Volume One: The Celestial Cloud Palace Chapter Sixteen: The Battle of the Merfolk

Chapter Sixteen: The Battle with the Merfolk

At the bottom of the Molten Lake.

Dozens of flamefin serpentfish lashed their tails, baring fangs and glaring fiercely at Zhou Hao. Even though he was an immortal, his swimming speed was no match for these creatures of the magma.

“Who says otherwise? I am a genuine flamefin serpentfish myself!” Zhou Hao, still in the form of one such fish, had no intention of revealing his true identity; he was determined to bluff it out.

“Hmph, foolish. Do you think impersonating our kind is so easy? The unique aura of a flamefin serpentfish is not something you can imitate. If I am not mistaken, you are the villain who killed our kin. And now you dare attempt to deceive us further—how despicable! Brothers, attack!”

The lead fish had already seen through Zhou Hao’s disguise, and with a command, he and his brethren charged, their bodies erupting in crimson light that coalesced into blood-red arrows, leaving Zhou Hao with nowhere to hide.

Hundreds of scarlet arrows were about to pierce him through and through, yet Zhou Hao did not move, allowing himself to be struck as if by a storm of arrows. But the outcome was unexpected: the red bolts merely passed through a haze of mist. The true Zhou Hao had already vanished from the school’s sight.

“Chase him! Call the others!”

The leader’s eyes blazed with fury. He dashed after Zhou Hao, certain that with the speed of a flamefin serpentfish, escape was impossible.

A resonant hum vibrated through the water as dozens of pursuing fish sent out a circular wave. Soon, a dark mass of fish surged toward Zhou Hao once again, making him the target of every fang and fin.

“Damn it, why is it still so far? Why did I dive so deep in the first place?” Zhou Hao, still in fish form—at least faster than as a human—was now swimming for his life. All thoughts of cultivation and growth were meaningless; survival was all that mattered.

“Master, how could you forget to teach me the Sky-Leaping Immortal Steps? Your disciple is doomed, about to be devoured by fish, woe is me!”

He darted upward faster than ever before, but the dark swarm of flamefin serpentfish trailed relentlessly behind, impossible to shake off.

“Outsider fiend, prepare to die!”

From amidst the school, a massive serpentfish, thick as a water barrel, opened its gaping maw, dagger-like teeth glinting coldly. With a roar, it unleashed a ball of black light at Zhou Hao.

“Ah!”

His cultivation was far too weak to withstand such an attack. That great beast was indeed powerful—even Zhou Hao’s immortal body was wounded.

Suspended powerlessly in the scalding waters, Zhou Hao was forced to revert to his true form, blood streaming from his right leg. He was trapped, encircled for the kill.

“Outsider fiend, you have slain our kin. Blood must pay for blood, life for life!” declared the massive fish that had just attacked him.

“What now? Am I, Zhou Hao, really going to be killed by fish today? No, I cannot allow it!” Panic seized him. In his present state of utter disadvantage, there seemed no hope of survival.

Boom!

The great fish in the school spat out ball after ball of black light, blasting Zhou Hao’s body. He screamed in agony; his arms, thighs, and chest were all grievously wounded, blood gushing forth. It was clear these monsters were cunning—they didn’t kill him outright, but left him to suffer, denying him escape.

“Vile creatures, not only are they maiming me, but they refuse to finish me off—truly devious. Are they planning to divide my flesh among themselves?”

His whole body was a mangled mass of blood and torn flesh. Gritting his teeth, Zhou Hao trembled; he was utterly powerless, unable to fend off even these fish.

“Hmph, enough. The fiend can run no more. Since he has killed our kin, his body shall become our blood offering—a sacrifice for the fallen!” several of the massive fish declared coldly.

At these words, countless flamefin serpentfish’s eyes lit up. Zhou Hao saw innumerable blood-red eyes fixating on every part of his body, as if flies eyeing a cracked egg, or sharks scenting blood.

Utter peril!

“Ugh—!”

The school, wild with frenzy, gave Zhou Hao no respite, pouncing upon his battered flesh. He screamed instinctively.

Suddenly, a burst of golden light erupted, enveloping Zhou Hao’s entire body. No matter how the serpentfish bit and tore, they couldn’t approach him. The golden light trembled, and the fish were flung away as if a rain of fish was falling at the lake’s bottom.

“What’s happening? How does this outsider possess such a mysterious power?” The golden light was formidable, but the larger fish were not afraid—merely astonished.

Meanwhile, inside the golden glow, Zhou Hao’s wounds were healing. Earlier, he had consumed the Fireheart Lotus petal and refined his body with Fire Essence; now, when his body was injured, latent powers were awakened, the aura radiating from his skin healing his wounds and repelling his foes. The dazzling golden light that had driven off the serpentfish earlier was a manifestation of this power.

“Could this golden light be the power I gained from cultivating with Fire Essence?” Zhou Hao wondered.

“Fiend! You have killed our kin time and again. Today, I will destroy you!”

The eyes of several massive flamefin serpentfish blazed like lanterns, their gaping mouths ready to swallow Zhou Hao whole.

Yet Zhou Hao sneered, flying directly into the mouth of one of the giant fish, intent on giving it a taste of “abdominal surgery.”

“Fiend, courting death, are you?” roared the behemoth, convinced that Zhou Hao would soon be dissolved by the potent stomach acids within.

Suddenly, the creature sensed something wrong—its belly swelled and contracted, agony wracking its gut as if it were being torn apart.

With a thunderous bang, the giant fish exploded, flesh and blood splattering everywhere. It had been destroyed by a surge of blazing golden light.

Zhou Hao reappeared, a smile on his face. The surrounding giants, however, were thunderstruck—a king among flamefin serpentfish, annihilated just like that? Unthinkable!

In a flash, Zhou Hao fled. The massive fish only saw a streak of golden light before he vanished entirely.

He knew full well that, with his current strength, he stood no chance against any of the large flamefin serpentfish. His survival just now had been pure luck and audacity—the gap in power was simply too great.

And so the chase resumed. Zhou Hao gave it his all, swimming desperately for the surface. Though he could not lose his pursuers, he managed to keep the distance from them steady.

He was not caught!

...

Splash!

Zhou Hao burst from the lake’s surface, laughing aloud. The golden light had faded, his form returning to normal, radiant energy still flickering across his body. The benefits of the Fire Essence body refinement were manifest.

Roar!

But matters were far from over. At the very moment Zhou Hao left the molten lake, a furious roar echoed through the entire subterranean magma world.

The flamefin serpentfish kings were enraged—eight colossal heads broke the surface, fins flared like wild lions, teeth sharp and sword-like. Around them, countless flamefin serpentfish packed the lake until it seemed there was no room left.

“Die!”

Though he could not understand their tongue, Zhou Hao could feel the murderous intent radiating from the eight behemoths. With a mighty breath, they filled the air with fire, forcing Zhou Hao to dodge frantically. The walls of stone behind him collapsed with thunderous crashes, boulders dropping into the lava and melting instantly.

“I’ll chop off your fish heads for soup!” Now that he’d left the lake’s depths, Zhou Hao felt his confidence surge. Drawing his immortal sword, he slashed at one of the giants, sword energy roaring through the air as if to rend the very void.

Clang!

But the fish’s skull was harder than iron—the immortal sword left not a scratch, only a shower of sparks. Was its brainpan truly made of bronze or steel?

He struck again and again at other parts of the fish, but it was useless. The flamefin serpentfish’s scales were like armor, unbreakable and impervious to harm.

With a savage snarl, the giant fish lashed its serpent tail around Zhou Hao, wrenching the sword from his grip and binding him so tightly he couldn’t move.

“Change!”

Thinking fast, Zhou Hao transformed into a cloud of mist and slipped free of the tail’s grasp.

“No good, there are too many of them. I can’t possibly win—I need another plan.”

Escaping with his life, Zhou Hao did not revert to his original form, pondering how to deal with these native creatures who outclassed him. If the fight dragged on, he would soon exhaust his immortal power.

Whoosh!

Eight blazing trails of fire swept through the magma world; even as mist, Zhou Hao could not evade them. The kings of the flamefin serpentfish struck again, flames roaring and surging, forcing Zhou Hao to unsheath his sword once more.

He strode on air, sword pointed at the giant fish, channeling immortal energy into his right hand. With a powerful thrust, he sent the sword flying like lightning, stabbing straight at his target.

A beastly howl of agony split the air as one of the giants howled in pain, blood pouring from its crimson eye, an immortal sword gleaming from its socket.

This was Zhou Hao’s desperate idea—though the kings’ bodies were invincible, their eyes could not be so impervious. As long as his sword was fast and strong enough, he could at least blind one of them.

But he could go no further. The remaining seven behemoths went utterly berserk, gaping maws snapping at Zhou Hao, their serpent tails thrashing like a horde of demons. The hard rock around them shattered in great slabs, leaving Zhou Hao nowhere to run or hide. Though the magma world was vast, the lake took up nine-tenths of it. The flamefin serpentfish could go anywhere. No matter how Zhou Hao fled, it was useless.

Crash! One of the giants rammed Zhou Hao, smashing him deep into the rocky wall—stars exploded before his eyes.

Boom! Before he could recover, another tail struck, slamming him into the wall again. The entire magma world shook as though in an earthquake, stones cascading everywhere.

At last, Zhou Hao was utterly spent, unable to fight back. The giant fish battered him like a lifeless husk, leaving him half-dead.

Spitting blood, Zhou Hao’s legs buckled and he collapsed into the molten lake. The fish ceased their attack.

Suddenly, the flamefin serpentfish that had been watching pounced, surging toward Zhou Hao’s broken body to tear him apart.

“Ha ha, outsider fiend, atone for your sins with your flesh!”

In the molten lake, the king of the flamefin serpentfish watched Zhou Hao’s battered body about to be devoured, and was filled with savage delight.