Chapter 1610: Chapter 817: Sea Treasure (2)
Bang!
Moments later, the deafening sound of cannon fire suddenly erupted!
"Enemy detected!"
Assistant General Zhou, with a murderous expression, immediately ordered, "Yandang Formation, engage!"
The Maoshan Elder slightly opened his mouth, initially intending to give a warning, but thought better of it and swallowed his words.
Now that the Navy has new artillery, they are quite formidable at sea.
No matter what goblins or spirits, a round of cannon fire will render them dust and ashes.
Imperial power is on the rise, and since this is the Crown Prince’s man, it’s best not to invite trouble.
As he pondered, the Navy fleet had already entered the thick fog.
It wasn’t long before they saw where the cannon fire was coming from.
In the fog, they saw fleeting sparks, two fast ships seemingly engaging in a firefight.
Among the flying splinters, the Navy soldiers on the deck had ferocious expressions, as if battling invisible foes.
"This isn’t good, we’re hit by a nightmare curse!"
"All disciples, follow me!"
The Maoshan Shangqing Sect Elder, astutely observing the situation, realized his misjudgment.
To avoid giving General Zhou any cause for complaint, he immediately led his disciples into action.
Though his mind was full of plans, his skills were undoubtedly exceptional.
About a dozen yellow-robed Daoists fluttered their wide sleeves, reciting mantras and spells to summon Armored Horses, wrapped in fierce winds, racing and leaping across each warship, finally soaring into the air, walking on water, and landing on those two fast ships.
"Supreme Tai Star, always responding. Wisdom clear and pure, mind serene. Three souls eternal, no loss of spirit!"
The Maoshan Elder and disciples chanted mantras, dodging nimbly, patting the foreheads of the soldiers.
Their bloodshot eyes immediately went slack, faces filled with confusion.
Some even instinctively pulled the triggers of their firearms, luckily they had already been discharged.
The two fast ships had only about twenty people, and in the blink of an eye, they were all restored to clarity.
"What happened?"
Watching the soldiers brought onto the ship, General Zhou sternly asked.
"We clearly saw the Sea Demon Group’s fleet surrounding us..."
A captain, still in shock, muttered, "How...how are they our own men?"
General Zhou’s face turned ashen, and he turned to look at the Maoshan Shangqing Sect Elder, "Daoist, you said no one could accomplish this?"
"This..."
The Maoshan Shangqing Sect Elder, also filled with doubt, "The yin energy here is dense, encountering a Ghost Wall isn’t surprising, but for so many to fall for it simultaneously, while we’re temporarily unaffected, there must be someone hiding and causing mischief."
He glanced around again.
Looking out, the sea was turbulent, no ambush visible.
He forced a smile, clasping his hands, "General, I really can’t fathom it."
He had thought it was just a group of pirates, at most adept with some Evil Skills, but the situation at sea was completely unexpected.
No wonder so many mentioned that opening the sea was extremely perilous.
"Withdraw!"
General Zhou regained his composure, ordering the army to exit this sea area.
Though the cannon fire was fierce, most on board were ordinary soldiers; a large-scale nightmare entrapment would spell disaster.
"Someone, summon Young Hero Li!"
...
"That’s how it went..."
On the deck, General Zhou recounted the events.
"The General did right."
Li Yan nodded, "Such a wide-spread nightmare curse is indeed unusual, caution is advisable."
Beside him, the Maoshan Shangqing Sect Elder sighed in relief.
Then his eyes turned to Wang Daoxuan.
Upon boarding, the Daoist held a Mystic Turtle Compass, rhythmically incanting toward the distance.
Mystic Turtle Compass!
Seeing the compass in Wang Daoxuan’s hand, the Elder’s eyes nearly popped.
He didn’t expect such a treasure among the Twelve Primordial Spirits.
This item was obtained in the Chuanshu Dragon Palace and, with proper use, could conduct interference-free calculations.
"This place has become a Land of Great Evil!"
Finally, Wang Daoxuan raised his head, stroking his beard, "Sea brothers differ greatly from land, rooted below, drifting above, representing discord in Yin Yang, fluctuating aggregation, that’s why your compasses couldn’t detect it."
"The army is unsuitable here. Advancing another ten miles, ordinary soldiers would undoubtedly fall victim."
"What should we do then?" General Zhou felt a headache.
"We must explore the island."
Li Yan said in a somber tone, "This Yin Sha Qi is peculiar; it might be man-made. We should first clarify the situation of the three garrisons on the island."
Assistant General Zhou solemnly clasped his fists, "Not only are there garrison soldiers on the island but also many civilians and fishermen; please, Young Hero Li..."
"No need for words."
Li Yan interrupted with a wave, "Saving people is paramount."
Very soon, a modified Sea Falcon Fast Ship was ready.
Besides the Twelve Primordial Spirits, the Maoshan elder brought along twelve elite disciples.
All these disciples carried Peach Wood Swords and bore talismans on their backs, their expressions solemn.
Of course, Kuai Dayou and the others, who hadn’t regained their strength yet, remained resting in the cabin.
Swish, swish, the white sails billowed, and the ship broke through the thick fog ahead.
The sea breeze wrapped in thick fog howled head-on, blowing their hair and clothes into disarray.
On the water surface, broken fishing nets and barrels occasionally drifted by, yet not a single sign of fish or shrimp.
The more they sailed inside, the denser the fog became.
Fortunately, they had Wang Daoxuan’s compass, so they wouldn’t get lost.
Everyone on the ship was a cultivator of the Mystical Sect; that kind of nightmare curse couldn’t deceive them.
Yet even so, they could still occasionally hear the rustling sounds coming from within the thick fog.
Suddenly, the fog ahead opened like a curtain, revealing the outline of Daishan Island.
A disciples of the Maoshan Shangqing Sect cupped his hands and introduced, "Elder and fellow Daoists. This Daishan Island is located at the eastern part of the Zhoushan Islands, is the key site of the ’Nine Mountains and Ocean’ along the East Zhejiang coast, adjacent to the East Sea main channel. The offshore reefs are dense, the undercurrents swift, and due to the treacherous terrain, it is one of the key Navy defense locations."
"Stationed on the island is the Jintang Defense Thousand Households, which numbers a thousand people. The garrison is built on the mountain, and there’s a fishing village at the foot of the mountain..."
Everyone looked up, and indeed, there were stone-formed structures faintly visible on the mountain.
Next to the crescent-shaped beach, a fishing village was built against the mountain.
But at this moment, whether the garrison on the mountain or the fishing village below, everything was dead silent.
"Be careful."
Li Yan, with a serious expression, led the group ashore.
The island wasn’t large, and they quickly searched all around.
Both the mountain garrison and fishing village were empty, with no signs of combat.
On the beach, however, it was covered with densely packed footprints.
"This..."
A Maoshan Sect disciple looked around hesitantly, "Could it be that everyone was bewitched and jumped into the sea?"
"You guys wait here."
Li Yan instructed, immediately performing a mantra and walked towards the water’s edge.
"Nuogao! Naive Taisu, Ren and Gui Essence. Aligns with kidney storage, aligns with Mercury. I now practice transformation, everything follows the shape..."
As the ’North Emperor Mysterious Water Escape’ was performed, he was immediately shrouded by sea mist and soon engulfed by the waves.
The Maoshan Shangqing Sect people looked at each other, but Wang Daoxuan and the others were not worried at all.
They knew very well, if in the water, Li Yan’s combat ability would further enhance.
...
Swish!
A figure shot out, with bubbles stirred up by the water behind.
As Li Yan’s Dao deepened, the speed of the Mysterious Water Escape became increasingly remarkable, no less than a sailfish.
It didn’t take long for him to thoroughly examine the seabed near the beach.
No bodies were found underwater, but strangely, no fish, crabs, or sea snakes could be seen anywhere.
This place seemed to have completely turned into a deathly ghost realm.
After searching all around, finding nothing, he had to return to shore.
"There’s nothing in the water."
Li Yan said helplessly, "The waves washed away everything, nothing meaningful to trace."
All of them had Divine Skills, each using them to search, yet still found nothing unusual.
Only Lv San, touching the bristled feathers of Li Dong nearby, with a serious expression said:
"There is something here, the scent frightens Li Dong, probably what scared away those sea fish and shrimp."
Li Yan furrowed his brow slightly, "I don’t smell anything."
His Smell Superpower was his main skill, scents within a two-mile radius couldn’t escape it.
Swish~
Just as they started talking, waves suddenly rose in the distant sea surface.
They immediately stood poised, but saw a human head suddenly break the surface, glancing around before swiftly swimming towards them.
This person swam extremely fast, dragging a long white line behind him.
As he approached the shore, he leapt directly out of the water with a Kite Flipping flip in the air, landing steadily.
It was a man dressed in coarse cloth with a fisherman’s appearance.
He glanced around at the surroundings, then looked at Li Yan, grinned and cupped his fists, saying:
"Li Yan of the Twelve Primordial Spirits, we meet at last!"
Li Yan slightly squinted his eyes, "And you are..."
"Hahaha, a friend indeed."
The man reached out and tossed over a token, which Li Yan caught and saw the words "Qiankun Academy" written on it.
A flash of spiritual insight crossed Li Yan’s mind, "You’re from the ’Haicang’!"
Qiankun Academy gathers heroes from all around; besides the Twelve Primordial Spirits, three wandering immortal teams were also hired as Tribute Providers.
This ’Haicang’, was one of them...
