The albino devilfish omega was truly beautiful to look at. Though draped in white cloth, it could not conceal his divinely bestowed features; his physique was equally flawless. The wind swept his snow-white hair aside, revealing eyes as blue as the sea, eyes in which a starry sky seemed to flow. This appearance was identical to that of Little Bai in his childhood.
When Lan Bo first met Bai Chunian, he had exactly this same endearing, well-behaved look.
Lan Bo felt an unstoppable pang of heartache. His gaze swept over the pearl-like youth from head to toe, finally settling on the front of his thigh.
The youth’s thighs and forearms were covered in a layer of lustrous white scales. Among them, a single scale on the front of his right leg was particularly distinctive: beyond its lustrous whiteness, it was overlaid with a layer of pale blue iridescence.
Throughout the generations, every Siren was born with such a distinctive scale—a symbol of their power over the ocean and a mark of their leadership. When a new mermaid leader is born, the previous one retreats into the depths of the sea, never to be seen again.
The boy was blasted dozens of meters away by Lan Bo’s high-explosive water projectile, his back slamming into the wall and leaving a massive dent. He wiped the blood trickling from under his nose, leaped out of the deep pit, and glared coldly at Lan Bo.
This hostility stemmed from a clash of “kings”—the heir’s covetousness and challenge toward the current leader.
The youth raised his left hand. Under his control, the Dead Sea Heartstone in his grasp began to melt and reforge itself, gradually taking the shape of a black crystal crown, which he perched crookedly upon his head.
Watching him do this, Bai Chunian clenched his fingers helplessly against the ground. He knew this was no longer a family feud that could be easily resolved; this blatant act of provocation would undoubtedly enrage Lan Bo completely.
Sure enough, Lan Bo narrowed his eyes and took two steps forward. Blue scales rapidly grew across his exposed skin, and scales also began to sprout from his legs beneath the fabric, creating a rustling sound as they rubbed against his pants.
Bai Chunian extended his blood-stained hand and grabbed Lan Bo’s wrist: “He doesn’t understand anything. He’s…”
“That’s not true,” Lan Bo cut him off coldly. “Even if it were, did you see? His scales aren’t even fully grown yet, and he’s trying to usurp my position. Randi, are you willing to disregard even me for his sake?”
Bai Chunian’s grip on Lan Bo’s wrist stiffened momentarily as a surge of chaotic energy welled up inside him, forcing him to focus all his attention on suppressing its overflow. The Dead Sea Heart Scythe sensed Bai Chunian’s loss of control and automatically melted into water, flowing down his neck to form a collar that held him firmly in check.
“If he dares touch you, I’ll teach him a lesson,” Lan Bo said.
A streak of blue lightning trailed behind Lan Bo as he vanished from the spot. and in the next second, he appeared before the boy. At that moment, Lan Bo’s ears had elongated into fin-like appendages, his fingertips had transformed into black, sharp claws, and his pupils had narrowed into slits. Scales rapidly covered his cheeks and wrists, and his sharp merman claws clamped down on the Pearl Boy’s throat. With a clang, he slammed him violently into the cracked wall.
The Pearl Boy was forced to harden his bones to withstand Lan Bo’s blow, barely managing to prevent severe internal injuries.
But upon witnessing his ability, the aggressive pheromones emanating from Lan Bo conveyed a surge of rage. His cold, blue eyes flashed, and a low, vicious growl escaped his throat: “ “You can harden your bones too, huh? Good.”
Before the boy could regain his senses, Lan Bo grabbed him by the throat, lifted him up, and slammed him violently onto the ground. The massive shockwave they generated cracked the floor into a web of fissures, sending debris and glass flying. The gashes on their bodies healed at lightning speed.
The Pearl Boy was at a disadvantage against Lan Bo; the Sirens exerted the highest level of species suppression over all their subjects.
Lan Bo pulled the Dead Sea Heartstone Crown from the Pearl Boy’s head and recast it into a crystal dagger that glinted coldly. Clutching it in his hand, Lan Bo pressed it against the Pearl Boy’s neck. The Pearl Boy desperately clasped the blade with both hands, gritting his teeth to prevent it from sinking into his flesh. The two were locked in a temporary standoff.
“I cannot allow the Sea Clan to be ruled by a wandering spirit. Do not linger in the mortal realm, child. You must be reborn in the ocean, and I will personally see you there.” Lan Bo’s voice was heavy, carrying an authority that brooked no defiance; his gaze was profound, where compassion and resolve coexisted without conflict.
The Pearl Boy kept his eyes wide open, staring straight at Lan Bo. Two pairs of deep blue eyes locked in a gaze.
“Who are you? Who am I? Where should I go? Tell me.” His voice was icy, like shards of ice gently touching the surface of the frigid polar sea.
The expression of confusion and sorrow caused Lan Bo to pause slightly, and the pressure of his grip loosened.
The Pearl Boy suddenly swung one hand down, slamming it into the ground. Instantly, water pooled out of nowhere; a massive torrent appeared from no source, condensing into sharp, dagger-like blades that shot toward Lan Bo.
Lan Bo leaped backward to dodge, releasing his grip, but the dagger was knocked from his hand and plunged into the ground.
This boy’s M2 ability had inherited Lan Bo’s companion ability, Hydrogenated Steel. As a companion ability, Hydrogenated Steel could only forcibly compress water molecules into a dense arrangement similar to the atomic structure of steel used in weapons; the ability itself was not inherently offensive. However, Hydrogenated Steel had manifested within the boy’s second-tier ability, allowing him to create water out of thin air, turning it into an extension of his body, and achieving even greater precision in its formation.
The Pearl Boy picked up the Dead Sea Heart Rock dagger that had fallen to the ground. The dagger melted, shifting and piling up layer by layer in the palm of his left hand, eventually forging itself into a black crystal M79 grenade launcher.
He was actually able to forge a hot weapon out of Dead Sea Heart Rock—such terrifying precision in forging is something even Lan Bo couldn’t achieve.
A hydrosteel grenade flew toward Lan Bo. Dead Sea Heart Rock possesses the ability to devour souls, and that searing suction forced Lan Bo into the blast radius of the shrapnel.
If an ordinary person were caught in the blast of a weapon forged from Dead Sea Heartstone, they would be instantly reduced to ashes; even a test subject would suffer severe injuries. The Pearl Boy had truly gone all out, determined to kill Lan Bo at all costs.
Not all Sea Clan leaders step down voluntarily. Whenever two Sirens meet, unless the former leader abdicates willingly, a bloody and violent struggle is inevitable. Only the strongest can rule the Sea Clan, and the Sea Clan recognizes only the strongest as their leader.
Lan Bo’s father was not a Siren, and he had never met the former leader. Upon reaching adulthood, he naturally became the new king. Aside from personally killing the White Shark omega who had usurped the throne through treachery, he had never experienced a brutal power struggle. Lan Bo never imagined that the second person to challenge his authority would be this child.
Lan Bo felt his body grow light as he was carried away from the blast radius. Bai Chunian held him tightly in his arms, pressing one hand against Lan Bo’s head to tuck his cheek into the crook of his shoulder, shielding his head with his palm.
“Be careful.”
“Hurry.” Lan Bo felt Bai Chunian’s body twitch weakly twice.
The White Lion’s speed was extraordinary, far surpassing that of a mermaid on land. Bai Chunian landed silently outside the blast radius, set Lan Bo down, and leaned against a wall to steady himself with great difficulty.
Four or five shards of Dead Sea Heartstone were still embedded in his back. The Dead Sea Heartstone was a black, crystal-like substance; embedded in his flesh, the wounds had turned black as the crystal steadily devoured and absorbed his flesh.
The shards of Dead Sea Heartstone were drawn to the collar around Bai Chunnian’s neck, ceasing to devour his body and instead being absorbed and assimilated into the collar, thus preventing further injury.
“Ugh…” Unable to heal the wounds on his back, Bai Chunian let out a pained groan through clenched teeth, cold sweat beading on his forehead.
They had dodged one grenade explosion, but the pharmaceutical plant’s warehouse and factory buildings were not so lucky. They were blown apart by a series of consecutive grenade strikes. The fuel stored inside ignited, triggering a chain reaction of explosions. Deafening booms echoed across the sky as factory containers were obliterated, and vast quantities of engine oil and coolant spewed out, flowing downhill into the river behind the pharmaceutical plant. The cooling towers collapsed, and raw pharmaceutical materials of every color flowed across the ground, mixing with the mud from the recent rain to form a viscous, metallic-colored film. A pungent, headache-inducing odor rose into the air.
Yet the Pearl Boy remained unmoved by the collapsing ruins and the raging river devouring the oil slick, continuing to reload his grenade launcher with cold indifference.
Lan Bo stood transfixed, staring wide-eyed at the devastation.
Bai Chunian’s pained groan brought a sliver of sanity back to Lan Bo. He placed his hand on the back of Bai Chunian’s neck, offering enough comfort to speed up his healing. Crouching down, he pressed his cool, thin lips against Bai Chunian’s forehead and whispered soothingly, “Randi, I’m sorry. I have to eliminate him. It’s my duty.”
Bai Chunian bowed his head deeply, his hair obscuring his eyes. The collar around his neck tightened further; veins bulged on his neck, and sharp edges had carved several bloody marks into his skin. He raised his hand to rest on Lan Bo’s wrist and said with a heavy voice, “…I understand.”
Lan Bo kissed his moist eyes, pulled away, and walked toward the surging river. The Pearl Boy saw where Lan Bo was going and chased after him relentlessly in the same direction.
The immortal spirit floating in the air also wanted to follow, but Bai Chunian intercepted it midway.
The spirit drifted through the air, chuckling, its voice faint and distant: “What a deeply moving spectacle.”
Bai Chunian struggled to stay on his feet, clutching his wounds as he tilted his head slightly upward to stare at the wandering spirit. His voice was hoarse as he said, “Enough. Let him leave in peace. Stop tormenting him. I’m begging you.”
The expression on the Eternal Spirit’s white shroud shifted into a smile: “What right do you have to beg me?”
“Was it Aileen who ordered you to do this…?”
The Eternal Spirit let out a shrill laugh: “No one can order me around.”
“Then I’ll kill you right now!”
Bai Chunian’s desperate roar caused the Dead Sea Heartstone to clamp down on him even tighter. The collar extended into a mouth gag that clamped down on his fangs, and a stream of black liquid branched off from the collar, coalescing into a long-handled scythe in Bai Chunian’s left hand.
The Dead Sea Scythe sliced through the air, briefly cleaving the very atmosphere itself. The undead dodged the blade’s glow, cackling, “Why limit yourself? Why don’t you show me your A3 ability? Otherwise, when I get back, I’ll rip off one of his arms and make him cry all night. Are you going to show it to me or not?”
“I’m in the Deterioration Phase, and you’re a Mature Form. Do you really think you can hurt me without using your A3 ability?”
Bai Chunian finally saw through the immortal specter’s scheme—it was trying to force him into the Deterioration Phase.
He slashed diagonally upward, the scythe’s icy blade slicing off a corner of the specter’s white shroud. The fabric fluttered to the ground, and a gash deep enough to expose bone was carved into the specter’s calf.
The specter let out a shriek and flew away from Bai Chunian. The wound on its leg refused to heal; black smoke billowed from the gash, and the agony caused the specter to emit a piercing, shrill scream. The sound waves sent a splitting headache through Bai Chunian’s head.
While Bai Chunian faced off against the undead, Lan Bo plunged headfirst into the river. His legs snapped together and extended, scales slowly covering his translucent,幽 blue fishtail. The tail, which had been shimmering with幽 blue fluorescence, suddenly turned a furious deep red.
The Pearl Boy followed him into the water, leaping from the depths. His lower body fused into a fish tail covered in lustrous white scales, and the long fins at his waist unfurled like a pair of translucent wings, revealing the form of an albino devilfish.
Large quantities of motor oil and chemicals that had flowed into the river floated on the surface, but upon contact with Lan Bo, the filth was automatically purified. The river water surrounding Lan Bo was clean and clear, further highlighting his saintly, immaculate, dust-free purity.
The white merman, however, was covered in oil and grime, struggling to move through the water, and was equally astonished by Lan Bo’s purifying ability.
“Stop resisting in vain.” Lan Bo’s fishtail struck the water’s surface, sending a ten-meter-high wave crashing down from the sky. Its crest hardened into sharp spikes, transforming into countless downward-pointing daggers.
The boy dove beneath the surface to evade the attack, stirring up riverbed pebbles and sunken debris. The river water grew even murkier; fish and shrimp were sucked into the whirlpool, and passing dolphins were impaled by rusty harpoon tips flung up from the riverbed. The river water was churned into a murky, filthy mess of silt and blood, The boy resorted to any means necessary, all to fend off Lan Bo’s attack.
Lan Bo grew increasingly disappointed in him.
A faint glow emanated from his deep-blue fishtail. A whirlpool formed at the tip of his tail, growing larger and larger as it sucked in the murky river water, simultaneously purifying it until it became clear and transparent.
The vortex’s suction was immense, devouring the entire river. The water level along the shore dropped, leaving behind a bed of exposed pebbles.
Lan Bo raised his hand slightly, and the vortex surged forward in the direction he pointed. The boy’s body was hurled into the sky by the rock-hard current, which shattered into a dense array of sharp spikes in midair, piercing his body and pinning him to the sky.
The hardened water surged like solidified ice; pristine, crystalline ice blades pierced the sky, the icicles pure and free of any impurities.
The boy’s body was pierced with over a dozen holes. Impaled on the sharp, water-hardened steel pillars, he could not free himself no matter how he struggled, yet he continued to struggle in vain.
A streak of blue lightning climbed up the water columns to the top, and Lan Bo appeared before the boy, raising a hand to gently stroke his cheek.
“Xiao Bai and I once looked forward to your arrival with such anticipation. He still loves you deeply. When we chatted at night, he gazed at the night sky and wanted to name you ‘White Dwarf.’ He hoped you would live for billions of years like a star. When he thought of you, his eyes held a galaxy. What you’ve done today may have completely destroyed him, yet he will never blame you.”
The boy’s eyes reddened, slowly filling with a mist of tears, and large, pearly-white tears fell from his eyes.
“You shouldn’t have stayed. Go where you belong.” Lan Bo stroked his cheek, and the boy, dazed, nuzzled against Lan Bo’s palm. “I’m sorry.”
Lan Bo cupped the boy’s tear-streaked eyes with his palm, conjuring a water-steel dagger in his hand. He held the blade against the back of the boy’s neck.
Suddenly, the boy’s body turned gray and faint; Lan Bo’s hand passed through nothing but a shadowy void.
The Eternal Spirit raised both hands, and the ashen youth flew back to his side, summoned back beneath the white cloth.
“How could you make him cry?” The Eternal Spirit withdrew the white cloth and draped it back over his head; the youth reverted to the shape of a pearl and fell back into the Spirit’s hand.
The Spirit drifted through the air, cackling madly: “He is my Messenger of the Underworld. I will never let him go.”
Lan Bo landed beside Bai Chunian, taking the form of legs as he touched down. The hardened river water fell back into the riverbed and began to flow once more; the water was clean and transparent, clear to the bottom.
Lan Bo gritted his teeth and stepped forward, but Bai Chunian, choked by the Dead Sea Heartstone collar, spat out a spray of blood. He collapsed onto Lan Bo, blood streaming from his nose and mouth, nearly unconscious.
He was a hair’s breadth away from the Deterioration Phase; it was only the restraint of the Dead Sea Heartstone collar that kept him from losing control.
“Hang in there, be a good boy.” Lan Bo turned, scooped up Bai Chunian’s legs, and lifted him into his arms. Bai Chunian had lost consciousness, his hands hanging limply at his sides.
Lan Bo tilted his head back and glared darkly at the specter, the tides of the Dead Sea surging in his eyes.
“I won’t let you off the hook either.”