The black shadows that pounced out of the thick fog had distorted forms, as if they were formed from flowing ink. These were the "Shadow Demons" that Chen Changqing had named in his mind. They weren't ordinary sea beasts, but a rare deep-sea species born in the perpetually dark Dark Trench. They could lurk in shadows and fog, making ordinary physical attacks nearly useless. They were more adept at strange mental attacks and the erosion of shadow energy.
"What the hell is that!" a guard cried out in alarm, instinctively swinging his blade.
The sharp blade slashed at a Shadow Demon, as if cutting into empty space, with no sense of resistance. Instead, it stirred up a ripple of black fog.
The Shadow Demon emitted a soundless, formless, yet soul-piercing shriek. The guard clutched his head and screamed, staggering back several steps. His face was ashen, his eyes unfocused, and his spirit was wounded.
"Argh!"
"My head!"
Several slower-reacting guards were hit. Their swords and spells landed on the Shadow Demons, which easily swallowed them with the surrounding shadow energy, achieving little effect.
The Shadow Demons' pervasive whispers, like demonic sounds, directly attacked the cultivators' souls. On the deck, cries of pain and groans rose and fell. In a short time, three or four guards collapsed on the ground, moaning in agony.
"Hold steady, everyone! Tighten the defenses!" Zhang Tao roared, his voice booming, trying to quell the panic. He was experienced and immediately saw how troublesome these Shadow Demons were.
His long blade vibrated in his hand, and faint lightning flickered across its surface, a sign of some Yang-attributed technique.
"Attack with Yang-attributed artifacts and talismans! Focus your mental energy and guard your minds!"
While issuing these commands, he swung his blade at a Shadow Demon that had rushed forward. The lightning blade tore through the air, carrying righteous energy, and struck the Shadow Demon, producing a sizzling sound. The Shadow Demon let out a sharp cry of pain, and its form visibly dimmed, clearly suffering from the attack.
However, while Zhang Tao's attack was effective, he seemed to be holding back, not using his full strength. A subtle wariness was hidden deep within his eyes, as if he were guarding against something.
The guards, hearing his words, calmed down slightly and took out their best Yang-attributed talismans or artifacts infused with Yang-based true energy, barely managing to form a defensive circle.
However, the Shadow Demons were numerous and moved with uncanny swiftness, appearing and disappearing within the thick fog. For a time, the situation remained perilous.
"Senior Brother, these things are so annoying!" Lin Wanqing exclaimed, her face tense. Her Green Frost Sword Vein was inherently Yang-based and had a natural advantage against such evil, shadowy creatures.
Lin Wanqing's Green Frost Sword had already conjured a wisp of clear, misty sword light, the sword intent chilling. Her movements were nimble, and as her sword light flickered, each strike hit the Shadow Demons' cores with uncanny accuracy.
"Chh-shhh!" Wherever the Green Frost Sword intent passed, black smoke would erupt from the Shadow Demons, accompanied by a shrill scream, and their forms would quickly dissipate.
With a single sword, she cleared a space on one side of the ship, forcing several Shadow Demons to retreat, unwilling to approach.
That sharp and pure sword intent, like a ray of sunshine in the dead of winter, invigorated the surrounding guards.
"Good job, Miss Lin!" A guard couldn't help but praise. Lin Wanqing's pretty face flushed slightly, but her hands never stopped, her sword moves becoming even more fierce.
Chen Changqing appeared to be struggling to fend off a Shadow Demon, but in reality, his Karma Heavenly Eye had already been quietly activated. In his vision, these Shadow Demons weren't flailing around like headless flies; their movements were erratic, yet they vaguely followed a certain pattern.
What made him even more alarmed was that each Shadow Demon had a subtle black line of karma extending from it, and the other end of these lines were eerily connected to a specific location on the cargo ship!
There, the activity of the karma lines was far beyond the norm, as if an invisible vortex was secretly controlling or attracting these Shadow Demons.
"Someone's up to something!" Chen Changqing instantly understood.
Just then, the battle took another turn! The guard with the monkey features who had previously complained about Zhang Tao was now "fighting hard," wielding a short halberd and wrestling with a Shadow Demon. He looked disheveled, shouting, and appearing to be in a precarious situation.
However, the instant he and Zhang Tao were back-to-back, seemingly covering each other but actually very close, a cold light flashed in his eyes, and his wrist flicked at an extremely concealed angle.
"Pfft!" A dark ray of light, like a venomous snake, shot out from his sleeve, targeting Zhang Tao, whose back was exposed as he was fully focused on resisting the Shadow Demon's mental attack!
It was a dagger coated in poison, almost invisible in the dim fog!
This sudden event happened so fast that almost no one reacted!
However, Chen Changqing had always been keeping a sliver of his attention on this person! Almost the instant the poisoned dagger was launched, his eyes narrowed, and a wisp of the Sea Stabilizing Pearl's water elemental power that he had secretly accumulated was quietly activated.
A barely perceptible, thread-like stream of water appeared out of thin air in front of the dagger, gently nudging it like a nimble finger.
"Ch!" The dagger's trajectory veered by a minuscule amount. The fatal blow, meant to pierce Zhang Tao's heart, now grazed the edge of his protective true essence, leaving a scorched mark. The tremendous force still caused Zhang Tao's protective true essence to violently shake!
"Looking for death!" With Zhang Tao's cultivation level, he reacted instantly to the wind on his back, even without seeing clearly. He was shocked and enraged, turning his head sharply. His eagle-like eyes fixed on the thin-faced, monkey-cheeked guard, and a chilling killing intent erupted!
Seeing his failed strike, the guard's expression changed drastically. Knowing he was exposed, he abandoned all pretense, revealing a sinister grin: "Zhang Tao, you old dog, you're tougher than I thought!"
"It's you!" Zhang Tao clenched his teeth, his anger flaring.
At the same moment this internal conflict erupted, the Shadow Demons, who were still attacking everyone, seemed to receive a command. They all emitted a piercing shriek, abandoning their current targets, and surged like a tide toward the rear of the ship – the cargo hold where the "Important Goods" were stored!
Not good! A diversion!
A thought flashed through Chen Changqing's mind like lightning. The Shadow Demons' sudden attack was likely a conspiracy from the very beginning, designed to distract everyone. The real killer move was this internal betrayal and the greed for those "Important Goods"!
"Heh heh, Zhang Tao, so what if you've figured it out?" The traitor guard laughed triumphantly, seeing the Shadow Demons in action. He suddenly pulled a talisman from his pocket, channeled his true essence, and with a "whoosh," the talisman turned into a streak of blood-red light that shot into the sky. It exploded in the thick fog, forming a gruesome blood-red skull that lingered.
This is the signal!
Almost the instant the blood-red signal flare exploded, a tremendously heavy sound of breaking water came from beyond the thick fog, as if several giant beasts were rapidly approaching!
Immediately following, a ferocious aura, even more powerful, more evil, and more heart-stopping than the Shadow Demons, swept in from all directions like a tsunami!
The real pirate main force has arrived!
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