Chapter 404: Execution of a King

The puddle surface continued to ripple before him. 

"What? She isn't dead?!" 

Hai Zhu walked forward, tightening his grip on the trident. The murky water continued to tremble before suddenly exploding and bursting out with the fury of a storm. Wind and lightning rushed out, destroying everything around it and forcing the water to dispel. 

And then a hand came out, grabbing onto the edge as Ming Yue emerged but the aura around her was different. She turned and looked at Hai Zhu with a pair of cold eyes. So much so that it brought fear to him. 

"You... you're different from before", he said. 

Indeed, It wasn't Ming Yue, it was Xue Yue. 

She continued to stare deep into him while wiping the sword clean with her arm. 

"It has been quite some time since I've come out. Ming Yue truly decided to push herself and to be fair, I don't blame her. You are a disgusting sight for me and I will end you."

That was all Xue Yue said for she vanished from his sight. 

"Reaping Blade."

Hai Zhu looked around but saw nothing. Despite the lack of cover, she was nowhere to be found. He couldn't even sense her. He turned and turned, holding his trident defensively. 

"Are you afraid? You should be. You said all those things about letting those children starve to death. Who knows what else you've done to them. You threaten her with their lives? You threaten me? Perhaps she would send you to a quick death but me, you will suffer."

Her voice echoed around him, sometimes it felt like she was talking in his mind or whispering in his ears. 

"Where are you? Where did you go?"

He shouted out before seeing a glint of light and defended against the attack but it was only the dagger. 

"Agh!"

Hai Zhu shouted in pain just as Drifting Sky was pulled out of his shoulder. He turned but found nothing. 

"Those bruises on that girl, they were done by your men. And you allowed them to do so. What do you think that means?"

Fear continued to rise up as he turned constantly. His eyes flickered about, trying to find her but Xue Yue was simply gone. But he felt it, his impending fate, the end was coming for him. 

"This is the end? My plan for several years is impeded?" he thought. 

Then, the demon did something. An action that his own men had never witnessed before, not even the other kings or Kong Zhi, himself. He gnashed his teeth and his fish-like face was warped with anger. All the emotions, the rage and the contempt, the shock and the hatred, welling up from the very beginning, all of it seemed to burst out in that expression. 

"You won't stop me! Nothing will! I will obtain my power! I will obtain the recognition I deserve! It should've been me that led the demons in this war!"

He spun his trident and pierced the ground. 

"Blackened Water!"

The grayish water gathered by his feet before spreading out but the water was had turned pitch black. Like waves, they washed over the entire area. It even came close to the walls of the keep. 

"Retreat! Retreat! Back behind the gates!"

"Don't let the waters touch you!"

Everyone ran back, defending themselves from within Guardian's Keep. But the demons were not so lucky. 

"Shit, the king used his technique! Don't get touched by it, run! If you touch it, you'll be trapped and pulled in!"

They yelled out to each other, trying their best to avoid the water but some could not escape. 

"Pull me out! Pull me out!"

"No! I can't escape!" 

Those were the last words as these poor souls were pulled down into the black water. They screamed and cried out but found themselves engulfed by the water, unable to breathe their last breath. 

Everyone else looked in horror, demon or human, the sight was chilling to the bone. 

And as the source of this technique, Hai Zhu took out his trident from which a giant fin emerged, swimming around him. His bulging eyes looked around carefully, searching for Xue Yue, who was still nowhere to be found. 

"Is that it?" her voice echoed out. 

From the skies came down a dozen Blasting Gales, blowing holes into the black water only to be refilled. 

"What will you do? You can't break this technique! Not while I am still alive!"

The Tide King shouted, searching for his opponent. 

Suddenly, Xue Yue appeared, thrusting Drifting Sky forward only for him to deflect it. But she was quick, flipping over his head as she placed her hand on his head. Lighting shot out, electrocuting him from top to bottom. Then she vanished once more, flying off. 

But the attacks didn't stop there. 

"Whistle Wind."

A whistling sound came as a small blade of wind cut into his shoulder. Then it was his chest, then his back, his other arm, it grazed his neck once or twice. And the attacks didn't stop, Xue Yue used Whistle Wind constantly, conserving her strength. 

"Ah, as much as I like to be in control, I always come out in such bad situations."

She clicked her tongue while looking at her body. 

"With Pale Moon gone, the backlash is already coming. And, I don't even have that much energy left after using it. Which means that all I have left to reliably depend on is Drifting Sky."

She looked back at Hai Zhu, studying him while he defended against the Whistle Winds. 

"He has armor on his legs but not his top half... Why?"

The Whistle Winds were entirely powerful or lethal but there were so many of them that Jai Zhu couldn't help but defend. 

"Damn! What is she planning?" he thought, "She's just buying time... No matter, Even if I'm here, I can still attack her."

The giant fin swimming around him descended into the waters, looking for Xue Yue. However, she never stopped moving, constantly flying around Hai Zhu. She thought carefully, trying to see if there was something she could exploit. Then her eyes widened and she understood. 

"His skin, the water comes from his skin so he needs to take off the armor. Then what if... I were to stop it?"

Soon enough an idea formed as she began to gather her strength. 

"All I have to do is to dry his skin and pull the waters back." she thought.

"Wrath of the WInds!"

Putting her hand out, the wind began to pick up, circling around him. Slowly, it began to grow and grow and before he realized it, Hai Zhu stood within the eye of a hurricane. In the moments before it drew the black water in, the giant fin emerged before leaping out, revealing itself to be a monstrous shark. 

Its jaws were wind open, ready to rip Xue Yue apart. 

"Did you think I wouldn't notice?" 

She looked at the shark before slicing it apart with Drifting Sky and turned her attention back to Hai Zhu. Within the hurricane, all of the water coming from his body was taken by the strong winds. And it only grew stronger before forcing the water out of him. 

"No! I have to escape!"

He was shocked, trying to make a hole through this cage only to have his trident bent and broken. His hand was ripped to shreds. 

"No! No! My bloodline! I can't maintain it for much longer! This can't be the end! It can't! There is so much I have to do!" 

He could feel it, his strength was waning and he could do nothing about it.

Xue Yue landed on the ground and walked closer, feeding more energy into the attack. The Eternal Heart Ring tried its best, healing her body and giving her more energy. But at this rate, she was spending more than the ring could replace. 

It didn't matter though. 

She tightened her grip on Drifting Sky and dispelled the hurricane.

In one quick and fluid motion, Xue Yue swung out. Just as his body reappeared, her sword sliced through his head, executing him in that instant. 

And the Tide King died.