An endless expanse of azure waves. Billows surged endlessly, crashing against the rocks with roars that shook heaven and earth.

Crabs scuttled through crevices, barnacles and oysters clung densely to the stone surfaces, and sea cucumbers wriggled in the clear water, expelling pale greenish-white mucus. In the sky above, rock eagles glided.

What a magnificent scene of boundless blue sky meeting the vast, desolate ocean! Suddenly, from the not-so-distant sea, two figures abruptly emerged.

Around the neck of one of the figures hung a small pig, as lovely and white as freshly fallen snow. They trod upon the seawater, making their way toward the nearest island.

Their movements appeared unhurried, yet their speed was peerless; in but a moment, they were ascending higher and higher. What started as merely their heads breaking the surface soon became half their bodies visible, then reaching their knees, and finally, even the tops of their feet were directly planted upon the vast ocean itself.

They strode as if walking on solid ground, rather than traversing the immense, rolling sea surface. After only a brief time, they finally reached the island.

These two naturally were He Yiming and Bai Lingba. Ever since their small boat succumbed to the impact of the Water Force and shattered, He Yiming’s process of comprehending the Water Force had been violently interrupted.

Such opportunities for sudden enlightenment were exceedingly rare, and He Yiming’s primary objective for journeying to the East Sea was precisely to gain insight into the Water Force. Seeing the dawn of understanding so close, only to have it snatched away—even the most magnanimous of people could not avoid feeling a touch of despondency.

After being tossed into the sea, He Yiming lost all interest in struggling against the massive waves and plunged straight beneath the surface. However, beneath the ocean lay a world of strange wonder.

Although the surface was a maelstrom of churning waves ten thousand zhang high, the seabed was remarkably tranquil. Apart from the almost unbearable pressure, one could hardly imagine the conditions above.

The upper and lower realms were like two distinct worlds, causing He Yiming to marvel. After admiring the underwater scenery for a good while, he casually set off in a certain direction.

Bai Lingba and the Treasure Pig naturally followed closely, never leaving his side. He walked for an unknown time, only surfacing when the oppressive gloom in his heart had entirely vanished.

To his surprise, the moment he broke the surface, he saw several islands faintly connected into a continuous stretch ahead. Having suffered tribulations in the ocean, He Yiming felt an overwhelming sense of kinship upon sighting land and headed without hesitation for the nearest small isle.

The instant his feet settled firmly upon the island’s surface, He Yiming let out a long breath, his chest feeling suddenly vast and open. Among the Five Elements, he had already condensed three Visible Flowers.

Though he cultivated all Five Elements concurrently, condensing even one more Visible Flower would not be an easy task. After all, the further one progressed with the Five Elements Flowers, the exponentially greater the difficulty in refinement became; often, immense effort yielded nothing.

Though He Yiming firmly believed he would eventually achieve the summit of the Five Elements Convergence, the timing of that attainment remained unknown to anyone. Scanning the shoreline, he observed that this small island beneath his feet was undeniably the smallest in the vicinity, flat and level, visible from end to end at a single glance.

On such a minuscule island, let alone supporting human habitation, it was unlikely even flora and fauna could survive. On the barren stretch of rock, bleached by the scorching sun, there was nothing else.

However, near this tiny island, there were two islands that could be considered immense. Though too distant to discern their full scope, dense jungles covered the terrain upon those two landmasses.

“Brother Bai, is your Thousand-Mile Eye still functional?” He Yiming asked casually. Bai Lingba offered no reply, simply moving directly in front of He Yiming.

The back of his head once again transformed into a screen. The back of his head possessed the function of adjusting focal length.

When He Yiming first encountered this, he couldn't help but be astonished, but now he was quite accustomed to it. Zooming in on the islands on both sides—both truly colossal—the topography of the left island shifted at its peak.

A spur range extended into the sea, a rugged path cleaved its way across the cliff face, revealing a continuous series of sharp mountain passes. The steep slopes, covered in low-growing trees and scrub, were dotted with jagged rocks as sharp as knife blades.

The right island appeared far more tranquil; at least its outward appearance was nowhere near as dramatic. Yet, He Yiming knew that what he was seeing was merely one side of the island; without seeing the whole picture, no concrete judgment could be rendered.

“Gua… Gua…” A sound of extreme ferocity suddenly erupted from the left island, followed by a colossal, monstrous bird flapping its wings and soaring toward them. This was a great bird, about one zhang in length.

Upon its neck grew a face resembling that of an owl, and when its wings spread, they gave the impression of nearly obscuring the heavens. Its cry was full of vitality; while perhaps not as terrifying as the great pythons of Ghost Cry Ridge, it still instilled a sense of anxiety and shortness of breath in anyone who heard it.

He Yiming’s brow furrowed slightly. He detected a hint of malice in the sound, and through Bai Lingba’s Thousand-Mile Eye surveillance, He Yiming clearly saw the great bird high in the air, its eyes flickering with a savage cast.

These eyes held a flavor of brutality and the scent of death. Rubbing his scalp, He Yiming did not immediately focus on the strange bird, but instead meticulously recalled the Record of Earthly Treasures.

Moments later, his eyes brightened; he had identified the origin of the monstrous fowl. This bird was called a Black Vulture, a flying spirit beast of inherently savage disposition.

They possessed an enormous range and were not picky about living conditions. They could be spotted in the East, the West, or overseas.

The only thing they utterly despised was the severe cold of the North, so these powerful spirit beasts were virtually unseen in northern and northwestern regions. These spirit beasts naturally possessed formidable divine abilities, and what made them even more intimidating was that they were rarely social creatures.

This meant that if one Black Vulture was spotted in a location, there was a high probability of seeing a second, a third, or even more companions. This Black Vulture spread its wings, circled once overhead, and then suddenly dove.

As it passed directly above the heads of the three—He Yiming, Bai Lingba, and the pig—it abruptly opened its beak and spat out a cyan wind blade, which hurtled down like an arrow. He Yiming mused internally, As expected of a spirit beast; despite its vicious nature, it is quite intelligent.

Upon seeing the sudden appearance of two people and one pig, it did not immediately descend to attack with its massive body as a weapon, but first used its breath for a test strike. However, although this Black Vulture was a spirit beast, its power did not even match that of the former Red Wolf King; He Yiming certainly could not afford to take it lightly.

He allowed the wind blade to slash downward. Just as it was about to reach their heads, it vanished without a sound, as if it had never existed.

The Black Vulture circling in the air seemed stunned for a moment, then immediately flapped its wings and flew back toward the island on the left. It lacked the courage for a second assault.

He Yiming’s surprised gaze followed its retreat, secretly finding the Black Vulture excessively clever. With a faint smile, He Yiming remarked, “Brother Bai, this creature is called a Black Vulture.

They enjoy living in groups, usually four or five in a nest. This one took a silent loss, it's likely gone to summon reinforcements.” Bai Lingba nodded, “Their strength is not great; they cannot threaten your safety.” He Yiming chuckled dryly.

He was now a dignified Venerable One; never mind possessing the replicated divine artifact Five Elements Ring, even if he wielded a common divine weapon, these few petty spirit beasts could never harm him. The only issue that troubled him was that Black Vultures were creatures with wings; they could soar freely in the high skies, whereas he was confined to the ground.

Although they could not harm him, once they flew high above, he would be equally helpless. Yet, after a long pause, the left island remained eerily silent.

Not only did no flocks of Black Vultures appear, but even the single vulture that had retreated was nowhere in sight. He Yiming stared perplexedly for a long time, his mind filled with suspicion.

Could the Record of Earthly Treasures have contained an error? Still, that Black Vulture had launched a killing blow immediately upon arrival; facing an ordinary person or even a standard Innate Realm expert, that breath attack would have been difficult to handle.

This indicated that the creature was indeed naturally fierce, but for some unknown reason, it had become anticlimactic and retreated without further action this time. Just as He Yiming was caught in uncertainty, a long neighing cry rang out from the island on the right.

This long cry was vigorous and powerful. Despite the great distance, it rang out as clearly as the collision of metal and stone, audible to everyone.

He Yiming’s eyes lit up. Upon hearing that neigh, he immediately thought of the Scarlet Silk Steeds back in his hometown.

During his travels across the world, he naturally couldn't bring the Scarlet Silk Steeds with him; he had left them at He Family Village. It had been a year since he last saw them, and he wondered if they were well.

The neigh sounded again. He Yiming’s ears twitched slightly, and a look of astonishment gradually emerged on his face.

He could already recognize that the source of the long neigh was also a spirit beast, and this spirit beast was currently engaged in a fierce battle with some other creature, which was why it kept issuing those cries to vent some emotion. He Yiming’s gaze flickered between the two islands.

He instantly understood that the reason the Black Vultures had changed their behavior was likely related to the creature residing on the right island. He pondered for a moment, then lightly patted Bai Lingba.

The back of Bai Lingba’s head slowly reverted to its normal state, instantly restoring completely. “Brother Bai, let’s go take a look over there,” He Yiming said softly, pointing toward the eastern island.

Although he did not know what spirit beast was issuing the long neigh, any creature capable of causing the Black Vultures to deviate from their ingrained habits must certainly be a powerful spirit beast. Bai Lingba nodded once, and the pair—man and pig—re-entered the sea, heading rapidly toward the right island.

Ps: A new week, and White Crane’s efforts begin again. Five chapters today, asking for monthly votes, thank you...