Mountain Venerable and Sea Immortal

"Big brother, look at this Sea Spirit Pearl!"

Lin Yan and Yun Xi had just stabilized their newly broken-through cultivation levels. The faint aura of spiritual energy surrounding them had not yet completely dissipated when they heard a series of light and nimble footsteps.

The two turned their heads at the same time and saw that on the beach not far away, Yi Azhu raised her right hand high, holding something in her palm. There seemed to be fine water shimmering around her. She was full of joy and walked quickly towards Lin Yan. Her skirt was fluttering like a butterfly as the sea breeze lifted it.

"Ah Zhu? You..." Lin Yan was speechless for a moment, his hand, which was stretched out in mid-air, suddenly stopped, his eyes filled with disbelief and astonishment.

Previously, Yi Azhu, though pretty, had a rough complexion from years of working by the sea, tanned by the wind and sun, and always carried a hint of timidity and restraint. But the girl standing before me now had eyebrows like distant mountains, eyes like autumn waters, skin like smooth jade, fair and radiant, and hair as black as piled clouds at her temples. Her posture was upright, and her temperament was gentle yet lively. She had completely transformed, like a different person.

Yunxi, standing to the side, raised her eyebrows slightly, a hint of surprise flashing in her cool eyes. She could clearly sense that Yi Azhu was faintly radiating a weak yet pure water-based spiritual energy, which meant that her physique had undergone a tremendous change due to a fortuitous encounter.

Seeing Lin Yan's astonished expression and his gaze fixed on her, Yi Azhu blushed slightly, her cheeks turning a faint pink. She lowered her head shyly and whispered, "Brother, look at this pearl. I found it in a crevice in the deep-sea reef just now. It seems to be able to absorb the spiritual energy from the seawater on its own."

As she spoke, she handed the Sea Spirit Pearl from her palm to Lin Yan, her eyes filled with joy and anticipation.

"it is good."

Lin Yan composed himself, regaining his composure and suppressing the turmoil in his heart. He secretly pondered that the Sea Spirit Pearl must have already nourished Yi Azhu's body, allowing her to undergo a complete transformation. He then reached out and carefully accepted the Sea Spirit Pearl.

The moment his fingertips touched the bead, a warm and cool sensation spread from his fingertips to his entire body. The meridians that had been slightly tense due to stabilizing his cultivation instantly became incredibly comfortable, and even the surrounding air seemed fresher. Lin Yan looked down for a closer look. This Sea Spirit Bead was no bigger than a thumb, with a clear, deep blue color. Its surface was lustrous and translucent, and within it, light and shadow seemed to flow like surging waves. With a gentle squeeze, he could feel the vast and pure water-based spiritual energy contained within, slowly radiating outwards. It was definitely not an ordinary jewel.

"Such pure water-based spiritual energy! This is no ordinary sea pearl; it's likely a treasure nurtured by a deep-sea spiritual vein." Lin Yan channeled his energy into his palm, carefully sensing the fluctuations of spiritual energy within the sea pearl. His expression gradually became solemn. He looked up at Yi Azhu, his tone tinged with concern, "Azhu, your ability to find this pearl and undergo such a transformation must be an incredible stroke of luck. Here, keep it safe." With that, he returned the sea pearl to Azhu.

Yunxi walked forward slowly, her gaze falling on the Sea Spirit Pearl in Yi Azhu's palm: "This pearl has extremely strong spiritual power and can recognize its owner on its own. Azhu's constitution is water-oriented, and its compatibility with it is extremely high. Just now, the pearl must have taken the initiative to nourish the host, which helped her cleanse her marrow and transform her tendons, reshaping her spiritual body. In the future, she will definitely achieve twice the result with half the effort when cultivating water-based techniques."

The spirit turtle beside them was originally a magical beast they had encountered by chance on the beach. It was particularly close to Ah Zhu, who came from a fishing family. Now, having absorbed the spiritual energy of the Sea Spirit Pearl, the turtle's shell patterns became even more lustrous, its body swelled slightly, and it awakened a weak instinct to control water. It obediently lay at Ah Zhu's feet, occasionally rubbing its head against her trouser leg, while its small eyes were fixed on the entrance to the underground river, frequently emitting low hisses, revealing a strong sense of vigilance.

The underground river flowed swiftly, its chill biting cold. A sea breeze, carrying a fishy stench, swept over them. The deeper they ventured, the dimmer the light became, and the surrounding stone walls were gradually replaced by dark reefs. These reefs were rough and sharp, covered in sticky river silt, emitting a faint, eerie, putrid smell. The ground was slippery and difficult to traverse; a single misstep would send them swept away by the raging current. After walking for about half an incense stick's time, the river suddenly widened, revealing a dark, deep abyss, its eerie atmosphere palpable.

This Black Reef Abyss is a truly perilous place. Countless colossal black reefs rise in layers, jagged and overlapping, like the fangs of a ferocious beast, completely shrouding the abyss. Only a few faint rays of sunlight pierce through the cracks in the rocks, barely illuminating the surrounding area. The abyss is bottomless, pitch black below, with no end in sight. The water pressure is immense, the air oppressive and suffocating. The water forms dozens of eerie, swirling whirlpools, the deafening roar of the currents carrying fragments of rocks and bones; anyone who gets too close is instantly swept in and crushed to dust. Embedded in the abyss walls are the remains of many cultivators and sea beasts, corroded black by demonic energy. A dense, violent demonic aura of shrimp demons permeates the air, intertwining with a faint yet resilient Taoist righteous energy, creating an atmosphere of extreme oppression and deadly danger.

Just as the two had secured Ah Zhu and the spirit turtle, a series of dense rustling sounds suddenly erupted from the crevices and undercurrents of the black reef. Dozens of bluish-black figures burst forth—the shrimp demons they had sensed earlier! These shrimp demons varied in size; the smaller ones were half a person's height and moved with lightning speed, while the larger ones were over ten feet tall. Their shells were as thick as armor, covered entirely in a bluish-black hard shell, covered with sharp barbs. Their compound eyes were blood-red, and their mouthparts exhaled a foul, demonic aura. They wielded shrimp-shaped spears forged from reef rocks, the tips of which were coated with a deadly poison from the dark river, gleaming with a cold, eerie green light. In an instant, they surrounded the group.

The leading shrimp demon leader was exceptionally ferocious, standing a full two zhang tall. Its entire body was a deep blue-green, gleaming with a metallic sheen like cold iron. A sharp, half-foot-long shrimp spine stood erect atop its head, flashing with a chilling light. Its aura was firmly locked at the peak of the fifth level of Qi Refining, three points stronger than the remnant soul of the Crab Demon Ancestor. It gripped a heavy reef spear over ten zhang long in each hand, the shafts wreathed in dark demonic energy. It slammed its weapon heavily on the ground, causing the black reef to tremble slightly. It roared fiercely, "Humble humans, daring to kill my Crab Demon allies and destroy my clan's fortified territory! Today, I will surely tear your souls out, skin you alive, and throw you into the abyss to feed the fish!"

Before the roar had even faded, the shrimp demon leader launched the first attack. He stomped his feet, his body shooting out like an arrow, wielding both spears simultaneously. Two thick, jet-black streams of demonic energy, each as thick as a bucket and carrying a venomous, foul wind, cleaved straight down. Wherever the spear winds passed, the air was corroded, creating a white mist. The other shrimp demons also launched their attacks in unison, their spears thrusting in unison, a dense barrage of spear shadows covering the group. Gu Azhu turned pale with fright and instinctively hid behind the spirit tortoise. The spirit tortoise immediately deployed a thin, water-ripple shield, managing to withstand several spear thrusts from the smaller shrimp demons, producing dull thuds as they collided.

"Spirit Turtle, protect Ah Zhu! Don't let her out!" Lin Yan shouted sharply, immediately activating the newly mastered Azure Sea Emperor Technique. Deep blue water-attribute spiritual energy surged from his body. He raised his hand to manipulate the surrounding dark river water, condensing it into a thick water curtain barrier to block the two streams of demonic power. A piercing corrosive sound rang out instantly as the water curtain was eroded with holes. Lin Yan's eyes narrowed, and he held the peach wood sword horizontally, infusing the blade with pure water spiritual energy. A pale blue sword aura, carrying the force of the sea, slashed directly at the shrimp demon horde on the left. As the sword aura swept across, several small shrimp demons instantly shattered their shells, their demonic power dissipated, and they fell into the whirlpool.

Yunxi followed closely behind, her "Immortal Sword Mantra" technique operating at its peak. Her slender hand twirled the sword, drawing its gleaming white blade. The white light condensed like lightning, specifically targeting the shrimp demons' weak points such as their joints and eye sockets. Her swordsmanship was agile and graceful; with each flash of light, a shrimp demon would scream and fall to the ground. However, the shrimp demons were numerous and fearless, relentlessly charging forward, gradually forcing the two to retreat step by step.

Seeing his subordinates fall one after another, the shrimp demon leader became enraged. Abandoning Lin Yan, he wielded his twin spears in an impenetrable formation, unleashing his signature move, the Shrimp Claw Sky-Splitting Spear. A massive phantom of a demonic shrimp claw condensed at the spear tip, carrying the force to tear through the air, aiming directly at Yun Xi's shoulder, attempting to break through her sharp sword energy first. Yun Xi's expression hardened, and she parried with her sword. A clang of metal rang out, the impact numbing her wrist, forcing her to stagger back several steps, a trickle of blood escaping from the corner of her mouth.

Seeing this, Lin Yan's heart tightened. He immediately used his wall-penetrating technique, his figure moving like a blue swan, circling to the side of the shrimp demon leader. He thrust his peach wood sword with the water-controlling sword move of the Azure Sea Emperor Technique, drawing the abyss water to gather at the sword tip, transforming it into a thin water arrow that pierced the weak point at the base of the leader's shrimp spines. The shrimp demon leader sensed the danger and abruptly swung his spear to block. The two spears collided with the peach wood sword with a loud crash, the shockwave spreading outwards, and even the surrounding black reefs were shaken down with rubble.

"How dare you be so arrogant, you mere junior!" The shrimp demon leader roared in fury. The shrimp thorns on its head glowed with a ghostly green light as it unleashed its deadly move, Thousand Thorn Poisonous Needles Rain. Countless fine, hair-like, highly poisonous thorns burst forth from its shell, raining down on Lin Yan with no way to dodge. Lin Yan hastily erected a spiritual energy barrier. The thorns struck it, producing a dense, crisp sound. The barrier instantly cracked, and several thorns grazed his arm, sending waves of tingling, itchy, and extremely painful sensations through him.

"Lin Yan, I'll hold it back, you attack its vital points!" Yun Xi forcefully channeled her spiritual power, her sword intent surging, unleashing the Flowing Cloud Sword Style from the "Immortal Sword Manual." White sword light transformed into countless sword shadows, tightly binding the shrimp demon leader's twin spears, preventing it from launching any further attacks. Taking advantage of the opportunity, Lin Yan adjusted his breathing, expelling the poison from his arm, circulating his spiritual energy throughout his body, and pushing his water control technique to its limit. He manipulated two turbulent streams in the abyss to collide, condensing them into a giant water sword over ten feet long, its blade crystal clear, containing the majestic power of surging rivers and seas.

Taking advantage of the moment when the shrimp demon leader was trapped by the sword shadows and exposed his weakness, Lin Yan roared and the giant water sword, with the force of a thunderbolt, stabbed straight at the vital point at the base of the shrimp spines on the leader's head! The shrimp demon leader tried to defend, but he couldn't dodge in time, and the water sword pierced his vital point!

"Agh—" A heart-wrenching scream echoed through the abyss. The shrimp demon leader dropped his two guns, his massive body convulsed violently, his deep blue shrimp shell cracked inch by inch, and his dark demonic energy dissipated wildly. He crashed heavily onto the black reef, completely lifeless. Seeing their leader dead, the remaining shrimp demons were thrown into chaos and scattered in all directions.

Lin Yan's gaze swept across the hidden cave at the bottom of the abyss, sensing a strong Taoist aura. He leaped down and saw a Taoist official dressed in a Laoshan Taoist robe, bound tightly to a reef by several black demonic chains. The robe was tattered and stained with blood and mud, his hair and beard were disheveled, his face was ashen, and his breath was extremely weak. The Taoist official's spiritual energy was sealed by the demonic chains, and his wrists and ankles were marked with deep bloodstains, clearly indicating that he had been imprisoned for many days and was barely holding on with a wisp of Taoist aura.

"Master!" Lin Yan immediately circulated his spiritual energy, slashing his sword to sever the dark demon chains. Yun Xi also quickly took out the Qingling Healing Pill she carried with her and fed it to the Master. Master Qingxuan slowly circulated his spiritual energy to dissolve the pill. After a moment, he opened his eyes, looked at the two people in front of him, and then at the timid fisherwoman Gu Azhu behind him. He weakly cupped his hands in thanks: "Thank you both, and this young lady, for risking your lives to save me. I am Qingxuan of Laoshan. I came here to follow the trail of my master, Daoist Xuanzhenzi, but I was ambushed by a shrimp demon and captured here to have my true energy extracted and my spiritual energy suppressed in the Ancient Ruins Sea. If it weren't for you, I would have died here today."

Lin Yan quickly helped the True Man up and said gently, "True Man, there's no need for such formalities. We have already buried Daoist Xuanzhenzi in the ancient ruins." Then, he told the other party how he encountered Daoist Xuanzhenzi's remains.

Upon hearing this, Master Qingxuan's expression instantly turned extremely solemn. He forced himself to look towards the deepest part of the abyss. At this moment, the Black Reef Abyss suddenly trembled violently, and the surrounding giant black reefs collapsed and shattered. A violent demonic aura, several times stronger than that of the Shrimp Demon Commander, rose wildly from the deepest part of the abyss like a tsunami. The muffled and ferocious roar of the Shrimp King echoed for a long time in the deep abyss.