Chapter 128: Defense

With everyone working together, the sea beast, though fierce, gradually fell into a disadvantage. Su Chen seized the moment; a piercingly sharp sword qi thrust straight at its throat. The beast cried out in pain, letting out a heaven‑shaking roar, its massive body crashed into the water with a boom, sending up towering waves, and then it fled wounded.

Just as everyone aboard the Spirit Vessel let out a sigh of relief, the surrounding seawater rapidly turned dark and thick, as if controlled by some strange force. Immediately, huge spiritual power vortices appeared out of nowhere, spinning at high speed and emitting a strong suction, as if trying to drag the Spirit Vessel and everyone into an endless abyss.

"Hold steady the Spirit Vessel!" Su Chen shouted, his sword blazing with light as he flung streams of sword qi into the vortices, trying to disrupt their suction. Lin Jianran did not dare to stop either; she accelerated the "Azure Sea Tide Sound Array" melody, fully exerting to dispel the surrounding chaotic spiritual power, weakening the vortices' power. The Black Cat quickly relayed the methods it had gathered for dealing with the spiritual power vortices to everyone, so they could act accordingly.

Ling Er directed the disciples to quickly form a defensive formation; the front‑line disciples raised spiritual power shields to block the violent spiritual power spraying from the edges of the vortices, while the rear disciples cast spells to assist Su Chen in destroying the vortices' structure. For a moment, spiritual light flickered around the Spirit Vessel, with cries of battle and the booming of spells intertwining.

After barely surviving the wave of spiritual power vortex attacks, the people had not yet caught their breath when a strange humming sound suddenly sounded, like an invisible mental blade piercing straight into everyone's minds.

"Oh no, it's that mysterious power interfering with the mind!" the Mysterious Visitor exclaimed. Everyone instantly felt a sharp pain in their heads, as if countless steel needles were stabbing wildly in their minds; some disciples with weaker wills began to have unfocused eyes, showing a manic look, and their spells went out of control, being released randomly.

Seeing this, Su Chen immediately circulated his spiritual power and shouted loudly, "Everyone, steady your minds and quickly cultivate to resist!" At the same time, he took from his storage ring the "Clear Heart Stabilizing Soul Pearl" provided by the Mysterious Visitor, infused it with spiritual power; the pearl instantly emitted a soft glow, forming a light shield that enveloped the Spirit Vessel, blocking that strange humming sound from outside. The affected disciples, under the shield's protection, gradually regained clarity, their faces filled with shame and lingering fear.

However, danger came one after another. On the distant sea surface, a sky‑covering dark cloud swiftly drifted over; thunder and lightning flashed within the cloud, and thick bolts of lightning like angry dragons struck down, vaporizing the sea water on contact and sending up rolling white steam.

"This is a Heavenly Tribulation Cloud! How unlucky—just entering this sea region we run into such an ominous portent." A pale‑faced elder cried out. The Heavenly Tribulation Cloud is immensely powerful; even a Nascent Soul cultivator dare not bluntly resist it, and if struck, one would either die or suffer grave injury.

Su Chen's gaze turned solemn as he quickly scanned everyone: "Don't panic, follow my commands. Lin Jianran, use the power of sound to draw away the lightning; Ling Er, organize the disciples to set up a defensive grand formation to weaken the lightning's power as much as possible; the rest, prepare magic treasures to assist at any moment!" Having said that, he first unleashed a defensive magic treasure, which hovered above the Spirit Vessel and burst forth with dazzling light.

Lin Jianran swiftly plucked the zither strings with all ten fingers, playing an uplifting melody; the sound waves surged like ocean waves toward the Heavenly Tribulation Cloud, causing the lightning within the clouds to frequently shift direction. Ling Er led the disciples to quickly form an array; as spiritual power flowed, a formation glittering with rune light took shape, firmly withstanding each bolt of lightning's impact. Though the crowd was shaken, their qi and blood surging, they managed to temporarily stabilize the situation.

After enduring numerous hardships, the expedition team finally found firm footing at the edge of the Mysterious Sea.

Everyone gazed at the now‑calm sea surface, yet their hearts remained tightly wound, knowing this brief peace was merely a short respite before the storm. Su Chen furrowed his brow slightly, turned to the Mysterious Visitor, and said in a low voice: "The danger of this sea region far exceeds imagination; have you previously encountered such frequent and fierce attacks? For the journey ahead, we must be more cautious."

The Mysterious Visitor wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, gave a wry smile, and replied: "Before there had been peril, but never so concentrated. It seems the spiritual power fluctuations within this sea have become even more violent; perhaps something has changed. However, as long as we follow the set course and rely on the power of magic treasures, we will surely reach the core region."

Su Chen gave a slight nod, his gaze sweeping over the crowd; seeing that although everyone looked weary, their eyes were firm, he felt somewhat reassured. He declared loudly: "Friends, having come this far, there is no turning back. From now on, you must exert your utmost effort and look out for one another. Lin Jianran, you shall monitor the spiritual power fluctuations and anticipate danger in advance; Black Cat, continue gathering surrounding intelligence and report any abnormality immediately; Ling Er, take good care of the disciples and adjust the defensive formation as needed."

Everyone voiced their agreement, and the Spirit Vessel set sail again, slowly heading deeper into the Mysterious Sea. As they went deeper, the surrounding seawater grew ever darker, emitting a cold blue light, as if hiding endless secrets. Occasionally, strange shoals of fish darted by, their bodies flickering with eerie rune light, as if they were living beings transformed by some mysterious power.

Midway through the journey, a fog‑enshrouded area suddenly appeared ahead; the mist was thick as substance, nearly obscuring five fingers at an outstretched hand. Seeing this, Lin Jianran immediately played the "Azure Sea Tide Sound Array", attempting to dispel the fog with the power of sound, yet the mist seemed to possess a semblance of sentience, merely undulating slightly without dissipating much.

"This fog is not right; it probably contains some kind of hallucinatory power—everyone be careful not to lose direction," Su Chen warned vigilantly. He unleashed an illuminating magic treasure, its light blazing forth, yet it could only light up an area of several zhang around the Spirit Vessel.

The Black Cat paced back and forth on the bow, its nose constantly twitching; with its keen sense of smell, it seemed to have detected some clues: "There is a faint fishy odor in the mist, like the scent of some sea beast—everyone must be extremely careful."

Before his words had even finished, a low growl came from deep within the fog, followed immediately by huge black shadows looming and vanishing, rapidly approaching the Spirit Vessel. Su Chen gripped his sword tightly, spiritual power surging, the blade humming: "Prepare to meet the enemy!"

Lin Jianran quickened her playing tempo; the spiritual power fluctuations contained in the sound grew stronger, not only to disperse the fog but also to interfere with the incoming foe. Ling Er directed the disciples to swiftly change formation; the front‑line disciples stacked their spiritual power shields, forming an impregnable barrier, while the rear disciples gathered their strength, ready to unleash powerful spells to deliver a fatal blow to the enemy.

When the shadows drew near, everyone finally saw clearly—they were a group of octopus‑shaped giant sea beasts, their tentacles as thick as tree trunks, covered with sharp suction cups; once attached, they could likely drain a person's spiritual power in an instant. The sea beasts waved their tentacles, kicking up spray, and launched a fierce assault on the Spirit Vessel.

Su Chen flickered his form, charging into the enemy like a ghost; his sword danced tightly, sword qi crisscrossing, severing several tentacles. Lin Jianran's power of sound also took effect, causing some of the sea beasts to fall into brief dizziness, their movements sluggish. Ling Er led the disciples to seize the opportunity; various spell lights blossomed and slammed into the sea beasts.

A fierce melee unfolded in the mist; cries of battle, the beasts' roars, and the booming of spells intertwined, shaking the water into rippling layers. Relying on superb skill and tacit cooperation, the crowd gradually gained the upper hand and drove back the group of sea beasts.

But before anyone could catch their breath, a lingering, melodious song faintly drifted from the mist; that song was ethereal yet bewitching, making people unconsciously want to draw near. "Oh no, that is the sea siren's song—it can bewitch the mind, quickly cover your ears!" the Mysterious Visitor shouted in panic.

Everyone hurriedly cultivated to seal their hearing, yet a few disciples with weaker resolve had their eyes become glazed, their steps uncontrollably moving toward the source of the song. Seeing this, Su Chen bellowed, lashing out a spiritual power rope that pulled those disciples back. Lin Jianran then played a countering melody, attempting to disrupt the sea siren's song.

After barely surviving this ordeal, the Spirit Vessel finally sailed out of the fog zone. Everyone looked ahead at the suddenly open sea surface, not yet having time to rejoice, when they saw a colossal Mysterious Island rising on the distant horizon, light flashing above it as if endless treasure were calling, yet the swirling spiritual power storms around it foreshadowed great danger.

"That is the legendary Mysterious Island; our destination is within sight, but landing on it will likely still entail enduring countless hardships," the Mysterious Visitor said excitedly.

Su Chen gazed at the island, drew a deep breath: "No matter what, we must give it a try. Everyone, take a moment to prepare, then get ready to land!" At this moment, the crowd harbored both anticipation for unknown treasure and apprehension about the hardships ahead, yet their eyes grew ever more resolute as they steadily advanced toward the Mysterious Island.