Mountain Venerable and Sea Immortal

Several days after the Jiang family's disturbance, the fishing village returned to peace, with wisps of smoke rising from chimneys mingling with the salty sea breeze, just as before. But within the underwater secret realm, however, lay a completely different world. Within this realm, spiritual energy swirled like milk, and the entire area was bathed in a soft, pale blue light.

Spiritual energy rose like mist, wisps transforming into pale blue light. The Sea Spirit Core Bed was entirely lustrous, its halo as soft as rippling water, illuminating the entire secret realm in a dreamlike state. Its entire body was pure white, its halo rippling like water, with tiny beads of spiritual energy hanging like strings from the Sea Spirit Grass on the surrounding stone walls, glistening and almost dripping. On the bed, Lin Yan stood like an ice sculpture, his body upright, spiritual energy rising around him. The surging sea energy within his meridians circulated through his limbs and bones, and with each raised hand, pale blue spiritual energy swirled around his fingertips, its power several times stronger than usual.

Yunxi found a place with the densest spiritual energy and sat cross-legged in meditation. Her delicate hands formed hand seals, and pale blue sea spiritual energy flowed into her body with her breath, circulating slowly around her meridians. She focused on cultivating in conjunction with her own sword techniques and mental cultivation methods. The spirit turtle curled up beside the sea spiritual core bed, its shell slightly closed as if it were regulating its breathing. Its black bean-like eyes occasionally glanced at the entrance to the secret realm. The sinister and demonic aura from before kept this spiritual creature from letting its guard down in the slightest.

Using the almost liquefied, pure spiritual energy of this place, Lin Yan once again circulated the "Laoshan Sea-Gazing Technique" to stabilize his realm. With a slight lift of his fingertips, the warm spiritual energy of the Sea Spirit Pearl merged and intertwined with the sea energy of the secret realm, making the spiritual energy vortex within his dantian increasingly condensed and substantial. He repeatedly practiced the two newly acquired secret techniques beside the stone platform. He had already thoroughly mastered the methods of the Golden Finger Technique and the Wall-Passing Technique, and with the abundant spiritual energy, his techniques became increasingly refined and exquisite.

About half a day later, Yunxi slowly finished her practice. Her eyes flashed with spiritual light, and sword energy appeared around her. Her cultivation had also made considerable progress.

"Lin Yan, shall we go deeper into the area?" Yun Xi saw Lin Xian slowly open his eyes, his two phoenix eyes, full of tenderness and gentle breath, blinking.

"Okay." Lin Yan stretched her straight back and smiled sweetly.

Just as the two were about to explore deeper into the secret realm, a soft sound of rubble rolling down came from the entrance. Immediately afterwards, a thick, pungent, sinister aura, along with the fishy smell of the sea breeze, rushed into the secret realm.

"They're here." Lin Yan's eyes sharpened, and he moved swiftly to stand in front of Yun Xi, his spiritual energy quietly gathering around him.

The next moment, several dark figures crashed through the rocks concealing the sea cave and barged in. The leading sea monster was bizarre and ferocious, wielding a wide, pincer-like, serrated crab claw blade. Its upper body was a humanoid shell, with rough, bluish-gray skin covered by a thin layer of hard crab scales, bulging veins on its neck, and its face covered with deep, crab-like markings. Its lower body was the abdominal segment of a giant deep-sea crab, over ten feet wide, with eight thick, sturdy legs that gleamed with a dark blue metallic sheen. The tips of its legs were sharp as hooks, covered with fine barbs. With each step, its legs struck the ground with a dull thud. Behind it trailed a half-foot-long crab tail, which swayed slightly, its venomous barbs gleaming with a dark aura. To the left of the sea monster were six Jiang family henchmen behind Jiang Hu, their eyes gleaming with ferocity as they stared intently at Lin Yan and his companion, who stood in the center of the room filled with spiritual herbs and sea spirit cores.

"In such a secret realm, boy, obediently hand over the treasures and the Sea Spirit Core Bed, and I will spare your corpse intact. Otherwise, I will tear you to pieces and feed you to the deep-sea fish and shrimp!" The crab demon roared hoarsely, its voice as grating as the friction of rocks. Before it finished speaking, it suddenly pushed off the ground with its crab limbs, its body shooting out like an arrow. The crab claw blade in its hand was wrapped in thick black demonic energy, carrying the force of splitting mountains and shattering rocks, and went straight for Lin Yan's face.

Instead of retreating, Lin Yan advanced, fully activating the "Laoshan Sea-Gazing Technique." Pure sea energy surged wildly at his fingertips, causing a burst of pale blue light, like brilliant stars condensing at his fingertips—a golden finger technique! He flicked his wrist, sending three sharp finger strikes through the air, the hissing sound rippling through the air, aimed directly at the crab demon's wrist and eyes. The crab demon roared, swinging its blade to block, simultaneously activating its demonic magic. Thick black demonic energy condensed around it into a heavy crab-shell demonic shield, as hard as black iron, impenetrable by ordinary weapons. Ke Linyan's Golden Finger Technique combined the spiritual energy of the Sea Spirit Pearl and the Secret Realm, making it incomparably sharp. Three finger strikes hit the shield in succession, making three crisp "plop plop plop" sounds. They pierced through the demon shield like sharp blades tearing cloth. The remaining force did not diminish and scratched the crab demon's forelimb shell, instantly splitting three deep bloody marks that revealed the bone. Black and red demon blood gushed out, filling the air with a fishy smell.

"You mere junior cultivator dare to hurt me!" The crab demon roared furiously, its turbid yellow eyes flashing with ferocity. It immediately activated its exclusive demonic technique, the Black Water Tide Technique, and slammed its crab claws into the ground. The surrounding water vapor was instantly corrupted by the demonic energy, transforming into more than a dozen black, poisonous water arrows, wrapped in ice shards and ghostly poison, which shot towards Lin Yan like a torrential rain.

Lin Yan remained calm. With a thought, he enveloped himself in sea energy and suddenly activated his wall-penetrating technique! He instantly became half-real, half-ethereal, floating in mid-air like a wisp of smoke, a pale blue aura swirling around him. Without dodging or evading, he passed directly through the solid stone wall beside him. The water arrows struck the wall, blasting it into fragments, and the poisonous mist corroded the stone, causing it to emit black smoke. Lin Yan then silently appeared in a blind spot behind the crab demon, his golden finger technique coalescing once more.

The crab demon sensed the unusual movement of spiritual energy behind it and whirled around to parry, but it was too late. Lin Yan's fingertips unleashed a burst of energy, precisely striking the weak point of its demonic power where the crab's shell connected—the crucial hub for its demonic energy circulation.

"Awooo—" The crab demon roared in pain, its demonic energy instantly surging and churning. The Black Water Tide Technique's attack suddenly collapsed, and it staggered a few steps forward, almost dropping the crab claw blade in its hand. Its demonic power fluctuated, no longer as fierce as before.

Seeing this, the six Jiang family thugs, fearing the crab demon's defeat, rushed forward with their blades, unleashing flashes of light that swept through the air, aiming straight for Lin Yan's waist and shoulders. Yun Xi's figure blurred, appearing beside Lin Yan like a startled swan. With a light flick of her wrist, a clear, silvery-white sword aura burst forth from her body. The sword aura, like a crescent moon unsheathed, was cold, sharp, and incredibly fast, instantly slashing at the six blades. Several crisp clangs rang out as the sword aura precisely parried the blades. The immense force sent the thugs staggering backward, their wrists going numb, their blades nearly slipping from their hands, their faces turning deathly pale.

Yunxi pressed her advantage relentlessly, her delicate hand forming another sword incantation. Suddenly, sword energy erupted from her body, three thin, silvery-white sword energies coalescing in mid-air and shooting towards the attackers like shooting stars, forcing the six to scramble and dodge helplessly. Lin Yan, meanwhile, seized the opportunity to move about, his wall-penetrating technique masterful. His figure was as elusive as a ghost, sometimes passing through reefs, sometimes disappearing into stone walls, leaving no trace. The crab demon could not fathom his movements.

In the heat of battle, a cry of surprise suddenly came from the entrance of the secret realm, and Lin Yan's heart tightened.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw another thug from the Jiang family guarding the cave entrance holding Yi Azhu firmly in his grasp. A cold steel knife was pressed tightly against her slender neck, the blade already cutting through her flesh, and beads of scarlet blood slowly seeped out.

"Stop! Move again and I'll slit her throat!" the thug roared, his face contorted with rage. He threatened Ah Zhu's life, his eyes fixed on Lin Yan with a sinister glint.

Tears welled in Yi Azhu's eyes, yet she stubbornly gritted her teeth, refusing to beg for mercy. Her gaze towards Lin Yan was filled with worry, fearing she would become a burden to him. Lin Yan's eyes were cold and icy. His spiritual energy seemed to be concealed, but in reality, he was frantically gathering sea energy in secret. A faint light flickered at his fingertips as his gaze was fixed on the henchman's wrist.

Just as the thug was distracted by shouting and lowered his guard, Lin Yan's figure suddenly flashed. He activated his wall-passing technique in an instant, his body lightly enveloped in sea energy, and he passed straight through the reef beside him, appearing like a ghost next to the thug. His speed was so fast that he left a pale blue afterimage. He focused his Golden Finger Technique on a single point, a faint blue spiritual light flashing, and precisely struck the acupoint on the thug's wrist.

The thug's wrist suddenly went numb, and excruciating pain swept through his entire body. His fingers instantly stiffened, and the steel knife in his hand clattered to the ground. Lin Yan took the opportunity to reach out and pull the trembling Gu Azhu behind him. His spiritual energy surged, forming an invisible protective shield. With a flick of his wrist, the force of his energy completely subdued the thug, who collapsed to the ground.

Once the crab demon recovered, it thought Lin Yan had revealed a weakness. Its eyes blazed with ferocity, and its roar shook the surrounding rocks, causing sand to fall. The sand beneath its feet was whipped up by its demonic aura, and with its eight claws opening and closing, it once again pounced on Lin Yan, bringing with it a stench.

Lin Yan remained calm, his eyes showing no fear, and his pale blue sea energy suddenly surged. The crab demon, seeing this, felt a strange panic and roared, channeling all its demonic power. Just as its giant claws were about to touch the protective shield in front of Lin Yan, Lin Yan formed a hand seal and chanted an incantation. Instantly, the sea energy around him transformed into thousands of water blades, flying towards the crab demon.

"Pfft—"

The water blade was incredibly sharp, instantly slicing through the crab demon's soft abdomen, causing demon blood to gush out, carrying a strong, fishy smell.

"Aww—"

Immediately afterward, Lin Yan gathered surging sea energy in his palm, and the peach wood sword in his hand instantly transformed into a crystal-clear water sword. The water sword shimmered with spiritual light, carrying the power to suppress demons and evil spirits. He flashed again, and the water sword pierced straight into the demonic energy deep within the crab demon's belly.

"ah--"

A piercing scream echoed through the secret realm. The crab demon's demonic essence was shattered by the water sword, its demonic energy rapidly dissipated, its hard shell cracked inch by inch, and its massive body instantly went limp, turning into a pool of foul-smelling black water that seeped into the sand and stones, leaving no trace of its former life.

With the crab demon dealt with, dealing with Jiang Hu and the Jiang family's henchmen was a piece of cake.

Before Lin Yan and Yun Xi arrived at the secret realm to cultivate, Lin Yan, worried that the Jiang family would make things difficult for Yi Azhu again, specifically told her where to cultivate. However, Gu Azhu, concerned for Lin Yan, had searched all the way and found this sea cave. Having survived two perilous situations, Yi Azhu looked at Lin Yan with eyes full of gratitude and admiration. Unable to contain her emotions any longer, she knelt down to pay her respects, choking back tears, and said, "Brother Lin Yan, you have risked your life to save me time and again. I have no way to repay you. I wish to recognize you as my sworn brother, and I will never leave you in this life, relying on you for support!"

Lin Yan quickly reached out to help her up, his heart moved as he looked at the lonely yet resilient girl before him. Having grown up without family, he knew the bitterness of being alone. He nodded emphatically, picked up a gleaming white seashell from the ground as a token, and declared loudly, "Today, Lin Yan vows to become sworn siblings with Yi Azhu. From this day forward, we will share happiness and hardship, and I will protect you for the rest of my life, never betraying you!"

With tears in her eyes, Yi Azhu kowtowed and uttered a clear yet choked "Big Brother" from her lips.