I'm in Yellow Maple Valley, and I have one equipment slot!

A flash of white light appeared, and Zhou Yuan's figure appeared inside a simple stone house.

The room was extremely simply furnished, and apart from a Star Palace cultivator sitting cross-legged in the corner, there was no one else there.

The cultivator was dressed in his signature white robes, with a cold expression, and looked to be only in the mid-Foundation Establishment stage.

He noticed the movement of the teleportation array, but only glanced at Zhou Yuan indifferently before closing his eyes again, as if the one who entered was not a Core Formation cultivator, but an insignificant flying insect.

This is the arrogance of the Star Palace cultivators.

Born into the most powerful force in the Chaotic Star Sea, his sense of superiority had been ingrained in his bones for many years.

Ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivators would at least stand up and bow respectfully when they met a Core Formation senior, but Star Palace cultivators completely disregarded these rules.

Moreover, this person has been stationed at the teleportation array on the monster island for many years. He is used to seeing late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators and even Core Formation cultivators coming and going, so he is naturally too lazy to deal with these "outsiders".

Zhou Yuan didn't care, but a faint thought flashed through his mind: "The Star Palace... won't be glorious for long."

According to the original timeline, it is estimated that in less than forty years, the Reverse Star Alliance will rise up and officially declare war on the Star Palace.

At that time, this colossal structure, which has stood firm in the chaotic star sea for countless years, will face an unprecedented impact. How long can the arrogance of these Star Palace cultivators last?

Without thinking much, he stepped out of the stone house.

Pushing open the door, a simple, almost shabby little street came into view.

It was called a "street," but it was actually just a bunch of buildings haphazardly built within a radius of several dozen feet around the stone house—a general store made of rough stones, a purchasing agency pieced together with wooden strips, and a tassel shop that was about to collapse.

Inside each shop sat a lazy shopkeeper, some dozing off, others fiddling with their items, paying little attention to the cultivators coming and going.

Zhou Yuan had anticipated this.

He had done his homework before coming and knew that although Mo Fu Island was a monster island, it was not a prosperous place.

The teleportation array here is mainly for the convenience of demon hunters. The simple shops on the island are just to provide the most basic supplies for passing cultivators.

He didn't linger on the island. Instead, he used his escape light to fly away from Inkbelly Island and headed towards the vast and boundless sea to the south.

According to the information I consulted earlier, the sea area 6,000 miles south of Mofu Island is where the Jade Serpent is relatively active.

Zhou Yuan's goal was clear—to hunt down a level seven jade spirit python and extract its inner core to refine a pill that would allow him to break through his bottleneck.

He remained vigilant throughout his escape.

There are many unwritten rules when flying over the open sea.

The most important rule is: it cannot be too low above the sea level.

Some powerful demonic beasts, even when lurking on the seabed, can devour living creatures flying across the surface of the water from hundreds of feet away. If a cultivator disturbs them, they too will face certain death.

However, one also cannot fly too high. The alien sea is not only teeming with monsters, but also with avian monsters circling overhead. Once targeted by these aerial overlords, one's chances of survival are slim.

Zhou Yuan kept his escape light at a height of about 100 feet above the sea surface, and released his divine sense to the fullest extent, covering a radius of 100 miles. While flying, he was alert to any movement in the sea and air.

After flying two thousand miles.

A sudden change has occurred!

Beneath the sea surface, a huge black shadow shot upwards like an arrow released from a bow. Its speed was so fast that it pierced through the hundreds of feet of water in the blink of an eye and leaped out from beneath the surface!

It was a strange fish with a pointed snout, about seven or eight zhang long, covered in jet-black scales, with a sharp, spear-like mouth, and two scarlet eyes staring intently at Zhou Yuan in the air.

The moment it leaped out of the sea, it swung its tail violently, using the force to soar dozens of feet upwards, and its gaping maw lunged straight at Zhou Yuan!

Level 5 Monster - Arrowhead Fish!

"court death!"

Zhou Yuan had been on guard for some time.

When the demonic beast lurked on the seabed, his divine sense had already detected the restless demonic aura. At this moment, the arrowfish suddenly launched a sneak attack, but Zhou Yuan reacted even faster.

He made a hand seal, and his magical power surged instantly.

Golden Dragon Scissors Killing Technique!

Two golden dragon phantoms appeared out of thin air, each over ten zhang long, with clearly defined scales and claws, lifelike in appearance. They circled in the air, then swooped down, transforming into a giant pair of golden scissors, carrying a sharp, tearing-through-all aura, fiercely slashing at the arrowhead fish!

"Snap—!"

The golden silhouette collided head-on with the swordfish. The body of that level-five demon beast was instantly cut in two as if it were made of paper! Black demon blood rained down, and the two severed bodies fell into the sea, stirring up waves several meters high.

Zhou Yuan remained expressionless as he swooped down, reached out, and captured the sharp, long beak of the arrowfish and the demon core from its head, then casually put it into his storage bag.

Why not take advantage of such readily available materials?

Having done all that, he continued flying south.

They flew another thousand miles.

Zhou Yuan suddenly sensed an aura approaching him—the aura of a human cultivator, in the early stage of Core Formation, moving slowly, seemingly a demon hunter also active in this sea area.

His divine sense was so powerful that it far surpassed that of ordinary early-stage Nascent Soul cultivators, allowing him to detect the other party's movements from a hundred miles away.

However, that person seemed to be heading back towards Ink Belly Island, in the opposite direction from Zhou Yuan's direction of travel, so there was no need to deliberately take a detour to avoid him.

Soon after, the two streaks of light met head-on.

The other party was a middle-aged man with an ordinary face, wearing a gray robe, and his aura was at the early stage of Core Formation. Upon seeing Zhou Yuan, his eyes lit up slightly, and he immediately slowed his speed and took the initiative to greet him:

"Fellow Daoist, please wait!"

Zhou Yuan frowned slightly, his escape light not stopping, only slowing down slightly, his tone calm: "What is it?"

"My name is Kim Sam-soon, a rogue cultivator," the middle-aged man said with a cupped-fist salute. "May I ask your name, fellow Daoist? Are you here to hunt demons in this alien sea?"

"Zhou Yuan".

Zhou Yuan gave his name, still in that indifferent tone, "Speak your mind."

Kim Sam-soon wasn't annoyed at all; instead, his smile widened. "Fellow Daoist Zhou, you're so straightforward! To be honest, a few of my fellow Daoists and I have discovered a wounded level seven mutated beast ahead, and we were just about to invite a few more helpers to hunt it down. I wonder if you'd be interested?"

"What kind of monster?" Zhou Yuan asked.

"Thunder Whale Beast!"

When Kim Sam-soon uttered those three words, a glint of excitement flashed in her eyes.

Zhou Yuan's gaze sharpened.

Thunder Whale Beast!

This kind of monster is extremely rare. It is an unusual species among whale-type monsters. It is born with lightning-attribute divine abilities and its combat power far exceeds that of its peers.

A level seven Thunder Whale Beast possesses strength comparable to a late-stage Core Formation cultivator, and can even hold its own against a cultivator in the early Nascent Soul stage.

But its value is equally astonishing.

Its demon core contains pure lightning power, and its market price can reach over 150,000 spirit stones.

Moreover, such level-seven exotic demon cores are often priceless and unavailable.

In addition, the Thunder Whale Beast's horn is a top-grade material for crafting lightning-attribute magical artifacts, its scales can be used to make defensive armor... and it also harbors a lightning-absorbing pearl within its body—

This object is naturally able to absorb the power of lightning.

For some cultivators who practice lightning-attribute techniques, it is a priceless treasure.

"You mean it's injured?"

Zhou Yuan pressed for an answer.

"Exactly!"

Kim Sam-soon nodded repeatedly. "According to our previous observations, the Thunder Whale Beast had an extremely ferocious wound on its abdomen. The wound was several meters wide and deep enough to expose the bone. It was probably left during a battle with other high-level demonic beasts."

"It's so badly injured; now's the perfect time to hunt it down! Otherwise, how would we dare to even consider attacking a level seven Thunder Whale Beast?"

Zhou Yuan's mind raced.

A wounded level 7 Thunder Whale Beast is indeed valuable. .

The Kim Sam-soon in front of me is only at the early stage of Core Formation, and he dares to participate, so what do I have to fear?

"How many people participated in the demon hunt?" Zhou Yuan asked.

"Four fellow Daoists are already waiting over there, and with Fellow Daoist Zhou and myself, that makes six!"

Kim Sam-soon hurriedly said.

"Okay, Mr. Zhou agrees."

Zhou Yuan nodded.

If he could really hunt down the Thunder Whale Beast, what he wanted most was the Thunder Absorbing Pearl.

Although this item is not of much use to the cultivation technique I am currently practicing, if I can find a suitable Thunder Bamboo in the future and use it in conjunction with the Thunder Absorbing Pearl to refine a natal magic weapon, it may be able to unleash unexpected power.

Kim Sam-soon was overjoyed and immediately led the way.

The two flew about 800 miles, one after the other, and arrived at a huge reef protruding from the sea.

This reef is thousands of feet in circumference, with a smooth, flat surface, clearly a natural platform formed by the pounding of waves over millions of years.

On the platform, four cultivators were already sitting cross-legged.

Kim Sam-soon descended from her ethereal form and, smiling, introduced the two parties:

"Everyone, this is fellow Daoist Zhou Yuan, a rogue cultivator. We met by chance on the road just now, and I have invited him to hunt demons together."

He then pointed to the four people and introduced them to Zhou Yuan in turn:

"This is Fellow Daoist Huang Bohu from Golden Light Island!"

Huang Bohu was a burly man with a thick beard and a fierce face, looking like a rough and tough martial artist. His cultivation level was at the early stage of Core Formation.

"This is Fellow Daoist Hu Tian, ​​a rogue cultivator!"

Hu Tian had a lean and refined appearance with three long strands of beard, giving him a somewhat otherworldly air. He was also in the early stages of Core Formation.

"This is Fellow Daoist Ji Changji, a rogue cultivator!"

Ji Chang was a thin, middle-aged man with a sinister look in his eyes. He was taciturn and also in the early stage of Core Formation.

Finally, Kim Sam-soon pointed to the one with the strongest aura among the four, her tone becoming more serious:

"This is Fellow Daoist Jia Tiange from Night Dragon Island! Fellow Daoist Jia possesses the cultivation of the mid-stage Core Formation realm, and this demon hunt is entirely thanks to Fellow Daoist Jia's leadership!"

Jia Tiange was a man who looked to be in his forties, with a dignified face, sharp eyes, and wearing a blue robe.

He nodded slightly as a greeting to Zhou Yuan, his gaze sweeping over Zhou Yuan without saying anything more.

Zhou Yuan's aura was suppressed to the early stage of Core Formation, making him inconspicuous among the crowd.

"Six people should be enough."

Jia Tiange spoke, his voice steady and powerful, "If we wait any longer, something might go wrong."

The longer the wounds of that thunder whale beast are left untreated, the more it recovers.

The others nodded in agreement, clearly not wanting to wait any longer.

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