Chapter 1019: Ethereal Luck Fluctuating Irregularly
“It looks like another warship is coming from the front!” Ao Jiao said.
Xiao Chen acknowledged her without glancing at it. In the past few days, several warships had passed by. However, after taking a few looks at him, these warships just ignored him and continued on.
He was in no hurry. Since there were warships passing by, as long as he drifted in the direction of these warships, he would eventually come to somewhere populated.
“This warship seems to be heading for you. I will enter the Immortal Spirit Ring first.” Ao Jiao’s figure flashed, turning into a beam of light entering the Immortal Spirit Ring.
Xiao Chen sighed as he raised his head. This warship was entirely purple, made out of Purple Cloud Rock. It was huge but looked strangely streamlined and beautiful.
As a peak Sage Grade warship, the workmanship was pretty good for such a large vessel. However, the craft was not comparable to the warships Xiao Chen obtained from the Seven Distinguished Dragon Marquises.
If compared to the Dragon’s Gate’s warship, it was like mud to clouds.
A banner raised on the bow of this warship had an ancient “Mo” character embroidered on it.
“Mo? This is a rather rare family name,” Xiao Chen muttered to himself.
When the purple warship approached, Xiao Chen heard some sounds coming from the deck.
“Miss, it is just an unremarkable Martial Monarch. Furthermore, he is significantly injured. He probably was overconfident and failed in his exploration at the Forbidden Sea.”
“Ask him where he is going. If it is on our way, we can give him a ride.”
“Miss, there is no need to care about this stranger. Furthermore, we are on an important mission and cannot allow any accidents.”
“It’s fine. Uncle Wang, go on and ask him. A Martial Monarch would not be of much threat to us.”
Based on the voices, there was one elderly and one youth. The girl’s voice sounded very elegant, like flowing mountain springs, and very pleasing to the ears. She had to be a beauty.
After the two spoke, an old man who appeared to be a steward, said rudely, “Little friend, we are going to Starry Cloud Island. If it is on the way, we can give you a ride.”
Xiao Chen could not be bothered with this old man, ignoring him all the while. The other party was very rude. If he had to bend to every whim of this person when he boarded, he might as well drift longer.
Seeing Xiao Chen ignore him, the old man got angry. He scolded Xiao Chen for not knowing how to appreciate kindness and withdrew.
After that, the old man said a few words to the girl in a low voice.
Soon, a pretty figure appeared at the bow and casually glanced at Xiao Chen.
Xiao Chen took a graceful look at her. This girl wore a veil, so her countenance could not be clearly seen. However, his gaze lingered on this girl’s chest, not shifting away.
The girl’s expression turned cold, and she promptly withdrew. The warship quickly veered away and ignored Xiao Chen.
Hehe! Idiot Master, since when did you become so lecherous, scaring a girl away? Ao Jiao giggled in the Immortal Spirit Ring. However, her figure is pretty good, just slightly worse than mine.
Xiao Chen laughed helplessly. It looked like there was a misunderstanding. However, no matter what, he could not miss out on this warship.
He pushed off the piece of driftwood and spread his arms out, advancing rapidly like a flood dragon. Then, he descended towards the deck of the warship.
“How dare you barge in? Kill him!”
The old man who looked like a steward snorted coldly. Two Inferior Grade Martial Sages immediately leaped out and blocked Xiao Chen in the air. They revealed their killing Qi, and each executed a move at him.
These two people were cold and merciless, radiating murderous intent. One used a saber and the other a sword. Heavenly Sage Laws as thick as an arm waved behind them, wildly sucking in the Spiritual Energy in the air.
If Xiao Chen were an ordinary Martial Monarch, these two’s lightning-fast strikes would have instantly killed him.
Naturally, that did not happen to Xiao Chen, who had rich combat experience and a vast worldview. Even if he was currently only a Martial Monarch, he did not have to use his physical strength.
He could quickly find an opening and easily slip through it.
Everyone on the deck revealed astonished gazes. Xiao Chen seemed to have predicted the trajectories of the two’s attacks. As he swung his arms, he moved like a dragon without deviating from his path, landing directly on the deck.
This performance gave the feeling that the two Inferior Grade Martial Sages were like air, allowing Xiao Chen to pass right through them.
“Plop!”
When Xiao Chen landed, before he could get his footing, he felt dizzy, and pain came from his damaged meridians.
His expression changed as he lost control of his body and fell to the deck.
Damn, I forgot that I’m in a weakened state. I should not use my energy so casually. I need to wait at least until my meridians recover, before circulating any Quintessence.
Those earlier two moves looked very simple and ordinary. However, they involved strong explosive power released in short bursts calculated to precision.
Those moves required not only high concentration but also rapid bursts of Quintessence. The Mental Energy and Quintessence he expended were enormous.
Xiao Chen’s old injuries instantly flared up. Previously, he was already very weak and needed to nourish his body, so problems immediately appeared.
Uncle Wang initially felt some fear over Xiao Chen’s miraculous arrival. When he suddenly saw Xiao Chen fall over in such a miserable fashion, he could not help but laugh. “I thought it was some powerful genius.”
Even as a Superior Grade Martial Sage, Uncle Wang could not understand the performance that Xiao Chen displayed, that very fine control.
He had thought that this Xiao Chen’s Movement Technique was quite exquisite. However, what happened after that took him aback, nearly scaring him.
“Ka ca! Ka ca!”
Xiao Chen just turned over, and weapons flashing with cold light appeared at his neck. The cultivators on the warship surrounded him.
The weapons pressed close to Xiao Chen’s neck, almost cutting into his skin. If he made any strange moves, they could immediately chop his head off, leaving him without an intact corpse.
When Xiao Chen looked at this formation, he could not help but smile bitterly.
Since his debut, it had been many years since he had been in such a situation, having so many weapons placed against his neck.
Furthermore, this was done by a group of Martial Monarchs that Xiao Chen did not consider important. However, the current situation was extremely dangerous for him.
With more than a dozen weapons against his neck, if the other party wanted to kill him, even Ao Jiao would not have enough time to possess his body to save him.
However, given Xiao Chen’s physical body, if these people did not use their full power, they would not be able to kill him in one strike. Nevertheless, they could inflict further injuries on him.
“Tell me honestly, are you from the Liu Clan? What is your purpose here?”
Uncle Wang did not like Xiao Chen in the first place. After he suppressed Xiao Chen, he immediately interrogated him.
Xiao Chen looked around and casually sized up the cultivators on the warship. Aside from four Martial Sages, they were all Martial Monarchs. He guessed that this clan was about Rank 6.
In the Kunlun Continent, they would only be considered a third-rate faction, of no influence there. He could assume that it was also merely a tiny clan in the Heavenly Starry Ocean.
To the old man’s question, Xiao Chen replied calmly, “Old sir, why do you think that I, a Martial Monarch, have a purpose in waiting here? All I seek is to hitch a ride. How about you give me one?”
“This old man already offered you that earlier. Are you deaf?”
Xiao Chen smiled and said, “I used my actions to reply to old sir, yet old sir welcomed me with swords and sabers. What do you mean by that?”
There was nothing wrong with Xiao Chen’s words, no holes in them. However, Uncle Wang kept feeling that Xiao Chen had other motives. Seeing that Xiao Chen was indeed just a Martial Monarch, Uncle Wang waved his hand and said, “Toss him off the warship. There is no need to care about him.”
The people around immediately put away their weapons and tied up Xiao Chen. Then, they prepared to toss him off without any hint of politeness.
“Wait up. Since we are going the same way, we can just give him a ride. We can let him go after we arrive at Starry Cloud Island.”
The pleasant-sounding voice came from the warship’s hold once again. The cultivators stopped and looked at Uncle Wang.
Uncle Wang muttered under his breath for a moment. However, his Young Miss had always been kindhearted. He waved his hand and said, “Clear out a room in the store for him. Let me warn you: you’d best stay in the room, and don’t mess around. Otherwise, I’ll just toss you back into the sea.”
Xiao Chen performed a cupped-fist salute in thanks. He did indeed need a quiet environment to recuperate properly.
“Go in, then. This is your room now. If there is no reason, you’d best not come out.” The two Mo Clan cultivators ushered Xiao Chen into a room and gave him a warning before quickly leaving.
Naturally, a room cleared out in the storeroom was not very good. Aside from a simple bed, it was filled with miscellaneous items that had not been moved away.
A light flickered on Xiao Chen’s forehead. He activated the will of ice in his sea of consciousness, and a cold wind blew, tidying up and cleaning the room. After that, he withdrew it.
Right now, the immortal will of thunder was indistinct and difficult to use. The only thing he could use freely was the will of ice that he had not looked highly upon before.
“How are you? Everything alright?!”
Ao Jiao came out from the Immortal Spirit Ring. Then, she held Xiao Chen’s wrist with one hand.
The earlier scene had frightened Ao Jiao.
Xiao Chen smiled and let Ao Jiao check his injuries.
“That’s good. You should not rashly rush into a fight. Otherwise, if you did, with the injuries of your meridians, it would be problematic.”
Ao Jiao withdrew her hand and heaved a sigh of relief.
“Oh, by the way, why must we board this warship? Could it be that you really…” Ao Jiao started joking, returning to her old self when she saw Xiao Chen was fine.
“How can that be? There should be a pendant under her clothes at her chest. It feels like it was refined from one of the seven thrones.”
Ao Jiao exclaimed in shock, “That can’t be! It’s too much of a coincidence.”
Xiao Chen said seriously, “That is most likely the case. The three thrones in the Cycle Banner all had intense reactions. As long as I can get a look at it, I will know for sure.”
There were seven thrones: Massacre, Destruction, Ruin, Pain, Grief, Despair, and Death. Xiao Chen had already collected three: Massacre, Death, and Ruin.
He also knew the whereabouts of the Despair Throne, which was in a forbidden land in the Southern Sea.
If the pendant was actually refined from one of the thrones, it would be either Grief, Pain, or Destruction.
Ao Jiao smiled and said, “In that case, your luck has really turned. The misfortune from the Sea Monarch Crown is completely gone; there is no need to worry anymore.”
Xiao Chen nodded. After a bit of thought, he said, “I will treat my injuries first. Go and find out which part of the Heavenly Starry Ocean this is. Don’t reveal yourself.”
Ao Jiao smiled faintly, and her figure flashed, turning into a beam of light, and left through a crack in the door.
---
At this moment, in the key control room of the warship, the veiled Miss Mo and Uncle Wang discussed the warship’s newest passenger.
“Uncle Wang, in your opinion, was that person’s dodging the two killing moves a coincidence or was there more to it?”
Uncle Wang smiled and said, “It is definitely a coincidence. That kind of precise dodging is so exact in terms of technique and judgment that even I can’t do it. How could an insignificant Martial Monarch be able to?”