A tidal-wave-like beastly roar spread from the summit of the Pangu Peak!

　　Then, the limbs of the massive demon-beast skeleton straightened, and the demon beast stood up straight. A burst of loud, rumbling, and chaotic sound spread when the demon-beast skeleton pulled out its right claw from within the mountain. The claw was curled-up in a grey mist and countless magic characters.

　　The monster skeleton brandished its right claw toward the north side of the Pangu Peak where the Heavenly Demon Sect had established its battle array. The void where the claw had just been wielded revealed a fit of fluctuation. After that, over two dozen massive grey blade awns appeared out of thin air, and swept toward the north side of the hill.

　　These grey blades appeared in front of the ferocious tiger-shaped puppet in an instant… as if they had been teleported.

　　The tiger-shaped puppet’s front claws flashed with a green light. Then, the puppet pounded its claws in front of its body. A “Puff” sound was heard, and a garret-sized green light-shield emerged in front of its body.

　　“Bang” a series of loud rumbling sound rang out in the air!

　　A mass of grey and green light burst out as the massive grey blades bombarded the surface of the green light-shield one after another.

　　The green light-shield had warded off only half of the grey blades when it got shattered into smithereens. However, the momentum of the remaining ten-or-more grey blade-awns didn’t decline. And, they plummeted down on the tiger-shaped puppet’s body within a matter of seconds.

　　A loud rumbling sound was heard again!

　　A mass of grey light exploded over the tiger-shaped puppet’s body with a loud sound.

　　The tiger-shaped puppet was sent flying backwards with an overwhelming force. And, it crumbled into pieces right up in the air.

　　Then, a series of blood-curdling screeches rang out for some time. The fact was that ten Star-ranked magicians had been inside the tiger-shaped puppet. And, they had fallen prey to this blow without any exception. Even the dozen disciples that had been around the tiger-shaped puppet hadn’t gotten enough time to escape. They had sustained several severe injuries, and had collapsed on the scene.

　　The demon-beast skeleton bellowed in a loud manner. Then, it turned its head and stretched-open its huge mouth once again.

　　A streak of blood light shot out of its mouth again, and rushed through the air. The void that came in contact with it got twisted and deformed. The disciples of the Heavenly Demon Sect suddenly felt a petrifying spiritual pressure, and their complexions changed one by one.

　　The streak of blood light was about to pound the head of another lofty puppet that was two-hundred-feet in height; this puppet looked like a bear. But then, a crystal light shot up to the sky, and appeared in front of the bear-shaped puppet. The crystal light had transformed into a grey shield that was hundreds of feet in size. A miraculous radiance was glistening on this shield’s surface. And, its body was filled with various kinds of magic characters.

　　In addition, the surface of this shield was inscribed with an ugly blood-red head that had protruded fangs. The image of this head was rendering a kind of fierce and dreadful feeling.

　　A “Puff” sound was heard!

　　The thick blood light flashed, and then passed through the shield without getting submerged into it. However, the slightest trace of mighty waves didn’t emerge afterwards… as if the light had disappeared for eternity.

　　Then, the grey shield turned into a crystal light once again with a flash of light on its surface. It dashed in the air, and instantly appeared in front of Prior Hao who stood on top of the hill; it couldn’t be said when he had flown over to the peak. Then, the crystal light started to revolve around him.

　　Prior Hao looked towards another side of the peak, and saw Old Man Wu Chen there. Wu Chen was floating in the air like him. Prior Hao then said, “Dear Friend Wu Chen, it seems that the Dark Moon Cult won’t send Dong Fang Xian Tian to deal with us. I think this demon beast is the Dark Moon Cult’s final trump card. So, we might as well act together to break this big magic spell. This will certainly minimize the casualties.”

　　Old Man Wu Chen was about to speak something when the jade bracelet in his hand vibrated. Then, a mild “Puff!” sound was heard, and a Summoning Magic Array sprang up out of thin air.

　　Then, a ray of light gleamed in the magic array, and a thin and small purple jade slip emerged out of it.

　　Old Man Wu Chen picked it up, and pasted it on his forehead. His facial expression changed and he said, “Dear Friend Prior, it seems that we have given enough time to Liu An to execute his secret plan under cover of this battle. A large number of elite disciples of the Eastern Dark Moon Cult have already entered the sea by now. We don’t have much time to lose. So, I’ll forthwith rush to the west coast. I therefore request my dear friend to supervise, and direct the battle here!”

　　Old Man Wu Chen didn’t wait for Prior Hao to respond, and returned to the huge blue gourd that was not far from him. Then, his hands moved to stimulate a magic spell, and a layer of white luminescence bubbled up on the surface of the blue gourd. After that, he flew toward the west coast at a high speed.

　　… …

　　At the same time… at a remote place on the west coast of Qu Yang City…

　　The debris from a dozen or more dilapidated buildings that had stood here before was scattered all over the place. It appeared as if these buildings had been destroyed by some kind of immense force. In addition, this place seemed to have been abandoned a long time ago. The raging wind would often issue Boo-Hoo-like wailing sound whenever it whistled through this desolate place; it rather portrayed an image of bleak emptiness.

　　A burst of mild ‘Ka Ka’ sound spread from the ground somewhere in the ruins. Then, a large hole split-open in the ground.

　　A flight of stairs extended from the depths to the surface of the ground in this hole.

　　A grey-skirted young woman walked out from inside. A large number of people followed her. They all walked out of the hole one after another. There were altogether two-hundred people in this group. Shi Mu and his team were also among them.

　　“Everyone… follow me. And, walk a bit faster.”

　　The young woman in the grey skirt looked around a couple of times. Then, she stepped forward, and walked in a particular direction at a very quick pace.

　　The people followed her at a hurried pace.

　　“This is the West Coast.” Yu Yi’s nose twitched as he spoke in soft voice.

　　Shi Mu nodded as he had also caught a whiff of the moist and salty odor that pervaded the air. In fact, he could also hear the indistinct sound of sea-waves crashing onto the shore.

　　“Shi Tou, don’t you think this competition has been mysterious from the beginning…?” Cai’s voice resounded in Shi Mu’s mind.

　　Shi Mu groaned in agreement since he had been constantly feeling a sense of uneasiness deep in his heart. It seemed as if the Dark Moon Cult had been trying to veil something this entire time. They had even brought these people to the seashore through an underground passage.

　　“Do you want me to go, and nose around?” Cai said.

　　“It’s not necessary. It doesn’t matter what the Dark Moon Cult is plotting since their plan doesn’t concern us. We can adapt to any given situation as long as we can go to the Western Continent through this sea-trip,” Shi Mu pondered for a moment. Then, he replied via telepathy.

　　The pedestrian group under the command of the grey-skirted woman soon arrived at the seacoast.

　　They saw six gigantic black-colored ships that were anchored near the seacoast. Each one of them was five-hundred feet long with square-shaped head and tail. They looked like six small hills. Various kinds of magic characters and patterns had been drawn on these ships from the bow to the stern. Also, they were exuding intermitted bursts of magic power waves.

　　Moreover, they could also see that many other similar gigantic black ships had already been sailing on the surface of the sea. They were a little distance apart from each other, and were gradually drifting away from the seacoast.

　　“Are they magic-tool-ranked gigantic boats…? No they aren’t… They have already reached the category of the spirit-tool!” Shi Mu looked at the six ships in front of him, and was left profoundly shocked.

　　Three-or-four-hundred people had been standing near the coast when Shi Mu and his group had arrived; they were participating disciples like Shi Mu and his group. Those disciples had looked at Shi Mu and his group when they had arrived here.

　　“The third round of the competition will be held on an overseas island. Everyone will board the ships in a line according to their achievement order. After that, they will embark on a journey right away!” the grey-skirted woman stood firm and raised her voice to make an announcement.

　　Her voice had barely faded when three ships slowly approached the shore. Then, boarding ladders were hung down from each of these ships, and a few managing disciples of the Dark Moon Cult walked down the ladders.

　　The surrounding disciples started to discuss spiritedly when they watched the massive ships in front of them. Then, they queued up in proper order, and started to board the ship like they had been directed by the grey-skirted woman a moment ago.

　　Shi Mu stood behind Yu Yi and the other people. Then, he started to walk toward the ship’s ladder.

　　The first ship’s ladder was retracted after it had reached its maximum capacity. After that, everyone started to board the second ship under the guidance of the managing disciples.

　　Yu Yi and his two companions boarded the ship. After that, Hou Sao Lei also climbed up the ladder. Shi Mu was behind Hou Sai Lei. He was about to step on the ladder when he heard a voice.

　　“Hey Brother, I’m extremely sorry to say that the ship No. 21 has been filled. So, you will have to board ship No. 22.” A disciple of the Dark Moon Cult put out his hand in front of Shi Mu’s body, and blocked his way.

　　After that, the ladder slowly retracted to the ship.

　　Shi Mu was dumbfounded. Hou Sai Lei and the others who had already boarded the ship were also startled to see this.

　　“Then, I will board another ship and meet you again when we reach the destination.” Shi Mu didn’t seem to care much about it. He waved his hand at Hou Sai Lei and the others on board, and said.

　　Then, ship No. 22 came over. A managing disciple stood at the entrance to the ship. The ship’s ladder was put down, and Shi Mu was the first person to climb up the ladder.

　　However, his complexion changed as soon as he reached the deck of the ship.

　　He saw that a man stood in front of him with his hands crossed behind his back. He was barely ten feet away from Shi Mu. He was clad in a pale-white long robe. His hair was bright red in color, and he had a pair of straight eyebrows that looked like double-edged swords. Also, a round blood-red moon could be seen in the gap between his eyebrows.

　　It was Liu An!

　　Liu An looked at Shi Mu with a smile on his face… It seemed as if he had been waiting for Shi Mu. He said with a soft chuckle, “Brother Shi, long time no see.”

　　Shi Mu’s complexion changed again, but he chose to remain silent.

　　Many other disciples had also boarded the ship behind Shi Mu by this time. They revealed a surprised look on their faces when they saw this scene.

　　Liu An had been the main disciple of the previous leader Dong Fang Xian Tian. He was now the Head of one of the ten Palaces. In fact, it could be said that his position in the entire Dark Moon Cult was second only to the Left Wing Minister and the Right Wing Minister. There was also a rumor that he was the chosen successor of the former Head Dong Fang. Liu An commanded awe-inspiring fame throughout the Cult… so much so that most of the people were familiar with his name.

　　On the contrary, Shi Mu was an ordinary and unimportant person with no name and fame. So, they hadn’t thought that Liu An who was such a dynamic figure of the Cult would step forward and greet Shi Mu.

　　“Who could have thought that you would participate in this selection competition? Don’t tell me you have finally changed your mind, and become a member of our Cult?” Liu An smiled as he asked.

　　“Would Your Excellency kick me out of this ship if I said no?” Shi Mu asked.

　　“He He, of course not. Brother Shi, you rest assured. You can travel by this ship. This is going to be a very long and wearisome voyage that will be full of hardships. But still, I might get a chance to sit side-by-side, and have a long conversation with Brother Shi. We could tell each other about our attainments as a Soul Magician. What do you think about it?” Liu An said with a chuckle.

　　Shi Mu’s eyes revealed an astonished look as he heard these words.

　　“I still have some matters to take care of. Let’s talk later.” Liu An chuckled and nodded to Shi Mu. Then, he pointed his foot below, and his body floated down the ship.

　　Shi Mu looked at Liu An’s silhouette from behind, and a puzzled look appeared on his face. Then, he lifted his foot and walked inside. He then found a place to sit down.

　　The other disciples also got on the ship, and took a seat at various places. Soon, the entire ship was packed to its maximum capacity.

　　Shi Mu looked around, and saw that there were altogether two-hundred participants on the ship; including him. In addition, a few managing disciples of the Dark Moon Cult could also be seen on both sides of the ship. They seemed to be in-charge of controlling this ship.

　　These managing disciples bore a calm and composed expression on the surface. However, a trace of restlessness could still be seen peeping through their mask of calmness. Also, these disciples were often looking in a particular direction.

　　A majestic mountain range which was shrouded in a grey mist could be vaguely seen in that direction. It was the Gloomy Corpse Mountain Range where the Main Altar of the Dark Moon Cult was situated.

　　Shi Mi’s brows creased. He had a vague premonition of an unpleasant situation.

　　The massive sails of these three ships were slowly raised after all the disciples on the shore had boarded. Then, the ships began to depart from the shore.

　　The grey-skirted young woman stood against the wind below these three Gigantic Vast Sea Boats. She didn’t board any of these ships. Her grey clothes were making sounds from fluttering in the air.

　　A white silhouette flashed, and landed beside the grey-skirted woman at this moment. It was Liu An who had floated over from afar.

　　After that, another robust middle-aged man also walked over from the side of the three empty ships. There was a knife-cut scar on his face. It extended from his forehead to the chin. It seemed rather terrifying.

　　The aura around this man was very profound. He was an Earth-ranked martial warrior!