Atop the stern deck of a majestic ship with a figurehead of a fierce dragon roaring into battle, stood a young man with a glorious presence. His hair flattered with the cold breeze as his grip on his hilt tightened.
Everything around him was chaotic but he stood there with a tranquil expression like everything going on on that deck had nothing to do with him. With his gaze fixed on the sky, his right foot took a step backwards immediately placing his body in a ready stance.
The makeshift dragon made of clouds flowed gracefully like a waterfall with its fierce gaze fixed on the ship that was being tossed side to side. The luminous light in its eyes brighten like a night light in the dark but no positive vibes were coming from it. There was nothing about it that made one feel safe.
As the makeshift dragon made its move to attack, Ji Yao leapt up in the sky his expression stern. As he swung that flaming sword it suddenly extended midair with a crackling sound before striking the dragon on the left side of its face.
The sharp whip sliced through the head of the dragon and it bellowed causing a tremor in the sea. Under the might of this sword forged by one of the greatest Qilin of all time you would think this monstrosity would be slaughtered but when had Ji Yao's life ever been that simple?
The slash made by the sword suddenly knitted back together as though watching the scene in reverse. The makeshift dragon that had its head tilted to the side turned its head stiffly and glared angrily at Ji Yao.
After a slight pause of facing each other awkwardly, it opened its mouth and roared spitting out water droplets at Ji Yao. If this was a human or Nocru he was fighting then it would be saliva spraying his face right now.
Pissed, Ji Yao cracked his flaming whip once more but this time the makeshift dragon dodged before dashing past Ji Yao heading straight for Red Bane. "Shit!" swore Ji Yao as that powerful slithering body rushed past him. The force from the massive creature rushing past him pushed his body back a few feet.
Ji Yao dove out of the sky to catch up with the troublesome creature. Before it could touch the ship, Ji Yao spun around sideways midair and ruthlessly swung his whip sending the dragon flying a great distance. The creature spun around in the sky in dissatisfaction as Ji Yao fell into the sea.
Because he had been focused on keeping this beast off his father's ship he didn't manage to stop himself in time before his body vanished underwater. He skillfully moved his arms around to move his body out of the raging sea.
Holding his breath he swam up but paused when he saw familiar darts shot into the water in close proximity with his face at a speed that could directly slice a person in half if they had the misfortune to be its target.
His brow furrowed as he raised his head looking up to the surface of the water. The figures above the surface of the water were blurred by the ripples. He so wished he could scold those two to death.
He began to swim up to the surface again but he suddenly heard a high pitched screech unpleasant to the ear. The sound was close yet near. Sometimes it would sound on his ear before vanishing once more. With his sword in hand, he held it with the tip of its blade pointing upwards.
With the blade close to his face he shut his eyes and a radiant blaze unaffected by the water shone brightly. At that moment he suddenly opened his eyes and he noticed a thick tail fin swerve before disappearing into the darkness with the high pitched screeches intensified.
Something mysterious was in the water and from the looks of it, it had no good intentions.
Ji Yao was prepared for anything so when an icy bony arm touched his boots to drag him down in the deepest depth he wasn't surprised. With a powerful unrestrained kick, he freed himself from that hand before slashing at it severing it.
Soon the clear waters were dyed red as even louder ear-piercing screeches filled the air. The painful screams of the creature soon attracted other creatures and they deserted their posts ready to save to rescue one of their own. Soon the water around Ji Yao began to stir up violently. He heard loud obnoxious screams coming towards him and judging from the sound alone it was a mob of angry creatures.
Soon Ji Yao was able to see what they were. A horde of what humans call mermaids swam towards him like torpedoes with a target in mind. Compared to the beautiful portraits humans painted of them, these creatures were the exact opposite of alluring beasts that can steal a man's soul.
Their faces were so skinny that it was basically bones. Their elongated nasal cavity and sharp teeth were quite unsightly that one wouldn't dare to look twice lest they offend them. The torso was basically skin and bones with shiny light scales covering their chest area. The scales became thicker as they reached the lower half of their bodies.
To be frank, the only positive thing about them that wasn't revolting was their tail fins. It seemed the creator was especially generous when it came to the tail fin and to compensate for this masterpiece they made them very ugly on the top half.
Like a swarm of bees, they lunged at Ji Yao with their vicious nails aiming at Ji Yao's face. Soon a pile of livid mermaids piled up on top of Ji Yao from all sides. But who were they dealing with? Of course, Ji Yao was the least bit polite dealing his hand ruthlessly.
While Ji Yao was underwater swarmed by these relentless creatures, above the surface of the water Xunshi Zhe was gazing at the water with one foot turned away like he was ready to run away at any moment.
His greatest fear had come to life and they were much scarier than what they drew in the books. Yes, he was Nocru and had seen much worse than this but he couldn't stand mermaids.
Given a choice he would rather deal with a ghost than a mermaid. This is why his face was drained of all colour as he stood there with a slight tremble. It was Big Hei who had to step up with the rest of the crew to fight these creatures that were climbing up the hull of the ship.
A few managed to leap over Red Bane attempting to snatch prey turning the deck of the ship chaotic. But all of a sudden a loud screech came from beneath the surface of the water attracting the attention of the others.
As though answering the cries of their queen they leapt into the sea with high pitched screams that hurt their ears.. On the deck, some injured mermaids that had brazenly leapt on board earlier also responded to the cry.