679: Chapter 679 Merfolk

"The Dao of the Sword does not require sparring; it requires real, tangible tempering!"

Fourth Young Master Liu Daocheng sheathed his sword and stood tall, gazing toward the east. The endless horizon was dyed gold by the morning sun, which matched his Sword Intent perfectly.

Fourth Young Master Liu Daocheng no longer sparred with the Golden Core True Persons of the Yin-Yang Branch; instead, he concealed his identity and took his life-bound spirit pet, the Three-Headed Demon Python, toward the frontline sea region to see if there were any opportunities to practice his sword skills.

The war situation in the frontline sea region was currently stable, with few clashes between high-level Yao Beasts and Cultivators, but it was fraught with uncertainty. Even with the Three-Headed Demon Python, he still faced some risks.

What Fourth Young Master Liu Daocheng wanted was precisely that risk and uncertainty!

The Dao of the Sword is a path of slaughter; only in danger can one achieve the effects of tempering and Cultivate an Aura of indomitable forward momentum.

Of course! Cultivating the Dao of the Sword does not mean deliberately seeking danger or throwing one's life away when defeat is certain. Rather, it is about cultivating a pure Sword Intent—free from distraction and capable of unleashing full combat power at any moment—while keeping risks under control.

A few days later.

Fourth Young Master Liu Daocheng acquired a set of black dharma robes that blocked Divine Sense probing, disguised himself as an adventurous Cultivator from the Southern Border, accepted a frontline mission from the Joyous Union Sect on an island in the middle of the Yin-Yang Archipelago called Canglan Island, and then headed toward the frontline sea region.

Although the war situation in the frontline sea region was stable, the scope was continuously expanding. In addition to dispatching large-scale Cultivator armies to participate in the war, the Yin-Yang Archipelago also issued bounty missions to some Cultivators who disliked being constrained.

Such as assisting in defending certain Sect nodes, scouting the movements of the Yao Race in specific areas, infiltrating the rear of the Yao Race to cause destruction, and so on.

There were many adventurous Cultivators. Although these people lacked the support of Formations and were not very effective in large-scale offensive and defensive battles, they were widely dispersed, and the damage and destruction they caused were often greater than that of the Cultivator armies that faced each other in organized Formations.

Fourth Young Master Liu Daocheng had no requirements for mission rewards, so he accepted an intelligence-gathering mission with relatively high freedom.

Intelligence missions did not require much effort; one only needed to operate in a specific area and transmit back some information to receive a certain reward. However, the generosity of the reward depended on the value of the information transmitted back, and many frontline adventurous Cultivators usually just treated it as an incidental task.

The Joyous Union Sect had its own intelligence department, and issuing missions to adventurous Cultivators was merely a supplement. Under normal circumstances, the mission rewards were extremely low, and there were no corresponding restrictions on the tasks; even if you didn't go, no one would care.

Fourth Young Master Liu Daocheng took a large passenger ship all the way east, treating it as a way to broaden his horizons. He didn't think about any missions, nor did he deliberately seek out the Yao Race to temper his sword skills.

After leaving the area of the Yin-Yang Archipelago, Fourth Young Master Liu Daocheng stood by the side of the ship, feeling that the world had become much broader, and had a feeling that his state of mind was constantly becoming transparent and refined.

"As expected, the essence of practicing the sword is refining the heart. Going out more, even if it is just to see the scenery, has many benefits."

This passenger ship was not a warship; it was just a Merchant ship transporting ordinary spiritual items, so its speed was not fast.

To save on Spirit Stone consumption, the ship owner would even take detours to catch the wind.

Fourth Young Master Liu Daocheng could tolerate it for the first few days, but after a long time, he felt very bored.

So he left the passenger ship, selected the nearest Sect station on the map, and intended to learn more about the situation in the frontline sea region through the frontline Sect.

"This East Sea is too big!"

After traveling for nearly a month, Fourth Young Master Liu Daocheng's biggest realization was that the East Sea was too large.

It didn't feel like much when looking at the map, but one could only have an intuitive feeling after actually going there.

Just traveling from the Yin-Yang Archipelago to the Chaotic Sea Region, Fourth Young Master Liu Daocheng had spent a month and only covered less than one-tenth of the distance.

In other words, if he maintained this speed, it would take a full year to actually reach the frontline battlefield sea region...

However, as his curiosity about the sea continued to wane, his traveling speed continued to increase.

A few days later, he couldn't even be bothered to stop at the maritime immortal cities established by small Sects in various places, heading straight for the frontline sea region.

After approaching the frontline sea region, Fourth Young Master Liu Daocheng dared not fly at full speed again, so he took out a second-tier Yuan Magnetic Flying Boat from his spatial ring as a means of transport. To keep a low profile, he controlled the Flying Boat to fly close to the sea surface, so it would not easily attract attention.

Dividing a trace of Divine Sense to control the Yuan Magnetic Flying Boat to fly slowly, Fourth Young Master Liu Daocheng first took a Medicinal Pill to adjust his internal magic power to its best state, and only then took out the map, intending to select a place as a foothold to make contact with the frontline team.

Suddenly!

Just as Fourth Young Master Liu Daocheng was checking the map, several Cultivators wearing cyan dharma robes suddenly appeared in front of him.

When the group saw the slowly flying Yuan Magnetic Flying Boat, they all revealed expressions of joy. A Foundation Establishment Cultivator in the lead, with graying hair, a slightly plump build, and around sixty or seventy years old, led the group to quickly block the front of the Flying Boat.

"Fellow Daoist, please stop!"

The old man first looked at the Flying Boat and Fourth Young Master Liu Daocheng on it, then cupped his hands and said: "The area ahead has already been captured by the Shark People, and the pursuing troops will arrive soon. Fellow Daoist, you had better escape with us!"

"Has the Yao Race already fought their way here?"

Fourth Young Master Liu Daocheng was stunned for a moment, then immediately reacted. The Yao Race had been pushing forward all along. His map was obtained from the Liu Clan Merchant Alliance two months ago; calculating the time, it was normal for the Yao Race to have reached here.

"Fellow Daoist, our Flying Boat was destroyed by the Yao Race when we were defending our Sect. Could you give us a ride?"

The old man cupped his hands at Fourth Young Master Liu Daocheng, and the several Disciples behind him also followed suit, bowing respectfully and saying: "Please save us, Senior!"

Fourth Young Master Liu Daocheng saw that their Aura was chaotic, their dharma robes were torn, and they were in a very disheveled state; it didn't seem to be a lie.

He looked into the distance with his Divine Sense, and indeed, a very strong Demonic Qi was approaching.

"Come on up!"

Fourth Young Master Liu Daocheng opened the great array of the Yuan Magnetic Flying Boat, and after they all boarded, he immediately steered the Flying Boat to turn around and flee back at high speed.

"Many thanks, Fellow Daoist!"

Seeing that Fourth Young Master Liu Daocheng really let them board the ship, the fat old man's round face revealed a look of joy.

"I am Lei Wantai, an Elder of the Sea Cliff Sect. Our Sect Master is a Golden Core True Person who works for the Third Saintess of the Yin-Yang Archipelago. For today's life-saving grace, Fellow Daoist, we will surely repay you generously in the future."

"May I ask your name, Fellow Daoist?"

The old man was filled with gratitude; even though they hadn't escaped danger yet, he was already thinking about how to repay the favor.

'The Third Saintess? One of Aunt Xu's people?'

Fourth Young Master Liu Daocheng cupped his hands in return: "My name is Fourth Young Master Liu Daocheng; you may call me Fourth Young Master."

"What kind of Yao Race are the Shark People you just mentioned? How is their strength?"

Fourth Young Master Liu Daocheng didn't care about their origins; what he cared about was the strength of the Yao Race here.

Mentioning the Shark People, Lei Wantai's expression immediately became ugly. He shook his head and said: "The Shark People are a kind of half-fish Yao Beast that lives between the Chaotic Sea Region and the deep sea region. I am not very clear about their specific strength, but it is said that they have a Nascent Soul Demon Lord presiding over them."

Before he could finish speaking, a thousand-foot wave surged up in front of the Flying Boat, intercepting it.

Afterward, an ugly monster with dark blue skin, a fish's lower body, and an upper body like a black gorilla emerged from the waves.

"Die!"

The monster didn't waste any words; it spat out a strange, non-human tone from its mouth. Then, the waves beneath its feet condensed into a cone-shaped spike, which slammed down toward the Yuan Magnetic Flying Boat with terrifying Aura.

"It's over!"

Lei Wantai's face turned ashen, and the several Disciples behind him were even more frightened and dumbstruck.