Chapter 88: The Vital Energy of the Giant Whale! The Arrival of the Grandmaster!

Right before everyone’s eyes, the giant whale’s corpse suddenly stiffened, no longer able to grow, its flesh and blood losing some of its luster.

“It hasn’t spoiled… Strange, it’s as if this whale suddenly lost its vitality. Before, it seemed alive even in death, but now it’s truly lifeless.”

Bai Rongxuan, who had been directing the butchering of the whale, was startled by the sight and found himself puzzled.

Still, the whale meat showed no sign of rot, so the butchering continued as usual. Moreover, the whale’s belly might contain ambergris, a treasure of great value, and its cranium held precious whale oil.

Off to the side.

“Extraction complete.”

Bai Xuan’s heart tightened.

Boom—!

The Mystic Flower devoured the whale’s spectral form, and in an instant, a petal bore the shadow of a tiny giant whale!

The giant whale, sovereign of the seas, possessed a natural power that far surpassed human vitality.

As Bai Xuan circulated the power of the Mystic Flower, he felt that terrifying blood force surging within him; even a single thread of it, when channeled, flowed with a mighty, unstoppable current!

“This blood energy…”

Bai Xuan’s eyes narrowed sharply.

He could sense within the Mystic Flower that the might of this giant whale, if unleashed, would grant him nearly ten times his current life force!

“Ten times my blood energy?”

“Even with blood flowing like twin rivers, that only amounts to five times my current strength!”

Astonishment filled Bai Xuan’s heart.

Twin rivers of blood energy—this was considered formidable even among consummate masters, enough to sweep away thousands and destroy an island’s power with a flick of the hand.

“However, this whale’s power cannot be summoned from nothing. If I unleash tenfold blood energy, it will only last for a dozen breaths; any longer, and it would damage the foundation of my own vitality.”

Bai Xuan understood this well.

Any ability from the Tree of Longevity worked only upon himself; all the power was his own.

So it was with this “Master of the Seas” divine art captured from the whale—after taking it, the blood energy did not appear out of thin air but had to be drawn from his own body’s potential to manifest!

“Even so, to wield a giant whale’s blood energy for even a short time is enough to elevate my strength to a terrifying level.”

Bai Xuan was deeply satisfied.

The “Master of the Seas” divine art, worthy of the Mystic Flower’s power, was vastly superior to the ordinary skills of the fisherman’s path.

“Next, while I enhance my own blood energy, I must bring every fisherman’s craft to perfection.”

“Then, the Mystic Flower will be able to seize the innate power of seven different sea beasts!”

…

Half a day passed in a hurry.

On the sandy shore, over a hundred sailors were busy carving up the giant whale.

Many freed slaves, now working as deckhands, had also come ashore to rest.

“This place really is beautiful,” a young maiden said with longing in her eyes, gazing at the sunny beach and the island’s green trees.

“When I’ve earned enough on the Devourer of Seas, I’ll build you a house by a beach like this on Qianshan Island,” replied a somewhat awkward young sailor, head down and face flushed as he worked at splitting whale bones.

“All right!” the girl answered, turning her head with a radiant smile, which made the boy’s face turn even redder, leaving him momentarily speechless.

Having spent so long aboard ship, the deckhands naturally mingled with the sailors, and a few romances had quietly blossomed among them.

At this moment—

Bai Xuan sat beneath a palm tree, feasting heartily while a dozen sailors chopped wood for grilling squid to serve their captain.

“These freed slaves are rootless, while the sailors are all bachelors. If they could settle down on Qianshan Island, it would be a good thing…” He was replenishing his blood energy and pondering the future of his crew when he suddenly looked up, frowning.

With his Seafaring Sight, he could sense the shifting energies across the ocean and clearly perceived—

On the distant horizon, several pirate ships were making their way toward the island!

…

Bai Xuan watched the shifting energies at sea for a while before turning his gaze away.

“Rongxuan.”

“Yes, Captain? Your orders?” Bai Rongxuan stood at Bai Xuan’s side, awaiting instructions.

“Raise the alert. Ready the repeating crossbows in case of a sudden attack.”

“Yes, sir!”

Bai Rongxuan’s heart skipped a beat at the captain’s order. He knew well that Captain Bai never gave commands without reason—it could only mean he’d already sighted a threat!

Within moments, over a dozen first-rank sailors set up defenses in the woods, crossbows at the ready.

…

Quickly, several sailors removed the whale’s skull. Within the cleft cranial cavity, a mass of viscous, shapeless black matter lay coiled, as large as a horse, pulsing faintly.

Inside this black living mass was half a demon fish, as if it had tried to devour the creature but had instead been swallowed and was now being slowly digested.

“That’s the Tai Sui,” Bai Xuan observed, glancing at the bizarre lifeform. He dusted off his clothes, stood, and casually picked up the Sea-subduing Spear he’d left planted in the sand.

“Let’s settle this quickly,” Bai Xuan said quietly, his eyes calm.

He’d just fought a fierce battle, returning victorious against a fearsome giant whale. Now, with new threats approaching, he’d already seen with his Seafaring Sight the flow of blood energy on the horizon, and found it difficult to summon interest.

The next moment—

“Tai Sui!”

A voice drew swiftly closer. Overcome with joy, its owner burst out laughing.

“What luck! This Tai Sui must be over sixty years old, and the blood energy it’s consumed is equal to a whale’s strength!”

“If I refine it into blood essence pills—even if I only get twenty percent—my martial path will advance to a higher level! Even without the Yin-Yang True Blood Elixir, it will suffice!”

As the words fell, a figure shot forward like lightning, his clothes flapping in the wind, trailing afterimages as he sprinted from afar, stirring up a wild gale.

In a flash, he was upon them. As he halted, the force of his arrival split a furrow into the sand.

“Whose men are you?” He glanced over, unconcerned, and spoke easily.

He toyed with a finger-length flying dagger, its white blade dull but emanating a destructive power.

He didn’t wait for the Bai family to respond, but looked again at the Tai Sui, unable to suppress another burst of laughter.

“I searched high and low for this, only to find it here without effort! With this Tai Sui, even if the Immortal Masters take their share, it matters little. Remarkable—such luck! Even my fleet, if they encountered a Tai Sui of this age, might not be able to bring it down…”

He stopped abruptly.

If even his fleet couldn’t slay a creature of this caliber—

Then who, exactly, had managed to butcher this giant whale and leave its bones here?

(End of chapter)