Stealthily cultivating in the chaotic world of demons and martial artists
Chapter 1138 - 992: Eighteen Years Later

Chapter 1138: Chapter 992: Eighteen Years Later

Seasons changed, time flowed in endless cycles.

Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, eighteen years had passed.

The East Sea.

The wind was fierce and the waves were high. Underneath the vast sea, monstrous waves surged, with the shadows of countless gigantic creatures barely visible.

Above the sea, a merchant ship swayed from side to side, like a paper boat being toyed with by a mischievous child, as if at any moment it might be destroyed and all aboard meet their death.

The people on this ship had significant backgrounds; they were sent by the Great Zhou’s ’King Xiaoyao’ to seek Immortals in the East Sea.

King Xiaoyao was the blood brother of the current Emperor of Great Zhou, doted on since childhood, and focused on the pursuit of the Dao.

He also liked to associate with people from the Martial World, often drawing criticism from both the court and the bureaucracy, even facing impeachment by the imperial censors.

In ancient times, it might have been easy to pin a ’Conspiracy to rebel’ charge on him.

Fortunately, in recent times, the Great Zhou Emperor had an unusually strong bond with King Xiaoyao. Since King Xiaoyao had always acted frivolously, and since this was a world where Sword Immortals and Swordsmen existed, his association with ordinary figures from the Martial Arts World wasn’t taken too seriously.

’King Xiaoyao’ had heard from somewhere that in Middle Earth the Mortal World and the Immortals were distinct, but within the boundless East Sea, there were many Immortals. Thus, he dispatched a ship to seek after them.

For a safe journey, he even specially deployed the skilled martial artists he had won over with a hefty sum from the Martial World.

Whoosh!

An eerie wind wailed as the muddy waves hit the sky.

Suddenly, a rope, like a giant python, lashed out, knocking a sailor, who couldn’t dodge in time, off the deck.

In such a situation, being thrown into a vortex of waves meant an inevitable death, leaving no corpse behind.

"Dragon King, ah..."

"The King of Sea Dragon is enraged."

The captain and the sailors trembled with fear, only knowing to kowtow.

As the mast was about to break, a figure suddenly leaped out, infusing True Qi into both hands and grabbing fiercely.

The several python-like ropes instantly tensed up and then froze.

"Good! Worthy of the name ’Mountain Guarding Hand’ Yue Tuo. To restrain three mountains with one hand, to block two rivers with an iron whip, truly living up to his reputation!"

A crowd of martial artists cheered in acclaim.

Another figure soared out like a flying hawk, the stars in her hands twinkling coldly as she broke several key ropes, instantly lowering the sails.

The martial heroes, indeed, each displayed their divine skills.

Having practiced their martial arts for years, they had sturdy foundations, and the tempestuous deck was as good as flat ground to them. They quickly took over the work from the sailors and managed to keep the Baochuan steady amidst the terrifying waves.

A few hours later.

The sky was a clear blue, and the sea as smooth as a mirror.

Not far away, an island appeared, surrounded by pristine white sand.

Seagulls flew by from time to time, crying out.

The air was crisp and clear, with no sign of the previous storm.

On the deck, the martial artists gathered, feeling as if they had a new lease on life after the ordeal.

’Greenvine Sword’ Cui Feiniang stood daintily, with a Green Long Sword on her back, looking quite dashing.

She grew up an orphan with no one to rely on until she was fortunately taken in by a Different person who taught her three sword techniques. By her teenage years, she roamed the Martial World, establishing the reputation of the ’Greenvine Sword’.

Her big watery eyes swept over the deck, and she couldn’t help thinking, "The Prince has really gone all out this time. Besides Mountain Guarding Hand, the flying hawk, there’s also the head of Jin Qian Escort Agency, Sir Zhang, Qing Ping Lone Ranger Lady Ning, Mater Feihe..."

These were all prominent figures in the Martial Arts World of Central Plains.

It was said that the Prince had even offered a hefty sum to invite the Great Hero of the South, Xin Guihe, who had politely declined...

Cui Feiniang’s gaze shifted and she saw a young peasant boy with a naive and simple appearance, causing her to feel a chill in her heart.

She was confident in her sword techniques, passed down by a Different person, which had reached perfection. Even amongst these famous martial artists, she believed not many could match her.

However, this peasant boy had a mysterious background. Named ’Niu,’ he chanced upon a ’Wild Bull Thunder Punch’ manual. Combined with eating three Vermillion Fruits, he gained a century’s worth of cultivation and leapt to the status of a top-notch expert in the Martial World. His depth of internal energy was so astonishing that it was shocking, and he was King Xiaoyao’s greatest addition to his collection of quirky martial characters this time around!

Cui Feiniang’s eyes were incredibly keen, but the boy named Niu seemed to detect her gaze and looked back at her, which made her feel a chill and quickly shift her gaze.

As she did so, she caught a glimpse of a swift figure disappearing into a cabin; her heart was filled with dread, "No way... the Prince actually... This is really foolhardy. If something happens to him in the East Sea, how many lives does my entire family have to compensate?"

"Hmm, my entire family is just me, so I guess I have nothing to fear..."

Cui Feiniang sighed inwardly. Then suddenly, out of the corner of her eye, she saw a scaled palm clutching the side of the ship. Without hesitation, she shouted a warning, "Be careful..."

Swish, swish!

Suddenly, several scaled palms violently pressed down, and several tall figures surged onto the deck.

They were strange creatures with fish scales covering their bodies, gills on their faces, and fin-like appendages—fish people!

Some held swords, while others relied solely on their meaty palms, attacking everyone on the deck.

In an instant, the sound of battle cries filled the air.

’Mountain Guarding Hand’ Yue Tuo, wanting to show off his skills, filled his palms with True Qi and executed a heavy ’Mountain Splitting Palm’ on one of the fish people.

Slap!

The strike felt like it hit slick cowhide; the fish person absorbed the impact of the blow, diffusing his palm force.

Once proclaimed to wield enough strength to restrain three mountains, he now couldn’t even subdue a single fish person!

Then two clawed hands grabbed Yue Tuo’s head and twisted violently.

Crack!

His head twisted grotesquely, his body fell to the ground, dead with eyes wide open...

In those lifeless gray eyes, one could still see the flying hawk being torn apart by the fish people, dismembered on the spot... Jin Qian Escort Agency’s Sir Zhang was so terrified that he turned to flee, but a flying claw caught him in the back, staining his chest with blood as he fell...

A group of Martial World middlemen were slaughtered by these merfolk as easily as one would chop vegetables.

This particular merfolk tribe was a branch of the East Sea Merfolk Kingdom, known as the ’Hua’s Fish Tribe’.

The people of this tribe favored leisure over work and often colluded with barbarian pirates to loot passing ships.

Even several of the tribe leaders had mastered some minor Demon Sect arts of metal and shadow refining to cultivate a formidable Water Evil Qi.

Even merchant ships with a cultivator on board often bled out when robbed by the Hua’s Fish Tribe.

King Xiaoyao’s treasure ship, laden with various treasures intended for the Immortals, happened to lack cultivators to guard it, akin to a lamb walking into the tiger’s den!

In fact, the pirates of the East Sea fought among themselves for this treasure ship before the Hua’s Fish Tribe ultimately prevailed!

"Foul beasts, cease your insolence!"

Cui Feiniang yelled fiercely, wielding the ’Greenvine Sword’ in her hand. Her sword was a flexible one, slender and gleaming with a green light, resembling a willow branch.

Her swordsmanship, like willow leaves dancing in the returning wind, was incredibly nimble, piercing into a merfolk’s head from an inconceivable angle.

These merfolk appeared to be armored with scales, often dealing a grave blow to uninformed Martial World middlemen.

It was like ordinary people of the Martial World facing off against armored soldiers, unable to fully exert their skills.

Fortunately, Cui Feiniang’s ’Greenvine Sword’ was a gift from an extraordinary individual, barely qualifying as a magical artifact. Within the Martial World, it was recognized as a ’divine weapon,’ perfectly countering the merfolk’s defenses!

Her swordsmanship was as swift as flying, and in the blink of an eye, she had slain three merfolk.

Seeing this, a leading pirate chieftain opened his huge mouth and from his sharp fangs, he spewed out a stream of Water Evil Qi!

Cui Feiniang immediately felt a chilling shiver, as if her Greenvine Sword had been coated with frost.

Then, the large figure of the pirate chieftain loomed before her, standing two heads taller with his fishy head dripping foul saliva from the sharp fangs.

Cui Feiniang gave a bitter smile, closing her eyes to face her fate, when suddenly, she heard a sound like thunder by her ear.

Bang!

The pirate chieftain’s Evil Qi was shattered by a stroke of thunder, and then a young peasant boy appeared, throwing both fists simultaneously. He performed the ’Black Tiger Heart Pluck,’ a move commonly seen by traveling performers, but with astonishing inner strength. His iron fists burst with Thunder Light, striking heavily against the chest of the merfolk leader.

The chieftain was sent flying backward like a cannonball, crashing into several of his own merfolk pirates and killing them.

"Brother Niu, thank you!"

Cui Feiniang hurriedly made a fist salute in gratitude.

"I... I just happened to be here..."

Niu scratched his head, seemingly embarrassed as he replied, with a blush still on his face.

"Not good, be careful!"

Cui Feiniang was about to say something more when she saw the merfolk chieftain rise again, its viciousness spurred on by the broken scale armor, swirling black wind around him as he summoned a fishbone trident.

On the trident, it seemed that blood and resentful energy were entwined, emitting a mournful wailing sound.

It turned out that the merfolk chieftain had obtained a unique Demon Sect talisman forging technique and used the bones of his ancestors bathed in the fresh blood of the merchants he had killed over the years to forge a genuine magical artifact wrapped in a fierce Evil Qi -- quite a clever tool!

Seeing this, the surviving Martial World people felt their faces turn pale.

From the cabin came a cry of alarm, as they saw a young prince, dressed in fine silk, making a bedraggled escape: "Someone... Protect the royal carriage! Save me!"

’Sigh... who will come to save you now?’

’Princes and nobles, after death, you’re no different from any of us...’

Facing death, a thought unexpectedly crossed Cui Feiniang’s mind.

Crack!

Suddenly, the sky was torn with a sound like ripping silk.

The sound of a Flying Sword whistled through the air, turning into a light that enveloped the ship.

The Flying Sword, cold and bright, cleaved through the jade bone trident, then severed the head of the pirate chieftain with the second strike!

All was silent!

Then the corpses of the merfolk began to fall one by one.

"Sword... Sword Immortal?!"

Seeing this scene, King Xiaoyao’s eyes lit up first, he exclaimed, "Please wait, Immortal... I am King Xiaoyao of the Great Zhou, willing to offer ten thousand taels of gold, a thousand measures of fine jade, and a hundred piculs of pearls... just to meet the Immortal!"

"Heh... such a grandiose mortal king."

A sneer sounded, and the person within the Sword Light appeared.

He looked to be in his thirties, his temples touched with gray, surrounded by the ’Cold Mountain Sword,’ radiating a distinctive aura, unmistakably one of the Immortal class.

"Ah... Are you the Divine Swordsman from Central Shu, Zhuo Yifan?"

One of the lucky survivors from the Martial World, an old-timer, exclaimed, "I never expected that in my youth, I was blind to a mountain of gold."

Zhuo Yifan was initially just an ordinary swordsman from Central Shu. For some unknown reason, his martial arts suddenly improved dramatically, earning him the moniker ’Divine Swordsman.’

Subsequently, he vanished from the Martial World.

It turned out that he had left to pursue cultivation!

For a moment, the surviving Martial World people couldn’t help but look on with envy.

"So it is Immortal Zhuo, this young king pays his respect."

Upon hearing Zhuo Yifan’s background, King Xiaoyao’s eyes shone even brighter.

"Hmph... To me, your mortal gold and silver are as worthless as rubble."

Zhuo Yifan scoffed, posing as a superior elder, "Know that the ’metal essence’ needed to refine my Flying Sword has to be extracted from millions of taels of gold... obtained by my sect as we broke the earth’s crust, drawing forth a river of liquid gold..."

"Even without such magical powers, the riches of the East Sea are boundless. Just by learning a few treasure-hunting spells, what wealth cannot be obtained?"

With these words, King Xiaoyao’s face turned ashen.