Homecoming

When Jingtian's pitch-black Ninth Tentacle appeared before the Greatbow Soul Douluo like a Death Scythe that had crossed the boundaries of space, the latter had only just barely recovered from the shock of the collapsing cliff and the terror of his companions falling in an instant.

"Water Mirror Substitute!" At the brink of life and death, the Greatbow Soul Douluo unleashed the instincts of a Soul Douluo powerhouse. Blue light flashed around him, his figure suddenly blurred, and a phantom composed of pure water elements remained where he stood while his true body rapidly retreated to the side and rear!

"Screech!"

The Ninth Tentacle passed through the Water Mirror Substitute without resistance, shredding it to pieces. But Jingtian's consciousness had long since locked onto the man's true body. The tentacle did not slow, instead carving a strange arc through the air like a parasite clinging to the bone. Its speed increased once more as it stabbed straight toward his back!

"Sea God's Blessing!" The defense-type Soul Douluo roared and forcibly shifted the massive aqua-blue shield he had just condensed, still unstable from the falling rocks, placing it behind the Greatbow Soul Douluo just in time.

"Clang—!!!"

A dull, heart-stopping boom rang out! The tip of the Ninth Tentacle slammed viciously into the light shield! It did not pierce through as expected, but the thick shield was like glass struck by a sledgehammer, its surface instantly filling with Spider Web-like cracks! A frigid, silent poison filled with terrifying corrosive power seeped madly through those cracks!

The defense-type Soul Douluo shuddered as if struck by a heavy blow. He groaned, his face turning pale as his Soul Power fluctuated violently. To his horror, he discovered that his defensive soul skill was being rapidly "corroded" and "silenced" by that bizarre force, draining at an astonishing rate!

"Attack together! Otherwise, we'll all die!" the control-type Soul Douluo shouted through gritted teeth. Suppressing the fear in his heart, he waved both hands repeatedly. Several thick blue energy chains shot out like venomous snakes from different directions, winding toward Jingtian's enormous body and that terrifying tentacle. He intended to repeat his old tactic and bind this strange Poison Beast.

Yet Jingtian did not even glance at those chains.

"Poison Domain—Nirvana Deep Cold."

Centered on him, a profound dark-blue domain that seemed capable of devouring all light and sound silently spread out, instantly enveloping the three Soul Douluos along with himself! Within the domain, seawater became thick as glue, the temperature plummeted, and the light dimmed. More terrifying still, a sense of silence and sluggishness that invaded the soul wrapped around the three men's bodies and Soul Power like invisible shackles!

The energy chains released by the control-type Soul Douluo slowed sharply the moment they entered the Poison Domain. Their surface luster rapidly faded, like venomous snakes frozen stiff. Their power greatly diminished, and before they could reach Jingtian, the corrosive force permeating the domain had already worn away most of them.

"Not good! It's a domain! This Poison Beast actually possesses such a powerful domain!" The control-type Soul Douluo was horrified beyond measure. He could feel even the circulation of his Soul Power becoming arduous. The cost of unleashing soul skills had multiplied, while their effects were drastically weakened.

"Evil-Breaking Arrow!" Seizing the chance, the Greatbow Soul Douluo endured the cold discomfort the Poison Domain inflicted deep in his soul. Drawing his bow and nocking an arrow, he frantically poured in his remaining Soul Power and fired an intensely condensed azure arrow imbued with purifying power at what appeared to be Jingtian's cranial core! This was his strongest single-target soul skill, specially designed to break evil forces!

Though its speed was reduced as it traveled through the Poison Domain, the arrow's power remained formidable.

Jingtian neither dodged nor evaded. He merely raised another primary tentacle, dark-purple radiance gathering at its tip before it viciously lashed toward the azure arrow!

"Bang!"

The arrow and tentacle collided. There was no explosion, only a muffled impact. The purifying force attached to the arrow clashed fiercely against the silent poison on the tentacle, annihilating each other. In the end, the arrow was forcibly knocked off course and shot diagonally into the nearby cliff wall, blasting open a huge hole. Jingtian's tentacle merely dimmed slightly around its ringed patterns, leaving behind a shallow mark that was instantly repaired by surging poison.

"How is that possible?!" The Greatbow Soul Douluo's eyes nearly split apart. His strongest attack had been neutralized so easily?!

At the instant his mind faltered—

The tentacle that had just knocked aside the arrow seemed to possess a life of its own. Without pausing, it swept around and coiled around the defense-type Soul Douluo beside it, who was struggling to maintain the light shield as his Soul Power was heavily depleted by the Poison Domain and the previous block!

"No—!" The defense-type Soul Douluo only had time to let out a brief cry before an irresistible force seized him. At the same time, icy poison power pierced through his nearly shattered Soul Power barrier like countless fine needles, drilling madly into his body! He struggled desperately, attempting to unleash a defensive soul skill, but under the suppression of the Poison Domain and the terrifying tentacle's constriction, his Soul Power could not gather effectively at all.

"Crack! Crack!"

The sickening sound of bones breaking rang out. Under the tentacle's crushing grip, the defense-type Soul Douluo's body twisted and warped into an unnatural shape before finally going limp, his aura extinguished. The tentacle released him, and a distorted corpse fell downward.

In just two or three breaths, a Soul Douluo had fallen!

The remaining Greatbow Soul Douluo and control-type Soul Douluo were terrified out of their wits. All will to fight vanished, leaving only one thought—run!

However, within Jingtian's Poison Domain, their speed was greatly reduced, while Jingtian moved as freely as a fish in water.

"Split up!" the control-type Soul Douluo howled, turning and rushing toward a narrower, darker fissure on the other side of the canyon, hoping to use the complex terrain to escape.

The Greatbow Soul Douluo gritted his teeth, burning what little Soul Power he had left as he desperately flew toward the upper exit, which had been blocked by fallen rocks but seemed to contain a gap.

"Can you escape?"

Jingtian's cold consciousness pronounced the judgment of death.

The Ninth Tentacle transformed into black lightning once more, striking after yet arriving first. It instantly caught up to the control-type Soul Douluo as he tried to enter the fissure and pierced through his back! His body stiffened, unwillingness and despair still on his face as he fell forward, his life force rapidly dissipating.

At the same time, Jingtian opened his mouth and sprayed out a dense dark-green poisonous mist carrying potent neurotoxins, instantly flooding the region around the upper exit. The moment the Greatbow Soul Douluo rushed into the mist, the world spun around him. The circulation of his Soul Power came to a complete halt, and his body convulsed and went numb beyond his control as he plummeted like a bird with broken wings.

Before he could hit the ground, a tentacle curled through the air and gave a gentle squeeze.

The third Soul Douluo died.

From Jingtian's appearance and interception to the complete annihilation of the three Soul Douluos, the battle had lasted no more than ten breaths.

The Poison Domain slowly withdrew. Jingtian floated in the gradually clearing seawater, three Soul Douluo corpses slowly sinking through the cold water beneath him. His cold "gaze" turned toward the canyon below.

The battle there was also nearing its end.

Having lost their leader's command and suffered the Dark Gold Demon Whale's desperate charges alongside the coordinated attacks of the sixty-thousand-year Demon Whale, the remaining Demon Soul Great White Sharks had long since collapsed. At that moment, the enraged Dark Gold Demon Whale was catching them one by one, tearing them apart and devouring them. The massive beast was clearly venting all its rage and pent-up frustration upon these "accomplices." The sixty-thousand-year Demon Whale kept watch nearby, preventing any survivors from escaping while warily observing the seemingly crazed Dark Gold Demon Whale.

When the final Demon Soul Great White Shark was smashed into pulp by the Dark Gold Demon Whale's tail fin, silence completely returned to the bottom of the canyon. Only an overpowering stench of blood and remnants of Soul Power lingered.

The Dark Gold Demon Whale floated amid the bloody water, its enormous body rising and falling violently, its breathing rumbling like thunder. The wounds on its body had split open again during its previous outburst, bleeding even more heavily, and its aura had weakened significantly. Yet in its huge eyes burned a complicated light born of surviving disaster—mixed with savagery, exhaustion, and deep confusion. It raised its head toward the shadowy figure floating silently above, the one who had dealt with every Soul Master and emitted an aura that made even it tremble.

Jingtian slowly descended, finally stopping in the seawater not far before the Dark Gold Demon Whale. The sixty-thousand-year Demon Whale immediately swam over and released a deep soul hum carrying soothing intent and a sense of introduction, seemingly telling the Dark Gold Demon Whale something.

The seventy-thousand-year female whale also cautiously emerged from hiding with the Young Whale, her gaze toward the Dark Gold Demon Whale carrying the reverence of shared suffering.

The Dark Gold Demon Whale's gaze passed over the sixty-thousand-year Demon Whale, the female whale, and the Young Whale before locking once more onto Jingtian. It was violent, but not foolish. It could sense that these members of its kind felt reverence, submission, and even... dependence toward the terrifying Poison Beast above. And it was precisely this Poison Beast that had appeared, used thunderous methods to eliminate the most troublesome human Soul Masters, and turned the tide of battle.

Enemy? Friend? Or...

It did not immediately submit as the previous two Demon Whales had. Its eyes remained filled with vigilance and the stubborn pride of a powerhouse. It sent out a soul ripple mixed with weakness, caution, and inquiry. Its meaning was roughly: "Who are you? Why did you help us?"

Jingtian received the ripple, his cold consciousness utterly unmoved. He knew that for a soul beast stronger and prouder like this one, simple life-saving grace and displays of power might not be enough. It required more direct "communication" and a "reason."

Jingtian did not answer. Instead, he did something.

His pitch-black Ninth Tentacle rose again and slowly extended toward the Dark Gold Demon Whale.

The Dark Gold Demon Whale's enormous body abruptly tensed. Ferocity flashed in its eyes as it instinctively assumed a defensive posture, a low warning hiss rumbling from its throat.

But the Ninth Tentacle did not attack. Under the Dark Gold Demon Whale's watchful gaze, it stopped beside the most horrifying gash on its body, a massive tear so deep that bone was nearly visible. At the tentacle's tip, that familiar, gentle, pure dark-purple energy began to seep out, lightly covering the gruesome wound.

A cool energy filled with powerful vitality seeped into the wound. Its agonizing pain and bleeding began to ease and recede at a perceptible speed.

The Dark Gold Demon Whale's body jerked. As it sensed the tangible healing energy, the vigilance and ferocity in its eyes visibly wavered, replaced by confusion. It could not understand why this powerful, terrifying Poison Beast, which had slaughtered all its enemies after saving it, was now treating its wounds as well.

At that moment, Jingtian's consciousness crashed directly into the depths of the Dark Gold Demon Whale's mind like a deep-sea cold current—direct and frigid, yet carrying the unquestionable dominance of a king. It was not complex language, but a direct impact of consciousness and the presentation of "images":

Image one: Soul Masters from Sea God Island joining forces with Demon Soul Great White Sharks to hunt the Deep Sea Demon Whale clan, countless members of its kind dying amid wails.

Image two: Moyuan, gravely wounded and near death, being saved by him—Jingtian.

Image three: the two Demon Whale mates before it, along with the mother and child, likewise saved by him from certain death.

Image four: itself, pulled back from the brink of death moments ago through Jingtian's intervention.

Image five: a simple yet powerful "symbol" or "image"—submit, follow, then... take revenge against those hunters!

There were no honeyed words and no hollow promises. Only the bloody reality of its clan being hunted, the indisputable grace of saving it and its kin, the displayed power of instantly killing powerful enemies, and a simple, direct future: follow me, survive, then retaliate.

For soul beasts whose thoughts were direct and who revered strength—especially one that had just been dragged back from death's door and was filled with hatred for its enemies—this was more persuasive than any lengthy speech.

The Dark Gold Demon Whale's huge eyes stared fixedly at Jingtian. The vigilance, stubbornness, and confusion in them melted away like ice and snow, replaced by something deeper and more complicated—grief and outrage over its clan's fate, gratitude for being saved, reverence for absolute power, and... a newly ignited desire for revenge.

Slowly, with extreme difficulty—due to both its injuries and pride—it lowered its enormous head, which it had never easily bowed to any being. This time, it did not completely expose the vulnerable side of its neck, perhaps retaining the final thread of a powerhouse's pride. But the intent of submission and acknowledgment it conveyed was incomparably clear.

It released a low, hoarse soul ripple brimming with strength. There were no complicated words, only the most fundamental intent: follow, revenge.

Jingtian received that consciousness, and at last, the faintest imperceptible ripple stirred within his cold mind.

It was done.

The final "tooth"—the most unruly one, but also one with tremendous potential—had successfully been brought under his control.

He slowly withdrew the Ninth Tentacle and stopped the treatment, as the wound had already stabilized for the moment. Then, he sent a thought simultaneously to the three Demon Whales—Dark Gold, sixty-thousand-year, and seventy-thousand-year:

"Clean up the battlefield. Devour and recover. Then leave this place and return to our nest."

"Your lives now belong to the Deep Sea Poison Lord."

"And the lives of those hunters..."

Jingtian's consciousness swept over the corpses floating below and above, cold killing intent becoming almost tangible.

"Sooner or later, every debt will be collected in full."

The three Demon Whales, together with the ignorant Young Whale, simultaneously released soul hums—some deep, some high-pitched, some childish. They seemed to be answering their new master's command, and also making a silent vow of vengeance for their fallen kin.

Jingtian spoke no more and began rapidly devouring the essence of the Soul Douluos and the remaining valuable corpses. The three Demon Whales followed his example, beginning to devour the Demon Soul Great White Shark corpses to replenish their tremendous expenditure.

The Abyss Stairs returned to deathly silence. Only the heavy stench of blood recorded the earth-shaking hunt and rescue that had just occurred here.

And when this newly integrated Demon Whale Battle Group, led by the Deep Sea Poison Lord, departed this canyon of death, the balance of power in the Deep Sea had already shifted in a subtle and dangerous way, unnoticed by anyone.