At Last, Sea God Island

"Are you two going over?" Jun Yan asked Bibi Dong and Yu Xiaogang beside him.

"No. I just threw up everything I ate this morning. I'm feeling a little weak right now..." Yu Xiaogang shook his head hastily.

Bibi Dong looked down at the Soul Masters on the sea and said, "I can't swim."

Apparently feeling that the explanation wasn't quite enough, she added, "I can't fly, either."

Jun Yan smiled faintly. "It doesn't matter if you can't fly. I can help you."

With that, he brought his hands together.

As his Soul Power spread, a tree bud immediately sprouted from the warship's wooden railing and rapidly grew. Before long, the little sapling had become a towering tree. It was only tall, however; its trunk was not thick, and it swayed in the sea breeze.

Jun Yan pushed it, and the trunk fell, its crown landing squarely on a pirate ship ahead.

Bang-

The trunk, far too slender for its height, bent into a startling arc, but with Jun Yan's Soul Power supporting it, it did not break.

Bibi Dong's lips parted slightly. Rather surprised, she said, "You didn't use your Martial Soul. Is this your Self-Created Soul Skill?"

Jun Yan nodded slightly, neither confirming nor denying it. "It's a way of making use of Soul Power's properties."

"It seems you've made quite a bit of progress this past year!" Bibi Dong said.

Jun Yan spoke with an underlying meaning. "Not bad! After all, as long as your Soul Power isn't stuck in place, you're bound to make some progress."

Because Jun Yan looked straight ahead as he spoke, Bibi Dong didn't realize there was a hidden barb in his words. The sensitive Yu Xiaogang, however, heard that something was amiss and immediately glared at Jun Yan.

Unfortunately, Jun Yan paid no mind to Yu Xiaogang's feelings. He gestured with one hand and said to Bibi Dong, "Please."

"Aren't you coming?" Bibi Dong asked.

Jun Yan shook his head. "They're just a bunch of pirates. I can't muster the slightest interest."

"Xiao Gang, will you come? I'll protect you," Bibi Dong asked.

Yu Xiaogang looked at the trunk swaying in the air and decisively refused. "I'm not feeling very well. I'd better not go."

"All right." Bibi Dong nodded, leaped lightly onto the long trunk, and ran along it toward the ship ahead.

Only after watching Bibi Dong set foot on the pirate ship opposite did Jun Yan withdraw his supporting Soul Power. The trunk immediately snapped in the middle, and both halves fell into the sea.

Jun Yan looked at Yu Xiaogang beside him and said, "You were right not to go. After all, you're just trash. You'd only make more trouble for the Holy Maiden."

Jun Yan's words deeply wounded Yu Xiaogang's pride. The word "trash" reminded him of his days in the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Sect. Ever since he had left his clan and come to Spirit City, no one had insulted him like that to his face.

"Who are you calling trash?"

"You! Who else? Is there anyone else on this ship who isn't stronger than you, Soul Grandmaster?"

Jun Yan changed tack. "Actually, I think something you once said was quite right."

Because of his experiences growing up, Yu Xiaogang especially craved the approval of others. Hearing Jun Yan say this, he set aside his anger for the moment and asked, "What was it?"

"There are no trash Martial Souls, only trash Soul Masters," Jun Yan said.

Yu Xiaogang was taken aback. "When did I ever say that? Still, it makes a lot of sense. As long as one can develop one's Martial Soul properly, no Martial Soul is useless."

But Jun Yan's next words interrupted Yu Xiaogang's train of thought. "In my view, you're trash through and through. A Beast Martial Soul of the highest caliber turned into a pig in your hands."

Yu Xiaogang defended himself. "My Martial Soul underwent a negative mutation. What could I have done about that? If only my Martial Soul had been of a slightly higher quality and given me more Innate Soul Power. With my understanding of Martial Souls, I wouldn't still be stuck at rank twenty-nine, unable to break through."

By this point, Yu Xiaogang had completely lost his composure. "The heavens have treated me unfairly! There are so many mediocre people in this world, so why is their Innate Soul Power higher than mine? I'm clearly stronger."

Looking at Yu Xiaogang, who seemed to have gone mad, Jun Yan said calmly, "When you do something wrong, you have to admit it. When you're inferior to others, you have to admit that too. And when you're trash, you have even more reason to admit it. If you really think you're a master of Martial Soul Theory, you should conduct your own research and make your own discoveries, instead of relying on the extensive collections of Spirit Hall and the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Sect, picking up the crumbs of your predecessors' wisdom, and calling yourself a master, only to become a laughingstock."

Having said his piece, Jun Yan left the deck, leaving Yu Xiaogang standing there alone, deep in thought.

The Black Skull Pirate Crew was quickly destroyed, and their leader was captured by Spirit Hall's Soul Masters.

In fact, everything that had happened that day had been planned long ago. The Heaven Dou Empire would not hand ten warships over to Spirit Hall for nothing. Besides the necessary fees, the Heaven Dou Empire had also demanded that Spirit Hall wipe out the pirates at sea on its way to attack Sea God Island.

The empire had spread word at sea long ago that it was sending troops to suppress the pirates. Later, when the pirates saw only ten warships appearing, they naturally grew bold and decided to strike first.

The outcome went without saying. The pirates had kicked a city wall, and the largest pirate crew in the seas west of the continent came to an end.

The warships resumed their voyage, and no more blind pirates came looking for death along the way. The fleet avoided places where Sea Soul Beasts gathered and, after eight days, finally reached the waters not far from Sea God Island. There, an enormous obstacle stood before them.

A group of Demon Soul Great White Sharks lived near Sea God Island. These Soul Beasts were its guardians, and among them was a hundred-thousand-year Demon Soul Great White Shark, which was extremely fierce.

Landing on Sea God Island without alerting these Soul Beasts was almost impossible. But if they lingered here too long, Sea God Island would have time to prepare, and landing then would be harder still.

After some discussion, the elders ultimately decided to drive back the hundred-thousand-year Demon Soul Great White Shark first, then charge onto Sea God Island in one concerted effort.

Besides the hundred-thousand-year shark king, the Demon Soul Great White Sharks also had elite ten-thousand-year great whites among their ranks. These sharks could endanger the warships, so Qian Jun Douluo summoned all the experts above Soul Emperor rank from the ten ships to the largest warship.

For a time, a total of six Title Douluo, ten Soul Douluo-experts specially transferred in by Spirit Hall, as none of the people who had participated in the selection competition were at the Soul Douluo level-ten Soul Saints, and more than thirty Soul Emperors gathered on the deck.

Qian Jun Douluo gave his orders directly. "Jiang Mo, you and I will go at the very front and draw out the Demon Soul Great White Shark. As soon as that beast shows itself, Ju, Gui, you two will use your Martial Soul Fusion. We'll try to kill it in one blow."

"Yes!" the three he had named answered in unison.

"After that, the fleet will charge straight toward Sea God Island. All of you, protect the warships and don't let the other Demon Soul Great White Sharks attack their hulls. Ye Feng, Lang Ming, you two will coordinate from the center. When a powerful Soul Beast appears, you'll make your move."

"Yes!"

"Once we're on the island, don't rush inland. First, establish a foothold at the landing point and wait for my further instructions. Go back and make your preparations. The landing battle begins in a quarter of an hour."