Tome of Troubled Times

Chapter 541: The Battle of the King of Man

The crystal was extremely far away, hidden deep in the ocean, completely invisible to the naked eye.

If this thing were on land, it might not be a big deal, but in the sea, it’s totally cheating. How could anyone fight a spellcaster whose core is hidden somewhere in the depths of the ocean? Moreover, it basically has an endless supply of energy, drawing power from the entire ocean itself. Even if Lady Three shattered that water figure a million times, it would be meaningless.

If it wasn’t for the Black Tortoise’s endurance, anyone else might have fallen long ago.

Lady Three’s defense was watertight, and while she was keeping the water figure’s attention, Zhao Changhe sped toward the crystal.

Swish!

A fishman that tried to block his path was decapitated with a single slash, its massive head sinking to the bottom of the sea.

Without even bothering to turn his head, Zhao Changhe thrust Dragon Emperor backward with his left hand, piercing through the chest of a shrimp soldier trying to sneak up on him from behind. With a quick flick, the shrimp’s flesh was cleanly gouged out of its shell.

Damn, this is making me hungry...

The shrimp soldiers and crab generals[1] on either side stared in shock as Zhao Changhe slashed and stabbed his way through.

The fuck kind of fish is he? How can he move so smoothly in the water?

Zhao Changhe slashed his way through, heading straight for the crystal, knowing that although he appeared unstoppable, the battle was far from easy. No battle involving thousands of troops was ever easy.

One of the biggest differences between the Sea Tribe and humans was that they did not really practice martial arts, but their individual strength varied far more than the strength of humans depending on their size and natural abilities.

Ordinary fishmen and shrimp soldiers were actually quite weak, at a level where a single sword strike could behead a dozen.

But the larger fish? Their strength was something no ordinary human could match. Like the massive sharkman currently fighting the bearded old man on the island—if it came down to sheer strength, it could rival or surpass even the experts on the Ranking of Earth.

Then there were those crabs, with their incredibly tough shells that were practically impenetrable to most humans.

Fortunately, judging by this battle, the Sea Emperor had not recovered enough to awaken every creature in the ocean. It was likely just these few thousand that were under his command. Otherwise, he could have already conquered the world, and there would have been no need for him to collaborate with the Wang Clan.

And among this batch, there were not even that many from special species. Most of the army was still made up of ordinary fish and shrimp, yet even these ordinary sea creatures, especially those from the deep sea, were much larger than humans. After taking on humanoid forms and being armed with tridents, they were not to be underestimated. Just one of them blocking an escape route in the encirclement was enough to make breaking through much more difficult.

Clang!

A massive trident thrust toward him. Zhao Changhe swung his saber, Dragon Bird clashing against the prongs of the trident. His wrist felt a slight shock, and his unstoppable momentum slowed for a moment. Immediately, several more tridents thrust at him from either side.

The ones that were wielding tridents were higher-level fishmen, with some measure of actual intelligence.

Zhao Changhe tilted his head, dodging the tridents, the thrust Dragon Emperor with his left hand, stabbing right beneath a fishman’s gills. Dragon Bird twisted, sweeping around to cleave the fishman blocking his way in two.

He charged forward again, countless tridents thrusting at him from all directions.

Another one of the biggest differences between the Sea Tribe and humans was that the former felt no fear.

If Zhao Changhe had been wreaking havoc like this among human soldiers, especially with the added fear effect of Scattering the Gods and Buddhas, the soldiers would have long since scattered or fallen into disarray. They would not have kept charging in like these fishmen whose blood-red eyes were filled with nothing but savage fury.

And if an ordinary human had been in Zhao Changhe’s stead, this kind of relentless assault would have overwhelmed them.

However, Zhao Changhe’s expression remained calm. The more savage the battlefield, the more it suited him. He deflected a trident with Dragon Emperor, slashing through what seemed like empty water with Dragon Bird.

The water around him suddenly seemed to freeze in place. In the next moment, every fishman around him exploded, their bodies bursting apart in a gruesome display.

Whether human or fish, if there’s vicious blood qi, it’s mine to use. Just like how you’re able to control water, I can control this. Whether it’s my own, that of the battlefield, or that of my enemies... the power of vicious blood moves according to my will! Bloodied Mountains and Rivers!

Seeing the success of his attack, Zhao Changhe smoothly reversed his grip and swung again.

A massive crescent-shaped saber light shot forward, parting the water like an unstoppable force, carving out a path of emptiness.

Zhao Changhe followed the saber light, rushing forward.

The blue crystal, which had seemed so far away, was now gradually getting closer through his continued charge.

* * *

Lady Three, locked in battle with the water figure, was partially distracted by what was happening below. She could not help but be amazed. Zhao Changhe’s sheer ferocity was almost unheard of.

He’s like a wild boar tearing through the sea, leaving fish and turtles overturned in his wake—well, maybe that isn’t the best analogy. Never mind, the analogy doesn’t matter.

Lady Three realized that Zhao Changhe had a very clear goal, and it seemed like whatever he was aiming for would affect the water figure in front of her. Its focus was shifting as if it wanted to leave the battle to deal with Zhao Changhe.

Lady Three did not know what Zhao Changhe was up to, but there was no way she was going to let the water figure interfere. The snake-like whip surrounding her suddenly expanded, completely blocking all of the water figure’s escape routes.

The water figure tried to charge through but failed. It attempted to dissolve into water to slip through the whip, only to find that the whip had truly created a watertight seal. Layer upon layer of dense true qi formed a vortex-like wall, trapping it completely.

It was a genuine whip cage—an example of martial arts taken to an extreme level of power.

The water figure was starting to panic.

Damn it, from all the intel we had, the Heavenly Origin Pirates should not have been this tough to deal with! n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

It’s one thing for this third leader who’s at the third layer of the Profound Mysteries to appear. We always knew there was a mysterious third leader and whatnot. But what’s with this man?! He seems to be only at the second layer, but he’s just as agile as us underwater and even more brutal than this third leader. It’s only been minutes, but he’s already taken out hundreds of Sea Tribe members!

And he seems to be heading straight for the crystal core. How does he even know about it? Can someone explain to me where this freak came from?!

As Zhao Changhe got closer to the crystal, the surrounding Sea Tribe members, under the water figure’s control, became even more frenzied. Lady Three could hardly see where Zhao Changhe was amidst the chaos.

Suddenly, a sword light burst forth from the crowd.

The pitch-black depths of the sea were illuminated by the brilliance of a setting sun, like a shimmering golden glow on the ocean surface at twilight. A solitary bird skimmed across the sea, crying out to the heavens, charging straight toward the sunset.

Sunset Divine Sword!

Swish!

Countless severed limbs flew through the water as a blazing sun broke through the encirclement, heading straight for the crystal core that was set atop a massive boulder on the seafloor.

Within the blazing sun, Zhao Changhe raised his saber high, slashing down with all his fury.

Scattering the Gods and Buddhas!

Crack!

Yet the slash did not achieve the effect he had hoped for.

The water-repelling effect that had been working perfectly just now suddenly vanished at that moment. His saber struck heavily, yet it was brought to a halt.

The water figure, sensing danger, had dissolved its body and reformed right on top of the crystal, deflecting Zhao Changhe’s strike just in time.

The unstoppable Zhao Changhe was thrown back by the force of this counter, unable to withstand the tsunami-like force of the water figure.

No matter what, the other party was at the third layer of the Profound Mysteries, a true top-tier expert; just because Lady Three could hold her own against it did not mean that he could. He was still far off from being able to match up against such a being. He probably would not even be able to withstand the next attack that was surely coming at him.

As Zhao Changhe was thrown back, he channeled his true qi into Dragon Bird, preparing to unleash Army Breaker.

But the water figure’s attack defied all logic. The surrounding seawater suddenly spiraled into a terrifying whirlpool, threatening to tear him apart in an instant. The strike he was preparing was utterly useless.

“Damn it, it’s like a washing machine...”

Just as the whirlpool was about to tear him apart, a transparent protective barrier of vigorous qi silently appeared around him, withstanding the brunt of the attack before shattering into nothingness.

It was the protective barrier of the Divine Brilliance Sect!

Having many techniques was never a bad thing, but at this moment, Zhao Changhe had reached his limits. He could not block another strike.

Fortunately, he only needed to withstand this one.

In the next moment, Lady Three appeared in front of him, her whip coiled around her arm as she unleashed a powerful punch.

With a thunderous explosion, the water figure was blasted apart, and it was then forced to flee with the crystal in tow.

Zhao Changhe shook his head and sighed. Watching someone else carry the load always looks easy. She had no problem facing the water figure, but when I did it myself, I didn’t even stand a chance.

With the water figure’s retreat, the members of the Sea Tribe that were present were left leaderless and immediately fell into disarray.

Hua Zhenming drove his saber into the belly of the crab that he had been battling for what felt like ages. Looking up, he saw Lady Three and Zhao Shouyi bursting out from the water together. Her powerful punch and his unstoppable saber struck the massive sharkman simultaneously.

Boom!

A thunderous explosion followed as Lady Three’s hand stabbed deep into the sharkman’s torso. Her terrifying energy detonated within its body, blowing it apart into a pile of flesh.

Zhao Changhe’s saber slashed down into the pile of flesh, but it was too late.

The two of them stood there, panting heavily, looking at each other. After a long moment, Zhao Changhe finally spoke up, his tone rather irked. “I need kills to nurture my vicious blood qi... You should’ve let me have its head.”

Lady Three did not respond. Her eyes scanned the battlefield. Countless members of the Sea Tribe were retreating into the ocean, but the pirates had suffered heavy losses. Severed limbs and bodies lay all over the battlefield.

The bearded old man did not have the time to thank Zhao Changhe. He turned to Hua Zhenming and shouted, “What about the people on Taiping Island?”

Hua Zhenming’s heart skipped a beat. “Damn... Could the Sea Tribe have split their forces and also attacked the island?”

Although Lady Three was the leader, she was new and unfamiliar with many details, so Hua Zhenming was responsible for the defense and command of the fleet. In his haste to join the battle, he had completely forgotten about the non-combatants on Taiping Island. Realizing his blunder, his face turned pale.

Lady Three’s expression also darkened. She was present, and as the third leader, she bore responsibility for this oversight as well.

The bearded old man stomped his foot. “How could you be so careless?! Go check on them immediately!”

Hua Zhenming slapped himself in frustration and was about to rush off when a distant horn sounded. The Tang Clan’s fleet appeared on the horizon, where the sea met the sky.

Zhao Changhe sighed in relief from behind and chuckled. “I had the Tang Clan’s fleet pick up the people from Taiping Island and bring them aboard. Looks like they won their battle.”

Lady Three stared blankly at the side of his face, her mind slow to catch up. For a moment, she was unsure how to express her emotions.

What was it I said just a few hours ago? If I ever need him to lift so much as a finger, then he’s my superior...

Zhao Changhe had done far more than lift a finger. It seemed as though no matter where he went, he would always be the one to shine the brightest.

And yet, somehow, it did not feel out of place... After all, this was the Sea Tribe, and now, he bore the title of King of Man.

1. Fun Fact: 虾兵蟹将, which literally translates to shrimp soldiers and crab generals, is actually an idiom that refers to ineffective troops. In other words, this doesn’t usually refer to actual shrimp and crabs. ☜