Chapter Thirty: More Than One King of the Earthfish

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Everyone watched as the Earthfish King fell still, exchanging confused glances. Could it be that the fishvine essence just took effect slowly, causing this Earthfish to die later than the others?

“Master, shall I go check? If it’s dead, I’ll break the formation,” Qingfeng offered.

Just as Qingfeng was about to approach, Master Liu stopped him from a short distance away. “Let me do it. If it’s not dead, you won’t be able to handle it.” He then walked slowly toward the Earthfish King. At the entrance of the burrow, apart from a few small Earthfish still struggling, the Earthfish King’s eyes had already lost their luster. Master Liu examined it, his brows immediately knitting tight. After a moment’s thought, he decided to simply finish it off with a stab to the head. But as he raised his peachwood sword, the Earthfish King suddenly sprang to life, having only played dead. With a sudden burst of strength, it broke free from the talismanic net, its blood-red maw snapping at Master Liu’s head. Master Liu reacted swiftly, rolling to the side and narrowly avoiding the bite, but his left shoulder was gashed open by the creature’s teeth—a wound twenty centimeters long, so deep the bone showed, blood pouring out in streams.

The Earthfish King landed not far from Master Liu, preparing for a second attack.

“Master!” Qingfeng shouted anxiously, wanting to rush to his side.

“Stay where you are! You still have more important things to do,” Master Liu barked, forcing him to halt.

“I’ll tend to Master Liu. Qingfeng, don’t worry. Jidou, you stay here; I’ll call you if we need you,” Qin Xiaomo said, tearing off the talisman on her body, stepping out of the Vajra Formation, and running to Master Liu’s side.

“Master Liu, what should I do?” Qin Xiaomo asked just as the Earthfish King suddenly emitted a sputtering sound like a motorcycle revving up—an unmistakable sign it was about to attack.

Master Liu, gritting his teeth against the pain, pulled out a talisman and rapidly traced over it with his own blood. The originally crimson glow turned gold. “Stick this talisman on its head. When it’s immobilized, use this peachwood sword to pierce its skull. That will kill it for sure.”

As Qin Xiaomo reached for the talisman, the Earthfish King suddenly extended three limbs from each side, dashing forward as if on roller skates, moving unbelievably fast.

Qin Xiaomo didn’t have time to take the peachwood sword. The Earthfish King was already upon her. Desperate, she silently invoked “Xuanli Blade” in her mind. A dazzling white light burst in her hand—her right hand now held the transparent short sword from the game, the Xuanli Blade! At that moment, Master Liu stared at the blade in shock and disbelief. But Qin Xiaomo had no time for explanations. With Master Liu’s talisman, her chances of success were much higher.

Before she could fully register what was happening, the stench of the Earthfish King was already upon her. Qin Xiaomo shoved Master Liu aside and leaped, astonishingly jumping two meters into the air, narrowly dodging the beast’s steel jaws.

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“When did I get this kind of skill, jumping so high with such ease?” Qin Xiaomo wondered, but there was no time to dwell on it. The Earthfish King lunged at her from behind once more. Qingfeng shouted desperately, “Watch out!”

It was as if Qin Xiaomo could sense and distinguish the position of the Earthfish’s teeth. She dodged again, moving so swiftly it surprised even herself. Likely, the Earthfish King hadn’t expected to encounter such an opponent either and hesitated for a split second. Qin Xiaomo’s heart leapt with joy—with the Xuanli Blade and these new abilities, the Earthfish King was no longer a threat.

She turned and prepared to go on the offensive, gripping the talisman and ready to charge. But at that moment, the Earthfish King abruptly tried to flee back into the burrow.

“Qingfeng, cast the spell!” Master Liu shouted, clutching his wound.

Qingfeng pulled a talisman from his bag and slapped it onto the burrow entrance. Instantly, golden threads appeared, forming a net that blocked the Earthfish King’s escape. Moving too fast to stop, the beast was bounced out of the burrow and landed heavily beside Qin Xiaomo. Before it could react, she pressed the talisman to its head, freezing it in place. Qin Xiaomo raised the Xuanli Blade and drove it into the Earthfish King’s skull. She expected some strange fluid to spurt out, but the creature didn’t even groan; only a peculiar fragrance wafted from the pierced skull.

Qin Xiaomo didn’t feel joy, only a quiet thrill—she could finally protect herself and others with her own strength. She carefully wiped the purple liquid from the Xuanli Blade. In truth, seeing the Xuanli Blade filled her with a sense of intimacy; she wished she could hug it, though it was only a short sword. Perhaps sensing her feelings, a gentle warmth emanated from the hilt, like a cat nuzzling its owner’s hand, moving Qin Xiaomo deeply.

“Master Liu, is it over now?” she asked.

Master Liu didn’t answer, his brow still furrowed.

Qingfeng, noticing this, asked, “Master, now that the Earthfish King is dead, does that mean our mission is complete?”

“Qingfeng, did you notice—this Earthfish King has no sword wound on its head,” Master Liu finally spoke after a long silence.

Qingfeng dared not move, only straining to observe the dead fish. After a while, he nodded. “Yes, Master, you’re right—there’s no sword wound on its head. But… what does that mean?”

“It means there’s more than one Earthfish King.” Though Master Liu’s voice was low, it sent a chill down everyone’s spine.

“What do we do? We’ve run out of sheep stomachs, and there’s no time to prepare more,” Qingfeng said anxiously.

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“There’s no need for sheep stomachs. Let’s wait. Jidou, Miss Qin—perhaps you should leave now. While it’s still safe, if another Earthfish King appears, we may not be able to handle it, and I can’t predict what might happen. It’s best if you go.”

Though Master Liu’s left shoulder was bandaged, it was still bleeding.

Qin Xiaomo turned to Jidou and said, “Jidou, take Master Liu to the hospital. Leave this to me and Qingfeng.”

“No. Qingfeng isn’t skilled enough with spells—if anything goes wrong, lives are at stake. I can’t leave now.”

“But if you keep bleeding like this, you’ll die,” Qin Xiaomo said quietly but firmly.

“I just took a Meridian Guard Pill. I’ll be fine for a while. If we don’t kill the Earthfish today, we may never get another chance. I just realized the one we killed is a male; the one I wounded before was female, which concerns me even more.”

“What worries you?” Qin Xiaomo still didn’t quite understand.

“These Earthfish reproduce at an alarming rate. If we don’t eliminate them soon, within a month, City G will be overrun, and humans may all become prey for their steel jaws,” Master Liu said gravely.

“Master, don’t worry. I swear I won’t leave until we’ve eradicated them all today,” Qingfeng said, his young face full of resolve and determination. Though still youthful, he suddenly seemed tall and heroic.

Not far away, Jidou watched Qingfeng with growing admiration.

“Master Liu, with the Xuanli Blade in my hand, I can help you,” Qin Xiaomo said, brandishing the short sword.

Master Liu said nothing, but nodded solemnly, a flood of questions buried deep in his heart.