Clearing the Field

Five hundred and twenty years of cultivation surged through his body, bringing an unprecedented sense of power.

Faint blue rings slowly flickered across his body like stars breathing in the Deep Sea. Jingtian coiled at the center of his nest, his eight tentacles stretching and curling as he adapted to his suddenly enlarged body and newfound strength. The soft glow of the Water-Condensing Pearl enveloped him, helping calm the restless energy left behind after devouring two powerful opponents.

Strength brought confidence, but it also brought clearer understanding.

The destruction of the Red-Armored Spike Turtle Alliance did not merely mean the disappearance of two rivals. It also meant that the upper power structure of this sea region, spanning hundreds of miles, had been left vacant. Before long, sharks that smelled blood—or perhaps not sharks, but certainly other soul beasts coveting this hunting ground—would come pouring in from every direction.

Waiting and defending passively would only trap him in endless harassment and potential sieges.

The best defense was offense. He would crush potential threats while they were still budding.

Since he had already embarked on this path of devouring his way to strength, since he had already bared his venomous fangs, then he might as well... be even more thorough.

Jingtian's senses spread outward from his nest like an invisible tide, slowly covering the surrounding waters. A range of four hundred meters was enough to encompass most of the areas that required close attention. His "gaze" swept coldly over every fluctuation of Soul Power within his perception.

Ten years, several decades, a hundred years... These weak soul beasts posed no threat and could be ignored for now. They were even the foundation maintaining the ecosystem of these waters. Killing them all would be counterproductive.

His targets were soul beasts with Soul Power below four hundred years, yet strong enough to potentially challenge his position in the future or attract the attention of stronger beings.

There were still seven such targets within the former territory of the Red-Armored Spike Turtle Alliance and its surrounding areas.

One was a roughly three-hundred-and-eighty-year-old Giant Pincer Rock Crab, entrenched on an ore-rich seabed to the east. Its defense was second only to the Red-Armored Spike Turtle's, and its twin pincers were tremendously powerful, but it moved slowly and possessed little intelligence.

One was a roughly three-hundred-and-fifty-year-old Phantom Electric Ray, found along the boundary between the southern gravel plains and rocky region. It could release weak electric currents to paralyze prey, moved at tremendous speed, and was elusive in its movements.

One was a roughly three-hundred-and-twenty-year-old Soul-Devouring Sea Anemone, rooted at the entrance of a dark cave to the north. Its body was fixed in place, but its tentacles covered an enormous range and could release hallucinogenic toxins and mental suction, making it exceptionally troublesome.

Two were roughly three-hundred-year-old Iron-Spined Arrow Fish. They were social soul beasts that typically traveled in groups of three to five through the more open western waters. Individually, they were not particularly strong, but they were extremely fast and excelled at coordinated charges, making them no small threat.

One was a roughly two-hundred-and-ninety-year-old Poison-Sac Anglerfish, lurking along the edge of a deep-sea trench. It could emit alluring light to trap prey, while the venom sac in its mouth could spray corrosive poison. It was sinister and cunning.

The final one was a roughly three-hundred-and-sixty-year-old Grouper Demon Octopus. Like Jingtian, it was an octopus, but it was even more vicious. Its tentacles possessed tremendous strength, and it excelled at strangling prey, camouflage, and ambushes. It was fiercely territorial and lived within a sunken shipwreck to the southeast.

The seven soul beasts each had their own traits and occupied their own territories. In the past, they might have remained peacefully separate from the Red-Armored Spike Turtle Alliance, or perhaps experienced occasional friction while maintaining a fragile balance.

But now, that balance had been broken. And Jingtian intended to create a new order with his own hands—an absolute order centered around him.

He did not act immediately. Instead, he spent several days observing the seven targets in greater detail: their habits, territories, weaknesses, and routines.

The Giant Pincer Rock Crab left each day at a fixed time to "mine" and forage. Its route was fixed, and its reactions were sluggish.

The Phantom Electric Ray liked to discharge electricity through the gravel region at a specific time to "clear the field" for hunting. After releasing electricity, it would enter a brief period of low energy.

The Soul-Devouring Sea Anemone could not move, but its tentacles had a broad sensory range and were sensitive to fluctuations of Soul Power. However, it reacted somewhat slowly to purely physical disturbances.

The Iron-Spined Arrow Fish traveled in groups along a fixed patrol route, with the largest and strongest fish usually serving as the leader.

The Poison-Sac Anglerfish was the most vigilant. It often used its surroundings for camouflage, but it had immense confidence in and dependence on the "luring light" it emitted.

The Grouper Demon Octopus had habits most similar to Jingtian's. It excelled at lying in wait, but relied more on brute force and sudden attacks. Its resistance to poison was unknown.

Once the intelligence had been gathered, the hunting order was settled as well: easy targets before difficult ones, isolated targets before groups, and those capable of raising alarms first.

The first target: the Phantom Electric Ray.

He chose it because it lived alone and experienced a period of weakness after discharging electricity. It would be easy to kill in one strike, and would not alert too many other targets.

Jingtian chose the Phantom Electric Ray's usual low-energy period after it had discharged electricity to hunt. Disguising himself as a clump of seaweed drifting with the current, he floated silently along the route it had to take back to its nest.

When the flat, elongated figure crackling with faint arcs of electricity leisurely swam past, Jingtian, who had been building up strength for so long, moved. There was no poisonous mist and no flourish—only a faint blue line of venom condensed to the utmost, shooting out from the "seaweed" at top speed and striking a cluster of nerves behind the ray's head, where no bones protected it.

The Phantom Electric Ray did not even have time to release a second current before its body suddenly stiffened, its Soul Power collapsed, and it sank toward the seafloor. Jingtian swiftly moved forward, devoured its most valuable parts, erased the traces, and slipped away. The entire process took less than five breaths.

Devouring this three-hundred-and-fifty-year-old Phantom Electric Ray granted him roughly twenty years of pure Soul Power. His cultivation rose to five hundred and forty years.

The second target: the Poison-Sac Anglerfish.

Jingtian took advantage of its confidence in its own "luring light." He caught several small bioluminescent creatures and stimulated them with weak venom, making them emit a brighter, more fish-attracting glow than usual. He placed them at the edge of the trench where the anglerfish often appeared.

Sure enough, the anglerfish was drawn in. It swam out from hiding, preparing to enjoy this "meal from the heavens." The instant it opened its huge mouth and its venom sac prepared to spray, Jingtian, who had long been concealed in the silt below and to the side, erupted forward and shot venom straight at the connection between its venom sac and body!

The venom sac was destroyed, and the poison flowed back into its body. The anglerfish thrashed wildly in agony and under the backlash of its own toxins, but soon died. Jingtian devoured its core, gaining another dozen or so years of cultivation and rising to just over five hundred and fifty years.

The third target: the Giant Pincer Rock Crab.

Against a thick-skinned, dim-witted creature like this, Jingtian chose the most effortless method—a trap. Above a narrow reef passage the rock crab crossed every day, he used the rock formations to set up a mechanism. When the crab passed through and triggered it, several huge boulders, whose critical support points Jingtian had repeatedly corroded with venom, came crashing down from above!

Caught off guard, the rock crab was struck on its shell by the boulders. Though it did not die, its armor cracked and its movement became restricted. Only then did Jingtian reveal himself and inject large quantities of venom mixed with the properties of Heavy Sluggishness through the cracks in its shell and into its joints. The rock crab possessed immense strength, but under the effects of the poison, it grew slower and slower until it was ultimately poisoned to death. Devouring this three-hundred-and-eighty-year-old rock crab increased his Soul Power by roughly twenty-five years, bringing his cultivation to around five hundred and seventy-five years.

The silent disappearance of three formidable soul beasts in a row finally raised the alarm among the remaining targets.

The Iron-Spined Arrow Fish became unusually restless. Their patrol routes grew far more erratic, and they always stayed together, no longer easily separating from the group.

The Soul-Devouring Sea Anemone's tentacles began swaying more widely, and the range of its hallucinatory field and mental suction seemed to have expanded as well.

The Grouper Demon Octopus directly retreated into the depths of the shipwreck, sealing the entrance tightly with its tentacles. It completely concealed its presence and entered a state of extreme vigilance.

Jingtian knew he had alarmed the remaining targets. They would no longer give him easy opportunities for ambushes. But he had never intended to rely on ambushes forever. His cultivation had risen steadily, and his use of his newly acquired poisons had become increasingly skillful. It was time for a frontal purge.

He chose the Iron-Spined Arrow Fish as his next target. They lived in groups, were organized, and posed a moderate threat—perfect for testing the effects of his new poisons in a group battle.

Jingtian appeared directly above the waters patrolled by the arrow fish. He did not disguise himself. More than five hundred and seventy years of Soul Power radiated from him without restraint, his faint blue rings a declaration of death in the Deep Sea.

The arrow fish spotted him immediately. After a brief commotion, they quickly assembled into an attacking formation under the leadership of their lead fish. Their sharp bony spines pointed at Jingtian as their Soul Power gathered, ready to launch the coordinated charge at which they excelled.

Jingtian neither dodged nor retreated. His eight tentacles slowly spread open. The instant the arrow fish began accelerating into their charge, he suddenly sprayed out a massive cloud of brilliantly colored poisonous mist! Not only did this mist contain powerful neurotoxins, it also carried the newly acquired properties of Mental Interference and Hallucination!

The poisonous mist rapidly spread, enveloping the charging arrow fish.

The arrow fish fell into instant chaos! Some suddenly saw their companions as terrifying predators and turned in fright to attack them. Some felt the world spin, lost all sense of direction, and charged wildly about. Others were invaded by neurotoxins, their movements stiff and sluggish... Their once orderly charging formation crumbled completely.

Jingtian plunged among them like a tiger entering a flock of sheep. With every swing of his tentacles, lines of venom precisely killed the arrow fish that had not fully fallen into chaos or possessed stronger Soul Power. He was faster than these fish known for their speed, stronger than them, and his poison killed upon contact.

In only a short while, this group of five Iron-Spined Arrow Fish, each around three hundred years old, was utterly annihilated. Jingtian calmly devoured the essence of the lead fish and another stronger one, leaving the rest behind for weaker soul beasts. Devouring the two arrow fish granted roughly fifteen years of Soul Power, bringing his cultivation close to five hundred and ninety years.

After dealing with the arrow fish, Jingtian did not pause. He headed straight for the cave inhabited by the Soul-Devouring Sea Anemone.

Against a fixed target and an opponent that excelled in mental and illusion-based attacks, Jingtian's choice was simple and brutal—saturating it with venom. Outside the cave, he mixed huge amounts of venom with seawater, forming a surging toxic current that he poured directly into the cave! The current contained not only neurotoxins, but also powerful Heavy Sluggishness effects and disruptive waves aimed at mental power.

The Soul-Devouring Sea Anemone's hallucination field and mental suction were greatly weakened by the overwhelming toxic current and its complex properties. Its tentacles tried to block and disperse the venomous flow, but they themselves were rapidly corroded and paralyzed. In the end, this Soul-Devouring Sea Anemone, which had lived for an unknown number of years and caused countless soul beasts to keep their distance, was forcibly poisoned to death inside its own nest. Jingtian took its core energy crystal, and after absorbing it, his cultivation increased by roughly eighteen years to six hundred and eight years.

Only the Grouper Demon Octopus remained.

When Jingtian arrived outside the ancient shipwreck, he could clearly sense the guarded, hostile fluctuations of Soul Power coming from within. As another octopus, his opponent clearly understood Jingtian's threat better.

There were no words and no probing.

Jingtian directly unleashed the pressure of his six hundred-plus years of Soul Power, mixed with a dense and eerie poisonous aura, and crushed it toward the shipwreck!

At the same time, all eight of his tentacles moved, splashing vast amounts of venom over every entrance and crack in the shipwreck like spilled ink! He would force his opponent out—or poison it to death inside its nest!

"Boom!"

The shipwreck suddenly shuddered! A thicker tentacle covered in suckers and rock-like protrusions smashed fiercely against the hull, tearing open a huge hole! Immediately afterward, a ferocious octopus larger than Jingtian by an entire size, dark brown all over and covered in grouper-like markings, charged out in fury!

The three-hundred-and-sixty-year-old Grouper Demon Octopus possessed terrifying strength!

The moment it emerged, it swung all eight tentacles, each thicker than Jingtian's, at him with force capable of crushing rock! At the same time, it secreted large quantities of thick ink with a paralyzing effect from its body, attempting to disrupt Jingtian's sight and senses.

Jingtian was not afraid in the slightest. He nimbly evaded the attacks as tentacle met tentacle beneath the water, colliding with dull booms. In terms of raw strength, he was slightly inferior, but in speed, agility, and especially control over poison, he far surpassed his opponent!

He held nothing back. His new poisons surged forth at full force!

Heavy Sluggishness venom silently mixed into the seawater, affecting the demon octopus's movements and making its tentacles feel increasingly heavy and difficult to swing.

Waves of Mental Interference repeatedly battered the demon octopus's simple mind, making it irritable and enraged as its attacks became increasingly disordered.

Brilliant poisonous mist burst forth from time to time, obscuring its vision and making it even harder for the demon octopus to judge Jingtian's true position or intentions.

And every time Jingtian's tentacles touched it or he sprayed venom, the demon octopus suffered real damage. Neurotoxins eroded its reactions, while corrosive venom destroyed its skin and muscles.

This was a contest of strength and skill, brute force and sinister poison.

At first, the Grouper Demon Octopus could still launch ferocious attacks using its advantage in strength. But gradually, it realized it had sunk into a mire. Its movements grew slower, its mind cloudier, and its wounds more numerous and more painful.

It wanted to flee. It wanted to retreat into the shipwreck. But how could Jingtian give it that chance? Poisonous mist sealed off its path of retreat, while his tentacles followed like shadows.

In the end, the demon octopus that had dominated through brute strength revealed an opening amid endless heaviness, confusion, and agony. Jingtian sent several lines of venom precisely piercing into the vital points of its head and the nerve nodes in its tentacles.

The demon octopus's massive body convulsed violently a few times before crashing down, stirring up a great cloud of sediment.

Jingtian panted as he slowly withdrew his tentacles. The consecutive high-intensity hunts, especially the final frontal battle against the Grouper Demon Octopus, had consumed a great deal of his Soul Power and venom. Devouring this powerful member of his own kind gave him roughly twenty-two more years of Soul Power.

By clearing out these seven soul beasts ranging from two hundred to over three hundred years of cultivation, he gained a total of roughly one hundred and ten years of Soul Power. His cultivation rose steadily from five hundred and twenty years to six hundred and thirty years!

All seven targets had been slain.

From this point onward, all soul beasts within several hundred miles that possessed more than four hundred years of cultivation and had the potential to threaten him had been wiped out.

Those remaining were either too weak to be of concern or too unintelligent to form any organization.

Jingtian had become the unquestioned, sole overlord of these waters.

He did not make any grand declaration. He merely slowly released fluctuations of Soul Power and poisonous aura carrying a warning, like invisible boundary markers claiming these waters as his own.

Within his sensory range, every soul beast, strong or weak, fell silent in terror and instinctively retreated away from the direction of his aura.

The Deep Sea regained its superficial calm. But beneath that calm, an overlord with deadly venomous fangs and a cold, calculating mind had quietly risen.

Jingtian returned to his nest and coiled beside the Water-Condensing Pearl. He began digesting his final gains while quietly thinking.

Clearing the field was only the beginning. Next came consolidating his rule, exploring more distant waters, and seeking new opportunities and challenges.

And... continuing to advance in silence and with unwavering determination toward that distant yet essential goal.

His venomous fangs had been honed even sharper.

His territory had begun to take shape.

But his gaze had long since turned toward deeper waters and farther horizons.