Chapter 88: Fighting the Water Demon (Requesting Monthly Votes)

The third senior brother also arrived on the forward deck, just in time to witness this scene.

He immediately turned his head—

Although the two travelers had sunk into the water, the thousand-layer waves showed no sign of stopping, continuing to surge relentlessly.

The boat kept rising and falling, swaying back and forth, gradually lifted higher and higher, its trembling growing ever more violent.

A cry came from behind.

Donkey hooves are naturally slipperier than human feet on wooden planks; in calm winds and still waters, they could stand firm, and even light ripples posed no problem—but now the boat rocked so violently that even people struggled to stay upright, so the donkey brother naturally screamed in terror.

The scholar also ran out, gripping the cabin, his face filled with fear.

“What’s happening?”

“What’s going on?”

“Why such huge waves on a clear day!?”

The boatman was equally terrified, adjusting his stance with every sway of the vessel to remain standing, and hurriedly explained: “Those two guests came from inland—they didn’t know you mustn’t eat swallow before boarding a boat, or it will capsize!”

“What do we do?”

The scholar grew even more terrified, unable to even hold onto the cabin.

Only the three Daoists remained calm.

The third senior brother and Lin Jue exchanged a glance.

Both understood—

This thing intends to capsize the boat.

“Brother, you protect the donkey brother! Between the pills and treasures and the donkey brother, prioritize the donkey brother above all!” The third senior brother let out a sharp hiss, drew a long sword, and simultaneously opened his left palm—twenty plump, round beans appeared in his hand, “Remember! Recite the incantation for me!”

“Got it!”

The green vial, the pill swallowed.

The third senior brother scattered the beans into the water.

The moment they touched the water, they became soldiers.

Over twenty armored warriors, all robust and fearsome, could have guarded a general’s tent or seized enemy banners on any battlefield—now they floated in the water, their faces bearing only simple painted features, vivid as the celestial troops in temple fairs, strikingly awe-inspiring.

Whether the scholar who had been chatting merrily with the third senior brother or the boatman who had spent years navigating rivers, all stared in stunned silence.

“Brothers! Follow me into the water to slay the water demon!”

The third senior brother brandished his long sword and leapt into the water; simultaneously, the armored soldiers plunged beneath the surface.

This spectacle left the scholar wide-eyed.

Before he could recover, he heard someone beside him chanting an incantation.

“Heaven and earth vast, spirits of this place heed my command! Spiritual light cleanses, piercing through ancient darkness! Demons and ghosts, come forth—do not hide from the light! Three realms of yin and yang, my incantation reveals your form!”

The scholar hastily turned his head.

He saw that the young Daoist had also drawn a sword and climbed atop the boat’s canopy, steady as Mount Tai despite the violent rocking, his upper body upright, expression solemn, like a celestial immortal.

As his words ended, a dark shadow emerged from the emerald waters.

The shadow was slightly smaller than the boat, yet compared to most black-canopied or gourd-shaped boats at the dock, it was larger than the vessel itself.

Faint figures could be seen swimming toward it.

With so many, they had already surrounded it.

The scholar clung desperately to the cabin, staring in astonishment.

Of the three Daoists, only the girl remained.

Yet even she drew a sharp hiss, unsheathed her fine steel longsword, her face stern, and without hesitation moved from bow to stern, standing beside the young Daoist who had descended from the canopy.

The donkey was shoved into the cabin.

“Bang!”

A column of water shot upward, striking the two.

Both reacted swiftly, dodging left and right—the water column passed between them, grazing their faces.

The water column shot from one side of the boat, arcing high into the sky before curving downward, forming a brief bridge of water above the river, crashing back into the surface with a great splash.

“Quick! Get inside the cabin!”

The young Daoist’s voice came from the stern.

“Huh?”

The two were panicked.

If they hid inside the cabin and the boat capsized, wouldn’t they be trapped underwater?

At that moment, the third senior brother and the bean soldiers below seemed to have drawn the water demon’s attention—it focused its energy on the underwater battle, and the waves grew progressively smaller.

Recalling the previous water column, the two hesitated no longer and scrambled into the cabin.

“Bang!”

The boat shuddered violently, as if struck.

Whether the boat had lifted off or not, both were thrown into the air—one nearly touched the canopy, the other slammed into the cabin’s side before falling back down.

They exchanged glances, both relieved they had entered the cabin—if not, they’d surely be in the water now.

They saw the donkey lying on the floor, knocking over many objects; the scholar, quick-witted, scrambled over, hugged the donkey, and pushed aside debris to prevent it from being injured.

“Puff!”

A tremendous splash erupted, as if some massive thing had been startled and leapt from the water.

They quickly turned their heads.

They saw the two young Daoists standing at the stern, one on each side—the young Daoist held his sword in one hand and pushed forward with the other, launching a brilliant flame from his palm, slanting toward the river’s surface.

It struck somewhere unknown.

Immediately after, the girl performed nearly the same motion—sword in one hand, palm pushed forward—releasing another bright column of fire, slightly thinner and aimed in a different direction.

The scholar’s eyes widened in shock.

The external battle intensified, yet the waves grew smaller, the boat gradually steadying. Aside from occasional violent impacts or something swift brushing beneath the hull, the sound of hard objects scraping against the wooden planks, the violent rocking ceased.

To Lin Jue and the others, the underwater struggle was fierce.

The deep emerald waters concealed much of the violence and danger; all visible was the water demon’s massive dark shadow, the bean soldiers constantly lunging at it, only to be flung away or knocked back.

Streaks of blood appeared on the emerald waves.

Several shields floated on the surface.

The water demon seemed to have devoted all its energy to battling the third senior brother, no longer firing water columns—it had leapt twice in surprise, but after being burned by spiritual fire, it clearly sensed its weakness, and after suffering heavy injuries, refused to surface again, leaving the two with no role to play.

Dive down and fight it?

That would only trouble the third senior brother.

Lin Jue lowered his head, locking his gaze on the trajectory of the dark shadow—if it swam beneath the boat, he’d brace his legs, ready to meet its impact.

He also realized—

The water demon couldn’t defeat the bean soldiers.

The bean soldiers’ bodies were made of spirit wood, incredibly hard, clad in iron armor—the demon’s charges were useless, its bites inflicted minimal damage; meanwhile, the bean soldiers’ blades, spears, swords, and halberds were razor-sharp, and any contact with the demon sent up a spray of blood mist.

But underwater was its domain—the bean soldiers couldn’t catch it; had it not been so ferocious and unwilling to flee, it would have vanished long ago.

As time passed, it realized this, directing nearly all its attacks at the third senior brother.

Thus, offense and defense reversed.

If this continued, victory remained uncertain.

Lin Jue’s eyes flickered; his hand slid toward his waist.

“Sister.”

“Brother!”

“Be ready for anything!” Lin Jue said. “Go fetch the pills and herbs, tell the boatman to raise the sail—I’ll summon wind to steer us ashore. When we near land, throw the pills and herbs onto the shore!”

“Got it!”

The junior sister’s expression hardened—she realized that, compared to the third senior brother, the junior brother was far more reliable.

She immediately obeyed.

But the moment she turned, Lin Jue pulled two flying daggers from his waist, flicked his wrist, aimed at the dark shadow’s location, and flung them into the water.

He whispered an incantation.

The water was dark, the daggers small and fast—the third senior brother surely couldn’t see them.

Puff! Puff!

The moment the daggers hit the water, they transformed into swimming fish—or arrows in the water—and instantly chased the dark shadow, leaving not a single ripple.

The shadow shifted direction, yet the daggers swiftly adjusted— one narrowly avoided a bean soldier, then swiftly caught up to the largest shadow.

“Splash!”

The shadow below clearly reacted violently, thrashing its tail—the already blood-tinted water now darkened further.

Lin Jue lowered his voice, the incantation never ceasing.

The daggers withdrew, then chased again.

The shadow, startled, thrashed wildly, colliding with bean soldiers, instantly pierced and slashed countless times.

After several such strikes, the water was dyed crimson with blood mist—the shadow suddenly whipped its tail, knocked aside a bean soldier, and swam away without looking back.

“!”

Lin Jue’s brow lifted; his incantation changed.

The two daggers flew back.

One to the left, one to the right—both tracing arcs, circling past the bean soldier and Third Senior Brother—then suddenly splashed up from the water.

Lin Jue swiftly reached out and seized them.

“Close call!”

Almost lost two throwing daggers…

These six throwing daggers weren’t suited for sharp directional changes, nor for spinning or slicing—only for thrusting, with simple turns; yet their force was strong, their flight path straight and hard to detect, and they made little noise even underwater—advantages and drawbacks alike. Fortunately, Lin Jue’s mastery of spell control was still shallow; he couldn’t execute complex maneuvers or make them spin wildly, so they suited him perfectly.

Thus, the more he used them, the more natural they felt.

Lose two, and you’ve lost a third.

He shook off the water, lifted his robe, and stuck them back into his waistband, then stood on the boat deck waiting.

Not long after, the bean soldier surfaced.

Third Senior Brother also burst out with a splash, saw the thatched boat, and swam toward it.

Their hands clasped together.

Lin Jue pulled hard.

“Splash!”

Third Senior Brother sat down on the deck.

“How was it?”

Lin Jue asked anxiously.

Little Miss also stood beside him.

“It got away. Underwater is its domain—we can’t catch it.” Third Senior Brother paused. “But my friends slashed it many times, pierced it with spears and lances. It seemed to have other wounds too—I felt it was badly hurt. Even if it escaped, surviving won’t be easy.”

“When it leapt from the water, Little Miss and I burned it with spirit fire.”

“That’s it,” Third Senior Brother said, dripping wet, legs dangling over the boat’s edge, unafraid the water demon would return. “This thing is weakest against fire underwater—but once out of water, fire is its greatest enemy.”

“Indeed.”

“Too bad about my spears and lances—all made of Danfruit wood. A few are still stuck in it now—I might as well just give them to it.”

“Hmm…”

All the bean soldiers swam over, gathering the floating weapons and shields nearby, then turned back into piles of beans, bobbing gently beside the boat.

“Thank you.”

Third Senior Brother leaned down and scooped them all up at once.

Lin Jue found the Bean Soldier technique growing ever more useful.

Its greatest advantage: if armor or weapons are damaged or lost, just replace them—even prepare spares in advance. Even if the bean soldier itself is injured, as long as its lingering soul remains intact, it can be repaired; if repair isn’t possible, simply swap its shell and re-consecrate it.

And even if, in the future, one attains great cultivation and learns the true method of turning beans into soldiers, this carved-bean soldier technique still has value—

How could a random army of beans or pebbles compare to soldiers carved from superior spirit wood and consecrated day and night? If you can scatter beans to summon soldiers at will, then these meticulously carved and consecrated bean soldiers naturally possess far greater power.

Only then did the trembling scholar and boatman behind them finally emerge, staring at the three in shock—as if they were immortals.

“You three—where are you from? Immortals? True sages?”

“We’re not immortals. Not true sages.”

“Turning beans into soldiers—how is this not divine?”

“We’re still far from immortals.”

“Then you must be high masters!”

“Just Daoists.”

Third Senior Brother ran his hand from forehead to nape, then pulled his hair forward and wrung it out. He turned and smiled, calmly quoting an ancient saying: “Do not deem me divine because you find my powers strange—you’ve simply never seen such things before.”

Do not regard me as divine because you find my abilities astonishing—you’ve merely never witnessed them before.