Chapter 389: Chapter 179: Sudden Incident

The Profound Silk Net unfurled from his left.

The moment Power was infused into it, the net, which had been a tight ball, snapped open.

Shaped like a seven-petaled lotus, it spread out in a rapid spin, slicing the water between its mesh into fine white threads.

The lotus-petal-shaped wings of the net extended in all directions, covering a vast area and sealing off nearly all of the Golden-tailed Eel’s escape routes to the left.

The Golden-tailed Eel was quite agile. Sensing the unusual current, it arched its body, twisted, and shot off in the opposite direction of the approaching net.

Its body traced a golden arc through the water, so fast it left only a fleeting afterimage.

However, Chen Cheng had already anticipated this move.

Just as the Golden-tailed Eel turned and coiled to accelerate, the Dragon-Binding Rope silently wound toward it from the other side.

The rope cut through the water without a sound or ripple, like a shadow born from the void. In an instant, it was pressed against the eel’s body, cinching tight.

This special rope was woven from Treasure Beast Sinew and Profound Iron Wire, possessing a unique blend of rigidity and flexibility.

Its surface was covered in Profound Iron Thorns, so fine and dense they were like fuzz, almost invisible to the naked eye.

Once it ensnared its prey, the thorns would embed themselves in its skin and scales, making escape impossible no matter how much it struggled.

In fact, the harder it struggled, the tighter the rope would bind.

It was designed specifically to catch slippery creatures like eels; none could ever escape it.

With his prize secured, Chen Cheng didn’t linger for a second. Grasping the net in one hand and the rope in the other, he quickly vanished into the gloom of the deep water.

A moment ago, he had taken a good look at the corpse’s condition. It appeared to have died recently.

He decisively chose to get far away from this area.

But just then, a Signal Flare suddenly shot up high in the distant sky.

A cyan-blue firework exploded high above, its intense light tearing through the night and illuminating the water’s surface for several miles around as if it were day.

The light even pierced the clear shallows of the Sea Marsh. Near Chen Cheng, every grain of sand and every stone on the bottom was revealed in sharp detail.

It was a distress signal from a Fishing Pavilion disciple.

’Something really has happened.’

Chen Cheng’s heart sank. He immediately turned and began a hasty retreat in the opposite direction.

He just wanted to catch his Treasure Fish in peace and get rich quietly. He had no desire to get entangled in karma that could threaten his life.

Unfortunately, he had only swum a short distance before he ran headfirst into several Fishing Pavilion disciples rushing to the rescue.

The one in the lead was none other than Chai Liang. Five or six others followed him, all clad in Profound Leather Coats and armed with Fishing Spears or long hooks. They moved in a single file line with incredible speed.

The surrounding waters were open, with only a few sparse clumps of seaweed. Chen Cheng couldn’t find anywhere to hide.

Chai Liang spotted him from a distance. His lips moved quickly, forming silent, clear shapes underwater:

’You must be a new Junior Brother, right? Follow us!’

Before the words had even fully formed, Chai Liang was already speeding past Chen Cheng, trailing a current in his wake.

But as he passed, a peculiar look flashed in Chai Liang’s eyes when he looked at Chen Cheng.

He had noticed the Golden-tailed Eel in the fishing net Chen Cheng was holding.

’That kind of Treasure Fish is extremely hard to catch. For a newcomer to actually get one... what a lucky break!’

But that wasn’t all.

What Chai Liang found stranger was that Chen Cheng wasn’t wearing the standard-issue Fishing Pavilion leather coat—which provided warmth, pressure resistance, and decent defense. Instead, he had a cumbersome pouch tied around his waist, with several other leather bags of various sizes hanging from it.

Even more conspicuous, Chen Cheng was actually carrying a seemingly heavy, black iron rod on his back.

’What kind of Fishing Pavilion disciple goes into the water dressed like that?’

’It’s just bizarre...’

Chai Liang couldn’t make any sense of it, but he couldn’t be bothered to care. His forward momentum didn’t falter in the slightest.

The others followed close behind. They too glanced at Chen Cheng, their lips moving as they urged him with mouthed words:

’Hurry and keep up! Don’t just stand there!’

Chen Cheng frowned slightly, a brief calculation running through his mind.

’If word got out that I saw a fellow sect member in trouble and did nothing, how could I ever establish myself in the Fishing Pavilion in the future?’

’In a Sect like this, a ruined reputation is harder to recover from than a lack of strength.’

’Even if it’s just for show, I have to go along.’

He composed himself and, without further hesitation, quickly followed, falling in at the rear of the group.

「Some time later.」

The stench of blood in the water grew stronger, and corpses began to appear floating on the surface.

Although there weren’t many, their deaths were mostly gruesome. Severed limbs drifted with the waves, while some had entrails hanging from shattered ribs, swaying back and forth in the current.

’It’s the Water Bandits from the Giant Whale Stronghold!’

Chai Liang, still in the lead, quickly reached this conclusion after examining some of the corpses.

Beside him, a disciple furiously mouthed in reply:

’Who gave them the damn nerve to trespass in the waters of our Mountain and Sea Sect? Aren’t they afraid of being completely wiped out?’

’Senior Brother Chai! Over here!’

On the other side, a disciple waved his hand urgently, his lips trembling as he mouthed:

’This body over here... it’s someone from the Immortal Bone Sect!’

Chai Liang swerved and swam over quickly.

Now, even Chen Cheng’s curiosity was piqued.

He slowly approached, hovering a short distance away to observe in silence.

The corpse, dressed in a dark red robe, had an ashen face and purple lips. A fist-sized hole had been punched clean through its chest. The ragged edges clearly showed it had been torn open with brute force.

’That wound was caused by the *Secret Manglong Fist*!’

Chai Liang stared at the hole for a moment, his pupils shrinking.

’It looks like an elite senior brother from the Python Pavilion already got here before us...’

’Search the bodies! See if you can find any clues!’

At Chai Liang’s command, the few disciples following him immediately scattered, descending upon the nearby corpses.

Finding clues was just a pretense. In reality, they were looting the bodies to see if there was any profit to be made.

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