Chapter 112

Gradually, the sounds around her faded, leaving only the gentle murmur of the waves and a soft, enchanting voice.

The mermaids' song could pluck at the heartstrings of desire. Those who craved wealth saw mountains of gold; the lustful were surrounded by beauties; the power-hungry found themselves flanked by supreme authority—enticed, they threw themselves into the sea one by one, becoming the mermaids' prey within their own illusions.

Yun Shuchen's cultivation far surpassed these sea demons. She calmly settled her slightly restless spiritual energy, and when she listened again, it was merely a pleasant tune.

She watched Qing Zhouxue with great interest, making no move to stop the little fish from singing.

What would her desire be?

"What do you want to do?" Yun Shuchen even fanned the flames, coaxing softly, "Anything is possible."

Qing Zhouxue had been fiercely resisting the temptation, caught in a painful tug-of-war. Yun Shuchen's voice might have been the last straw to break her resolve.

Her lowered lashes trembled, and her hands tightened and loosened.

Qing Zhouxue's clothes were still damp, like a white lotus just emerging from green water, every dewdrop hanging delicately.

Qing Zhouxue lifted her face, looked at Yun Shuchen, and unknowingly drew very close. Her gaze dropped, fixing on Yun Shuchen's lips.

Yun Shuchen's breath caught silently, and then she closed her eyes.

Qing Zhouxue moved closer inch by inch, tilting her head slightly, the space between them nearly vanishing. Only the final step remained.

Yun Shuchen could already feel warm breath on her face, light and shallow. But at the last moment, all the warmth vanished, and cold, thin air rushed in, startling her lashes into a flutter.

Qing Zhouxue closed her eyes, and when she opened them again, they were clear.

With a flash of the Qingshuang Sword, a white shadow passed before Yun Shuchen's eyes. Qing Zhouxue stepped onto the sea surface, and where her toes touched, a thin layer of ice formed. In an instant, she was not far from the cluster of reefs.

The wooden boat swayed with its occupant's departure. Yun Shuchen was momentarily stunned, then leaned half-reclined on the boat in boredom, turning her head to watch.

Mermaids would not fight with blades. Seeing their hunt fail, they all dove into the sea, their singing abruptly ceasing.

One small mermaid seemed to have been a step too slow, clumsy in both tail and movement, and too hasty. This leap got her stuck in a crevice between the reefs, unable to free herself no matter how she struggled.

She turned her head to see the swift white figure sweeping across the sea surface, a three-foot green blade with a point of cold light, coming straight for her life, and she froze in terror.

Under extreme fear, a few teardrops fell, turning into silver-white pearls when they struck the sea.

Qing Zhouxue's sword did not slash toward the mermaid. Her aim deliberately veered, and her sword cut through a patch of sea in the distance, shattering ice shards within it.

This strike served precisely to dissipate her momentum and stop, landing lightly on the reef, only about ten feet from the small mermaid.

Qing Zhouxue's gaze fell on the scattered pearls on the sea surface and the reef. She paused for a moment, picked one up, and examined it carefully in her palm.

After this examination, she seemed to have made up her mind. Ignoring the little mermaid that could no longer escape, she stepped onto the sea surface once more.

A chant seemed to rise again. Several human heads surfaced in the distant sea, sorrowful ballads surrounding Qing Zhouxue.

Her mind wavered slightly, and her sword loosened in her hand before she gripped it tightly again.

Qing Zhouxue had already comprehended the first few forms of her sword technique, but there had been no progress recently. She looked around the sea surface, and suddenly a flash of inspiration struck. She wanted to try some entirely new paths.

On the undulating sea, she extended her spiritual power into the deep, trying to discern the currents' movements.

Once she fixed the direction, the Qingshuang Sword dove into the water like a fish. It wove through the seawater like threading a needle—the thread being the cold aura swirling around it, freezing parts of the sea wherever it passed.

Using the sword as needle and thread, she intended to weave a net.

For catching fish.

The mermaids were still singing with all their might, circling in the sea, seemingly trying to rescue the trapped little one, unaware that beneath them, a transparent net had already taken shape.

It took only a moment for the net to rise.

With a rather piercing sound of breaking water, torrents poured out through the gaps in the ice net, inside which several writhing mermaids were tangled every which way.

Qing Zhouxue had not forgotten the little one. When she returned to the reef, she added one more to the net, and only then sealed the last gap on top of the ice net completely.

Yun Shuchen watched with some amusement as she dragged the odd-looking fishing net, half sunk in the sea and half above the water, coming this way.

By now, the mermaids had stopped singing. In such a cramped, crowded space, even moving was difficult for them.

"What do you plan to do with these little fish you've fished up?" Yun Shuchen asked.

Qing Zhouxue answered promptly, "Master, isn't there a river in the Lesser Cosmos? We can keep them there."

Some ornamental carp would be beautiful swimming around, gentle and harmless. But mermaids... although they were as beautiful as flowers, they were fierce by nature, feeding on fresh flesh and blood. Their sharp claws and teeth made them look far from kind.

Yun Shuchen was momentarily speechless, but under her good disciple's bright gaze, she still turned the river in the Lesser Cosmos into a saltwater one.

"In the future, if Master wants pearl powder, there's no need to travel all the way to the Eastern Sea." After throwing the mermaids into the Lesser Cosmos, she smoothed her robes and sat back down in the boat.

Yun Shuchen was startled, then sighed, "Mermaids don't shed tears for no reason."

She remembered that the Penglai Pavilion had built its fortune on this in the early days. Though it appeared to be a celestial paradise, beneath the pavilion lay layers of mountains of corpses and seas of blood.

How were pearls obtained? With small knives, poking into the mermaids' tails bit by bit, their tears secreted in pain and fear.

Moreover, every part of a mermaid was a treasure. Their marrow had once been a famous dish, elegantly named "Jade Dragon Marrow," worth a fortune. Their scales, scraped off, did not rot or stink, like translucent jade, often used as adornments on clothing. Their body fat could fuel everlasting lamps.

Male mermaids, due to their large frames, longer tails, and denser scales, were considered more cost-effective and were slaughtered nearly to extinction. Those now roaming the bays were mostly female. The remaining ones were all kept in captivity. Occasionally, some with awakened intelligence who cultivated to the point of manifesting legs would also go into seclusion near Penglai Island, learning to live as humans.

Judging by Qing Zhouxue's expression, she clearly did not know this sealed-away history—it would certainly tarnish the dignity of the cultivation world if it got out, so it was not recorded in any of the major archives.

Yun Shuchen hesitated inwardly for a moment, then told Qing Zhouxue these past events.

Qing Zhouxue listened intently, and finally furrowed her brows.

"So, although they are all cultivators, for personal gain, anything is possible. Not all are upright and noble." She looked at Qing'er—her disciple, who bore a treasure and was enough to attract covetous eyes.

"Yes, and it was for my own selfish reasons that I wanted to keep these mermaids," Qing Zhouxue said, lowering her eyes with an almost inaudible sigh.

Her master must surely think she did not cherish these creatures enough, which was why she had taken the roundabout way to admonish her.

What Yun Shuchen would never have guessed was that Qing'er's image of her had unknowingly grown to lofty heights in her heart.

But Qing Zhouxue thought this way: although her master was an elder of a peak and high above others, she still pitied these beasts struggling at the bottom, not yet awakened. Compared to the greedy cultivators in her stories, Yun Shuchen seemed to radiate light.

"Having seen the vastness of the world, yet still cherishing the green of the grass," Qing Zhouxue replied, indicating she understood.

Yun Shuchen cast her a puzzled glance. Indeed, she was admonishing her disciple, warning her not only to beware of those from the demonic path but also of some sanctimonious immortals. After all, this girl was also a treasure trove, in almost the same danger.

Although the remark was a bit abrupt, with that look of enlightenment on her face... she had probably understood. Yun Shuchen felt slightly relieved.

Just then, Qing Zhouxue felt something on her leg vibrate violently. She looked down and saw it was the black iron token her master had given her.

Yun Shuchen picked it up, and a few characters drifted out from within, leaving ink traces in the air.

"The Lingxu Sect is in peril; return quickly."

Beiyuan Mountain was covered in snow all year round, and today it fell thick and fast from the sky, the snowfall especially heavy.

Yun Shuchen and Qing Zhouxue had already traveled more than half the journey by boat, so it did not take them much longer to return to the Lingxu Sect.

The Lingxu Sect's mountain-protecting formation had already been completed, so the Demonic Race would not be able to break through for a while. The disciples inside were all safe.

However, they were still young, and many had seen the Demonic Race for the first time in their lives. The tragic deaths of their two fellow cultivators a few days ago had been shocking. For the moment, fear gripped them all, and even before any confrontation, their morale wavered.

"Se... Senior Sister, this has nothing to do with our Taichu Sect. Can we not fight?"

One disciple looked as if he were about to cry. Ruan Mingzhu patted him on the shoulder and raised an eyebrow. "Don't be afraid. The Demonic Race also has two arms and two legs, don't they? Who's to say who can beat whom?"

Lin Xunzhen looked around, slightly frowning. "Where's Junior Sister Qing? And Senior Yun is nowhere to be seen either."

"Don't worry, they should be together right now." Bai Su looked up, but couldn't help stepping back. Her voice trembling, she said, "Th... What is that?!"

The crowd followed her gaze to see a pitch-black demonic creature slamming its body against the barrier. Three heads, six arms, a hideous face, and even a pair of wings on its back. The shadow it cast was like a small mountain, enveloping a small group of people.

Ruan Mingzhu stood dumbfounded. "...It really does have more arms than me?"

With each impact, the barrier shook three times, and the young disciples beneath it panicked. On the training ground they usually fought well enough, but now few were not showing their fear.

Yue Changge had to steady them. She glanced at the crowd. "A bunch of inexperienced brats. Stand properly. This type of demon is called a Feitian. Though it looks terrifying, its weak point is on those three heads. Not too hard to deal with."

Not too hard. But in the distance, clearly more were flying in, circling in the sky like crows, letting out hoarse roars.

At this moment, not a single ray of sunlight leaked through. Their bodies were like dark clouds, pressing the daylight into an oppressive darkness akin to night.

Yue Changge's brow furrowed slightly.

Feitians were immensely strong but few in number. This many at once—likely most of the entire clan had swarmed out. But one could easily guess with common sense that this was probably just an appetizer.

The Demon Lord's grief over his lost daughter probably could only be appeased by annihilating the Lingxu Sect.