Out of Control

At this moment, Song Zi'an’s soul was still wandering far away, as if the heaven-toppling waves and the ear-piercing roars of the outside world had nothing to do with him.

He was immersed in a profound sensation. The way he had tossed the pan and controlled the fire during the cooking just now—every movement had been so familiar it made him want to weep.

It was as if he had returned to that smoke-filled and soot-stained little kitchen on Zhenlong Mountain, where his master’s calloused hands held his own, cursing in his ear while teaching him how to sauté the soul out of stubborn ingredients.

"Roar—!"

Cangming’s roar shattered the rain-filled sky, and a giant wave came crashing down.

The Dream Demon pig huddling in Chen Zhou’s arms instantly bristled.

It drifted out, its body swelling rapidly as it transformed into its true form. Its tusks jutted out, and countless fiendish eyes opened, ready to tank the blow and protect its master.

However, Chen Zhou simply pressed a hand onto the piglet’s head, suppressing its restless fiendish qi.

"No need to rush. Just watch."

Chen Zhou remained calm as he raised his hand and gave a sharp tug upward.

The ghost domain that had been used to shield them from the rain was instantly pulled down like a curtain, tightly enveloping the enlarged piglet, the dazed Song Zi'an, and Chen Zhou himself.

Boom—!

The giant wave slammed violently against the ghost domain.

When the blow—seemingly powerful enough to destroy a city—made contact with the surface of the ghost domain, Chen Zhou raised an eyebrow.

'Soft?'

This force was underwhelming. Let alone an out-of-control strike from a seventh-stage powerhouse, even a fifth-stage demon beast would have hit harder than this.

It struck the ghost domain without even causing a tremor; Chen Zhou didn't even need to mobilize death qi to neutralize it.

Without much effort, he simply willed it, and the giant wave was effortlessly bounced back by the ghost domain.

The repelled tide immediately spread out toward the surroundings in an indiscriminate sweep.

"Ah, my eyes!"

"Help! This water is toxic!"

The demons and court officials standing nearby were the first to suffer.

The water contained not only the heavy pressure of the Sea Race but was also laced with a strange black aura.

A few demon kings with lower cultivation levels were swept up by the spray. Their eyes rolled back, and they collapsed to the ground, frothing at the mouth and twitching violently.

Even more terrifying were the ghost officials who only possessed third or fourth-stage strength. The moment their soul bodies touched the water, they began to dissolve rapidly.

Screams rose and fell. In the blink of an eye, several unlucky souls turned into puddles of black liquid, merging into the tide, losing even the chance to die a second time.

Sitting within his domain, Chen Zhou watched the scene unfold with indifference through the grayish-white veil.

'Interesting.'

His lips curled slightly.

This didn't look like an out-of-control strike from a seventh-stage powerhouse at all.

If one were truly suffering from a cultivation deviation, how could they control their strength so precisely?

It had appeared to be aimed at him with terrifying momentum, but in reality, the force had been scattered to the sides, perfectly avoiding Chen Zhou’s main defenses while simultaneously clearing out the surrounding small fry who had been watching the show.

Through the murky spray, Chen Zhou could vaguely see Cangming’s deep, azure eyes at the center of the giant wave.

Where was the bloodshot, mindless rage from before?

Chen Zhou could even sense a strange sort of excitement in those eyes; the prince was staring intently at him, observing his every move.

However, the aura on Cangming’s body was indeed extremely bizarre.

There was the vast spiritual qi of the Sea Race and the presence of death qi. As a seventh-stage powerhouse coexisting with death qi, that was normal.

But there was a third aura.

Manic and evil.

It was a strange power that Chen Zhou had never encountered before.

Just as the giant wave was ravaging the Star-Picking Platform, threatening to turn the entire banquet into a slaughterhouse, Yin Wudao, who had been sitting calmly at the head of the table, finally made his move.

He slammed his wine cup heavily onto the table.

"Settle!"

As that single word was uttered, the space above the Star-Picking Platform seemed to freeze instantly.

Countless black ghost hands reached out from the void, each one burning with the fire of sinful karma.

The ghost hands pierced through the giant wave, locking the surging wall of water like stitches in a wound before pulling it back.

During the struggle, Cangming continued to howl. Yin Wudao also seemed to be struggling; the strain was immense, and his arms trembled slightly.

Soon, the giant wave dissipated, leaving the scene in ruins.

Demons were dead or injured, and many of the court officials had been caught in the crossfire, their soul bodies dim and battered.

Chen Zhou sensed that at the moment Yin Wudao acted, a similar strange aura had leaked from him as well.

Both of them possessed that same energy—neither spiritual nor of death, but filled with a sense of profound evil.

The commotion subsided.

Yin Wudao’s face suddenly turned pale. With a pfft sound, he spat out a mouthful of blood and slumped back onto his Dragon Throne.

His right eye was filled with murderous intent, and his chest heaved violently, as if that single strike had drained all his mental energy.

Cangming, meanwhile, lay sprawled on the ground like a dead fish, his scales upturned and blood that was red mixed with black staining the floor.

His previously sharp and deep eyes had timely returned to a state of bloodshot confusion before slowly regaining clarity.

"What... what happened?"

Cangming panted weakly, looking as though he had just woken from a nightmare.

The surviving demons were in a sorry state, shrinking into corners and remaining silent as cicadas in winter. The way they looked at those two monsters was filled with terror.

When gods fight, it is the mortals who suffer; they had truly witnessed that truth today.

Chen Zhou withdrew his ghost domain and scanned the area.

He found that only his group remained completely unharmed; not even their robes were ruffled.

The piglet returned to its pink, pudgy form and yawned while lying on his shoulder.

Song Zi'an was still in his state of soul wandering, his hand even ghosting the movement of holding a spatula.

"Your Highness!"

The Clam Maiden, who had been torn in half by Cangming earlier, slowly squirmed and pieced her two halves back together.

She helped Cangming up and turned toward Yin Wudao.

"Please forgive us, Crown Prince!"

"My Prince coexists with death qi, and the stimulation from this red rain caused him to momentarily lose control."

"It was not an intentional slight against Your Highness or our colleagues."

"The Eastern Region will provide double compensation for the Crown Prince's losses and the casualties of the various officials later."

After saying this, she looked up. Though her words sounded humble, her expression lacked any of the fear or trepidation one would expect from someone making an apology.

"My Prince is no longer fit to continue the banquet. Please allow this servant to take him back to rest."

Without waiting for Yin Wudao’s response, she waved over several crab generals to carry the half-dead Cangming.

The group of Sea Race members avoided Chen Zhou’s direction as they rode a wave and departed in haste.

Before they left, Chen Zhou noticed that even as he was being carried away, Cangming was still twisting his head to stare at him.

What did it feel like to be stared at by a dead fish?

Chen Zhou found it slightly nauseating.

At this time, Yin Wudao also stood up with the support of his palace maids.

A maid took out a handkerchief and meticulously wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth.

Yin Wudao watched Cangming’s retreating back, a shadow of gloom flitting through his eyes, though he quickly returned to his usual refined and jade-like appearance.