Encirclement Kill

The aura of Yin Wood true essence lingering on the demon ape might have been hidden from others, but to Xu Yuan's senses at this moment, it was as clear and distinct as a glimmer of light in the dead of night.

The hundred-li expanse of water was a tangled maze, yet to him it was no more than a leisurely stroll through a garden. After a few flickers of his form, he had crossed reefs and rapids, arriving at an underwater stone forest where the water-spirit aura was unusually chaotic, cold, and strange.

Deep within the stone forest, inside a narrow crevice cleverly concealed by waterweed and murky undercurrents, that aura—a mixture of fishy stench, brutality, and a trace of weakness—was desperately trying to hide itself. But how could it escape Xu Yuan's deliberate scrutiny?

Xu Yuan neither summoned a water mirror to observe the movements of the three clans nor laid down any restrictions. He merely stopped quietly outside the stone forest, standing with his hands behind his back as he gazed blandly toward that deep, dark crevice, as though his eyes could pierce the rock and stare directly at the terrified demon within.

Stretching lazily, the corner of his mouth curved into an exceedingly faint, almost teasing smile.

"I've borrowed your name for a few days." His voice was not loud, yet it strangely pierced through the water, echoing clearly through the stone forest and reaching the demon ape deep within the crevice word for word. "Now, it's time to collect your head as well."

Before his words had faded, Xu Yuan casually raised his right hand at his side, extended a finger, and lightly pointed through the air at the crevice.

There were no hand seals, no incantation, not even any obvious ripple of spiritual power.