Chapter 179: Hundreds of Charms

Unseal the second seal!

The Captain's identity had always been a mystery. Xu Qing had many theories, even wondering if the Captain might be the Eldest Prince of the Seventh Peak.

However, for Xu Qing, these theories were merely fleeting thoughts and not particularly important. Regardless of the Captain's identity, it didn't affect the subtle dynamic between them.

For instance, at this moment, as he witnessed the Captain's aura erupt, a fierce glint appeared in Xu Qing's eyes. He, too, refused to lose, and deep down, he harbored a strong anticipation for the Captain to transform into the Third Princess.

Thus, almost the instant the Captain erupted, the Lifelight within Xu Qing burned even more intensely. The next moment, the two clashed once more.

A deafening roar exploded. The Captain, having unsealed their power, radiated a golden light that, to Xu Qing, felt divine yet distinct. While divinity was sacred, the Captain's aura carried an intense, domineering presence, as if capable of suppressing all techniques and everything else.

As the Captain glowed and waved their hand, a sea of golden light instantly formed, coalescing into a colossal hand that pressed down upon Xu Qing.

"You're the Third Princess!" the Captain roared.

The next instant, Xu Qing's entire body trembled violently, forcing him to retreat continuously. Under the engulfing light, he felt its sheer madness and overwhelming domineering force, which made his breathing difficult, disrupted his cultivation, and caused his internal Lifeflame to flicker wildly.

From a distance, Xu Qing's figure was less than one-hundredth the size of the golden hand. As the enormous hand pressed down, his body was repeatedly crushed, relentlessly falling towards the sea.

This immense power, in Xu Qing's perception, surpassed that of a Two-Flame master. Even his body's speed struggled to keep up. Only the power of a Three-Flame master could achieve this!

Xu Qing's eyes narrowed, battle intent flickering within them. Veins bulged on his forehead as he violently waved his hands. Immediately, a piercing cry echoed in all directions behind him, as towering black flames surged forth. A Golden Crow flew out from within, circling Xu Qing, roaring towards the sky, then abruptly merged with him.

The Golden Crow's body overlapped with Xu Qing's, covering his purple Daoist robe, transforming it into what seemed like an emperor's robe made of feathers. Although somewhat ethereal, this robe still exuded an air of nobility. The Golden Crow's head now formed an imperial crown, floating above Xu Qing's head, brewing with a supreme aura.

Furthermore, the Golden Crow's phoenix tail became flowing ribbons on Xu Qing's body. As they spread out, the black sea of fire emanating from the tail formed a cape behind him.

From a distance, Xu Qing, with his delicate and handsome face, appeared at this moment like a young emperor.

He even subtly bore a resemblance in demeanor to the ancient Golden Crow Emperor he had seen on the dragon carriage.

Even the Captain was shaken by this sight. As his eyes narrowed, Xu Qing remained expressionless, his gaze filled with majesty. He clenched his right fist and unleashed a direct punch towards the massive hand above!

This punch fused his Lifelight and Lifeflame, channeled his battle intent and ferocity, and incorporated the explosive physique of the Golden Crow's Myriad Spirit Refinement. The moment it struck, it became his current peak attack.

Heaven and earth trembled, and a roar echoed in all directions. The punch created a phantom image that grew larger and larger, eventually matching the size of the massive hand, and within it, a similarly domineering aura emanated!

However, Xu Qing's dominance was the imperial disdain of a sovereign, while the Captain's dominance was the savage madness of the wilderness.

The instant they collided, a deafening sound erupted, and an astonishing impact burst forth at the point where fist and palm met.

Xu Qing spat out a mouthful of blood, his body sent tumbling backward. The emperor's body formed by the Golden Crow's Myriad Spirit Refinement could no longer be maintained and dissipated. His right fist throbbed with intense pain, and his arm was dislocated.

The Captain also spurted blood, his body uncontrollably thrown backward. The diamond-shaped runes in his eyes flickered a few times, then dimmed and vanished. His right hand likewise throbbed with intense pain, and his wrist let out a *crack*, as if it had broken.

As they both recoiled, their breathing was ragged. While retreating, Xu Qing raised his left hand, pressed it against his right arm, and forcefully pushed upward, a *snap* bringing the dislocated joint back into place. On the Captain's side, he waved his left hand, and golden light flashed. The fractured area was remarkably solidified by the golden light, visibly healing and recovering. Suppressing his pain, without showing any hint of it, he spoke faintly.

"Not bad, kid. You're already on par with ten percent of this Director's combat strength. Keep up the good work. Also, you lost," the Captain said, looking towards the sea.

At that moment, the sea snake, the subject of their wager, was suddenly seized by a tentacle that emerged from thin air, grabbing its body and pulling it out of the sea.

With a triumphant expression, the Captain looked at Xu Qing, about to say something, but just then, a strange gleam appeared in the snake's eyes. It suddenly opened its mouth wide and bit fiercely into its own neck.

The force of the bite was immense; it not only used all its strength but also overdrafted its potential, *crunching* through its own neck. Yet, the snake wasn't dead. The strangeness in its eyes intensified as it proceeded to take bite after bite, consuming the severed half of its own body.

Large amounts of flesh were swallowed by the snake's mouth, then spilled from its half-body, a truly horrifying and shocking sight. The Captain was stunned. Xu Qing, with a calm expression, slowly spoke. "Captain, I won."

After he finished speaking, the snake's head twitched, seemingly losing some supporting force, and fell into the sea. Meanwhile, Xu Qing's shadow silently returned.

Simultaneously, the Patriarch of the Vajra Sect finally broke through his seal.

Upon his instantaneous return, he indignantly fixed his gaze on the Captain. He felt he had just lost face and worried that Xu Mo-tou would consider him useless.

Especially since the shadow had clearly achieved great merit this time, the Patriarch of the Vajra Sect felt an intense sense of crisis within him.

The Captain stared blankly at the half-sea snake floating on the water, then looked at Xu Qing, an awkward expression on his face, and spoke in a low voice."Little Junior Brother, let's discuss this—""You lost.""Oh, it looks like your spirit tickets dropped again.""You lost.""I know, I know, but I suddenly have a better idea, I think—""You. Lost!" Xu Qing said, his expression serious, enunciating each word.

After saying this, he pondered for a moment and adopted a surprised expression, as if the Captain's non-cooperation was unbelievable to him. After all, admitting a lost bet was as natural a principle as repaying a debt.

The Captain's breathing was ragged, his eyes a little red. After a long moment, he gritted his teeth fiercely."It's just pretending to be the Third Princess, what's the big deal? You wait!" Determination flashed in the Captain's eyes as he turned and disappeared into the ship's cabin.

Xu Qing, filled with strong anticipation, also returned to the ship, gazing at the cabin door and waiting patiently.

Time passed slowly until, half an hour later, just as Xu Qing was growing a little impatient, the cabin door slowly opened. A captivating, graceful figure emerged with wide strides.

It was indeed the Third Princess.

At first, the Third Princess's steps were composed, but once she fully emerged, her delicate, exquisite face, so fair it seemed it could break with a touch, cast a resentful glance at Xu Qing. Noticing his somewhat strange expression, the Third Princess suppressed her annoyance, snorted, and walked over. She lifted her skirt, revealing two sturdy thighs, then squatted down, pulled out a large apple from her bosom, and bit into it fiercely."There! Are you satisfied?!"

The Captain, dressed as the Third Princess, was now a perfect mimic, utterly captivating. No matter how Xu Qing looked, he couldn't find any flaws, except for the Captain's noticeably hairy legs.

However, the bright-eyed, white-toothed face, the slender, jade-like hands, and arms like lotus roots were all exquisitely delicate. It was likely that even the female disciples of the sect would be envious upon seeing them.

This made Xu Qing curious about how the Captain had achieved such a transformation. After observing for a while, the Captain, feeling a bit exasperated, extended a delicate hand towards Xu Qing.

"Give me my storage bag."

Xu Qing had taken the Third Princess's storage bag earlier. Now, he took it out and emptied its contents onto the ground. Instantly, a large pile of miscellaneous items spilled out, forming a small mound.

Most of the items were clothes. As for spirit stones, there weren't many, but there were several black stones emitting a strong peculiar energy. Xu Qing also noticed many finger-sized crystal vials.

Each vial contained a black bead with runes sealed inside—the very objects that the Captain had previously thrown to bombard his Dharma ship.

"So many?" Xu Qing picked one up, examined it in his hand, then looked up at the Captain.

"These are called Zhuyin Thunder, a unique disposable magical artifact of the Sea Corpse Race. They are incredibly powerful, and because only strong cultivators within the Sea Corpse Race can refine them, they are rarely seen by outsiders. Their value increases with their power," the Captain explained while rummaging through the items.

"The power also varies depending on which Sea Corpse clan refines them. There was once a Zhuyin Thunder, refined by an ancestor of their Sea Corpse Race, whose power rivaled a Nascent Soul expert's attack. It was auctioned in the Purple Earth a few years ago and bought for a high price. These Thunder artifacts are peculiar; their power can be further enhanced by nourishing them with blood, and they become even more lethal to members of the same race as the nourishing blood."

As he spoke, the Captain found some tokens, held them triumphantly, and said, "The disguise method I bought this time at a great cost is incredibly profound. It can not only generate the target's racial aura but also perfectly mimic their energy fluctuations. I've been eyeing this Third Princess for a long time, and I've studied her thoroughly."

"Next, we'll go to the Sea Corpse Race. As long as we're not trapped there for an extended period or subjected to a thorough, deliberate inspection by a Golden Core expert, a casual glance won't reveal any flaws."

With that, the Captain glanced at Xu Qing, threw him a white robe, and handed him a small vial. "Put this on. Open the small vial and keep it on your person; it will emit corpse poison, which will also conceal your aura and cause some superficial changes."

Xu Qing took the items. As soon as he put on the robe, his aura immediately changed. While subtly emitting corpse poison, his appearance also rapidly withered, making him indistinguishable from a Sea Corpse in both aura and looks.

Xu Qing knew well that such vials, capable of inducing physical transformations, were certainly not something ordinary cultivators could produce. This gave him a clearer understanding of the Captain's unconventional methods.

"So, from now on, you will be my Dao Protector, escorting this Princess back to the Sea Corpse Race. We must fully commit to our roles and not show any flaws. Do you agree?" the Captain said solemnly.

Xu Qing nodded, finding the Captain's words reasonable.

Seeing Xu Qing nod, the Captain cleared his throat, stretched, showcasing a graceful waistline. Then, he elegantly sat down, extended a long, hairy leg, and while eating an apple, swung his leg, speaking languidly."Come here, little Ah Qing, give this Princess a leg rub."

Xu Qing glanced at the Captain, took out some poison powder from his storage bag, and prepared to pour it out to apply to his hands.

The Captain instantly retracted his leg, looking at Xu Qing with a grave expression."I've just remembered, we should probably discuss our plan."