Chapter 60: The Perilous Devil’s Sea
"So this is the Devil's Sea?" Li Changsheng stood up, gazing at the faintly dark seawater, and asked in a low voice, "Have you been to the Devil's Sea before?"
On the deck, Long Haotian and Zheng Xuanyue also turned their eyes to Xie Zhicheng. Although Li Changsheng had kept them on the ship, he hadn't restricted their movements on board.
Both of them showed curiosity. The Devil's Sea was well-known in the Starry Sea, and they had often heard about it, but neither of them had ever been here before.
"Even Golden Core cultivators can't guarantee they'll make it out of the Devil's Sea alive. How could I have been here before?" Xie Zhicheng shook his head and said, "But I once heard from a senior who had been to the Starry Sea that navigating the Devil's Sea requires extreme caution, especially at night, when powerful sea beasts are often encountered."
"Legend has it that there are even Nascent Soul sea beasts roaming the Devil's Sea!"
What?
Everyone on the deck showed expressions of shock. In the Southern Domain, a Nascent Soul cultivator was already considered a major powerhouse, and no Nascent Soul cultivator had appeared in the outside world for a thousand years.
Even Long Haotian, who came from the Long family, was visibly stunned.
Although it was rumored that the Long family had a Nascent Soul ancestor, he had never seen one in the decades he'd been alive. The strongest person in the Long family on record was only at the Nascent Soul level.
And now, Xie Zhicheng was saying that Nascent Soul sea beasts roamed the Devil's Sea.
"Is the Devil's Sea really that terrifying?" Zheng Xuanyue whispered, "I've traveled to the outer seas with the elders of the Long family before. Although there are many sea beasts, as long as you don't venture too deep, it's rare to encounter sea beasts above the Nascent Soul level…"
Before Zheng Xuanyue could finish, a massive wave surged into the sky and crashed toward their ship.
Behind the wave was a devil fish hundreds of meters long, its tail whipping toward the ship.
"Rise!" Xie Zhicheng reacted quickly. Though his face was filled with shock, he immediately activated the ship's defensive formations.
"That's a Golden Core sea beast!"
Feeling the overwhelming pressure from the giant devil fish, Long Haotian lost his balance, stumbling and falling to the deck, his face pale.
Zheng Xuanyue and the crew members were slightly better off, but their faces were also filled with despair.
Only Ximen Xue turned her gaze to Li Changsheng, her eyes full of trust.
"Die!"
With a flick of his sleeve, Li Changsheng sent out a white sword beam dozens of feet long, slicing through the wave and cutting the giant devil fish in half.
Splashes of blood rained down from the sky.
If Xie Zhicheng hadn't activated the ship's protective formation, the devil fish's blood would have capsized the ship.
"Collect!"
Li Changsheng formed a hand seal, and the devil fish's body and demon core were directly stored into his pouch. Even a Golden Core sea beast's body could fetch thousands of spirit stones, especially the demon core, which could be sold for tens of thousands or even used to refine pills.
"Hisss…" Everyone on the ship gasped in shock. Who exactly was this senior?
Could he be a Nascent Soul expert?
That devil fish was enormous, and sea beasts naturally had stronger vitality and defenses than humans. Yet, Li Changsheng had effortlessly sliced it in half with a single sword strike.
"Senior, shall we keep moving forward?" Xie Zhicheng swallowed nervously and asked.
Just entering the Devil's Sea, they had already encountered a Golden Core sea beast. It was terrifying to imagine how dangerous the deeper parts of the Devil's Sea must be.
"Keep moving forward. Leave the sea beasts to me," Li Changsheng said indifferently.
"Yes!" Xie Zhicheng nodded repeatedly and returned to the cabin to steer the ship.
Zheng Xuanyue looked at Li Changsheng with a suspicious expression.
She had spent a long time in the Long family and knew many things that ordinary people didn't. This seemingly youthful Li Changsheng must have at least a Nascent Soul cultivation level. Yet, in the entire Starry Sea, apart from the Long family, there were no more than a handful of Nascent Soul cultivators. Li Changsheng wasn't one of the ones she knew.
Her gaze sharpened as she stared at Li Changsheng's back, as if pondering something.
The journey continued.
During this time, Li Changsheng didn't cultivate further. Instead, he focused on guiding Ximen Xue's cultivation as the ship sailed on.
Along the way, Li Changsheng had killed five Golden Core sea beasts. The materials from these sea beasts were worth at least a hundred thousand spirit stones. He also encountered some foolish Foundation Establishment sea beasts, which he also dealt with mercilessly.
Every bit counted. Although each sea beast wasn't worth much individually, when combined, they added up. And Li Changsheng was in desperate need of money.
As they traveled, Li Changsheng noticed that the sea beasts in the Devil's Sea were different from those in the Starry Sea. They were extremely bloodthirsty, and even Golden Core sea beasts showed no semblance of rationality, as if they existed solely for slaughter.
The number of sea beasts Li Changsheng had killed along the way was countless.
If it weren't for the fact that he had killed many people and thus had plenty of storage pouches, he wouldn't have been able to carry all these materials.
By now, Zheng Xuanyue and the others had become numb to it all. No matter the level of the sea beast, none could withstand a single strike from Li Changsheng.
Ten days later.
"We're here," Xie Zhicheng said, holding the map and pointing to the nearby sea area.
"According to the map, this is the location."
Li Changsheng stood at the bow of the ship, staring at the eerily calm sea. Two towering stone pillars, hundreds of feet tall, rose from the seabed, leaning against each other to form a triangular stone gate.
"Senior, the entire area is teeming with sea beasts, yet this place is so calm. There must be something strange about it," Zheng Xuanyue whispered.
"There's definitely something strange. I didn't expect to encounter a Nascent Soul sea beast here!" Li Changsheng said, smiling as he looked at the sea ahead.
What?
There's a Nascent Soul sea beast here?
Everyone on the ship turned pale. Although they had grown accustomed to Li Changsheng one-shotting sea beasts, this was their first encounter with a Nascent Soul sea beast.
"Do you want me to drag you out myself?" Li Changsheng looked at the calm sea ahead and snorted.
Powerful sea beasts had their own territories and wouldn't allow other creatures to exist nearby.
"Roar!"
A sea snake several thousand meters long surged into the sky, its ferocious and wild aura overwhelming. Compared to this sea snake, the devil fish they had encountered earlier was like an ant.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Under this terrifying pressure, everyone on the ship collapsed onto the deck, pale-faced and gasping for breath. Under this overwhelming aura, they felt like ants, unable to even lift a finger.
Only Li Changsheng and Ximen Xue remained unaffected, standing firm.
'It seems the Divine Demon bloodline in her body has immunized her against this pressure.' Li Changsheng glanced at Ximen Xue in surprise, thinking to himself.
'We're doomed, we're dead for sure!' Long Haotian's face was filled with despair.
The others were in a similar state, though many still looked to Li Changsheng with hopeful eyes.
'I didn't expect to encounter a peak Nascent Soul sea beast here.'
'It seems I'll have to reveal a bit more of my strength.'
Li Changsheng shook his head, his spirit sword appearing in his hand. With a single step, he appeared above the sea snake's head.
"Roar!"
The sea snake seemed to feel provoked, its massive body lunging upward. Its enormous, gaping mouth, dozens of meters wide, snapped toward Li Changsheng.
"Five Elements Sword Wheel!"
Li Changsheng coldly uttered these four words. A five-colored sword wheel appeared behind him, transforming into a massive sword of the five elements, which slashed down toward the sea snake!