Longevity: Starting as a menial servant in the Green Wood Sect

Chapter 99 The Water Ghost's Noose

The icy, bone-chilling seawater instantly engulfed my mouth and nose, and the world became murky and dull at that moment.

The moment he entered the water, Gu An did not rush to put up a water-repelling shield like ordinary cultivators. Instead, he took a deep breath of the seawater, which was full of salty and yin energy.

If it were anyone else, taking that bite would surely cause their lungs to burn with pain, and their meridians to stiffen due to the poison entering their bodies. But Gu An's dark gold meridians, which had been reshaped and mutated by the dragon soul, were now trembling greedily like a withered tree that had been parched for a long time and was now receiving rain.

The wisps of water-evil spiritual energy contained in the seawater surged wildly into his pores, mouth, and nose, quickly transforming into the dark blue Azure Sea Dragon Wood True Qi, which roared and surged within his body.

Gu An felt his body lighten, and the heaviness and sluggishness he had felt on land due to his serious injuries vanished completely. A faint, dragon-scale-like blue shadow appeared on his skin, and he became incredibly agile in the water, like a dragon returning to the sea, instantly diving into the deep water.

He had not forgotten Shen Wan in his arms.

This woman is now a burden, but in this desperate situation, she is also his only ally.

With a flick of his legs, Gu An moved like a ghost, tracing an arc as he stuffed the already unconscious Shen Wan into a crevice in a rock covered with seaweed. He then casually grabbed a few clumps of huge black algae to cover her up completely.

After doing all this, he slowly turned around, his eyes, which shimmered with a faint blue light in the water, staring intently at the white ball of light above that was rapidly descending.

That's Zhao Li.

"Thump!"

Zhao Li followed closely behind, breaking through the water. As a deacon of the Black Shark Gang at the seventh level of Qi Refining, he naturally possessed remarkable swimming skills. The moment he entered the water, he skillfully performed a hand seal, and a layer of pale white water-repelling light shield instantly expanded, pushing the surrounding seawater three feet away.

"You little bastard, let's see how long you can hold it in!"

With his divine sense blocked, Zhao Li could only search the murky seawater with his naked eyes. Holding the Water-Splitting Dagger, his eyes were filled with murderous intent. In his view, Gu An, with his severely injured body, jumping into the sea was tantamount to courting death. As long as the other party couldn't hold his breath and surfaced for air, that would be the time for him to reap his life.

However, the next moment, Zhao Li's pupils suddenly contracted.

About five zhang below him, in the deep water, a blurry black shadow was silently suspended.

There is no water-repellent shield, and no protective aura.

That rogue cultivator with the rotten face looked like a real water ghost, letting his long, black hair float wildly in the water. His pale eyes were coldly staring at me through the murky seawater, a mocking smile even playing on his lips.

"Not using the Water Avoidance Technique? You're asking for death!"

Zhao Li sneered inwardly, assuming that Gu An was unable to maintain the protective barrier due to depleted spiritual energy. Spiritual energy surged beneath his feet, and he became like a white torpedo, slicing through the water and leaving a sharp white line that pierced straight into Gu An's heart.

This strike was so powerful and heavy that it even created a thunderous sound in the water.

Gu An looked at Zhao Li, who was rapidly approaching, without the slightest panic in his eyes.

On land, he might not be a match for this Qi Refining Level 7 expert.

But underwater—that's his territory.

Just as the water-splitting dagger was about to strike, Gu An's body twisted in an extremely strange way.

Without any assistance, without any warning.

He was like a slippery eel, his body pressed tightly against the sharp edge of the water-splitting spikes, gliding past them by the narrowest of margins. The faint, ethereal blue scales swirled across his body, minimizing the resistance of the water flow.

"What?!"

Zhao Li's attack missed its mark, and he was greatly alarmed. Although he could move freely in the water, the resistance of the seawater made him more than 30% slower than on land. But how could this kid be even more agile than he was on the boat?

Before he could change his move, Gu An had already swum to his side and behind.

They did not rush to attack.

Gu An gently stirred the water with both hands.

The seemingly gentle movement triggered a dramatic change in the surrounding undercurrents.

[Plant Affinity: Manipulation]

Deep in the ocean, the black seaweed that had been swaying gently with the currents seemed to hear the king's command at this moment.

"Splash!"

Dozens of thick, arm-like, and barbed seaweed sprouted out of the seabed crevices without warning, like dozens of venomous snakes ready to devour their prey, instantly coiling around Zhao Li's legs and waist.

"A trivial skill!"

Zhao Li snorted coldly. Although he was surprised that Gu An could control the water plants, he didn't take him seriously. A flash of cold light appeared on the Water-Splitting Thorn in his hand, and with a surge of spiritual energy, several sharp water blades shot out, instantly cutting the entangled water plants into pieces.

However, the moment he cut the water plants, the surrounding water suddenly became murky.

Using the seaweed as cover, Gu An had already kicked the silt layer on the seabed.

Large swaths of black silt rose into the air, instantly turning the water within a radius of ten feet so dark that one could not see their own hand in front of their face.

Zhao Li's gaze was instantly taken away.

In the deep sea of ​​this ghostly fog zone, Zhao Li's divine sense was already severely suppressed, and now that he couldn't even see with his eyes, he was immediately put on the defensive.

"You bastard! Come out and fight me to the death if you dare!"

A sense of irritation rose in Zhao Li's heart. He wildly waved the water-splitting dagger in his hand to protect his vital points, while simultaneously expanding his water-repelling shield in an attempt to push away the muddy water.

But what he didn't know was that the real killing blow had only just begun.

In murky waters, Gu An is like a patient hunter.

He held his breath, and the mutated meridians within his body slowly circulated, perfectly blending his own aura with the surrounding cold seawater.

His fingers flicked gently in the water.

Several thin, invisible strands of "Mysterious Yin Silk" silently laid a net of death around Zhao Li, following the direction of the water flow.

This Xuan Yin Silk is a mutated variety that he carefully cultivated in Youying Valley. It can disappear into water and is extremely tough.

"That's about it."

A cold glint flashed in Gu An's eyes.

He suddenly pulled on the main thread in his hand.

"collapse!"

A dull, taut sound rang out in the water.

Zhao Li felt the water around him suddenly freeze, and then an extremely sharp cutting sensation came from all directions.

"not good!"

Zhao Li reacted extremely quickly, and his protective aura erupted instantly.

"Sizzle sizzle—"

'

The Xuan Yin Silk cut into his water-repelling shield, producing a teeth-grinding scraping sound. The originally tough light shield actually developed deep cracks under the cutting of the Xuan Yin Silk, and seawater rushed in wildly along the cracks.

"Open it!"

Zhao Li roared, unleashing his powerful spiritual energy at the seventh level of Qi Refining without reservation.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

Several strands of Xuan Yin silk could not withstand such a violent spiritual energy impact and broke one after another.

Zhao Li, disheveled and in a sorry state, had finally broken through the trap.

Enraged, he used the direction of the force transmitted from the silk thread to instantly pinpoint Gu An's location.

"Found you!"

Zhao Li's eyes were bloodshot. No longer caring about the consumption of spiritual power, the light of the Water-Splitting Dagger in his hand suddenly increased. He lunged forward and used the Black Shark Gang's ultimate technique - "Angry Shark Heart-Piercing Drill".

He spun rapidly in the water, creating a terrifying spiral of water force, determined to tear Gu An to pieces.

That attack was too fast and too fierce.

Gu An had just retrieved the broken Xuan Yin Silk; his old power was exhausted, and new power had not yet been generated.

There is no way to avoid it.

"Then let's meet them head-on!"

A ruthless glint flashed in Gu An's eyes.

Instead of retreating, he charged forward into the terrifying spiral of water.

The "Hundred Refinements Golden Body Technique" within his body was activated to its limit, and his skin instantly turned into a dark blue copper skin, his muscles tightening like steel bars.

"Bang!"

A muffled thud.

Zhao Li slammed his palm hard into Gu An's chest.

Although the attack of the Water-Splitting Thrust was avoided, the palm strike, which contained the full power of a seventh-level Qi Refining cultivator, was still terrifying enough to inspire despair.

"Snap!"

A clear sound of bones cracking echoed in the water.

Gu An's sternum collapsed instantly, two ribs broke off, and the broken bones even pierced into his lungs.

"puff!"

A mouthful of blood mixed with fragments of internal organs spurted from Gu An's mouth, staining the seawater in front of him red.

A ferocious, ecstatic look appeared on Zhao Li's face.

Even the toughest man would be crippled if struck by this blow!

However, the smile on his face froze the next moment.

Because he discovered that Gu An was not knocked away by this palm strike.

On the contrary, Gu An used the force of the palm strike to arch his body backward, dissipating most of the force, and then his hands gripped Zhao Li's wrists tightly like iron clamps!

"you----"

Zhao Li was shocked and tried to break free, but he met Gu An's eyes, which looked particularly ferocious in the blood.

In those eyes, there was no pain, only a mad urge to perish together.

"Got you?"

Gu An grinned, revealing a mouthful of teeth stained red with blood.

With a flick of his right wrist, the broken sword "Piercing Clouds," which had been hidden in his sleeve and was ready to strike, pierced fiercely towards Zhao Li's water-repelling shield with a resolute blue light!

This sword strike gathered all the remaining spiritual power of the Azure Sea Dragonwood within Gu An's body, and was also mixed with the ferocity aroused by the pain of his broken bones.

"break!"

"Snap!"

The water-repelling shield, already riddled with cracks from the Xuan Yin Silk, finally succumbed to the strain and shattered under the weight of this sword strike!

"boom!"

The moment the protective shield shattered, the immense water pressure, dozens of feet deep, surged towards Zhao Li like a collapsing mountain.

"Gurgle"

Caught off guard, Zhao Li choked on a mouthful of seawater, causing his previously flowing spiritual energy to stagnate instantly.

For cultivators accustomed to fighting within protective shields, the sudden loss of protection and the fear of facing the pressure of the deep sea is deadly.

For Gu An, who had long been accustomed to the water pressure and even considered himself a water ghost, this was a golden opportunity.

"die!"

Gu An released the broken sword and, like a giant python hunting its prey, instantly coiled around Zhao Li's body.

His legs were tightly wrapped around Zhao Li's waist and abdomen, and his arms were wrapped around Zhao Li's neck from behind.

Naked choke!

This is the most primitive, barbaric, but also the most effective killing technique.

"Uh... let go... let go..."

Zhao Li struggled desperately, frantically scratching at Gu An's arm with both hands, his nails digging deep into Gu An's flesh, leaving bloody grooves.

He tried to use his spiritual power to shake Gu An away, but in this close-quarters combat and under the pressure of the water, he couldn't use his magic at all.

Gu An remained expressionless, letting Zhao Li scratch him.

At this moment, the dark gold meridians in his body throbbed wildly, and streams of terrifying, monstrous power belonging to body cultivators surged into his arms.

"Crunch—crunch—"

Zhao Li's neck groaned under the strain.

His face turned purplish-brown from lack of oxygen and blood congestion, his eyes bulged, his tongue lolled out, and his hands waved weakly, trying to grasp at even the slightest straw.

But this is the deep sea.

Aside from the icy water, there were only Gu An's arms, which were as hard as iron.

Gu An did not end the battle there.

He gripped Zhao Li tightly, his body suddenly plunging downwards, dragging this still-struggling Qi Refining Level 7 expert down into the deeper, darker, and more terrifyingly high-pressure seabed.

Ten zhang — Twenty zhang —

As the depth increases, the water pressure increases exponentially.

Zhao Li's struggles grew weaker and weaker, and the light in his eyes gradually faded.

at last.

After a series of violent convulsions, Zhao Li's legs suddenly kicked out and then went completely limp.

His head drooped limply to one side, his eyes, filled with resentment and bitterness, forever frozen in the dark depths of the sea.

died.

An elite deacon at the seventh level of Qi Refining was strangled to death in the deep sea by a "water ghost" at the fifth level of Qi Refining.

Gu An did not immediately let go.

He held that position for a good dozen breaths until he was sure Zhao Li's heartbeat had completely stopped before slowly loosening his stiff arms.

"call----"

Gu An exhaled a string of bubbles, feeling as if all the bones in his body were about to fall apart.

A piercing pain shot through my chest from the broken bones; every breath felt like swallowing a knife.

But he dared not linger.

He reached into Zhao Li's arms and rummaged around for a while, pulling out a heavy storage bag and a token engraved with a black shark pattern.

This is the Black Shark Gang's deacon's order, and also a credential for passing certain checkpoints.

"We succeeded."

Gu An stuffed the things into his arms and prepared to float up to catch Shen Wan.

Sudden.

A chilling sensation shot straight up from the soles of my feet to the top of my head without warning.

The chill did not come from the low temperature of the seawater, but from something—a colossal creature awakened by the smell of blood.

Gu An suddenly lowered his head.

In the deepest darkness below him, two enormous, eerie green lights, like lanterns, were slowly beginning to illuminate.

Those were a pair of eyes.

A pair of beastly eyes filled with savagery, greed, and the terrifying pressure of a Foundation Establishment stage cultivator!

"Second-tier demonic beast————"

Gu An's heart skipped a beat.

The battle just now had resulted in too much bloodshed. Zhao Li's struggle and burst of spiritual power before his death finally attracted the true overlord of this ghostly mist area.

"run!"

Without any hesitation, and ignoring the excruciating pain in his chest, Gu An kicked off Zhao Li's corpse with both legs and, using the recoil, shot upwards like an arrow.

And behind him.

The enormous black shadow slowly rose, and a gaping maw full of fangs opened in the darkness, swallowing Zhao Li's corpse whole. Then, its eerie green eyes locked onto Gu An, who was fleeing.

"roar-!!!"

A deep, thunderous roar resounded from the seabed, stirring up a thousand layers of undercurrents.