Chapter 20, in which the hero learns the value of all the sailors' tales.

* * *

If there was one thing that could be said about sailing on a huge turtle, even if there was only one shell left of the turtle, it was the word "turmoil." First, Xing used his qi to push the shell as far away from the shore as possible, as there was nothing more foolish than to leave so smugly, only to be caught up by a chase.

Then, when the shore was completely out of sight, he had to attend to the contents of his own house. And here he was in for a lot of very unpleasant surprises. Few things could withstand being turned upside down and falling from a great height. Many things fell bulkheads broke, test tubes shattered, and in the upper room, which had once been a warehouse, everything was jumbled and mixed up. It took a few days just to put everything back in order. With the help of the Wood element, all the bulkheads had to be spliced and repaired, Earth and Fire had to be used to join and make the broken glass whole again, and Water had to be used constantly to eliminate the consequences of multiple leaks.

Worst of all, the turtle shell's seaworthiness was poor: it was churning like a splinter in a whirlpool or like some other substance that some peasants liked to float down the river as a good joke. Fortunately, Xing, who was constantly groping the path of his qi, discovered a sandbank. From there, he picked up enough sand to not only add ballast to the shell but also to make new windows out of glass, which was called "portholes" for some reason in the sailors' strange jargon, like the walls they called "bulkheads." Still, it was impossible to eliminate the consequences, and most of the food and alchemical ingredients for the restaurant were spoiled by the seawater, for the Xing's qi only protected them from rotting.

Having finished salvaging the house and transformed some of the wooden bulkheads into a large rudder that now protruded from the back of the turtle, Xing added an extra touch by creating talismans from the last few cuts of silk to pump out the water seeping into the hold. All that remained was the question of seaworthiness. While it would not be difficult to splice the wood together to make a mast, Xing had no suitable fabric, so he would not be able to set sail. However, he could not sail, so the absence of a sail would not make much difference. So he had to use the only resource he had - his qi.

"There's a sailor floating down the river. You can't catch him," Xing hummed to himself, swaying in time with the hull of his turtle shell ship.

He'd heard enough stories and nautical tales in the Shell to know that sailors walked, but only shit floated, but he didn't care about such subtleties. Besides, he knew how to walk on water, unlike those who were so fond of puffing up their cheeks about it.

"He won't get to land. He just eats and eats and eats fish," he continued.

How to find dry land, he really didn't know. The ocean spread out all around with waves, winds, and currents carrying the turtle shell. Neither food nor water was a problem. He made the seawater drinkable, which took some work until he learned to use the elements of Water and Earth to remove excess sea salt. Food, on the other hand, was much worse. No, it wasn't that he was starving. On the contrary, he ate plenty, but the food consisted only of fish, various sea creatures, and seaweed. Unfortunately, the stock of rice was also spoiled, and attempts to purify their qi did not bring the desired result.

If only he had a space ring! He'd put enough delicious food in it to last him for months. No, even years! Enough to go all the way to the end of the world or even further!

Xing had heard that sailors had some sort of "compass," but he had no idea what it was or how to make it with qi. So he had to navigate only by the sun during the day and the stars and moons at night, trying to stick to the only randomly chosen direction. He composed silly songs, caught fish, fought sharks with his fists, ran on the water, and pulled his turtle ship onto a tugboat, then, sitting on the "deck," guided it forward with the help of qi.

At first, Xing tried to save his strength for the unexpected, but he soon changed his mind. The shell was still blocking his qi, so it was still very hard to make it swim, and if it wasn't for more than three years of constant training, Xing wouldn't have been able to move it a single step. Not only did he buy ingredients in Mogao, but he also obtained some of the rarities by swimming in the ocean and diving to depths unseen in Duojia. He had learned how to channel qi even there in the depths, amid the abyss full of life and energy flows, so now that torment had paid off many times over. He was able to push his ship forward in calm and stormy conditions, preventing the currents from dissipating and dissolving into the surrounding water.

So now, controlling the shell, he continued his hard training, each day increasing the strength and control of his qi, getting closer, if not to the shore, then at least to his goal of surpassing his master!

"I won't go back to Mogao, and I won't marry Xifeng," Xing sang, adjusting his wide-brimmed conical hat made of seaweed.

A sparkle of qi gleamed in the sky, and he put his tanned hand to his eyes out of habit from his old life. The sun was at its zenith, and it was blinding, but he soon found the owner of the life energy, a large white bird with black feathers on its tail and wing tips.

"Either there's a shore somewhere," he murmured, "or it's a bird that can fly across the seas. I wish I could catch one!"

Catch it and learn to fly on it, as not only many heroes of crystals did, but also villains, various heads of sects, leaders of alliances, and just powerful cultivators. Well, if it doesn't work, poultry is meat, especially breast, no worse than chicken! Fish, even sharks and octopuses, are deadly boring.

Xing caught himself swatting and drooling, so he shook his head, clearing his mind.

"Besides, I can fly on a sword, like a real hero!" he decided. "But I have to learn it first!"

Xing pulled out his trusty flail, twirled it in his hands, scratched the back of his head, and put it back behind his belt. No, flying on a flail probably wouldn't be that heroic. Nothing! It wouldn't be long now! He would get to the shore, find the right iron, and forge a special sword that would not only cut through his enemies and cut off the head of his bastard master but also cleave the heavens with it!

Xing decided to follow the bird. He had no good ideas anyway, and birds always fly near the shore. Unless, of course, he came across some special bird that preferred to fly over the ocean. With his luck, when he had had to run away from two out of three mentors (and from the first one by reincarnation), that might well have happened. Even though he had been promoted to Master Smith when the Imperial Courier Service had found him in the restaurant, handing him a jade plaque with Master Buntao's qi imprint and a short letter with a single word: "Thank you!" it was still an escape!

The bird was flying away, so Xing went to the stern, as he called the back of the turtle, grabbed the steering oar, and with all his might, chased after the bird. He could not only feel everything inside the turtle's shell, not only feel the surrounding space but even look into the depths of the ocean, no matter how heavy and impossible it seemed before.

He had noticed something wrong beforehand. He just couldn't figure out what it was. The large sphere, two or three times the size of a turtle, was invisible to the ordinary eye, but in his qi vision, it felt very strange. The streams of life flowing through the surrounding space were distorted, fractured, and flowed unpredictably and chaotically. Xing could have easily taken a detour, going around this strange place in a wide arc, but then the bird he had been chasing for half a day would finally fly away. So he made a decision - to change direction only slightly, to pass close by and continue the chase. Xing had never seen anything like it in any of his lives, so he wanted to get a closer look at this strange thing.

It didn't take long before he cursed his curiosity: the ocean water remained calm, but some force with the flavor of a completely unfamiliar chi picked up the ship and pulled it inside the sphere.

Xing reacted quickly. He jumped inside the ship, picking up the flail that had nearly fallen off his belt, and closed (in nautical parlance, it was called "sealing") all the doors and windows. Of course, it didn't help. Soon, all the glasses cracked and crumbled, and the wood crackled and began to turn into smaller and smaller splinters. Xing embraced the turtle with his qi, trying to stop the destruction. But the force squeezing the ship was so great that it didn't even notice his efforts. He absorbed the qi and protected his body to the limit, even curling up in a ball, clutching at the flail as if it were his only means of survival.

The turtle's shell, strong and able to withstand the attacks of any enemy, groaned as if it still contained the remnants of life and cracked. Finally, unable to withstand it, it too gave up. Shards of bone segments flew in all directions, some hitting his body without causing any harm. A terrible squeezing and twisting force, no longer held back by any defense, fell upon Xing. He clenched his teeth, gripped the flail tighter, and strengthened his qi to the utmost.

He felt as if he were an egg yolk that an eccentric cook was trying to force through a tin funnel, propping it up with a finger to make sure. He was whirled around when the same cook tried to whip the yolk with a whisk made of particularly stiff feathers and thrown away. His body flew with the speed of a slingshot, so he bounced on the water's surface like a flat pebble thrown by a child's skillful hand.

Inexplicably, blocks of stone with sharp, jagged edges came from nowhere, and Xing clenched even tighter, not only strengthening his body but covering it with a layer of qi. The stone spikes tried to pierce through his defenses, the ledges tried to collapse on his head, and the rocks tried to grind him into a fine, bloody mess.

Xing tried to spread out his qi to latch onto the rocks and water, to stop the movement so he could then just stand up and walk on the water, looking around to see where he had gone. But the water and rocks were so strongly filled with energy that it was necessary to let go of the defense for even a moment, and that meant instant death.

Here's another training opportunity! A stray thought flashed, and Xing smirked despite the danger. Even in this situation, he was thinking like a true hero! Survival was required first, and then he would definitely train here! After all, if it wasn't for all these years of training, Xing would have long ago been turned into a mosh jock from a tadpole in blood-red sauce!

Another new blow shook his body as hard as if a giant foot had kicked him. He was carried forward straight into a huge rock, which, to Xing's delight, was at the water's edge, near the real shore! He squeezed even harder, straining his muscles and qi to the limit. There was a loud cracking sound, and shards of rocks flew in all directions. The movement stopped, and a violent impact was heard. The water swept up Xing once again, but now that the danger was over, he held on to it, and releasing his qi, he rose to the surface, jumping over the still surging waves.

Xing turned around and saw that such a large rock of solid volcanic stone was no longer there. The collision had blown it away, leaving only a broken base and the top of the cliff collapsing into the water nearby. Finally getting a respite, he was able to look around. He found himself in a quiet, calm pool of water that would have seemed peaceful if it weren't for the broken bones of the huge fish, exuding remnants of strong qi like a now ruined turtle shell.

Xing sighed. He wasn't too attached to things, but there were quite a few supplies stored in the destroyed shiphouse. Weapons and elixir ingredients, money, and clothes. Xing had kept almost all of it in a bank, so he hadn't lost much, but now it was completely inaccessible.

He examined himself carefully. A body fortified with qi is stronger than a stone wall, the mocking voice of the bastard master rang out in his head, especially if it has a hard-headed head like yours, you tadpole! The body did indeed survive the collision, but Xing was not at all pleased with the result.

His clothes were in pathetic shreds, and his forearms were crisscrossed by several scratches that were being healed by the qi of the heart dantian right before his eyes. He ran his hand over his head. The hair that was previously tied into a bundle with a simple leather cord was now disheveled and disheveled. One of his fingers had broken off the tip of a nail that had grown back during the journey.

Xing sighed quietly, angry at himself and his helplessness. If he had been a hero of the crystal - not the newfangled ones, but a real one! - he would have ridden on the crest of such a wave, conquered the elements, and would not have had to shake off even a speck of dust from his snow-white robes. There is nothing to say about the bastard master. He would simply crush everything around him and then make the rocks and waves take a dabu stance, threatening with a bamboo stick and making them melt and boil with his boring moralizing.

"Earth!" Xing exclaimed, trying to find some good in the situation.

He looked around, deciding he should have been glad for the dry land beneath his feet, and focused on the positives. He had finally reached land! The kind of permanent and stable land that he didn't have to stick to with qi. Land that holds something edible, and it's not fish! There is soft sand on the shore. A little farther away is a dense thicket full of life. Shrieking, carefree, so delicious and appetizing life, seemingly not even knowing what a human is or why it should be feared. Qi showed he was on an island, a very large one.

"Earth," he repeated in a dropped voice.

Before he'd gotten here, there hadn't been any land as far as the horizon. He wouldn't have missed an island like this for anything in the world, even if it was hidden by some barrier or masking technique. One had to accept that he was inside the mysterious sphere, which meant that it was much, many, many times larger on the inside than it was on the outside. The concentration of qi here far exceeded even that of the Forest of a Dozen Steps, which meant that the creatures here were stronger and more ferocious. The fact that he couldn't sense anything other than mere beasts and birds didn't make him feel any better. First of all, several sources of the strangely distorted chi made up the sphere or barrier or whatever it was. Secondly, if he couldn't sense powerful monsters capable of snapping giant turtles like nuts, it meant that those monsters had excelled in the art of disguise! Xing clutched the so strong, so soothing forearm in his palm.

"The plan is very simple," Xing said to the shore and the shattered rock, "find the main villain, hit him on the nose with a flail, kill all the servants, henchmen, and tame beasts, rescue and rescue the beauty. And then, when I'm the most important person here, I'll think how to get out of here!"

Xing shook his head. Even now, in mortal danger, he was still thinking about women. After his separation from Xifeng, he did not let go of these thoughts, even during the voyage. Now, he understood the sailors who even agreed to meet a mermaid, despite the scales and fishtails, if the scrolls and books were to be believed. What was he thinking? What women, what mermaids? This is a dangerous island, and he is not the hero of a crystal or an adventure scroll!

He wasn't a hero from a scroll or a crystal, but he was still a hero. So, instead of hiding in a corner and trembling, he should have gone into danger. After all, as the Indomitable Dragon Martial Strategies said, "When attacking a tiger, a warrior with a spear may fall, but when not attacking, he would fall." Xing gathered his courage, waved his flail a couple of times to calm himself down, and headed into the interior of the island, where he could feel the greatest concentration of energy. As he looked at the giant trees, he thought he could take them down, use the Tree element to create a ship, and get away. No, he couldn't build a real ship. The best he could do was a raft. If there were any big birds here, he should have thought about catching and training them to fly away. Or find some rare iron, forge a special sword like in the stories from crystals, and fly without birds. He shook his head. He didn't need any ships to sail. The problem was that strange suction barrier that had destroyed his turtle shell. No wonder he'd never heard of such an island. Everyone who got here died before reaching the shore!

The animals raced and raged, shrieking and snapping, and Xing waded through the thicket, looking around for an imminent attack. As he walked, he plucked a pair of oblong, bent fruits from a strange broad-leaved tree and tasted them. Beneath the green skin that slid off like bark from a young tree branch was a tart but sweet pulp. There was no poison in the fruit. Even if there was, Xing could easily cure himself with the qi of the heart dantian, so he greedily devoured the fruit and swallowed it in the blink of an eye. The fruit seemed to be the most delicious thing he had ever eaten. After all, it didn't have the slightest taste of fish! After this trip, Xing was tempted to slaughter birds, insects, beasts, or even monsters and then stuff his stomach with all the non-fish until he couldn't eat a single bite.

"It's nothing, it's just a temporary hardshipы," he reassured his growling stomach. And then he was angry at himself because of that nasty saying, which stuck with him even in the next life.

As he approached the center of the island, the place where particularly strong energy was gathered, Xing doubled his caution, strengthening his concealment and hiding qi to the utmost.

He crept through the bushes and carefully pushed the branches apart, peering out into the gap.

It seemed that he had been sailing on the sea for too long, had been alone for too long, or maybe had hit his head on the rocks too hard during the turtle crash. His inflamed consciousness was clearly playing back all this time in the sea because he dreamed not only of a round lake with a soft sandy shore and bright blue water but also of a beautiful girl swimming in the lake completely naked.

Xing shook his head and increased the circulation of qi, trying to clear his mind and shake off the obsession caused by the memory of long and varied fun with Xifeng, long loneliness, and hitting the rocks. Nothing had changed. The girl hadn't turned into a seal, hadn't disappeared into a myriad of sparks, and hadn't even lost her beauty like Aunt Zu's girls the morning after her moonshine.

She remained just as beautiful and enchanting. Ginger, almost red hair, bright blue eyes, long, slender legs. She was floating on her belly, so everything else was hidden by the water, but apparently, everything was more than okay there, too. The Qi on the island swirled in a huge tornado and flowed into the lake, which seemed to glow from within. The beauty's energy was also very considerable, approaching that of a strong adept or even a master.

He suppressed a strong urge to jump out of the bushes and jump into the water to grab this girl. No matter how much time he spent in the sea. No matter how much Xifeng's image excited him, there was no way he would do such a thing! Unlike the heiress of the Ximen House, this girl had done nothing wrong to him. No matter how much he desired her, he would never act dishonorably, nor would he betray himself.

The girl swam to the shore and got on dry land. She walked over to a pile of leaves and began to dress. Now, Xing clearly saw the girl possessed a fine figure. Even though she was not as gifted in the front as Xifeng, even an expert liar would not dare to call those juicy, rounded peach fruits small. But her belly showed that she had been pregnant for a long time.

Xing knew very well where babies came from. Even without reading the scrolls of the scoundrel master, life in the village left no chance of ignorance, if only by the example of cattle. But he could not understand what a naked and pregnant beauty was doing here, in the middle of a dangerous and deserted island.

Xing remembered his desire to hit the island owner in the nose with a flail and grinned. He folded the flail and slipped it back into his battered belt.

Meanwhile, the girl was finally dressed, and Xing couldn't hold back a grimace of disapproval. The clothes woven from grass and leaves were terrible, and the work was so inept that Basketmaker Yao would have had a stroke, forcing him into the next life before his time. The girl took a few stiff steps, and Xing frowned even more: a large, ugly burn spot on her leg, which she had been careful to protect as she walked.

Xing pushed aside his doubts and stepped out of the bushes, letting go of his disguise.

Seeing him, the girl rounded her beautiful eyes and threw up her hands.

"Min ant, ya shab jamil ghair maruf?" she exclaimed.

[Who are you, Oh unknown beautiful young man?]

"Uh!" The dumbfounded Xing replied meaningfully.

"Hal arsalq alsharir Sharif?" the girl continued. "Lakinni balfil takht saitharatih!"

[The evil Sharif sent you? But I'm already in his power!]

"I didn't understand a word of it!" Xing replied, embarrassed. He had heard that there were other languages in distant lands, but he was used to everyone speaking Imperial.

"Ana la afkhum ay shaya kaltu!" She exclaimed, throwing up her hands as if trying to ward him off. "Min fadlik la taktarib!"

[I don't understand what you're saying! Please stay away!]

"I don't know any kaltu or taktarib," Xing admitted, "but I'll help you."

"La afghum!" answered the girl.

[I don't understand!]

Taking that as a sign of agreement, Xing stepped toward her, and before she could even move, he swept her to her feet, picked her up in his arms, and gently, trying to be as gentle as possible, lowered her to the sand.

The girl opened her eyes and opened her lips. Her Qi showed that she was very frightened, and Xing didn't know how to calm her down - after all, he didn't know the language! So Xing simply placed his hands on the leg wound and increased the circulation of the heart dantian. Healing qi flowed through his palms directly into the ugly burn. The result manifested instantly. The skin lightened and smoothed, and the horrible scar dissolved like a golden sparrow feather in a headache elixir. Before the girl was even startled, Xing jumped to his feet, took a few steps back, and raised his palms in a gesture of reconciliation.

"La shaya yulm!" she said in surprise, standing up and palpating her perfectly healthy leg.

[Nothing hurts!]

"Of course!" Xing confirmed. "I promised to help!"

The girl took a few cautious steps, approaching Xing. She extended her palm and made a questioning gesture. Xing had no idea what she wanted to do but nodded affirmatively. She placed a cool palm on his forehead and asked:

"Al-an hal tafhumni?"

Her qi touched his consciousness, and Xing suddenly realized the meaning behind her words.

Do you understand me now?

"Sure I do!" He replied cheerfully.

* * *

The girl's clothes, which she had made herself from the materials available in the neighborhood, were horrible. Xing couldn't bear the sight of it, not only as a disciple of Basketmaker Yao but also as a man. After all, there were so many gaps, the sight of glimpsed charms so arousing that Xing Xing didn't know how much he could endure before he jumped on her. Although he didn't have the skills to make clothes, he was good at making armor. A different occupation, but similar nonetheless. He gathered long, fibrous leaves, used qi to remove moisture, softened them, separated the fibers, and wove them into a skirt and breastplate, just as he had once woven baskets.

The result was completely different from what he expected. Instead of making Xing stop being aroused and embarrassed by her lewd appearance, she became even more seductive and desirable. He had even had to run away to hunt - not for something non-fishy, but just to get a little farther away.

And then they were sitting on the shore of the lake, eating bird breasts cooked with fire qi in a glass pot made of sand and talking in that strange conversation that had struck Xing earlier. He studied the flow of qi, trying to understand how she was doing it, to grasp the essence of the method itself.....

The girl's name was Almirakh. And she was a mermaid. Xing was already regretting the mockery he had hurled at the sailors in "Under the Shell": it did not take months at sea to desire someone as beautiful as her. Almirakh turned out to be the daughter of a sea king, kidnapped by an evil magician named Sharif. Xing didn't understand too well what was meant by "he made me like this"- whether he changed her appearance or gifted her with a belly, but it was the belly that was the villain's main goal. Sharif wanted Almirakh to bear him children, and he had created this island for that purpose, surrounding it with deadly barriers and guards to keep the victim from escaping. The terrible burn on her leg was the result of one of these attempts - the sorcerer cared only about the children, not the health of the mother. The only thing left for the prisoner, unable to live without water for long, was this lake, for the way to the sea was cut off by the guards.

Xing didn't see any of them on the way, and in fact, according to Almirakh, they would surely destroy anyone who came to her aid.

"That's not surprising," Xing replied to her. "I hide my qi and continue to hide it until now."

It was not clear to Xing whether the Sharif had taken the girl by force or had performed some unholy ritual on her, like the one the bastard master had used to bewitch the whole house of Nao. In order not to stir up painful memories, Xing didn't specify. He had learned the most important thing! This huge island was inside a relatively small sphere, and the force that crushed his ship was not an integral part of the spatial distortion but only an external barrier designed to destroy anyone but the magician himself. And that could only mean one thing!

"This Sharif knows where to get the spatial ring!" Xing cheerfully exclaimed. "I wish I could meet him soon!"

To meet, knock out all the necessary information, create his own spatial ring, and forget about all the hardships forever. To carry everything with him, to have as much rice and chicken breast as he wants, and if he has to run away from another marriage, not to regret the things he left behind!

Xing didn't just start learning the language that the girl and the mage spoke because communicating with Qi was uncomfortable. The small, dainty palm on his forehead and touching that smooth skin excited him and made his blood boil. Xing didn't know how long he could endure before pouncing like a filthy animal, like some villain from the crystal, on an innocent victim who was also pregnant. Fortunately, the qi from the upper dantian helped him memorize every word, and the concentration required for conversation distracted me from my lustful thoughts. So, Xing studied in between hunting and cooking, building a cozy cabin on the shore, and cultivating in the heart of such a qi-saturated place.

Almirakh was eager to help with the study, but communication with qi wasn't easy for her either. But soon Xing grasped the essence of her way of communicating and took over the energy expenditure. But when his hand touched her delicate face, it became ten times harder to restrain himself from pouncing on her.

* * *

There was a gentle, cool breeze, and the food on the terrace of Xing's cottage had a pleasant aroma, and the sun, which wasn't there at all inside the sphere, didn't scorch it. Almirakh sat across from him and ate, delicately spearing the roast of an unknown bird on an intricate cutlery with two sharp prongs Xing had created for her instead of the usual chopsticks.

"You've done so much for me!" she said, drinking juice squeezed from the oblong sweet fruit. "I'm sorry I can't give you anything in return."

Xing barely refrained from telling her exactly what Almirakh could give. Such an answer would have suited a villain, not a hero.

"Ith'z nosinngh." he answered, but then realized how poorly he had said the words. He increased the circulation in his upper dantian and repeated. "I'm saying it's nothing!"

"You even made me a bed!" The mermaid objected. "I'm sorry, but I'm more used to sleeping in water."

Going into the water, she always stripped off her clothes, so Xing didn't mind in the slightest.

This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

"And you taught me your language," he replied, enunciating each word carefully. "And I'm very grateful to you, too!"

"I still don't know how you did it in just five days. And the house! And food! And the clothes! Your magic is very unusual. You haven't cast a single spell I've heard only the most powerful sorcerers can do!"

As far as Xing understood, "spells" in this language, which was simply called "language" as in the Empire, meant shouting out the names of techniques. Xing didn't bother to tell her he didn't know a single technique, unlike the bastard master, the heroes from crystals, and even the warriors of the Gao and Ximing houses. And it wasn't like he was hiding something. He just didn't want to fall in the eyes of the girl, to seem like a redneck, which in this life he really was.

"Nothing!" he said. "I will continue to cultivate qi, become strong enough to get out of here myself, and get you out too!"

"I've never heard of a sorcerer's al-taaga al-dahiliya becoming stronger," Almirakh shook her head, mussing her beautiful red hair. "But I've never met a sorcerer like you! I don't know why Sharif's guards haven't attacked you yet, but don't forget how fierce and dangerous they are! Sharif is not only powerful but also very cunning! A couple of years before I was captured, he managed to gain my father's trust, wooed him with sweet speeches and gifts, and then suddenly disappeared, abducting Jabal, the largest and most powerful salhafat muqatil, the battle turtle!"

Xing had to clench his fists. So badly he wanted to throw the table away, to clutch Almirakh in his arms, to throw her on the wide bed in the hut, or even right here on the sand. Now, he finally knew who was behind the attack on Mogao, but it didn't bother him in the least right now. He had to remind himself of Mei, who was still more beautiful than the mermaid, and of the fact that Almirakh was pregnant, which meant she would not be touched by even the most base of scoundrels.

It seemed that no matter how good the qi cultivation was in this place, something had to be done. After all, even a sage who had reached full enlightenment would not be able to train his self-control to a level sufficient to resist such temptation.

"Guards aren't a problem," he said, chest heaving. "Don't worry, I'll protect you! Take cover in the lake and wait!"

He darted straight into the thicket, causing Almirakh to give him a surprised look. He jumped and soared high into the air, opening up, releasing his qi, letting it shine as brightly as he hadn't let it in years.

The strange energy spots seemed to be just waiting for him. As soon as they sensed the qi, they rushed towards him with the speed of a flying arrow.

The wait was short, the first opponent appearing after only six dozen heartbeats. A tall figure shrouded in flames, made of stone and metal and dotted with the same strange burning writing as the skin of the long-defeated turtle. Writings that Xing had not yet learned to read.

The heat and flames exuded by the guardian were very challenging. Xing could feel the pressure and fury of the qi contained in them, and wherever the giant stepped, the bushes and trees burst into flames, only to turn to ash in an instant. Xing looked at the huge stone palms and clenched his teeth in anger. Their size and shape exactly mirrored the shape of the burn on Almirakh's thigh.

Xing sent qi to his feet and rushed away, dragging the guard with him to lure him away from the girl. As one might expect, the sorcerer's foolish puppet threw himself right after him. Xing ran towards the shore, choosing his direction to make the pursuit as difficult as possible. He jumped over a large rock, but the guardian didn't even bother to circle it. He just struck with his massive body, partially melting and partially shattering the rock into pieces.

Xing ran to the shore, leaped into the air, and flew forward, landing on the water. He took out a flail from his belt and waved it in the air, making an obscene gesture to the guards.

The one standing on the bank continued to stare at Xing with his glowing eyes, then took a couple of cautious steps into the water. Puffs of steam rose, and the feet that touched the water visibly darkened. The guardian didn't go any further but crept back to the shore. His feet were once again on fire.

Xing chuckled. If the puppets were afraid of water, there was nothing to worry about. One by one, the rest of the guards, not the sacred dozen, only ten, began to come ashore. Each of the newcomers went into the water but returned to shore just as the first had.

"Well, you pathetic puppets," Xing laughed. "A real hero is not like torturing defenseless girls!"

As if hearing his words, the guards raised their hands, and blindingly bright balls of flame burst from them.

Xing jumped away, swinging his flail. Colliding with the qi-filled Purple Oak wood, one of the balls exploded while the rest flew past. Xing covered himself with fire qi, protecting his body and clothes so the flames from the explosion powerlessly glassed down, causing new puffs of vapor.

"Is that the best you can do?" Xing shouted mockingly. "In Duojia, you wouldn't even be trusted to guard Auntie Zhao's pigsty!"

The puppets were not alive, but Xing's words seemed to have aroused their fury. They raised their arms again and unleashed a string of fireballs at him. Xingxing jumped, spun around, batted the balls away with his chain, and took on his qi. Loud explosions rang out, and geysers of vapor exploded into the air. Alas, whatever was moving the guards and was the source of their power, it was never-ending.

Xing grabbed the flail by the lower segment, passed it behind his back, grabbed the center segment, made a circular motion, fending off two fireballs, and rushed to attack. With a single leap, he moved to the outermost puppet, using the wisdom of the Indomitable Dragon: Let unnecessary enemies turn into allies. Don't let unnecessary allies turn into enemies.

A new string of balls flew at Xing, but he was already close to his opponent. The balls struck the guard's back, and he swayed. Xing swung the flail in one hand and clenched the other into a fist.

The heroes in crystals usually yelled the names of techniques at such times, but Xing didn't know any techniques, and whatever came to mind sounded stupid. You wouldn't yell "Fujian Fury Bun," "Ferocious Blade Forging," or "Rice Threshing Crushing Flail" while smashing the enemy, would you? So he simply struck, putting all the anger of realizing how long he still had a long way to go to at least catch up with the heroes and the bastard teacher!

A fist shrouded in qi rained down on the guardian's head. Fiery shards of stone and metal splattered in every direction. With a swing of the flail, the head crumpled into his shoulders, and the body that had been shielding Xing from the fireballs broke in two. Xing ducked to the side and transformed his qi into the Water element. A large wave rose from the sea and flooded the two fiery figures. Clouds of vapor struck in all directions. Xing broke into this thick, hot wall, focusing on qi rather than his normal senses. Once he was next to the fiery goons, he began to knead them with his flail and fists as if they were billet in a forge, rice in a lathe, or dough in a kitchen.

"Duojia's kicking technique!" Laughing, he shouted. "Shining Kicks of Justice!"

Unfortunately, the dummies proved incapable of appreciating a good joke as they simply fell apart.

"We could have just talked!" He continued to shout, finally turning one guard into a shapeless lump and hurling the other toward his surviving brethren.

While those tried to react to the new danger by showering their former comrade with fireballs, Xing once again concealed his qi and dived into the sea until the steam dissipated. There, he swam underwater and surfaced behind his opponent. The seven statues stood there, unnaturally twisting their stupid heads in a measured manner, unable to detect the enemy. Xing let loose another wave, but this time, he mixed Water and Metal. The seawater suddenly hardened, turning into ice. Cracks appeared where the ice crystals touched the other three opponents. The ice immediately began to melt, so he added more qi.

Xing tried to use Metal on the enemies, but alas, the metal components of the puppets would not budge, so he did something much simpler. He leaped forward, unleashing his flail blows at the ice-bound statues, blowing their heads off and breaking their bodies. The four remaining puppets fired fireballs again. But they seemed to see the hidden qi much worse. The attacks were inaccurate, and the projectiles that happened to fly in the right direction were knocked away by Xing's flail.

Running from enemy to enemy and flail-slamming them again seemed a bit boring to Xing. He realized that this way of thinking led to underestimating the enemy, so he concentrated, deciding to diversify his arsenal of techniques in case a real enemy could ever block his attacks in the future. Besides, he had once said: Life is a never-ending battle, and a man must defeat himself every day, and what could be a more glittering victory than using unfamiliar methods of attack?

The ground beneath the guards' feet opened up to form four large pits, and they tumbled down, swaying and flailing their arms almost humanly, trying to keep their balance. The earth closed in again, burying them at the waist, and a new wave came from the sea, covering the guards and freezing them in ice crystals.

Xing listened to his qi. To his surprise, even this massive exposure to the Water, Metal, and Earth elements had not affected him, and before, he would have been lying there exhausted from much less!

Xing simply and uncomplicatedly tore off their heads and examined the remains. As a blacksmith, he was most interested in metal.

He spent a long time examining the unmoving hulks, arranging them in rows away from the surf, studying them with qi. Alas, nothing was interesting to be found - they used the usual kinds of metals, which, though they would have fetched good coin when sold, were useless now that he had no suitable means of transportation. The crystals that were the heart of each puppet interested him more, so he plucked them out and stacked them separately. The stone was a common volcanic rock that could be found everywhere, so Xing left it alone. The only important things were the writing and a strange substance that looked like a purple translucent stone but did not respond to the elements of Earth. Xing tried all the elements in turn. And was surprised when it responded to the Metal element, albeit with considerable resistance. The thin openwork meshes of this obscure metal-not-metal framed the puppet crystals, so Xing decided that the substance was very valuable. He collected and transformed it into a small bracelet, which he immediately put on his arm. After some thought, he covered the bracelet with a layer of copper, not because he wanted to hide something from Almirakh but to prevent this strange thing from touching his skin. He turned the remaining metal parts of the statues into ingots and stacked them nearby in case he could figure out how to get out of there.

Finally, he climbed into the thicket and wove a new shoulder bag from twigs and leaves, into which he stowed the surviving crystals. He grabbed the head of one of the puppets and carried his trophy back to Almirakh. It was an easy walk, as the scorched and still-smoldering clearing led almost to the lake.

The girl's qi was expressing intense anxiety: Almirakh was literally torn with fear and worry. And she was clearly not afraid for herself. So Xing suppressed the idea of a surprise by throwing his head into the lake or jumping out of the bushes and simply called out to the girl beforehand and went to the shore.

Seeing him alive and well, Almirakh breathed a sigh of relief. Her legs gave out, and Xing, dismissing the silly, unnecessary head, sprang to her in a flash and caught her by the waist, keeping her from falling.

That was a big mistake. After the shipwreck, Xing's clothes weren't as solid as it was, and the fight didn't add much strength to them either. The thin breastplate on Almirakh was made of grass, so after a moment, Xing realized that her breasts and slightly prominent belly were directly touching his body!

"You did it! You did it!" She exhaled, not yet realizing the position she was in.

The guards, unlike the crystal monsters that the heroes had to fight for hours, were complete weaklings. So the blood that had been heated by this short battle was still bubbling in their veins. Xing pressed the girl even tighter against him, and this time, he didn't care about her stomach.

With all his remaining stamina, Xing tried to pull away from her - and it was harder than fighting all the beasts of the Forest of a Dozen Steps. But Almirakh only smiled and threw her arms around his neck herself. Xing grinned back and nestled his lips against hers.

* * *

The first time Xing knew a woman, he miraculously avoided the main problem described in every scroll and treatise. He didn't care about Xifeng's feelings as much as he didn't care about his unwillingness to marry her. He cared as much about her bodily pain as she cared about his pain of the heart. Therefore, he did not feel any hesitation or uncertainty. After all, so what if things didn't work out or didn't work out right? He wasn't going back to Mogao anyway!

Now, despite Almirakh's pregnancy and the fact that Xing treated her with care, fearing, unlike Xifeng, to hurt her, he already had experience and a lot of it. So when he saw that Almirakh was not opposed to it, he acted cautiously but confidently. Xing felt the most tender feelings for the mermaid - not true love, as Mei seemed to be forever in his heart - but at least friendship, warmth, and affection. Almirakh was the first girl in his new life who aroused in him not just lust and desire for possession but the feelings that a hero should have for his chosen one. If not for the burden of the past weighing on his soul, who knows, maybe Xing would have gone to the sea king himself to ask for his daughter's hand in marriage and, if necessary, even to fight with his entire army. And the fact that she lives in the water and he lives on land would not stop him - he would conquer the elements themselves!

But, as Bohai's mentor said, it was the "but" got in the way. So, in the future, Xing wished Almirakh happiness, goodness, and the best, and in the present, he wished not only to have a good time himself but also to please her. They gorged themselves on each other like sailors gorging themselves on chicken breast after a long voyage. They tried the bed Xing had made, the soft, silky grass up the slope, and even the sandy shore, with its horrible, climbing sand, which they had to get rid of with qi.

Xing was cautious at first, afraid of harming the child, whose qi flow felt very different from that of his foster mother's Zenzeng son. Blaming it on the peculiarities of mermaids, Xing used other methods, abundantly described in the scrolls, and repeatedly tried on Xifeng. Only this time, he didn't feel like he was the bandit leader he had encountered right after leaving Duojia!

Almyrakh, soon learning of his fears, only laughed. She had no maternal warmth for a child conceived by a hateful scoundrel, so Xing soon stopped holding back.

Then, it was the turn of Almirakh's native element, the lake where all the energy on the island flowed and where it was so easy to cultivate qi. In the intervals of passion, Xing finally grasped the thought lingering on the edge of his mind.

He realized that now, with the mermaid in his arms, he was doing anything but training. He realized if he continued to do so, he'd be oblivious to the thrill and pleasure of the exercise until he'd forgotten his primary goal of real power.

Fortunately, if there was one thing he had learned in Duojia, it was to do several things at once.

"What are you thinking about, Xing?" Almirakh asked him, making a circle around him, ducking down, wrapping her arms around him, and pressing herself against him, her body so firm and hot.

"I'm afraid this Sharif might show up at any moment," he replied, turning and pulling the girl to him. "I destroyed his guards. So he may bring reinforcements."

"You'll beat him!" Almirakh said confidently. "You are very strong!"

"It may not be enough!"

Almirakh pouted her lips resentfully, and Xing couldn't resist kissing her.

"You want to end it all!" She pulled away reluctantly and jabbed her finger accusingly at his chest.

"Not at all!" Xing laughed. "But I don't intend to give up training either. Have you ever heard of dual cultivation?"

Xing, seeing the negative gesture of her head, tried to explain to her about Yin and Yang energy, about feminine and masculine, something he had a vague idea of. It was mentioned only in a few scrolls, and in the few crystals where the hero and his beloved did it, the light went out at the most interesting point, and then morning came.

"So we're going to do the same thing, only more intricately?" Almirakh interrupted his confused explanation. "So what are we waiting for? Let's try it!"

And they tried it. And they tried again. And they did it more than once. Xing didn't find the right way right away, but eventually, the way the mermaid had taught him the language helped. Xing took the energy from the lake, passed it through all three dantians, and then gave it to Almirakh, who quickly learned to return it to Xing after passing it through herself. The energy flowed through them like a single organism, making them not only stronger but also allowing them to feel all their partner's feelings and emotions as if they were their own.

Interrupting so much coveted training only to sleep, hunt, and eat, they dived into the lake again and again to continue it. One time, Xing was so engrossed in cultivation that he only came to his senses when he dived deep into the lake and realized that he had forgotten to hold his breath. But his qi had intensified to the point where even breathing underwater was not the slightest bit uncomfortable!

Xing lost track of the days. He practiced and cultivated, cultivated and practiced. They did so until the water in the lake had thoroughly faded, losing most of the energy spilled in it.

Xing knew that he had become much stronger while also feeling the multiplied power of Almirakh, whose energy level was now equal to the qi of at least half a dozen masters.

If there was any justice in the universe, Xing would have not just advanced to the Qi Condensation stage. He would have long since overcome the Inner Sea Creation and would be challenging the Heavens now breaking through to Core Crystallization. But alas, he hadn't reached the bottleneck. The bright cloudless, and sunless sky didn't rain down deadly streams of lightning on him.

However, for lack of lightning, Heaven decided to give him another challenge.

"Xing!" Almirakh cried out fearfully. "I think I'm in labor!"

"Are you sure?" He asked, swimming closer to her.

"No! I'm not sure of anything!" She cried. "This is a first for me!"

Xing sighed. This was the second time the scroll he had memorized in his previous life would come in handy. Except he would have to help a mermaid instead of a human, and such a thing had never been written about by such venerable healers and scholars!

Xing checked Almirakh's body with qi. He realized from the energy flows that were remotely similar to those of Zenzen's that she was not mistaken and the labor was about to begin. He should have taken her to the shore and put her on the bed, but she was more accustomed to water, and besides, as far as Xing could feel, there were almost no tiny demons in the water. He decided to take the risk - after all, Almirakh's newfound strength would allow her to survive even in a volcano, and Xing could heal any wounds. As for the child... Xing was not going to leave it to die, but he was no more worried about the fate of the sorcerer's spawn than the mother-to-be.

The energy circulating inside Almirakh suddenly began to change the direction of flow chaotically. The girl screamed.

"Calm down!" Xing said, not feeling calm in the slightest. "Or rather, scream! Scream and push!"

He could feel that everything was going wrong, not one bit like human or animal labor. Qi began to flow out of Almirakh and accumulate in the bottom of her abdomen. The mermaid's cheeks turned pale, and on her forehead, in addition to the water, there were copious drops of a strange, foul-smelling pus-mud sweat.

"Everything hurts!" screamed Almirakh. "Xing, help! Help me, please!"

Xing saw that if he didn't intervene, the girl would die. He filled her with healing energy, feeling her organs collapse but immediately regenerate, and her weakly beating heart began its measured rhythm again. Many small but very angry clusters of qi burst forth, devouring Almirakh from within. Xing added qi, protecting the womb from what was in no way a future child while healing Almirakh and filling her with energy. The little monsters wouldn't give up, trying to force their way out, but the only way out Xing left them was the one through which humans and animals are born. As if sensing there was nothing more to be gained here, the creatures poured out in a torrent of nimble fry.

Xing grimaced in disgust. He wanted to destroy the creatures, to boil the entire lake, or turn it into ice. But he didn't care. He had to save Almirakh. Xing concentrated on what was most important, pulling the woman he held so dear from the very threshold of the Nine Underworlds.

"Am I alive?" Almirakh asked in surprise the next morning when she regained her clear mind.

"Of course," the tired Xing smirked, who hadn't stopped his treatment for a moment this entire time. "You've used up a lot of qi, but don't worry, it won't last forever. In a couple of days, you'll be back to being as strong as before. And even stronger, your qi won't be devoured by those... fry?"

"Fry?" Almirakh was surprised.

"You should have warned me, or I would have almost died of anxiety," he sighed. "I didn't know that you swim for caviar and that a mother must die when she gives birth."

"Caviar? What caviar! Do I look like some kind of fish?" screamed the mermaid. "Mermaids give birth to one child! Rarely two! More is very rare!"

"Like women."

"Like women? What do you think I am? A fish? An oyster? A turtle?"

"Shh, shh," Xing tried to reassure her, sending more qi into her body. "So it's Sharif's intrigue, and he's the one who set it all up. You rest, regain your strength, and then we'll think about what to do with them."

"Sharif!" Almirakh shouted.

"Yes, that's the one!" Xing nodded, concentrating to the limit and completing the healing.

"Xing, you don't understand!" shouted the girl in despair. "Sharif! He's here!"\

Xing raised his head and saw a lone figure wearing a strange headdress and purple robes embroidered with gold floating in the sky above them. He was holding a rod with a glowing crystal in its tip.

* * *

"Who are you?" Xing asked, stepping forward and covering Almiraлh with his body.

Of course, he knew perfectly well who was in front of him. Not only had Xing heard what the girl had called him, but he could have guessed without it. But Xing needed at least a little time to recover after such a long and arduous healing process. It would be enough time to bring the Emperor's entire Jade Guard to their feet.

In addition, heroes always covered their chosen women with their bodies, shielding them from danger. Han Nao used to think they were foolish, but now Xing had qi and understood how strong and impenetrable such protection was.

Alas, it wasn't the lack of dozens and dozens of techniques or the insufficient stage of cultivation that made him different from the hero from the crystal right now. At this moment, Xing was exhausted, unarmed, and unclothed.

The sorcerer was silent. He just hovered in the air, looking at the naked Xing with disdain, and Xing looked at him in return. The first impression would be unpleasant, even if Xing didn't know he was a villain and a scoundrel. He had a silly, bulky hat with a crystal and a feather sticking out of it, squinting eyes with dark circles underneath, a thin mustache, and a hooked beard. The sorcerer obviously wanted to appear stronger and more imposing, which was the only reason for the wide shoulder pads with pointed ends. Xing was most interested in the wand in his hands and the many rings dotting his fingers. The wand was obviously a weapon, and one of the rings could be a spatial ring! The original plan "to beat up the sorcerer and find out how to create such an island" was immediately supplemented by "take away the rings."

"A despicable worm who doesn't fall at the sight of me!" The sorcerer's voice rumbled, and Xing grimaced.

Anyone could amplify their voice with qi, so why yell like that?

"I watched you and saw what you did!" the sorcerer continued.

The idea that someone was watching his and Almirakh's amusement only made him cringe.

"And I'm even grateful to you!"

"Grateful? For what?" Xing couldn't resist.

"My plan! My great plan!" With the readiness so characteristic of every villain from the crystal, Sharif began to share his plans. "So much effort I had to expend to get to the court of the sea king! So many rare gifts I presented and so many charms I created! But I succeeded in getting my hands on her! So strong and richly endowed with talents, full of magic, life, and health!"

"Was it difficult?" Xing asked, glancing obliquely at the shore where the clothes and, more importantly, the weapons lay.

"Oh, ignorant fool! Valuable ingredients that can't be found in any corner of this world! Enchantments undreamed of even by the night wind! I have succeeded! Do you think it's a simple task to find such an island? And to place it in an aalam mastur. To create a spell that directs the Sihir to a single point? Oh, unfortunate one. It's not just difficult, it's impossible! Impossible for anyone but me, the greatest of the sorcerers of Ahribad!"

"Yeah, that looked not bad," Xing agreed as he prepared to dash for the flail.

"Not bad? Just "not bad"? Did the heavens and the stars ever see such an abyss of ignorance? Well, I didn't expect you, a barbarian from the Empire, to realize the greatness of my accomplishment!"

Xing was a little offended by the barbarian, but he didn't argue about it. He let out thin, almost imperceptible streams of qi, stretched them toward the shore, and wrapped them around the flail.

"What's all this for?" he asked. "No, I realize Almirakh is beautiful and desirable, but your plan has failed. You didn't have a real child, but some little monsters. And they almost killed the mother!"

When he heard Xing's words, Sharif threw back his head and laughed. Xing didn't waste any time. He pulled the threads, and the familiar hilt of the flail was in the palm of his hand.

"It was so funny. I almost decided to let you live. Almost. You, you miserable little brat of a desert viper, didn't get it. Don't be sad. Few people ever realize the greatness of my plan. A child? A great sorcerer who lives forever needs no heirs! The mother should have died anyway! The heart of my plan was to create a mighty army. And I am grateful to you, barbarian of the Empire! I don't sense any strength in you, which means you've been using musavar. And when you go to the Shaitans, I will be sure to examine it."

"Musavar?" Xing was genuinely surprised. "You mean an artifact?"

"Oh, barbarian, trying to feign ignorance, your attempts are futile! Even a complete fool could guess what the bracelet on your arm is! You've helped me a lot, so I'll give you a gift!"

"Helped? I?" Xing's surprise was replaced by utter amazement.

"Ha-ha-ha-ha! You are so ignorant that you didn't even realize what your musavar had done! All my calculations showed that the birth would have to wait for a long time, at least three years! But you, because of your limitations, unable to understand what treasure you had in your hands, used it up to fulfill my plan faster! Did you say "child"? No! Thousands, hundreds of thousands, millions of my children! My great and mighty army, the strongest not only in the seas and oceans but also able, thanks to the charms cast on the mother, to go on land! My perfect army, obeying no one but its creator!"

Xing's eyes widened in surprise. So, by practicing dual cultivation with Almirakh, he had actually helped that rascal!

"Oh, I see you have realized everything!" laughed Sharif. "Well, it's time for the promised reward!"

"And what are you going to give me?" Xing asked.

"I will grant a quick and painless death not only to you but to the mermaid as well!"

The time for talking had passed. Sharif did not seem to be able to overcome Xing's usual concealment of qi, and the flow of energy he called "sikhir" seemed to be the action of the very bracelet made from the remains of the guards, which Xing had simply forgotten about in the heat of passion. He wanted to boil the lake again, to destroy the army of fry before they grew up and became monsters, but he couldn't do it for two reasons: Almirakh was still in the lake, and it was dangerous to be distracted from the enemy, not to mention that in the upcoming fight, any drop of qi could be decisive!

Xing pushed off the sandy bottom and leaped into the air in a fountain of water. He swung his flail, a resounding clang sounded, and Xing was thrown away. The villain raised his wand, and a string of lightning bolts flew from it. Xing jumped aside, trying to get away from Almirakh so she wouldn't get hit by the random attack. As he ran along the shore, he picked up the bag of crystals that had once served as the hearts of the island's guardians.

His attempt to get away failed. Lightning bolts curved through the air and struck him in the back. He took them on a shield of qi, preparing to heal himself immediately if he survived. But as it turned out, the defense easily withstood. Xing extended his free hand, weaved together the elements, and struck back with lightning. A ringing sound resounded again.

"Your musavar is even better than I thought," laughed Shafir. "Try not to break it while you're dying!"

Xing didn't immediately know what he was talking about, then realized that the lightning had come from the hand that still had the bracelet dangling. He was not going to contribute to Sharif's delusions, nor was he going to tell him the truth. He had noticed the most important thing: the stone in the sorcerer's strange hat had dimmed a little during the attack, even though it had glowed brightly again after a few heartbeats.

The sorcerer swung his wand, and this time a torrent of fire far more powerful than the flames of the destroyed guards burst from the tip. Xing jumped aside, and the flames burned a long, deep furrow in the sand and earth, searing the house he had built. The molten stone at the edges of the furrow glowed scarlet.

Running away from the new streams of flames, Xing pondered. One could certainly attack again, but did it make sense? The stone was obviously an artifact protecting the sorcerer. And it seemed that even though the stone's energy was being restored, it wasn't instantaneous. It would need to be struck quickly and forcefully to overload the artifact, just as the turtle attacks had once overloaded the talismans of the alchemist Tsai Shaolung. One had to either lower the sorcerer to the ground for a good beating or jump into the air. Fortunately, Xing had a third option.

He slipped his hand into his bag, snatched one of the puppet hearts, and threw it at the sorcerer, putting Qi into the throw. Again, the loud clang of the defense being triggered sounded simultaneously with the explosion. Without waiting for the fire cloud to disperse, Xing threw the next crystal, followed by another.

When the flame of the last heart finally fell, Xing noticed with satisfaction that Sharif's crystal was almost completely extinguished. So he unleashed another bolt of lightning at the sorcerer, surging into the air, bringing his fist down on him and striking him with his flail.

The crystal gave up and cracked, Xing's hand overcame the invisible barrier and grabbed the rogue by the beard.

"Die!" Sharif shouted without his usual pretentiousness as he tried to point his wand at Xing.

"You die!" He replied, hitting the sorcerer in the face with his head and, with his flail, trying to pull the wand aside.

Unlike crystals with spectacular techniques, lightning, minions, and phoenixes, the fight with Sharif was boring and not much different from a scuffle between two peasants in their native village over a jug of plum jelly. This petty and uninteresting villain, making such dull and sinister plans, would be ridiculous. If it were not for one "but." Even from such a pathetic opponent, Xing had to run away before he had a chance to attack. He gritted his teeth.

The thought that the bastard master, Bao Xiao, or any of the heroes of the crystals would have nailed Sharif in the first dozen breaths made him want to howl in despair. Xing didn't hold back and shouted in Sharif's face. The sorcerer recoiled in surprise, and Xing, who had seized the moment, managed to slam his flail around the wand and wrest it from the sorcerer's hands. The wand flew, tumbling, and disappeared into the depths of the thicket.

"Ramz Al-Nar Al-Khalidah!" Sharif shouted, and his body was enveloped in a burning aura of fire.

Xing strengthened the circulation of qi to protect his body, slipped the flail around the sorcerer's neck, and, holding on to the hilt, began to tear the rings off his fingers. One of the rings was probably the spatial vault that Xing had dreamed of all these years. If the flames didn't burn, why not fulfill his dream?

The ground was moving away, and they were flying upward, the sorcerer trying to break free of Xing's grip and throw him off. He grabbed his arms, trying to tear off the coveted spatial ring, paying no attention to the sorcerer's trembling or the flames licking his body.

Xing managed to grab the warlock's wrist and squeeze hard. Alas, some of the protection was still working, for instead of being splattered with chunks of meat and shards of bone, the arm only glowed blue and broke at the wrist.

"Ah-ah-ah-ah-ah!" shouted Sharif. "Fawhat Al-Barq Al-Laamtinaki!"

Lightning flashed across his body, and Xing sighed sadly. His qi couldn't cope with this attack, and he still felt an unpleasant tingling sensation. He would continue training, and someday, he would no longer be such a weakling!

Finally, Xing managed to tighten his grip on the sorcerer's wrist and immediately, grinning his teeth, began ripping the rings off Sharif's fingers. However, Xing hadn't realized something. The sorcerer's hand, protected by some unknown enchantment, served as an anvil, and his fingers, clutching the rings, as a hammer. And the rings failed. The stones, unable to withstand the pressure, cracked, and the metal of the rings began to burst. A blinding flash illuminated the opponents, and a new ringing sounded as if Xing's head had been shoved into a giant bell. Fiery fractures crossed the sky like cracks in a porcelain vase.

"What have you done, worm?" screamed the sorcerer.

"A worm?" Xing interjected, punching the sorcerer in the stomach. "No, I'm a spawn!"

The cracks in the sky widened, the sky warped.

"I'm a tadpole!" he added, striking again.

There was some kind of rumbling in the distance.

"I'm a fry!' Xing struck again. 'I'm a carp!"

Whatever was protecting the sorcerer gave in, he exhaled sharply and bent in half.

"I'm a dragon!" Xing wailed victoriously. "Kiss my shiny, scaly tail!"

The sorcerer tried to say something, but he was short of breath. Xing intercepted the flail and tried to remove the rings from the sorcerer's other hand. Alas, those were also very fragile, so no matter how careful Xing was, they too, broke.

"Idhiot!" Sharif wheezed. "What have you dhone?"

"Kicked your beard," Xing laughed.

"No, you miserable worm! Look!"

Xing glanced behind the sorcerer's back and rounded his eyes in surprise. The invisible shimmering wall surrounding the island was gone. But there was something else: a large, broad wave as tall as the tallest pagoda in Myantao.

"You broke the musavar that held this aalam mastur! The island is back in the ocean!"

Now, Xing was truly afraid. There was Almirakh down there somewhere. She could swim, of course, but would she be able to withstand the impact of this wave?

He pounded the warlock with all his might, yanked off his flail, and pushed off, resolutely rushing down. The ground was rapidly approaching. Xing transformed his qi into the Wood elemental. The branches of the dense thicket shot upwards, taking him into their embrace and dampening his fall. He threw himself forward, clearing the way with his flail strikes. The wave was getting closer. Time was getting shorter and shorter. Xing jumped to the shore of the lake, where he saw Almirakh mesmerized as the wave approached.

"Dive!" he shouted. "Now!"

The girl didn't ask any questions, just nodded and disappeared into the depths.

Xing dipped his hands into the lake, scooped up as much qi as he could, and transformed it into the Water element. The surface of the lake swelled, gathering into a huge elastic ball, within which Xing could sense not only the mermaid but also myriads of small but bright lights of qi - Sharif's future army. If Xing had even a few moments, he would have scorched these creatures and wiped out every last one of them. But that was exactly what time was lacking right now. So, after making sure the sphere was solid, he turned around and ran towards the wave. Of course, he would have to run on the surface of the water, but it was just the elements, nothing too dangerous. Not like the difficulties of the real heroes!

"Not so fast, worm!" came a hoarse voice.

Xing turned his head and saw Sharif hovering nearby. He sighed. He didn't care about fighting this wretched fake villain right now. He would have to deal with him quickly. Xing raised his flail and twirled it a couple of times in the air.

"Ibaad Ila Al-Ufuq Al-Baid," Sharif managed to shout before the flail collapsed on his body.

An unknown force swept up Xing. He felt as if he was being pulled through something viscous and unpleasant, and then there was a pop, and the sensation disappeared.

He looked around and saw beautiful fluffy clouds. But the clouds were under his feet for some reason. And when they changed to thick fog and disappeared, he saw a huge desert spreading out in all directions. And this desert was rapidly approaching.

* * *