"Piranhas!!"
At a glance, Yi Tianxing immediately recognized the creatures within the waterspout—an enormous horde of piranhas. These piranhas were massive; a single bite could easily sever an adult's arm and devour it. They could strip a person down to bare bones within minutes—or even seconds—if they swarmed all at once.
Their razor-sharp teeth sent chills down his spine.
Ordinarily, piranhas were nothing to fear. Given Yi Tianxing's cultivation, he could crush them with a mere flick of a finger, reducing them to bloody mist without leaving a trace.However, with his body out of his own control, facing a sky-darkening swarm of piranhas was extremely perilous.These piranhas were even bigger than those he had encountered previously in the river near Xuanhuang Town.
He could see their sharp fangs gleaming coldly as they opened their serrated jaws, an image that instinctively evoked fear.
Even more alarming, the piranhas seemed utterly unaffected by the spinning current of the waterspout. They swam freely, as if moving through a calm river, each one ferocious and unrestrained—true predators of the water.
Their eyes were blood-red—a clear sign of their bloodthirsty nature.
Swish!!
The piranhas moved at terrifying speed within the waterspout. Upon spotting Yi Tianxing, they lunged toward him without hesitation, as if he were the most delectable feast.
Not only him—Golden Roc wasn't spared either.
However, Golden Roc had been separated from Yi Tianxing upon being swept into the waterspout. Some of the piranhas surged toward the Roc, while the rest charged toward Yi Tianxing.The dense swarm of blood-red eyes was enough to make anyone's heart tremble.
Black Armor Life Aperture!!
Without hesitation, Yi Tianxing activated his Black Armor Life Aperture. A suit of black battle armor once again enveloped him, radiating a divine glow.
Crack!!
A piranha fiercely lunged forward, aiming straight for Yi Tianxing's arm. It bit down hard—but the instant its teeth struck, the armor erupted with divine light, unleashing tremendous force.With a crisp series of cracks, the piranha's sharp teeth shattered completely, breaking apart into pieces.
It was crushed purely by the rebound force.
"Die!!"
Even though Yi Tianxing couldn't move his body freely, he could still react instinctively when bitten. A burst of vital blood exploded from his flesh, instantly blasting the piranha into a mist of blood.
Immediately, more piranhas swarmed forward, devouring even the blood mist left behind. These creatures showed no hesitation in consuming their own kind.
"Savage beasts."
The piranhas had no concept of fear. They relentlessly surged toward Yi Tianxing. In the blink of an eye, they had completely engulfed him.
They targeted his arms, legs, chest, throat, and head—biting madly at every vulnerable spot.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Even though Yi Tianxing couldn't control his body, the moment a piranha bit down, the blood energy within him reacted explosively, blasting each attacker into blood mist.
Any piranha that touched him met immediate death.
Soon, the surrounding waters were thick with blood mist.
Rather than deterring the piranhas, the blood only drove them into a greater frenzy. They grew even more savage, their attacks intensifying.
"Huh? Interesting. My Black Armor Life Aperture is strengthening itself."
Amidst the endless barrage of attacks, Yi Tianxing suddenly noticed that the source energy within his Black Armor Life Aperture was increasing. It was naturally drawing in Heaven and Earth Vital Qi, causing his life aperture's foundation to grow stronger and his armor to become even sturdier.
It was akin to tempering steel—hammered again and again in flames until a superior blade was forged.
The very purpose of the Black Armor was defense—to withstand all external assaults.
Now, through endless strikes and battering, it was undergoing a form of baptism, becoming stronger through battle.
The strengthening process was subtle but continuous.
Under the relentless attacks of countless piranhas, every moment was a hammer blow, each one fueling the life aperture's growth.
Within the space of his Black Armor Life Aperture, the once-illusory battle armor grew more solid and real, continuously absorbing Vital Qi, its flames burning brighter.
This was the evolution of a divine ability, naturally triggered through hardship and battle.
However, maintaining the armor under such conditions required a massive expenditure of true qi. Every piranha attack was like tossing fuel onto a blazing fire, accelerating the armor's tempering.
A profound force flowed continuously into the armor, becoming part of it.
…
Elsewhere:
"No! How could there be such a terrifying storm? I can't control my body! So many fish—nooo! I, a mighty cultivator, am going to die... eaten by piranhas?!"
Other cultivators had entered the storm zone as well.
The moment they were swept into the waterspout, they lost all control over their movements. Helplessly spinning, they were instantly beset by piranhas, their bodies torn apart in mere seconds.All that remained was a fleeting burst of white light—the sign of death within this world.
The scene was gruesome and horrifying.
Cultivators who once stood tall and proud were reduced to skeletons in the blink of an eye.
"Get away from me!"
A blonde-haired Western female cultivator was swept in, struggling desperately to steady herself. But her efforts were in vain.No matter what magic she unleashed, it couldn't change her fate—she was bitten to death almost instantly.
Her beauty could not save her from becoming nothing more than a crimson skeleton.
Some cultivators managed to summon protective true qi barriers, briefly keeping the piranhas at bay.But trapped within the waterspout, unable to counterattack, their true qi rapidly drained away.Some, already low on reserves, couldn't sustain their barriers for long. Once the barriers shattered, they too perished in the bloody jaws of the piranhas.
The waterspout kept moving forward, drifting through the ocean.
Yi Tianxing held on, even as his true qi reserves dropped to nearly empty.Then suddenly, without warning, the waterspout dissipated, collapsing into massive waves that fell back into the sea.
Screech!!
Golden Roc's cry echoed through the air—tinged with fear and weakness.
"We made it through the storm. Finally, this ordeal is over."
Yi Tianxing took a deep breath and quickly surveyed the surroundings.Golden Roc, though resilient, looked absolutely miserable—its golden feathers were riddled with bite marks and gashes, like a dog had chewed it up.If not for the Roc's tough feathers, it would likely have been devoured alive.
Golden Roc swooped beneath Yi Tianxing, lifting him onto its back.
"You did well."
Yi Tianxing nodded silently and tossed a Sky Pill into the Roc's mouth.The pill's medicinal power flared instantly, restoring Golden Roc's vitality, its golden glow brightening once again.
With renewed strength, it beat its wings and flew onward at high speed.
Neither of them wished to be caught in another waterspout.
"That waterspout... there was no way to avoid it. Everyone who got swept in lost all control. No matter how strong they were, they would die if they couldn't escape."
Yi Tianxing's heart grew heavier.
Each calamity on this journey was marked by blood and death.
The Wind Disaster, Weak Water River, Flying Cloud Bridge, Misty Swamp, Blade Mountain, Sea of Fire, and now the Death Waterspout—seven ordeals had passed.If the earlier storm counted as another, then it would make eight.
Only four calamities remained ahead.
Yi Tianxing grew even more cautious, knowing the trials to come would only grow deadlier.
Whoosh!!
Suddenly, a chilling wind blew from ahead.
The wind was bone-piercingly cold, so cold that it felt like even blood would freeze.The chill invaded every crevice, causing even Yi Tianxing's muscles to shiver and his bones to groan.
He quickly circulated his true qi to resist the cold.
But even so, the icy chill spread stubbornly.
Ding!!
From within his flesh, the Black Cauldron rang out with a resonant hum.A surge of vital blood erupted from the cauldron, rushing through his flesh.
Instantly, it was as if a furnace had ignited inside him, rapidly driving out the cold.
"Vital blood like a blazing furnace. A strong blood force can be like the scorching sun, melting ice and snow. Against the cold, blood is even more effective than true qi."
A sudden realization dawned upon Yi Tianxing.
With a mere thought, he accelerated the circulation of his vital blood, stoking his internal flames ever hotter.