Chapter 360: Sea God and Rakshasa God?
The vast ocean, at daybreak.
The sea vessel had been sailing lonely on the boundless blue ocean for several days.
Sky and sea merged at the distant horizon; suns rose and moons set in a cycle so monotonous it almost made one lose all sense of time.
This morning, as the first rays of golden sunlight pierced the mist over the sea, painting the rippling waves in broken gold, Ma Hongjun, standing at the bow on lookout duty, rubbed his bleary eyes. Suddenly, he jolted, his eyes widening as he pointed excitedly toward the front left and shouted.
"Third Brother! Third Brother, look! There's an island over there! A dark mass—could it be the Sea God Island we're looking for?!"
His voice, filled with the excitement and anticipation of days at sea, instantly alerted the others in the cabin.
Hearing this, Tang San quickly stepped out of the cabin and came to Ma Hongjun's side, gazing into the distance in the direction he pointed. The morning sea mist had not yet fully dispersed, but at the junction of sea and sky, a dark silhouette could indeed be vaguely seen, like a giant beast lurking on the surface of the water.
However, Tang San's brow did not relax at the sight of land; instead, it furrowed quickly. A flash of purple appeared in his eyes as he quietly activated his Purple Demon Eye.
His vision instantly zoomed in, piercing through the mist and becoming much clearer.
He saw more than just the blurry shadow of the island.
On the sea between the island and their vessel, several medium-sized ships were cutting through the waves at high speed. They were fanning out in a vague arc, accelerating to intercept their lone sea vessel. The ship designs were slightly different from those common on the continent, being narrower and more agile, with what appeared to be ferocious sea beast patterns carved onto the prows.
They were coming aggressively; this was definitely not a friendly encounter!
"It's probably not Sea God Island..."
Tang San murmured to himself, his expression instantly becoming solemn. Then, he suddenly turned back and barked at Mubai, who had just arrived, and Tai Long, who was wiping the deck:
"Mubai, Fatty, Tai Long! On guard!"
"Ships are heading our way at high speed. It looks like they mean trouble!"
At these words, Dai Mubai's gaze sharpened. The illusory image of a White Tiger flashed behind him as he immediately entered a combat state. Ma Hongjun also cast aside his excitement, his chubby face showing a hint of tension. Tai Long, without a word, grabbed a heavy iron anchor nearby to use as a makeshift weapon.
Then, the group quickly dispersed to both sides of the gunwale, quietly gathering their Soul Power and tensely watching the ships that were rapidly enlarging in their field of vision.
At this moment, even the sea breeze seemed to carry a hint of murderous intent.
A few minutes later, the ships had drawn close. The traces of seawater erosion on their hulls and the flickering shadows of people on board were clearly visible.
The other party had clearly spotted them long ago and was adjusting their course, intending to surround them.
Even more striking was that on the main sails of those ships, a large, sprawling purple emblem was painted in thick ink. The style was crude and eerie, appearing particularly glaring in the rising sun—it was a prominent character for 'Purple'.
"Purple...?"
Dai Mubai narrowed his evil eyes, searching through his memories, and asked in confusion.
"I've never heard of the Star Luo or Heaven Dou navies having this insignia. Could they be pirates? Or... a local power in these waters?"
Hearing this, Tang San touched the Twenty Four Moonlit Bridges at his waist. His gaze calmly swept over the clearly ill-intentioned figures on the enemy prows and the faint glimmers of Soul Power, and he said coldly:
"No matter who they are, if they want to target us, they'll have to pay a price."
In the next second, the ships with the prominent purple emblems quickly closed in, their hulls roughly bumping against Tang San's vessel.
Immediately after, dozens of burly figures leapt from the ships. They were all dressed in dark purple wetsuits, their skin dark and rough, their eyes like hawks, carrying the ruthlessness honed by long-term combat at sea.
The leader was a middle-aged man built like an iron tower. His skin was dark and shiny, and his short, needle-like hair stood straight up like a sea urchin's. His face was rugged, with an old scar beneath his left eye that cut deep to the bone and extended almost to the corner of his mouth, adding a touch of ferocity to his already fierce face. He wore a dark purple cloak made of tanned sea beast hide, which hung open to reveal a chest with muscles defined like blocks of stone and even more crisscrossing scars.
This person was a pirate of the Violet Pearl Pirate Group, nicknamed 'Raging Tides' Kratos.
His Martial Soul was the Deep Sea Demon Crocodile, a fierce sea Soul Beast with immense strength, thick skin, and the ability to fight on both land and water.
The Violet Pearl Pirate Group was active in these waters, specifically targeting the ships of well-dressed nobles or wealthy merchants to plunder their wealth. However, they spared poor fishermen and even frequently provided them with relief, giving them a very unique reputation in this region.
At this moment, Kratos's cold, violent, grayish-yellow eyes, like those of a crocodile, were firmly locked onto Tang San and the others on the deck.
Though Tang San and Dai Mubai showed the wear of travel, the material of their clothes was extraordinary, and their aura was vastly different from those who made a living at sea. Ma Hongjun was round and prosperous-looking, and Tai Long was dressed in decent martial attire.
In the eyes of these pirates, they were undoubtedly prime targets.
And moreover, the kind of noble fat sheep who likely came from a distinguished background and were loaded with loot.
"Haha! Brothers, looks like we're in luck today! A few lost koi have swum right into our net!" Kratos's voice was filled with undisguised greed and mockery as he waved his hand.
"Get them! Standard rules: take only the valuables, let them live, and send them packing!"
"Any who resist will be dealt with according to the rules of the sea!"
"Roar!" The pirates shouted in unison as glimmers of Soul Power lit up one after another.
Behind Kratos, the illusory image of a Deep Sea Demon Crocodile emerged, over five meters long, covered in dark, thick scales, with a long snout full of sharp teeth and a tail like a steel whip. His thick arms also became covered in crocodile-like hide, with sharp talons extending from his fingertips.
Dozens of pirates shouted, subsequently releasing various Martial Souls related to marine life: Iron-Clad Turtle, Porcupinefish, Ghost Blade Fish, Sea Snake... in various forms.
But all carried the unique briny and dangerous scent of the ocean. Like a pack of sharks scenting blood, they leapt onto Tang San's deck, instantly half-surrounding the four of them.
"Lads!" a scarred pirate sub-leader pointed a fish-bone knife at Tang San and grinned hideously. "Be smart. Hand over everything valuable on the ship, and all your spirit tools, jewelry, and gold coins! Our boss said to spare your miserable lives, so don't go looking for death!"
"That's right! Hand over the goods and get lost on a lifeboat! This ship belongs to the Violet Pearl Pirate Group now!" another pirate brandishing a flail shouted.
As the pirates' words fell...
The atmosphere on the deck suddenly tightened, and even the sea breeze seemed to carry a chill.
"Truly a bunch of fools who don't know the meaning of death."
With a cold sneer, Tang San stood at the bow. Facing a pirate group that far outnumbered them and was clearly familiar with naval warfare and possessed strange Martial Souls, his expression remained calm.
He slightly tilted his head and whispered to Dai Mubai and Ma Hongjun beside him:
"Mubai, Fatty, they... are your lunch for increasing your cultivation today. The Soul Power fluctuations from them aren't weak, especially the leader."
At this point, his gaze swept over the ferocious phantom of Kratos's Deep Sea Demon Crocodile, and a cruel curve appeared at the corner of his mouth. "After devouring them, your cultivation should increase significantly."
Having said that, he turned his head to look at Tai Long, who stood like an iron tower nearby, his tone carrying a sense of near-inducement: "Tai Long, your Martial Soul is the Vigor Ape, which is also a Beast Martial Soul. You can also try to strengthen your Origin and stimulate your Bloodline through devouring. Power-type Martial Souls might receive even more direct feedback from such blood-food. Today, why not try using the flesh and blood of these guys?"
"Bastards! You're looking for death!!"
Tang San's undisguised words, treating them as food, completely enraged all the pirates. Kratos, the leader, was so furious his hair and beard stood on end. The crocodile-like vertical pupils in his eyes narrowed to pinpoints, and the violent Soul Power within him erupted!
"Kill them! Tear these three arrogant brats to pieces and feed them to the fish!!"
Kratos roared, and a massive illusory crocodile claw accompanied by an air-piercing whistle lunged toward Tang San first!
At the same time, the dozens of pirates behind him, like an enraged herd of beasts, activated various Soul skills lights. Blades, swords, water arrows, ice cones, poisonous thorns, vines... all rained down upon the four people in the center of the deck!
However, facing this attack that was like raging waves...
Tang San didn't even move a step.
He simply raised his left hand slightly. In an instant, from the wooden gaps of the deck, the edges of the gunwale, and even from the air, countless vines—black as ink with dark golden patterns along the edges, emitting a cold and devouring aura—suddenly burst forth!
It was exactly his Martial Soul, the Dark Blue Silver Grass!
The speed of these vines was inconceivable. Like living black lightning, they instantly wove into a dense, inescapable net of death!
Puff, puff, puff, puff—!
The first few pirates to charge didn't even have time to see where the vines came from before their bodies were tightly bound by several thick strands of Dark Blue Silver Grass!
The sharp barbs on the vines easily pierced through their Soul Power protection and sank deep into their flesh. Even more terrifyingly, a cold and overbearing power surged into their bodies through the barbs, not only frantically devouring their Soul Power but also paralyzing their nerves and muscles like ice, leaving them unable even to struggle!
Kratos's formidable crocodile claw strike was also intercepted in mid-air by several even thicker vines. That terrifying, immense force was like a clay ox entering the sea, being diverted and absorbed layer by layer by the vines! He discovered to his horror that his Soul Power was being rapidly drained by those strange black vines!
In just a single exchange, except for Kratos, who was still barely holding on with his massive Soul Power and frantically tearing at the vines, all the other dozens of pirates who had rushed onto the deck were bundled into black zongzi by the Dark Blue Silver Grass, suspended in mid-air or pinned firmly to the deck, unable to move.
"Mubai, Fatty, now!" Tang San shouted coldly.
Hearing this, the evil light in Dai Mubai's eyes flared. A low, excited growl issued from his throat as the White Tiger phantom solidified behind him. He lunged at a pirate leader who was bound by vines and whose Soul Power was being rapidly devoured.
Without using any Soul skills, he opened his mouth, and the phantom of the Evil Eyed White Tiger seemed to open its giant maw as well, a powerful suction force enveloping the pirate.
Then, visibly, the Soul Power light on the pirate surged toward Dai Mubai as if being stripped away, and even his flesh and essence began to rapidly wither and shrivel!
"Aaaah—"
The pirate let out a short, agonizingly shrill scream, which then stopped abruptly as the entire person turned into a withered corpse before their eyes!
Ma Hongjun also did not hesitate. The flames of his Evil Fire Phoenix were no longer a warm red but had turned into a deeper, more eerie dark purple.
With his hands clawing at the air, the evil fire wrapped around two bound pirates like a living thing. The flames did not immediately burn them to ashes; instead, they burrowed into their bodies like maggots on a bone, frantically burning and refining their Soul Power and life force, which then transformed into streams of pure energy that Ma Hongjun absorbed!
The two pirates twisted and convulsed in the flames, letting out inhuman wails before finally turning into two piles of charred ash, with only the most refined parts being devoured by Ma Hongjun.
Seeing this bloody and cruel scene, Tai Long's stomach churned. But remembering Tang San's words, seeing the clearly surging auras of Dai Mubai and Ma Hongjun, and then looking at the pirates who were usually fierce but now like lambs for the slaughter, a flash of struggle appeared in his eyes.
But in the end, he couldn't hold back.
With a low growl, Tai Long's Vigor Ape Martial Soul instantly possessed him. He stepped forward. He didn't directly devour Soul Power like Dai Mubai; instead, he grabbed a dying pirate bound by vines, crushed the man's shoulder with fingers like iron pincers, and then opened his mouth with a hint of beast-like ferocity, biting hard into the man's carotid artery!
Instantly, hot blood flooded his throat. Accompanied by a faint but real aura belonging to the same Origin of a Beast Martial Soul merging into his body, Tai Long could feel his strength seem to solidify slightly, and the red light in his eyes grew stronger.
The deck instantly transformed into a bloody slaughterhouse and a devouring purgatory.
Screams, the sound of bones shattering, the crackle of burning flames, and that hair-raising sound of sucking and devouring intertwined.
Kratos watched his subordinates being slaughtered and devoured like pigs and sheep, letting out a roar of extreme rage. He struggled desperately, the Deep Sea Demon Crocodile phantom frantically biting at the Dark Blue Silver Grass Binding him, but he could never break free. Instead, he felt his strength continuously draining... At this moment, above the sea, beyond the clouds.
Just as the deck of the ship below turned into a bloody devouring Hell...
Between the sea of clouds at a great height, two illusory figures were quietly floating, looking down at the tragedy occurring upon the blue waves.
One of the figures was a pure sky-blue throughout, as if condensed from the clearest seawater and the brightest sky light. Tall and majestic, his face was blurred but exuded an aura of vastness, kindness, and compassion. He seemed to be some kind of Incarnation of the ocean's will.
Now, this blue phantom's gaze pierced through the clouds, falling clearly on the scene of Tang San, Dai Mubai, and Ma Hongjun devouring the pirates.
The originally calm blue halo in his eyes seemed to dim slightly for a moment.
"Alas..."
A very soft, disappointed murmur, sounding like the sigh of ocean waves, echoed faintly in the space where he stood.
However, not far from this blue phantom...
The presence of another figure radiated a completely opposite aura.
It was a deep, pitch-black phantom. Her figure was graceful yet carried endless death and slaughter. She held a giant scythe with a ferocious design, its blade dripping with an ominous dark red light.
Contrary to the blue phantom's disappointment, when this black phantom saw everything below, a curve of appreciation slowly formed on her face.
"Jie jie jie, you want to go to Sea God Island?"
"With you looking like this, how could the Sea God possibly accept you?"
"Why don't you just go to the Devil Island I've temporarily set up for you and receive my Legacy instead?"
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