Frowning, Xu Qing turned around.

Hundreds of jellyfish poured into the canyon toward the group of young people and their bodyguards. The group looked shocked, but they immediately started fighting back. And the bodyguards looked like they were ready to give their lives to stop the onslaught.

The young man that had caught Xu Qing’s attention earlier, who was in the seventh level of Qi Condensation, unleashed an attack that sent colorful rays of light toward the enemy.

Unfortunately, there were just too many jellyfish. What was more, they seemed naturally resistant to magical techniques, significantly reducing the damage they sustained when hit. Worse, they were very fast, had penetrating attacks, and were nimble. As a result, seven or eight people died just in the initial onslaught.

One young man, who had once been decked out in luxurious clothing that was now in shreds, looked to be in complete despair as a jellyfish closed in on him. Scrambling away, he called for help from his seventh-level friend.

“Young Master Bai, help!” [1]

A colorful ray of light shot past him, delaying the jellyfish long enough for the terrified young man to make his way to safety.

Xu Qing was some distance away from the fighting, but some of the jellyfish had already taken notice of him. Three of them sailed in his direction, ready to pierce him through. His eyes glittered with cold light, and he clenched his right hand into a fist.

Jumping into motion, he slammed his fist into one of the jellyfish. The creature trembled and, unable to sustain the force of the blow, exploded into bits. Xu Qing didn’t pause for a second. A dagger appeared in his left hand, and he dashed toward the other two incoming jellyfish.

He was a lot faster than them, and also more agile. In the blink of an eye, he passed them, whereupon both of them split in two.

The young men and women fighting the other jellyfish saw this, and were so astonished they instinctively headed in Xu Qing’s direction.

Upon realizing that three of their number had been slaughtered, the other jellyfish opened their bizarre eyes and then surged in Xu Qing’s direction.

This time, it was a group of ten.

Xu Qing’s expression remained the same as ever. Instead of backing up, he charged forward, leaving a blur of afterimages. Then his dagger glittered coldly as he passed one enemy creature after another, leaving behind popping sounds and exploding jellyfish.

As they died, large quantities of mutagen spread out, causing the plants and vegetation in the canyon to turn greenish-black. That included what was in Xu Qing’s laboratory. The injured bodyguards were also being affected.

Seeing his canyon affected in this manner caused Xu Qing’s eyes to burn with killing intent.

He started moving again, faster than before, his dagger dancing left and right to slaughter jellyfish. However, it didn’t take long before he was frowning as he realized the mutagen was eroding the blade of his dagger. And as he continued to fight, the metal started to crumble.

There was no time for him to feel bad about the dagger. His iron skewer appeared next, and he continued to slice apart jellyfish. At the same time, he started scattering poison powder. The jellyfish were naturally resistant to poison, so it didn’t do much to them, but Xu Qing didn’t give up. After all, his poisons didn’t just kill, they could also neutralize odors.

Unfortunately, Xu Qing’s weapons weren’t working well. His iron skewer had penetrating power, but couldn’t slice as well as the dagger. That was when he heard someone call to him from behind.

“Friend, use my sword!”

A cold streak of light shot toward Xu Qing, and he reached back to grab the sword tossed to him by the young man who’d been called Young Master Bai.

The moment his fingers wrapped around the hilt, he could sense that it was an extraordinary weapon. When he swung it, a cold glow emanated from the sword. Xu Qing was no swordsman, but the weapon was sharp, and only a moment later, he’d already chopped apart seven or eight jellyfish.

As the jellyfish corpses piled up, Xu Qing became splattered with their blue blood. Meanwhile, the surviving bodyguards and young people had gathered behind him, and watched the spectacle in shock and disbelief.

“S-so… so strong!”

“He’s a body cultivator. But what level is he in? Don’t tell me he’s at the peak??”

“Given his spirit power fluctuations, I doubt it. He looks more like he’s in the fifth or sixth level.”

“Cultivation base doesn’t matter. What sticks out about him is how ruthless he is.”

Bodyguards and young people alike were all astonished by Xu Qing’s fighting. Even Young Master Bai seemed surprised. And the suspicious young woman in the group was nervous; given how terrifying Xu Qing was, she stowed any crafty thoughts.

She sensed the same aura on Xu Qing that some people in her clan had that earned them the epithet ‘monster.’ The monsters in her clan were people who had slaughtered crowds of enemies, and whenever she laid eyes on them, she felt fear in her heart. And that was exactly the same feeling she experienced with Xu Qing. He was the kind of person she had no interest in provoking.

Besides, she’d accomplished her mission this day. She’d instigated the jellyfish attack. As for whether the people from the Church would get what they wanted from the jellyfish nest, that had nothing to do with her. Things had turned a lot more dangerous than she expected, and she already had her hand on a jade slip in her garment. That jade slip was a talisman treasure, and it would teleport her out of here if necessary.

That was her emergency backup plan. As she hesitated about whether or not to use it, a boom echoed out from the entrance of the canyon as dozens of jellyfish swarmed in.

That helped her make up her mind. She snapped the teleportation jade slip, and then faded away.

Mixed emotions appeared on the faces of her companions as she disappeared.

Xu Qing kept his focus on the incoming jellyfish. After calculating how much time he had to work with, he stood there, his energy and blood surging. Looking at the incoming jellyfish, he opened his mouth and unleashed a roar. As his energy and blood raged, and he tapped into Sea and Mountain Incantation, the spectral hobgoblin appeared behind him, and it also roared noiselessly. It was fierce, with a horn on its head, its body pitch black, as if it had just climbed out of the Yellow Springs. And the violet glitter in its eyes was astonishing to anyone who beheld it. 

The combined roar of Xu Qing and the hobgoblin caused the incoming jellyfish to halt in place, their eyes wide and staring.

They weren’t the only ones shocked into immobility. The young men and women behind Xu Qing stood there with pale faces, staring at the image behind him.

“A projected image of energy and blood!!”

“This… this is… this is the kind of bizarre image that appears only at the peak of body refinement!!”

All of them were shaken to the core. The jellyfish could also sense how fierce Xu Qing was. Furthermore, Xu Qing’s poisons masked the scent of the ageless centipede. After a brief, tense standoff, the jellyfish slowly retreated, exiting the canyon and floating off into the distance.

Seeing this, Xu Qing breathed a sigh of relief, then turned and looked coldly at the group of young people. And his gaze lingered on the spot where the gloved girl had been moments before.

Of course, she wasn’t there.

Xu Qing’s eyes narrowed.

Meanwhile, a few of the young women were so struck with fear by Xu Qing’s gaze that they wept. Truth be told, the baleful aura pulsing off of Xu Qing was quite strong. He stood there in the moonlight, covered in blue blood, his eyes as cold as if he had also just climbed out of the Yellow Springs. Combined with the hobgoblin behind him, he looked like an evil ghost!

Only Young Master Bai managed to suppress the awe he felt in his heart, and stepped forward with hands clasped.

“Sir, I am Bai Yundong. Many thanks for your assistance, friend. The favor you have shown us will most certainly be repaid in kind.” Noting the spot Xu Qing had just eyed, Bai Yundong took a deep breath and added a bit of explanation. “The girl who teleported away was Li Ruolin, who comes from a clan that specializes in spell formations. They provided her with a teleportation talisman to make it easier for her to escape deadly situations.”

“The rest of you don’t have something like that?” Xu Qing asked, looking at Bai Yundong.

Bai Yundong smiled wryly, and the other young men and women just stood there quietly.

“We all come from big clans in the Violet Lands. But none of us are from the primary bloodlines in our clans, so we’re more flash than substance.”

Xu Qing nodded and tossed the sword back to Bai Yundong. The other young men and women all offered words of thanks. Then Xu Qing looked at Bai Yundong and asked, “Who is Grandmaster Bai to you?”

“He’s my grand-uncle,” he replied, looking surprised. “You know my grand-uncle?” [2]

Xu Qing gave him a nod but didn’t say anything else, then looked briefly at the canyon entrance before checking how dark the sky was.

“The mutagen is strong here now,” he said. “You shouldn’t stay around. I’ll escort you out.”

With that, he started walking to the canyon entrance. Bai Yundong hesitated for a moment, then gritted his teeth and followed. The other young men and women also seemed to know what was best for them, and did the same.

Thus, the group left the canyon and sped through the nighttime jungle. Though they had all suffered under the attacks of the jellyfish, they were all cultivators. The deadly experience they had just gone through had helped them transform for the better. No one spoke, they just followed Xu Qing. A few of the young women were physically weaker than the others, but even they gritted their teeth and followed.

Around daybreak, they were so close to the edge of the jungle they could see the outside world beyond. All the young people were excited, and despite the exhaustion they felt, let out whoops of joy.

At the same time, Xu Qing looked around vigilantly. A moment later, he saw three figures speeding toward them in the sky.

They were the powerful experts who had guarded the young men and women.

Xu Qing had guessed right earlier. They had drawn the big jellyfishes away from the group; that much was obvious from the casualties they had suffered. The group of young people immediately launched into a spirited recounting of what happened, all of them casting glances at Xu Qing.

Xu Qing kept his guard up, and maintained distance between them, keeping some poison powder hidden in his hand the entire time.

The three experts didn’t approach him. But they did give him nods of acknowledgment before leading the group onward.

They seemed to be already close to the outside, but it was still around noon before they officially left the jungle. When the young people were finally out in the open, and could finally be assured that they had survived a deadly ordeal, some of them simply wept.

Xu Qing looked at them silently.

Meanwhile, Bai Yundong, who seemed to be a sort of leader among the young people, approached Xu Qing with clasped hands.

“This trip was a spur-of-the-moment decision, so we don’t have much of value on us. That’s not to mention that we lost most of our belongings in the forbidden region. Given how much mutagen we’ve taken in, we need to get to a nearby city and use a teleportation portal to get back to the Violet Lands as quickly as possible. I won’t forget about the kindness you showed us. Please, accept this sword of mine.”

Bai Yundong bowed deeply and then gave Xu Qing his sword.

Xu Qing watched them leave, then hefted the sharp sword.

It was a beautiful and refined weapon that glittered with cold light. Though it had been used to slaughter numerous jellyfish and was now polluted with mutagen, it hadn’t sustained any damage. Xu Qing could feel the frigid aura of the weapon, and knew right away that it was a high-level prized treasure.

It was a bit long for his taste, not as convenient to use as a dagger. But it had worked well for him in the heat of the moment. After wrapping it up in some hemp strips to hide its glittering aura, he strapped it to his back.

Glancing up at the sky to check the time, he headed toward the basecamp.

His current plan was to buy a few new daggers, then wait until he was sure the jellyfish were gone before heading back into the forbidden region. Afternoon sunlight streamed down on him as he entered the basecamp. He was only a few steps inside when he frowned. Something about the camp seemed off….

Too many strangers were about.

When the surrounding scavengers looked at him, they had odd expressions on their faces. And he even noticed one of the people he had saved in the past, looking at him like he wanted to say something, but hesitating to do so. Despite not speaking, the man used his eyes to indicate that Xu Qing should go to his residence.

Heart pounding in his chest, Xu Qing started walking faster, while simultaneously looking around. When he reached his residence, he noticed that a lot of people were in the area, looking at him with cold eyes. Given their clothing, Xu Qing realized that all of them were special guards in the employ of the camp owner.

In the mouth of a nearby alley was the goateed man who worked for the camp owner, standing there with a sinister smile on his face.

Xu Qing narrowed his eyes, pushed open the courtyard gate, and saw Crucifix sitting there, his face pale as though he’d lost a lot of blood. And next to him, weak and severely injured, was Graceful Raptor.

The moment Xu Qing entered, the two of them looked up at him.

Trembling as he wrapped a bandage around himself, Crucifix said, “Kid… something happened to the sarge.”

Talking caused him to cough so badly he spat up some blood.

The words hit Xu Qing so hard he felt like he’d been struck by lightning.

His heart started pounding, and he felt himself stiffening up. A bad feeling rose up within him, turning worse and worse by the moment. An incomparably baleful aura began to pulse in him, something that he couldn’t control at all, making all warmth in the area turn cold.

“What happened?” he asked, his voice trembling and bone-chillingly cold.