The youth transformed from the iridescent fish smiled faintly and said, "Facing a scion of gods by the seashore, you still dare utter such wild words? Commendable courage."
His name was Hai Chengyu. He spoke with a beaming smile, yet clearly had no intention of praising Qin Ming's boldness. As a descendant of the Sea God, he took great pride in himself, chin tilted slightly upward, brows tinged with condescension.
Qin Ming held the pitch-black God-Measuring Ruler, scanning these creatures of the Night Ruins. He hoped the impending battle would not disrupt his breakthrough past the major bottleneck and his newborn rebirth.
"Why haven't you moved yet? Sacrifice him to the Sea God," Hai Chengyu commanded. He did not step forward himself, but instead directed the sea beasts, spirit sharks, and other creatures lurking within the surging waves.
For the Jade Emperor had just said this person's cultivation was not high at all, previously worthy only of contending with his sword slave.
Hai Chengyu felt that entering the fray personally would somewhat demean his status.
Moreover, despite his sense of superiority, he possessed no true arrogance or carelessness when facing a visitor from the outer realm, preferring instead to let his subordinates test the waters first.
Amidst the billowing waves, streaks of blue light flashed repeatedly. The ocean was mysterious and profound. Many bizarre aquatic beings leaped up, lunging toward Qin Ming.
There was a sea monster weighing tens of thousands of jin, swinging a great sledgehammer wrapped in slimy tentacles, hammering out terrifying sonic booms. There were swarms of flying fish charging like a dense barrage of flying swords, piercing the night shroud. A colossal shark opened its bloody maw, while a sea monkey wielded a massive staff, treading the raging surges as it struck.
By the seashore, the sea race existed in staggering numbers. They raised waves ten to twenty meters high, forming a deafening tsunami, the water glinting with the chilling sheen of various weapons.
Qin Ming was calm and cold. Standing motionless in place, unperturbed by the dozens of crashing swells capable of obliterating villages and towns, he swung the God-Measuring Ruler gently forward.
Instantly, a dazzling golden thread seemed to slash through the night mist. The towering waves, over a dozen meters high, were severed into upper and lower halves, and the rolling ocean beyond was split wide open as well.
The tsunami had originally surged like a thundering army of thousands, but now it suddenly appeared frozen. All sound vanished, and the ocean solidified in a single instant.
Then, wet tearing sounds rang out incessantly. The swarms of sea creatures charging forward completely disintegrated, bifurcated by that golden thread.
The frozen tableau shattered, and the rumbling roar of the tsunami returned. Yet the tens-of-thousands-of-jin sea monster, the flying-sword fish demons, the ferocious sea monkey, and the rest were all cleaved in two, their blood dyeing the spray crimson.
A brief silence fell over the scene. The blue-haired woman, the cat-eared girl, and the golden-scaled crab all froze in place, sensing that this youth was definitely no ordinary foe.
The iridescent-fish youth, Hai Chengyu, tightened his grip on his golden spear even further. Frowning, he looked toward the Jade Emperor and said, "Brother-in-law, is this the erect ape demon you claimed hadn't even reached the Third Realm?"
In his view, this opponent likely already possessed the strength of the Fourth Realm!
The Jade Emperor spoke, "A bit unexpected. After not seeing him for over a year, he has reached the late Third Realm. He must have obtained quite a few lucky chances during this time."
Qin Ming had not deployed his full power. He was still in the midst of his newborn rebirth, his body burning hot, unsure whether erupting without restraint would cause adverse consequences.
The blue-haired woman furrowed her delicate brows slightly. Her name was Yun Shuyao. As the princess of this adjacent maritime realm, her discerning eye was naturally sharp, and she already realized that this human youth truly lived up to his status as another anomaly.
However, she stood on the Jade Emperor's side. Having already issued the order to deal with the youth, even if she withdrew her command now and sent him into the depths of the Heavenly Maiden Palace, it would be difficult to earn his goodwill.
With a wave of her hand, vast numbers of sea monsters surfaced across the waters behind her. When swordfish swam, the ocean surface resembled a forest of spears; when the sea urchin legion appeared, dense swathes of "arrow quills" stood poised to loose at any moment—an intensely oppressive sight.
"Princess..." The cat-eared girl hesitated. Though she was the blue-haired woman's right-hand confidante, in her heart she held far greater reverent awe for the Heavenly Maiden.
"Do you expect me to retract my words?" The blue-haired woman, Yun Shuyao, turned her head to look at her, making it clear that things had reached this point, and there was no other choice.
"Senior Sister, I support you!" Hai Chengyu shouted. He primarily coveted the precious medicine Qin Ming had harvested from the sea, able to clearly sense its rich vital essence.
"Mm." Yun Shuyao nodded. She believed the Jade Emperor had a higher cultivation realm and possessed exceptional, extraordinary talent, bound to be more outstanding than this human youth.
Once her heart leaned toward one side, she did not need to hesitate in her choice.
Qin Ming was composed, uttering not a word. He did not initiate an attack; being in the midst of nirvanic transformation, the longer time dragged on, the more advantageous it was for him.
Unfortunately, though his opponents did not know he was breaking through a major bottleneck, they were not about to grant him peaceful moments.
"Take him down," Yun Shuyao ordered calmly.
A massive swarm of sea monsters roared, churning up monstrous waves as if the ocean were pouring back up into the night sky. Scales, giant claws, and fangs emerged through the foam.
"Shuyao, let me handle this," the Jade Emperor spoke up. As the party involved who claimed an old feud with Qin Ming, his pride naturally compelled him to step into the fight personally.
As one of the most elite heavenly demon seeds among the demon race, he had supreme confidence. Since Qin Ming had killed his younger brother and paternal cousin, he was unwilling to rely on outside hands.
Furthermore, with so many sea race members present under public scrutiny, hiding behind others would likely spark whispers that he was merely living off a woman.
He possessed immense ambitions, hoping to freely travel back and forth between the two worlds. To establish a foothold here, he naturally could not let his prestige falter.
The Jade Emperor rose into the air by the shore, a divine halo illuminating around him with exceptional brilliance. It was sword light, which coalesced into a magnificent wheel of swords enshrouding him within.
In an instant, the entire coastline grew brilliantly illuminated. The Jade Emperor seemed like a blazing sun slowly ascending, sword light shooting forth and sweeping toward Qin Ming with crushing pressure.
Qin Ming held the God-Measuring Ruler and drew a light stroke. The pinnacle Sumeru field expanded, and paired with the soaring lethal intent of the Golden Crow Night-Illuminating Saber, it blocked the dense barrage of sword light.
On the shore, the beach exploded, sand flying in all directions. As for the stone cliffs and precipices capable of repelling the crashing waves, they shattered into pieces under the saber light and sword intent.
Massive chunks of cliff sheared off, crashing through the sea's surface with deafening rumbles and kicking up colossal waves.
The Jade Emperor's pupils contracted. The opponent had not been instantly decapitated; instead, he had blocked a wave of attacks from the naturally radiated sword-intent light wheel.
To him, this was unacceptable.
Back on that late autumn day, this human youth's cultivation realm had been far beneath his own. In less than a year and a half, by this early spring, the youth's realm had surged dramatically to a point that commanded his serious attention.
The Jade Emperor's eyes deepened. The sword light surrounding him intensified, blazing brilliantly as dozens of golden beams shot forth from him like a shower of shooting stars trailing dazzling tails, plunging from the night shroud.
Qin Ming shifted his position, moving like a phantom of the ocean abyss, drifting left and right to evade most of the sword light. Inside his body, the metamorphosis grew increasingly intense.
He had already glimpsed the embryonic form of the Mind Lamp, a light kindling to life.
He let out a sigh of relief. This skirmish had not disrupted his metamorphosis after breaking through the major bottleneck; perhaps he could strike with full power now.
At this moment, the expressions of the sea creatures shifted. Though the Jade Emperor appeared more dominant while the human youth evaded his brunt, the latter was not in disarray at all.
The blue-haired woman Yun Shuyao felt a jolt in her heart. Had her judgment been flawed? Could this second anomaly be no weaker than the Jade Emperor?
"Attack!" she commanded in secret. Since a decision had been made earlier, there was no need to hesitate now. Changing their minds now was too late; they were already adversaries.
The large crab covered in golden scales was the first to respond, leading its subordinates in a forward charge. The sea behind it boiled instantly.
Yun Shuyao retrieved a pristine white dharma conch and blew directly into it. It was an exotic treasure refined from the shed husk of an ancient sea senior, shining with nine-colored treasure light and rippling with layered vibrations.
Qin Ming was surprised. Even his consciousness fluctuated in response, suffering a measure of disturbance.
The nearby sea beasts went mad, charging heedlessly toward Qin Ming in a frenzy of rolling demonic qi.
The golden spear in Hai Chengyu's hands pierced forth like a bolt of lightning, ambushing this erect ape demon youth who far exceeded their expectations.
The Jade Emperor had wanted to speak up, stating that he could resolve this foe on his own without their aid.
Yet the sea race had already entered the fray; he could not brush aside their goodwill, and telling them to back off at this moment would be disrespectful.
The Jade Emperor chose to go all out, aiming to capture Qin Ming immediately.
To forcefully suppress and slay him was the best way to conclude this.
Buzz!
Before Yun Shuyao's crimson lips, the pristine white dharma conch grew even more sacred, rich with Dao rhyme, sending layered ripples spreading forward that genuinely disrupted Qin Ming.
The golden-scaled crab, the cat-eared girl, and massive hordes of sea monsters charged, their weapons and arcane techniques drowning Qin Ming's position.
Seizing this opportunity in the chaotic environment, Hai Chengyu quietly unleashed his own exotic treasure: a shell coffin emerged, fine threads of mysterious light spreading from it to lock onto Qin Ming.
He was overjoyed. To succeed in an ambush amidst such a complex situation was a triumph. He barked softly, "Trap!"
Qin Ming was drawn into the curious coffin refined from seashells. Brandishing the God-Measuring Ruler with ferocious force, he instantly cracked several fissures across it.
Hai Chengyu urged immediately, "Senior Sister, quickly use your Golden Shell Furnace to refine him with Nanming Departing Fire!"
Yun Shuyao had sharp eyes and an exceptional ability to seize combat opportunities. Without waiting for his prompt, she opened her mouth and spat out a golden pill that erupted with glorious twilight.
In an instant, it expanded into a towering blaze of flames and radiant golden beams, burning like a scorching sun as it took in the coffin.
Breaking out of the shell coffin, Qin Ming sensed the aura of divine fire. A thought struck him: this flame shared the same origin as his Nanming Departing Fire Scripture, so he feared it not in the least.
"That settles it!" Hai Chengyu laughed. Even if this human youth was an extraordinary anomaly, trapped within an exotic treasure and roasted continuously by divine fire, he could not escape doom.
Excited, he added, "Heh, he carries the essence of the sea on him. Refining him with Nanming Departing Fire now might yield a furnace of water-fire grand medicine!"
"He's finally taken down!" the other sea race creatures cheered.
Only the Jade Emperor felt his face sting with disgrace. For the princess to capture the youth alive meant his own effort remained unfinished; he had failed to slay the boy personally.
Yun Shuyao looked at him with a smile and said, "I know you are stronger than him. Yet he is an anomaly after all; to prevent any mishaps, taking him down directly with an exotic treasure was the wiser choice."
Hai Chengyu urged, "Senior Sister, hurry and refine the medicine with the Golden Shell Furnace."
Inside the precious furnace flowing with golden glow, Qin Ming remained completely unperturbed. The Nanming Departing Fire could not harm his body; he simply waited for his nirvanic transformation to conclude.
By now, the multiple spirit fields he had cultivated were stacked together, blending seamlessly into one, like a dense web permeating his flesh and extending outside his body.
Once the spirit fields reached complete harmony and resonance with his physical body, they swiftly unified with his mental field, forming a flawless cycle.
"Within the human body reside three life fires; manifesting and uniting them into one gives rise to the embryonic form of the Mind Lamp."
As Qin Ming's spirit field and mental field resonated and blended into the state of ultimate perfection, three clusters of flame appeared upon his left shoulder, right shoulder, and above the crown of his head.
His spirit field and mental field shone with incomparable brilliance, compelling the three clusters of life fire to merge into one, transforming into a lamp that illuminated the entirety of his spirit field, his mind, and his physical body.
Amidst the magnificent flames, a Mind Lamp slowly rose. Its light was dazzling and sacred, capable of purifying mental power, cleansing the physical form, and illuminating his path of cultivation.
Gathering the Mind Lamp was merely the first step. To achieve this much after shattering the major realm bottleneck was already remarkably smooth.
Simultaneously, Qin Ming felt his physical body grow so scorching hot it seemed ready to combust. His newborn transformation proceeded with violent intensity, its pace quickening as his vital activity surged.
This transformation is faster than anticipated!
He had already discerned the cause: inside the Golden Shell Furnace, tempered by the Nanming Departing Fire of the same origin, he was riding the momentum, circulating the corresponding fire scripture to refine the precious medicine nurtured from the ocean's essence.
When he glimpsed the new realm and harvested the hidden trove, the blue liquid he brought back was truly extraordinary. Now, with the aid of the divine fire within the Golden Shell Furnace, his absorption accelerated dramatically.
Qin Ming's flesh and spirit both underwent swift nirvana, and even his heavenly light transformed alongside them. This was an all-encompassing newborn rebirth, elevating his very lifespan in the process.
"Something isn't right. He hasn't died yet." As the master of the Golden Shell Furnace, Yun Shuyao sensed the abnormality, discovering that the seated silhouette within was growing increasingly radiant.
Far from refining medicine, she seemed to be helping him temper a golden body!
"What is it?" the Jade Emperor asked.
"Senior Sister, let me help you refine him!" Hai Chengyu stepped forward.
Rumble!
The Golden Shell Furnace shook violently, on the verge of breaking free from Yun Shuyao's control. To her horror, she realized that the figure inside had stood up, swinging the pitch-black ruler and cracking the furnace walls.
"Not good! He's breaking out!" she cried in shock. The rare cluster of Nanming Departing Fire stored within the furnace was dimming, being absorbed by the opponent.
The spirituality of the Golden Shell Furnace deteriorated rapidly, emitting cracking sounds.
Flicking her hand, she hurled it away. The furnace body refined from a golden shell disintegrated midair with a resounding boom, shattering into pieces as a youth bathed head to toe in golden glow burst free.
Qin Ming completed his breakthrough, officially setting foot into the Fourth Realm—Mind Lamp—having completed an all-encompassing newborn rebirth from head to toe.
At this moment, he felt he had seized hold of his own destiny; the shortcoming of his lower cultivation realm was being thoroughly remedied.
"You—the Fourth Realm?!" The Jade Emperor's expression changed drastically.
Now, Qin Ming's aura could no longer be concealed. At the final moment of violent metamorphosis, his entire being was translucent, brilliant heavenly light illuminating the night sky as powerful ripples expanded outward.
The Jade Emperor found it hard to believe. The youth was not in the mid-to-late Third Realm—his advancement was far more violent than imagined!
In less than a year and a half, Qin Ming's realm had caught up!
Transparent sword wings manifested on either side of the Jade Emperor's body. He swooped toward Qin Ming like a bolt of lightning, while the dazzling sword wheel had already separated from his form, condensing into something like a blazing sun of sword intent shining over its domain as it crashed toward Qin Ming.
At this moment, Qin Ming did not dodge. Standing in the Fourth Realm, he could meet his enemy with composed majesty; even facing the demon race's foremost heavenly demon seed, he had no need to retreat.
Perhaps by now, it was time for many of his past rivals to evade his brunt!
With a boom, he swung the pitch-black God-Measuring Ruler in his hand against that brilliant sun of sword intent, shattering it directly with a single strike.
The Jade Emperor's face shifted repeatedly. That was one of his trump cards, yet it had been shattered in a single blow.
Flapping his transparent sword wings, hundreds of sword beams poured forth like torrential rain and crackling thunder, densely raining down and slashing toward Qin Ming.
He walked the path of a demon sword immortal, renowned as a peerless talent of supreme offensive might among the demon race. Erupting with all his might, he was naturally terrifying.
Yet the Jade Emperor's heart pounded with intense dread.
For after those hundreds of sword beams rained down, his opponent did not dodge; a Five Elements Light Wheel appeared around Qin Ming, spinning with deceptive slowness, yet completely obliterating every single beam of sword light.
At this point, Qin Ming was no longer employing extraordinary skills, but rather five grand secret scriptures: from the World-Abiding Scripture to the Silkworm Emperor Gold-Governing Scripture, and then to the Sea-Overturning Classic...
Though sharing the five elements attributes, the resonance of the five secret scriptures was far too vastly superior to the fusion of the former five extraordinary skills.
Chii!
Qin Ming swung the God-Measuring Ruler, sending forth a beam of Five Elements Divine Light. With a clang, it severed the Jade Emperor's protective sword wings, jolting his body violently. His face flushed crimson as he nearly coughed blood, and sparks flew from the sword in his hand, leaving a massive notch that almost snapped the blade.
"This—" Hai Chengyu's pupils contracted. This erect ape demon youth far exceeded expectations, ridiculously powerful.
"What are you standing around for?" Princess Yun Shuyao snapped, mobilizing swarms of sea monsters to attack.
Her heart could not remain calm; the second anomaly was actually stronger than the Jade Emperor!
Yet she had no choice left now.
"Kill!"
Murderous aura surged into the night sky as they moved to encircle and annihilate Qin Ming.
Though shaken, Hai Chengyu, the golden-scaled crab, and the others did not hesitate to strike. Today, superiority and life-or-death were destined to be decided; only a bloody battle remained.
Pfft!
Qin Ming swung the God-Measuring Ruler, Sky-Severing Saber Intent blooming. In an instant, Hai Chengyu's right hand holding the golden spear—along with his entire right arm—was severed from his torso and exploded in midair.
"Ah—" he wailed in agony. Rejoining the battle, he was maimed in their very first exchange.
Terrified and furious, he shouted, "Brother-in-law! Jade Emperor! Is this the low-realm cultivator you said was only fit to contend with your former sword slave?!"
He no longer even wished to call him brother-in-law. In this predicament, the past history the Jade Emperor had cited seemed laughable; the facts did not align in the slightest.
Pfft!
The Jade Emperor counterattacked with everything he had, fighting desperately. Yet when the God-Measuring Ruler unleashed another beam of Five Elements Divine Light, he was impaled on the spot, suffering grievous wounds.
Hai Chengyu's heart sank, and he roared, "You aren't even his match yourself! What talk of an erect ape demon on par with a sword slave?! You lied to us, you deceived us!"
He retreated frantically, leaping toward the sea.
Yet he could not escape. Qin Ming turned back coldly and swept the God-Measuring Ruler across. With a wet tear, saber intent erupted, light slashing like a ribbon of silk and cleaving him at the waist.
Hai Chengyu screamed piteously, collapsing onto the sand, unable to flee, his life hanging by a thread.
Princess Yun Shuyao turned pale with fright. In a flash, she unleashed four exotic treasures, all extraordinarily precious and powerful weapons.
Yet before the present Qin Ming, these treasures were completely inadequate. As he swung the God-Measuring Ruler, surges of Five Elements Divine Light blasted them apart one after another.
Qin Ming brought the God-Measuring Ruler down in a diagonal slash. Though Yun Shuyao dodged with all her might, she was still struck by a blazing beam of light.
She groaned, a long leg severed from her body and falling to the shore in a rush of blood.
Simultaneously, the cat-eared girl was hurled backward. Attempting to rescue her, she was struck by saber light, leaving a horrifying, blood-soaked hole straight through her abdomen from front to back.
The golden-scaled crab thrust out its "scissors," its massive pincer glowing and roaring with thunderous sound.
Yet Qin Ming flipped his wrist and brought the ruler down. The beam of thunderous light erupted by the golden-scaled crab shattered, and the pincer it had thrust forward blew apart.
In the sea, hordes of spirit sharks, sea monkeys, eight-tentacled sea monsters, and other beasts charged forward. Yet as the Five Elements Light Wheel around Qin Ming expanded, severed arms, giant claws, and fish heads littered the surging waves; sea creatures perished in droves.
The Jade Emperor's pride was thoroughly shattered by Qin Ming. Heavily wounded, he could not breach Qin Ming's Five Elements Light Wheel; no matter what techniques he deployed, he could not injure his foe.
In the night sky, he continuously built his momentum, his entire body pure and translucent, as if transforming into a dazzling immortal sword radiating terrifying sword intent before slashing downward.
Yet Qin Ming merely swung the God-Measuring Ruler with tremendous force, sweeping through all directions, leaving his various adversaries either dead or maimed.
Hai Chengyu blew apart. The golden-scaled crab and Yun Shuyao were both cleaved at the waist simultaneously.
The Jade Emperor groaned as blood stained the night sky, severed diagonally across the shoulder into two pieces.
At this moment, having broken into the Fourth Realm, Qin Ming resembled a youthful fiendgod sweeping through all surrounding foes.
"Mm?" Suddenly, he looked toward the night sky, then out across the vast ocean.
Whether in the depths of the sea or high above the celestial vault, an astonishing sight unfolded, revealing another facet of the Night Ruins that left even Qin Ming momentarily stunned.
Chapter 429