Chapter 52: Chapter 52: Instant Kill
Qiu Qianhai?!
He’s really here, and he’s even engaged in a fight... Ji Yuan immediately pressed the Black Wind Boat into the water, heading towards the gathering of small islands ahead.
Even with the Water-Resistant Talisman in place, Ji Yuan could feel that the water in this lake was significantly colder than elsewhere.
The Black Wind Boat traversed the underwater, and even though Ji Yuan deliberately slowed down, it only took a few breaths to reach the area of combat.
Spiritual Qi raged above the water, but below the surface, it was calm and undisturbed.
Other than sensing some chaos in the Spiritual Qi, Ji Yuan could perceive nothing else.
He looked up from the underwater. The midday sun shone down, but he could only see two Dharma Ships floating on the surface, barely anything else was clear.
The water separation isolated all auras; he couldn’t even tell which one was Qiu Qianhai.
Should he just rush up and launch a surprise attack?
Both were at the sixth layer of Qi Cultivation; in a sneak attack, Ji Yuan was confident he could take down the opponent with ease.
Just as he contemplated making a move, he saw one Dharma Ship swiftly escape, followed by a stranger’s voice.
"Running? All you know is how to run, Qiu Qianhai."
"Haha, Old Dog Lin, you’re damn near killing me, should I not run?!"
Though Qiu Qianhai’s voice was hearty, there was a trace of undeniable weakness, he was hurt.
Seeing the remaining Dharma Ship above making to chase, Ji Yuan finally acted, propelling the Black Wind Boat forward with full force, his figure shooting out like a long black arrow.
In an instant, he broke through the water’s surface, the Black Wind Boat suspending in mid-air, Ji Yuan’s white robes fluttered.
He made a sign with one hand and softly chanted:
"Go!"
The White Water gurgled, and a pale blue water screen emerged both on the surface and in the air.
He also caught a clear sight of the one chasing Qiu Qianhai. He was a man of about fifty or sixty, dressed in black robes, slightly bald with a vicious face.
In his left hand, he held an iron shield, while the right wielded a spiked club.
Seeing Ji Yuan suddenly emerge from beneath the water, the man’s face was filled with shock.
The layered tide of White Water instantly mired him as if in quicksand.
The Black Wind Boat skimmed over his head, and Ji Yuan, with both hands, performed the second layer of "Water Drop Finger," casting six hair-thin strands of Spiritual Light.
Old Dog Lin reacted quickly, first swinging the iron shield in his hand violently, knocking aside Ji Yuan’s White Water Flying Sword.
Immediately, he thrashed the spiked club in his right hand frantically, twirling it to also block Ji Yuan’s Water Drop Finger.
Just as he thought he had withstood the sneak attack, he suddenly groaned, eyes widening. Though his spiked club continued to spin from inertia, the iron shield fell.
He had deflected the White Water Flying Sword, but hidden within the sword’s body was a deadly needle that followed along his spiked club.
The needle pierced straight through his forehead.
The deadly needle was infallible in seizing lives.
The originally mere two-finger-sized White Water Flying Sword instantly transformed into a three-foot-long azure blade, sweeping across and cleaving his head clean off.
"Boom—"
The Black Wind Boat finally settled on the water as Ji Yuan flung out two drops of Corpse-Dissolving Water.
One drop landed on the corpse, while the other fell on the irises of the dead head, and under the Corpse-Dissolving Water, both vanished entirely.
From bursting out of the water to successfully executing the sneak attack, it all happened within a single breath.
In the distance, sensing the commotion, Qiu Qianhai turned to find the black boat floating on the water, atop it stood a figure both unfamiliar and familiar.
For a moment, he could hardly believe it.
He couldn’t believe Ji Yuan could appear here, and even more so, he couldn’t believe Ji Yuan possessed the skill to instantly kill someone at the sixth layer of Qi Cultivation.
Seeing that Qiu Qianhai was unharmed, Ji Yuan also breathed a sigh of relief. Just as he was about to collect the spoils of war and think of heading up for a reunion.
From the corner of his eye, he suddenly noticed two cultivators standing on a nearby island.
His thoughts moved, and he suddenly shouted angrily, "How dare you covet the one my Qin Family wants to kill."
"Qiu Qianhai, where are you running?!"
Upon hearing this, Qiu Qianhai understood Ji Yuan’s intentions, and instead of fleeing, he once again unslung two curved sabers from his back, sneering coldly:
"I, Qiu Qianhai, kill your Qin Family people as if slaughtering dogs!"
Saying this, he hurled the two curved sabers like crescent moons toward Ji Yuan.
Seeing this scene, the danger was evident.
Ji Yuan summoned the Dragon Armor Shield, maneuvered the Dharma Ship forward, and with the White Water Flying Sword sweeping outward, it quickly toppled the two curved sabers.
Before Qiu Qianhai could react, Ji Yuan was already upon him.
Ji Yuan punched heavily into Qiu Qianhai’s chest, sending him flying backward. At the same time, the Dharma Ship flickered, securely catching Qiu Qianhai on the Black Wind Boat.
Seeing the situation, Qiu Qianhai seemed inclined to resist, but the White Water Flying Sword hovered at his brow.
Any slight movement on his part and the sword’s tip would descend.
Ji Yuan raised his hand and collected Qiu Qianhai’s spoils. Then, with a wave of his right hand, he tossed two Spirit Stones to the two onlookers on the island.
Ji Yuan cupped his hands toward them from afar, laughing heartily:
"Qin Family’s Qin Wei, thanks both brothers for holding the line."
Having accepted the Spirit Stones, the two cultivators hurriedly cupped their hands in return, laughing, "Young Master Qin, your righteousness is admirable."
"Congratulations, Young Master Qin, on successfully capturing the bandit."
Although Ji Yuan didn’t understand why the three Qin Family members who departed early hadn’t arrived yet, it was still good that he reunited with Qiu Qianhai.
With a slight cupping of hands, he took off with Qiu Qianhai in the opposite direction.
After traveling a considerable distance, he quietly asked, "Where to?"
"Keep going straight, after passing a person-shaped island, head northwest."
"..."
"We’ve come quite far now, can you move the flying sword away?" Qiu Qianhai looked at Ji Yuan, as if in jest, exasperated.
"Oh." Ji Yuan seemed to just remember, "I forgot, I still have a Middle Grade Flying Sword."
"Alright, alright, I get it, you’re mighty."
Qiu Qianhai took back his Dharma Ship and two Crescent Moon Sabers from Ji Yuan’s hands, then retrieved a Hundred Herbs Pill from his Storage Bag.
Unexpectedly, Ji Yuan tossed him a small piece of Blood Essence.
"Your recovery will be too slow, take mine."
Qiu Qianhai looked down, then up at Ji Yuan again.
"What, did you go out and sell some stuff? How come you’re so rich, even richer than me, a Tribulation Cultivator!"
"Heh, being a Tribulation Cultivator only earns you so much."
Ji Yuan chuckled, but quickly his expression turned serious, "Stop wasting time, quickly recover. There are three sixth-layer Qi Cultivators from the Qin Family; when we face them, you’ll need to put in the effort even at the fifth layer."
"Mm."
When it came to serious matters, Qiu Qianhai quickly swallowed the Blood Essence, and in his hand held two Spirit Stones, beginning to recover slowly.
An hour later, Ji Yuan finally spotted a person-shaped island ahead. He circled around it, heading northwest.
But in the end, he always felt something wasn’t quite right.
The three Qin Family members, who had made their move earlier, should surely have reached Qiu Qianhai first, not him.
As for destiny, Ji Yuan didn’t have much faith in it.
He slightly slowed the boat, turned and asked, "Does anyone else know about your hideout?"
Qiu Qianhai instinctively shook his head, "No one..."
But before he finished speaking, he suddenly remembered something, "There is one, someone with whom I have a life-and-death bond, from the neighboring Jingde Square, named Xiong Youfu."
"A few days ago, when I was severely injured, I entrusted him to buy some Elixir and food for me, so he also knew the location of my hideout."
"Are you implying..."
Ji Yuan pondered, "We can’t go to your hiding place for now, let’s find another place to discuss."
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