In the Tongming Sea, an earth-shattering phenomenon was taking place.

An exotic beast dozens of feet long blotted out the moon with its wings. Before it, humans were no more than ants.

Yet in the pitch-black waters of the Tongming Sea, aboard a great ship, a lone human met its might with his bare hands.

It was the overlord of this Nether Sea, having dominated these waters for ten thousand years. Thousands of years ago, a puny human had intruded upon its domain, but in the end, it had successfully defended its sovereign status.

To think that thousands of years later, another human could actually clash head-on with it after it had spent millennia strengthening itself.

The Winged Serpent was enraged. With a great roar, it flapped its wings, unleashing a gale like a thunderclap!

Its enormous wings became the most terrifying weapons in the Tongming Sea, and it vowed to smash the human before it to a pulp.

Instantly, the black waters of the Tongming Sea roiled like dragons. The Winged Serpent’s wings, imbued with the might of the heavens and earth, beat down toward Lin Hao.

Before its colossal form, Lin Hao’s figure truly was like an ant. But the corner of Lin Hao’s mouth quirked up; even now, he remained perfectly composed.

BOOM!

Before the wings could even get close, a mass of multi-colored flame abruptly erupted from Lin Hao’s body.

Flowing Light Divine Flame!

The Flowing Light Divine Flame moved with unimaginable speed. In the blink of an eye, it had enveloped the Winged Serpent’s body.

"ROAR!"

To Lin Hao’s shock, the Winged Serpent let out an furious roar from within the fire and retreated in a panic. It had not perished in the Divine Flame.

One had to understand, the Flowing Light Divine Flame was incomparably scorching. When it first manifested, it had incinerated thousands of miles of land in the blink of an eye. One could only imagine its temperature.

But now, the Winged Serpent’s body had actually withstood the flame’s power.

It was simply unimaginable.

Reality didn’t give Lin Hao time to ponder. The Winged Serpent shot backward and plunged headfirst into the black Tongming Sea. But in the next moment, its tail once again transformed into a giant sword, cleaving the sea’s surface in two.

The power to sunder the sea with a single tail was on display once more!

Lin Hao beat a hasty retreat.

BOOM!

With another thunderous crash, the Winged Serpent’s tail slammed heavily onto the great ship.

The ship swayed violently, but Lin Hao’s eyes were filled with anguish.

A short while ago, a single strike from this very Winged Serpent had cost him more than half the spoils he had gained from hunting Devil Beasts over the past few days. Now, with another strike, the small remainder was almost entirely gone.

Before Lin Hao could dwell on his losses, he realized something was wrong.

The great ship on the Tongming Sea was actually moving backward.

BOOM!

Lin Hao’s expression changed. He quickly used Thousand-Jin Drop, then stomped down with one foot.

The force of his stomp was in no way inferior to the might of the Winged Serpent’s tail.

The ship shuddered, and then its backward momentum actually ceased.

"Dammit, you’re becoming a proper monster!" Lin Hao couldn’t help but curse, breathing a sigh of relief.

It was obvious. The Winged Serpent, wary of the Flowing Light Divine Flame, had dived into the sea and was using its body to push the great ship backward.

"You’re huge. Who knows how many treasures of the Tongming Sea you’ve devoured. Today, you’ve destroyed days of my hard work. I’m definitely not letting you off easy!" Standing on the great ship, Lin Hao stomped his foot again.

The ship jolted violently, then began to slowly move forward.

Lin Hao’s entire body began to glow, his hair whipping about wildly.

He was using his True Essence to propel the great ship forward.

’The shore is already visible up ahead. I absolutely cannot let all these days of effort go to waste.’

’This is one of the nine great Mystic Realms of the Heaven-Stepping Sect. Not even a prodigy of his generation like Chu Tiandu could reach the far shore thousands of years ago. There must be more there than just what he remembered.’

’The mystic realm at Heaven-Stepping Peak yielded the Flowing Light Divine Flame, the Flowing Light Divine Stone, and an unexplored subterranean palace. Even if this place is worse than that one, it can’t be by much.’

As the shore drew ever closer, Lin Hao’s expression grew increasingly grim.

The ship was massive, and the Winged Serpent was still working against him from below. He could feel the resistance growing stronger and stronger.

’If I don’t deal with that thing below, I’m afraid I won’t reach the shore,’ Lin Hao calculated. His True Essence consumption was just too high.

On the vast Tongming Sea, as long as the Winged Serpent refused to surface, Lin Hao’s formidable physical strength was completely useless.

The only thing he could use now was the Flowing Light Divine Flame.

Soon, Lin Hao had an idea.

BOOM!

A ball of flame shot from his hand and landed on the ship’s hull.

Then, Lin Hao discovered that the incredibly powerful Flowing Light Divine Flame was actually unable to burn the great ship.

Delighted by this, he cast aside his worries and unleashed the Flowing Light Divine Flame, covering everything.

The great ship was instantly submerged in the multi-colored Divine Flame.

The pitch-black, eerie expanse of the Tongming Sea was instantly illuminated by the Divine Flame.

All at once, Lin Hao felt the ship grow lighter.

The next moment, he discovered the corpses of many strange beasts floating on the sea surface around the ship.

"Barbecue!" Lin Hao’s eyes lit up.

Although Martial Artists who could absorb True Essence could go for ten days or even half a month without eating, Lin Hao couldn’t help but gulp when he saw them.

This was the most authentic seafood you could get.

But it was just a thought.

The Flowing Light Divine Flame, which could incinerate thousands of miles of land the moment it was unearthed, hadn’t even melted these corpses. The waters of the Tongming Sea were also completely unchanged. All of this told Lin Hao that this place was exceedingly strange.

BOOM!

Abruptly, the Winged Serpent reappeared. It opened its mouth and spat, and a torrent of black seawater as thick as a barrel gushed down.

It had finally been unable to endure the scorching heat and was forced to the surface by Lin Hao once more.

"Come on, get down here! Let’s go three hundred rounds!" Lin Hao beckoned to the Winged Serpent in mid-air with a crooked finger. Then, the Flowing Light Divine Flame aboard the great ship instantly vanished.

The Flowing Light Divine Flame could certainly help him vanquish powerful foes, but Lin Hao had never used it since entering the Tongming Sea until he met this Winged Serpent. He knew that blindly relying on external items would bring him no personal benefit.

Now that the Winged Serpent had reappeared, Lin Hao would not rely on the Divine Flame again either.

The moment Lin Hao’s words fell, he saw a flash of brilliant light in mid-air.

The next moment, the Winged Serpent was gone, replaced by a man with wings growing from his back, hovering in mid-air.

The man’s eyes were as black as ink. He stared at Lin Hao as if looking at a dead man.

"A... a birdman?" Lin Hao was slightly taken aback.

’Devil Beasts have to be at least at the Tier Four Late Stage to be able to take human form. This birdman is clearly the Winged Serpent... it actually has the ability to shapeshift too.’

Soon, Lin Hao noticed something strange.

The Winged Serpent landed on the ship’s hull, but it still had a long tail trailing behind it.

Before Lin Hao could speak, the Winged Serpent’s tail coiled around the corpse of a Devil Beast that had been cooked by the Flowing Light Divine Flame. It then bent its tail, bringing the corpse-wrapped tip to its mouth.

And began to feast.

’This guy really knows how to live.’

Before long, all that was left of the Devil Beast was a blackened skeleton.

Lin Hao was dumbfounded.

’Now that’s what I call expert deboning!’

"Hey, how about we stop fighting and have a drink instead?" When he left War Dragon City, Lin Hao had brought two jars of ’Xiao Hongchen’ wine with him, and he still hadn’t brought himself to drink any.

"Die!" The only response Lin Hao received was a single, bone-chilling word.

The next moment, the Winged Serpent suddenly hurled the skeleton in its claws toward Lin Hao, and it flew with the sound of a thunderclap.

It was a truly unstoppable, thunderous force.

Lin Hao turned to the side, his hand forming a claw.

The next moment, he had snatched the spine from the flying skeleton.

At the same time, the Winged Serpent was upon him.

WHOOSH!

Swinging the large bone like a club, Lin Hao smashed it down toward the Winged Serpent.

BOOM!

A loud crack echoed as the spine shattered, but the Winged Serpent’s advance wasn’t hindered in the slightest.

Just as the Winged Serpent’s claws were about to dig into his waist, Lin Hao’s body twisted in an unbelievable way. He turned to the side and unleashed both fists at once.

BOOM!

The Winged Serpent was sent flying.

Lin Hao pressed his advantage, activating his Ghostly Divine Step. His speed reached its absolute limit, and in the blink of an eye, he threw an unknown number of punches.

’If the Winged Serpent hadn’t taken human form, I might have been a bit more wary. But now that its power is greatly reduced, an opportunity like this is too good to pass up.’

After an unknown number of punches, the Winged Serpent seemed completely unable to fight back. Just as Lin Hao thought victory was in his grasp, a powerful sense of crisis suddenly washed over him.

BOOM!

The next moment, his vision blurred. He felt a lightning strike to his chest, followed by an excruciating pain.

Knocked back by the single blow, Lin Hao was aghast.

His body, which had already formed a protective aura and was at the peak of toughness, had actually been knocked back by a single punch. It was horrifying.

Immediately, Lin Hao understood why.

Ahead, although blood was trickling from the corner of the Winged Serpent’s mouth, its entire body was wreathed in a strange halo. From within its body came a booming sound, like the pounding of war drums.

"This is Bloodline Power!"

Lin Hao’s expression turned grave.

’Devil Beasts, just like humans, can possess Bloodline Power. Anyone with Bloodline Power is, without exception, a supreme expert in their domain.’

’Their Bloodline Power is inherited.’

’To think this Winged Serpent’s body contains Bloodline Power... This is going to be trouble.’

"Die!" the Winged Serpent said. It was still just that one word.

The next moment, it lunged straight for Lin Hao. Its strength and speed were now countless times more terrifying than before.

"Chu Tiandu, you bastard! How could you not have known this thing had an inherited Bloodline Power!"

Lin Hao executed the Ghostly Divine Step, cursing Chu Tiandu as he moved.

If Chu Tiandu’s spirit was watching from the heavens, he would probably die all over again from sheer indignation.

Thousands of years ago, when he encountered this Winged Serpent in the Tongming Sea, he hadn’t even been able to force it to take human form, let alone use its Bloodline Power.

"Chu... Du..." The moment Lin Hao finished speaking, the Winged Serpent stopped its assault, its eyes glazed over as it blankly repeated the two syllables.

Then, it stared at Lin Hao, a ferocious light suddenly flaring in its eyes. "Chu... Du... DIE!"

At that moment, Lin Hao desperately wanted to slap himself.

He remembered now. Thousands of years ago, although Chu Tiandu hadn’t successfully crossed the Tongming Sea, at the last moment he had activated his Bloodline Power, unleashed his ultimate potential, and crossed a hundred meters in a single step to pluck a leaf from the far shore.

It was through that leaf that he finally confirmed the mystic realm contained the materials he needed, which later allowed him to create the world-famous ’Xiao Hongchen’ wine.

It seemed that name was a taboo for the Winged Serpent.

"Thousands of years have passed, and you still haven’t improved at all?" Lin Hao said, panting heavily as he dodged one of the Winged Serpent’s attacks.

However, those words stirred up a whole new level of trouble.

The Winged Serpent’s form froze for a moment. Then, it roared at the full moon, flapped its wings forcefully, and shot into the sky.

The next moment, Lin Hao looked on in horror.

In mid-air, the Winged Serpent’s tail was slowly vanishing, ultimately transforming into a pair of human legs. 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

A monstrously terrifying aura erupted from its body.

Provoked by Lin Hao, the Winged Serpent was actually undergoing a complete transformation!