Refining the Mountains and Rivers

Chapter 105 – Killing Intent

At this time, the ‘brat’ that Old Hu spoke of had calmly left the islands. Using the guiding compass, he soared straight towards the place where the Netherworld Ship would appear. He was naturally aware that 600 spirit stones was already a great loss for the merchant. After all, once information was spread out, its value would rapidly diminish.

When Qin Yu had haggled with Hu Three, he had done so observing the merchant’s actions. This was all in order to determine just how much residual value was left in this news. Finally, he was able to feel a bit more peace in his heart. The news of the Netherworld Ship shouldn’t spread out too widely. While he wasn’t the first, he also wouldn’t be in the last group of people that knew.

Of course, another reason was to inform the surrounding people that he was disgustingly poor, that he was just some skinny sheep that could only afford several hundred spirit stones. The sea region was unfathomably fast, and to some degree, the chaos and lurking dangers far surpassed those of the land. Although he wasn’t afraid, it was better if there was less trouble incoming.

As he sped along, he didn’t encounter any strokes of bad luck. He didn’t see the horrifying tsunamis that the people in the sea region spoke of, nor did he encounter any bandits trying to kill him and steal his possessions. Besides some unlucky sea monsters that leapt at him and were easily solved with a few punches, his journey went inconceivably smoothly.

Half a month later, he had travelled at least 100,000 miles and reached the range of the deep sea. Of course, this so-called deep sea was only a point of reference used by cultivators. In the context of the entire sea region, this depth might only be considered the very edge of the periphery.

Three black islands were gathered in a triangular formation. Vortexes often appeared in the surroundings before vanishing, proving just how harsh the underwater environment was. Qin Yu carefully looked over the islands before determining that these were the Three Mountain Islands, and he smiled happily.

He had finally arrived!

The three islands were extremely close to each other, and each island had an active volcano situated atop it, thus together they were called the Three Mountain Islands. Due to the instability of the underground volcanoes, the surrounding sea reef area was filled with treacherous and complex terrain. Although the three islands weren’t small, only a very small number of people every visited, and even then they mostly stopped for the night to rest before leaving again. These could be called relatively abandoned islands.

But at this time, there were pavilions built up all over the three islands. In just a dozen some days, several streets had formed, all of them lively. There were trading fairs all over and countless cultivators were visiting, with boisterous and bustling activity everywhere.

Qin Yu fell down. Although he wasn’t surprised by what he saw, he still sighed inwardly. The Netherworld Ship had a limited carrying capacity. No one knew what this limit was, but once enough people stepped on board, no one else would be able to join.

And first come first serve was not an absolute principle here. As long as a cultivator outside the ship could kill a cultivator on the ship, then they could automatically replace them. And, the time that the ship would remain docked for from the moment it appeared wasn’t consistent either. If one was lucky it might set sail after an hour, and if one was unlucky, it could stay for a day or even longer.

But no matter how long the ship stayed, the only difference was how much blood flowed. There would always be people that died, and those interested in the Netherworld Ship were all aware of this. Thus, the atmosphere atop the islands was also quite solemn. Besides friends and companions, people would look at strangers with cold intent in their eyes. Perhaps not too long from now, these strangers would be pointing swords in their direction!

Qin Yu melted into the stream of people as he headed to the islands. Suddenly, he frowned. He could feel a cold chill percolate in the air. He turned around to look, but all he saw were people surging around him and that uneasy feeling had already disappeared. However, Qin Yu didn’t believe that his feeling had been wrong. Someone had noticed him and had revealed killing intent too.

Just who was it?

Qin Yu carefully looked about. Even after looking as far as he could, he couldn’t spot a single familiar face.

Taking a deep breath, he gathered his thoughts and turned to leave.

He had already raised his guard.

He had just arrived at Three Mountain Islands and someone had revealed killing intent towards him. No matter how he looked at it, the situation was just horrendous.

It seemed that he would need to be much more careful.

At an inn that had temporarily opened up on Three Mountain Islands, Qin Yu purchased a room to live in until the Netherworld Shop appeared. The arrangements were simple and crude, yet the price was ridiculously high. But at the very least, using these spirit stones had bought him a slightly safer place to live, so he considered it money well spent.

The atmosphere on the island remained tense. Unless anything happened, Qin Yu didn’t want to get to know anyone and he didn’t plan on leaving his room either. He simply calmly waited for the Netherworld Ship to arrive.

….

On another island, several cultivators entered a room and tightly shut the door behind them. The one leading them turned and said, “Fellow daoist Qi, why did you suddenly expose killing intent to someone? That person had sharp senses and nearly locked onto us.”

Qi Quan had an ugly complexion. He took out a bronze mirror with a mottled surface. “Senior-apprentice Sister Xiang perished soon after she passed this treasure to me, and when I saw that cultivator today, the bronze mirror fluctuated. I am positive that this person killed her!” He clenched his jaws. “Elder Han, we must take revenge for her!”

Han Shanye frowned. After several moments of silence he said, “Fellow daoist Qi, the Saint Lord has placed great expectations upon us, and we cannot be the least bit careless in our actions! In these past days the sea monster royal family has already detected us, so we cannot allow further complications.” He paused for a moment and then continued, “If you want to take revenge, then you can do so once the Netherworld Ship arrives. There won’t be any more opportunities once we enter the Netherworld Sea.”

What he said was the truth. And, the most important reason of all was that Qin Yu emitted a feeling that he was incredibly tricky to deal with. So, if he couldn’t provoke this person, it was best to stay as far away from his as possible. If there were someone that was capable of killing Xiang Ruyu, that person inevitably had to have some methods of their own. If this Qi fellow was willing to risk his life for his dead love, then he simply wasn’t worth the trouble!

Qi Quan felt hurried. Once the Netherworld Ship arrived and thousands of cultivators boarded at the same time, there would inevitably be a bloody slaughter. At that time it would be far more difficult to lock onto Qin Yu. And after entering the Netherworld Sea, the chances of meeting him would be astronomically low.

He had already guessed that Han Shanye wasn’t willing to provoke this person. With his thoughts racing, he said, “Elder Han, you have personally witnessed the strength of my bronze mirror. And according to what I know, Senior-apprentice Sister Xiang obtained this mirror by cooperating with some people and delving into the cave dwelling of an ancient cultivator. This person is likely one of the cultivators that Senior-apprentice Sister Xiang worked with.”

Han Shanye shook his head, “If we can definitely obtain some harvests, then killing him is a possibility. But, no one can be sure whether or not this is the case.”

Qi Quan felt his heart fall to his stomach. “Elder Han might as well try first. If there are no harvests to be found, then I will give you this bronze mirror as compensation.”

Han Shanye’s eyes brightened. “Are you serious?”

Qin Quan growled, “I want him to die without a grave!”

Han Shanye laughed, “Good!”

…..

Beyond the borders of the Three Mountain Islands, within the murky ink-dark seawater, several huge shadows were hidden beneath the surface.

“Have you found anything?”

“We’ve already locked onto them. They are on the Three Mountain Islands right now.”

“There are many cultivators on the islands. If we were to directly take them away, I fear we would arouse trouble.”

“What kind of trouble can there be? These human cultivators are moving about in the territory of us sea races, do they dare to disrespect us?!”

Fluctuations of divine sense silently passed through the water as the shadows communicated with each other.

The largest shadow said, “Enough. These human cultivators are not easy to deal with. These days, their relationship with us sea races is considered relatively stable, so we should try to avoid conflict if possible. We will move in secret to avoid alerting them.”

The other shadows nodded.

Whoosh –

The water's surface broke apart. The shadows hovered for a moment before diving deeper into the sea and vanishing from sight.

….

Qin Yu prepared for the arrival of the Netherworld Ship. He continued to adjust his condition to its peak state even as he remained as low key as he could be. He didn’t reveal his strength to anyone. This was because after entering the Netherworld Sea region, it would be a cruel and brutal slaughterfest, and that would be the time to display his true abilities. It was because of this reason that he stayed in his room and meditated. However, things never went the way one expected. As Qin Yu was refining some pills, he suddenly frowned.

Pa –

He slapped his hands on the ground and moved several feet to the side, avoiding a black stick of iron that pierced into the ground.

Bang –

The round cushion was pierced through. It was torn into pieces as it couldn’t withstand the powerful waves of strength.

Qin Yu’s heart chilled. This wasn’t because the person was unable to control their strength, but because they had intentionally destroyed the round cushion to interfere with his line of sight.

As this thought formed, there was the sound of breaking air. Several dark beams of light appeared behind him, soaring straight towards his head!

Before they arrived, a faint smell entered Qin Yu’s nose. Qin Yu slapped out with his palm and a vast wave of strength gushed out and imprisoned the beams of dark light.

But in the next moment, his complexion changed. He stepped backwards, retreating until he smashed back through the wall.

Bang –

Bang –

With a low burst, the beams of dark light exploded at the same time. Small fragments blew out in all directions with a terrifying destructive strength.

Qin Yu flicked his sleeves, sending all the fragments flying away. His eyes instantly locked onto a shadow. Although there wasn’t anyone there, there was clearly a quiver in his divine sense.

A fist smashed out. It was violent and ruthless like a raging river, carrying forth unprecedented momentum.

The shadow distorted. A black-robed figure appeared. With a cold snort, the figure thrust out his hand.

But, it seemed that he had underestimated the power of Qin Yu’s fist. With one stuffy cough after another, anger shined in the mysterious figure’s eyes.

However, this figure was clearly wary. His eyes flashed and he turned to leave.

Qin Yu stepped forwards and he soared up like an eagle. He was sure that this black-robed figure was absolutely related to the killing intent he had sensed earlier. Since the other party had revealed themselves, there was no way he would let them go!

As for exposing his strength…Qin Yu suddenly thought that this might be a suitable time to do so. He could avoid many future troubles before he boarded the Netherworld Ship. Now that he was sure of what he wanted to do, he moved even quicker. Boundless energy roiled within him, so much that everyone on the Three Mountain Islands could sense him!

Countless cultivators looked up, their pupils shrinking.

What an excellent cultivation! What a dreadful slaughter energy!

Instantly, countless people memorized Qin Yu’s face. They secretly resolved not to provoke this person in the future.

But there were also many cultivators that smirked in contempt.

Just because he was a little bit strong, this person didn’t have any scruples in hiding his strength. It was clear he was nothing but a muscle-brained idiot.

This sort of person often died the quickest. There was simply nothing to fear!

Han Shanye’s complexion sank. If he wasn’t afraid that his movements would cause too much of a stir and he would be found by the sea monster royal family, he wouldn’t fear this person behind him at all!

But now, he had failed and was being chased instead. Not only did he obtain no advantages, but he was even losing face. This was just too hateful!

Shua –

Han Shanye stopped. He sneered and thrust out his palm.

His momentum was magnificent, vast and unstoppable as if a mountain were coming crashing down, impossible to block!

Qin Yu’s fist came rumbling out.

Bang –

An explosion erupted in midair. Terrifying air waves whipped up debris as several houses were smashed apart.

The cultivators living within hurriedly dodged and fled. Although they all had ugly complexions, once they saw the power of the two people fighting, they could only accept their fate.

Han Shanye sneered, “Brat, if you don’t die then we will meet again!”

Shua –

His body parted into several phantoms as he fled in all directions.

Qin Yu’s face darkened. All those phantoms had the same aura, so it was impossible for him to determine which was the true one.

However, what was the meaning of his final parting words?

But he soon found out!

The master of the inn, a sixth level Golden Core cultivator, spoke with respect as he led a young girl and six more large fellows behind her. He pointed a finger, “Everyone, this is the cultivator renting the room that you were looking for.”

The young girl had bright teeth and delicately patterned scales between her eyebrows that glistened like a rainbow beneath the sunlight. She coolly looked at Qin Yu and waved her hand, “Catch him!”