Chapter 101: Slaying the Monster

The Odd-Eyed Dragonfish let out a thunderous roar, its mismatched eyes glaring wide. Instantly, the larger eye unleashed a tempest, while the smaller one summoned bolts of thunder. Above the sea, storms howled and lightning cracked, driving massive, ten-thousand-foot waves crashing toward Lin Qingmiao.

The towering waves, dozens of yards high, roared with terrifying momentum, blotting out the sky. Lin Qingmiao soared upward, rising into the void to nimbly evade the deluge. With a flick of her left hand to form a incantation seal and her sword gripped firmly in her right, she lunged toward the heart of the storm and slashed downwards.

As the blade descended, the temperature plummeted, and an endless surge of glacial energy erupted. In a heartbeat, the storm and the Odd-Eyed Dragonfish at its center were frozen solid, along with a thousand-foot radius of the surrounding sea. A vast, white iceberg suddenly emerged upon the ocean surface. The heart of the storm was locked in ice, and the raging winds and turbulent waves abruptly ceased.

However, before the passengers on the ship could even celebrate, a sound echoed: "Crack."

The ice shattered. The massive body of the Odd-Eyed Dragonfish burst from the frozen block, letting out a screech as it surged into the air. Now, its full form was revealed: its flat body resembled a giant kitchen cleaver, covered in jet-black scales. Its mismatched eyes sat side-by-side at the front of its body—the large one the size of a room, the small one the size of a door frame—creating a bizarre and jarring proportion.

Though the creature bore the name "Dragonfish," it was difficult to see any resemblance to a dragon in its appearance. Yet, legend held that the dragon sired nine sons, each unlike the other; it was not impossible that this sea monster possessed the bloodline of one of those progeny.

Having been stung by the glacial energy, the beast was incensed. Despite its massive size, it moved with surprising agility, lunging straight for Lin Qingmiao in the air, intent on swallowing her whole. It was as swift as a lightning strike, as fast as a thunderclap. With its movement, the storm over the sea reignited, and thunder roared through the heavens once more.

Facing the charging monster, Lin Qingmiao struck with her sword again. Glacial energy spread, instantly freezing the airborne beast into a giant block of ice. With a heavy splash, the Odd-Eyed Dragonfish plunged into the sea, its massive frame sending waves dozens of yards into the air.

Fang Yue sat on the deck, head tilted back to watch the battle above. Having reached the peak of the Post-Heaven realm, his vision was exceptional; where others might struggle to see, he could discern the general flow of the fight. Seeing Lin Qingmiao handle the situation with ease, he finally let out a breath of relief. Even if the sisters could not win, they had the means to escape, but the people on this ship would surely be doomed.

Xiao Huai stood with her hands on her hips, brow furrowed as she watched the sky, deep in thought. She had stopped tormenting Fang Yue, likely finding his stoic, non-combative demeanor boring.

Above, the battle between Lin Qingmiao and the Dragonfish raged on, evenly matched. The clash of tempest and thunder against the freezing cold was a spectacle beyond human imagination. The sailors and passengers on the ship had never witnessed such a miraculous sight; it was like a war between gods and demons, leaving them simultaneously terrified and dumbstruck.

From the flow of the battle, it was clear that Lin Qingmiao was suppressing the beast. Though the Dragonfish could easily break free from the ice each time, every freezing strike inflicted damage upon its body. With each passing moment, the injuries accumulated, making the creature's defeat inevitable.

"The Odd-Eyed Dragonfish is at the peak of a thousand-year demon. If Lady Lin can suppress it, does that mean her cultivation exceeds that level?" As his heart raced, this thought struck Fang Yue. To surpass the peak of a thousand-year demon, by the standards of human cultivation, would place her at the level of a "Terrestrial Immortal." This was the pinnacle of cultivation—even the Imperial Preceptor of the Great Qi Dynasty was only at this stage.

Even with his Merit System, Fang Yue was uncertain if he could ever reach such heights. After all, the system only saved him time; the comprehension of profound techniques still relied on himself.

Just as Fang Yue wrestled with these thoughts, the battle shifted. The Dragonfish, realizing its plight, flew into a frenzy. Its mismatched eyes turned blood-red, radiating extreme malice. The storm and thunder began to merge into a single thunderous tempest, and for a moment, Lin Qingmiao’s ice could no longer fully contain it.

"Oh no, this ugly fish isn't just a peak thousand-year demon—it's on the verge of evolving. No wonder it dared to come to the shallows to court death," Xiao Huai exclaimed. Fang Yue’s heart tightened; his life and the lives of everyone on board depended on Lin Qingmiao. "Is Lady Lin going to be alright?" he asked urgently.

Xiao Huai curled her lip. "Worry about yourself. Even if this ugly fish evolved into a ten-thousand-year demon king right now, my sister could still handle it. The problem is us—my sister is about to get serious. We’d better back off and watch from a distance."

As she spoke, she formed a seal, casting a spell that caused her green robes to billow. The ship, over a dozen yards long, shot forward like an arrow released from a bow, racing away from the battlefield.

High above, Lin Qingmiao began to unleash her ultimate technique. With a graceful motion of her sword, her white robes fluttering as if she were about to ascend into the void, a vast, blindingly white world suddenly manifested behind her. It was a realm of eternal frost, barren of anything but ice.

The Ten-Direction Purgatory: Glacial Hell.

Though it was a mere projection, its power was terrifying. A massive stretch of the sea was frozen solid. Even from afar, Fang Yue felt a bone-chilling cold that made his teeth chatter. It was a cold that reached into the very soul, impossible to evade.

The Dragonfish sensed the danger and, losing its bravado, turned to flee into the depths. But the sea surface had been completely sealed. It slammed into the solid ice, but even with its immense size and terrifying strength, it could not shatter the monolithic expanse.

Lin Qingmiao would not allow it to escape. With a guiding gesture of her sword, the ultimate cold from the Glacial Hell converged at her blade’s tip. She swung down, and the concentrated glacial energy descended, condensing into the sharpest edge in the world.

...

Fang Yue felt as if all he could see was a vast, white void. There was no sky, no earth, only an endless chill that left him shivering uncontrollably.

When he finally came to his senses, the storm, the thunder, the raging waves, and the torrential rain had all ceased. Only the floating ice on the sea remained as a testament to the earth-shattering battle that had just transpired. Lin Qingmiao and Xiao Huai were nowhere to be found, and the massive corpse of the Dragonfish had vanished as well.

The surviving sailors and passengers, left in a daze, knelt on the deck, thanking the gods for their protection and for sending a fairy to slay the sea monster and save their lives.

Looking up at the vast sky, Fang Yue felt a sense of melancholy and loss, and he couldn't help but shake his head with a bitter smile.