You've only been cultivating for a few years, and you're already talking about cultivating

Qi Fei raised his hand.

"Distinguish the shadow!"

A bright light shone from his palm, like a small sun blooming in the night sky.

Since you can see through the falsehoods, you can distinguish between truth and falsehood, reality and illusion!

The light shone on the wronged souls, neither burning nor dispelling them, but simply shining quietly.

Soon, the wronged souls dispersed.

They turned into specks of light in the white light, their last lingering attachment.

Some are a wisp of white hair, some are an official's hat, and some are the phantom of a jade pendant.

Those fragments of obsession, like twinkling starlight, shimmered for a moment under the moonlight before being scattered by the night wind and drifting into the distance.

Qi Fei was somewhat surprised.

He thought that "shadow identification" might be effective against ghosts, but he didn't expect it to be this effective!

The "Shadow Recognition" spell is truly versatile!

Before he could even feel smug, heavy footsteps echoed across the riverbank.

The two large black fish came ashore.

They wriggled their plump bodies, their scales gleaming coldly in the moonlight, like two moving black iron pillars.

The fish's tail slapped against the riverbank, splashing up large amounts of mud and sand, and each twist plowed deep furrows in the sand.

It's common knowledge that snakehead fish can survive out of water. How much more so these two large fish that have been cultivating themselves in the Ruyin River for many years?

They are taller than a person, and their mouths can swallow half a door panel.

At this moment, they opened their long mouths, revealing a mouthful of sharp teeth. The teeth were layered on top of each other, like two rows of inverted daggers, each one gleaming coldly in the moonlight.

There were small pieces of bone stuck between the teeth, the last traces of some unfortunate passerby.

They rushed towards Qi.

Qi Fei's expression changed.

This is troublesome.

The light from "Shadow Recognition" shone on the two black fish, but it was as if it were shining on a stone, causing no reaction.

They are free from falsehood, illusion, and obsession.

Because they simply grew to such a large size and lived for such a long time, they developed a vague sense of intelligence and were driven by the Water Goddess to become the bullies of this river.

As the saying goes, physics is also a principle, and idiots can defeat experts.

Just moments ago, Qi Fei was basking in his own smugness at his ability to "identify shadows" and exorcise ghosts, but in the blink of an eye, reality slapped him hard in the face.

The two blackfish drew closer and closer, their stench filling the air.

Qi Fei stopped hiding it.

He reached into his sleeve and pulled out a dagger.

The dagger was only about a foot long, crystal clear, like a piece of ice sculpture. The moment it was drawn, the surrounding air seemed to cool down, and a thin layer of frost condensed on the blade.

This was given to him by Yun Qiyue; it can cut through iron like mud and is specifically for self-defense.

The first blackfish lunged forward, opening its massive mouth to bite.

Qi Fei dodged to the side, his dagger slicing diagonally across the fish's gills.

"laugh!"

The scales shattered instantly, revealing a deep wound, but no blood flowed out. The wound was instantly frozen by the cold air, leaving only a hideous white mark.

The black fish, in pain, let out a strange hiss and lashed out with its tail, kicking up a cloud of mud and sand. Qi Fei couldn't dodge in time and was struck on the shoulder by the tail, flying sideways and rolling twice on the ground.

Fortunately, after three years of training, his body was far more agile and robust than that of ordinary people. He dissipated the force during the roll and leaped up.

But the black fish pounced again.

Another path also circled around from the side, its mouth wide open, attempting to block his retreat.

Qi Fei struggled to defend himself, his dagger repeatedly stabbing and leaving wounds on the black fish. However, the beast's thick hide meant the wounds were not fatal and only fueled its ferocity.

Each of its pounces and bites is faster and more ferocious.

Qi Fei was forced to retreat repeatedly, cold sweat beading on his forehead.

He couldn't help but turn back and shout towards the high slope, "Hurry up! Otherwise, we won't get to eat the pickled fish, but we'll have to eat fish intestines instead!"

Under the moonlight, Yunqi Yue sat cross-legged, motionless.

The jade bracelet had already flown above the river, hovering above the "moon," slowly rotating and casting a soft, gentle glow.

It was trying to trap the "moon" in the sky, but the "moon" seemed to sense the danger and began to dodge around.

One in front, one behind; one chasing, one catching up.

The jade bracelet chased the halo of light, weaving through the night sky, sometimes soaring high, sometimes skimming low, sometimes hovering in confrontation, and sometimes circling rapidly.

A ring and a "moon" chase each other in the sky, their scattered light mingling together, illuminating the entire Ruyin River in a flickering light.

Fine beads of sweat appeared on Yun Qiyue's forehead. Her hands were forming hand seals, her mind completely focused on the chase. She couldn't care less about Qi Fei anymore.

Qi Fei glanced at it once and then looked away.

He knew that Yun Qiyue was probably unreliable too.

He'll have to figure out a way to deal with these two big black fish in front of him.

He dodged while his mind raced.

In his past life, he had cooked sauerkraut fish, so he knew that black carp were a very troublesome fish.

Snakehead fish have extremely strong vitality. Even if they are brain dead, their muscles can continue to twitch for a long time, and their nerve reflexes can last for half an hour.

Even if you stab it, it can still turn around and bite you.

What's worse, these two fish are much bigger than the ones he dealt with in his previous life, and they even seem to have some intelligence.

Qi Fei gritted his teeth, gripped the gleaming dagger in his hand, and decided to blind Yi Tiao's eyes first.

He seized an opening, lunged forward, and thrust his dagger straight at the eye of the black fish on the left, but the black fish seemed to be on guard.

Instead of dodging or flinching, it suddenly opened its mouth wide and lunged at Qi Fei!

The gaping maw was right below his eyes; if the dagger were to pierce it, his hand, along with half his arm, would be sent into the fish's mouth.

Qi Fei abruptly stopped, rolling to the side to narrowly avoid the fatal bite. The stench of blood brushed past his face.

My back was soaked with cold sweat.

Two black fish pounced again, one on the left and one on the right, blocking his escape route.

Oh my god, the pickled fish is going to eat people!

Just then, "Crash!"

Suddenly, huge splashes of water erupted on the river surface.

A colossal creature rose from the riverbed and burst forth from the water.

It's a giant softshell turtle!

Its carapace is three to five meters wide, like a moving black reef, and its four thick legs tread on the riverbank, each step leaving a small pit in the riverbed.

Its head popped out, its small eyes gleaming in the moonlight, and it opened its mouth to speak, its voice still somewhat childish:

"Two immortal masters, I'm here to assist you!"

Before it finished speaking, it suddenly lunged at the black fish on the left.

Its massive body pressed down, biting down on the blackfish's tail and refusing to let go.

The blackfish, in pain, struggled violently, its tail thrashing wildly, splattering mud and sand everywhere. But the giant softshell turtle's jaws were like iron clamps, and no matter how hard it struggled, it couldn't break free.

Qi Fei's pressure decreased significantly.

Before he could even catch his breath, another burst of shouts erupted from the hilltop.

"Brother Qi! We're here to help you too!"

It's Steward Zhou.

He led a dozen or so men, charging down the hillside. Some carried harpoons, some held long knives, and some dragged fishing nets made of hemp rope.

Under the moonlight, the group of people shouted as they rushed down the hillside and ran towards the riverbank.