Chapter 252: Chapter 250: Lingxi Beast Taming Technique Perfection
The Black Water River ferry crossing.
A treasure ship, flying the banners of the White Ape Martial Arts Hall and the Jiang Family Chamber of Commerce, slowly pulled away from the dock. It rode the wind and waves, heading straight for the Ten Islands Waters.
On the ship’s bow, the river wind howled, causing Su Yu’s black robes to flutter wildly.
"CHIRP! CHIRP!"
A palm-sized bird, its body covered in feathers like lapis lazuli, wheeled rapidly in the air against the river wind. One moment it shot toward the clouds like an arrow; the next, it glided just above the surging river’s surface like a falling leaf, its movements impossibly graceful.
Su Yu stood with his hands behind his back, his gaze fixed on that streak of cyan lightning.
He made a hand sign.
As if receiving a precise command, the Cyan-Scaled Sea-Exploring Swallow in the air gave a powerful flap of its wings. In an instant, it executed an impossibly sharp turn and landed steadily on Su Yu’s outstretched index finger.
[Lingxi Beast Taming Technique EXP +5]
[Martial Art] Lingxi Beast Taming Technique (Perfection)
With the Lingxi Beast Taming Technique reaching Perfection, a faint spiritual link was triggered in the minds of both man and bird through the contact of his fingertip.
Through this link, Su Yu could even faintly perceive the little creature’s current feelings of joy and intimacy.
’Is this the effect of Perfection?’
A hint of joy flashed in Su Yu’s eyes as he looked at the ink-wash characters that had appeared in his vision.
Now that this beast taming art had reached the Perfection realm, his communication with the Cyan-Scaled Sea-Exploring Swallow had truly reached a state of "telepathic rapport."
Without any external movements or sounds, just the slightest glance or the faintest spiritual fluctuation was enough for the little creature to understand and carry out his common intentions.
’With this little fellow as my eyes in the sky, nothing on the vast Black Water River can hide from me. Sizing up Ghost Mist Island will be as easy as flipping my hand.’
Su Yu looked up at the vast, white, misty expanse of the river, his confidence growing even stronger.
’Still, the current ceiling of this beast taming martial art is ultimately too low.’
He casually took out the yellowed, incomplete manual of the Lingxi Beast Taming Technique from his storage ring.
He opened the tattered title page and read the general description: "...when mastered, one can enslave the True Dragons of the Nine Heavens to pull one’s chariot and capture the Great Outer-World Heavenly Demons to serve as dogs! The mounts of all Celestial Gods and Buddhas shall live or die by my will..."
’What a load of bull. I’m speechless.’
Su Yu couldn’t help but roast it again. The senior who created this cultivation technique was definitely far better at boasting than they were at beast taming.
But complaints aside, a trace of anticipation welled up in Su Yu’s heart.
’For the general principles in this manual to be so ridiculously exaggerated, maybe this martial art really is derived from a fragment of some ancient, true technique. If I save up enough Breakthrough Points and use the panel to have it Break the Limit, it might just be possible to restore the glory of the true technique.’
He summoned his Skill Level panel and glanced at it:
[Breakthrough Points] 0 (Progress: 22%)
’Almost there. I’ve already saved up a fifth of what I need. As long as I keep consuming precious herbs and fish daily, along with the fine wine from my gourd, gaining ten percent progress a day will be a piece of cake.’
’Once I’ve saved up one full Breakthrough Point, if there’s no other urgent need for it, I might as well use it to have the Lingxi Beast Taming Technique Break the Limit and see what happens!’
Su Yu pulled out his wine gourd and took a swig of the fine wine, his mood instantly improving.
...
「More than half a day later, on Black Crocodile Island in the Black Water River.」
As the treasure ship docked, Su Yu leaped off the deck. He passed through a bustling floating market and a series of stilt houses built from bamboo, finally stopping before a two-story wooden building with a plaque that read "Jiang Clan Chamber of Commerce."
This was the trade route transfer station and outpost jointly established by the Jiang Family and the White Ape Martial Arts Hall in the Ten Islands Waters.
Just as Su Yu stepped over the threshold, a cute, round-faced girl in a white dress came forward to greet him, her face full of pleasant surprise.
"Greetings, Senior Brother Su! I am Jiang Zhi from the Inner Courtyard. You’re finally here! Senior Sister Qin has been waiting upstairs for you for a long time."
Su Yu nodded slightly and, led by the young girl, quickly ascended to the second floor.
Inside the private room on the second floor, the faint scent of medicine hung in the air.
Qin Yu was leaning against a soft couch, her pretty face now tinged with a sickly pallor. When she saw Su Yu push the door open, her dull eyes instantly lit up. She stood and said, "Senior Brother Su, you’re finally here. Please, have a seat."
Hearing her call him ’Senior Brother,’ Su Yu couldn’t help but feel a little emotional.
In the Martial Arts World, the skilled take precedence.
Now that his cultivation was far superior to Qin Yu’s, this once-domineering Senior Sister Qin had naturally changed the way she addressed him. Su Yu had wanted to refuse the honorific, but he couldn’t dissuade her.
"Junior Sister, how are your injuries?"
Su Yu sat down beside the low couch, his gaze falling on her iconic, fiery red combat attire. The once-vibrant fabric was now tattered, and her left shoulder was tightly wrapped in thick, white bandages. Faint bloodstains seeped through, adding a touch of pitiable weakness to her usually headstrong personality.
"It’s nothing serious. I’ll be fully recovered after a month or so of rest." Qin Yu bit her pale lip, a hint of disappointment in her eyes. "Senior Brother... why did you come alone? Where are Master and Senior Sister Lin?"
In her eyes, Ghost Mist Island was powerful, especially with Ghost Hand Asura, Qin Bashan, presiding over it. For Su Yu to come alone, no matter how heaven-defying his combat power was, it seemed far too arrogant and dangerous to clash head-on with those vicious Water Bandits on these vast waters!
"Master needs to hold down the fort at the Martial Arts Hall to guard against the Black Lotus Sect, and Senior Sister Lin couldn’t get away either. Master has given me full authority to handle this matter."
Su Yu’s expression was calm. "Besides what was mentioned in the letter, is there anything else you need to add about the situation in the Ten Islands Waters, Junior Sister?"
Hearing it was her father’s decision, Qin Yu, though still worried, could only suppress her unease. She said seriously, "There is. Just yesterday, the Hong family, the biggest local power in the Ten Islands Waters, sent someone to our door."
"The Hong family’s steward said they were willing to form an alliance with our White Ape Martial Arts Hall to jointly maintain order on the trade routes in these waters. As for the arrogant Ghost Mist Island, the Hong family also promised to dispatch troops to help us eliminate them."
"However..." Qin Yu’s gaze turned cold, and she ground out through clenched teeth, "as a condition, they demanded we hand over a full fifty percent of the net profits from the trade route!"
Fifty percent of the profits?
A sharp glint flashed in Su Yu’s eyes.
’The Hong family’s timing is quite convenient. I wonder if they have some connection to Ghost Mist Island?’
Su Yu never minded making such speculations; after all, profit stirs the heart.
Many things are often not as simple as they appear on the surface.
"How did you reply, Junior Sister?"
"I, of course, told him to get lost!"
Qin Yu’s eyes were wide, and a murderous aura instantly appeared on her pale face. "Demanding fifty percent of the profits right off the bat! Does the Hong family really think our White Ape Martial Arts Hall is a pushover they can just walk all over?"
"As for Ghost Mist Island..." A deep hatred showed in Qin Yu’s eyes. "Senior Brother, now that you’re here, let’s secretly set up an ambush on one of the merchant ships! I must personally chop up that Xia Lie to avenge our three junior brothers who died so tragically!"
Seeing Qin Yu’s determination to avenge her three junior brothers, Su Yu, contrary to what one might expect, nodded in deep appreciation.
"Since you’ve said the word, Junior Sister, we’ll do as you say. We’ll just go ahead and slaughter them."
"Huh?" Qin Yu was stunned, looking at Su Yu in surprise. "Senior Brother, you... you agreed to support me so readily?"
In her mind, Su Yu coming alone must have meant he was carrying her father’s orders to "quell the situation, concede benefits to survive."
In a situation with troubles both internal and external, sacrificing the lives of a few ordinary disciples and giving up on revenge to preserve the bigger picture was the normal course of action.
"Why wouldn’t I support you? I’m here to back you up."
Su Yu’s gaze was ice-cold. "Since Ghost Mist Island dared to kill people from our White Ape Martial Arts Hall and even injured you, Junior Sister, this blood debt must naturally be repaid with their lives."
Hearing Su Yu’s words, Qin Yu was deeply moved, but her reason instantly plunged her back into extreme conflict and worry.
"But... Senior Brother, the leader of Ghost Mist Island, Qin Bashan, is a genuine master at the Refining Flesh Realm Perfection! If news of our ambush on the water leaks, not only will we fail to get revenge, but you’ll be dragged into grave danger as well!"
"Even if the ambush succeeds, if Xia Lie manages to escape, Ghost Mist Island will retaliate like a pack of mad dogs against our remaining merchant ships... At that point, we’ll be completely unable to operate in the Ten Islands Waters, and we’ll lose every last bit of profit we have left..."
Su Yu set down his teacup and looked at her very seriously. "So in your opinion, Junior Sister, should we just not avenge those three junior brothers who died so tragically at the bottom of the river?"
"No, we must get revenge!"
At the mention of her three fallen comrades, Qin Yu slammed her hand on the table. The sharp movement pulled at her shoulder wound, causing her to suck in a sharp breath of cold air, but her eyes were utterly ruthless and resolute:
"Those three junior brothers died because of me! If I don’t settle this score, I, Qin Yu, will never be able to get over it in this lifetime!"
"Even if I don’t have the strength to kill him now, I’ll never forget this blood debt! In the future, I will definitely ask my father to take action personally and take that dog Xia Lie’s life!"
Seeing Qin Yu’s fierce and protective demeanor, Su Yu secretly nodded in approval.
Junior Sister Qin Yu might have some issues with her personality, but when it came to camaraderie with her peers, she was a truly righteous person.
"Your words are enough, Junior Sister."
"Leave all matters in the Ten Islands Waters to me. We’ll do as you said and use a merchant ship as bait to set up an ambush!"
Looking at Su Yu’s handsome, unhurried face, Qin Yu opened her mouth, but the words of caution she had been about to say were somehow swallowed back down.
’That’s right.’
’This man before me... from an unknown Outer Courtyard apprentice to the number one prodigy who shocked the Outer City, when has he not created a miracle?’
’The things he has accomplished are things I could never do.’
’Since he said so, I just have to trust him.’
