There were no sparkling wave lights upon the ocean's surface; instead, it presented a solid, deep azure-green hue, as though the sea itself were encased in a suit of ponderous armor.
As far as the eye could see, blotting out everything, was an endless swarm of colossal green crabs! Some crabs the Size of small hills, even drifted high above, spitting forth streams of bubbles that coalesced mid-air into a seemingly impenetrable, suffocating spiritual formation.
The four transformed Crab Spirit Beasts, garbed in their azure robes, maintained their positions high overhead, standing resolute against the buffeting winds.
These were, without a doubt, the clan elders of the Crab Spirit Beasts indigenous to this oceanic territory. At present, their expressions were stern, their gazes fixed with grave intensity upon the lone island nestled within the heart of their swarming legion.
Visible upon the island below, an ethereal, mist-formed silhouette of a Flood Dragon circled and swooped within the confines of the active defensive array. Its colossal eyes scanned relentlessly, fixed upon any and all approaching threats from the surrounding horde.
Yet, what truly held the unwavering attention of these Crab Spirit Beasts, what filled them with such vigilance and incandescent rage, was not this Flood Dragon, despite the innate bloodline suppression it exerted over them.
No, it was rather... the madwoman upon that island!
Her current form was utterly bizarre. When first encountered, she might have seemed like a mere young girl, but in the heat of combat, her body would swell to giant-like proportions. Her armor now resembled little more than a reinforced vest, leaving her powerful arm muscles bare and exposed. Indeed, only her signature twin pigtails offered any faint reminder of her former self.
Most strikingly, from her back now grew two bizarre, incomplete black and white lotus pedestals. If joined, they could form a perfect circle, instantly recognizable as the type of sacred lotus throne upon which revered Buddhist masters are often depicted in meditation. Yet these twin lotus thrones functioned like grotesque wings, protectively arching over this 'madwoman.' Fine, sinewy threads anchored them to her shoulder blades. And from the surfaces of these pedestals writhed countless fleshly tentacles; the mere sight of their dense, undulating mass was enough to instill a profound sense of dread in any observer.
Li Kuanghua's bloodshot eyes remained locked on the endless horde of Crab Spirit Beasts. A small breach would open in the defensive array, and as the crabs in the immediate semi-circle surged through, each one was instantly obliterated by a single, devastating punch.
Then, the tentacles from the bizarre lotus thrones on her back would lash out, burrowing into the remains of the slain Crab Spirit Beasts. Each time, her own spiritual power would subtly, almost imperceptibly, increase in depth and potency.
She fought like a possessed demon, her mouth agape, saliva glistening at its corners as if in ravenous hunger.
...
Everything... had already been set in motion.
When Li Wei manifested on the besieged island and beheld Li Kuanghua's current state, even he couldn't suppress a start at her fearsome, almost demonic appearance.
What particularly drew his eye were those two distinct, half-formed lotus pedestals at her back – one stark white, the other deepest black.
[System Scan: Rank 7 Peak-Grade Spirit Object – Flesh-Blood Lotus Throne.]
[Description: Forged from a vast amalgamation of flesh and essence from both Buddhist and Demonic Dao practitioners, it wields a dualistic Buddhist-Demonic power. It is further empowered by the sacrificial essence of the 'Buddhist-Demonic Twins,' Li Kuangshi and Li Kuangcai. This artifact has attained a degree of sentience.
Abilities: Can consume the vital energies of living creatures to rapidly heal injuries and replenish spiritual power for itself or its wielder, and can also permanently augment its wielder's spiritual power reserves.]
[Defensive Properties: When manifested, the Flesh-Blood Lotus Throne provides bodily protection, rendering the wielder immune to invasion by external malevolent energies and impervious to corruption or suppression.
Fusion Ability: The Lotus Throne can fully integrate with the user's physical form. Upon fusion, both physical Strength and spiritual Power are massively amplified.]
With this Flesh-Blood Lotus Throne now at her command, combined with the formidable cultivation she had already achieved training under Ye Xiu, it was likely that even Li Yaozu, at the zenith of his own Golden Core period, would no longer be her equal!
Yet, this power she had gained was not without a terrible cost. The sacrificial energy of 'Li Kuangshi and Li Kuangcai' that now fueled her... it was a truth almost too glaringly painful to contemplate.
"Kuanghua..." Li Wei mused grimly, "She appears to be descending further into madness."
Li Wei watched Li Kuanghua engage in her savage, desperate battle.
Ever since she had been forced into exile, this young woman had developed an ever-more voracious hunger for power.
Throughout her five-year flight, side-by-side with Raging Sky Flood Dragon, she had charged forward relentlessly through any obstacle. Any item, any opportunity that could augment her strength, she would risk her life to seize it.
There was a time when she still possessed some rationality, a time she might even playfully nag Ye Xiu. But now... now, her sole, all-consuming desire was to grow stronger, whatever the cost.
Li Wei drew a deep, troubled breath.
Li Wei's gaze shifted towards the Raging Sky Flood Dragon amidst the battle.
Accessing his system panel, he quickly found and selected the icon representing Old Raging Sky Flood Dragon.
The very next instant, high above the island where his mist-dragon form circled, Old Raging Sky Flood Dragon's ethereal eyes suddenly blazed with light.
"Master...?"
"Is this... an instruction from Master?"
Following this, Old Raging Sky Flood Dragon's mist-dragon form drifted clear of the defensive array's perimeter.
The instant its vast, translucent body fully materialized outside the barrier, the innate, overwhelming bloodline pressure of a true Flood Dragon washed over the besiegers.
The teeming hordes of Crab Spirit Beast below were thrown into a momentary, chaotic disarray, and even the four transformed Crab Spirit Beast leaders hovering high above became visibly tense and exceptionally wary!
The foremost of the Crab Spirit Beast bellowed at the peculiar, mist-clad Flood Dragon, "You! Flood Dragon! Surrender the Ten-Thousand-Year Heavy Water now! There's no escaping your fate!"
"Hmph!"
At this moment, however, Old Raging Sky Flood Dragon was brimming with uncharacteristic confidence. Mentally following the instructions relayed by his Master, he unleashed the full, oppressive aura of his Flood Dragon lineage and declared, each word measured and distinct:
"That Ten-Thousand-Year Heavy Water – we've set our sights on it. I grant you the span of one incense stick to retreat with all haste. Fail to do so, and if we truly come to blows... then I assure you, your Crab Clan will sustain devastating casualties!"
"You..."
The four Crab Spirit Beast leaders quaked with fury. They genuinely could not fathom whence this peculiar mist-dragon derived such brazen confidence.
The female Crab Spirit Beast, clad in light armor and brandishing a pair of twin-forked halberds. A light, mocking laugh escaped her. "Well, well, what an impudent Flood Dragon we have here! That Ten-Thousand-Year Heavy Water? We laid claim to it first. We've waited a full century for it to mature to its ten-thousand-year potency! You think you can just take it? Then let's settle this with strength – prove your worth in combat!"
Instantly, the atmosphere crackled with an almost unbearable tension, both sides poised for attack. Yet, regardless of the circumstances, a Flood Dragon undeniably occupied a superior position in the Spirit Beast Clan's natural hierarchy.
The innate power of that bloodline suppression gave the four Crab Spirit Beast leaders pause; for a long moment, none dared to make the first move.
From his vantage point on the besieged island, Li Wei observed the charged standoff, his own expression cool and composed.
Through two centuries of the clan's trials and growth, culminating in their recent near-annihilation, the Li Wei of this day had finally come to a stark realization, one that mirrored Li Yaowen's own conclusions: In the past, they had been bound by too many self-imposed limitations; they had been overly cautious, forever weighing consequences.
And at times, their adherence to a certain 'benevolence' had cost them dearly.
"The Great Dao, however, demands struggle!" At this point, Li Wei couldn't be bothered to care whether the 'Ten-Thousand-Year Heavy Water' was the Crab Spirit Beast's rightful possession or if Li Kuanghua had simply stumbled upon it and a fight had ensued. Such details were now irrelevant.
They needed resources, anything, to bolster their strength. Without it, how could they ever hope to return to Eternal Sun Prefecture? How could they rescue Li Kuangren from his wretched cage? How could they venture into the Wu Clan's territory to reclaim the family's Heaven-Piercing Coffin? And how, how could they ever hope to confront that monstrously perverted, almost demonic, Venerable Tian Xing?!!
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