Chapter 51 – Caught You

“How many of these blue beads do you have left?” Fang Yang watched as Cao Zirui on his back took out yet another one, which was exactly the same as the two that had broken before.

It’s like a copying ability! Fang Yang complained inwardly.

“Um…..” Cao Zirui didn’t answer right away, but reached into his storage bag and felt around. He didn’t know how many there were, so he could only give Fang Yang a rough estimate: “The Water Soul Bead is actually a one-use earth-grade weapon. Shifu gave me a string of ten to twenty beads.”

Fang Yang: “…..”

Cao Zirui’s voice was still casual when he said the words “ten to twenty, as if they were simply dozens of worthless stones, but it was completely the opposite in Fang Yang’s ears.

It’s really good to have money, was Fang Yang’s only thought. He attempted to convert these Water Soul Beads into money, but his brain overheated and stopped working.

After some thought, he suddenly realized: “Since you have so many Water Soul Beads, we can resist ten to twenty attacks! We don’t have to be afraid of him at all!”

Cao Zirui shook his head and was about to refute, but the bell at his waist began to ring again.

Without a word, he immediately activated the Water Soul Bead he had just taken out.

Fang Yang once more felt a wave of heat approaching behind him, but wasn’t too panicked, because he also saw the bubble opening up around the two of them again.

The bubble burst as the fire died out. The broken remnants of the magic weapon in Cao Zirui’s hand rolled down Fang Yang’s neck, and he proceeded to tread across the pieces of them.

While running, Fang Yang glanced back with some pride at the retreating golden arrow. With the Water Soul Beads in their hands, Lu Chengye was completely helpless against them.

However, just as he turned his head, Cao Zirui spat out a mouthful of blood. Fang Yang was stunned as it sprayed across his face.

“Cough, cough.” After spitting up blood, Cao Zirui continued to cough and choke.

Fang Yang belatedly snapped back to his senses and asked: “What’s wrong with you?”

“Cough…..I’m fine…..cough cough…..” Cao Zirui may have said he was fine, but he didn’t look fine at all.

Fang Yang certainly didn’t believe it. Although he was dumbfounded at first, he could more or less guess the reason: “The Water Soul Bead was unable to completely block the golden arrow, and the aftereffects hurt you?”

Cao Zirui didn’t answer, and just coughed a few more times.

This could be taken as tacit agreement. Fang Yang smelled the bloody scent near him and heard Cao Zirui’s increasingly weak voice. He couldn’t help but suggest: “How about you give me a Water Soul Bead and I’ll block the next attack?”

He had no serious injuries, and although his cultivation wasn’t as high as Cao Zirui’s, he was still a little stronger now that Cao Zirui was at the end of his strength.

“It won’t work.” Cao Zirui unexpectedly denied him.

He explained to the bewildered Fang Yang: “The spiritual energy required to activate the Water Soul Bead is enormous. It is not a magic weapon for Qi Refining stage disciples. The ninth level of Qi Refining is already the minimum requirement to activate one, so you won’t be able to do it.”

Fang Yang was currently at the third level of Qi Refining, which was far from enough to meet the minimum requirements.

“But you…..” Fang Yang said anxiously. Given Cao Zirui’s physical condition, he would pass out if he coughed a few more times, let alone if he used the Water Soul Bead again.

Fang Yang’s guess was accurate. Cao Zirui truly didn’t have the ability to activate a Water Soul Bead again. His vision was darkening. If not for his strong desire to hold on, he would have passed out long ago.

Fang Yang spoke to him, but he didn’t respond right away. After a long while, he gave a low, incomprehensible reply.

Although the response was very faint, Fang Yang still heard it. Cao Zirui was still alive. His heart could rest at ease.

But he only relaxed slightly, because there was no telling when Lu Chengye’s next arrow would strike. At that point, they would probably really die without a burial place.

Just as his mind was in chaos, Fang Yang once again heard that man’s voice in his mind: 

“Run east.”

Two monsters rushed him at the same time, and Feng Ye dodged at an extremely tricky angle, causing them to crash into each other.

This also freed up some time to communicate with Fang Yang.

During the underwater fight with the monsters, he had been keeping an eye on Fang Yang through his sea of consciousness, and knew that Cao Zirui was exhausted.

He told Fang Yang to run east because he was in the east. And during the battle, he had also been surreptitiously leading the group of monsters in Fang Yang’s direction.

Even though one of them was on land and the other was three hundred meters underwater, the horizontal distance between them was less than one li at this point.

Maybe…..I can catch up to him?

Feng Ye held onto a glimmer of hope that he wouldn’t have to face the choice of exposing his identity to save Fang Yang and the other disciple.

This Mysterious Big Brother living in the bamboo slip was Fang Yang’s last hope, so even though he didn’t know why he had to run east, he obeyed without hesitation.

He held the increasingly dazed Cao Zirui tightly to his back and headed eastward in pursuit of his last resort.

After Feng Ye gave this instruction, he was entangled by the monsters again.

Several shark-like monsters were scattered around Feng Ye, sharp teeth bared in preparation to pounce and bite their prey.

Feng Ye was just about to use his old trick again and let these monsters ram into each other.

He had no bladed weapon, and couldn’t hurt these thick-skinned monsters at all. He’d been able to fight them off until now just by relying on his agile body.

Although he had a human body, he was surprisingly agile when swimming in the sea, and was in no way inferior to Hao Chen, a black fish who lived in the North Sea all year round.

Therefore, the group of monsters besieging him hadn’t even been able to tear his clothes.

However, these monsters seemed to be under someone’s command, and after accidentally injuring their companions numerous times, the troops actually started to be deployed in an organized manner.

Damnit! Feng Ye suddenly realized that the shark-like monsters around him were just a distraction. The real killing move was yet to come!

A monster that looked like a giant whale over a hundred meters long had at some point swum close to Feng Ye. There were so many monsters swimming around him that he couldn’t glean information from the currents, and he barely even noticed when it got so close to him.

In the darkness, the whale opened a mouth that could swallow a dozen sharks in one gulp, and the monsters distracting Feng Ye simultaneously swam away.

It was too late to escape. Feng Ye stared at the enormous mouth in the darkness ahead, which dwarfed his own form.

It seemed the other party wanted the whale to suck him into its stomach.

Feng Ye’s guess was correct. When the whale’s mouth fully opened, its stomach contracted slightly and a swirling flow of water generated at its mouth. The whirlpool drew in all kinds of objects, including mud, sand, rocks, and the shellfish attached to the rock wall. They were all sucked in and swallowed up.

Feng Ye grabbed a protruding rock on the base of the floating island before the mouth completely opened. He was at the center of the vortex, where the suction was the strongest.

His entire body stretched horizontally in the sea, his hair fluttering behind him as he clutched the rock tightly in order to keep from being swept away by the whirlpool.

But he couldn’t hold on for long. He felt the rock under his hand loosen.

Problems came one after another. This was fine.

The most irritating thing was the black fish, which had swum over to the closest position to the whirlpool, tail wagging as it occupied the best seat for spectating.

Although he couldn’t see the black fish’s expression clearly, he knew that it must be wearing a very punchable entertained look.

Feng Ye swayed with the current of the whirlpool, tilting his head to look at the black fish. The rock under his hands was already precarious, and he was about to be sucked into the whirlpool along with it.

This siege drama scripted by Hao Chen was about to reach its climax. The black fish swam in an excited circle. He wanted to see if Feng Ye would be swallowed by the giant whale…..

Or perhaps…..he would reveal the cards he had been hiding.

Just as Hao Chen thought this, something unexpected happened. 

Before the rock under Feng Ye’s hands could break, he actually took the initiative to let go.

Having lost his point of support, his body spun weakly in the whirlpool, but was not swallowed into the whale’s stomach. 

Because Feng Ye’s left hand suddenly clenched into the shape of a claw, and the vortex spinning around him was abruptly cut off.

The flow of water was cut into two distinct halves.

The water in front of the whale’s mouth continued to spin, swallowing up everything around it.

And the water in front of Feng Ye obeyed his command, gathering to form sharp claws that were magnified several times, with their tips being half the height of a person.

These huge claws swung fiercely, and the giant whale attempting to swallow Feng Ye was flipped sideways through the water.

He can actually control water?! The black fish gaped at this scene in astonishment. How could Feng Ye, a human being, control the flow of water?!

Such was his surprise that he couldn’t close his mouth. He knew very well that Feng Ye hadn’t used any spells or magic weapons. There was no prelude before he swung those claws. This guy could actually control the water by himself. 

It seemed that Feng Ye was truly no ordinary person. Who was he? As the black fish thought, he saw Feng Ye stand firmly in the water again after flipping the giant whale, then suddenly turn his head toward Hao Chen in his black fish form.

When their eyes met, there was none of the warmth between old acquaintances.

Hao Chen only saw a smile on Feng Ye’s lips that gave off an inexplicable sense of danger.

This smile caused the black fish to shudder. He looked down at Feng Ye’s right hand, which had been hidden by his side, but was now exposed.

His right hand was clenched into a claw shape like his left hand, but it wasn’t actually doing anything.

When Feng Ye flipped over the giant whale just now, there had only been one set of claws. Where was the other one? 

Could it be that…..

In the same instant that Hao Chen came to a realization and tried to escape, Feng Ye suddenly clenched his right hand, and invisible claws made of water grabbed the fleeing black fish.

The black fish swung its fins, attempting to break free. Logically speaking, it should be almost impossible for human hands to grip his slippery skin.

However, these giant claws were made of water. He put up a struggle, shaking his tail and flapping his fins, but the giant claws only tightened. He was unable to break free.

Feng Ye’s dangerous voice sounded in Hao Chen’s ears: “Caught you.”

How hateful.

The black fish grasped tightly in his claws: “……”

Judging from Feng Ye’s tone, it sounded as if he intended to stew him.

No, not “as if.” Feng Ye’s expression said plainly that he indeed wanted to stew him.

A pot won’t be able to hold all this food, ah, Hao Chen thought aimlessly.

He realized that his thoughts had wandered too far, and hurriedly pulled them back.

But…..Feng Ye’s dangerous tone does sound rather attractive…… His thoughts, which had just been pulled back, went astray again.

Hao Chen immediately shook his head and collected himself.

Feng Ye watched as the giant fish, which could only move its head, stared at him for a moment before shaking it. Who knew what was on its mind?

Feng Ye: “……”

Forget it, he had never understood Hao Chen’s thinking.

He’d finally caught this fat, slippery fish. Although Feng Ye did want to stew him just as Hao Chen had thought, there wasn’t a big enough pot.

And Fang Yang wasn’t out of danger yet – he must rush to the surface immediately. This was just the right time to leave, when he had momentarily pushed the monsters aside and imprisoned Hao Chen.

So Feng Ye had no intention of entangling with Hao Chen here. He left the black fish where it was, firmly grasped by the giant claws, and turned around to leave.

He’s leaving again?! The black fish had been placid after failing to break free, but at this realization, he couldn’t stay still anymore.

He hadn’t settled the score with Feng Ye for luring him into the monsters’ lair. Hao Chen had been magnanimous by not making too much of a fuss, but he actually wanted to abandon him again!

Hao Chen gazed after Feng Ye’s back and grew increasingly angry.

He looked down at the giant claws made of water that had entrapped him. The strength of this incarnation was limited, with not even one tenth of his original body’s strength.

But after all, he was in his natural habitat. No matter who Feng Ye was, if he, a fish, lost when it came to stirring up trouble, he would…..he would…..

He wouldn’t be able to call himself a fish anymore!

After swimming out less than a hundred meters, Feng Ye suddenly turned back as he felt the water under his control abruptly slip through his grasp. The giant claws collapsed in an instant, and the black fish escaped.

The black fish’s silhouette faded into the water, growing increasingly faint until it was indistinguishable from the surroundings. 

In the area of sea where the black fish had disappeared, the water currents were completely out of Feng Ye’s control. They surged violently, transforming into a waterpout one hundred meters wide, kicking up huge waves.

And it was headed straight toward Feng Ye.

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Chapter 50 << Table of Contents >> Chapter 52