Chapter 93: Final Encounter with the Rakshasa

The dark night had a strong wind, which scattered against the protective shield of Xu Qing's magic boat in Port 79, unable to penetrate it. If it could have penetrated the shield and blown into the boat's cabin, it would have revealed... no one was inside.

Far from the magic boat, in a dark corner under a cluster of houses, Xu Qing silently leaned against the wall, arms crossed over his chest, gazing coldly at his magic boat in the darkness. With every blink of his eyes, a sharp glint was hidden within.

"Will someone come tonight?" Xu Qing looked up at the black sky.

"It's a night for killing," he murmured. Yet, in his mind appeared the vast black cloud he had seen upon returning from sea, along with the phoenix-eagle-like being visible within it.

Earlier, when he retrieved his magic boat from Zhang San, he had inquired about this matter before leaving. Zhang San knew little about it, only telling Xu Qing that this being was related to the Southern Phoenix Continent's largest forbidden zone – the Phoenix Forbidden Zone. It was the sovereign of that forbidden zone, named Blazing Phoenix! The term "Phoenix Forbidden Zone" itself originated from this. Its existence was supreme; it suppressed not only that forbidden zone but also the entire Southern Phoenix Continent. Even the name of the Southern Phoenix Continent originated from it!

Southern Phoenix: South of the Ancient Continent, above the Forbidden Sea, a divine being, a phoenix, danced among the heavens. Its might dimmed the sky, inspiring awe in all things. It was respectfully called Blazing Phoenix, residing on an island continent. Therefore, its dwelling place was named Southern Phoenix. As for the specifics, Zhang San didn't know much either.

"Blazing Phoenix," Xu Qing whispered in his heart. As he cultivated, encountered new things, and learned more, he gained a greater understanding of this world.

At that moment, the sea wind blew, and the rustling of clothes mixed with the wind entered Xu Qing's ears, instantly pulling his thoughts back. With a cold glint appearing in his eyes, Xu Qing stopped pondering the Blazing Phoenix and looked towards the distant port.

Soon, five figures came into Xu Qing's sight: three men and two women.

The two women in front were not unfamiliar to Xu Qing. He recognized them at first glance, whether from the fishy smell carried by the wind or their figures. These two were precisely the merfolk boy's sisters. Their cultivation was impressive: one at Qi Condensation Level Nine, the other at Qi Condensation Great Perfection. As for the three followers behind them, they were also merfolk cultivators, mostly at Qi Condensation Level Eight. Their expressions, visible in the moonlight, carried savagery and killing intent.

Xu Qing watched them coldly, his eyes slowly narrowing. He did not immediately act; instead, he looked behind them. "Why haven't those Foundation Establishment protectors appeared?"

Xu Qing pondered. Soon, these five figures avoided the patrolling disciples and approached Xu Qing's magic boat in the moonlight.

Perhaps confident in the backing of the Third Prince, or perhaps due to the arrogance of the merfolk race, the younger of the two merfolk women suddenly accelerated the moment they neared Xu Qing's magic boat, preparing to charge. But she was stopped by her older sister, who was clearly much more rational. Not acting rashly, the sister raised her right hand and took out a talisman treasure. The function of this talisman treasure seemed not to be for attack, but for detection.

After a few breaths, under Xu Qing's gaze, the two merfolk women realized there was no one inside the boat, so they quickly retreated as if to leave.

A cold glint spread in Xu Qing's eyes. The reason he had left the boat was that he didn't want to kill there; killing on his own magic boat would be too conspicuous and lead to many troubles. Of course, if these individuals had truly broken in, Xu Qing also had contingency plans. At this moment, he gazed at the five merfolk, waiting for them to leave. His plan was to secretly follow them and, on their way back, assassinate them one by one, destroying their bodies without a trace.

But just as these five were about to leave, and Xu Qing, hidden in the shadows, was about to step out, the older of the two merfolk women suddenly changed her expression and abruptly looked towards Xu Qing's hiding place.

"There's a bloodline curse fluctuation from my brother's death over there!"

The moment the woman spoke, her younger sister beside her also abruptly looked. Killing intent filled her green eyes, and with a whistle, she charged straight towards Xu Qing's location. The three followers around them also surged with strong killing intent, swiftly closing in.

"They found me?" Xu Qing slightly frowned. His opponents were the Third Prince's people; killing them here would draw attention. Additionally, Xu Qing also had to consider the possibility of them sending messages to the outside. So, the moment the opponents charged, Xu Qing's body rapidly retreated, his aura greatly restrained. He put on a semblance of panic to lull his opponents into a false sense of security, making them confident of victory and thus not immediately sending messages to the outside. At the same time, Xu Qing didn't intend to delay for too long; he planned to find a secluded spot to make his move.

At this moment, behind him, the five merfolk cultivators rapidly pursued. The younger sister was at the front, with fierce glints in her eyes. With a wave of her hand, clusters of black bubbles appeared around her, carrying intense killing intent, and were suddenly flung towards Xu Qing, who was seemingly fleeing in panic. These bubbles rapidly approached, emitting spell fluctuations, and an abnormal substance permeated the air, as if to contaminate Xu Qing.

"So it was you who killed my clansman!" she shrieked. "Today I've finally found you! I'll make you wish you were dead but unable to die!"

As she spoke, the three merfolk followers behind her each revealed savage expressions and took out their heavy treasures. One held a bone sword, another had hands covered in scales that transformed into poisonous barbs, and the third had tumors growing on his back, tearing through his clothes, emitting thick poisonous mist, and transforming into a ghastly shadow as he pursued Xu Qing.

The older sister, meanwhile, stayed at the rear. She was inherently cautious and didn't rush forward in the pursuit, even habitually taking out a talisman treasure for full protection.

Xu Qing did not turn back for the spells behind him, instead accelerating his speed. Just as those spells were about to reach him, he arrived at a secluded corner. Only then did his body halt, no longer moving forward. He abruptly turned, revealing full killing intent in his eyes, his speed exploding in an instant to several times faster than before, as he charged directly towards what was behind him.

So fast was his figure that in an instant he was before the furious merfolk younger sister. Ignoring the abnormal substance of her spell bubbles, and before her expression could change, Xu Qing's body violently slammed into her chest. Even though this woman was at Qi Condensation Level Nine and possessed merfolk innate talent, her body was like paper against Xu Qing's physical strength that surpassed Qi Condensation and his powerful spiritual energy. The moment Xu Qing touched her...

With a bang, the woman's eyes widened. Too late to even scream, her body instantly collapsed. Flesh and blood splattered; her entire body was shattered by the impact. Only her head flew up, covered by a blue light, seemingly retaining vitality, and rapidly retreated.

Xu Qing glanced. With a wave of his hand, the black iron spike suddenly flew out, heading straight for the head. His figure did not pause in the slightest, appearing before the merfolk follower holding the bone sword. As this cultivator's expression drastically changed, Xu Qing's right hand had already risen, seizing his bone sword and snapping it with force. With a crack, the bone sword broke. Xu Qing flipped one end of the broken blade and plunged it into the cultivator's neck, then sharply ripped it. Blood gushed from the neck of this Qi Condensation Level Eight follower, and he died instantly.

It wasn't over. Xu Qing's body stepped out, arriving beside the other follower whose back was covered in tumors emitting poison gas. This follower's breathing was ragged, and his body rapidly retreated. But before he could retreat a few steps, his body trembled, instantly turning dark blue and black all over. He spat out blood and died from poison. His poison was insignificant compared to Xu Qing's.

At the same time, the third follower's mind also rumbled, and his body violently trembled in horror. Just as he was about to scream, he was instantly enveloped by countless water droplets that suddenly appeared around him, forcefully compressing him, and with a bang, he turned into a mist of blood.

At this moment, the black iron spike also caught up with the merfolk younger sister's head, which was enveloped in blue light, and with a bang, it pierced it. But this blue light talisman treasure was astonishing, rapidly flickering. It actually resisted the force of the iron spike; however, the impact contained within still caused more than half of the head to collapse again. Yet this merfolk woman, due to her unique racial talent, had surprisingly not died immediately. Amidst her screams, she used the force of the impact to fly towards her older sister's location.

All of this happened in a flash. Xu Qing's actions were utterly ruthless; as he killed three people in quick succession, a dagger, carrying a cold glint, emitted a sharp whistling sound as it tore through the air, heading straight for the merfolk older sister in the distance. It abruptly approached.

The merfolk sister's expression changed drastically, her face filled with unprecedented dread and horror. Even the deaths of her companions just now felt unreal to her. But her inherent caution and habit of using talisman protection, coupled with her Qi Condensation Great Perfection cultivation, meant she showed no signs of poisoning. Although the dagger's impact was great, it still couldn't instantly break through her talisman protection. Amidst the booming sound, the merfolk sister's body trembled beneath the talisman protection.

Her face was filled with horror. She simply couldn't imagine that such a terrifying existence was hidden in this seemingly ordinary Port 79. In her perception, this kind of combat power was no different from Foundation Establishment. Thinking that she had actually brought people to provoke this person, the merfolk sister's scalp began to tingle, and she even cursed her deceased brother in her heart. "He died, so be it," she thought, "But why did he provoke such a fiend?!"

At this critical juncture, she didn't hesitate. She immediately took out a second talisman treasure and flung it forward at all costs. Immediately, a booming sound echoed as this talisman treasure transformed into a giant fish tail and fiercely lashed out towards the pursuing Xu Qing. Seizing this opportunity, the merfolk sister grabbed the dying head of her younger sister, who now showed signs of poisoning. Completely unleashing her cultivation, she rapidly fled without looking back. The fear in her expression had long turned into giant waves, submerging her mind. At this moment, she had only one thought: escape! Escape until the clan's protectors arrived.

According to their agreement, the protectors should have arrived by now, so she quickly took out a communication jade slip to send a message to the clan's protectors. However, she had no time to check if the other party replied. Her cultivation was burning within her, her speed bursting to its absolute limit. She even took out a third talisman treasure at all costs to break through Xu Qing's rain curtain blockade and flee wildly.

A booming sound echoed. If they were in the port, they would certainly be noticed, but here it was secluded, and Xu Qing's rain curtain obstructed them. Moreover, the fight was extremely fast, so the sounds did not spread out.

Soon, Xu Qing's body stepped out from behind the giant fish tail formed by the talisman treasure. His expression was grim as he gazed at the merfolk woman fleeing in the distance, then suddenly gave chase. His speed fully erupted, and he took out all his flight talismans, making him like a bolt of lightning, disappearing in an instant.