Chapter 132 Grandmaster of Martial Arts

Under the blazing sun, Lin Feng appeared in the skies above Boulder Island. Overlooking the pockmarked and battered remnants of the island, he could not help but sigh with emotion, "This place is a hazardous region and should not be lingered in. I shall go see the Divine Whale King right away and leave as early as possible."

Before he even descended toward the ocean, a series of whistling sounds erupted successively from the island and the sea. Six figures rose into the air and tightly surrounded Lin Feng.

"Hmm? What is the meaning of this?" Having been away for only half a day, this Dan Sea had unexpectedly grown so tense and jittery. Among the six figures, four were Divine Whale Guards and two were Sky-Patrol Generals. These Divine Whale Guards were a head shorter than the golden-armored guards of the Ocean-Covering Palace, but they were equally fierce and mighty, with muscles as solid as boulders and palms as large as cattail fans. Beneath each of their feet stepped a millstone-sized giant axe. The Sky-Patrol Generals were about the size of ordinary people, wearing blue cloaks and bound in soft armor, with their unified magical treasure being a hook-and-chain spear.

One of the Sky-Patrol Generals scrutinized him carefully and shrilly asked, "Are you Lin Feng? The King has issued an order: starting today, a curfew is implemented within the territorial airspace of the Ocean-Covering Palace. Only departures are permitted, and entries are barred. The King's verbal decree states that the cooperation agreed upon with you remains valid for one year. Unless it concerns this matter, there is no need to seek an audience with the King again. Be on your way."

"Oh? A curfew? Please convey to the Divine Whale King that Lin Feng will certainly return to visit the Dan Sea within a year, and there is no need to see me off!" Seeing the nervous, as if facing a formidable enemy, expressions on these guards, Lin Feng smiled faintly, propelled his sword to soar directly into the sky, and sped away towards the west.

His original plan to head to Xuanji Island in Erhai Lake for an investigation had been temporarily canceled in the wake of the Boulder Island incident. He decided to return to his sect and master's abode first to temporarily evade these overseas turmoils. Ever since obtaining the immortal artifact of the Yinkue Palace, frequent chaos seemed to erupt wherever he passed. This made Lin Feng feel increasingly ominous; it was time to keep a low profile and ride out this turbulent period.

Riding the wind upon his sword for seven consecutive days, a bustling, massive island suddenly appeared on the distant ocean horizon.

Exquisite pavilions and palaces were half-concealed under tall banana trees, and rows of orderly wooden houses distinctly bore the architectural style of the Divine Land's Great Qian State. The sailboats moored at the port were mostly light and luxurious, unlike the crude fishing and merchant boats seen on other islands. The roads on the island were straight and crisscrossed, with numerous pedestrians. Cultivators continuously soared into the sky, and strange radiances occasionally bursting forth against the sunlight from various parts of the island flashed one after another. All these signs indicated that this was definitely a trading island where cultivators gathered.

"Ah, just in time to experience this overseas cultivation market. Right, I should keep a low profile, hehe." Retrieving a lower-grade treasured sword, he slowed his pace and leisurely descended upon the island's port.

The surrounding people hurried about with preoccupied expressions. A few glanced at him briefly before averting their gazes. Everyone wore a strange demeanor—quiet and minding their own business.

"This sword should be put away as well." Seeing that no one was paying attention to him, Lin Feng smiled indifferently and walked slowly toward the wide avenue.

"Magnetite Island? What a coincidence, so this place is Magnetite Island." An oval-shaped, pitch-black giant rock standing three zhang tall was erected in the middle of the road, proclaiming the name of this large island to the people.

On both sides of the street, all sorts of shops and jewelry stores stood shoulder-to-shoulder, yet despite having proprietors, they were desolate with sparse visitors.

"Which cultivator would buy these trinkets? They are mere decorations." Thinking thus, he strode further inward.

Teahouses, restaurants, inns, casinos, brothels... all the establishments typically found in major towns were available on this island. Ordinary residences were rare, though a few large courtyards loomed grandly in the distance, undoubtedly the living quarters of wealthy and powerful figures.

After turning two streets, a gust of sea breeze blew past, and he suddenly felt a pungent, fishy stench that made one want to vomit. At the same time, various low growls emanated from an alleyway to the front left. A thought stirred in Lin Feng's heart, and he made a turn to step into this slightly more bustling area.

This plaza was about five hundred zhang in circumference, surrounded by a circle of dozens of large and small grid-like simple houses, somewhat resembling movable stables. All the entrances and exits faced the direction of the central avenue, where about a dozen people were sitting cross-legged before their doors. Behind them, various demonic beasts were locked up in the houses, reeking to high heaven.

"Admission fee, five taels of primordial spirit stones." Just as he was about to step forward to take a look, an old man leaning against a stone on the ground before the entrance suddenly reached out, raising a bamboo pole to bar his path.

"Five taels? May I ask, old sir, what kind of place is this?" Lin Feng halted his steps and looked at this disheveled old man, suddenly realizing with a flash of insight that this old man was actually a master at the Golden Core stage.

The old man did not utter a word, tapping twice with the bamboo pole in his hand. Lin Feng looked along and saw several words clearly written on a wooden board within the arena: Exotic Beast Pavilion.

With a Golden Core stage master guarding the door here, the goods inside the "Exotic Beast Pavilion" should be quite decent. Lin Feng tossed down a small piece of primordial spirit stone, waiting for the old man to give change.

The pavilion-guarding old man raised his eyebrows to look at him, weighed this supreme-grade primordial spirit stone fragment weighing about one tael, pocketed it directly, and closed his eyes. "You may enter. No change is given."

"Uh, no change?" One tael of supreme-grade primordial spirit stone could be exchanged for a thousand taels of lower-grade primordial spirit stones; it was by no means a small sum. The rules of this place were simply too tyrannical!

"Fine, I'll endure this. Spending money to buy a lesson, I am keeping a low profile."

Giving a deep look at this old fellow and memorizing his appearance, Lin Feng pinched his nose and stepped into the Exotic Beast Pavilion.

Taking a general look around, most of the people sitting cross-legged on the ground within the arena were youths at the Qi Refining stage, dressed in various attires, with different houses and animal pens behind them. Some were covered with fishing nets, others draped with iron mesh, and the three innermost houses were actually arrayed with dharma formations, housing who knows what fierce demonic beasts. The common point was that as long as one approached closely, one could see the "cargo" inside through the gaps, and hanging before each cage was a wooden board detailing prices, species, and other sales information.

Judging from the attire of these youths, they were likely selling goods here on behalf of their masters and mentors, and they must have stayed here for quite some days, as their noses could no longer smell the stench.

The first house imprisoned a Golden-Toothed Beast. This fellow looked similar to a wild boar, exceedingly ugly and exceptionally ferocious, and that pair of one-zhang-long golden tusks were prime materials for weapon crafting. Lin Feng looked at the sign, which was priced at ten taels of upper-grade primordial spirit stones.

He had no interest in this fellow, so he continued walking forward and saw a Fire-Evading Toad priced at twelve taels of middle-grade primordial spirit stones, a Sniffing Rat capable of discerning poisons, a massive and lazy Triangular Rhinoceros... Finally, he stopped before the only cage equipped with a dharma formation, poked his head in to take a look, and his eyelids instantly fluttered wildly.

"Good heavens, it's actually a juvenile Four-Eyed Spirit Vulture! A spirit beast capable of seeing through illusions and skilled in early warning! Judging by this little fellow's appearance, once grown, it might be even more formidable than Wuzhui!"

Continually praising it in his heart, he couldn't help but look at the wooden board: twenty-five taels of supreme-grade primordial spirit stones! Equivalent to two Lihai royal primordial spirit bricks, the price was somewhat on the high side.

Lin Feng glanced at this little thing once more. It also raised its head, tilting it to gaze back at him. Within its bright black pupils lay a profound depth, brimming with doubt and anticipation.

Indeed, it was an eagle and vulture with spiritual intelligence.

"This brother, is the price negotiable?" The young sellers in the Exotic Beast Pavilion seemed insufficiently enthusiastic; not a single person had stepped forward proactively to greet him and recommend their goods since Lin Feng entered.

"No." The youth did not even lift his eyelids, directly spitting out two words.

Lin Feng frowned slightly. Trading two pieces of supreme-grade primordial spirit stones for this Four-Eyed Spirit Vulture was undoubtedly somewhat extravagant. Just as he was hesitating, a figure suddenly flashed at the entrance of the Exotic Beast Pavilion, and a young girl appeared.

"Old fellow! Return this young lady's primordial spirit stones!" As soon as the girl manifested, she threw a punch at the gate-guarding old man, striking with a thunderous sonic boom that even sparked flames.

Bang! The human-height boulder was blasted into smithereens on the spot, and the disheveled, slovenly old man had already shot up into mid-air.

"Little girl doesn't know how to respect her elders, let this old fellow teach you a lesson!"

The broken bamboo pole in the old man's hand trembled, instantly shattering into pieces like a volley of arrows piercing through the heart, stabbing toward the maiden. Energy whined and darted about. The spot where Lin Feng stood allowed him to see extremely clearly; those sword-light-like bamboo silks, every single one of them, instantly became razor-sharp, carrying a suffocating sensation akin to a throat-sealing poison.

Suddenly, the white-robed maiden extended a hand as white and flawless as jade and gently waved it. A piercing whistle arose, *chi chi chi chi*! Those bamboo silks, as fine as needle tips, collectively turned around and shot back toward the old man.

"Clang!" A flash of sword light burst forth, and the bamboo silks were churned into powder.

"Damn girl! Asking for a beating!"

The flying sword in the slovenly old man's hand flashed, and two white sword qi beams shot toward the maiden—one high and one low, one aiming for the head, the other for the feet!

The maiden's brows twitched, and she twisted her waist to make a large circle, flying up like a butterfly to dodge those two sword qi beams. With another punch thrown, the airflow around her body seemed to boil, violently detonating. The kinetic energy carried by this "powder punch" even steadily surpassed the momentum of the old man's sword qi.

The dust kicked up by her feet swirled fiercely around her, resembling a vacuum vortex, its piercing howl ceaseless!

Boom! Rumble! In an instant, two violent explosions echoed at the entrance of the Exotic Beast Pavilion. The demonic beasts locked in the cages simultaneously let out deafening roars, and the frenzied, ferocious beasts continuously battered their cages after being startled, their vicious nature fully aroused!

"Which sect do you hail from? At such a tender age, your cultivation has actually reached the level of a grandmaster. I truly underestimated you!"

The slovenly old man retreated several steps in mid-air, his flying sword unable to block the maiden's punch force. His eyes glared viciously at her as he hacked and slashed horizontally and vertically with his flying sword, killing intent soaring.

"Return my primordial spirit stones!" The maiden's braids danced in the air, a violent airflow surging around her body. With her brows tightly locked, she threw punches with both fists simultaneously, unleashing two mysterious vortexes that enshrouded the flying sword in the old man's hand. These two vortexes seemed to carry tens of thousands of catties of suction force, attempting to snatch away that flying sword!

"Flying Flowers and Plucking Leaves!"

Watching from the side, Lin Feng was secretly startled. He had not expected to encounter deeply hidden masters everywhere. A fifteen or sixteen-year-old maiden actually possessed the methods of a martial arts grandmaster, completely suppressing this Golden Core stage old fellow when unleashing her full strength.

How numerous were the world's experts!