Sha Hu laughed heartily and waved a dismissive hand. "There's no need for any of you. Without having tempered your bodies with Huntian Pills, you'd only be throwing your lives away. This time, Yang Kai and I will go alone. You lot… just hide somewhere nearby and enjoy the show."
"Sect Master Yang?" Pang Zhen glanced doubtfully toward the stern where Yang Kai stood and said quietly, "Sect Master Yang is truly an exceptional individual. I once fought him and was no match for him. But… he only arrived at Soul Wandering Island recently. How could he be of any help to Martial Uncle?"
He harbored no doubts about Yang Kai's strength, but that was in the Wuyou Sea. His own experience and Qian Mo's proved as much — powerful martial artists outside didn't necessarily remain so once they arrived here. Any martial artist who had lived on Soul Wandering Island for even a handful of years could push them around at will.
So the moment he heard Sha Hu say he was bringing only Yang Kai, Pang Zhen grew worried.
Sha Hu, however, let out a bitter laugh. "What do you know? Even I'm no match for him — you tell me whether he can be of help or not?"
"What?" Pang Zhen's jaw dropped wide enough to fit an egg, his face a mask of shock. He almost suspected he had misheard.
He turned to glance at Yang Kai standing at the stern once more, only to find him smiling with an expression of harmless innocence. A cold shiver ran down Pang Zhen's spine.
"Don't doubt it — the kid really is stronger than me. A month ago, I exchanged a single move with him and was sent stumbling back by one palm strike. As for now…" Sha Hu didn't finish the sentence, but Pang Zhen understood what he was implying.
The meaning was clear — a month ago Sha Hu had been knocked back by a single palm from Yang Kai, and now the gap had probably widened even further.
Pang Zhen was even more stunned.
They had all been stranded on Soul Wandering Island together. Over these past two or three months, their strength hadn't grown in the slightest — they'd been ordered about by the island's residents to perform one meaningless task after another. Yet Yang Kai could defeat Sha Shishu, who had lived here for three hundred years.
Was this kid some kind of monster?
The ship was small but sailed across the water with remarkable steadiness, the little dolphin occasionally giving it a push from behind. Their speed was nothing to scoff at.
In just five days, the distant silhouette of Soul Wandering Island came into view.
"Wait for us here. Once I've dealt with this, I'll come back and bring you aboard," Sha Hu ordered. He then casually tossed a bottle of Huntian Pills to Pang Zhen. "One pill per person. Absorb and refine them."
Pang Zhen caught the bottle and was overjoyed.
He had long coveted the Huntian Pills on Soul Wandering Island and knew that the reason the island's martial artists were so much stronger than them was entirely due to these spirit pills. He'd simply never had a way to obtain any.
Originally, they would have had to formally join Soul Wandering Island before earning the right to receive varying quantities of Huntian Pills from the Island Master after completing certain missions. That process would have been lengthy — perhaps eighty percent of them would have died from one cause or another before reaching that point. And even if they did receive any, the quantities would have been meager, and the quality low-grade.
But now Sha Hu had just handed him an entire bottle.
Pang Zhen expressed his gratitude respectfully and didn't waste a moment. He uncapped the bottle and distributed one pill to each disciple of the Sea Palace.
Qian Mo watched from the side with undisguised envy. Just as bitterness and frustration were welling up in his heart, he caught something out of the corner of his eye hurtling toward him. He reached out and snatched it from the air.
Looking up, he found Yang Kai regarding him with a smile. "You should each take one as well," Yang Kai said.
Qian Mo blinked, then let out a cold snort. "I'll pay you back someday."
"Whenever you like," Yang Kai replied with a smile, then turned and dashed toward Soul Wandering Island alongside Sha Hu.
The little dolphin cried out behind them in its strange voice, seeming to urge Yang Kai to be careful on his way.
Gifting a bottle of Huntian Pills to Qian Mo hadn't been a whim on Yang Kai's part. He knew that even if he didn't offer, the little dolphin would have asked him to. It was clearly very close to Qian Mo and would naturally look out for him. Besides, almost all the Huntian Lotuses in Yang Kai's possession had been found with the little dolphin's help. One could say the dolphin deserved half the credit for both the Huntian Lotuses and the Huntian Pills. A single bottle of pills was nothing to Yang Kai.
Ahead, Sha Hu slowed his pace, clearly waiting for Yang Kai to catch up.
Once Yang Kai drew alongside him, Sha Hu spoke with a grave expression: "Yang Kai, the sole purpose of this trip is to kill that scoundrel Ming Yue. On Soul Wandering Island, Ming Yue is the strongest, but there are also others who aren't weak. When the time comes, I'll need you to watch my back."
"No problem," Yang Kai agreed readily, then asked, "How confident are you in your chances against Ming Yue, Senior Sha?"
Sha Hu's expression turned serious. He thought carefully for a moment before answering. "At least sixty percent! Although I haven't seen Ming Yue in a hundred years and his strength has certainly grown, those low-grade Huntian Pills can only do so much. I'm fairly confident I can strike him down."
"Then I wish you a swift and decisive victory, Senior Sha," Yang Kai said with a cheerful grin.