Translator: AnubisTL
Huff, huff, huff—
After breaking through the encirclement of the Sea Demons, everyone couldn't help but gasp for breath, their backs soaked with cold sweat.
If they had been surrounded by those hundred thousand Sea Demons, even a Low-Grade Earth Artifact wouldn't have been able to withstand their relentless bombardment, leaving them with no chance of escape.
"Everyone, hurry and take a moment to recover. The ocean is their domain; we can't afford to slack off!" Gu Feng said gravely, his heart heavy. As time went on, more and more Sea Demons would come to seize the Dragon Clan Inheritance. This was truly troublesome.
"Gu Feng, come quickly! More than half of the central Runes have collapsed. Is there any way to repair them?" The two hundred Heaven's Chosen took turns activating the Coral Stone, but the speed was unsatisfactory, and they still couldn't completely shake off the Sea Demons behind them.
"Got it!" Gu Feng nodded slightly. Earlier, he had used the Immortal Eye Forbidden Art. Candle Sun to burn away half of the Runes, but it had been a necessary move.
To completely escape the pursuit behind them, they had to find a way to repair at least some of the Runes.
"Wait, are you sure you can do this? What if you make it worse?" Just as Gu Feng was about to act, Hua Wenyue grabbed his arm.
"Please remove the question mark. I can definitely do it!" Gu Feng's confident demeanor made anyone who saw him nod in agreement. He looked particularly reliable.
Stepping forward, Gu Feng observed the remaining Runes and quickly understood the situation.
This was just an ordinary Low-Grade Earth Artifact, lacking formidable offensive or defensive capabilities, so the Runes inside weren't particularly complex.
"Stay steady and maintain the current speed. Let me handle the repairs!"
Gu Feng rolled up his sleeves, took out his Inscription Brush and Rune Ink, and began repairing the damaged Runes. His brush moved like a swimming dragon, and within a few breaths, he had successfully repaired one Rune.
Seeing this, Zong Shixuan and the others were greatly encouraged. Gu Feng was the only Rune Master present, and his presence significantly increased their chances of escaping alive.
One!
Two!
Three!
...
After dozens of breaths, Gu Feng had repaired over ten Runes when he suddenly stopped his brush.
Everyone assumed he was just tired and didn't think much of it.
Only Gu Feng himself knew that this strange feeling had appeared again. Without fail, whenever this feeling arose, the next Rune would definitely fail.
It was just that peculiar. This indescribable feeling sometimes appeared early, sometimes late during Weapon Crafting. You could never predict whether it would appear after a certain Rune.
This was one of the major challenges limiting his Weapon Crafting skills. Apart from this, he believed he had already mastered the essence of Weapon Crafting.
"Why did you stop? Keep going!" Seeing Gu Feng hesitate with his brush, Hua Wenyue glanced at the pursuing Sea Demons and urged him.
Gulp. Gu Feng swallowed hard and wiped the sweat from his forehead.
"I can do this. This is a hurdle, and at this critical moment, I will definitely succeed!" He silently encouraged himself, then his eyes turned sharp.
With a clear mind and steady hand, he focused all his attention, giving it his absolute best.
With one stroke, the Rune flickered faintly, showing signs of taking flight.
Before anyone could react, a series of explosions rang out.
Gu Feng's hair stood on end as he swiftly cut off several Runes, preventing the entire central Rune system from exploding.
This, this, this—
Duan Yansheng and the others were dumbfounded, spitting out a mouthful of blood as they stared at Gu Feng in disbelief.
This was bad. The originally intact runes, which had been about two-fifths complete, were now reduced by several hundred more due to his meddling.
"You... if you can't do it, don't be so confident!"
"You're going to get us killed!"
"Stop arguing! The Coral Stone's speed has dropped significantly. We need to push our Spiritual Power to the limit!"
"..."
Behind them, a large group of Sea Demons was rapidly closing in. A few of the faster ones had already touched the Coral Stone.
The Heaven's Chosen roared like lions in heat, their eyes bloodshot as they frantically channeled their Spiritual Power!
"This won't work, we can't escape like this!" In his panic, Gu Feng suddenly remembered the Storage Ring full of Poison Pills that Yan Yexue had given him before they left.
He randomly grabbed a handful and shoved them into Hua Wenyue's arms.
"I'll open an entrance. You need to throw all these Poison Pills at the Sea Demons!"
"Why me?" Hua Wenyue's phoenix-like eyes widened in anger.
"You're the strongest among us, and you're the one who received the inheritance. We're running for our lives like this because of you! If you don't go, who will?" Gu Feng said solemnly.
Feeling the weight of everyone's gazes, Hua Wenyue gritted her teeth, stomped her foot, and ran toward the rear entrance.
She didn't even bother to read the instructions. She wrapped the large handful of Poison Pills in her Spiritual Power and hurled them at the Sea Demons, then triggered a Spirit Burst!
The colorful powder spread through the seawater!
The Sea Demons that came into contact with the powder were thrown into chaos. Some clutched their stomachs and wailed, some chased while suffering from diarrhea, some had their skin corroded and thrashed in the water, and some simply dropped dead!
"Hahaha, these Poison Pills really work!"
"While the Sea Demons are in chaos and their speed has dropped, let's push harder and leave them behind!"
"Everyone, don't hold back! Take pills if you need to, and give it your all!"
"Alright—"
The two hundred Heaven's Chosen united as one, and with a burst of effort, the Coral Stone shot forward like a streak of light, disappearing from the Sea Demons' sight.
"Where are we now?"
"I don't know, the runes for monitoring direction have been destroyed!"
"What are those whirlpools ahead?"
"They look like Spirit Bursts!"
"What?! Spirit Bursts? Turn around quickly!"
"It's too late, we have to charge through!"
"Ah—"
The sea is mysterious and unpredictable. Don't think that just because you're hiding underwater, aside from Sea Demons, there won't be other dangers.
Spirit Bursts beneath the ocean's surface are even more terrifying than the Spiritual Power hurricanes above. They move incredibly fast and grow even faster, becoming horrifying in the blink of an eye.
Ordinary Demon Beasts that encounter them can only resign themselves to fate. They can easily tear apart the bodies of Sea Demons in the Spirit Nurturing Realm. If several appear at once, it's nothing short of a disaster.
Gu Feng's eyes were sharp, and his scalp tingled. He wasn't sure if this Low-Grade Earth Artifact, with its mediocre defensive capabilities, could successfully break through the dozens of Spirit Bursts.
"I'll take control of the direction. You all focus on accelerating. Let's charge through before the Spirit Bursts fully mature!"
"Ah—"
Zong Shixuan and the others, their eyes bloodshot and teeth clenched, poured their Spiritual Power into the core without regard for their lives, while also taking pills.
Even Gu Feng, while controlling the direction, secretly channeled Spiritual Power into the core!
The runes inside the Coral Stone flickered violently under the interference of the Spirit Bursts, dimming and brightening as if they were about to go out completely.
The Coral Stone shook violently, like a piece of paper fluttering in a gale. The Heaven's Chosen were thrown about, but none of them stopped channeling their Spiritual Power.
"This won't work, the Spirit Bursts are too intense. We can't break through!"
"Everyone, throw all the useless Natural Treasures you have into the furnace opposite!"
Gu Feng shouted to the crowd while lighting the furnace at the corner of the central hub.
Whoosh—
Countless Natural Treasures were tossed into the furnace, where they were refined by the roaring flames, transforming into pure Spiritual Power to stabilize the churning Coral Stone.
Hua Wenyue's eyelids twitched as she kept a close eye on Gu Feng. Her mind was in turmoil. Even at such a critical moment, Gu Feng was still reluctant to part with his treasures.
Everyone else had thrown their Storage Rings into the furnace, but Gu Feng had secretly transferred his treasures to another location before tossing his ring.
This man truly valued wealth over his life!
"Charge—"
The Coral Stone radiated a dazzling brilliance as it surged toward the final Spirit Burst!
Boom—
This was a nearly mature Spirit Burst. The moment the Coral Stone approached it, cracking sounds echoed, the internal lighting went out, and half of the Runes exploded!
"Don't worry, we can make it through!"
Bang—
The Coral Stone collided with the center of the Spirit Burst, producing a deafening sound as if it had struck diamond.
With a loud crack, a corner of the Coral Stone shattered, and seawater flooded in.
Gurgle, gurgle—
In an instant, everyone was drenched!
The Heaven's Chosen, huddled together, were also swept up and slammed violently against the inner walls of the Coral Stone.
...
"Hahaha, we made it through, and we've shaken off the Sea Demons' pursuit!"
"This is everyone's effort—we've escaped death!"
"Unbelievable! The elders always said the sea is unpredictable and a hundred times more dangerous than land. They weren't lying!"
"Amitabha, Amitabha, may Buddha protect us!"
Everyone embraced each other, feeling a sense of having narrowly escaped death.
"Come on, give me a hug!" Gu Feng walked up to Hua Wenyue, smiling and opening his arms.
"Get lost—" Hua Wenyue coldly turned her head away.
"Let me see how far we are from the Great Chu Dynasty!" Gu Feng didn't mind her attitude and shook his head with a smile, preparing to have the Coral Stone surface to observe their location.
Suddenly—
Boom, boom, boom—
A series of explosions rang out, freezing the smiles on everyone's faces. To their horror, they discovered that the Coral Stone's walls were now riddled with a dozen holes several meters in diameter. The entire defensive Rune system was instantly rendered useless.
Massive amounts of seawater surged into the interior!
"What's going on?"
"We're done for—we've been ambushed!"
"It's a type of Sea Demon called the 'Star Bursting Porpoise.' They periodically gather a substance called 'Star Burst' within themselves. When hundreds or thousands of them come together, they can create a devastating explosion, specifically designed for breaching defenses!"
"This is bad—the Coral Stone has been severely damaged again, and our speed has dropped drastically!"
"What do we do? We can't escape!"
"..."
The Heaven's Chosen were filled with despair, as if they could already see their impending fate.
"What should we do?" Hua Wenyue approached, choosing to seek Gu Feng's opinion at this most dangerous moment.
"We're about twenty thousand kilometers from the Great Chu Dynasty. The Sea Demons chasing us aren't that strong. We're at a disadvantage in underwater combat, but above the surface, it might be different!"
"Alright!"
"Head to the surface and charge toward the Great Chu Dynasty—there might still be a chance!"
"Right, we can't just sit here and wait to die!"
"The commotion here is too big—human experts have likely already noticed. We just need to hold on for a little longer..."
"Let's go all out!"
As everyone encouraged each other, Gu Feng had already manipulated the Coral Stone to leap out of the sea and soar into the air!
Roar——
A Deep Sea Moon Shadow Whale, as large as a small mountain, followed suit, breaching the surface and slamming into the Coral Stone with tremendous force.
The impact was so powerful that even Gu Feng was sent flying. Fortunately, he managed to stabilize himself, preventing the Coral Stone from plunging back into the sea!
"Out!"
With a loud shout, all the Heaven's Chosen, led by Hua Wenyue, rushed out of the Coral Stone.
The scene before them was absolutely horrifying. Countless Sea Demons, exuding a terrifying demonic aura, hovered in the air, blocking their path back.
At a rough glance, there were no fewer than a hundred thousand of them, encompassing dozens of different species.
The strongest among them had reached the fourth level of the Sea Condensation Realm!
"Let's fight!" Gu Feng said with a grave expression, whispering to Hua Wenyue beside him.
"Mm!" Hua Wenyue nodded.
Zong Shixuan and the others drew their weapons. There was only one path before them—to cut through the Sea Demons and return to the Great Chu Dynasty!
Kill——
Roar——
The Heaven's Chosen roared, and the surrounding Sea Demons bellowed in response.
Hua Wenyue charged ahead, leading the charge against the Sea Demons. The Nine-Colored Lotus bloomed once more, and with a single strike, she killed over a dozen Sea Demons at the fifth or sixth level of the Nurtured Spirit Realm.
At the ninth level of the Nurtured Spirit Realm, and with the Cultivation Method tailored for her by the Nine Maidens, her combat prowess was no weaker than any Heaven's Chosen at the first level of the Sea Condensation Realm.
Sword light raged like a sky full of stars, spinning orderly across the heavens. Wu Sheng fully demonstrated the invincible stance of a Sword Cultivator within the same realm, cutting down Sea Demons one by one.
Monk Wu De chanted Buddhist scriptures, unleashing various divine seals, transforming into a bloodthirsty Buddha, slaughtering without restraint.
Zong Shixuan, Duan Yansheng, Dugu Ao, and many familiar faces all showcased their brilliance.
They were the blazing suns, the Heaven's Chosen of the Great Chu Dynasty, representing the most outstanding young generation of their time.
The roars shook the heavens, and the slaughter was fierce!
Gu Feng stood on the Coral Stone, his mind highly focused, his Soul Power pushed to the limit. Both the Dragon's Awe Breath and the Nether King Descends to the Nine Underworlds were activated simultaneously.
While disrupting the Sea Demons, he also protected the lives of the Heaven's Chosen!
Under his protection, the Heaven's Chosen faced a thousand times their number in Sea Demons, yet miraculously, not a single one fell.
Sea Demons continued to fall, their corpses plunging into the sea, sending towering splashes of water. The azure sea surface was now covered with a glaring layer of crimson.
Several leading Sea Demons narrowed their eyes. With their strength at the Sea Condensation Realm, they had detected Gu Feng's presence!
"Kill him!"
Gu Feng had inherited the Dragon Clan's legacy. By killing him, the East Sea Dragon Clan would lose its last hope of resurgence, and from then on, they would no longer be controlled or driven by others!
Of course, this was only the belief of some Sea Demon clans. More of them wanted to capture Gu Feng and keep him firmly under their control.
Unfortunately, Gu Feng's luck was poor. The clan he encountered now was one that sought to kill the inheritor and eliminate any future threats!
Two Sea Demons at the second level of the Sea Condensation Realm closed in on Gu Feng from both sides, attacking with incredible speed.
They were far too powerful, sending hundreds of Sea Demons in their path flying and stirring up massive waves.
Like two towering tsunamis thousands of meters high, they descended upon Gu Feng with overwhelming force!
"Gu Feng, dodge!!!"
The Heaven's Chosen cried out in despair, their voices filled with hopelessness. They were powerless to save him.
Just as Gu Feng was about to be engulfed by the immense force, several White Jade Bridges flashed across his brow, and the Twenty-Four Bridges on a Moonlit Night activated at full power!
The first transformation of the Nine Transformations of Heavenly Dragon was activated, and his aura surged twofold!
With Immortal by the River fully unleashed, his figure flickered as he simultaneously activated Jade Lion's Golden Roar.
Roar——
The two Sea Demons at the second level of the Sea Condensation Realm, who were diving at high speed, suddenly felt their minds go blank for a brief moment, and their Spiritual Power stagnated!
By the time they regained their senses, they were horrified to discover that their chests had been pierced with holes the size of washbasins, and all their meridians had been shattered.
A single punch shook the world!
Instantly killing two Sea Demons at the second level of the Sea Condensation Realm!
Boom—Boom—
Two explosions rang out almost simultaneously, and the two Sea Demons at the second level of the Sea Condensation Realm were reduced to a rain of blood. Gu Feng stepped through the air, bathed in the crimson droplets, his blood-stained demeanor dominating all directions!
His gaze was imperious, like a divine king patrolling the mortal world. No one dared to meet his eyes, even though they carried a hint of amusement.
The scene fell into complete silence, as if time itself had frozen. The sounds of battle ceased, and even the surging seawater below came to a standstill.
The Heaven's Chosen and the hundreds of thousands of Sea Demons all felt their hearts tremble. Their eyes widened, and they gulped nervously, as if they had seen a ghost.
"What are you shouting about? You bunch of weaklings did a decent job, worthy of praise. The road ahead is long, and the current problem is beyond your capabilities. Now, please enter the Coral Stone and rest!"
"Next, grab some roasted meat, Spirit Wine, and a small stool, and watch my slaughtering performance!"
(End of the Chapter)
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