When Luo Chen stepped onto the deck, he immediately sensed several gazes turn toward him. He knew who they were—the Initiates on the ship who were not members of the Bai family. He wondered if they would act.

Luo Chen chuckled inwardly, though his face remained serious. He sent out his flying sword, and it began cutting through the dense swarm of sea demons assaulting the ship. With the support of several early-stage Initiates, the Bai family cultivators on the deck felt the pressure greatly diminish.

The barrier surrounding the merchant ship had grown thin earlier, but now, it thickened once more. Bai Xiang relaxed slightly when he saw this, though tension still lingered in his heart. He shouted, "Everyone hold them off for a moment! Once I unleash my enchanted treasure and kill the sea demon leading them, the beasts will scatter!"

"Elder Bai, you actually have an enchanted treasure? Why didn't you say so earlier?"

"Well then that makes things simpler. Elder Bai, just go ahead and use it!"

Everyone responded at once. Bai Xiang smiled, then his expression turned serious once more as he sat cross-legged atop the deck. A round pearl flew from his mouth, glowing with hazy light. Surging spirit power poured from his meridians into the pearl, and his aura rose sharply. The next strike would surely be earth-shattering.

On the deck, Luo Chen glanced over while directing his flying sword against the enemy. He felt a hint of surprise. The pearl was clearly exceptional; its quality surpassed his old Mystic Flame Sword and rivaled the Heavenly Moon Purple Gold Wheel!

The Northern Sea is rich in resources, but the Primordial Devil Sect likes using the flesh, blood, and souls of living beings to craft enchanted artifacts and treasures. Because of that, the artifact creation arts here went down a crooked path, and enchanted treasures are actually quite rare. But those that appear are really high-quality... How weird... Wait, no, it's not weird at all. Which artisan would waste precious materials on a poor product? When low-grade enchanted treasures flooded the Jade Cauldron Domain, the real culprit was Skysail City.

While Luo Chen pondered to himself, Bai Xiang had already finished preparing. He sprang to his feet, and his eyes blazed as he stared at something far away and pointed in that direction. "Go!"

In the next moment, the hazy glow around the pearl condensed, then the pearl simply flew out in a completely ordinary-looking motion. It fell into the ocean, and then... nothing happened.

BOOOOMMM!

A massive water pillar abruptly surged up from the sea. The shockwave pushed the merchant ship back several zhang. When the spray fell, the body of a gigantic fish surfaced on the water. It stretched seven or eight zhang long. A knowledgeable Initiate saw the demonic beast and blurted out, "A Black-Green Treasure Basin! No wonder it can gather so many different kinds of sea demons!"

The Black-Green Treasure Basin looked rather fatty and was black and green, as if it had been badly beaten. It was called Treasure Basin because it was extremely gluttonous. Anything rich in spirit energy—whether alive or dead, flesh and blood, stone and wood—it would swallow without hesitation. When one was caught and dissected, many valuable items could often be found inside its body. Because it consumed so many spirit-energy-infused things, its entire body emitted a special aura, like a moving spirit vein. As a result, many low-tier demonic beasts often followed it and cultivated nearby.

When Bai Xiang saw the corpse of the Black-Green Treasure Basin surface, he finally understood what was going on, and a trace of joy appeared on his pale face. With this fish dead, the demonic beast swarm should disperse. Not only would the crisis end, but he would also gain a late-stage second-tier Treasure Basin. That alone could cover his losses and perhaps even result in a rich harvest.

Just as he was rejoicing, he heard the screams of his clansmen.

"What in the..."

The demonic beast swarm showed no sign of dispersing. In fact, their attacks only grew fiercer. Bai Xiang was completely baffled. He activated his spirit consciousness to the maximum and scanned the sea again and again. Suddenly, disbelief filled his eyes. In the raging sea, five massive shadows rose and fell with the waves. There were five more late-stage second-tier sea demons!

Bai Xiang's face turned deathly pale. "We're all dead!"

At the same time, several Foundation Establishment passengers helping in the fight noticed the change. Two of them reacted and turned into streaks of light as they fled toward the distant sky! When disaster strikes, each flees for themselves!

Bai Xiang saw this and felt a surge of anger, but then, a mocking smile crept onto his lips. "Do you really think you can escape?"

Sure enough, in the next instant, three of the five shadows in the sea moved. They opened their huge maws and spat streams of golden water toward the sky.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

The golden arrows were incredibly fast, far faster than a typical Initiate in flight, and since the flying figures were typical initiates, they were caught in an instant. The pair had no choice but to stop and raise their defenses. They barely blocked the attack when more golden arrows tore through the air.

Pff! Pff! Pff!

Within a few breaths, their defenses shattered, and countless arrows pierced their bodies. They fell from the sky like torn sacks, only to be devoured by the three massive shadows below. They were Golden Arrow Demon Fish! Individually, their attacks were not overwhelming, even though they were late-stage second-tier demonic beasts, but in a group, they were outright terrifying. Even late-stage Initiates would avoid them.

They had remained hidden earlier because they feared the power of enchanted treasures. But once Bai Xiang had exhausted his spirit power and used up the killing strike of his treasure, that restraint vanished.

Black-Green Treasure Basins were dim-witted and followed only their instinct, which dictated them to eat. Golden Arrow Demon Fish were far more cunning. Bai Xiang looked around as despair filled his face. "Am I really going to die in the sea this time?"

On the deck, Luo Chen was casually slaughtering low-tier sea demons. When he saw what was happening, he shook his head. It seemed he could not remain on this ship much longer. Still, before leaving, he did not mind stepping in to save the people aboard. But just as he was about to act, he suddenly frowned. "Seems like they don't need me anymore."

With his divine consciousness spread out, Luo Chen felt a powerful aura racing toward them. Dozens of li away, a streak of light skimmed across the sea. The waves parted in its wake, leaving a long, white trail behind. It was an Adept!

Moments later, the figure arrived before everyone's gaze. With a single sword strike, the sea surface split in two. Countless low-tier sea demons died on the spot, and the three Golden Arrow Demon Fish were instantly butchered. The other two late-stage second-tier demons, which had yet to show themselves, plunged into the deep sea and fled in panic.

The newcomer paid them no attention. He broke through the formation and stepped onto the ship. As soon as he boarded, he raised his voice before the cultivators could offer thanks. "I am He Yuan. I will be taking this ship!"

Everyone was stunned but quickly understood. Compared to the grace of saving their lives, the loss of a ship meant little. Even the ship's owner, Bai Xiang, offered no objection. Instead, he hurried over to flatter the man, and so did most of the surviving Initiates. Only Luo Chen revealed a weakened aura, greeted Bai Xiang briefly, and said he would return to his cabin to recover.

He Yuan glanced at Luo Chen's departing back and frowned. But he did not pay it much mind and directly ordered, "From here on, do not stop along the way. Head straight to Jadecold City. I'll handle whatever comes; you make sure we get there at full speed!"

The merchant ship was heading to Jadecold City, but they had planned to trade and gather resources along the way. The only way to truly maximize profits was to rely on price differences between regions. Naturally, once they heard the order, they knew the journey would bring heavy losses. But compared to the loss of their lives, any other loss was acceptable. Thus, Bai Xiang did not hesitate and immediately agreed. The ship changed course, sailing straight toward Jadecold City.

***

Inside the second-deck cabin, Luo Chen dropped the weakened act the moment he entered and cast Sound Isolation. His expression grew serious as he murmured, "What's with that strange aura?"

Heavenjade did not understand. She had been watching the battle outside and had expected they would soon abandon the ship. Instead, an Adept had arrived and turned the tables.

Before she could ask what he meant, a voice came from the Myriad Soul Banner leaning against the wall. "It's devil energy, pure devil energy!"