The beast hit the ark’s shield without slowing. Gold light flared around the hull and broke into points that fell through the clouds. Then four black talons caught the upper deck.
The starboard rail tore away. Tables, crossbow towers and twelve students in white silk went over the side. Their cries vanished under the beast’s shriek. The ark rolled so far that men slid across the deck on their backs.
Qi Rong held on to the steering stand. The white jade plaques at his waist hit the deck and shattered. He drew a gold teleportation talisman from his sleeve. Violet light spread from it toward the circle in the center of the ship. Thirty students were running for that light.
Below him, Pei Jing still stood on the wall of shells. Qi Rong caught hold of the jade horn one last time.
“You with the cleaver! Get up here. That thing swallows Golden Core masters. You have a core of your own. What are you doing in the dirt? Take our circle while it’s open.”
The wind pulled at Pei Jing’s torn tunic. Thirty thousand people near the wall watched him. An old woman held a child on a cart seat with both arms. She looked up at the light on the ark, then back at the man on the wall. In the stories, this was when the immortals flew away.
