Chapter 612 - 612: Unsheathing
On the deck, Qu Qingsheng and others looked at Shi Yuanmin, then glanced at the expressions of Qin Haishan and several others. The reborn hope after escaping the pursuit of sea monsters instantly plummeted again.
Compared to the unrestrained aura of the sea monsters, Shi Yuanmin’s current momentum was not particularly strong. In the eyes of those in the Aperture Tempering realm, they only felt it was profound, like an abyss, but they couldn’t discern his specific cultivation level.
However, the fact that Tong Linyun’s expression changed indicated the undeniable level of Shi Yuanmin’s cultivation.
“Those sea monsters seem as though they trust you, as they haven’t attacked you,” Chen Fei said calmly to Shi Yuanmin.
When Chen Fei controlled the ship to evade everywhere in the waters of Sea Dominion City, he had actually sensed Shi Yuanmin’s surveillance from behind.
Although the concealment techniques of the later stage of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm were extraordinary, there were quite a few third-tier late-stage sea monsters. Even if Shi Yuanmin concealed himself, he would definitely be discovered.
But those sea monsters deliberately turned a blind eye to Shi Yuanmin, indicating that there must be a special mark on him, allowing them to ignore his presence.
It was precisely because of this that Shi Yuanmin could linger behind Chen Fei, intending to capture him directly at the right moment.
In today’s special circumstances, the deaths of martial artists were quite normal. If Chen Fei and his group were to disappear entirely, no one would suspect a thing.
On the contrary, waiting for Chen Fei to return to the Primordial Sword Sect before taking action would seem a bit conspicuous.
Thus, Shi Yuanmin arrived.
As for Qin Haishan and the others who saw him, they could be eliminated directly.
In Shi Yuanmin’s eyes, these were just martial artists at the Aperture Tempering realm’s initial stage who couldn’t even withstand a single blow from him. As for Tong Linyun, she was just a minor obstacle, nothing more.
As for the cultivators at the Aperture Tempering realm on the ship? It would be effortless to exterminate them.
“You seem to know quite a bit. It was you who killed Ning Yanding and the others, right?”
Hearing Chen Fei’s words, Shi Yuanmin squinted his eyes, staring at Chen Fei, and said, “First-rate perception and such a magical concealment technique!”
In the depths of Shi Yuanmin’s eyes, a hint of greed emerged. Chen Fei must have some extraordinary opportunity, obtaining a top-notch inheritance. Otherwise, how could a martial artist from such a small sect break through to the middle stage of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm in such a short time?
Not only the speed of cultivation but also the various magical and mysterious techniques displayed were unheard of by Shi Yuanmin.
Just like the aura of that fake third-tier peak sea monster, Shi Yuanmin, who was following behind at the time, was startled, thinking that a real third-tier peak sea monster had appeared nearby.
Before Min Yanlu cleaned up some of the internal spies, it’s estimated that he had some connection with Chen Fei.
All these circumstances unexpectedly appeared on a martial artist who had just broken through the Combined Aperture Tempering realm in less than ten years. If Min Yuanmin hadn’t personally probed into it, he probably wouldn’t believe it.
Tong Linyun looked at Chen Fei, not knowing how to deal with the situation in front of her. For them, the late stage of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm was too formidable.
Compared to third-tier late-stage sea monsters, killing someone in the late stage of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm would be cleaner and more efficient.
If previously, facing third-tier late-stage sea monsters, many people could escape with their lives, facing Min Yuanmin in this sea area, there was simply no escape.
After all, most of the monster beasts targeted the Combined Aperture Tempering realm, and they didn’t necessarily have to pursue it to the end.
But as long as Min Yuanmin wanted to kill, no matter where they hid, they would be directly exposed.
Because of the mental marks Min Yuanmin placed on everyone, with their cultivation realms, they simply couldn’t erase them in a short time. And this, in turn, sealed their fate.
Chen Fei didn’t answer Min Yuanmin’s words, instead, he turned to Tong Linyun and said, “You go first. I’ll hold him off for a while and catch up with you later.”
“Form a formation. With so many of us, we’re not without the power to fight!” Tong Linyun said in a low voice.
The disparity between the early and middle stages of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm compared to the late stage was evident, but those capable of forming defensive formations were not entirely devoid of combat capabilities.
However, the speed of movement in the late stage of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm was too fast. In the end, the result would only be a delay in the speed of death. In terms of the final outcome, there wasn’t much of a difference.
“Hahaha!”
It seemed that Min Yuanmin heard Tong Linyun’s words and burst into loud laughter. Then, he turned his gaze to Chen Fei and said, “I originally wanted to give you a chance to surrender, but it seems you won’t surrender willingly. I’ll have to take matters into my own hands!”
As Min Yuanmin’s words fell, his figure suddenly disappeared from where he stood, then reappeared in front of Chen Fei, thrusting a sword towards his heart.
For an ordinary person, being pierced through the heart would be certain death. However, the vitality of a Combined Aperture Tempering realm martial artist was strong. While being pierced through the heart would greatly affect their combat ability, they wouldn’t immediately die.
Min Yuanmin didn’t intend for Chen Fei to die. Even if Chen Fei were to die, he would need to spill all his secrets before he would allow him to die. Before that, Min Yuanmin needed Chen Fei alive.
Chen Fei waved his right hand, and the two boats below instantly surged forward. Tong Linyun and the others were also pushed forward by a force, flying involuntarily ahead.
“Chi!”
Min Yuanmin’s sword pierced where Chen Fei’s heart should have been, but Min Yuanmin’s brows slightly furrowed. It was just a phantom; Chen Fei’s true body had long since vanished from that spot.
Several meters away, Chen Fei’s figure appeared.
The teleportation rune further enhanced Chen Fei’s agility.
“Hum!”
Suddenly, a fluctuation in the formation spread around, and at some point, a barrier encompassed the entire area within a mile.
In the time it took Min Yuanmin to say a few words, a trapping formation had already been set up here. Besides Min Yuanmin, there were others present as well.
Min Yuanmin didn’t require the strength of this formation to be particularly strong, but as long as it could slightly trap someone at the Combined Aperture Tempering realm, it would suffice.
According to Min Yuanmin’s estimation, capturing Chen Fei wouldn’t take much time. The only slight complication might be how to injure Chen Fei without killing him, but even that was just a minor inconvenience.
Today wouldn’t be interrupted like last time by the appearance of someone at the Mountain Sea Realm.
Moreover, during the last attempt to test Chen Fei, Min Yuanmin hadn’t exerted much force. This time, Min Yuanmin would go all out against Chen Fei.
From Min Yuanmin’s perspective, if Chen Fei could slay Ning Yanding and the others and withstand his full-force strike, he probably wouldn’t die easily.
However, Min Yuanmin didn’t expect that his first strike would encounter a slight mishap. Chen Fei’s agility seemed to have improved significantly compared to before.
Moving with agile grace, Chen Fei’s movements flowed like clouds and water. Even Min Yuanmin had to admit that he seemed to be somewhat inferior in this aspect.
Min Yuanmin wasn’t just in the early stages of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm but had already condensed one Flower. Yet, a martial artist at the mid-stage of the Combined Aperture Tempering realm had better agility than him?
Furrowing his brow slightly, Min Yuanmin’s figure flickered, appearing once again in front of Chen Fei, thrusting out another sword.
As this sword was unleashed, the surrounding natural energy was cut off, and even the air froze directly, binding people within it, making it difficult to move. The Heaven-Binding Sword!
Specifically designed to restrain those with exceptional agility, it nullified both elemental energy and space, leaving no room for evasion. No matter how strong one’s agility was, it became futile. The only option seemed to be a head-on confrontation, which was exactly what Min Yuanmin intended.
Chen Fei watched the approaching sword, his figure swaying slightly. In an instant, it seemed as though dozens of figures overlapped within Chen Fei’s body, each one indistinguishable from the true body.
Min Yuanmin’s expression changed slightly. The sword intent that had just been locked onto Chen Fei seemed to bounce back, revealing dozens of potential positions.
Before Min Yuanmin could truly determine Chen Fei’s real body, he found that Chen Fei had already disappeared before his eyes. The so-called Heaven-Binding Sword, which nullified elemental energy and space, had completely failed against Chen Fei.
Such agility!
Min Yuanmin turned his head to look at Chen Fei, who was dozens of meters away, unable to conceal his astonishment in his eyes. Just moments ago, he had only thought that Chen Fei’s agility was slightly superior to his own at most.
But now, Min Yuanmin realized that Chen Fei’s agility had far surpassed his own.
In fact, this kind of agility was unparalleled even among the late-stage Combined Aperture Tempering realm cultivators that Min Yuanmin knew.
If Chen Fei wanted to flee, Min Yuanmin might not even be able to catch up with him.
Min Yuanmin’s gaze involuntarily turned towards the Primordial Sword Sect. Fortunately, they still had constraints. If there were no constraints, they wouldn’t have endured so much hardship to break free from the siege of the sea monsters.
Although Tong Linyun and the others were flying forward, they had been keeping an eye on the situation with Chen Fei. Seeing Chen Fei easily evade Min Yuanmin’s attacks twice, joy filled their faces.
However, they soon noticed Min Yuanmin’s gaze shifting towards them.
Tong Linyun and the others were all at the Combined Aperture Tempering realm, having cultivated for quite some time, and many of them were leaders in their respective sects. They were well aware of the treacherous nature of human hearts.
Although Min Yuanmin didn’t speak, they immediately understood his intentions at this moment.
Fearing the consequences, if they couldn’t temporarily resolve Chen Fei, then resolving the people Chen Fei cared about would be just as effective, if not better.
Unless Chen Fei became completely heartless, but after knowing Chen Fei for these years, they understood that he wasn’t that kind of person.
Wouldn’t this not only be unhelpful but also become a burden?
“Zheng!”
The Qianyuan Sword appeared in Chen Fei’s hand. Drawing the sword from its sheath, a resounding sword cry echoed throughout, with the sword intent soaring into the sky.
After this period of nurturing, the Qianyuan Sword had actually completed its final transformation. It’s just that Chen Fei had been practicing diligently during this time, never giving the Qianyuan Sword a chance to be unsheathed.
A top-grade spiritual treasure!
Sensing the aura of the Qianyuan Sword, Min Yuanmin’s surprise deepened.
He recognized this sword because Chen Fei had used it last time outside Sea Dominion City, but at that time, it was clearly only a middle-grade spiritual treasure.
And now, in just this short period, it had transformed into a top-grade spiritual treasure?
Moreover, judging by its aura, it seemed even stronger than the sword in Min Yuanmin’s hand.
How could Chen Fei have changed so much in just a few months?
“Chi!”
A sword energy slashed out from the Qianyuan Sword, shattering the formation that was a mile away. Qu Mingdao, who maintained the outer part of the formation, couldn’t help but pale, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth.
Qu Mingdao looked towards Chen Fei in the distance, his eyes filled with incredulity.
Breaking a formation with one sword wasn’t particularly surprising, considering the formation’s limited power. However, what was surprising was that the spot hit by the opponent’s sword just now was precisely the formation’s key point..