The entire ship was swept up by the waves. A-Xin had covered the hull with a protective array, so despite some turbulence, it wasn't particularly dangerous at the moment. She'd grabbed Ji Yunman's wrist at the very beginning, and later, due to the intense rocking, had no choice but to wrap her arm around Ji Yunman's waist.
Because A-Xin was there, Ji Yunman didn't feel the turbulence as much. Thinking about being so close to a peerless expert and being personally protected by her—she was truly flattered beyond measure.
"Master, you're really playing favorites."
Yin Lan clung tightly to A-Xin's waist, refusing to let go no matter what. She was afraid that if she released her grip, when the next wave hit, even if she didn't get thrown overboard, she'd end up in an embarrassing tumble. Ji Yunman had such good luck, actually being protected by Master. Jealous—so jealous she could die.
Yin Lan's attention was quickly diverted. Originally there had been some light visible, but after another wave crashed over them, she felt the ship sinking somewhere, and darkness surrounded them completely. Faintly, she heard exclamations from outside. She gripped A-Xin's waist even tighter, refusing to let go, glaring at how A-Xin kept protecting Ji Yunman. In her heart, she cursed "little vixen" countless times.
A-Xin made a hand seal, and both Ji Yunman and Yin Lan felt the surrounding pressure ease considerably. Their bodies seemed to be protected by something.
A-Xin released Ji Yunman's waist and told Yin Lan, "You can let go now."
"No—" Yin Lan wouldn't release her grip. Even though it seemed safe, who knew what would happen next? Holding onto Master was safer. She finally understood—when danger struck, Master's first thought was actually of Ji Yunman!
"Master, are you abandoning your disciple?"
"No."
"Then why did you protect Miss Ji first instead of your disciple?"
A-Xin replied, "You have the defensive treasure I gave you. You'll be fine."
Yin Lan choked on her words. Well, that was true—with that little commotion just now, she really wouldn't be in any danger. But she was still unhappy. She felt Master's affection was being divided by that little vixen Ji Yunman.
Though darkness surrounded them, as cultivators they could still clearly see each other's expressions. Hearing Yin Lan say this, Ji Yunman's cheeks flushed slightly. "I've caused you trouble."
"Fine." Hearing Ji Yunman's good attitude, Yin Lan's discomfort dissipated. "I know Master must have been confident I'd be safe, otherwise she wouldn't have ignored me. If I were really in danger, she'd definitely protect me first."
"Where are we now?"
Ji Yunman could see that outside the ship, people seemed to be continuously falling. Their current situation was still decent—having a powerful expert like A-Xin beside them, even protecting her. Facing the unknown for the first time, that tense nerve in her mind hadn't tightened. However, facing unknown danger, she remained very alert. Years of cultivation experience told her that in any situation, when facing danger, one couldn't let their guard down. A moment's inattention could cost your life.
"Right, Master, where are we?"
Yin Lan felt her body had stabilized considerably. Her gaze swept around their surroundings, and finally she pulled out a luminous pearl, muttering, "Wonder how that stubborn woman is doing. Luo Dongqing's cultivation isn't bad, but still can't compare to Master. They don't have a ship like ours either."
"We should be inside a sea demon's belly," A-Xin answered.
Both were shocked. Did this mean the sea demon had swallowed the entire ship into its stomach?
What kind of sea demon could be so enormous? This ship was really quite large, and the people outside—all together there had to be at least several hundred.
"Miss Yin, what should we do now?" Ji Yunman's mind raced quickly. "Did the sea demon swallow us as food, planning to digest us?"
She knew some powerful demon beasts did swallow prey whole. In these beasts' stomachs existed an intensely corrosive fluid. Living people swallowed into their bellies—even cultivators, if they didn't find a way out quickly and got hit by this toxic fluid, might eventually be gradually digested.
Generally, this kind of fluid could render low-cultivation people unconscious and had tremendous adhesive properties. Once touched, escape might become impossible. If this sea demon swallowed prey whole, then its gastric fluid definitely contained this intensely corrosive poison. The lower one's cultivation, the easier to be digested. An ordinary person might be digested down to nothing, bones and all, within fifteen minutes.
A-Xin naturally knew what sea demon this was and also knew what fate awaited it in the end. She had no intention of interfering. Ji Yunman and Yin Lan were both safe—they just needed to wait here for a while. Those people thrown into the sea earlier had angered Ji Yunman and offended her—she didn't want to care about their lives. As for Dan Shu, who was somewhat pleasing to the eye, she was also a reincarnator who had ways to save herself, so she needed no help either.
"Why don't we sit for a while and wait and see?" A-Xin said whatever came to mind, not feeling there was any problem with this at all.
Ji Yunman and Yin Lan looked at each other. Did they need to be this calm?
Ji Yunman asked uncertainly, "Just wait and that's enough?"
"Mm." Seeing the ship had stabilized, A-Xin waved her hand and new tables and chairs appeared—clearly meaning they really should sit here and wait. Ji Yunman's heart was full of questions, but at the same time she admired this immensely. This was a true expert—calm in the face of danger. She didn't stand on ceremony either, choosing to sit in a chair and waiting as A-Xin suggested.
Yin Lan accepted it quite quickly. Master rarely left home but was incredibly powerful. If Master said to wait, there must be no danger. So they'd wait.
Thus, the three sat peacefully in the ship. That ship's array formation was truly solid beyond measure—after such violent turbulence, there wasn't a single bit of damage. This made Ji Yunman understand even more of A-Xin's true strength. Watching the white-robed woman before her brewing tea with such calm composure, her eyes showed admiration and also envy. She was praised as a genius young lady, training hard from childhood without daring to stop for even a moment.
The Eastern Cloud Continent had far too many geniuses. The moment she paused, countless people would surpass her. She was the hope of this generation of the Ji family—only if she became stronger could she protect the Ji family's future. If she had strength like Miss Yin's, she could act as she pleased, not caring about anyone's opinions, and still protect her family members. Though she'd been somewhat weary from rushing about, a fierce fighting spirit ignited in her heart once more.
"Try it—how is it?"
A-Xin handed a teacup to Ji Yunman, who quickly accepted it and took a sip. "Very good."
"Don't worry, there's no danger. It'll pass in a moment." Seeing Ji Yunman deep in thought, A-Xin assumed she was worried about their predicament. "If you're really afraid, how about I take you out?"
Ji Yunman and Yin Lan both raised their heads simultaneously, looking at her with strange expressions, saying in unison, "We can get out?"
"Anytime."
Ji Yunman wasn't a fool. Her expression grew increasingly odd. "Earlier, Miss Yin could have avoided falling in here, correct?" After asking, she felt somewhat regretful. Miss Yin was protecting her—how could she ask so bluntly? The other following them in must have had some purpose.
A-Xin nodded, answering quite frankly. "I was somewhat curious, so I followed in to take a look."
They weren't speaking quietly. After the surroundings stabilized, many people still floated outside the ship. Now that they were all in the demon beast's belly, they figured the closer to A-Xin's ship, the safer they'd be. Even if they didn't dare cling to the ship, staying two or three steps away should be acceptable, right?
Hearing A-Xin say she came in just out of curiosity, they nearly coughed up blood in anger. They'd been forced into the sea demon's belly, while she was here sightseeing! Truly infuriating. Yet the other was a peerless expert—no matter how uncomfortable they felt, what could they do? Just endure it.
Yin Lan searched through the crowd but didn't find Dan Shu, muttering, "Wonder how Dan Shu is doing. She couldn't have been digested by the sea demon, could she?"
Not only was Dan Shu absent, Luo Dongqing and Xu Xiangjun weren't there either. His little followers were hovering around, trying to find a way out. Unfortunately, they couldn't think of anything.
People around discussed in whispers and explored their surroundings, discovering they were in the sea demon's stomach. Frightened, they quickly covered themselves with spiritual power to avoid being digested.
But the situation was somewhat ominous. The ship planks that had been swallowed by the sea demon were being corroded by gastric fluid, and their position kept sinking lower. Unable to help it, they tried stabbing the stomach wall with swords, but it was like copper walls and iron ramparts—there was simply no way to break through and escape.
At this moment, they remembered the powerful A-Xin and also recalled her earlier words about just being curious and being able to leave anytime. Instantly, countless pairs of eyes fell on A-Xin.
Several of the strongest people here came to the position closest to A-Xin and cupped their fists toward her. "Senior Yin, we humbly ask you to tell us how to get out. Once we escape, we will certainly reward you handsomely."
Yin Lan snorted. Master was right—many of these supposedly righteous sects were hypocrites to the extreme. How much better was their Demon Palace, where they never engaged in such pretenses and were what they were? These people loved playing schemes and conspiracies the most, yet painted their Demon Palace as some viper's den.
Now that they had no other options, they actually came begging Master for help. What wishful thinking. Just now, not knowing Master's true strength, they'd even bullied them.
Shameless—all shameless people.
"Miss Ji, you're also from the Ji family. For the sake of everyone's relationship, we hope you can help put in a good word."
Seeing A-Xin unmoved, they turned their attention to Ji Yunman. Ji Yunman was from the Ji family—surely she'd have some concerns and wouldn't watch them in danger. Wouldn't that bring disgrace to the Ji family? Families like the Ji family cared most about face and maintaining harmony with all powers—they'd never completely burn bridges.
Ji Yunman did have concerns, but these people's earlier behavior was truly distasteful. Privately speaking, she wasn't willing to help them.
Through her interactions with A-Xin, she'd come to understand what kind of person this Yin Xin was—definitely not someone whose mind could be changed by a few words or who'd develop sympathy. These people had offended her earlier and now wanted to ask for help—how could such convenient things exist?
"Miss Yin's thoughts are not for me to influence. If I had the ability to help everyone, I would take you out," Ji Yunman said very sincerely. "Please forgive and understand Yunman. Yunman hasn't even reached Spirit General realm yet and truly has no way to take all you seniors out. I truly have the heart but lack the ability."
Ji Yunman's words, it could be said, sounded fine—she truly lacked that ability. But to these people's ears, they were extremely unpleasant and could anger someone to death.
A-Xin glanced at the incredibly sincere Ji Yunman, her lips curving slightly. This soul—she found her very likable, very intelligent, very tactful. She wouldn't randomly be charitable, was quite vengeful, and had a strong personality. No wonder she could attract her attention—this was her charm.
She could see that Ji Yunman didn't want to help these people.
Therefore, she would naturally comply with her wishes.
"Miss Yin..."
Everyone stared hopefully at A-Xin. A-Xin only gave them a faint smile. "You want me to help you get out?"
"We wonder if Miss Yin could..."
A-Xin shook her head. "No."
"I don't want to help you."
"Miss Yin, leaving room for maneuver benefits everyone. Why press so hard? If you help us today, you'll befriend countless powers—great benefits for you. If you're heartless today, when you need help someday, you'll be treated with the same coldness."
"You're already threatening me, so I definitely can't help you. If you all die, it causes me no loss whatsoever. You were digested by the sea demon—what does that have to do with me?"
"Then if we survive today, Miss Yin will have offended countless powers." These words were a threat—they thought this would force A-Xin to agree.
A-Xin remained unmoved, only saying, "If you survive, that means you weren't fated to die—it also has nothing to do with me. So what if I offend you? Are you going to band together and attack me after we get out?"
The surrounding people fell silent. Right—they really couldn't organize their sects to attack her over this. The strength she'd displayed earlier already proved her power. She had no need to fear them.
"When asking for help, you should have the attitude of someone asking for help. Don't come with threats. Don't try to threaten me by saying if I don't help you, I'll offend you and face serious consequences." A-Xin's words remained gentle and soft, yet what she said made people uncomfortable. "Between offending you and saving you, after being threatened, I'm very happy to watch you be digested by the sea demon."
A-Xin wore snow-white robes, spoke so gently with such a pleasant voice and faint smile, yet the meaning of her words had a somewhat wicked and imposing quality. At that moment, Ji Yunman wondered how she'd cultivated such a demonic yet celestial appearance.
The surrounding people's faces all looked terrible, but what could they do?
Unknowingly, two hours passed, and their position had sunk considerably. Many people could no longer withstand the stomach's toxic fluid—their heads were becoming dizzy. Earlier, someone had accidentally touched the gastric fluid, and their skin was instantly corroded in a large patch, scaring them into climbing much higher.
Beneath their feet was a vast pool of toxic fluid. Someone had already fallen in and been corroded within moments. Such a scene truly made one's scalp tingle. They instinctively looked at that white-robed woman and saw her still looking indifferent, as if all this had nothing to do with her. Finally understanding that threats were completely useless against her, they inwardly complained, not knowing where this demoness came from, actually refusing to save them.
"Master, they're all glaring at us." Yin Lan smiled coldly. "Serves them right. They always like forcing others to help them. These people are just as Master said—hypocrites."
Ji Yunman had been watching below the whole time. Seeing someone being digested, she pressed her lips together lightly. She glanced at A-Xin but didn't say anything.
A-Xin noticed Ji Yunman's gaze. "Do you want to help them?"
"I can't help them."
"So you still want to help them, right?"
Ji Yunman fell somewhat silent. Among the people here, there were indeed some with connections to the Ji family. If she did nothing today, after they got out, this incident would become the Ji family's disgrace.
Facing Ji Yunman's silence, A-Xin actually laughed. "Why don't you try and see what your kindness will bring you in return?"
"Miss Yin, you..." Ji Yunman's head shot up, somewhat confused. What did she mean?
A-Xin then said to those people, "Miss Ji couldn't bear it and begged me to save you. For Miss Ji's sake, I'll help you this once."
The surrounding people looked at Ji Yunman and quickly expressed gratitude. "Thank you, Miss Ji."
A-Xin took out a sword and lightly sliced open the stomach wall, creating an opening. Then with one thrust through, they only heard the sea demon cry out in agony, and that spot tore open with a hole.
A-Xin turned to Ji Yunman and Yin Lan. "Let's go. We can get out now."
She'd also sensed that things on Luo Dongqing's side had concluded, which was why she acted.
The remaining people all followed them out, returning to the sea surface. They finally saw clearly just how enormous this sea demon was. They all took out their vessels and stood on ship planks, finally breathing sighs of relief.
Seeing everyone safe, Ji Yunman's heart also relaxed. Before she could say much, suddenly a voice rang out: "Miss Ji, since when you begged Senior Yin, she agreed to help—why didn't you beg Senior Yin earlier?"
"Ji Yunman, if you'd begged Senior Yin earlier, my little brother wouldn't have fallen in and been corroded by the toxic fluid."
"Ji Yunman, you just wanted to watch us make fools of ourselves. You resented us for earlier, so you deliberately wouldn't help us plead, right?"
"From when she abandoned Luo Dongqing, you could tell her character isn't great. The Ji family produced a genius like Ji Yunman, but Ji Yunman's moral character really doesn't bear mentioning."
Ji Yunman didn't know what expression to show on her face. Facing the accusations from all around, her heart felt very hurt.
"Miss Yin, I'm sorry."
A-Xin smiled and grasped her wrist. "What's there to apologize for? It's nothing serious."