Killing Intent

There was no sun or moon in the Deep Sea, but certain special energy tides followed their own patterns.

Jingtian lay hidden in the shadows at the edge of the Variegated Jellyfish's habitat—the outskirts of that dense kelp forest—like part of a reef. Even his consciousness seemed to have sunk into the icy seawater. He had been lying in wait here for three days, patiently awaiting that particular moment.

Based on his earlier observations, every month, at midnight when the Moonlight Water energy in the sea was at its densest—the deep-sea soul beasts had their own senses for energy fluctuations—the Variegated Jellyfish would rise to shallower waters to absorb it. The process lasted roughly an hour. During that time, it would be relatively focused, and the defensive range of its tentacles would shrink somewhat, though it would hardly be defenseless.

Tonight was the time for it to absorb Moonlight Water.

Jingtian's senses spread over the area like the finest net. He could "see" the Variegated Jellyfish's enormous, translucent bell rising and falling faintly amid the kelp. Variegated motes of light flowed slowly through its body like breathing. Its Soul Power fluctuations carried a trace of anticipation beneath their calm, clearly awaiting the arrival of the energy peak.

Farther away, the Red-Armored Spike Turtle's heavy, dull Soul Power fluctuations lingered like a boulder near its own rocky cave. Ever since the "Iron-Bone Fish crime scene" had been discovered, the two had not completely fallen out, but their relationship had dropped to freezing point. The Red-Armored Spike Turtle seemed to be holding in its anger as well. It no longer approached the jellyfish of its own accord, merely keeping a certain safe distance and releasing its Soul Power to remain alert to everything around it.

Perfect, Jingtian murmured inwardly. The distance was just right. It would make the jellyfish "suspect" Red-Armor at once if it came under attack, while leaving Red-Armor with vague room for an alibi, making the suspicion all the more complicated.

Time passed bit by bit. Even the currents of the Deep Sea seemed to slow.

Suddenly, Jingtian sensed a subtle change in the energy particles within the seawater. Strands of cool, pure energy carrying a faint moon-halo sheen seeped down like invisible trickles from deeper, more distant waters—or perhaps from some unknowable height—and gradually gathered in this midwater region.

The Variegated Jellyfish's bell flashed brightly! The variegated motes within its body suddenly began flowing faster, and its dozens of tentacles slowly unfurled upward as if summoned, actively reaching for the gathering threads of Moonlight Water energy. It entered a cultivation state. A faint energy vortex formed at the center of its bell, greedily drawing in this once-a-month feast.

Now!

Jingtian did not hesitate in the slightest. His chosen "prop"—a hard coral stone repeatedly soaked and corroded in venom, coated with a layer of simulated earth-element Soul Power from the Red-Armored Spike Turtle, as closely imitated as possible, and infused with a faint Iron-Bone Fish stench—was wrapped by one of his tentacles. His muscles tightened, and Soul Power surged into it!

He did not attack the jellyfish directly. An attack itself could easily expose him, and it would be difficult to perfectly mimic the Red-Armored Spike Turtle's methods of attack: heavy blows or ramming. What he wanted was a sign—an attempted attack.

"Whoosh—!"

Wrapped in Soul Power, the coral stone shot out like a cannonball, tearing through the seawater in a straight line. It was not aimed at the jellyfish itself, but at a thick, tough main kelp stalk hanging down from the kelp forest several meters above and to one side of it! This stalk was one of the key structures supporting the kelp forest!

"Crack!" A dull sound rang out!

The coral stone, infused with Jingtian's three-hundred-and-fifty-year Soul Power and specially treated, slammed viciously into the thick kelp stalk! Under the immense impact and the venom's corrosion, the stalk snapped at once!

The break bore obvious traces of residual earth-element Soul Power and the bloody scent of Iron-Bone Fish—everything Jingtian had prepared in advance. At the same time, due to the impact and the chain reaction from the broken stalk, a dense mass of kelp above, along with the gravel and shells clinging to it, came crashing down like a collapsing hill onto the Variegated Jellyfish below, which was in the midst of absorbing Moonlight Water!

This sudden turn of events instantly jolted the Variegated Jellyfish awake from its cultivation!

The light on its bell flickered violently, shifting in an instant from the calm blue of cultivation to a blinding red of alarm! Its dozens of tentacles instinctively withdrew and wove together above it into a defensive net. At the same time, it erupted with powerful Soul Power fluctuations, blasting apart the falling kelp and gravel.

However, it "saw" the traces on the broken kelp stalk, and it also sensed the familiar earth-element Soul Power and Iron-Bone Fish blood scent within the remnants of the attack—things that filled it with dread!

Red-Armor again! It wanted to ambush me while I was absorbing Moonlight Water, when my defenses were weakened! It broke the crucial kelp stalk and wanted the collapsing kelp and rocks to injure or even trap me!

The thought pierced the jellyfish's already taut nerves like a venomous barb! Its previous suspicions over the Iron-Bone Fish's death were magnified without limit, transforming into towering fury and the terror of betrayal!

"Shh—!!!"

A soundless mental shriek filled with shock, rage, and violence exploded outward from the jellyfish! This was no longer a simple warning or attack. It was a mental assault carrying intense emotional information, surging like a tsunami toward the Red-Armored Spike Turtle!

In the distance, near the Red-Armored Spike Turtle's cave, those heavy Soul Power fluctuations stalled for a moment, seemingly stunned by the sudden hostile mental assault. Then, an even more violent burst of earth-yellow Soul Power erupted, carrying the fury of provocation!

The Red-Armored Spike Turtle had been enraged as well! It had already been irritated by the jellyfish's recent distance and suspicion. Now, it had been targeted for no reason by such a hostile mental attack. How could it possibly endure that? It believed the jellyfish had finally lost its patience and intended to strike at it!

"Roar—!!" A heavy Soul Power roar, like grinding boulders, answered from afar.

There was no explanation, no communication. In the simple, direct minds of soul beasts, such an aggressive act was a declaration of war!

Seeing that the Red-Armored Spike Turtle not only offered no explanation but instead responded with even stronger hostility, the Variegated Jellyfish became even more convinced of its judgment. It stopped absorbing Moonlight Water. All its tentacles flared wide, the variegated light within its body circulated rapidly, and it condensed powerful toxic energy. Beneath its bell, an ever-expanding Venom Bomb of bizarre colors began to take shape!

The Red-Armored Spike Turtle, meanwhile, came rumbling out of its cave. Its heavy body crushed across the seabed, while earth-yellow Soul Power condensed over its surface into thick rock armor. It withdrew its limbs and head into its shell, becoming a massive, spike-covered battering ram as it charged ferociously toward the jellyfish! Seawater was forced apart in its wake, and dark currents surged!

Civil war had erupted!

The instant Jingtian fired the coral stone and triggered the kelp collapse, he had already retreated at top speed along a preplanned, winding reef passage far from the battlefield. Only after withdrawing to a safe distance near his nest did he cautiously extend his senses and observe the battle from afar.

Both soul beasts were overlords of this stretch of sea. Their cultivation levels were close, and each had its own strengths.

The Variegated Jellyfish was agile and floated through the water. Its Venom Bombs and mental attacks covered a wide area, while its tentacles could attack, bind, and defend. However, its defenses were relatively weak. It feared close combat and powerful physical impacts.

The Red-Armored Spike Turtle was the exact opposite. Its defenses were absurdly strong, its power immense, and its ramming attacks and claw strikes were terrifying. Its earth-element Soul Power could also create gravity fields or stone spikes to assist its attacks. However, it was slow and inflexible, possessed only average resistance to mental attacks, and lacked effective countermeasures against ranged venom attacks.

At that moment, enemies meeting face-to-face saw red. The jellyfish's Venom Bombs fired at the charging Red-Armored Spike Turtle like a barrage, while its mental shrieks continued without pause, attempting to disrupt its movements. Relying on its thick rock armor to withstand the venom explosions, the Red-Armored Spike Turtle did not slow in the slightest. Like a heavy war chariot, it crashed brutally into the kelp forest where the jellyfish was located!

"Boom!" "Sizzle!" "Bang!"

Dull collisions, the sizzling of venom corroding stone, and explosive blasts of Soul Power clashing rang out fiercely through this once-silent midwater region. The kelp forest was destroyed, reefs cracked apart, and murky silt and shattered plant debris scattered with the turbulent currents.

The battle entered its fiercest stage from the very beginning. Neither side held anything back. Every move was aimed to kill.

The jellyfish tried to open the distance, using Venom Bombs and mental attacks to wear Red-Armor down. But Red-Armor gave it no chance at all, charging wildly and forcing the jellyfish to retreat and dodge repeatedly, unable to cast its abilities steadily. Whenever it was occasionally bound by the jellyfish's tentacles, Red-Armor erupted with brute force to tear free, even using its spikes to slash the tentacles and draw variegated poisonous blood.

Red-Armor tried to close in and crush the jellyfish with absolute power. But the jellyfish's mental attacks left it dizzy and disoriented, often making its movements sluggish, while the Venom Bombs continuously wore away at its rock armor. Several fatal charges were narrowly avoided by the jellyfish, leaving only deep trenches gouged into the reefs.

This was a battle of attrition. It would come down to who could no longer endure first.

Jingtian sensed the battle from afar and analyzed it calmly. Judging from the situation, they were evenly matched for now. The jellyfish held a slight advantage in agility and methods of attack, but Red-Armor's defense and endurance were clearly superior. If they continued wearing each other down like this, the Red-Armored Spike Turtle would likely have better odds of victory. After all, the jellyfish's venom and mental attacks consumed enormous amounts of energy, while Red-Armor could endure for a long time as long as it protected its vital points.

But that was exactly what Jingtian wanted. Mutual ruin was the best possible outcome.

He did not rush to interfere. Like the most patient fisherman, he waited for the best moment to cast his net. His venom had to be used at the most crucial moment, to deliver the deadliest blow.

Time passed amid the savage slaughter. The battlefield kept expanding, from the kelp forest to the reef zone, then into more open waters. Both soul beasts began to suffer injuries. Several of the jellyfish's tentacles had been broken or torn apart by Red-Armor, and cracks from abrasions against stone had appeared across its bell, leaking colorful body fluid. The Red-Armored Spike Turtle's rock armor had been corroded into pits by venom, several spikes on its shell had snapped, and one eye seemed to have been splashed by venom. It remained tightly shut, making its movements even more irritable.

Their Soul Power fluctuations had both begun to grow unstable. Clearly, they had expended a tremendous amount of energy.

Jingtian knew the opportunity was coming soon.

He slowly adjusted his condition, raising his Soul Power and venom source to their peak. His eight tentacles subtly gathered strength, and the dark-blue rings on them flickered in the dim seawater like poisoned blades about to leave their sheaths.

In the Deep Sea, hunter and prey could exchange roles at any moment.

And this time, Jingtian intended to become the final bird that cleaned up the mess... the oriole.