"Ugh!!!" Skadi struggled
fiercely in the rapidly flying water mass in the air. According to her common
sense, water could not trap a Deepsea Hunter at
all; in fact, a Deepsea Hunter's combat power
should be stronger in water. But this time.
It was as if the water had a mind of its own. It was repelling Skadi;
all her movements were useless. She would barely move from her spot before
being pressed back by the surrounding currents, trapped within the water mass.
More importantly, Skadi's
body itself seemed to be resisting her. Skadi could
feel a warmth emanating from the surrounding water, like a homecoming.
The feeling, like a child returning to its mother's embrace,
made Skadi feel somewhat drowsy,
and the hand gripping her greatsword gradually relaxed.
But the next moment, the relaxed hand clenched tightly, gripping
the greatsword. Skadi desperately resisted the
comfortable sensations her body was transmitting to her.
'This is the enemy's ability. Is it a neurotoxin from the Seaborn?'
Skadi's brain
rapidly thought, using this method to resist the constant sensations her body
was sending her.
No matter what the opponent's goal was, if making her drowsy was
the purpose of this water mass, then Skadi absolutely
could not let them succeed.
'Has she left the city already? Does she not want to fight in
the city, afraid of attracting the attention of this mobile city's
administrator?'
Skadi looked through the
transparent water mass. She had already flown out of the city and was heading
towards the surrounding wilderness.
The surrounding water seemed to consciously realize that it had
left the city's boundaries and began to fall rapidly. Soon after, it crashed
onto a patch of wilderness. In the distance, the brightly lit Lungmen could
still be seen.
The moment Skadi landed, she gripped her
greatsword, flipped over, and jumped backward, leaving the water mass's range,
her eyes fixed on the front.
Amidst the splashing water droplets from the shattered water
mass, Reinette's figure appeared there silently, as
if she had been there all along.
Reinette's gaze calmly fixed on the extremely
wary Skadi.
"I probably understand why you attacked Red. For you, it's
something that doesn't require thought."
After all, attacking the Seaborn,
or anything related to the Deepsea Church, is something that Deepsea
Hunters like Skadi don't need to think
about at all.
"However, understanding doesn't mean I will forgive this.
You hurt Red, so wanting to give you a good beating is also something that
doesn't require thought."
Before Reinette could
continue, Skadi had already charged
forward with her greatsword.
'Don't... attack... her... Sea... stop... Stop it!'
Skadi's ears heard a sound like
static. Listening closely, it seemed to be her own voice.
Her body's muscles were also trembling continuously, as if every
cell in her body was unwilling to let Skadi attack
the Reinette in front of her.
"Argh!" Skadi gritted
her teeth, using all her strength to resist that strange feeling, and swung her
greatsword.
But even with such a full-strength swing, the greatsword was
easily gripped by Reinette's single hand on its blade. No matter
how much force Skadi applied, the greatsword
remained motionless.
"Hmm, what kind of treatment should I use for a patient
like you?" Reinette smiled as she looked at Skadi.
Skadi didn't reply. She
decisively let go of her greatsword and swung her fist towards Reinette's forehead.
"Ah, right, I think high-altitude parachute-free falling is
a good way to relieve stress." Reinette looked
at Skadi's incoming fist without panic, merely
raising her hand casually to block it.
"It seems you also think it's a good method." Reinette smiled
as she looked at Skadi, who was trying to pull her
fist away.
Skadi saw Reinette's smile and
immediately tried to pull her fist back, but unfortunately, it was too late.
Water currents had already spread rapidly from Reinette's hand, which
was holding Skadi's fist.
Skadi didn't try to swat the
water away, because she knew water couldn't be blocked. The simplest way to
stop the opponent's action was to...
Skadi raised her other fist and
smashed it towards Reinette's forehead, but at this moment, Reinette's other hand
had already silently pressed against Skadi's
chest.
A silver light flashed in Reinette's palm, and Skadi's
body was instantly shot high into the sky by a beam of light as thick as a
chopstick.
"These few items work pretty well." Reinette smiled
as she watched Skadi being launched into the
sky, a few wisps of dust quietly falling from her palm.
[Weightlessness Talisman]
[Type: Consumable]
[Effect: Released on a single
target, causing them to be unaffected by gravity for a short period, without
causing pressure imbalances like thrombosis or gravity-related illnesses.]
[Evaluation: An interesting
little toy. It might be fun to tease children with it.]
[Price: 500 Medical Points]
[Purchasable with D+ level
Medical Authority]
[Sealed Crystal: Light Beam]
[Type: Consumable]
[Effect: Activates the crystal,
releasing the spell stored within. The currently stored spell is Light Beam,
which creates a light beam with a physical form. The length and size of the
light beam can be freely adjusted based on the energy injected.]
[Evaluation: A skill mastered by
mages in a fantasy world, usually used to quickly send oneself or teammates to
high places. However, due to high mana consumption, it is typically only used
in the early stages, after which it is replaced by more convenient spells.]
[Price: 800 Medical Points]
[Purchasable with D+ level
Medical Authority]
With the help of these two skills, Reinette easily
sent Skadi high into the sky, and
this time there was no water mass to cushion her fall.
However, Reinette didn't
intend to kill her, which is why she wrapped Skadi in
water. That wasn't just to restrict her movements.
Moreover, with the energy sealed in that crystal, at the
thickness just used, it could at most extend to 800 meters. This height is
still far too short to kill a Deepsea Hunter by
falling.
"Oh, she's coming down." Reinette watched
a figure fall from high altitude and smash into the ground, kicking up a huge
cloud of dust.
Reinette slowly approached the spot. A
large, 'spread-eagle' shaped crater had been formed in the ground.
"So it really is possible to smash down like that?" Reinette looked
at the spread-eagle shaped crater, stroking her chin. She had just learned that
someone could actually fall like that.
"Tom and Jerry didn't lie to me." Reinette walked
to the edge of the pit, looking at the motionless hole. "Did she get
knocked out? It shouldn't be that bad."
Just then, Skadi shot out of the crater,
intending to use the element of surprise to smash Reinette's head in one
blow.
As Reinette raised her hand to prepare to
block the attack, Skadi, however, fell into Reinette's arms first.
???
Three classic water question marks appeared above Reinette's head again. Reinette looked
confusedly at Skadi, who had collapsed softly in
her arms.
"Hey, hey, hey, is this a scam?" Reinette quickly
positioned the indeed unconscious Skadi properly
and began to examine her. "The child is already a bit silly, don't let her
hit her head and become even sillier."
Just as Reinette was
about to check the back of Skadi's head, Skadi suddenly
opened her eyes and lunged to embrace Reinette. The heavy
weight knocked Reinette, who was unprepared, to the ground.
"Ugh!"
Reinette was tackled to the ground, but
the 'Skadi' lying on top of Reinette didn't
continue attacking. Instead, she greedily breathed in Reinette's scent.
Reinette raised an eyebrow, looking at Skadi's
vastly different behavior, and remembered something: "Ishamala?"
'Skadi' looked up at Reinette: "Yes,
Ocean, what are your commands?"
"Ocean? Just call me Reinette." Reinette stroked Skadi's—oh
no, Ishamala's—head. "How did you wake
up?"
"Ocean, you awakened me." Ishamala showed
a happy smile. "Although I have not yet returned to the Great Group,
everything this body can do, Ocean, you may command."
Reinette flicked Ishamala's
head: "Where did you learn such words? And didn't I say to just call me Reinette?"
"I learned it from scenes I watched on TV before. I believe
these are the most suitable words for the present moment."
"You watch TV? Oh, Skadi watches
it, right? No, wait, does Skadi even watch TV?" Reinette's mind
conjured an image of Skadi sitting in a chair,
obediently watching TV.
"Is there a problem? Are you still angry about what Skadi did
earlier?"
"No, nothing?" After all this commotion, Reinette couldn't
continue fighting. Logically speaking, what Skadi did
was not wrong from her perspective.
Since the fight was over and most of her anger had dissipated,
not to mention how things had developed, Reinette couldn't
really press the issue further.
"Don't worry, I'm not angry anymore. Will you be awake
constantly from now on?"
Ishamala shook
her head: "I wish to serve by your side always, but unfortunately, I am
not fully awakened, and I have already fed myself to Skadi,
but Skadi will help you."
"I don't think so."
Ishamala looked
at Reinette and said with great certainty:
"No, she will. She definitely will. We yearn for your embrace. All Seaborn yearn
for your embrace. You conceive and nourish countless living beings. Your
teachings, we have already learned."
Reinette scratched her head: "I
always feel like your way of speaking is strange, and what exactly did I teach
you?"
Ishamala opened
her mouth, seemingly wanting to say more, but then closed her eyes and
collapsed back into Reinette's arms.
Reinette gently brushed away the silver
hair of the girl in her arms. The girl's face was filled with a contented
smile, like a child returning to its mother's embrace.
"Sigh, I feel like I've stirred up a big mess. I always
feel like something I don't know about has happened in Iberia.
I'll ask the Emperor later to see if she can help me investigate."
Reinette stroked Skadi's
head in her arms, then looked to the side. "Been watching for a while,
haven't you? Is it entertaining?"
"Hehe, the child of the Sea's return?" Nian emerged
from behind a rock. "If this were made into a movie, there should be a
narration here."
"Let me think, I got it! 'The creatures of the sea have
returned to the embrace of the sea,' how's that?"
"Not great." Reinette unceremoniously
shot her down.
"Don't be like that, it sounds pretty good." Nian
leaned over, squatted beside them, and poked Skadi's
face. "Just wanted to join the fun, and also remind you not to provoke the Sui siblings . From the
looks of it now, there's no need at all."
"Don't worry, I'm not someone who likes to cause
trouble."
Nian nodded: "I wholeheartedly believe that. If you wanted
to cause trouble, Yan might not be able to
handle it, you know. Oh, no, it should be this entire land, not to mention now
there's also you, an incarnation of the ocean."
At this point, Nian looked at Reinette with
great curiosity: "Honestly, for a concept of your level to develop a will,
isn't that a bit like cheating?"
Reinette smiled without answering.
"Never mind. If you're willing to be a doctor, I estimate
everyone on the entire continent would agree with both hands and feet. Ha, I'd
like to see that doctor, I wonder if she could still speak in riddles when
facing you."
'Doctor? She must be talking about Kal'tsit.
Speaking of which, I do seem to have seen reports about Rhodes
Island recently.' Reinette stroked
the girl's head in her arms over and over again. It had to be said, Skadi's
hair was incredibly smooth and very nice to pet.
"I'll introduce my sister to you sometime." Nian
familiarly patted Reinette's back. "My sister's power is
quite interesting too."
"Not only is her painting skill excellent, but she can also
use her paintings as a small world. There have been many times I've wanted to
film a movie inside her paintings, but Reinette never
let me." At this, Nian's face was full of regret.
"But it probably wouldn't be much use to you. You'd
probably just poke through my poor sister's painting paper with a slight
movement, and then my sister would probably throw a huge tantrum again."
"It shouldn't be that bad." Reinette thought
of some fan-made content she had seen about Xi, many of which were videos of Xi
rolling around.
"No choice, your concept is just too conspicuous in that
scroll. The surroundings are just a layer of paper, and you are the only drop
of water on it."
Nian spread her hands: "With any movement, you could
directly penetrate the entire layer of paper, and Xi values her paintings to
death, stubbornly refusing to lend them to me. Crying and making a fuss would
definitely happen."
Far away, in a mountain range deep within Yan.
In a house, a girl wearing a long black dress with cyan
embellishments, the cyan embellishments transitioning very naturally to the
cyan arm tattoo on her hand, making the whole look cohesive.
The hem of her white short cheongsam lining also had cyan
embellishments, combined with the scene, she looked like a fairy stepping out
of a landscape ink painting.
Beneath her cyan dragon horns was ink-black hair with ink-cyan
tips that floated away like clouds.
And on her fair face, vermilion eyes were quietly gazing at the
unfinished scroll before her.
"Achhoo!"
A sneeze, however, broke the peaceful scene. The paintbrush in
her hand trembled at that instant, drawing an almost uncorrectable mistake on
the nearly perfect scroll.
"It's probably Nian still talking about me. Really, right
at this moment." The girl put down her paintbrush, folded the scroll in
her hand, and placed it aside.