Chapter 76: Practicing Marksmanship, the Might of the Flood Dragon’s Tail!

A moment later.

After eating several portions of demon fish, Bai Xuan finally no longer felt the gnawing hunger and gradually recovered, his whole body slowly filling with renewed energy and vitality.

Within the Martial Hall, many of the Bai clan youth were deeply engrossed in their studies; often, their energy was depleted, but demon fish meat was provided, blended with secret medicines that could restore their strength to the greatest extent.

Of course, the Bai clan’s supply of demon fish was not limitless. Only during these three days of each month was there ample provision.

As he ate, voices drifted over.

“Have you heard? The clan head is forming a Mountain Legion. There will be great rewards for slaying and hunting the Star Pirates.”

“I heard that killing a half-step grandmaster earns you five Tai Sui elixirs!”

Someone spoke in a low, excited voice.

“I’ve heard that too. It’s been spreading through the clan, but the military regulations haven’t been announced yet,” another captain replied, his tone steady but worried. “But are the Star Pirates really that easy to hunt? Forget about half-step grandmasters—even their ordinary fleets are terrifying.”

At these words, worry surfaced among the surrounding Bai clan youth, and the hall fell silent.

The Star Pirates had become ever more formidable on the Eastern Sea, almost devouring everything in their path with fearsome dominance. Rumor had it that most Star Pirate fleets were now armed with powerful crossbows, premium blades, leather armor, and even several vice-captains who had broken through their energy reserves three times—a strength matched only by regular armies.

Such power was far beyond what these Bai clan youths could match. Most were merely talented individuals who had entered early for training—captains in their thirties with not a single subordinate who had broken through three times.

Yet some, silently eating, were lost in thought.

“So, slaying Star Pirates earns rewards?”

Bai Xuan pondered.

“It seems the four great families of Mountain Isle are truly investing everything.”

To him, as long as the Star Pirates did not include true grandmasters, he could slaughter them at will—crushing them with a single hand.

Half a day later.

Bai Xuan had already left the mountain, returning to his small courtyard.

A rush of sound.

In the courtyard, Bai Xuan stood still. On his left arm, waves of energy and blood surged.

“This Four Seas Azure Skydragon Manifestation Diagram is far more profound than any art I have studied before,” Bai Xuan thought with delight.

Earlier, while meditating on the mountain, he had gained much from the Draconic Manifestation Diagram. The image of the dragon still shifted in his mind, though he could only recall parts of it.

“The Abyssal Body Refinement Art transforms the physical body—strength increasing madly, a complete rebirth.”

“But the Four Seas Azure Skydragon Manifestation Diagram causes a transformation of shaped energy and blood, turning palm imprints and blade lights into an invincible, perfectly unified martial form.”

“This is what one must achieve at the blood-refinement stage—manifesting forms like the Celestial Maiden or the Azure Dragon. Once transformed, all manner of divine might is revealed.”

Previously, his shaped energy and blood were like palm strikes or blade lights—direct, cold, and destructive, nothing more.

But now—

A rushing sound!

On Bai Xuan’s left arm, his energy and blood surged like tides, shielding him, rendering him impervious to a rain of arrows. With a push, it became a powerful hydraulic force; with a boom, it struck seven or eight meters away, causing the ground to tremble.

Bai Xuan clenched his fist—the surging energy and blood instantly retracted, then shifted into the form of a draconic claw. With a casual swipe, it tore a vacuum in the air, the atmosphere only closing after several breaths.

“Not only that, but within this energy and blood, there is a subtle vitality—another transformation.”

He marveled inwardly.

This hidden vitality meant that even if his body decayed and withered, as long as his energy and blood remained, he could recover endlessly, extending his life by years.

“If the Azure Scale Technique is a mundane-level martial art for refining strength, then the Four Seas Azure Skydragon Manifestation Diagram is a rebirth—an ascent to a higher realm.”

This was the true blood-refinement martial path, where energy and blood underwent profound changes, unleashing terrifying power.

With a swift motion, he reached out. His energy and blood guided him, and in a flash, the harpoon wrapped in canvas on his back leaped into his hand.

The canvas fell away.

Bai Xuan gave the Subduing Sea Spear a light shake. With a thunderous sound, the air around it burst open, a shockwave rolling, sweeping through the courtyard.

“It’s been a long time since I practiced with a spear.”

He gripped the Subduing Sea Spear.

This divine weapon had been in his possession for some time, but it had not tasted blood in a while and had remained dormant. Now, as he breathed, his energy and blood resonated with the weapon, as if a great beast slowly awakened. The spearhead trembled faintly.

The Draconic Manifestation Diagram was best suited to the Azure Dragon Claw technique—every transformation could be enacted with a single swipe.

Yet Bai Xuan’s most formidable skill, his greatest strength, was still his spear technique.

“The Four Seas Azure Skydragon Manifestation Diagram is a fundamental martial visualization, containing the path of energy and blood transformation and ascension—it doesn’t conflict with martial forms.”

Bai Xuan swept the Subduing Sea Spear in his hand.

On the shaft of the spear, waves of energy and blood faintly appeared, then quickly spun into twin vortices, each whirling with power.

“Draw!”

Bai Xuan suddenly gripped the very end of the spear, maximizing its reach.

With a flash, he lashed out—like waves rising up, a pale azure shadow shot forth amidst the ripples, like—

The tail of a dragon!

But—

There was a sudden bang. The shaped energy and blood dissipated halfway, the spear strike only producing a loud shockwave. The force, though explosive, was much weaker than he had imagined.

“It seems I still cannot grasp it.”

Bai Xuan lifted the Subduing Sea Spear, planting it upright with a swift motion. The entire courtyard quivered slightly.

He now possessed a strength of one hundred thirty thousand catties. Wielding the Subduing Sea Spear one-handed was already terrifying, but the strike he had just attempted was meant to emulate the dragon’s tail.

The dragon’s tail was the strongest, most destructive part of the beast in the Four Seas Azure Skydragon Manifestation Diagram—an exceedingly dangerous aspect, rarely glimpsed, visible only in fleeting flashes. The tail was like a spear, like lightning, cleaving all before it.

“In the diagram, the dragon’s tail is something the human body cannot manifest; it is formed purely by energy and blood. But if I could substitute with the long spear, the power would be unimaginable.”

“Unfortunately, for now, I lack the accumulation necessary to unleash this strike.”

Yet Bai Xuan felt no regret.

The Four Seas Azure Skydragon Manifestation Diagram was not something to be fully comprehended in a single sitting; he had only grasped a portion.

The dragon tail transformation—he could not perform it even barehanded, let alone blend it with his vortex spear technique. This would be a creation of a new move, something only a true grandmaster of martial arts could achieve.

A deep, resonant hum.

At this moment, the Subduing Sea Spear vibrated, emitting a low, profound note that shook the air.

“Do you yearn for this technique as well?”

Bai Xuan smiled.

“It is time to set out to sea. I’ll return in a month.”

There was anticipation in his eyes.

At present, he had only mastered a portion of the Four Seas Azure Skydragon Manifestation Diagram’s transformations. If he continued training next time, his strength would only grow more fearsome.