In the myriad ancient texts of this age, there are accounts proclaiming the human form as a manifestation of the Great Dao itself, asserting that humanity is truly favored by Heaven and Earth. The Water race and Sea race, possessing forms so near to our own, serve as further testament to this truth. Humanity’s sole dominion over the present world, coupled with our abundant resources, appears to lend credence to these claims.

Though in actuality, the Water and Sea races seem innately mightier than our own, this narrative has persisted through the ages.

Many firmly believe that humanity, from the moment of birth, embodies the most perfect form, is the very embodiment of Heaven and Earth’s will, the spirit of all creation, and thus destined to be the masters of this world.

Yet, among the Sea race, a different tale is told: humanity is merely their servant, and the Sea race, the true masters of the present world.

They claim the Human Emperor of yore, through despicable means, usurped the world’s authority. It was the Dragon Emperor who led the Water race into the vast sea, battling against the elements, to reclaim their lost glory.

The boundless ocean shall merge with the near seas; the rivers and lakes of this world shall once more be under the Sea race’s sway.

The mountains, rivers, and lands shall be cleansed of those detestable servants, returning to their natural, pristine state, ushering in an era of boundless spiritual energy.

Humanity and the Sea race, each with their own narratives, naturally find no common ground; neither believes the other’s words.

Should the Sea race one day face utter annihilation, humanity’s history will be deemed the truth. Conversely, should humanity perish, the Sea race’s history shall prevail.

Only the living possess the right to record history.

Any race, ancient and with a long inheritance, regardless of their present circumstances, will undoubtedly possess a glorious history.

As for the true truths concealed within the long river of history, perhaps only those who can pierce the veil of time shall ever know.

Jiang Wang had no desire to entangle himself with the formidable Sea race; his sole aim was to complete his quest for absolution with utmost speed. Yet, this world does not revolve around a single individual, and he could not dictate the will of others.

Though a man harbors no malicious intent towards a tiger, a tiger may well harbor the intent to harm a man.

Not long after leaving his previous position, while controlling a thorn elephant, he once again encountered that sharp-faced Sea race warrior.

This time, the sharp-faced Sea race warrior did not immediately slay the sea beast. Instead, he stood before the thorn elephant, gazing directly into its eyes: “I already know of your existence. From this moment forth, you can endeavor to hide, or flee with all your might.”

Facing the thorn elephant, it was evident he knew its controller could receive his words.

He was speaking to Jiang Wang!

His voice was slow, yet imbued with profound determination and resolve: “But you cannot escape. I shall find you, and then I shall kill you.”

Jiang Wang made no reaction, simply dispelling the divine soul hidden within the snake, leaving the thorn elephant to the other’s mercy.

But he knew, the worst possible outcome had already materialized.

Between the Human race and the Sea race, a war accumulated over years was raging. There were no notions of fair duels, and certainly no weaklings lining up to offer themselves for slaughter.

The objective of slaying one hundred commander-level Sea race warriors, if the timeframe were extended and placed within the Labyrinth World, would not be particularly conspicuous. The cruelty of the Labyrinth World’s war was known to both human and Sea races alike; countless warriors on both sides perished every moment. Even battles in the wilderness could be seen as targeted trials for both sides.

However, achieving the goal of killing one hundred commander-level Sea race warriors in a short period would undeniably draw the attention of the Sea race. This was not a loss to be taken lightly.

In fact, the greatest difficulty in attaching a time limit to the quest for absolution lay precisely in this point. With Jiang Wang’s current strength, he was fundamentally unable to withstand the attention of the Sea race.

This sharp-faced Sea race warrior had clearly come to find him. Perhaps when he killed that red-eyed corner frog, he had already detected the connection between Jiang Wang and these sea beasts.

It was night now, and the entire Labyrinth World was shrouded in darkness. Relying on the extraordinary vision of a cultivator, however, did not impede their fighting.

Jiang Wang had lain in wait for Bi Zhu Po Po for three days and three nights to kill her. On the fourth day at noon, he encountered and slew her, then for the first time, went to a floating island to rest.

He emerged from the floating island in the evening, formally commencing his hunt for the Sea race. It was now the evening of his seventh day in the Labyrinth World.

In just over three days, he had slain a total of thirty-four commander-level Sea race warriors. He had killed nine on the first day, twelve on the second, and thirteen on the third.

From these figures, it was clear.

As his assault and killing techniques matured, his speed in hunting the Sea race was indeed increasing. However, the increase from the second day to the third was notably less significant than that from the first day to the second. This was due to the limitations of Jiang Wang’s strength; even with perfected hunting strategies and adjustments, strength ultimately had its boundaries.

Furthermore, commander-level Sea race warriors did not simply wander idly all day. Searching for them required time, and one needed to select those who could be easily struck down while minimizing time and energy consumed in protracted battles. This was no easy feat.

The wilderness outside the floating islands and sea nests had always been a hunting ground for warriors of both the human and Sea races – a perilous trial field. When the fighting escalated to the floating islands or sea nests themselves, that was the outbreak of large-scale legion warfare.

In the Ding Wei area, the power of the Sea race was superior. The absolute advantage of five sea nests against a single floating island led to the human cultivators in the Ding Wei area’s wilderness generally suffering more losses.

In these past three days, the death toll of low-level commander-level Sea race warriors had far exceeded previous numbers. This anomaly had already drawn the attention of the Sea race.

This sharp-faced Sea race warrior had come to investigate the reason, and he had clearly already found traces, initiating a counter-hunt for Jiang Wang.

And Jiang Wang’s choice was… escape.

He scattered the sea beasts he currently controlled to various locations, allowing them to wander freely. With this, he would attract his pursuer’s attention, while he himself would leave the group of sea beasts and return alone to the floating island.

A battle with this seemingly not weak Sea race warrior was utterly meaningless. Not to mention whether he could kill him, even if he were fortunate enough to succeed, it would likely only attract even stronger pursuers.

Instead, it was better to let him pursue, allowing the Sea race to believe this sharp-faced warrior was sufficient to control the situation. And he, far away, would avoid him and continue his great undertaking of absolution.

In any case, he almost needed to return to the floating island for supplies once more.

Jiang Wang had already slipped away using the immortal technique slip, Ping Bu Qing Yun.

The sharp-faced Sea race warrior continued to pursue in that area, completely unaware that his opponent had already vanished.

He was the mid-level commander-level Sea race warrior, Yu Wan Gu, a descendant of a certain True King. His bloodline was noble, and he possessed the innate divine ability to control blood.

True Kings typically had many offspring and descendants, so this identity was not particularly noteworthy. But inheriting an innate divine ability was different; it truly presented an opportunity to inherit the title of King, and he was greatly valued for it.

Because of his innate divine ability, he was considered a ruthless figure in the Ding Wei area. The human cultivators who had perished at his hands were innumerable.

Yu Wan Gu had determined that his opponent possessed the ability to control sea beasts, and he had concretely discovered the black soul snake hidden within the sea beasts’ bodies. However, his opponent was cunning, directly causing it to collapse and scatter each time, giving him no opportunity to capture and study it.

But this was not a significant problem.

Divine soul was not his specialty, but blood was an indispensable existence for all life.

However, not many people could clearly discern what blood could reveal.

Precisely, he, Yu Wan Gu, was an expert in this very way.

Whether a sea beast was controlled, by whom it was controlled, and by what means – these subtle pieces of information would be reflected in the subtle changes within its blood.

Who his opponent was, what his appearance was like – the more controlled sea beasts he analyzed, the more complete the information in his mind became, and the more rapidly he could sense other sea beasts under the same control… thereby step by step compressing his opponent’s range of action.

His opponent was playing hide-and-seek with him, which stimulated him. He enjoyed the troubles his opponent brought him, enjoyed the pleasure found in the line between life and death.

He would certainly be victorious.

At least at this moment, Yu Wan Gu thought as such.

Read Red Heart Patrolling Heavens.