued Demon Hunting Maps indicating every region along the coasts of the three kingdoms where Sky Demons were known to haunt.
Being skilled and daring, Nan Zhi simply chose the Nine Bends and Eighteen Gorges, where even Golden Core cultivators dared not lightly set foot.
There was also technique to grinding points.
At worst, she could just die and start over.
“Clack, clack!”
“Boom! Boom boom!”
“Bang! Bang! Bang!”
Covered in hair, Magic Frogs surged forward wave upon wave. Emitting strange, bird-like “clack-clack-clack” noises from their mouths, they threw themselves toward Nan Zhi one after another.
Nan Zhi didn't even blink. Manipulating her spiritual energy to cast Five Elements techniques, she tried compressing her output to the absolute minimum.
【Earth Dragon Spike】
【Water Cage】
【Fire Pillar Blade】
【Wood Thorns】
Coastal reefs stood like a forest. Earth spikes pierced through the frogs' bodies, instantly turning into falling rocks that crushed the Magic Frogs to pieces.
Flowing seawater took the shape of birdcages, entrapping the low-level Sky Demons coming ashore so they could not budge an inch.
Arcs of flame resembled blades, the crimson fiery light almost dyeing half the beach red. Wood Thorns conjured out of thin air bristled with sharp barbs, disemboweling the enemies one by one!
She experimented with adjusting her spiritual power output, striving to improve the precision of her skills.
Wave after wave of spells crushed through. The Magic Frogs on the beach began realizing something was wrong, scuttling around like crabs, yet they still could not escape death.
The Magic Frogs were endless, and Nan Zhi repeated these experiments for a full half-month.
Whenever she sensed anomalies in the seawater or a High-level Sky Demon seemed to appear on the map, she would hide inside the flying boat, cover herself with the Spirit Swallowing Grass blanket, and play dead.
Her strategy was all about guerrilla warfare: when the enemy advances, we retreat; when the enemy retreats, we advance.
From her initial saturation approach of using cannons to swat mosquitoes, she had now mastered a fair portion of spiritual energy output control.
“Sorry, sorry, sorry, you're too bad...”
Reverting to her true form, Hongluo tiptoed toward a basketball-sized Magic Frog, summoning her courage to strike with the sharp spikes on her back:
“He-ya!”
After Nan Zhi’s meticulous feeding over such a long time, consuming countless good things, the little red hedgehog’s spikes had grown increasingly sharp—she only needed a single strike!
Already wounded, the Magic Frog didn't even have time to wail before letting out a “quack” and dying on the spot with its round, wide eyes open.
Nan Zhi nodded approvingly, feeling no pity simply because the creature looked cute.
These furry little things were considered Sky Demon variants. Anyone who had witnessed their destructive power would never utter such foolish words.
These little things were exceptionally difficult to deal with.
“Bang! Bang! Bang!”
“Bang, bang!”
Sensing danger, the Magic Frogs puffed up like inflated basketballs. Secretions of sticky grease oozed from their backs as they flew toward Nan Zhi—
“Go!”
Bringing two fingers together, Nan Zhi scooped up Hongluo and lightly tapped her toes, executing a flip to land aboard the flying boat. She watched as another large wave of Magic Frogs came ashore, completely swarming the spot where she had just stood with frenzied frogs!
The Magic Frogs had gone wild.
“Bang, bang, bang!”
“Bang! Bang, bang!”
“Bang, bang, bang!”
One Magic Frog after another flushed red as though infected. Continuous sounds of self-destruction echoed incessantly. The splattering grease rained onto the ground, instantly corroding the pebble beach into pitted craters.
Aboard the Splendid Platform, Nan Zhi had witnessed just how terrifying this acid was.
If an ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivator was splashed by even a speck of this acid, their flesh would dissolve away, requiring rootless water to wash clean.
If someone were trapped amidst a swarm of Magic Frogs, no matter what formations or dharma treasures they had, after holding out for a while, they would eventually be gnawed clean by these sharp-toothed little terrors.
Wherever the Magic Frogs passed, they devoured everything: the beaches that shrimp and crabs depended on for survival, the corals where sea fish hid from natural predators, aquatic weeds in the water, fish in the sea, birds along the shore, plants on land...
As long as something contained spiritual energy, it was their food.
Where the frog swarm passed, nothing was left behind but bare, empty seawater.
When a massive red dot passed by on the map, Nan Zhi draped the Spirit Swallowing Grass blanket over the flying boat, hugging Hongluo and exposing only her eyes as she quietly observed her surroundings.
Having lost their target, the frog swarm gradually calmed down.
“I wonder how Tu Jiuxiao and Hai Ying are doing over there.”
Only then did Nan Zhi break apart a Qi-Augmenting Pill to share with Hongluo, looking down over the edge of the flying boat.
With its nine bends and eighteen curves, the winding gorge connected the kingdoms of the Jiao People and Black Crow. The steep cliffs and sheer precipices were extraordinarily treacherous, easy to defend and difficult to attack.
Relying on this very terrain, the Jiao people used to herd sea fish and cultivate aquatic grass here. Fifty years ago, lush water plants flourished, and passing vessels could be seen everywhere.
With a bit of luck, one might even encounter Jiao people bursting into song, enjoying their melodious voices.
Looking at it now...
The sea was deep and desolate, faintly tinged with an ominous black. Corals and swimming fish were nowhere to be found beneath the waves; only dense swarms of Magic Frogs encroaching upon the seabed met the eye.
Beneath the cliffs hung numerous wreckage of treasure ships clinging to the precipices.
Aboard the abandoned treasure ships, silk fluttered in the wind. Artificial rockeries and pine trees had long fused with the cliff rock, while seabirds, shrimp, and crabs nested atop them, leaving not a shred of evidence that cultivators had ever existed there.
Strange rocks stood erect throughout the eighteen gorges, housing countless naturally formed karst caves. Whenever a High-level Sky Demon happened to pass, the Magic Frogs dwelling in the seawater would stir in agitation.
Within the bay, atop the treacherous reefs, strangely shaped mud nests built from piled sea-bottom black mud could occasionally be seen.
—Those were resting places used by the Jiao people when herding large sea fish.
Here, the Jiao people would herd large sea fish and cultivate a type of aquatic grass called “Water-Condensing Orchid.”
Water spirits were exceedingly fond of this water plant, condensing a unique secretion upon it.
The Jiao people would harvest this secretion and weave it with water into fabric, producing the priceless Jiao Silk.
Nan Zhi had seen Jiao Silk in Ao Mingzhu’s chambers.
Its color was the purest azure blue of the sea, instantly evoking the imagery of water blending seamlessly with the sky.
Lustrous water-light flowed across the silk. Under sunlight, its sheen shifted with time like ocean waves, radiant and dazzling.
Even used merely as decoration, it was magnificent beyond compare, let alone tailored into clothing and worn upon the body.
Every beauty-loving cultivator in the cultivation world took immense pride in owning a piece of Jiao Silk.
Regrettably, ever since the Nine Bends and Eighteen Gorges were overrun by swarms of Magic Frogs, the production of Jiao Silk had plummeted.
The remnants along the cliff edges offered a faint glimpse of the area’s past glory, though it was now utterly ruined by Sky Demons.
Nan Zhi only sighed in lament for a brief moment. Once the frog swarm quieted and the High-level Sky Demon moved away, she charged back into the frog swarm to unleash her spells once more:
【Earth Dragon Spike】
...
【Wood Thorns】!
【Congratulations to the cultivator for slaying the Level 12 red-named monster “Magic Frog.” Obtained EXP × 40, Magic Frog Spirit × 1, Rejuvenation Pill × 2】
【Congratulations to the cultivator for slaying the Level 11 red-named monster “Magic Frog.” Obtained EXP × 30, Magic Frog Spirit × 1】
...
【Congratulations to the cultivator for slaying the Level 14 red-named monster “Variant Magic Frog.” Obtained EXP × 50, Variant Magic Frog Spirit × 1, Rejuvenation Pill × 2】
System prompts chimed endlessly. Absorbed entirely in slaying demons, Nan Zhi completely forgot about the jade slip hanging at her waist.
The jade slip used for recording points flashed white light frantically, while ten thousand li away on the Sea Market's Demon Slaying Board, the points under the name “Ma Jiu” climbed steadily upward.
Slay one monster, enjoy two sets of point rewards.
It couldn't be any more generous.
Rate on N.U.
