On the far bank of the Blackwater River, a massive Eight-Trigram Disc slowly descended onto the riverbank.
Clara leapt down from the disc, staring in surprise at the churning waves and the enormous formation looming in the sky.
"What’s going on here? Is someone casting spells?" She turned back to Aiden Chen on the disc and said, "Don’t come down yet. Wait for me here."
Aiden nodded silently.
Striding quickly to the river’s edge, Clara bent down, scooped up a bit of Blackwater in her hand, and sniffed it before tossing it aside.
It was obvious—someone was casting spells here. Such a massive display meant the caster was immensely powerful, and whoever they were targeting must possess comparable strength.
In all Three Realms, there were only a handful of beings who could wield spells on this scale—and only a handful who would require such force to subdue.
In this godforsaken place, who could be clashing so violently?
A faint intuition already told her what was happening. She hurriedly pulled a past-viewing pearl from her sleeve and aimed it at the river’s surface...
Moments later, she spun and leapt back onto the Eight-Trigram Disc, took Aiden Chen, and sped upstream along the river.
...
On the sandbar.
The water was still rising, bit by bit. Thanks to the dam Monkey had built, the river’s advance over the land had slowed dramatically. But it was only temporary—once the water overtopped the dam, this place would be swallowed up in no time.
There wasn’t much time left.
Leaning on his Golden Staff, Monkey slowly walked up to Tripitaka, gave him a brief look, then sat down beside Jack Rivers, sizing him up from head to toe.
Jack Rivers stared back at him in terror.
After a long moment, Monkey extended a finger and pressed it directly into the wound on Jack’s thigh.
A jolt of agony shot through Jack; he could only clench his teeth and endure it.
Cold sweat streamed rapidly down his forehead.
Tripitaka hurried to his feet.