Chapter 652 - Self-Destruct
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
“Go, go quickly!” commanded the leader of the team of Wanderers. He looked pale-faced and frantic as he swam towards the island. He wondered bitterly how they had been so unlucky that they encountered the swarm of ferocious Man-eating Fish.
With the Nile Crocodiles, he could have directed everyone to work together and fight them off. Even if they were badly wounded and suffered losses, some of them would have made it. But now that they had encountered this large swarm of lightning-fast Man-eating Fish, they might all be reduced to a jumble of bones!
Crunch, crunch…
After a wave of bone-chilling munching noises, most of the Nile Crocodiles were left as skeletons, the meat on their bodies having been gnawed off by the swarm of Man-eating Fish. They quickly surrounded everyone who was swimming to escape.
Mouths full of sharp, saw-like teeth opened and closed. Their ugly bodies were like metal discuses, full of small, closely-knit fish scales, and strong and powerful tails moving from right to left…
The terrifying Man-eating Fish stubbornly surrounded the swimmers, their numbers too many to count. They were like a sharp blade placed horizontally in front of everyone!
“What to do?”
Looking at the enormous school of Man-eating Fish in front of them, the team leader’s heart sank further. He thought hard about what could be done, but a split second later, the Man-eating Fish released a weird, ear-piercing sound and launched a ferocious attack.
Whoosh…
The vicious leader of the Man-eating Fish led the charge, flashing towards them like a lightning bolt. It tore a Wanderer’s throat out with one bite, taking out a huge chunk of flesh along with the skin. The rest of the Man-eating Fish followed, taking turns to launch storm-like attacks. Each wave of attack was bigger than the previous, and the creatures’ sharp teeth tore off huge chunks of flesh with each tug.
In mere seconds, a few of the Wanderers had been gnawed until only bones were left!
With their protruding jaws, sharp, saw-like teeth, and discus-like bodies, the bite-force of the Man-eating Fish was extremely terrifying. Even heavy armor made of Obsidian was no obstacle to them! The sharpness of their saw-like teeth was a match for even the sharpest Divine Weapon, and might even be better. With the help of the icy-cold lake water and the fog containing Soul Attacks, alarming attack power erupted from the fish!
“We have to break out of here, quickly!”
Looking at the swarms of Man-eating Fish surrounding them, the Wanderer leader let out a roar, leading the many Wanderers to charge forward with all their strength. The leader’s sharp sword danced up and down, releasing sharp sword auras. Buzzing, it sliced the nearby Man-eating Fish into bits and pieces. The Wanderers following behind all took action, forming a tight circle of defense as they moved forward, hoping to break out of the siege by the Man-eating Fish.
The attack power of more than 20 Wanderers that were High-level Deities could not be overlooked. They were like a meat-mincing machine, slashing into every Man-eating Fish that came their way! Unfortunately, after every fish died, another appeared behind it. The Wanderers couldn’t kill them fast enough! If they weren’t careful, the Man-eating Fish would tear off chunks of their skin and flesh. If they reacted even a little slowly, their bones would be stripped clean by the swarming hordes of Man-eating Fish. Even their hard Divinities would be swallowed in a few mouthfuls.
The attacks of the Man-eating Fish were precise, and the saw-like teeth were sharper and harder than most Divine Weapons. But, the most terrifying thing about them was not their teeth, nor their precise attacks, but their sheer numbers!
Relying on their alarming numbers, the Man-eating Fish launched an all-out, storm-like attack on everyone, from all angles. From below the water, from the front, from behind… They even jumped ferociously out of the water, leaping straight for the swimmers’ faces and throats!
The Wanderers kept swimming forwards as they defended themselves. Not only did they need to defend against wave-like attacks of the Man-eating Fish, they also had to protect themselves from the bone-chilling cold and the fog containing Soul Attacks. They suffered unspeakably.
“Aye, playing dead?”
The Wanderers cried out bitterly and endlessly, always on the verge of being overwhelmed by the Man-eating Fish. Once in a while, a person would get a huge chunk of his flesh and skin torn out, blood flowing without stopping. But Yang Ling, who could more than handle the situation, was calmly observing the situation around him, and unintentionally discovered something weird.
The biggest Nile Crocodile, which was probably also the oldest, was lying with its belly facing up, floating on the surface of the water without moving. Even if it was accidentally bitten a few times by the Man-eating Fish, it tolerated the pain without moving. The other Crocodiles were long stripped of all flesh, their bones sinking to the bottom of the lake like stones, but this Crocodile had survived!
“Ripples, the movement of the rippling water. Could it be that the Man-eating Fish don’t rely on their sense of sight or scent to find their prey, but on the ripples in the water?”
Yang Ling looked again at the huge, unmoving Crocodile, which had survived for a surprising length of time, then at the Wanderers who were swimming with all their might. The more they struggled, the more viciously they were attacked. Yang Ling had a sudden thought. He made a Wizard Seal and teleported to one side, floating on the surface of the lake without moving. The fog kept him from teleporting directly to the island, but he had no difficulty using the Water Evasion Teleportation within a small radius.
As expected, the huge school of Man-eating Fish showed no interest in this big, alive person who wasn’t moving. Instead, they focused on surrounding and viciously attacking the Wanderers who were still trying to reach the island. The fish bit through their armor, tore out their ligaments, and devoured their internal organs and Divinities!
“Ah! Team Leader, help! Help! Ah…”
A Wanderer holding a long spear failed to withdraw his spear in time, giving the Man-eating Fish an opportunity. There was a rushing sound, and in an instant, a large swarm of them surged towards him, opening their mouths to bite into his flesh. From afar, it looked like sharp daggers had been nailed all over his body.
“Giggs, hold on. Blade!”
The leader of the team of Wanderers let out a roar, turning around to save his brother-in-arms named Giggs. His sharp longsword carried with it a sharp sword aura, cutting the Man-eating Fish near him into pieces. He leapt towards Gigg at impressive speed, but he was still a step too late!
Crunch, crunch…
When the fish were done chewing, all that remained of Giggs was a skeleton holding a long spear. His flesh and internal organs were gone, and his eyeballs had disappeared, leaving behind a pair of empty sockets. His Divinity had been swallowed in a few mouthfuls by the most vicious Man-eating Fish. Only the claw-like skeletal fingers were actually still clutching the Obsidian long spear in his hand.
Giggs had tried his best to retaliate. Unfortunately, faced with the innumerable Man-eating Fish, everything was for naught! Teary-eyed, the man’s companions watched as the deathly white skeleton sank slowly to the bottom of the lake along with the heavy long spear.
One, two…
More and more Man-eating Fish arrived and surrounded the Wanderers, and every wave of attacks was stronger than the last. The Wanderers started to slip under the surface one by one. The chewing sounds lingered in their ears, and the nearby waters were dyed red with fresh blood.
The terrifying sight scared many of the swimmers out of their wits. They turned around and started swimming backwards, as if fleeing for their lives. They dared not go further!
“Ah… Go to hell, we’ll die together!”
As his partners disappeared one by one into the lake, the Wanderer leader realized that the way out had been completely closed off by the numerous Man-eating Fish. He knew that he wouldn’t be able to get out of this crisis alive. The leader of the team of Wanderers screamed ferociously and exploded the Divinity within his body without regard for the consequences. Even if he died, he wanted to drag the terrifying Man-eating Fish down with him.
Rumble…
An alarming, thunderous sound rolled over the water and reverberated around the entire Moon Lake. The powerful explosion caused towering waves, like an earthquake. When the Wanderer leader, a High-level Deity at the peak level of power, destroyed his own Divinity, the destructive power could not be underestimated!
The Man-eating Fish nearby were all vaporized, even the nearby Nile Crocodile which was playing dead met with an unexpected misfortune. It hadn’t expected to escape the Man-eating Fish only to be dragged down to the bottom by the leader of the team of Wanderers. Even Yang Ling was almost jolted until he vomited blood. Luckily, he cast Ground Guardian in the nick of time, which blocked most of the attack.
Glug…
The nearby Man-eating Fish died the moment that the man exploded, but there were simply too many of the fish. Huge schools swam outside of the blast area. But even though they had been fortunate enough to escape death, most of them were shocked by the terrifying explosion and waves of water until they were groggy, faint, and dizzy, as if drunk.
If Yang Ling let such a golden opportunity slip, it might never come again!
At first, Yang Ling was prepared to continue floating on the surface of the lake without moving and wait for the numerous Man-eating Fish to disperse before taking action again. But seeing those fellows shocked into becoming groggy, or even half-dead, he naturally would not miss such a good opportunity.
He dripped his blood onto a few of the largest Man-eating Fish, which looked like leaders, to tame them. After setting an Object Assimilating Restriction, he netted the nearby Man-eating Fish, which were groggy or half-dead, and tossed them all into the Wizard Pagoda’s Space.
These Man-eating Fish had many multiples of the attack power of his deep-sea Giant Pythons! Against their terrifying gifts and astonishing numbers, even High-level Deities at their peak were unable to escape death! They were surely deserving of the title of the Tyrant-like Number One Killer of Moon Lake!
By taming large numbers of this type of Man-eating Fish, he would be able to further control the seas within the Wizard Pagoda’s Space. In the future, if he encountered other types of water Magical Beasts, he would have one more ace up his sleeve!
“D*mn, if I don’t like someone, I could send the fish to bite him. If one fish were to take a bite, we could see how stubborn he was then!” After an unexpected windfall, Yang Ling was feeling relaxed and happy, and rapidly thinking of a brilliant use for this group of Man-eating Fish!
The fishes’ senses of sight and smell weren’t developed, but their ability to sense the ripples of the water were unmatched. As long as he put a few Man-eating Fish into the water to patrol, no one would be able to sneak past easily. They were definitely the best candidates as underwater scouts. Their defenses weren’t strong, but their attacks were extremely precise, and they were numerous. If one group were to die, then the next group would pounce. Under their ferocious attacks, even a High-level Deity at peak power level wouldn’t last for too long!