Chapter 120: The External Aid Arrives

"You are far too late!"

A dazzling golden wheel rose from behind the mysterious master, instantly filling the sky with light and shadow. Seven-colored radiance scattered, coalescing into a colossal golden disc that eclipsed the Life-Breath Taichen Sword. The intense golden light formed a pillar connecting heaven and earth, swallowing the figure of the man until he and the light became one. All that could be seen was a straight, vertical column of gold, surrounded by countless soaring rings of golden flame.

"Formless Wheel! Gold and Stone Shall Open!" The massive wheel suddenly rotated at a right angle. The vertical pillar stood horizontally across the nine heavens, surging forward and tearing through the clouds to carve a long spatial tunnel, lunging toward the Life-Breath Taichen Sword.

Simultaneously, the sword surged with the power of the Ancestor Kui, splitting from one into two, four, eight, and finally an endless swarm. It occupied an ever-expanding space, arranged in parallel lines. Above the sword qi, flames boiled; below, black ice bit with chilling intensity, creating a terrifying duality of fire and ice.

"You are the Peacock King, Qi Danchen! Impossible! You are not dead!" Even in his shock, Ancestor Kui did not cease his desperate resistance. "Life-breath of heaven and earth, dual poles of ice and fire, Taichen gathers energy, the two forms divide into three—break!"

The hovering Life-Breath Taichen sword formation met the attack instantly. The master sword clashed head-on with the golden pillar, filling the air with flying sword qi and golden light. The remaining derivative sword energies locked onto the same target, piercing toward the Peacock King.

*Swish!* Thousands of ice-and-fire sword beams were frozen in mid-air by a single gesture from the Peacock King, unable to advance an inch. "Hmph!" With a cold snort, a ball of light flew from the center of his brow. It grew as it met the wind, swirling with golden light, and sucked those sword beams into itself. *Crackling and popping*, the energy surged and burst within the sphere until it was swallowed entirely. With another wave of his hand, the Peacock King recalled the sphere, and it vanished back into his brow.

On the other side, *Boom!* The golden pillar engulfed the Life-Breath Taichen Sword, struck Ancestor Kui squarely, and pierced through the void, continuing on its original trajectory.

"Qi Danchen, didn't you die in the Battle of the Absolute Sea three hundred years ago? Your Formless Golden Wheel is nothing more than this! If you want to kill this ancestor, go cultivate for another ten thousand years! Hahahaha!"

In the void, Ancestor Kui’s figure reformed, and the Life-Breath Taichen Sword manifested once more. The first round seemed to have ended in a stalemate.

"Peacock King... Formless Golden Wheel..." Le Zhengqing frowned, lost in deep thought.

Lin Feng watched, mesmerized, secretly comparing the strength of these two super-masters. He knew neither the Peacock King nor Ancestor Kui and had no frame of reference. Watching this battle was like a layman watching a show, unaware that he could easily become collateral damage, obliterated by either one in an instant.

Qi Danchen sneered, letting the radiance of the golden wheel dissipate into the unknown distance. He raised his voice: "If you want to die, that is easy; I can take your life at any moment. Of the three from the Li Sea, at least two must go this time! Destiny, causality—since the world will not tolerate you, you must die!"

"Arrogant! Qi Danchen, even if you were once the Lord of the Golden Roc City, you are but an equal to Xi Bing. Since when does your Flying Clan have the right to interfere in the affairs of the Four Seas!" As Ancestor Kui spoke, the sword qi churned, revealing the extreme rage within him.

"We do not care for the affairs of the Four Seas, nor do we deign to interfere. But there is one thing we cannot ignore: the evil seeds you have sown shall bear their own fruit today! If the Shark King had stayed within the Li Sea, he might have kept his life, but you, Ancestor Kui—since I have encountered you, prepare to die!"

Two beams of solid golden light erupted from the Peacock King’s eyes. Suddenly, within the ten-thousand-foot space, his golden figure multiplied into ten thousand, each performing different hand seals!

"You!" Ancestor Kui’s terrified scream resonated across the Li Sea. Having seen much, he already understood what this technique portended.

"Ancestor Kui, let me send you to your death with the true power of the Formless Treasure Wheel. Receive this!"

The golden pillar that had stretched across the ocean instantly manifested ten thousand identical wheels. Countless pillars of light flooded the space between heaven and sea. In an instant, the entire world held no color but gold, as if a golden tide had washed over everything.

Ancestor Kui’s figure was swallowed by the golden light. Just as the two spectators thought he had been consumed by the array, a terrifying roar erupted from within the golden wheels. A wisp of black mist flashed, and the sea of light receded like a tide, gradually revealing the silhouette of a massive, pitch-black beast. With another piercing howl, the monstrous Kui-Horned Shark revealed its true form, looming in the sky. It spoke with a human voice: "Peacock King, you are the first to force me to reveal my true form! But this trick cannot kill this ancestor! Hahahaha!"

But just then, Ancestor Kui’s laughter came to an abrupt halt. The Peacock King, Qi Danchen, had returned to his cold, indifferent demeanor, standing in the void. Before him now floated a small cyan cauldron with three legs and two handles. It hovered silently, and from its mouth poured two streams of essence, cyan and white, painting a misty, ethereal landscape in the void—so vivid it felt as if one were standing within it.

"You... how could you have this... the Heavenly Basin Cauldron..." A scream of terror erupted from Ancestor Kui. The Peacock King curled his fingers, and the small cyan cauldron leaped into the air. Its cyan energy flared, shrouding the Ancestor!

"Ah! Ah!!" Enveloped by the cyan light, Ancestor Kui tried to cast a spell to escape, shifting back and forth between human form and shark form, but in his struggle, he could not unleash a single technique. He was helpless as the cyan energy sucked him into the cauldron. His desperate screams echoed in the heavens, and on the landscape painting floating above the small cauldron, a tiny black shadow appeared—it looked like a fish, shrunk a hundredfold.

The Peacock King put away the treasure and glanced toward the two men in the distance. His eyes were as unfathomable as an abyss. Lin Feng felt his heart pierced by the gaze and hurriedly closed his eyes to guard his spirit.

"The Ancestor is captured. You two must go to the Whale-Slaying Palace and complete the causality of this place!"

The voice rippled through their minds. When they opened their eyes, the Peacock King had vanished without a trace, as if it had all been a dream. The rolling waves on the surface shattered the ice, and a crisp cracking sound filled the air.

"Hm? What is that? The Life-Breath Taichen Sword!" Dazzling rays of light caught Lin Feng's eye from atop the ice. He was overjoyed, nearly rushing down from the clouds to retrieve it.

"Be careful, Brother Lin! When a spirit treasure changes masters, it will bite the new owner. It must be refined again," Le Zhengqing warned nervously. The two landed on the sea surface and looked closely; the sword had been broken in two, leaving only a one-foot remnant.

"The Peacock King is truly formidable!" Both men paled.

The Peacock King was not among the twelve Demon Kings. Combining this with the dialogue between him and Ancestor Kui, they deduced that this heaven-defying Peacock King had once been the lord of the Myriad-Mile Roc City, ruling over half of the world's flying demon cultivators!

As Lin Feng grabbed the broken sword, a massive, surging force traveled from his fingertips, like a wild horse suddenly whipped into a frenzied, unrestrained gallop. This was the primordial power of Ancestor Kui. Although the sword was shattered, it was no less powerful than a strike from a Golden Core cultivator.

Without preparation, it would have been enough to shatter a man’s heart!

Lin Feng’s internal fire seeds erupted, meeting the terrifying force and clashing within his meridians. His dantian’s spiritual energy followed, the two forces joining to battle the demon power released by the sword. *Crackling* sounds filled the air. Lin Feng stood on the sea surface, holding the sword, his body and mind completely immersed in the dangerous struggle with the sword spirit. Le Zhengqing stood guard, his expression cold and stern.

*Hum!* After an unknown amount of time, the broken sword let out a soft moan. Its seven-colored brilliance faded, and the blade revealed its true nature: half fire-red, half deep blue.

*Poof!* The Red Lotus Karma Fire, seemingly unsatisfied, wrapped around the blade and burned it fiercely.

"Sssss..." A shrill, miserable scream emerged from the broken sword, followed by a plume of black smoke that dissipated into nothingness.

"Good heavens! Was that a wisp of Ancestor Kui’s primordial spirit?" Le Zhengqing frowned, astonished.

"This is bad. I don't know where the other half of the broken sword went," Lin Feng realized.

"No need to worry about that. Even if he escaped, he can only re-cultivate as a scattered demon; it would take him decades or centuries to become a threat again. Let's go! We don't have much time!" said Le Zhengqing.

The two took to the air, driving their treasures toward Wangxian Island.

Deep in the ocean, the other half of the seven-colored blade lay silently in the white sand, as an inconspicuous starfish slowly crawled toward it...

Two days later, Wangxian Island in the Li Sea. The island was breathtakingly beautiful, its conical volcanic peak covered in perennial snow. Scattered across the island were several hot springs, flowing with some of the rare fresh water found in the ocean. Monkeys leaped in the trees and birds sang, giving the island a sense of vitality rarely found on the desolate islands of the Li Sea.

"You two fellow Daoists seem to have quite low cultivation. How can you contend with the Shark King like this? Has King Yu gone senile in his old age?" On the mountaintop, Le Zhengqing, Lin Feng, and two other experts from the Tan Sea stood against the wind, facing a biting, icy aura.

The speaker was a middle-aged man with a long beard and the air of an immortal. His robes flowed like shifting waves, the exact color of the sea; at first glance, it looked as if a head were stuck on top of a spring.

"Lu Danyang, you dare to doubt King Yu’s command? Since you are here, just cooperate with them and lure Xi Bing out! What does their cultivation level have to do with you?"

Not far from the middle-aged man stood a beautiful woman. Her features were perfectly symmetrical, and her eyes were as clear as crystal, holding infinite wisdom. Her face was like a ripened cherry, so delicate it made one want to take a bite. At the same time, her snow-like skin and the perfect curves wrapped in her green dress made one’s imagination run wild.

"A rare beauty in the mortal world; only a demon cultivator could possess such an appearance," Lin Feng thought.

Though these two deeply concealed their strength, the sharp pressure emanating from them as they spoke gathered into dense clumps, proving just how powerful their cultivation was.

"Uh, Fairy Lingyun, I’m only speaking the truth. Isn't low cultivation just asking for death?" Lu Danyang’s face twisted in bitterness as he probed softly.

"Enough, stop talking just to hear yourself," Fairy Lingyun said, her willow-leaf brows arching in slight displeasure. She turned slightly and said indifferently, "Fellow Daoists, please."

"I will lead the way. Please, fellow Daoists," Le Zhengqing smiled.

"You think we need you to lead? It's not like we haven't been to the Whale-Slaying Palace before," Lu Danyang snorted through his nose.

Le Zhengqing’s smile stiffened, and a layer of frost quickly covered his face. He was a man who was cold on the outside but warm within; if not for the mission, he would never have sought help from the Fuhai Hall. He could smile in front of friends, but if he encountered those who bullied others with their status, he would be just as cold.

Led by Fairy Lingyun, the four broke through the sea and sped toward the Whale-Slaying Palace, over a hundred thousand miles away. Lu Danyang followed in second place. As soon as he and Fairy Lingyun entered the sea, they became like fish, blending into the color of the water and instantly vanishing hundreds of miles away.

Lin Feng and Le Zhengqing traveled side by side, falling a great distance behind.

"Brother, act according to the situation later. Don't worry about the three of us. As soon as the Shark King leaves the palace to chase, you must go in and save the people," Le Zhengqing transmitted his voice.

Lin Feng looked at him with gratitude and nodded.

When they were less than a hundred thousand miles from the Whale-Slaying Palace, he put on his Disguise Cloak and slowed down, keeping to the seabed while maintaining a distance of ten thousand miles from the three ahead.

The Whale-Slaying Palace was full of experts; if he didn't prepare early, dreaming of sneaking in was exactly that—a dream! He would likely be intercepted and killed before even getting close.

Five thousand, ten thousand, twenty thousand miles... Ahead, the roar of a violent tsunami could already be heard. Lu Danyang and Fairy Lingyun were clearly already clashing with the guards of the Whale-Slaying Palace. Beneath the deep sea, dark currents surged, and blood scattered everywhere.

"Lu Danyang, Hua Lingyun! You dare to run wild in my Li Sea! Old Bei shall have a go with you!" A gruff, heroic voice suddenly rang out in the ocean. The sea shuddered dozens of times, mud and sand churned, and many fish and shrimp floated to the surface, bellies up.

Bei Sajin! Another legendary expert of the Li Sea had appeared!

"Giggle, Old Man Bei, Lingyun is here to learn your high-level techniques. Why can't you change that noisy temper of yours? It wouldn't be good if you frightened your descendants of the Li Sea." Fairy Lingyun giggled. She cast some sort of spell, and the ocean trembled violently once more, the water turning even murkier.

"This Hua Lingyun is quite sharp, knowing how to fish in troubled waters. I really should thank her." Changing his direction slightly, Lin Feng avoided the two and circled a thousand miles out, heading toward the rear of the Whale-Slaying Palace. This was not the time to watch the show; his mission was to sneak in through the back door. The mysteries that had plagued him were about to be revealed.