Chapter 168: A Mermaid Appears in the Deep Pool
After leaving Xinyi Liu Xia in the care of the mountain god, Long Qi went to the mountain with Zhao Wuyang. Ah Jin wanted to follow them, but the mountain god kept him behind because he had something important to discuss.
Before leaving, Zhao Wuyang asked the mountain god about Pinellia ternata, but the mountain god said that they were the only cultivators who had come up and he had never seen anyone else come.
This was a bit strange. Before going up the mountain, the villagers did say that the fairy came up from this road. But the mountain god said that he would know if anyone went into the mountain.
Could it be that Banxia did not go deep into the mountain, but just wandered around the mountain pass?
With full of questions in their minds, Long Qi and Zhao Wuyang groped their way deeper into the forest.
When they came, the mountain god had warned them that the monster that fell into the mountain was good at illusion. Now that Long Qi had cracked his illusion array, the monster must have known about it and might be hiding somewhere to ambush them. So Long Qi had been silently reciting the Qingxin Jue along the way and never dared to take it lightly.
After walking for about a quarter of an hour, they heard the sound of water not far away. The two looked at each other and thought that they must be approaching the monster's lair.
They carefully entered a nearby bush and looked in the direction of the sound. They saw that where the rocks should have been, there was now a deep pool. The deep pool was emitting fluorescent light in the dark night, and was surrounded by spiritual energy. It looked quite magnificent.
The two of them were concentrating on observing the area around the lake, but paying no attention to anything else. At this moment, a figure was approaching silently from behind them.
Just when Long Qi was about to ask Zhao Wuyang what he had discovered, a hand suddenly rested on his shoulder. He was startled and quickly turned around to draw his sword, but stopped when he saw the person coming.
That person was none other than Banxia!
But now her whole body is covered with talismans, as if she was buried in a pile of talismans, which looks really weird.
Seeing her like this, Zhao Wuyang was very confused and asked her why she was like this, but Banxia's answer made him smile bitterly.
The reason was simple. Banxia's body was covered with talismans that concealed her soul. However, she was not confident in her talisman skills, so she covered her body with talismans to ensure that nothing would go wrong.
After hearing her say this, Long Qi finally understood. It was no wonder that the mountain god could not notice her. It was probably because of the soul-hiding talismans all over her body.
However, when Long Qi saw Banxia wearing a talisman robe, he found it extremely funny. However, he was afraid of alerting the monster, so he could only hold back his anger and blush.
Even if she was not confident, she would never wrap herself in the talisman like this. I remember Lingxiang once said that when reciting the talisman, one must be firm in the heart, so that the talisman can be more powerful. Since Banxia has practiced the art of talismans, she must know this. Doing this is really a violation of the way of talismans.
But I think the talisman on her body must be effective, otherwise she wouldn't have been able to hide it from the mountain god.
When Long Qi was thinking about tearing two soul-hiding talismans from Banxia and sticking them on himself and Zhao Wuyang, he heard bursts of water sounds coming from the silent pool.
The three of them looked quickly and saw that the water, which had been calm before, was now surging like boiling water. After a while, they saw an object breaking through the water and leaping out of the water with a somersault.
Looking carefully, Long Qi couldn't help but gasp. The person who broke out of the water was actually a shirtless man. However, this man had long hair and a handsome face. He looked even better than the woman, but his lower body was...
But it's a fish tail!
"It's Mr. Quan!" Zhao Wuyang exclaimed.
Long Qi and Ban Xia didn't understand, their faces were full of confusion. Seeing the two like this, Zhao Wuyang hurriedly explained in a low voice: "According to the "Shanhai Yiwenlu", Quanxian are people with human bodies and fish tails. These people are the ancestors of the human race. In ancient times, the earth was once an ocean, and it was only because of the leak in the sky that there were mountains and forests. Some Quanxian were curious and went up to the land to explore, but because they walked too far, they forgot the way back, and over time, their tails turned into legs."
"And they also have a familiar name, which is mermaids..."
Banxia was very confused when she heard this. If mermaids were the ancestors of the human race, then how could the goddess Nuwa create humans out of clay?
After hearing Banxia's question, Zhao Wuyang also felt that the conflict was difficult to resolve. After pondering for a while, he frowned and said, "I think it should be because of the different ethnic groups. I heard that in ancient times, each ethnic group had its own gods to worship, so there are so many sources in different books."
Long Qi didn't care about it at all. He just asked, "Shouldn't the mermaids stay in the sea? How could they appear in the mountains?"
Banxia thought about it but had no clue. She frowned and said, "The villagers said earlier that a bolt of lightning fell into the mountain. Could it be that this mermaid came with the lightning?"
But how could he withstand the power of thunder and lightning?
"Although the scales of mermaids are not as hard as those of dragons, they are also extremely strong. It is rumored that male mermaids can be covered with scales all over their bodies, like armor. I guess he should be wearing scale armor..." Zhao Wuyang guessed.
"However, since this person can withstand the power of thunder and lightning, he must be extremely powerful. With just the three of us, we should not be his opponent..."
Hearing this, Long Qi frowned. If he couldn't beat him, Xinyi and Liu Xia would be in danger.
Just when the three were at a loss, suddenly a water blade carrying thick spiritual energy flew towards them. Long Qi instinctively held down Banxia and Zhao Wuyang and barely managed to dodge it.
The water blade hit the tree behind the three people. The tree emitted heat and made a sizzling sound. When the heat dissipated, half of the tree was corroded.
“You’ve actually made it this far, you’re quite capable.” The merman said with a smile, his voice as sweet as a song. “It’s a pity that you’ve already died here!”
As soon as he finished speaking, he raised his hand and poured out the water in the pool. The water passed through his hand and turned into blades, swirling towards Long Qi and the other two.
Seeing this, Long Qi quickly pushed Banxia away and rolled to the side with Zhao Wuyang in his arms. The water blade hit the bushes that had been hiding just now, and the bushes immediately emitted water vapor and sizzling sounds, emitting bursts of unpleasant odors.
Here, Long Qi and Zhao Wuyang were no longer covered, and their whereabouts were completely exposed. Upon seeing this, the merman immediately splashed water again, and this time, several water blades flew towards the two people who were still lying on the ground.
Seeing that the water blade was about to hit the two men, and it was too late for them to get up, Zhao Wuyang quickly stretched out his legs and used the force to push the two men away.
The water blade hit the place where the two people were lying just now, but this time it did not emit water vapor like before, but directly made a hole in the ground.
The two men quickly stood up and prepared to fight. Seeing this, the mermaid sneered: "Two brats who are still wet behind the ears dare to challenge me. They really don't know how to live or die."
As soon as he finished speaking, his whole body began to transform, and in an instant, scales and armor became his body. It seems that what was said in "Shanhai Yiwenlu" is true, and mermaids will indeed use their scales as armor when they encounter battle.
After the mermaid changed, he leaped into the water, but before the water fell, he jumped out again, but this time he had a trident in his hand, shining silver.
Seeing this, Long Qi hurriedly pulled out the Seven Star Dragon Abyss, silently chanted the mantra, and suddenly flames burst out from the sword.
Upon seeing this, the mermaid pointed the trident into the air. Immediately, the sky was covered with dark clouds, lightning and thunder, and then a bolt of lightning struck Long Qi.
Sparks flew and debris flew where the lightning struck, but Long Qi was not hurt.
When Long Qi saw the mermaid raising the trident, he became prepared. Before the lightning struck, he circulated his energy in his body, concentrating all his spiritual power on his legs, and instantly used the Cloud-Stepping Step to dodge.
Seeing this, the merman raised his halberd again. At this time, Zhao Wuyang raised his sword and rushed forward, with the sword shining silver, pointing directly at the merman's face. But the merman was not so easy to be hit. He just waved his hand, and countless water droplets flew out of the pool and then shot towards Zhao Wuyang.
Zhao Wuyang was unable to dodge, so he quickly twisted his fingers and made hand gestures, raising the empty door shield.
Just when the water droplets were about to hit him, they seemed to hit a wall of air and stopped completely. However, these water droplets seemed to have no intention of stopping and continued to move slowly towards Zhao Wuyang.
Zhao Wuyang had no moves, so he could only desperately maintain the empty shield, not daring to loosen his hand seals. At this time, a flame rose into the sky. It turned out to be Long Qi who had just dodged to the side by stepping on the clouds. He saw his giant sword stabbing at the mermaid.
The merman was unable to split himself in time, so he had to raise his trident to hold against the Seven-Star Dragon Abyss. However, the spiritual fire on the sword made him very uncomfortable, and he waved Long Qi away with a single effort.
Zhao Wuyang was still resisting the water droplets. Seeing Long Qi being knocked aside, he suddenly remembered the mermaid oil mentioned in "Shan Hai Yi Wen Lu". It would burn immediately when it came into contact with fire and was extremely difficult to extinguish. Why did he shout at Long Qi: "Seventh Brother! That mermaid is afraid of fire. Any part of his body that is not covered with scales will easily catch fire!"
When Long Qi heard this, he immediately understood why the merman attacked him right away. It turned out that he was afraid of the fire on his sword. He quickly rolled to his feet and half-knelt to look at the merman in the water.
Even though Wuyang pointed out his weaknesses, it was still not an easy task. The mermaid was now covered with scales all over her body except for her face, and he had quick reactions, so he really didn't know how to get close to her for a while.
After hearing Zhao Wuyang's shouting, the mermaid seemed extremely angry and turned the trident towards him. Suddenly, a water dragon flew towards him with a roar.
This water dragon looked very powerful. With Zhao Wuyang's cultivation level, he would definitely not be able to resist it. Seeing this, Long Qi quickly used the Cloud-Stepping Step, and ran towards Zhao Wuyang in a flash, hugged him, and then leaped up to avoid the attack of the water dragon.
Seeing this, the mermaid was so angry that her ear fins and dorsal fins trembled. She raised her trident and swept it into the water, then raised a water ball. The water ball was as big as a drum, and it kept churning inside. Soon, water blades began to fly around. Wherever the water blades hit, there was hot steam and a sizzling sound. All the flowers, plants and trees hit by the water blades would quickly wither.
Long Qi and Zhao Wuyang kept dodging, but the water blades were too dense. Although they were not hit, their clothes were more or less scratched by the water blades.
The clothes that were scratched by the water blade began to emit water vapor like trees that were hit, and corrosion continued to spread. Seeing this, Long Qi hurriedly took off his coat, dodged while waving his robe to help Zhao Wuyang block the water blade that he could not dodge.
The mermaid's magic lasted for a while before it stopped. Zhao Wuyang was safe and sound, but Long Qi was hit by the water blade. He was now steaming and his blood was oozing out like boiling water.
Zhao Wuyang's eyes immediately turned red when he saw this. Long Qi tried to comfort him despite the pain, but he was in so much pain and the wound seemed to be spreading, constantly eroding the surrounding area.
It would be dangerous if they continued like this, and the mermaid did not seem to intend to let them go. She raised her halberd again, and a water blade flew towards the two of them.
Now Long Qi's hands were on the ground, and he could not dodge in time. He quickly pushed Zhao Wuyang to ask him to dodge, but Zhao Wuyang was not willing to do so. He just stood in front of Long Qi with the huge sword, his face full of determination, and he had only one thought in his mind: he must take the blow for his seventh brother.
Now it is too late to resist with the Nianyun Jue technique, the only option now is to block it with the body!
Seeing Zhao Wuyang like this, Long Qi became extremely anxious, but he was seriously injured and couldn't get up. He twisted and screamed, asking him to go away quickly.
Zhao Wuyang just frowned and raised his sword, showing no fear at all. Seeing that the water blade was already close in front of him, at the critical moment, two figures suddenly fell from the sky and dispersed the water blade.
And these two people were none other than Xinyi and Liu Xia who were previously haunted by the illusion!
Long Qi was overjoyed. He thought that Zhao Wuyang would be hurt by the merman, but he didn't expect that Xinyi and Liu Xia could actually get rid of the illusion and arrive in time. He was immediately relieved and fainted due to relaxation.
Zhao Wuyang closed his eyes and waited for the water blade to come, but after waiting for a long time, he did not feel any pain. Seeing him like this, Xinyi and Liu Xia smiled at each other, and then both jumped towards the mermaid. Zhao Wuyang was puzzled, opened one eye and looked into the pool, and saw the backs of Xinyi and Liu Xia, and sat down on the ground with a surge of emotions.
Xinyi chanted a spell, and her figure was so fast that the merman could hardly see her, leaving only a series of black shadows. Then she wielded the double blades of deer antlers and slashed him more than ten times. Liu Xia also pinched a spell and twisted his fingers, and then used the move of weeping willow pointing to the moon, and the long sword in his hand hit the merman like a willow branch.
However, the mermaid was covered with scales and was not hurt at all under the rain of attacks from the two men.
After the two finished their moves, they stood on either side of the merman, frowning, constantly thinking of countermeasures. The merman, however, smiled contemptuously after being attacked by the two.
"You dare to show off your ability? You are really courting death!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the scales under his cheeks opened up, and then he took a deep breath, but he took too much air, and his chest and abdomen swelled up like a ball.
But after he took a breath, he suddenly closed the scales under his cheeks, then opened his mouth and roared.
The roar was not loud, but it was sharp. Everyone felt pain in their ears and had to cover their ears. But even if they covered their ears, it was in vain, and they could still clearly hear the cry of the mermaid.
This roar went on for a long time and blood began to seep from Liu Xia's ears. Just when everyone began to be unable to bear it anymore, suddenly a fire talisman flew over and hit the mermaid on the back. It exploded and knocked him back into his stomach.
After a strong cough, he looked back and saw Banxia wrapped in a talisman robe. He was holding two talismans in his hands and said to the mermaid:
"If you don't stop, I will put this black mud talisman into the water. I just don't know if the woman at the bottom of the lake can stand the pollution of the water!"
(End of this chapter)
