Fifteen days passed in the blink of an eye. As the ship sailed farther south, the temperature gradually rose.
The night wind was no longer icy, but carried instead a refreshing coolness.
Having finished his cultivation, Xu Zihuang stepped out of his cabin and leaned on the railing of the corridor, gazing down at the rolling waves. The sea breeze lifted the strands of violet hair at his forehead, adding a touch of majesty to his refined features—truly the bearing of a noble young lord. After fusing with the Radiant Dragon Claw, his physique had been strengthened by the soul bone, his skin now even fairer.
Stretching lazily, he caught sight from the corner of his eye of a simple, honest-looking youth of about eighteen. Among the soldiers of the Imperial Dragon Soul Engineer Legion, he was the youngest.
"Meng Lang, you don't need to follow me all the time. I'm only here to enjoy the breeze." Xu Zihuang rubbed his forehead, regretting the words as soon as they left his lips.
As expected, the youth gave the same mechanical reply as always.
"Young master, my father instructed me to stay by your side at all times, to ensure your safety."
During his years of confinement, Xu Zihuang had always been shadowed like this. He was used to it. Yet having only just regained his freedom, to be followed again made it feel as if he were still imprisoned.
But he did not insist that Meng Lang leave. In such perilous seas, caution was no fault.
On the wide deck, soldiers of the Imperial Dragon Soul Engineer Legion moved about. Whenever they noticed Xu Zihuang by the railing, they would pause to salute respectfully before resuming their patrols.
"Boom, boom, boom—" The wind beat against the sails, the taut cloth thundering louder and louder.
His black fur cloak billowed as he lifted his eyes to the sails.
"The wind has suddenly changed?"
At sea, a sudden shift in wind was dangerous—it could alter currents, or signal the approach of a powerful sea spirit beast. These were simple facts Xu Zihuang had learned from casual conversations with the others.
In the night sky, two yellow shadows streaked past, lightning crackling around them as they landed on the deck, revealing their forms. Their martial spirits were Lightning Falcons—souls famed for their incredible speed and keen sight. They had been scouting the skies to keep watch over the surrounding waters.
"Regiment Commander, the fish have fled in panic from this area. A sea spirit beast may be near," one of them reported respectfully to Wang Xiao, who stood at the center of the deck.
Wang Xiao's expression turned thoughtful. He looked to Yao Yang at his side.
"Uncle Wang, I also sense something wrong," Yao Yang said gravely. "Unfortunately, I lack detection-type soul skills. With my spiritual power, I can only probe within five kilometers of the ship. Nothing unusual so far."
Five kilometers might sound far, but in the vast ocean it was but a drop in the sea.
"Elder Wang, Brother Yang—look ahead."
With the extraordinary sight of his Golden Eyes, Xu Zihuang had spotted countless pale-blue lights flickering beneath the water ahead of the ship.
At his reminder, the others looked.
In the waters before them, the pale-blue lights grew closer, some even leaping from the waves and tracing graceful arcs through the air.
A school of flying fish?
Though counted among sea spirit beasts, flying fish were rare in possessing the ability to fly. Their bodies were sleek, covered in deep-blue scales, their long forms elegant. Their elongated pectoral fins stretched to their tails, like the wings of avian beasts.
A faint glow of soul power shimmered around their translucent fins as they skimmed swiftly through the air.
This school numbered at least five hundred, many of them millennia-old.
What could possibly terrify such a vast school?
Without needing orders, the soldiers rushed to the ship's sides. Before each of them rose a small block of metal—the soul power ports. When charged, they would generate the protective soul barrier around the ship.
Though not strong enough to withstand the might of a ten-thousand-year beast, the barrier would easily repel this school, none of which exceeded five thousand years.
But Wang Xiao and Yao Yang's sharp gazes remained fixed on the waters behind the fish.
A low hum shook the sea. The water seemed to boil, and dark-red ripples surged toward the ship, staining the air and waves alike with a crystalline crimson light, as though the world had become a vast red crystal.
Five towering columns of water erupted from the sea, and cracks spread across the crystalline domain.
A sharp, melodic shattering rang out. The solidified crystal collapsed into powder, scattering into the air. The school of flying fish caught within it vanished without even leaving corpses—only rings of white, yellow, and purple light slowly condensed in their place.
Five great black dorsal fins sliced across the waves. Wang Xiao and Yao Yang's faces grew grave.
"The innate skill of the Demonic Killer Whales—Abyssal Mirror Annihilation. It's a pod of Demonic Killer Whales?!"
As one of the three overlords of the seas, their power was unquestionable. Fortunately, this was only a small pod. Typically, such a group was led by two adults. Which meant, among these five, at least two had surpassed ten thousand years.
Without hesitation, Yao Yang released his martial spirit. His blood-red eyes closed, probing the five whales fast approaching the ship.
"Uncle Wang, one is twenty-thousand years, another just over ten thousand, and the remaining three under five thousand."
"All units, prepare for battle! Do not spare the stationary soul-guided cannons. End this quickly!" Wang Xiao barked. With the development of soul tool technology, humanity now had the means to stand against sea spirit beasts head-on.
No matter how strong the whales, they could not withstand wave after wave of stationary soul cannon fire. Had they faced one above fifty thousand years, Wang Xiao might hesitate. But one at twenty thousand and another just past ten? He did not flinch.
"Yes, Regiment Commander!"
Demonic Killer Whales?!
Xu Zihuang's face darkened. Yet he did not want the soldiers to divide their attention protecting him. He leapt down from the corridor to the deck. With the soldiers forming a tight defense, the deck was the safest place.
Meng Lang hurried after him.
Yao Yang, his martial spirit already released, glanced at Xu Zihuang—but his expression shifted abruptly. He pulled Xu Zihuang behind him and shouted:
"There's another one! A spirit beast has concealed itself from my senses—be on guard!"
Before his words finished, a white whale over three meters long burst from the sea, body arcing high.
As it struck the ship's barrier, golden ripples spread across the surface—and then it slipped through as if it weren't there, crashing down heavily onto the deck.