“I know. You’re an immortal seedling selected from a fishing village, so you feel some reluctance…” Senior Brother Ye, clad in blue, said with a sneer. “But think about it—without us immortal masters, where would mortals even be? If we did not guard these islands, those ants would long since have become fodder for yao beasts. And that is not to mention how we bestow spirit grain upon them, letting countless commoners fill their bellies. What kind of merit is that? A mere blood sacrifice is but a tiny flaw in white jade. It does not affect the greater picture…”
The youth surnamed Ye spread his hands.
“What’s more… these ‘qiu serpents’ carry a trace of jiao dragon bloodline. After breaking through to the second rank, they have a far greater chance of nurturing a yao core. That is the main ingredient for refining Foundation Establishment Pills! Without them, how deep into the Yao Sea would our Bihai Sect have to venture, and how many second-rank yao beasts would we have to kill, before we got lucky enough to obtain a single second-rank yao core? What would become of the Dao paths of so many Qi Refining disciples in our sect? Junior Brother Zhang, if you defy this, you are defying the greater cause of our Bihai Sect. Even if your master is a Foundation Establishment cultivator, he won’t be able to protect you!”
Junior Brother Zhang could only fall silent, watching as Senior Brother Ye formed hand seals with both hands and muttered incantations under his breath.
As spiritual power surged, a strange blood talisman was activated and sank into the qiu serpent on the hillside.
The qiu serpent struggled ceaselessly, but alas, its strength was lacking.
It was only a yao beast that had just entered the ranks, equivalent to an early Qi Refining cultivator. How could it be a match for Senior Brother Ye, who was in the middle stage of Qi Refining?
What was more, there was also the Beast-Taming Talisman specially designed to suppress its bloodline.
At once, the vicious light in its eyes swiftly faded, replaced by a trace of docility.
“Haha, good snake. Come with us.”
Senior Brother Ye laughed loudly and flew away on his green-leaf magic artifact.
Amid gusts of rushing wind, the junior brother’s words could still be heard faintly. “Can all one hundred and eight islands succeed?”
“You’re thinking too much, Junior Brother. Even with the medicinal wine we specially had the villagers brew, plus the assistance of martial artists’ qi and blood, a success rate of two or three out of ten would already be astonishing… Most disciples of our sect are destined to return empty-handed. And after they become yao beasts, if they are simply released and raised freely, it will be difficult for them to advance to the second rank. They must be brought back to the sect and assisted with the Dragon Transformation Pool for there to be some hope… And that is for qiu serpents with jiao dragon bloodline. For ordinary yao beasts to advance to the second rank is equivalent to us cultivators reaching Foundation Establishment—it is a heavenly chasm…”
“Then I heard that after the Sea Dragon’s Nativity, there is also the wondrous sight of ten thousand fish paying homage… So it turns out those half-yao treasure fish sensed an opportunity to break through and came to contend for it?”
“Haha, Junior Brother, you truly are gifted and clever, able to infer many things from one… After all, those mortals feed the snakes with their own bodies. We have to give them some benefits, or how could it continue year after year…”
……
By the time the sky had brightened.
Fang Qing pushed aside a rock and left the underground hole where he had hidden the previous night.
This burrow had naturally been used to conceal himself from others. Last night, after leaving the altar, he had immediately dug three feet into the ground to hide himself, then used the Daosheng Pearl’s omnipresent ability to return to Ancient Shu and sleep soundly.
“Wait… what is this?”
Just as he was about to leave, cold sweat suddenly broke out on his forehead.
Outside the burrow where he had hidden, there was now a strange “tunnel.”
Within the track, a peculiar fishy stench still lingered. After smelling it for long enough, one even felt that it carried a rich, fragrant aroma.
Fang Qing followed the track for a few steps and arrived at Coiling Dragon Pool, where he saw a scene of utter disorder.
The many offerings were toppled every which way, wine jars shattered, the medicinal wine inside nowhere to be seen.
The same was true of those strongmen.
On the ground, he picked up several shattered blue scales that flashed dazzlingly beneath the sunlight.
“So hard!”
After only a slight test, Fang Qing knew that he definitely could not break these scales.
“Among those strongmen, there were experts… What a pity. In the end, I was the one who survived.”
He shook his head, then looked at the track that was even thicker than a water bucket and roughly understood something. “A snake trail… a yao snake?”
“If it was a snake-type yao beast, mortal martial artists would absolutely be no match for it.”
“It even… discovered my hiding place last night, which means this snake yao has excellent tracking and searching abilities… If I truly hadn’t been off the island, I’m afraid things would have boded ill for me… Old Man Zha, you owe me a huge favor this time.”
Just as Fang Qing was murmuring to himself, the first ray of morning sunlight finally shone upon Coiling Dragon Pool.
Splash!
The water shimmered in a vast expanse, like surging sea waves.
Those were not sea waves, but the backs of fish. Countless huge fish were crowded together, forming the wondrous sight of “ten thousand fish paying homage”!
“This pool… must have a waterway connected to the sea… That’s why there are so many sea fish…”
Fang Qing muttered, then his gaze suddenly sharpened, accurately catching sight of a few unusual species among the mass of fish.
One of them had scales as red as fire. It was a treasure fish—the Red-Scaled Bream!
There was also another, with a third eye growing on its forehead. It was the “Three-Eyed Bream.”
“‘Little Azure Dragon,’ ‘Duobao Fish,’ ‘Autumn-Kill Knife Fish,’ ‘Golden-Tailed Grouper’…”
Fang Qing swallowed, feeling that Old Man Zha had taught him too little about treasure fish. There were some he actually could not recognize.
“Hurry!”
His eyes grew somewhat red. He immediately came to the edge of the pool, dove headfirst into the water, and forcefully “squeezed” into the tide of fish, his face filled with the joy of a bountiful harvest.
Fang Qing’s swimming ability was average, but after learning for a few months, he could more or less make do.
The key was that within this fish tide, he was completely being carried along by the current.
He paddled with all his might, drawing closer to several treasure fish.
‘This takes far more strength than swimming…’
Fang Qing felt that there was not a single part of his body that did not ache. Suddenly, from the corner of his eye, he caught a streak of crimson!
“Red-Scaled Bream!”
He struck as fast as lightning. Both his hands turned completely crimson as he accurately seized that flash of red.
Slippery! Hard!
What followed was a surging, tremendous force that made Fang Qing almost think what he had caught was not a fish, but an ox!
Even though he had already been extremely careful, the feel of things in water was ultimately different from on land.
That red bream suddenly struggled, immediately escaping the restraint of his Red Sand Hand and converging back toward the school of fish.
“Damn it… again!”
Fang Qing immediately turned and grabbed at another “Little Azure Dragon”…
……
“Quick… faster! Perhaps we can still make it in time for the ten thousand fish paying homage!”
Old Man Zha mixed in with the crowd. As soon as he got onto the island, he ran toward Coiling Dragon Pool.
His face held some shame, and also some anticipation.
That young man… he hoped he had survived.
Ruan Qi mingled among the crowd, but his thoughts were far more numerous.
When everyone arrived at Coiling Dragon Pool, they saw the altar in complete disarray. The ten thousand fish in the lake had already scattered. Only a single youth remained, soaked from head to toe, still holding a Little Azure Dragon in his hand.
“Fang Qing?!”
Old Man Zha’s voice was full of delighted surprise.
Ruan Qi’s face, however, turned incomparably gloomy. Especially after he failed to see his younger brother, it seemed almost as though water would drip from his expression.
“Not bad luck. Not only did I survive, I even caught a Little Azure Dragon…”
Fang Qing lifted the blue sea fish in his hand and smiled broadly, revealing clean white teeth. “Perfect. I can bring it back to give Zhu’er an extra dish…”
……
Dahua Fishing Village.
Fang Qing looked at the sky and prepared to eat.
The main meal was still the same kind of cakes made from seaweed, with the occasional bit of dried fish added.
Just then, Old Man Zha walked in, holding a large blue-and-white porcelain bowl in his hands. “Fang Qing… sigh, this old man has nothing to say. This is ‘Azure Dragon Soup,’ with many precious medicinal herbs added. Drink it…”
Fang Qing accepted it, a smile appearing on his face. “Uncle Zha, you’re too courteous. This was what we agreed on before. How could I covet Zhu’er’s things?”
“Zhu’er has her share. Too much, and her weak body won’t be able to withstand the nourishment… If you drink the Azure Dragon Soup, it will at least add three years of skill. You’ll be able to make a living going out to sea by yourself…”
Old Man Zha took out another money pouch containing several silver shells. “Take these as travel expenses. If you aren’t selected, leave this place… Ruan Qi of the Ruan family suffered a hidden loss this time. This old man worries he’ll come looking for trouble with you.”
“Many thanks.”
Seeing Old Man Zha’s expression, Fang Qing did not refuse and accepted the Azure Dragon Soup.
This soup was mainly fish soup, with some grass roots, stems, and leaves inside. Its taste was extremely ordinary.
He frowned as he finished drinking it. Before long, a warm current rose in his lower abdomen.
“Ha!”
Fang Qing clenched his fists and immediately assumed a stance, cultivating the Red Sand Hand.
Once! Twice! Thrice!
The original limitation where his whole body would ache after two hours did not appear in the slightest this time.
It was as though he had broken through some shackle. Forgetting sleep and food, he practiced the Red Sand Hand again and again…
By the time he came back to his senses, the moon was already high in the sky.
“So strong!”
Fang Qing looked at his hands, which had returned to simplicity and truth, becoming fair and delicate. “The me now could beat several of my previous selves… So this is a treasure fish? According to Uncle Zha, it can equal three years of skill?”
With a thought, the force of the Red Sand Hand instantly transformed into “yuanqi,” then converted into the power of the Thousand-Catty Drop.
At this moment, Fang Qing could sense that his yuanqi was already the size of half a grain of rice.
“Thousand-Catty Drop!”
As he executed the Thousand-Catty Drop, his thighs suddenly thickened, and it was as though wind rose beneath his feet.
The Thousand-Catty Drop was a clumsy skill, but after being cultivated to great depth, it instead transformed toward agility.
At this moment, with a thought, his body shot out like a wisp of smoke, directly leaving Old Man Zha’s house and arriving at an uninhabited reef beach.
After entering a reef cave half surrounded by seawater, Fang Qing communicated with the Daosheng Pearl and returned to the land of Ancient Shu.
……
Inside the cave.
Looking at the two treasure fish whose gills had been pierced through, their bodies taut and bent into half bows, yet still lively and thrashing, Fang Qing nodded in satisfaction. “Worthy of being half-yao. Their vitality is truly tenacious… Of course, my fish-tying technique also deserves some credit.”
This opportunity had been rare. Of course, he had not caught only one treasure fish. The remaining two had been transferred here.
“Sigh… How long has it been since I had grilled fish?”
Fang Qing sighed, took out a fish-gutting knife, and first dealt with the Three-Eyed Bream.
The most valuable part of this treasure fish was the third fish eye between its brows, which had the effect of improving eyesight.
Fang Qing cut off a white, semi-translucent slice of fish. After thinking it over, he still could not get used to sashimi, so he roasted it over the fire. When he ate it, there was a faint tingling sensation in his mouth.
“After eating this Three-Eyed Bream, the warm current actually rushes up to the head… It’s somewhat different from the Azure Dragon Soup before…”
A moment later, he rubbed his belly and looked toward the final “Golden-Tailed Grouper.” This treasure fish somewhat resembled an eastern star grouper, but its tail was golden.
Fang Qing thought for a moment, then cut off its tail and fish head and stewed a pot of fish soup.