Chapter 473: Chapter 417: Double Kill

’As for this monster, I’ll leave him for the high-level cultivators to handle!’

He immediately gave the Sword-toothed Pompano a final command, then cast the Water Dividing Skill and fled in a panic toward the waters controlled by his sect.

There was no way Zhao Lin would let him escape. He reached into his storage pouch and took out the Array Plate and flags for the Small Tai Chi Array.

SWOOSH! SWOOSH! SWOOSH! SWOOSH!

Four array flags flew out in succession, landing in the southeast, northeast, southwest, and northwest.

As the flags settled, Zhao Lin’s hands kept moving. He channeled a series of incantations into the Array Plate, instantly activating the Small Tai Chi Array.

A flash of white light enveloped Zhao Lin along with dozens of Sword-toothed Pompano.

The Sword-toothed Pompano were immediately caught in an illusion. Zhao Lin had vanished!

Even cultivators found it difficult to see through the Array’s Illusion Technique, to say nothing of these Fish Demons with their weak Spiritual Sense.

The dozens of Sword-toothed Pompano were instantly like headless flies, crashing about chaotically within the Array.

With a light leap, Zhao Lin sprang out of the Array!

Unleashing his Perfection-level Water Manipulation Skill to its fullest, the current of water around him condensed into the shape of a teardrop. Like a shooting star, he rapidly closed the distance with Oda.

Oda had thought the Fish Demons could delay Zhao Lin for at least a little while. When he sensed Zhao Lin giving chase, his face turned ashen with terror.

He wanted to beg for mercy but knew Zhao Lin would never spare him. In a state of utter panic, he opened the yellow leather pouch at his waist and released an entirely golden Demon Beast.

The Demon Beast was the size of a housecat but looked like a mouse. The moment it emerged, its legs flailed as it struggled desperately.

Zhao Lin was momentarily taken aback.

It was a Tier One Demon Beast, a Gold-seeking Rat. They had a keen sense of smell and fed on various ores. Once tamed, they were primarily used to locate underground mineral deposits.

’This type of Demon Beast has some combat ability, but it’s a land creature and a poor swimmer. Why would he release it now?’

A moment’s thought was all it took for Zhao Lin to understand. The Earth Dark Sect cultivator must be acting out of sheer desperation.

He sneered inwardly, ignoring the Gold-seeking Rat that was choking on water. His form blurred, leaving several faint afterimages as he caught up to Oda within seconds.

He waved his hand, sending an ice blade slashing viciously forward.

Oda was forced to stop and conjure a suit of rippling armor.

A cyan light flared, and a suit of rippling plate mail enveloped his body.

Unfortunately, his rippling armor was only at the Mastery level and stood no chance against Zhao Lin’s ice blade. With a CRACK, the blade shattered the armor and pierced through.

Before Oda could even register the pain, he saw Zhao Lin lunge forward, fingers curled into a claw, swiping down at his head...

Then his world went black, and he knew nothing more.

Though Zhao Lin had focused on cultivation these past few years, he had not neglected his martial arts, making sure to practice every few days.

He struck with the Three Yin Claw, instantly leaving five bloody holes in the top of Oda’s head.

Worried he might not be completely dead, Zhao Lin followed up with a kick that severed his heart meridian.

The seabed returned to tranquility...

After resting for a moment, Zhao Lin picked up the Moon-Cutting Saber from the sandy bottom and walked over to Heiqi’s corpse.

He nudged the body a couple of times with his saber and found a Mirror Tracing Talisman tucked into a sleeve.

Zhao Lin’s expression changed. ’I only release my aura during a fight, and it dissipates quickly. I always cultivate where there’s no one around. How did this person get a sample of my aura?’

However, now was not the time to dwell on it. Suppressing his doubts, he gathered all the items from the two bodies.

Oda had two yellow leather pouches on his person. Worried that another Demon Beast might be hiding inside, Zhao Lin slashed them twice with his saber, but nothing emerged.

There were seven or eight items between the two of them: a brow blade, a naginata, a storage pouch, a silverlight shield, a snow blade, a Beast-Taming Pouch...

Zhao Lin pursed his lips, alarm bells ringing in his mind.

These two Earth Dark Sect cultivators were clearly stronger than Yamauchi and Qingchi, the two he had killed two years ago.

The Snow Blade, the Profound Yin Pearl, the Silverlight Shield, and the Sword-toothed Pompano—these items were clearly chosen to counter his Water Manipulation Skill and Ice Blade Skill.

’If I hadn’t cultivated my skills to the Perfection level and mastered the Water Demon Fist, this would have been a brutal fight.’

’It’s not hard to guess. The Earth Dark Sect cultivators must have seen the recording from the Fish Eye Talisman Qingchi used before he died. They knew I specialized in these two skills.’

’It seems it’s always important to keep an ace or two up your sleeve.’

After some thought, Zhao Lin put the two corpses together and, with a wave of his hand, launched a Flame Stream Arrow.

Flame Stream Arrow was a Fire Element Skill and thus greatly weakened underwater. However, at the Perfection level, the flames were still incredibly fierce despite the suppression, instantly incinerating the two bodies.

Once he had taken care of everything, Zhao Lin returned to the Small Tai Chi Array, took out the Array Plate, and recalled the four flags.

The Array deactivated, and the Sword-toothed Pompano inside shot out with a WHOOSH.

Without their master’s control, the Fish Demons naturally had no intention of provoking a powerful opponent like Zhao Lin. They scattered in all directions, swimming off into the distance and vanishing into the vast seabed in the blink of an eye.

After cleaning up the battlefield, Zhao Lin collected his spoils and swam toward Shen Shui Beach.

After the recent battle, his first priority was to restore his Spiritual Power.

He could be drawn into a skirmish here at any moment and had to remain in peak condition.

Arriving before the pearl-strewn beach, Zhao Lin focused his Divine Sense and discovered that Chao Duan was still at the same spot as before and hadn’t wandered off.

Du Zhen’s team, however, hadn’t stayed put. They were three beaches away, but thankfully they hadn’t strayed into the Earth Dark Sect’s territory.

’It’s good that they’re all accounted for.’

Zhao Lin thought to himself. He swam over to a nearby mechanism, tossed his spoils aside, and sat down cross-legged.

He took out the Moon-Cutting Saber and examined it closely.

The blade was dull and lusterless, covered by a faint layer of gray energy.

Zhao Lin knew this was due to corrosion from Profound Yin energy. He took a Spirit Pearl from his storage pouch.

This Third Grade Spirit Pearl was a spoil from his last sea venture. He rarely used it, so it still contained more than half of its Spiritual Qi.

The Spirit Pearl was rich in Water Element Spiritual Qi, which could dispel various kinds of corrupting energy. It was perfect for the task at hand.

Zhao Lin placed the Spirit Pearl on the Moon-Cutting Saber and circulated his internal Spiritual Power, drawing the Spiritual Qi out of the pearl.

After about fifteen minutes, the gray energy on the Moon-Cutting Saber dispersed, leaving the blade as bright as new.

Zhao Lin smiled slightly, laid the Moon-Cutting Saber across his lap, and closed his eyes to meditate and recover his Spiritual Power.

As he cultivated, he reviewed the entire battle in his mind.

’A cultivator at the Qi Refining Ninth Layer is already this troublesome. The others at the Peak of Qi Refining will be even tougher to deal with.’

’Tier Two Skills are truly something else. Even at the Mastery level, a single, well-timed move can turn the tide of battle.’

Four hours later, his Spiritual Power was fully restored.

Zhao Lin checked the imprints from his Divine Sense Skill again and found that Du Zhen and his group were approaching Shen Shui Beach.

’Don’t tell me they were attacked.’

Zhao Lin grabbed his Moon-Cutting Saber and quickly swam toward them.

When they were about four hundred zhang away, his echolocation picked up only five people, and their speed wasn’t fast. It didn’t look like they were being pursued, so he relaxed and decided to wait for them where he was.

A short time later, Du Zhen and his group entered the beach area.

Zhao Lin formed a Fan Fall Seal to signal his presence and avoid any misunderstandings.

A few seconds later, Du Zhen returned a Fan Fall Seal of his own.

Zhao Lin channeled his Mana to its fullest, activated his Perfection-level Water Manipulation Skill, and appeared before the five of them in mere moments.

When Du Zhen, Chang Jianqiu, and the others saw the teardrop-shaped current of water hurtling toward them, a look of shock filled their eyes.

"How did you fare?"

Zhao Lin smiled slightly. As the team’s leader, he knew an occasional display of strength was necessary to earn the respect of his subordinates.

"Fellow Daoist Zhao, we just encountered two Earth Dark Sect cultivators. We fought for a while, severely wounding one and lightly injuring the other, but unfortunately, they both got away."

The arrogance on Du Zhen’s face was gone, replaced by a somber tone as he replied.

He paused, then added, "By the way, Fellow Daoist Xu was injured."

"How is Fellow Daoist Xu?"

Zhao Lin asked with concern as he looked Xu Zhongyong over.

"Heh heh, I got careless and took a hit from a skill during the chase, but I was wearing armor, so no harm done."

Xu Zhongyong said excitedly, patting his chest.

Zhao Lin smiled. "Excellent. I’ll mark it down as a contribution from your group."

Xu Zhongyong looked Zhao Lin over in turn and asked, "And you, Fellow Daoist Zhao? Did you run into anyone from the Earth Dark Sect?"

Zhao Lin replied calmly, "I ran into two. I killed them both."

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