Chapter 686 - 275: Boiling

Chen Qing took a deep breath but said nothing.

They had been sailing for less than half a day, but neither of them had let their guard down.

"This is bad!"

Just then, standing at the ship’s bow, Deng Ziheng’s expression changed abruptly as he let out a low shout!

The next moment!

The once-calm sea ahead suddenly caved in, as if struck by a massive, invisible palm!

An immense, boundless aura, brimming with sharp killing intent, crashed down like a Meteor!

"BOOM—!!!"

The boom was deafening. The sea’s surface erupted, blasting a massive chasm into the water and throwing up a white curtain dozens of zhang high, like a wall connecting heaven and earth.

The spray filled the sky like a torrential downpour. The force of the impact forced the speeding Treasure Ship to a sudden halt, its hull groaning as if overwhelmed.

The curtain of water crashed down, and a figure slowly walked out from the churning waves. He stood upon the surf, his gaze bone-chillingly cold. It was none other than the Yanzi Dock Elder, Bai Cang!

True Essence billowed around his body, and his killing intent was so thick it was almost tangible, locked firmly onto the Treasure Ship.

"You two, what’s the rush?"

Bai Cang’s voice wasn’t loud, yet it reached the ears of Chen Qing and his companion clearly, every word a dagger to the heart.

Before Chen Qing or Deng Ziheng could reply, two more tyrannical auras emerged from the sea to their rear flank.

The stooped figure of Mao Chengyue, his aura somewhat faint and unsteady, appeared at the same time as another brocade-robed elder.

The auras of the three were faintly connected, like three towering mountains. They formed a pincer formation, completely sealing off all of the Treasure Ship’s escape routes.

An invisible web of energy interwove, turning this stretch of sea into a cage. The very air seemed to solidify, becoming suffocating.

Chen Qing stood with his spear in hand, his expression as grave as still water.

’Three True Essence Realm masters. The odds are already stacked against us, a near-certain death.’

"Hehehe, the True Essence and Essence Blood of a True Essence Realm master... now that’s some potent nourishment!"

A sharp cry, like that of a screech owl, rang out from the sea behind them, carrying a bone-chilling coldness.

Immediately after, two sinister and bizarre auras spread out from the rear, and two figures shrouded in thick black fog emerged.

The person on the left was tall and thin as a bamboo pole, wearing a ghastly white Faceless Mask that revealed only a pair of eyes gleaming with a sickly green light.

The person on the right was short and stout as a ball, with a benevolent smile on his face, but the bloody Evil Qi emanating from him was too thick to disperse.

"Demon Sect masters!"

Deng Ziheng’s expression became incomparably grave as he looked over and said, "The Faceless Poison Immortal, He Jie! And the Smiling Yama, Tu Wanjun!"

The ones who had come were actually He Jie, ranked second among the Demon Sect’s ten great Elders, and Tu Wanjun, ranked sixth!

These two possessed unfathomable power and fearsome reputations. The blood of countless Righteous Path masters stained their hands!

They had been absent from the several vicious battles at Soul-Breaking Gorge, yet now they had appeared here in the Thousand Reefs Sea Region.

"I never thought they would dispatch so many masters just to deal with us. To think that even you two would come personally."

Deng Ziheng took a deep breath, forcibly suppressed the shock in his heart, and said in a heavy voice.

’Five True Essence Realm masters, and among them is a powerhouse like the Demon Sect’s Second Elder.’

’This lineup is practically an inescapable net, leaving not a sliver of hope for survival!’

Even Deng Ziheng felt a sense of suffocation at this moment.

’They haven’t come just for Chen Qing and me. They’re likely using this as a chance to ambush potential reinforcements from the Celestial Treasure Upper Sect, intending to settle things once and for all and deal a heavy blow to the Celestial Treasure Upper Sect!’

"Brat, of all the things you shouldn’t have done, you shouldn’t have killed my people from Yanzi Dock!" Bai Cang stared daggers at Chen Qing, a cold light erupting from his eyes, his killing intent almost tangible.

"Brother Bai, why be angry? We’ll let you deal with this brat personally," the Demon Sect’s Second Elder, He Jie, said nonchalantly, as if distributing a piece of merchandise.

"No need."

But Bai Cang snorted coldly. "This boy is a True Inheritance disciple of the Celestial Treasure Upper Sect, after all. It’s more appropriate to leave this ’credit’ to you, the Demon Sect."

He naturally knew that killing a True Inheritance disciple of the Celestial Treasure Upper Sect would invite considerable trouble and preferred to hand this "achievement" over to the Demon Sect.

Deng Ziheng secretly sent a voice transmission to Chen Qing, his tone urgent and grave: "The situation is critical. I’ll do my best to hold them off. Find an opportunity and flee immediately. Don’t look back!"

Chen Qing tightened his grip on the Profound Dragon Spear, the True Astral and vital energy within his body surging to their peak.

At this life-or-death moment, with tensions stretched taut and a great battle about to erupt!

He Jie, his face hidden behind the Faceless Mask, suddenly turned to the southeast. For the first time, his voice, which had been as still as an ancient well, carried a clear note of surprise and doubt. "Hm?!"

Almost simultaneously, all the True Essence Realm masters present felt a sudden premonition, and their expressions changed in unison!

An indescribably sharp aura, like a shooting star tearing through the night sky, shot over from the distant horizon where the sea met the sky!

Its speed was like lightning. One moment it was at the edge of their vision, and the next, it had already descended upon the sky above this stretch of sea!

It wasn’t a physical object, but a spear’s gleam, condensed to the absolute limit!

This illusory spear-gleam ignored distance, as if teleporting. In the instant everyone’s Heart and Spirit was captivated by it, it had already locked onto Bai Cang with incomparable precision!

"THUD—!"

Bai Cang didn’t even have time to mount any effective defense or evasion. His Protective True Essence was like nothing before the illusory spear-gleam. As if struck by a heavy blow, his chest visibly caved in. He violently spat out a mouthful of blood as his body was smashed into the sea below like a kite with a severed string!

"RUMBLE—!!!"

The terrifying Power contained within the spear-gleam erupted on the seabed. The entire sea region shook as if from a violent earthquake. The surface of the sea trembled madly as a colossal pillar of water over a hundred meters in diameter shot toward the heavens, soaring dozens of zhang high, as if trying to punch a hole in the firmament!

A torrent of seawater, mixed with fish that had been stunned or killed by the shockwave, rained down from the sky. The scene was utterly horrifying!

This sudden, earth-shattering turn of events made Mao Chengyue, the other Yanzi Dock Elder, and the Demon Sect’s Tu Wanjun turn pale, their Hearts and Spirits violently shaken!

Only He Jie, the sickly green eyes beneath his Faceless Mask, stared intently into the distance. The Demonic Qi around his body churned violently, as if he were facing a formidable enemy.

Against the backdrop of the slowly falling pillar of water, a figure could be seen standing silently on the once-calm sea in the distance, having appeared there at some unknown time.

The person was dressed in simple, gray cloth robes. Their figure was not tall, and was even somewhat gaunt.

He stood there quietly, not exuding any earth-shattering Momentum. It was as if he had merged with the surrounding sea, yet at the same time, he was like a Stabilizing Needle. His mere presence was enough to instantly calm the churning, restless waters.

.....