Two hours later…

　　On the surface of the vast sea…

　　Sixteen Gigantic Vast Sea Boats were sailing in the southwest direction at a slow pace; these ships looked like small black hills. The fleet stretched for more than a dozen miles.

　　Shi Mu was on the deck of Ship No.1 of this fleet; this ship was in the forefront. He stood while leaning against the railing, and was gazing toward the surface of the raging sea in front. His eyes were often flickering… as if he was thinking something.

　　There was a shadow in the air. It swooped down from the sky and landed on Shi Mu’s shoulder. It was Cai.

　　“How is it?” Shi Mu asked right away without even turning his head.

　　“Shi Tou, I have taken up this matter, but you still don’t feel relieved? I have just explored the surrounding area with utmost attention. The frontal sea area in the range of a hundred miles is very safe. In fact, there isn’t a single huge marine beast lurking around in that area. My rough estimation is that all the marine beasts of the surrounding sea area should have converged in the rear area. Tsk Tsk, Liu An is indeed very fierce. It’s strange that so many marine beasts have gathered there in such a short time…” Cai’s words started to flow like a never-ending stream of water. Also, a hint of excitement could be sensed in his words.

　　“It seems that these marine beasts are under the control of the Sea Race of the Yellow Sea if we go by the appearance of the half-human and half-fish creature that you had seen before. The Dark Moon Cult often comes to the sea to hunt sea beasts in order to offer them as sacrifices. They even use the bones of these sea beasts to refine their spirit tools. So, I’m afraid that the seed of animosity that had been sown in the minds of these creatures of the Sea-race has sprouted,” Shi Mu interrupted Cai, and said.

　　“Shi Tou, what do you want to say?” Cai crooked his head, and asked.

　　“Let’s assume that all ships had changed the direction right after we had found about the sea beasts. What do you think would’ve happened afterwards?” Shi Mu asked.

　　“I think… the sea beasts must’ve chased after us,” Cai replied.

　　“That’s right. These sea beasts have mustered a large force this time. Perhaps, their goal is to eliminate the entire fleet of the Dark Moon Cult at one stroke. So, they are unlikely to drop this plan until they have accomplished their goal. In fact, they can set-up another ambush even if we make a detour this time. They can even go for the third ambush. However, we can’t continue with making detours every time they sneak attack us,” Shi Mu explained.

　　“Shi Tou, you mean to say that Liu An has deliberately let that curly-haired man and that one-eyed man walk into the deathtrap?” Cai asked.

　　“The secret technique that Liu An has just casted there is a kind of high-level evil magic technique of the Dark Moon Cult as far as I know. It is called “The Corpse Explosion Technique”. So, the entire eight-hundred elite disciples of the Dark Moon Cult who had died there along with the corpses of the deceased sea beasts should’ve been able to wipe out the remaining marine beasts in one fell swoop…” Shi Mu explained.

　　“So, this is the case! This Liu An is very terrible! Shi Tou, it’s good that you didn’t join the Dark Moon Cult. This Cult is indeed very evil. These people don’t hesitate to harm even their own people!” Cai’s whole body revealed a burst of shudder as he spoke-up.

　　“The fact is that a larger number of people would’ve died if Liu An hadn’t resorted to this measure. However, it was necessary from him to get his hands dirty with this,” Shi Mu let out a soft sigh.

　　Cai couldn’t understand Shi Mu’s words. So, he opened his mouth to ask once again. But then, a wave of clamorous sound spread on the ship.

　　Shi Mu turned his head, and saw that two black spots had emerged on the sea surface in the northwest direction.

　　The black spots gradually became bigger. They were two Vast Sea Gigantic Boats which were galloping in their direction.

　　Shi Mu’s eyes glistened with a smear of golden radiance, and he swept his gaze over the two ships to observe the situation.

　　The surfaces of the two hill-sized ships were covered with numerous traces of the fierce battle that they had gone through.

　　Shi Mu saw that Liu An stood on the bow of the ship that was in front. He was attired in a pale-white robe, and there was a look of indifference on his face at the moment. Huo Qing also stood behind him. His complexion appeared extremely pale. The arrogant and domineering attitude that Huo QIng had exhibited before had disappeared without a trace.

　　A few silhouettes flew over from the rear ships while piercing through the air, and landed on the deck of the Ship No. 1 where Shi Mu was; they were Di Feng, Pang Yu, and three other Palace Lords.

　　Everyone gazed at the two ships in the distance, and noticed that the miraculous glow on the surface of those two ships had dimmed very considerably. Everyone revealed different facial expressions, but none of them spoke anything.

　　The two ships reached after some time.

　　Liu An sprang up while floating in the air, and landed on the deck of the Ship No. 1. Huo Qing slightly hesitated. But then, he also flew over in the same manner.

　　Di Feng, Pang Yu, and the three other Palace Lords gathered around as the two landed on the ship.

　　Shi Mu also saw this scene, but didn’t follow them.

　　“Huo Qing, where is Palace Lord Wu? Where are the four other boats?” Di Feng’s complexion looked ashen as he looked at Huo Qing, and asked in a cold manner.

　　Huo Qing didn’t dare to make eye contact with Di Feng. His face went red, and he didn’t utter a word.

　　“It was already too late by the time I got there. Palace Lord Huo’s fleet had been ambushed by a large number of marine beasts. Several Earth-ranked marine beasts were also among the ambushing group. Therefore, four of our ships got destroyed, and the people on board lost their lives. Even Palace Lord Wu couldn’t escape this adversity, and got killed. The Sea Race of the Yellow Sea must be behind this attack,” Liu An finally opened his mouth, and explained.

　　Most of the surrounding people had already guessed the situation. But, Liu An’s words still rendered a powerful jolt to them.

　　“Palace Lord Liu, could those sea beasts still catch up with us?” Pang Yu thought of something, and then asked.

　　“They shouldn’t be able to do so.” Liu An gave them a brief recount of the incident that had just happened there. He told them that he had made use of the corpses present on the scene to initiate the process of Corpse Explosion Technique. And, this had inflicted heavy damages to the sea beasts.

　　The surrounding people couldn’t help but suck in a mouthful of cold air when they heard his words.

　　The Corpse Explosion Technique was regarded as a high-level magic technique. All the Moon-ranked Soul Magicians who were present on the scene had also learned this technique. They knew that this technique could be applied to a fresh corpse only. Moreover, the destructive might of this technique was directly proportionate to two things — First, the number of corpses that would be exploded. Second, the strength that those people had possessed before their death. The basic principle of this technique was that the Real Qi or magic power stored in the dantian of the corpse was denoted to trigger an enormous destructive force.

　　However, exploding more than a thousand dead bodies by using this Corpse Explosion Technique sounded a bit atrocious. It was such a high-level technique that nobody on the scene could have attempted it alone.

　　The fact was that this technique would be very effective even if a large number of Earth-ranked sea beasts would attack. But, there had only been a small number of Earth-ranked sea beasts among the sea beasts that they had just encountered.

　　The majority of these corpses had been disciples of the Dark Moon Cult. But, Liu An couldn’t be blamed for whatever he had done since those disciples were already dead. In fact, he had removed a lurking peril by doing this.

　　“I acted willfully and arbitrarily. I — Huo Qing — am ready to receive punishment.” Huo Qing raised his head, and said at this moment.

　　“Palace Lord Huo wanted to reach the Western Continent a bit earlier, but only for the sake of our cult. But, they bumped into such an unfortunate incident. And, it will be difficult to convince the people if he is not punished. Palace Lord Pang and Palace Lord Di, these two ships are given under your care. As for Palace Lord Huo… he will reflect upon his mistakes in seclusion on ship number 1. He will also get enough time to recuperate from his wounds during this time. And, he will atone for his guilt by good acts after we have set foot in the Western Continent.” Liu An said.

　　“Yes.” Pang Yu and Di Feng complied.

　　“Thank you so much, Palace Lord Liu!” Huo Qing didn’t harbor any hostile feelings against Liu An’s decision to strip him off his power. Instead, he appeared to be somewhat grateful towards Liu An.

　　Shi Mu stood not far from them. He threw a glance at Liu An, and the gleam of a strange look flashed through his eyes. But, it quickly disappeared without a trace.

　　“Well everyone… get into position. No mistakes will be allowed hereafter!” Liu An commanded.

　　All Palace Lords present on the scene complied in unison.

　　… …

　　Qu Yang City… the prosperous Capital City of the ancient Xixia country portrayed a catastrophic post-war scene at this time.

　　The human corpses that had accumulated in the city had been disposed of by now. However, piles of broken tiles, dilapidated wall and buildings, and traces of blood could still be seen everywhere; especially in the Western District since it had transformed into ruins. It was probably because it had been under the direct control of the Dark Moon Cult.

　　The horrifying battle that had occurred that day could be seen from this particular area.

　　However, there was a building in Western Kuang Street of the Eastern district that was still in good condition… as if it hadn’t suffered the adversity of the war. This building was Heavenly Wu Arms Shop.

　　A young girl stood on a rocky street near the Heavenly Wu Arms Shop at this time. She was clad in light green clothes, and her face was covered with a soft veil.

　　The elegant eyebrows of this girl were tightly knitted at this moment. The things that she had seen during her journey had made her feel uneasy in her heart.

　　Suddenly, a gust of wind blew over, and lifted her veil. It revealed the face of a heavenly beauty that could blow off anyone’s mind. She was none other than Zhong Xiu!

　　There was an enveloped letter in her hand. She pondered for a moment, and then walked in the direction of the shop’s front door with light steps.

　　… …

　　Three months later… early in the morning.

　　The bright sun hung in the sky. The wind was calm.

　　This could be considered as good weather which was hard to come by at sea.

　　Over a dozen Gigantic Vast Sea Ships were sailing on the Yellow Sea in a long queue. They were advancing straight ahead while cutting their way through the fierce wind and mighty waves.

　　These Gigantic Vast Sea Boats were spirit-tool-ranked ships. But, many traces had appeared on the surface of these brand-new ships since they had been continuously sailing on the sea for the past two months. These traces seemed to be left either by the constant thrashing of wind or because of basking in the scorching sun.

　　There had previously been eighteen ships. But, only seventeen ships remained by now.

　　The ship that had fallen apart in the deep sea was one of the two ships that had returned with Huo Qing. That ship had received severe damages. So, it couldn’t continue to force its way through the violent tidal waves and frequent appearances of sea beasts.

　　They had the constant support of Cai’s wide-range exploration vision. But, it was impossible to make a detour as soon as the sea beasts appeared in their exploration range.

　　Shi Mu was on the forefront of the Ship No. 1 at the moment. His eyes were closed, and he had displayed the strange posture of the Sun-Swallowing Art.

　　A couple of disciples would often pass by, and look at Shi Mu’s eyes with awe and admiration. But, nobody had the courage to come over and disturb him.

　　The fact was that Shi Mu now commanded a rather high status in the fleet due to his correct prediction of the sea beasts’ ambush. Therefore, he was subjected to the Dark Moon Cult’s polite reception.

　　Shi Mu would practice the Moon-Swallowing Art and the Sun-Swallowing Art through his dreams whenever the weather allowed him to do so during this voyage. Obviously, the people on board would often see him practicing these Arts. But, these Arts were just some common cultivation arts in their eyes.

　　Shi Mu opened his eyes after some time.

　　He knew that it was basically impossible to find any mountain peak around due to the vastness of the sea. Therefore, the result of the Sun-Swallowing Art wasn’t as effective as he had expected. But, he had still been able to increase the golden crystal grain in his mind up to the size of a fingernail. And, the silver crystal grain which he had condensed through the Moon-Swallowing Art had once again reached the size of a berry.

　　He was contended with this result.

　　He sprang up and stretched his muscles for a moment. Then, he walked toward the bow of the ship, and gazed straight ahead.

　　The endless water of the boundless sea appeared pleasing to the eye. There were over a dozen Gigantic Vast Sea Boats sailing on the sea’s surface. But, they looked tiny in front of this vast sea.

　　Shi Mu looked toward the water in front, and couldn’t stop himself from recalling his hometown. The Eastern Sea used to hold a similar kind of soothing sight. But, Shi Mu had no idea what the situation was there nowadays.

　　A shadow flashed, and Cai flew over and landed on Shi Mu’s shoulder.

　　“Why didn’t you go to survey the sea in front?” Shi Mu asked.

　　“It’s not important. The number of sea beasts has clearly reduced a lot over the past two days,” Cai replied.

　　“Oh, really?” Shi Mu’s brows furrowed as he heard these words.

　　The number of marine beasts had decreased… Could it be possible that the fleet was close to the Western Continent?

　　“Brother Shi, you are awake…?” a voice echoed from behind him at this moment. It was Liu An. He said, and walked in his direction.

　　Cai turned his head, and took a quick look at Liu An as he heard the voice. He then spread his wings, and flew up. Then, he landed on top of the ship’s sail.

　　“Brother Liu,” Shi Mu turned around, and greeted him.

　　“Oh, it seems that Cai still doesn’t like my appearance.” Liu An walked over, and stood beside Shi Mu. Then, he raised his head, and cast a glance at Cai as he said.

　　“Brother Liu, you are taking this matter very seriously. Anyways, I have asked Cai to go and explore the frontal sea area,” Shi Mu said.