Chapter 2109: Three Great Ancestors

"The lightning here is so violent, forming a sea of thunder and lightning, which is clearly related to the demonic crystal puppet in the sky. I wonder if passing through this sea of thunder will trigger any restrictions on it. The aura of this puppet is terrifying, almost comparable to a true spirit. Even if only one or two tenths of its restrictive power remains, we would probably have to take a considerable risk to pass through this thunderous sea," Han Li said slowly.

"The danger near the island that the Spirit Race senior mentioned is clearly this sea of thunder and this puppet. If there were other clever ways to pass, they would surely have left instructions. Since there aren't, we can only risk forcing our way through. With so many of us working together, even if we are not as powerful as Mahayana cultivators, I believe we can still get through this area with concerted effort. However, some loss of vitality will probably be unavoidable," Patriarch Long said gravely after some thought.

"Since we've already arrived, there's no reason to shrink back. Everyone, prepare yourselves. Let's force our way through this sea immediately," Saintess Qianqiu said, nodding her head, her jade-like face stern.

Bai Qi and the others naturally had no objections. Immediately, everyone on the spirit boat began to get busy, either activating spell formations or urging their treasures.

Immediately, several layers of multicolored light screens appeared on the dark green giant boat. Over a dozen ethereal images of various treasures shot directly out from these light screens, rapidly expanding and engulfing the boat.

This was just the beginning!

After two booming sounds, dazzling green light erupted simultaneously from the front and rear of the giant boat, and two bluestone giants appeared at the same time.

Both puppets stood ten zhang tall. Their bluestone bodies were covered in yellow runes, and their faces, apart from a single deep-set colossal eye, lacked features like a nose or mouth.

Even more astonishing was that from a distance, the two colossal bluestone puppets appeared somewhat dilapidated, yet merely by standing at either end, they emitted an ancient and primordial aura that created an extremely oppressive feeling.

They were precisely Patriarch Long's two ancient puppets.

"Your two puppets are truly extraordinary, fellow Daoist. Their strength is likely on par with or even surpasses ordinary Body Integration cultivators. Are you truly willing, Brother Long, to use such precious puppets to withstand the countless bolts of lightning in the sea of thunder, without fear of damage?" The feathered-garbed young woman asked Patriarch Long nearby, her beautiful eyes narrowing slightly the moment they fell upon the two giant stone figures.

"While these two ancient puppets are indeed powerful, they were already somewhat damaged when I acquired them. At most, they can only endure one major battle before shattering. Furthermore, activating them requires more than ten days of prior refinement, so they are not as practical as Fellow Daoist Ye might imagine," Patriarch Long replied with a shake of his head and a hint of regret.

"So that's how it is. It's a pity they can only be used once," the feathered-garbed young woman finally realized.

On the other side, Han Li also activated the banners set up on the giant boat.

Immediately, tendrils of black mist surged from the banners, transforming into numerous black chains as thick as bowls. These chains densely crisscrossed and shot into the air, forming a massive net that protected the entire giant boat.

At the front of the spirit boat, Saintess Qianqiu held up a silver jade tablet in one hand, chanting incantations towards the mouths of the eight Coldwater Rhinoceros.

With several "thwip" sounds!

Eight bursts of silver light shot out from the jade tablet, instantly vanishing into the bodies of the Coldwater Rhinoceros.

The water in front of the giant boat churned, and on each of the eight giant rhinoceros, a shimmering silver armor appeared, fitting their bodies perfectly as if it were battle armor crafted specifically for these sea beasts.

As soon as the Coldwater Rhinoceros donned the silver armor, they simultaneously let out joyful neighs, and their aura became significantly stronger than before, by more than a small margin.

"Beast armor?"

Elder Hui, who was nearby, murmured to himself, a hint of surprise flashing across his face.

As the name suggested, beast armor was naturally battle armor specifically refined for spirit beasts. Unlike ordinary human armor, these beast armors not only provided remarkable defense but could also temporarily unleash the spirit beasts' potential, significantly increasing their strength.

However, this type of beast armor could only be refined for specific spirit beasts, and the secret refining techniques were known only to the Spirit Race, making them rarely seen in the outside world.

This was Elder Hui's first time witnessing it firsthand, and seeing the aura of the eight Coldwater Rhinoceros strengthen so much naturally ignited a fervent desire in his heart.

Meanwhile, the other Patriarch Long was also not idle. He tossed out a small blood-red umbrella, casting a series of incantations upon it, causing the treasure to transform into a nauseating cluster of blood-red light that shot towards the sky.

After a moment, everyone had finished their spellcasting.

Immediately, urged by Saintess Qianqiu and the eight Coldwater Rhinoceros, the giant boat sped like a crossbow bolt towards the distant sea of thunder.

Han Li stood at the railing on one side of the giant boat, his eyes slightly narrowed, gazing at the sea of thunder and lightning they were about to enter, his expression utterly calm.

At the bow, Saintess Qianqiu's expression was stern, while the Spirit Race youth named Zhishui, who stood quietly beside her, showed an almost imperceptible twitch on his previously impassive face the moment the giant boat entered the sea of thunder and lightning. At the same time, an unknown golden rune suddenly appeared on a hand tucked into his sleeve, subtly flickering.

At the same time, the colossal golden crab in the dark clouds suddenly trembled slightly, one of its pillar-like lower limbs quivering. An identical golden rune appeared on its surface but vanished instantly, after which there were no further changes.

Meanwhile, Patriarch Long and the others below remained completely unaware of all this.

On an island within the sea of thunder, a white-clad woman sat cross-legged by a verdant pond. A pink pattern momentarily flickered between her eyebrows, then her star-like beautiful eyes opened, revealing a faint, gentle smile.

Her smile was enough to dim the brilliance of a hundred flowers.

Behind the woman, an ugly burly man in black armor witnessed her smile and was momentarily dazed. By the time he recovered, the white-clad woman's figure had already vanished without a trace from the pond's edge.

"Heh heh, it seems those fellows have finally arrived," the black-armored strongman muttered, a ferocious expression appearing on his face. After a flicker of his body, he strode rapidly in a certain direction.

On a colossal island in the Demon Source Sea, an unknown distance from the sea of thunder, an island perpetually shrouded in black mist, a seemingly young black-robed youth stood on the peak of a giant mountain that nearly pierced the clouds. He was leaning over a small cultivation plot, intently observing a shimmering, purplish-red spiritual herb before him.

This cultivation plot was only a few zhang in size, but its low surrounding walls were constructed from purplish-gold crystals. The soil within the plot consisted of tiny, white-jade-like crystalline particles, each exceptionally plump and emitting an intoxicating fragrance.

In several other large cultivation plots adjacent to this one, various other unknown spiritual herbs were planted.

Near these plots grew peculiar plants, each about a zhang tall and as straight as a sword. At their tops, they bore slender, blood-red fruits, about a foot long and extremely sharp at one end.

These were precisely the Bloodtooth Grains that Han Li had once seen.

However, the one he had seen before was only half a foot long, and its fragrance and plumpness were clearly far inferior to those currently before him.

These spiritual items, considered incomparably rare by ordinary demons, were now planted casually around the area as if they were common herbs, dividing the cultivation plots into irregular sections.

In the other plots, dozens of different spiritual herbs were planted together. Only in the miniature plot before the black-robed youth stood a single, solitary purplish-red spiritual herb.

Moreover, this spiritual herb was only five or six inches long, neither blooming nor bearing fruit, with just five or six slender leaves. Apart from its somewhat shimmering appearance, there was nothing particularly special about it.

Yet, the black-robed youth stared unblinkingly at this spiritual herb, as if his entire attention was fixed upon it.

Suddenly, a black light emanated from one of his wrists, and immediately afterward, a black, shimmering rune appeared on his skin.

The black-robed youth continued to stare intently at the spiritual herb before him, not even glancing at the anomaly on his wrist.

After a good while, the purplish-red spiritual herb suddenly emitted a soft "puff," surrounded by a golden-yellow glow, and its leaves rapidly turned pale silver at a visible pace.

Seeing this, a hint of joy instantly flashed across the black-robed youth's face.

But the next moment, the purplish-red spiritual herb suddenly trembled. The plant instantly withered and shrank, finally transforming into a wisp of gray gas and vanishing.

"How is this possible? It failed again. What step went wrong? Was the spiritual seed cultivated for too short a time, or was the purity of the 'Heavenly Dust of the Milky Way' I used insufficient?"

The black-robed youth's face twisted in frustration. With a low roar, he abruptly stood up and casually struck the cultivation plot before him, sending a pitch-black orb of light shooting out.

With a deafening "rumble," the entire mountain peak shook.

The cultivation plot instantly disintegrated into silent dust upon contact with the orb, leaving behind an incredibly black and unfathomable hole in the ground, with remarkably smooth edges, seemingly reaching deep into the mountain.

After a considerable while, the black-robed youth's expression finally calmed down again. Only then did he lift his wrist and glance at the black rune that had appeared on it.

"Hmph, someone has dared to intrude upon Bitter Spirit Island again. Most likely those fools from the Spirit Realm who don't know what's good for them! Very well, you shall bear the wrath of this Ancestor," the youth muttered with a cold sneer. He suddenly flicked his sleeve, and a swirl of black light appeared before him, revealing a hundred-zhang-long three-headed black flood dragon in the empty space.

It had blood-red eyes, blood-colored claws, and breathed black flames!

"Go, to Bitter Spirit Island!" The youth's figure blurred, then eerily reappeared on the body of the three-headed flood dragon, giving a cold command.

After its three heads each let out a low growl, black clouds appeared beneath its four paws. The colossal three-headed black flood dragon immediately rose into the sky, circled once, and then, carrying the black-robed youth, shot directly towards the sea of thunder.

Deep within a boundless mountain range in the Demon Realm, inside an underground palace, a middle-aged man in a golden robe lay motionless within a transparent crystal coffin.

A golden rune was shimmering on one side of the golden-robed man's neck, but his eyes remained tightly closed, unmoving, as if unaware of life or death.