The silt, gravel, and remains of the mutated fish-men on the lakebed were instantly swept away and obliterated.
Dagon's massive body was sent reeling backward by the impact, staggering some distance away. Its chest armour emitted a grating, teeth-grinding crack, and a large portion of it was deformed. Thick, dark-green, ominous blood oozed from the cracks.
On the lake's surface, a "BOOM!!!" resounded. An enormous column of water, tens of metres high, shot into the sky. The water cascaded down like a torrential downpour, carrying fragments of broken fish-men limbs and foul silt.
This was only the beginning — "BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!!!!"
Immediately after, in less than a second, more than twenty water columns of the same size erupted in sequence around the centre of the lake. The entire Lake Vizima resembled a boiling cauldron, as if pummelled by a hail of meteors. Huge waves surged onto the lakeshore, crashing violently against the bank, and the ground trembled.
Those fighting on the shore, and even Foltest's personal guards, felt themselves swaying as if they could be knocked off their feet at any moment. Triss, Yennefer, and the others watched with alarm as Dalton and Geralt battled the hordes of mutated fish-men that continued to land on the shore. Meanwhile, they involuntarily cast frightened glances at the lake, now resembling a tsunami.
In the next instant, a deafening roar erupted — far louder and more shocking than all previous sounds combined. The noise of churning water came from the deepest part of the lake.
An enormous water column, over thirty metres in diameter and seemingly connecting heaven and earth, rose spectacularly into the air. At the top of this water column, a massive, mountain-like shadow burst forth from the lakebed and soared high into the sky.
The shadow was Dagon, thrashing and roaring wildly in the air, trying to maintain its balance, its body enveloped in churning black mist.
However, before it could begin to fall...
A flash of golden light, and Karl's figure appeared beneath Dagon as if by teleportation. He clenched his fist again, maintaining an impassive expression, and then struck Dagon's jaw with force.
"BOOM!!" Another deafening sound rang out as the scales of Dagon's jaw, along with most of the jawbone, were completely shattered. Its body, like a thrown sack of sand, was propelled upward by the immense force, rising even higher into the sky.
Karl did not pursue. He hovered in the air, looking down at the lake, black as ink and churning with endless malice. And the lake was still teeming with mutated fish-men, attempting to break through to the shore.
He took a deep breath, and then suddenly exhaled toward the dark space at the centre of the lake. A stream of icy white air burst from his mouth, and wherever it went, the air condensed into countless ice crystals and snowflakes.
The moment the cold air touched the lake's surface, a sharp, crackling sound like popping beans rang out: "Crack! Crack, crack, crack!!!"
At the centre of the lake, a crystal-clear layer of ice spread in all directions at a speed visible to the naked eye. The cold air instantly froze the churning black lake water. The mutated fish-men swimming in the water, trying to reach the shore, maintained their fierce postures, completely frozen in the thick ice, transformed into grotesque ice sculptures.
The cold air spread faster than anyone could imagine; it raced from the centre of the lake to the shore in the blink of an eye. The last group of fish-men, about to step onto the shore, also froze in the shallows.
In just a few seconds, most of Lake Vizima had transformed from a churning, restless sea into a desolate, icy plain.
A piercing chill ran through them, especially Foltest and the Knights of the White Lily, who were closer to the lakeshore. Their plate armour and weapons quickly became covered in a thick layer of white frost. The cold penetrated through their armour and into their bodies, causing them to tremble uncontrollably, their teeth chattering, as if their blood was about to freeze.
"Cold... so cold!"
"Fall back! Fall back immediately!!"
They cried out in terror and retreated backward, no longer heeding formation or the king's orders.
At that moment, a powerful impact came from the centre of the ice field. Dagon's body crashed heavily onto the thick ice like a meteorite. The ice was shattered and cracked like a spiderweb, forming a massive crater.
It lay at the centre of the icy pit, its scales shattered in many places, and a large portion of its flesh and blood had disappeared. Dark-green blood flowed from the wounds, and the black mist around it had significantly dimmed, indicating the severity of its injuries.
Almost simultaneously, a blood-red six-pointed star magic circle flared in the sky above the ice.
"HISSS!!!" Accompanied by a familiar, furious roar.
A colossal creature, covered in a thick chitinous carapace, with countless sharp limbs and a gaping maw full of sharp teeth, appeared from nowhere and crashed onto the ice with a resounding thud — it was the Saliva Demon that Karl had subdued.
It shook its head, ignoring the smoothness and cold of the ice, and then let out a terrifying roar. Its fierce compound eyes immediately locked onto the "appetising" humans on the shore. In this creature's perception, any being appearing here that did not possess its master's aura was either an enemy or prey. It shifted its body, its sharp limbs digging deep into the ice to anchor itself, then turned and prepared to charge toward the most crowded spot on the shore.
However, just as it took its first step — "BAM!"
A fist wrapped in golden light mercilessly struck its head.
"HISSS!!" The Saliva Demon hissed in pain, came to an abrupt halt, and instinctively recoiled. It raised its head, its compound eyes filled with confusion and grievance, and looked at Karl, who had appeared above it at some unknown moment. It conveyed a vague message through their mental link: "Master? Why did you hit me? Aren't these the enemies?"
Karl impassively pointed at Dagon, who was struggling to crawl out of the icy pit, emanating an aura that simultaneously instilled fear and revulsion in the Saliva Demon.
The Saliva Demon turned its massive body, its gaze falling upon the twisted, fish-like monster, which was not much smaller than itself and surrounded by black mist. A glimmer of reason appeared in its fierce eyes, reflecting fear and... helplessness. It once again conveyed its thoughts to Karl through their mental link, this time much clearer, carrying a distinct sense of retreat.
"Master... you want me to... deal with this? Perhaps I... cannot defeat it."
"The power within... somewhat similar to yours, Master... but... it makes me even more uneasy. Very... unpleasant."
Though the Saliva Demon was fierce, it was not stupid; it vaguely sensed the higher power contained within Dagon. This was a fundamental difference that naturally suppressed and restrained such a demonic creature. It could handle those incredibly insignificant humans — no problem at all. But facing this being, almost equal to its master, its instincts told it that it was in danger — extreme danger.