Deep beneath the river surface—
a terrifying beast, over thirty zhang long, surged through the water.
It slammed into the Blood Stele ship again.
BOOM!!
The vessel rocked violently.
Xia Wei lost balance and was thrown straight toward the river.
Lin Ye lifted his hand.
A wave of qi struck her midair and sent her flying back onto the deck.
THUD!
Xia Wei crashed hard, pain exploding through her body.
For a moment she felt like her bones had been scattered.
This was the most severe injury she'd taken all year.
Lin Ye's expression didn't change.
He drew the Cold-Iron Sword and swung.
A sword qi cleaved the river surface apart like splitting a mountain.
The beast beneath the water sensed danger immediately—
and fled downward.
But Lin Ye didn't let it go.
He jumped.
And plunged into the river.
His qi erupted around him, pushing water away as if his body was a moving barrier.
Lin Ye was no stranger to water combat.
In the depths, he saw it clearly.
A Fourth-Rank feral beast—
Six-Legged Giant Lizard.
Its tail alone was ten zhang long.
Its swimming speed was terrifying.
But Lin Ye burst with full Star River Realm power.
BOOM!
He shot forward like a blood-red comet.
In less than ten seconds, he caught up.
"Shatter-Calamity Claw!"
He seized the beast's tail.
A massive force tried to shake him off—
but Lin Ye's grip didn't budge.
His claw dropped.
SLASH!
The tail was severed in one strike.
The beast roared in agony.
Without its tail, its speed collapsed instantly.
It surged upward, desperate to escape.
Lin Ye's eyes narrowed.
"So weak…"
"This isn't wild."
He chased it.
The Six-Legged Giant Lizard burst out of the water…
and crawled onto a large ship nearly the size of the Blood Stele vessel.
A man stood on that ship, his face twisting with rage when he saw the lizard bleeding.
"Who did this?!"
"Who dared cut off my Six-Legged Giant Lizard's tail?!"
A powerful aura erupted, shaking the waters within a thousand meters.
Waves exploded into towering curtains.
Then—
Lin Ye rose from the river.
He stepped into the air, standing above the water like a god.
A ship floated ahead.
Its sail was raised.
Its banner displayed a Hundred Beasts emblem.
Xia Wei's pupils shrank.
"H-Hundred Beast Sect…"
A top-tier sect of the Lowerstream Lands.
Wind-Thunder Mystic Sect could be considered a small overlord within Wind-Thunder River Domain…
but compared to the entire Lowerstream?
They were barely ranked among thousands.
But now that Lin Ye existed…
everything changed.
Hundred Beast Sect wasn't just strong.
They possessed a legendary beast-taming technique.
They could command feral beasts as weapons.
This Six-Legged Giant Lizard was one of theirs.
They released it to scout—
and to eat anything unfortunate enough to be in its path.
It didn't matter what the beast devoured.
If you got eaten?
That only meant you were weak.
But if you injured their beast?
That meant you insulted Hundred Beast Sect.
And that?
Was unforgivable.
The man on the ship wore brocade robes.
He stared coldly at Lin Ye.
"So it was you."
"I am the Hall Master of Earth Fiend Hall, Hundred Beast Sect."
"State your name."
Lin Ye didn't even react.
"Your beast rammed my ship."
The Hall Master sneered.
"And?"
"Even if it sank your ship, so what?"
"Now you cut off its tail."
He smiled cruelly.
"I won't ask much."
"I'll just cut off your arms."
"We of Hundred Beast Sect are always fair. Always reasonable."
Lin Ye almost laughed.
So much talk.
He should've known better than to waste words.
BOOM!
His Star River Realm aura exploded.
His Star Bridge surged into the heavens.
The pressure slammed down like a mountain.
Star River Sixth Layer.
The Hall Master's face drained of blood.
Earth Fiend Hall Master's cultivation was only at Heavenly Phenomenon Ninth Layer.
He wasn't even Star River Realm.
Against Lin Ye?
He was doomed.
Lin Ye swung his sword.
A single slash—
SPLIT the ship in half.
BOOM!!
The vessel exploded.
Hundred Beast Sect disciples screamed and jumped into the water.
The Hall Master leapt away—
But a moment later—
Lin Ye's hand closed around his throat.
"You wanted to cut off my arms?"
Lin Ye smiled coldly.
His grip tightened.
The Hall Master felt all his qi cut off instantly.
In Lin Ye's hand…
he became a powerless mortal.
"D-don't…!"
CRACK.
Lin Ye snapped his neck.
Then tossed the corpse into the river.
He casually removed the storage ring too.
The disciples still struggling in the water didn't matter.
Killing them was pointless.
But the Six-Legged Giant Lizard?
That belonged to him now.
One sword strike—
and the beast was split in half.
Blood poured into the river.
The remaining Hundred Beast Sect disciples screamed and swam away like madmen.
Because in water—
blood attracted far worse monsters.
Lin Ye returned to the Blood Stele ship.
The ship was strong—barely damaged.
Tianming Sect craftsmanship was indeed elite.
Xia Wei finally exhaled in relief when she saw Lin Ye return.
The river was endless.
If he disappeared into the depths…
finding him again would be nearly impossible.
Lin Ye tossed her the storage ring.
"See if there's anything valuable inside."
Xia Wei caught it, hands trembling.
"T-this is Hundred Beast Sect's storage ring…"
"You… you ran into Hundred Beast Sect?!"
Only high-ranking members had custom rings.
It was a symbol of status.
Lin Ye shrugged.
"I killed some Earth Fiend Hall Master."
Xia Wei sucked in a cold breath.
"An Earth Fiend Hall Master…"
Then she opened the ring.
And her eyes widened so hard they almost fell out.
"T-this…"
She looked up slowly, voice shaking.
"This is a… beast egg."