Chapter 97: The Asuras Appear
It was a dark night without much wind. And when that meager wind hit the defenses of Xu Qing’s dharmaboat in Harbor 79, it dispersed into nothing. However, if it had been able to pierce the defenses and sweep through the dharmaboat, it would have found... no one.
Some distance away, Xu Qing waited quietly in the shadows, leaning against the wall of a building, his arms crossed over his chest as he watched his dharmaboat. His eyes were sharp and focused.
I wonder if they’ll come tonight. He looked up at the dark sky. It seems like a good night for killing.
It made him think of his return trip out at sea, when he looked up at those black clouds and caught a glimpse of the hawk-like phoenix.
After retrieving his dharmaboat from Zhang San, he had asked about that entity, and Zhang San told him that it had something to do with the biggest forbidden region in the continent of South Phoenix: Forbidden by the Phoenix. The phoenix was the emperor of that forbidden region, and its name was Flame Phoenix! The place was called Forbidden by the Phoenix because of that phoenix. It was a supreme entity that maintained dominance, not just over that forbidden region, but over all of South Phoenix. Furthermore, the name South Phoenix also came from that phoenix!
It was said that, to the south of the Revered Ancient mainland, there was a godly entity, a phoenix, that danced in the highest heavens. Its might caused the dome of heaven to grow dark, and it inspired awe among all living beings. It was named Flame Phoenix, and its dwelling place was an island that came to be called South Phoenix.
Zhang San didn’t know any more details than that.
Flame Phoenix, Xu Qing thought. As he furthered his cultivation, broadened his horizons, and expanded his knowledge, he came to know a lot more about the world he lived in.
The wind blew, carrying with it the sound of fabric brushing against fabric. That caught Xu Qing’s attention, so he put aside thoughts of Flame Phoenix and turned his cold gaze to a spot further down the harbor.
Soon enough, he caught sight of five figures. Three men. Two women.
Xu Qing was familiar with these women. Whether it was the scent of the sea that surrounded them, or their physical appearance, he realized instantly that they were sisters related to the young merman he’d killed. They had strong cultivation bases. One was in the ninth level of Qi Condensation, and the other was in the great circle. Behind them were three attendants who were also Merfolk cultivators. They appeared to have cultivation bases in the eighth level of Qi Condensation, and in the light of the moon, their features were vicious and full of killing intent.
Xu Qing looked at them coldly, his eyes narrowed. However, he didn’t take any action, he simply watched them.
Where are the Foundation Establishment dharma protectors?
As he watched, the five Merfolk made their way clear of some patrolling disciples, then approached his dharmaboat.
Perhaps they felt confident because of their association with Third Highness. Or maybe it was simply their Merfolk arrogance. Regardless, upon nearing the dharmaboat, the younger sister made as if to charge forth in attack.
The older sister reached out to stop her. The older sister was obviously the more prudent of the two, and didn’t want to act blindly. Lifting her right hand, she produced a talisman treasure. It wasn’t a talisman used for attacking purposes, though, but for surveillance.
After only a few breaths of time, Xu Qing could tell that the two mermaid sisters knew he wasn’t in the boat. Then he watched as they backed up as if to leave. His eyes grew colder. The reason he’d left his boat was that he didn’t want to kill anyone near it. If he did, it would be too obvious what happened, and there could be consequences.
Of course, if they actually managed to get past the defenses and get on board, he had ways to deal with them. But now that the five Merfolk were leaving, he would simply follow them and pick them off one by one from the shadows.
However, after they only took a few steps, the older sister’s expression flickered, and she suddenly turned and looked directly at the spot where Xu Qing was hiding.
“Bloodline curse fluctuations!” she said. “Our brother’s killer is right there!”
The moment the words left her mouth, the younger sister looked over, her green eyes burning with killing intent. She charged forward, right toward Xu Qing. At the same time, the three attendants’ killing intent raged, and they also charged toward him.
So, they noticed me.
Xu Qing frowned. If he killed Third Highness’ people right here, it would surely attract attention. Besides, there was also the chance that they could call for backup.
Therefore, as they charged forth, he flew backward, keeping his aura reined in and also trying to make himself look panicked. Hopefully, if they thought he was scared, it would decrease the likelihood they would send a message for help.
That said, he didn’t plan to get involved in a prolonged fight. As long as he could lead them to an out-of-the-way location, he would strike like lightning.
And thus, the five Merfolk began chasing him. The younger sister was in the lead, her eyes murderous. As she dashed forward, she waved her hands, causing black bubbles to appear around her and then shoot toward the ‘panicking’ Xu Qing. As the bubbles neared him, he could sense the fluctuations of a magical technique, as well as a very strong level of mutagen. This attack was obviously designed to pollute him.
“So, you killed my cousin! Now that we found you, I’m going to make you wish you could die!”
Behind her, the three Merfolk attendants all pulled out prized treasures.
One of them had a bone sword. The second used an item that covered his hands with scales that rapidly turned into poison spikes. Finally, a tumor appeared on the back of the third, growing so rapidly it burst through his clothing. Then it exploded, sending out a cloud of poison gas that formed the image of an evil ghost and shot toward Xu Qing.
The older sister was in the very back. She was obviously the most cautious of the group, and didn’t want to get too close to Xu Qing. She had some sort of defensive talisman treasure in her hand.
Xu Qing didn’t look at any of the magical techniques being used. Instead, he just picked up speed.
By the time they were about to hit him, he had reached a remote corner of the harbor. Suddenly stopping in place, he turned, his eyes full of killing intent. Then he shot toward the Merfolk, moving many times faster than moments before.
In the blink of an eye, he was right in front of the furious younger sister. Completely ignoring the bubbles and the mutagen, and before she could even react to the development, he slammed right into her chest.
She was in the ninth level of Qi Condensation, and was considered innately talented. However, Xu Qing’s fleshly body power surpassed the Qi Condensation level, and his spirit power was also incredibly strong. Against that, her body might as well have been made from paper....
A thump rang out, and her eyes widened. Before she could even scream, she shattered. Blood sprayed left and right as every part of her besides her head exploded. As for her head, a blue light wrapped it up, keeping it alive and shooting backward in retreat.
Seeing that, Xu Qing threw his iron skewer toward the head. Without losing any momentum, he continued toward the merman cultivator with the bone sword.
The cultivator’s face fell as Xu Qing reached out, grabbed the sword, and twisted his wrist. A crack rang out as the sword snapped. Then Xu Qing used the broken tip to stab the merman in the throat. This attendant was in the eighth level of Qi Condensation, but that didn’t stop the blood from spraying everywhere as he died.
Things weren’t over yet. Xu Qing jumped onward, reaching the attendant with the tumor on his back and the cloud of poison gas. The attendant tried to back up, but before he could take more than a few steps, he suddenly turned greenish-black. Then blood sprayed out of his mouth and he dropped dead from poison. As it turned out, his poison wasn’t nearly as effective as Xu Qing’s.
The third attendant was so shocked he was shaking. And he planned to release a scream. But before he could, a host of water droplets appeared around him, which then smashed down onto him, crushing him into a pulp.
By this time, the iron skewer had reached the blue shield of light protecting the younger sister’s head.
The shield was astounding, and managed to prevent the skewer from piercing it. However, the power behind the skewer was so intense that it sent a shockwave through the shield, half-destroying the head. Even still, it wasn’t enough to kill the mermaid. Screaming, she used her momentum to keep flying toward her older sister.
Everything happened in the time it takes a spark to fly off of a piece of flint. Xu Qing attacked with ultimate ferocity, killing the three attendants, and then pulling out a dagger and rushing at top speed toward the older sister.
The older sister’s face filled with unprecedented terror and fear. In fact, she almost couldn’t believe that her younger sister was hovering on the brink of death. Because of her natural caution, the defensive talisman treasure, and the fact that she was in the great circle of Qi Condensation, she didn’t end up being poisoned. What was more, the attack of a single dagger wouldn’t be enough to break through her talisman treasure.
A rattling boom rang out as the talisman’s defenses shook violently. The older sister was in complete shock. Never could she have guessed that the seemingly ordinary Harbor 79 would have such a terrifying entity in it. This level of battle prowess was virtually the same as Foundation Establishment. And then she thought about how she had intentionally come to provoke this person.... The older sister’s scalp tingled, and she inwardly cursed her dead cousin.
Dead is dead! Why did we have to provoke a fiendish killer like this??
In that moment of ultimate crisis, it was without the slightest hesitation that she pulled out another talisman treasure and threw it out with all the force she could muster. Rumbling sounds echoed out as it transformed into a huge fish tail which swept toward Xu Qing.
Using that moment of opportunity, the older sister grabbed her panting sister’s head, then unleashed the full power of her cultivation base to turn and run. Her expression was one of complete terror, and in her heart, she could think of only one thing: flee!
If she could run far enough away, maybe the dharma protectors would show up. They had agreed ahead of time to do just that. In fact, as she sped away from Xu Qing, she pulled out a transmission jade slip to send them a message. However, she had no time to check if the message was received. With her cultivation base burning at maximum, she pulled out a third talisman treasure to break through a wall of water put up by Xu Qing.
Booms rang out left and right. Normally speaking, someone would have noticed this commotion in the harbor. But it was a remote corner, and Xu Qing had set up a wall of water to keep the sounds of fighting contained.
It didn’t take long for Xu Qing to deal with the huge fish tail. Face grim, he looked at the fleeing mermaid, then started moving after her. He shot forward at full speed, even using a flight talisman to ensure that he moved like a lightning bolt right toward her.