Chapter 617: Encounter with Su Bingbing

In the South China Sea, within the Coral Sea area.

On the beach of an unnamed island, a large black mass lay ignited, emitting a peculiar, faintly sweet scent.

Over a dozen dark figures appeared high in the sky. After circling the island a few times, they swiftly descended.

The figures were bald black crows, low-ranked demonic beasts, none higher than second-tier. They moved with extreme speed, closing the distance to the beach to within thirty feet in less than three breaths.

A loud rustling sound filled the air as a large quantity of fine yellow sand shot out from behind a nearby coconut tree, piercing through the bodies of over a dozen black crows like lightning.

With a flash of spiritual light, Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan emerged from behind the coconut tree.

Their brows were deeply furrowed. Initially, they had inquired at the large shops in the market, but none of the several they visited had inner cores of Ice Carp Beasts or Azure-eyed Flame Eagles. This was not surprising; demonic beast inner cores were the most valuable part of a beast. The South China Sea was coastal, so most demonic cores were water-attributed, making ice-attributed and fire-attributed demonic cores naturally rare.

If Ice Carp Beasts and Azure-eyed Flame Eagles could be easily purchased, the Cold Flame Sect would not have needed Wang Changsheng to hunt them.

According to Chen Yilong, he had encountered an Ice Carp Beast in this sea area before. Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan had waited for several months, killing dozens of second-tier demonic beasts, but still hadn't seen a single Ice Carp Beast.

“Husband, I don’t think there are any Ice Carp Beasts in this area. Let’s try our luck in a different sea region,” Wang Ruyan suggested. They only had two years, and if the deadline passed, the Cold Flame Sect would lease the island to other forces. Chen Yilong had told them of several places where Ice Carp Beasts had appeared, but finding one depended on their luck.

“It seems we have no choice,” Wang Changsheng replied.

He put away his formation flags and formation plate, then flew southeast with Wang Ruyan.

They had flown just over a hundred *li* when a mournful, wailing sound, like a woman crying, echoed.

“That sounds like an Ice Carp Beast!”

A look of delight appeared on Wang Changsheng’s face. He and Wang Ruyan changed direction, flying towards the source of the sound.

Less than a quarter of an hour later, they stopped. On the sea surface a hundred *zhang* away, a giant white barrier encased a massive, snow-white carp. Several spiritually radiant magic treasures struck the white carp, causing numerous scales to fall off and leaving it covered in blood. Three white lotus flowers adorned the surface of the white barrier, and the white carp desperately slammed against it, emitting dull thuds.

Four Core Formation cultivators—three men and one woman—stood on the beach. Their attire bore a Taiji symbol, and behind them stood over a dozen Foundation Establishment cultivators.

“Fellow Daoists, our Taiyi Immortal Sect is currently hunting a demonic beast. Please leave quickly to avoid any unnecessary misunderstandings,” a refined middle-aged man said politely, soaring into the air.

Wang Changsheng cupped his hands to the middle-aged man and said sincerely, “Fellow Daoist, please don’t misunderstand. I, Wang Changsheng, harbor no ill will, and this is my humble wife, Wang Ruyan. Could you possibly sell us the Ice Carp Beast’s inner core? We are willing to pay a high price.”

A joyful female voice suddenly exclaimed, “Uncle, Aunt, why are you here?”

Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan looked towards the source of the voice and saw a graceful woman in white. It was Su Bingbing. She had already reached the eighth level of Foundation Establishment and was overjoyed to see Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan.

The last time Wang Changsheng visited the Taiyi Immortal Sect to exchange items, he had asked Xu Zihua to transfer a sum of cultivation resources to Su Bingbing. Su Bingbing had remembered this matter and had specifically mentioned it to Su Cheng and his wife when she returned to Wei State to visit them.

“Bingbing, you know them?” a middle-aged Daoist nun in a white lotus dress asked Su Bingbing curiously.

Su Bingbing nodded, “Yes, Master. They are my uncle and aunt, Senior Brother Mingren’s nephew and niece-in-law.”

A mournful shriek rang out as the Ice Carp Beast was cut into several pieces by the spiritually radiant magic treasures.

A rosy-faced elder in green robes put away his formation plate and flags, then gestured for Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan to descend and speak.

“It really is you, Bingbing! I almost didn’t recognize you after so many years,” Wang Ruyan said, smiling at Su Bingbing.

“I never imagined I’d run into Uncle and Aunt here. Oh, this is my Master,” Su Bingbing said, introducing the middle-aged Daoist nun.

“This humble Daoist, Bai Yulian, greets both Fellow Daoists.”

Wang Changsheng and Wang Ruyan dared not be negligent and hurriedly returned the greeting.

“I am Han Xu, Fellow Daoist Wang. We cannot sell you the Ice Carp Beast’s inner core; we have use for it ourselves,” the green-robed elder said politely. He had gone through great effort to kill the Ice Carp Beast, so how could he easily sell its core to Wang Changsheng?

Wang Changsheng pondered for a moment, then said, “How about this? I’ll exchange two fire-attributed, third-tier low-grade demonic cores for your Ice Carp Beast’s inner core.” He flipped his palm, revealing two wooden boxes, each containing a red spherical object. Inner cores from different third-tier demonic beasts varied in quality. Alchemists in the South China Sea used demonic cores for alchemy; some pills required specific demonic inner cores, while others did not. The two fire-attributed demonic cores Wang Changsheng offered were no less valuable than the Ice Carp Beast’s core, but an alchemist might not necessarily be willing to make the exchange.

Han Xu showed a hesitant expression. The Taiyi Immortal Sect disciples had discovered the Ice Carp Beast’s whereabouts, which was why they had come to hunt it down.

“Fellow Daoist Han, my husband and I also make a living in the Coral Sea area. We’re bound to meet again, so why not become friends? If you make this exchange with us, and you ever need our help in the future, as long as it’s within our capabilities, we will certainly assist you,” Wang Ruyan said with a charming smile, speaking politely.

Han Xu was somewhat swayed. Exchanging one third-tier low-grade demonic core for two, plus Wang Ruyan’s promise, meant he wouldn’t be at a loss if he made the exchange.

“Martial Uncle Han,” Su Bingbing transmitted her voice to Han Xu, speaking favorably of Wang Changsheng, “my uncle and aunt are very trustworthy people; they always keep their word. Also, my uncle has fought against the demonic race and killed Core Formation-stage half-demons. Who knows, he might be able to help you one day. Please help them out!”

Han Xu was a little surprised and asked in a deep voice, “Fellow Daoist Wang has fought against the demonic race?”

“Yes, I’ve killed a few Core Formation-stage half-demons.”

Han Xu looked at Bai Yulian and the other two, who all nodded. Wang Changsheng had participated in the Human-Demon War, and strictly speaking, the Wang family was an affiliated force of the Taiyi Immortal Sect. In any case, exchanging with Wang Changsheng wouldn't be a loss.

“Alright! I agree to the exchange, Fellow Daoist Wang. I hope you won’t forget what you said today,” Han Xu said with a solemn expression.

“Of course, I, Wang, would never go back on my wife’s word,” Wang Changsheng replied with a smile. Whether it was within his capabilities or not was ultimately up to him. If Han Xu’s request exceeded his capabilities, he certainly wouldn't do it.