Chapter 2194: Meeting Again, Beating Their Asses

Shang Xia confirmed, through the wisp of Eternal Essence he had retrieved earlier, that the star currently in his sight was indeed the same one he had relied on to trigger a massive eruption when he first entered the Star River.

Although the stars constantly drifted within the Star River, their immense mass meant their movement was extremely slow. Therefore, Shang Xia was certain the star could not be far from the region where he had originally entered the Star River.

And because of a piece of information unintentionally revealed by the stowaway earlier, Shang Xia began to suspect that among the stars nearest to the Chaotic Sea of Stars’s entry point into the Star River, one of them might in fact be the Star Origin Lord’s Fate Star.

Although he was not certain, that did not stop him from making preliminary preparations.

Just as he had with the star before him, once he had the thought, he immediately used the Dipper Star Formation to mark it.

As long as the barrier of the Star River and the edge of the Chaotic Sea of Stars did not completely block his resonance with the Dipper Star Formation, then even from within the Chaotic Sea of Stars, he would be able to strike at the marked star.

Of course, that alone might not be enough. Shang Xia could have implanted more traps into the star.

However, if it truly was the Star Origin Lord’s Fate Star, then the Star Origin Lord would certainly not be unaware of anything he did to it.

Rather than alerting him prematurely, Shang Xia felt it was better not to tamper directly with the star itself.

His mastery over the damaged Eternal Golden Boat grew more familiar by the moment, yet its severely damaged structure still slowed it significantly.

But just as he steered the boat around the star, he suddenly stopped.

Even through the distortions of the Star River, Shang Xia could faintly sense that in the region where he had first descended into the Star River, another Eternal Golden Boat was lurking.

Although he had expected as much, anger still surged through him. “So you really intend to cut off my retreat? Very well, don’t blame me for being ruthless.”

This time, to avoid alerting those hiding in wait of him, Shang Xia did not directly trigger the eruption of the nearby star. Instead, he drew power from the Dipper Star Formation itself, then directed the Star River currents beneath his boat. Before the deep currents even gathered, a massive tidal wave had already risen and surged forward, growing layer by layer. The waves towered higher and higher, the disturbance escalating far beyond anything he had triggered before.

Naturally, such an enormous tsunami would be discovered almost immediately by the stowaways lying in wait.

But compared to the eruption generated by directly pulling a star, the wave arrived only a heartbeat later.

Yet that single moment was enough to steal away almost all possibility of escape.

The roaring wave chased directly behind the fleeing stowaways, and only then did Shang Xia see that those hidden included not only the three he already knew of. There was a fourth stowaway.

Even so, Shang Xia did not hesitate. Sensing that the four might still escape, he immediately struck at all four stowaways on their Eternal Golden Boats.

The four who were desperately fleeing had suspicions, but none of them had noticed Shang Xia behind the crest.

Of course, that couldn’t last forever. The moment he attacked, at least the three he had met before, Sage Star Thief, Fang Suo, and Zhong Heng, instantly sensed his presence.

Their disbelief was overwhelming. Because this time, it was not simply Shang Xia rousing a massive wave in the Star River and running away like what they did.

He was controlling it!

The symbolic difference between those actions was immeasurable.

“How is he doing this?!”

That was the first question flooding the minds of the three old stowaways.

But they no longer had time to think.

Shang Xia’s Falling Dipper struck at all four stowaways simultaneously. They were like four stars falling through the front of the tsunami toward four Eternal Golden Boats. Each stowaway felt pressure equivalent to facing a high-level Sage.

The four could only resist with all their strength. But straining themselves to their limits caused them to lose control of their Eternal Golden Boats. They veered off course, or destabilized entirely...

Whatever it was, it wouldn’t stop Shang Xia’s strike. The tsunami came crashing down.

𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎

One Eternal Golden Boat immediately flipped sideways.

Another barely held together but spun uncontrollably across the Star River.

A third continued fleeing desperately, but its sail had been torn open, slowing it drastically.

The last boat had its deckside tower nearly smashed apart, but still managed to press onward.

Too bad for them, a tsunami did not end with a single wave. Each colossal surge followed another.

Even as the four stowaways unleashed extraordinary means to save themselves, there was still something else they had to face, other than the crashing waves. They also had to deal with the monster they had provoked.

Riding the damaged Eternal Golden Boat, Shang Xia shot out from behind one of the waves. In the next breath, he wielded the long mace formed by the Crimson Soul Tablet, smashing into Fang Suo’s capsized Eternal Golden Boat and punching a massive hole in its underside. The power of the Star River gushed in, flooding it.

Fang Suo’s only instinct was to flee. He burst from the collapsing vessel in disarray, but a titanic force erupted from the sinking boat and struck him like a hammer, sending him plunging into the Star River like a severed kite.

Shang Xia’s first form of his Seven Star Mace Technique, Shattered Starry Skies!

Shang Xia stepped from the half-destroyed Eternal Golden Boat as it was completely swallowed by the Star River behind him.

Fang Suo, who had been gravely wounded, dragged himself to his feet, then staggered toward the nearest Eternal Golden Boat that belonged to Sage Star Thief.

Even in that brief moment of immersion, the Star River stripped away a large portion of his life force. Shang Xia could clearly see the man’s hair at his temples turning white.

Sage Star Thief’s rudder had apparently been damaged by the waves, but he quickly stabilized his boat with the anchor, adjusted its heading, and began accelerating.

Yet Fang Suo, who collapsed onto his deck, immediately drew Shang Xia’s attention.

Sage Star Thief cursed under his breath, but did not reject Fang Suo.

There was one simple reason. He was not confident he could face Shang Xia alone. Even with Fang Suo’s strength reduced by 70 or 80 percent, he was still someone who might at least serve as a shield when the moment came.