Chapter 77: Forbidden Sea Dragonwhale
Moonlight shone onto the surface of the water and the damaged dharmaboat. Xu Qing stood there, somewhat in a daze as he listened to the surrounding disciples offer their congratulations.
Although he had gone into this Sea and Mountain Incantation breakthrough intentionally, the process had been dangerous, and his heart was still pounding as a result. He thought back to how his body had collapsed over and over again. Reliving the feeling, he couldn’t help but inhale deeply. If he hadn’t been able to rely on the violet crystal to recover, then the spectral drought demon would never have appeared, and he would be dead. Of course, the boost that came from surviving that ordeal was quite spectacular.
That was especially true of the now-vanishing spectral drought demon, whose terrifying strength had Xu Qing full of anticipation.
After a moment, he walked out onto the main deck, where the moonlight illuminated his black hair and gray robe. He stood tall and straight, his facial features cold but delicately attractive. He had the unusual air of a breakthrough still on him.
Looking around calmly at all the nearby disciples, he clasped hands and bowed.
“Many thanks, fellow disciples.”
The disciples returned the bow. They could detect the cultivation fluctuations that continued to roll off Xu Qing, and from that, they could deduce that his nighttime session of cultivation wasn’t going to end with this breakthrough. Feeling even more shocked than before, they went back into their dharmaboats, not wanting to disturb him any further.
It would have been completely inconceivable for something to happen like this a few months ago when Xu Qing first arrived at Seven Blood Eyes. But now it was a reality.
Xu Qing retracted his gaze and stepped back into the cabin. Sitting down cross-legged, he looked at the spirit convergence formation, and the spirit stone there, which was full of cracks and almost fully drained. He also looked around at the damage to his boat. He frowned.
He knew that his boat’s defenses had been destroyed by the sudden shockwave. The spirit stone had similarly suffered.
I wonder if the next Sea and Mountain Incantation breakthrough will be like this one....
He still felt a bit nervous, but more than that, disappointed. After all... it was going to be expensive to fix his dharmaboat. However, after thinking about what he’d acquired after killing the young merman, he felt a bit better.
That said, now wasn’t the time to be calculating money matters. Stowing his anxiety regarding the Sea and Mountain Incantation breakthrough, he focused on his Seaforming Scripture, which was currently roiling on the verge of its own breakthrough.
Taking a deep breath, he replaced the depleted spirit stone in the formation, then reactivated the boat’s defenses.
Then he looked at the moonlight streaming down to hit the boat itself, and after mulling the matter over, he added a second spirit stone. Then he performed an incantation gesture, and the dharmaboat rumbled as the power of the two stones added further strength to the defenses. A moment later, even the moonlight was completely blocked out.
Having accomplished that, he closed his eyes and sensed the power flowing through him, which was many times greater than before.
Previously, he had already been as strong as the great circle of the Sea and Mountain Incantation. Now that he had burst through the previous shackles, his fleshly body power had reached an even higher level.
It was so intense that Xu Qing knew he wouldn’t even need to utilize the Seaforming Scripture to strike fear into the heart of Patriarch Golden Vajra Warrior. He could do that with a single punch from the Sea and Mountain Incantation. It made sense considering that he was the first person, whether in ancient times or modern, to cultivate the Sea and Mountain Incantation to this level.
In the past, the hobgoblin was the limit. But now the spectral hobgoblin had experienced an unheard-of transformation into a drought demon. Xu Qing could still sense that arid dryness and mad desire to scorch all living things.
What was more, the spectral drought demon could be considered a newborn while in the eighth level. Xu Qing could hardly imagine what it would be like in the ninth level. And when he reached the tenth level, which was the true great circle, he had to wonder... would the drought demon transform again?
At this point, there was no one who could give him guidance regarding the Sea and Mountain Incantation. Not even its creator had accomplished what Xu Qing had.
After pondering the situation for a bit, he started working with the Seaforming Scripture.
Time slipped by slowly but surely. Two hours later, a wind kicked up in Harbor 79....
As it passed over the water, it converged on Xu Qing’s dharmaboat, where it created a vortex, like a black hole that caused all the spirit power in the area to rumble toward it. As the wind blew, the boats in the harbor swayed up and down. All of the Seventh Peak disciples there looked back to the spot they had been focused on before, as if they all wanted to witness Xu Qing’s rise to prominence.
Majestic streams of spirit power struggled to outdo each other as they rushed toward Xu Qing’s boat, where they poured into him and converged in his spirit sea.
Every time the Seaforming Scripture powered up, that sea grew by 30 meters. Although that growth included both its surface area and depth, looking at it from above, it was like watching a small circle grow into a larger circle. As Xu Qing neared the breakthrough point, the aura of the Forbidden Sea entered him with the spirit power, causing rumbling and cracking sounds to fill him. At the same time, his spirit sea expanded.
As it broke past the previous limit, it reached an extent of 240 meters.
However, things weren’t over yet. As the spirit power continued to course madly through him, the sea expanded further.
246. 249. 252.
It continued all the way to 261. Only then did the spirit sea seem full. Xu Qing opened his eyes, and violet light glittered brightly. At the same time, something about him seemed beyond that which was mortal.
“Dragonwhale,” he murmured, waving his right hand. Something like the howl of a dragon erupted from within him, while at the same time, a head burrowed out from his chest that resembled both a dragon and a whale. It was pitch black and emanated a shocking and ghastly aura.
It howled as it emerged from Xu Qing, growing larger and larger, smashing through the dharmaboat defenses to rise overhead.
It was fully 240 meters in length and had numerous swaying tentacles that emanated a blue fluorescence. As it appeared, the rumbling sounds caused waves to roll across the surface of the water; if this dragonwhale crashed down, it would surely unleash force that would cause mountains to shake.
The disciples in the surrounding dharmaboats were shocked.
“Forbidden Sea dragonwhale!”
“That’s the characteristic magic from the eighth level of the Seaforming Scripture! But not everybody can form a dragonwhale in the eighth level. You have to have an exceptional level of mastery to pull it off!”
“Xu Qing unleashed a shocking display of fleshly body power earlier. Now that his magical techniques have reached the eighth level....”
“This battle prowess....”
Meanwhile, Xu Qing sat cross-legged in his dharmaboat, looking up at the dragonwhale undulating above. His eyes shone brightly; he had been looking forward to this day.
The Seaforming Scripture description mentioned that when reaching the eighth level and forming a spirit sea of 240 meters, it was possible to form a Forbidden Sea dragonwhale. It was the result of a magical technique, and would exist permanently within him. The whale would swim in the sea, accompanying a Seventh Peak disciple and their dharmaboats as they traveled about. In other words, they could provide major assistance to the disciples when they went out to the open sea.
However, forming the dragonwhale required a high level of control, so not all disciples could succeed when reaching the eighth level.
I finally reached this level. Then he exercised a thought, and the dragonwhale roared as it shot down into the water in a huge splash. Afterward, it was nowhere to be seen. However, when Xu Qing sent his thoughts out, the dragonwhale would form again in the water. The Forbidden Sea dragonwhale was... a watershed point for Seventh Peak disciples!
If I ran into Patriarch Golden Vajra Warrior out on the open sea, I’d probably be able to cut him down!
Xu Qing’s eyes glittered.
If I wasn’t on the open sea, though, I would have to pay a huge price just to seriously injure him. I need to go out to sea. I need to improve my cultivation base, get more resources, then return... and figure out a way to slaughter Patriarch Golden Vajra Warrior!
At daybreak I’m going to go upgrade my dharmaboat. And hopefully, I’ll be able to go out to sea tomorrow. Worst-case scenario, I’ll aim for the day after!
Xu Qing could also tell that along with his double breakthrough in both fleshly body and cultivation base, he had a more subtle level of control over his shadow.
That made him even more confident than before.
Meanwhile, all of the disciples in the harbor around him had heard the roar of the dragonwhale. It was a unique sound that most people wouldn’t recognize. But disciples of the Seventh Peak knew exactly what it was….
***
In the Coastguard Division in Harbor 32, a huge battleship was leaving the port. Coastguard battleships were unique, and very different from the disciples’ dharmaboats.
A young man in a gray robe stood on the deck of the battleship, pulsing with powerful fluctuations. He had blue hair and golden eyes, and as he gazed off into the distance, he murmured, “So, another person reached the eighth level. And they formed a dragonwhale. Whoever this is, they’re not an ordinary person.... Very interesting.”
“Do you want me to make some inquiries to find out more information?” asked one of the seven or eight Coastguard Division disciples behind him.
Unexpectedly, one of those disciples was Zhou Qingpeng, who stood there looking cautious and somewhat timid.
As he had mentioned during the reunion dinner, he had received a recommendation to work with a chosen disciple in the Coastguard Division. It was the young man with blue hair, who was generally known as the number one Qi Condensation disciple in the Seventh Peak. Even some conclave disciples would call him ‘Fellow Daoist.’ He was Ding Xiaohai.
“Wait until we get back,” Ding Xiaohai said coolly. Then he looked away.
***
Around the same time, the Captain reclined comfortably in his chair in the Violent Crimes Division, munching on a rather rare star-shaped fruit. He also noticed what was happening, and it caused him to look in the direction of Harbor 79. He smiled.
So, he was in such a good mood he broke through? What a straightforward kid.... I like him, but he’s still a bit too weak. I really can’t have someone so weak in my unit. Maybe I should find a few people for him to kill?
The Captain put down the fruit and started to think deeply about the issue. He really was a freak, just like Zhang San said.
***
That night, quite a few people from the Seventh Peak noticed Xu Qing’s dragonwhale. It led to a variety of reactions. Some people felt anticipation, others admiration, and others, envy. There were also some people in the Port District who felt fury and grief. And those were... the Merfolk cultivators.
Several people had gathered in the shadowy alley where the young merman had died. In front of the group were two figures, one short and one tall. They were sisters, and they were the older cousins of the young merman, as well as the lovers of Third Highness. The oldest sister seemed calm, but the younger one stood there trembling, her gills flared and her eyes burning with killing intent.
Off to the side was an old merman, who seemed to wallow in pain and bitterness as he said, “This is where His Highness’s aura vanished. However, this area has clearly been cleaned up. There aren’t any clues to determine what happened. Given His Highness’s strength and status, I’d say he probably isn’t dead, just missing. Although, surely his life slip—“
“His Highness’s life slip shattered,” said the younger of the two sisters through gritted teeth.
The old merman’s face went pale. As a dharma protector, he knew that he should face consequences for a mistake like this. However, he had only been following orders. He had been strictly prohibited from following His Highness earlier that night. Of course, he had an idea about the young merman’s secret hobby. That said, he could never have guessed that something like this would happen....
“Could it be the work of Seven Blood Eyes leadership?” the old merman asked hesitantly.
“If Seven Blood Eyes leadership wanted to kill someone, would they need to cover it up?” the older of the two young mermaids said, her voice cold. “Furthermore, His Highness’s bag of holding had a wish box in it. That item is very important, and we can’t let it fall into the hands of a random person.”
“Sister,” the younger mermaid said angrily, “His Highness perished! We need to be thinking about revenge! Why are you so focused on the wish box??”
“You know full well how important a wish box is. It’s a gift that represents an entire epoch!”
“All I know is that His Highness perished, and we need to track down the killer!”
The two sisters glared at each other for a long moment. Then the older sister said, “You want revenge. I want the wish box. We can do both. As a member of the imperial clan, His Highness’s blood can be tracked. If the killer is nearby, we should be able to sense it. First, we need to identify all the people His Highness had conflicts with recently. That includes the family members of anyone he tortured and killed. We need to investigate all of them. I want to know who had the guts to kill the crown prince of our people!”
Off to the side, the younger sister ground her teeth, her eyes shining with madness. “After we find him, I’m going to torment him! I’ll make him and his family beg for death. They’ll howl in pain and grief! Then I’ll force their souls into the bodies of shrimps, and eat them!”