The light of dawn illuminated the sea. It also landed on Xu Qing's solemn figure.
Xu Qing let out a long breath. That terrifying existence at the bottom of the sea had completely disappeared from his vision as dawn broke.
Xu Qing didn't know what that giant was, let alone whose carriage it was. The sea record didn't mention it either. However, just now, he had only glanced at that giant from afar and he already felt an intense intimidation. One could imagine how terrifying this huge existence at the bottom of the sea must be.
To be able to make such a powerful existence pull the carriage, Xu Qing couldn't imagine how mighty the owner of the dragon carriage was in the past.
Fortunately, this giant didn't seem to have any ill intentions. Or rather, in the eyes of such existences, Xu Qing seemed to be of no significance.
"Forbidden Sea..." Xu Qing mumbled, his eyes revealing deep vigilance.
He knew and personally felt that this Forbidden Sea was filled with endless dangers. In the following voyage, he became even more cautious and strictly followed the nautical chart, not deviating from his route at all.
In the blink of an eye, several days passed.
During these few days, Xu Qing didn't see anyone but he was getting more and more familiar with the Forbidden Sea. He encountered more sea beasts and also took action several times.
Every time he attacked, he would obtain some biological materials. His Forbidden Sea Dragonwhale made a lot of contributions in this. Moreover, these fights allowed him to become more and more familiar with fighting on the sea.
As for terrifying existences like the giant, Xu Qing did not encounter them again.
The afternoon sun was scorching hot, and the sea breeze carried high temperatures. Xu Qing, who had ended his cultivation, opened his eyes and looked into the distance through the protective barrier, frowning slightly.
His destination was the direction of the Western Reef Archipelago, and Sea Lizard Island was just behind the archipelago. According to the nautical chart, he still needed seven days to reach it.
As for the area he was currently in, according to the nautical chart, it was a relatively safe route to the Western Reef Archipelago. However, as he got closer, Xu Qing felt a little puzzled.
In the sea area in front of him, there were a large number of vines that extended out of the surface of the sea. There were more vines further inside the area. At the end, there seemed to be some boats trapped.
However, the distance was too far, so he couldn't see it clearly.
As for the edge of this sea area, there were relatively fewer vines.
It was as though something had attracted it to extend out from the bottom of the sea earlier. At this moment, it was slowly shrinking, as though it wouldn't be long before it sank again.
However, the arrival of Xu Qing's boat caused these slowly sinking vines to find a new target. They rapidly approached Xu Qing's boat at a speed visible to the naked eye.
Xu Qing's vigilance increased. He stood at the bow of the boat and performed a series of hand seals with both hands. He then controlled the magic boat to retreat, trying to avoid the approaching vines.
However, the speed of the vines was very fast. Although Xu Qing didn't go deep into the sea area, nor did he waste time retreating immediately, there were still a few vines that got close and entangled the boat.
These vines were pitch-black in color and as thick as an arm. They looked very sinister with their sharp spikes. The most astonishing thing was that these sharp spikes contained some kind of suction force. As they coiled around the boat, the consumption of the magic boat instantly increased.
Fortunately, there weren't many vines and these little numbers couldn't affect the speed of the magic boat. However, Xu Qing could still clearly sense that this consumption was to some extent similar to spirit energy being sucked away.
A cold glint flashed in Xu Qing's eyes. With a wave of his right hand, a dagger appeared and he instantly leaped up. A cold light flashed and the vines were cut one after another. Coupled with the power of the magic boat, he gradually left this area.
After he was far away, Xu Qing looked at the distant sea area. He then lowered his head and his gaze landed on the planks.
There were a few vines that he had cut off there that were twisting like sea snakes. Green, extremely acidic, liquid flowed out of the cuts and emitted sizzling sounds as drops of them fell on the plank.
Xu Qing's expression turned somewhat unsightly. When he had cut the vines earlier, he had felt that the vines were extremely tenacious. Even with his physical strength, he still needed to use his full strength.
After pondering for a moment, he formed a seal. Immediately, the array formation under his feet shone, revealing the core of the spirit gathering array.
Xu Qing swept his gaze over and discovered that three of the spirit stones on it showed signs of dimming, as though they had been sucked dry.
"As expected, it absorbs spirit energy." Xu Qing's heart ached a little.
There were over a hundred records of vines in the sea record, and most of them looked similar, so it was very difficult for Xu Qing to accurately judge them immediately.
This was especially so in this sea area. Regardless of whether it was the sect's nautical chart or the nautical chart he had obtained from the merfolk youth, there were no vines labeled.
"If there were not any before, it should be a vine that can move on its own and it also likes spirit energy, and there is only the spirit devouring vine that fits the bill." Xu Qing recalled the content in the sea record and frowned.
"The spirit devouring vine loves spirit energy. It can't be damaged by spells and can only be broken by brute force. It can devour the power of magic boats and the spirits of cultivators. If they are entangled, they will die an extremely miserable death. This thing is sensitive to anomalous substances and wanders the Forbidden Sea. Its location is often a place with relatively few anomalous substances."
Xu Qing fell silent and lifted his head to look into the distance.
This was the shortest route to the Western Reef Archipelago. If he took a detour, the time he would need to spend would increase by a lot.
This was especially so since he didn't know the exact range of these vines. According to the sea record's description, these spirit-devouring vines would often drift in groups and their range was extremely vast.
"It will take too long if I detour. It's not like I can't neutralize this spirit devouring vine."
Xu Qing thought about it and narrowed his eyes. He touched his storage bag and a black-colored pill appeared in his hand.
This pill was none other than the black pill that contained dense anomalous substances.
With the black pill in hand, Xu Qing stood at the bow of the ship and controlled the magic boat to move closer to the vine area.
Very soon, the surface of the sea churned and a large number of vines broke out of the sea. They greedily rushed toward Xu Qing's magic boat.
However, the instant they got close, Xu Qing calmly threw the black pill to the surface of the sea in front of him. As the black pill fell into the sea and dissolved, the anomalous substances suddenly became denser.
In an instant, the vines that were spreading over in the surroundings all trembled in unison, as though they had encountered something they hated the most. They instantly retreated and distanced themselves, allowing Xu Qing's magic boat to move unhindered.
Xu Qing's expression relaxed slightly as he controlled the magic boat to move at full speed. Although the area was filled with vines, as he threw out black pills one after another, all the vines that were about to near him revealed intense rejection and moved away one after another.
Just like that, Xu Qing's magic boat continued forward. As he threw more black pills, the surroundings of the boat were filled with dense anomalous substances. Gradually, there was no need for him to continue throwing black pills. The vines in the surroundings would instinctively retreat.
Xu Qing's magic boat got closer and closer to the boats that were trapped by the vines in the distance. The sea breeze also transmitted some human voices.
Although it was faint, cultivators could still hear it clearly.
"Zhao Zhongheng, what kind of path did you lead us to!!"
"Senior Sister Ding, please calm down... There were no vines in this area previously. They must have migrated here in the past few days. There's nothing I can do about it. However, I've already asked my grandfather for help. I believe someone will come and help us escape soon..."
The person who spoke was none other than Zhao Zhongheng. At this moment, his phoenix boat was completely trapped here. With a large number of vines entangling it, the boat could only move forward with difficulty.
His followers' boats were also trapped in the surroundings. All of them had anxious expressions but they had no choice but to do their best to continuously cut the vines.
Zhao Zhongheng was also vexed. The vines in this area had truly exceeded his expectations. At this moment, he was trying his best to control the phoenix boat to break out of here. Facing the dissatisfied expression of his senior sister beside him, he could only apologize. On one hand, he was pursuing the other party. On the other hand, it was also because this Senior Sister Ding's background was extraordinary.
He hurriedly took out a jade box and handed it over.
"Senior Sister Ding, don't be angry. Believe me, there's no problem. I'll definitely bring you to the Western Reef Archipelago. This clarity pill is a rare medicine that can nourish the soul. My grandfather gave it to me. I'll give it to you as an apology gift."
The beautiful woman in the light purple Daoist robe at the side seemed to have lost most of her patience. She frowned and looked at the jade box in Zhao Zhongheng's hand. After taking it, she forced herself to calm down and was about to speak.
However, at that moment, the whistling sound of a magic boat came from afar. She instinctively looked over and saw a magic boat in the distance. It was riding the wind and breaking the waves as it sped over.
There was a person standing straight on the magic boat like a pine tree. His gray Daoist robe fluttered in the wind, and the sunlight streamed through his long hair, forming a colorful halo.
Under the halo was a cold face that was enough to make the hearts of the opposite sex race. It was so flawless that even the vines seemed to be moved by it. It was as though his handsome face turned them into a mimosa as they automatically retreated around him.
This scene caused the woman's eyes to flicker. A sweet smile appeared on her face as she called out to Xu Qing.
"Junior Brother, what method did you use to make the vines retreat? Can you help me?"
Her smile was sweet and her voice was sweet. She seemed to have transformed into a sweet lady, causing Zhao Zhongheng, who was also looking at Xu Qing, to feel very uncomfortable.
He had shown a lot of interest and care countless times on the way but he had never seen the other party smile or speak like this...
This discomfort caused Zhao Zhongheng to be unhappy. There was some hostility in his heart as he looked at Xu Qing.
At a glance, he felt that the face was a little familiar and immediately recognized it.
"It's you!" Zhao Zhongheng recognized Xu Qing. If it was anyone else, he might have forgotten about it long ago. However, very few people would forget Xu Qing's face after seeing it.
Now that he recognized Xu Qing, Zhao Zhongheng immediately sensed the spirit energy fluctuations on the other party's body. It seemed to be much stronger than the last time he met him. However, to him, as a core disciple, his status was noble enough for him to ignore the vast majority of piedmont disciples.
After a cold glance, Zhao Zhongheng calmly spoke.
"Come here and use your method to open a path for us."
He would usually be bossy to the gray-robed piedmont disciples and it was the same now. From what he knew, when the gray-robed piedmont disciples saw him, they would fear and obey him.
Xu Qing had noticed the phoenix boat earlier and also saw the two core disciples in light purple Daoist robes on it. However, he didn't bother with them and his magic boat whistled past them without any change in speed.
"Hm? Are you deaf? Can't you hear me?!" Zhao Zhongheng's expression was gloomy. With a wave of his hand, a large number of water droplets appeared in front of him, forming a water sword that headed straight for Xu Qing's magic boat.
However, the instant it got close, a water curtain appeared out of thin air and blocked it.
With a boom, the water sword collapsed.
The magic boat under Xu Qing suddenly stopped. He turned around and coldly looked at Zhao Zhongheng. In the distance, the waves of the sea churned and the surface of the sea suddenly exploded. A huge Forbidden Sea Dragonwhale leaped up from within, revealing half of its body in the air. Under the sunlight, it was extremely dazzling.
It let out a heart-shaking roar and heavily slammed into the sea, sinking again. However, its violent aura spread out.
This scene instantly caused Zhao Zhongheng's expression to change drastically. The eyes of the followers beside him also widened, and huge waves rose in their hearts. Even that senior sister's expression changed.
"Forbidden Sea Dragonwhale!"
Zhao Zhongheng took a deep breath. When he looked at Xu Qing, his expression was filled with disbelief. Although he was a core disciple and had a crushing advantage over the piedmont disciples in terms of status... this wasn't absolute.
Among the piedmont disciples, if they could cultivate the Forbidden Sea Dragonwhale at the eighth level of the Sea Transformation Art, it meant that their aptitude was astonishing and they had a high chance of advancing to Foundation Building in the future.
Even the core disciples didn't want to provoke such a person. They would often try to befriend him. After all, once he advanced to the Foundation Building realm, his status would immediately rise. Even they would have to respectfully greet him.
Xu Qing coldly looked at Zhao Zhongheng whose expression had changed and slowly spoke.
"20 spirit stones for a boat. As for your boat, it will be 100 spirit stones."
