Chapter 140: Roc Island

The sky was barely beginning to brighten. A small boat slowly pulled away from the shore. Yu Ye rowed the boat, while Dang Guiyi sat at the bow.

Yu Ye had rowed boats on rivers and sailed across the sea, but now he was navigating a small craft across an unfamiliar lake. The surface of the water was shrouded in dense mist, making it difficult to discern any direction.

Dang Guiyi sat upright at the bow and gestured, saying, "Listen to my instructions. Peng Island is thirty miles from here; row on."

Having accepted the villagers' hospitality the night before and inquired about the necessary details, he had arrived at the lakeside early that morning to find Yu Ye, eager to reach Peng Island. Though his injuries from casting the mystic Qimen Dunjia talisman had not yet fully healed, his mission to slay demons and eliminate evil filled him with restless energy.

Yu Ye flicked his bamboo pole, sending ripples across the water as the boat glided forward.

He had spent the entire night sitting by the lake, practicing his breathing and meditation, and had taken the time to study the cultivation manuals left behind by Qi Shi. It was only then that he learned of a peculiar technique called the Art of Beast Taming. However, whether it was the Art of Beast Taming or the Ten Thousand Beast Manor, he set those thoughts aside for the moment, for his current priority was navigating this small boat toward the mysterious Peng Lake.

Gradually, the sky turned bright. Yet, the mist still blanketed the surface of the lake.

A thirty-mile journey would typically take half a day of rowing, but by channeling his internal energy into the bamboo pole, Yu Ye propelled the boat with great speed. After only an hour, they had reached the depths of the lake, yet all he saw was a vast, empty expanse in every direction—there was no sign of the so-called Peng Island.

"Did you make sure you found out where Peng Island is?"

"I asked clearly. Peng Island lies thirty miles southwest of Lingyu Village. It is a small island in the lake, only two or three miles in circumference, used by fishermen as a resting place. We should not be far."

Yu Ye slowed the pace, searching as he moved forward.

Dang Guiyi stood at the bow, gazing out for a moment before pointing, "Look—"

A small island suddenly appeared in the mist. It was indistinct, appearing as if it were suspended above the lake, drifting toward them.

"Ha! This must be Peng Island. Quickly, dock the boat!"

*Thump.*

Just as Yu Ye extended his bamboo pole, the boat struck the shore. Caught off guard, Dang Guiyi tumbled out. Yu Ye steadied the boat, secured it with a rope, and then leapt onto the island, instantly finding himself enveloped in the thick, heavy mist.

"Fellow Daoist Dang? Dang Guiyi?"

Yu Ye released his spiritual sense. His perception could reach thirty zhang, but he saw only withered grass and tangled trees; there was no trace of Dang Guiyi.

*Could he have fallen into a water pit or hidden in the grass?*

After searching for a moment, he still found no sign of him. Yu Ye had no choice but to head deeper into the island alone.

Finding himself in an unpredictable place, he did not dare to be careless. He drew his green steel longsword and moved forward, hacking at the grass as he went. It was a common trick used by hunters to flush out snakes. Although it was hard to find venomous snakes in the winter, caution was still prudent. The grass was damp and heavy with moisture, as if a torrential rain had just fallen.

Not long after, he encountered a maze of swamps. Yu Ye utilized his agility to leap across them.

A moment later, a water channel several zhang wide appeared before him, lined with thickets of reeds. One end connected to the lake, while the other led toward the depths of the island, where the terrain gradually sloped upward—though the mist made it difficult to discern the details.

Yu Ye followed the reeds upward. A cold wind blew, momentarily scattering the mist. Ahead stood a small hill, several dozen zhang high, before it vanished once again into the swirling fog.

His spiritual sense confirmed the channel had come to an end. Yu Ye vaulted over the reeds and landed in a clearing. To his left and right were rocks and reeds; before him was the water channel, where seven or eight fishing boats were moored; behind him was a dark, cavernous opening, its depth unknown.

The moored boats clearly belonged to the villagers of Lingyu Village, as the fishing gear and the catch were still inside, yet not a soul was to be seen. The ground in the clearing was damp, and messy footprints led toward the cave.

*Could the fishermen of Lingyu Village be inside the cave?*

Yu Ye turned and walked toward it. The cave looked deep, but to his surprise, he reached the end after only a few zhang. Yu Ye stopped.

A thick pile of earth and stone blocked the path ahead, obstructing both his way and his spiritual sense. Still, there was no sign of anyone. Yu Ye looked down. The chaotic footprints on the ground were buried beneath the soil and stone.

*Oh...?*

Yu Ye turned and exited the cave, then launched himself upward, tapping his toes against the rock face to reach the top of the hill. Sure enough, a section of the mountain above the cave had collapsed.

Yu Ye nodded to himself. If his guess was correct, the fishermen had taken shelter in the cave to rest or escape the rain, only for the mountain to collapse, trapping them all inside. Five or six days had passed since then; he wondered if there were any survivors.

Thinking of the elderly and children in the village, he felt a surge of anxiety.

He returned to the cave. The collapsed rocks weighed tens of thousands of pounds; digging them out would not only be exhausting but would also waste precious time for rescue. Suddenly, Yu Ye shook his head and produced a ring.

It was the storage ring of Qi Shi from the Ten Thousand Beast Manor, containing numerous relics. Last night, he had been too focused on the cultivation manuals and the Art of Beast Taming to pay attention to the other contents. Checking it now, he found dozens of talismans—not only Fire-Leaving and Dragon-Subduing talismans, but also two Golden Armor talismans and three Earth-Escape talismans.

Yu Ye breathed a sigh of relief and activated an Earth-Escape talisman.

With a flash of light, he merged into the stone. He found nothing at first, not even a corpse. He passed through the earth and stone, and suddenly, a faint cry for help reached his ears: "Help... help..."

The light on Yu Ye's body faded, and he was plunged into darkness. Though he could see clearly, he produced a night-luminescent pearl.

In the dim light, a cave was revealed. It was spacious, but stifling and airtight. In this dark, suffocating space, more than forty people were gathered—men and women, ranging from teenagers to middle-aged adults. Some lay on the ground, gasping their last breaths; others were sprawled near the debris, their hands still in a digging posture, though they had long since perished; a group huddled around a water pit, all looking incredibly weak.

"I am from Lingyu Village. Entrusted by your elders, I have come to save you all!"

Yu Ye announced his intentions. The group erupted into cheers, and several women wept.

Yu Ye held the pearl high and walked to the water pit, crouching down to ask, "What exactly happened?"

A middle-aged man sat on the ground, speaking weakly, "We had been fishing for days with good harvests when the rain wouldn't stop, so we came here to shelter. Who would have thought the mountain would collapse, burying the forty of us? We tried to dig our way out, but we were too weak from hunger. We have only survived this long thanks to this water pit. If you had come two days later, I fear none of us would have lived..."

Before the man could finish, the cave was filled with weeping once more. As expected, the fishermen had met with an accident.

"Everyone, please stay calm!" Yu Ye offered some comfort and took two clay bowls from the crowd. He scooped up water from the pit, crushed a few Grain-Avoiding Pills and Foundation-Cultivating Pills into the water, and instructed them to share it. He then walked to the side to contemplate a strategy.

Digging an opening was the most direct way, but it was difficult and risked further collapse. *Perhaps...*

Yu Ye produced another ring. Not a storage ring, but what he called a Beast-Taming Ring. It was six or seven zhang in size and contained various living creatures—snakes, insects, birds, and beasts. The key was that they were alive. If the ring could store living creatures, surely it could store living people?

Yu Ye took out the two rings, transferred the snakes and beasts into the storage ring, then crushed two spirit stones and threw the dust into the empty Beast-Taming Ring.

A moment later, after consuming the pills, the people regained some spirit, and even those on the verge of death sat up. The middle-aged man appeared to be the leader. Yu Ye approached him, whispered a few words, and waved the Beast-Taming Ring. The man vanished on the spot.

The crowd was stunned, not knowing what had happened. In just a few breaths, the man reappeared, still looking bewildered but entirely unharmed.

*The Beast-Taming Ring can indeed store living people, at least for a short time,* Yu Ye thought, feeling relieved.

He waved his hand. With his spiritual sense guiding the process, the forty-plus fishermen, along with the four corpses, were one by one drawn into the Beast-Taming Ring. He prepared to use the Earth-Escape talisman to leave, when suddenly he heard someone cry: "Help..."

All the survivors were accounted for—how could someone still be calling for help?

*No!*

The voice was too familiar!

Yu Ye looked back. A figure had emerged from the water pit in the corner of the cave—it was Dang Guiyi. He had been missing for so long; why was he in the water pit? He looked terrified, and before his cry for help could finish, he sank down and vanished in an instant, leaving only splashing water...

Yu Ye was secretly alarmed, but he dared not delay. He escaped the cave and quickly activated the Beast-Taming Ring. The people appeared in the clearing, safe and sound. Upon seeing the light of day again, the women embraced and wept. The middle-aged man and the villagers were filled with a mix of grief and joy.

Yu Ye handed the corpses to the man and instructed, "This place is not safe to linger. Rest for a moment and leave as quickly as you can, so your families do not worry!"

He refused their thanks and, without another word, flashed with light and dove back into the cave.

Returning to the cave, he did not stop, but utilized the remaining power of the Earth-Escape talisman to dive deep into the earth. In an instant, the surroundings opened up.

Yu Ye slowed his descent and landed lightly on his feet. He scanned the area, his spiritual sense making the surroundings clear. It was an underground cavern: half was a pool of water, half was a stone platform. On the platform sat a stone bed and a table. In the pool, water splashed violently as a four-legged monster twisted and turned, while a human figure struggled desperately in its grip.

It was Dang Guiyi. He had been dragged here by the monster and was being tightly constricted.

Yu Ye did not hesitate; he soared into the air, formed a sword seal, and flicked his finger—

"Die..."

Just as he released the Seven-Kill Sword Qi, a flash of sword light struck out of nowhere...