[There was an explosion upstairs!]
The Deep Gold Fish cried out through telepathy when they heard the noise. Quite a few of them had collapsed on the floor and showed no signs of life. The entire hallway was now filled with the stench of blood, the salty smell of soy sauce, the sound of gunfire and spears flying like the main melody of this place!
[Quickly go upstairs and check!]
A group of armed Deep Gold Fish turned around and tried to enter the building. But long strings of rice flour had blocked the hallway, forming a white wall.
“WRYYYY, the audience can’t leave the show~.”
The Deep Gold Fish looked up at the ceiling. There, Joker was standing upside down like a bat, his two legs held down by the rice flour stuck to his shoes. In his hand was his severed third arm, which was spitting out strings of white rice flour that connected to the wall like a spider spinning webs. The fish monsters simultaneously launched spears at him, as if trying to turn him into a porcupine.
Splash
Joker released a large amount of water from his hands. The water pressure washed away the rice flour stuck to his legs and pushed it towards the floor to dodge. The bone spears tore through the air and stuck firmly into the ceiling, while the wolf boy landed on both feet!
BOOM
He threw his third arm towards the Deep Gold Fish group. The arm exploded, and the corridor was covered in rice flour. The armed fish were stuck to the white substance. They struggled, controlling their weapons to escape, but they were all hopeless, like bugs in a spider web!
Bang bang bang bang
Joker aimed at the fish without shields. From his ten fingertips, steel wands shot out, piercing straight through their heads, ending the lives of the inhuman creatures. Looking around to make sure there were no more enemies, he quickly took out several C4 bombs from his Bag of Holding. He ran down the hallway, throwing the calibrated bombs as he ran. They stuck to the wall, the surface lit up with the word 'ready', signaling that they were ready to detonate. When he looked out the window, Joker saw that everyone's clam ship had gone far away, but behind him was a school of Deep Gold Fish swimming in pursuit!
"Oh no..."
Quickly understanding the situation, Joker ran straight to the entrance, releasing water pressure from both hands to accelerate! His whole body plunged into the salty and numbing seawater. Worse still, the water pressure was starting to want to squeeze every centimeter of his body. His whole body was starting to bruise, and blood was gushing out from the wolf boy's ears and eyes! The pressure at the bottom of the sea was becoming a giant that wanted to squeeze all of his toothbrush out!
Pain and survival instincts screamed in every cell of Joker's body. Blood vessels and muscles were breaking one by one, and his breathing was about to stop completely. His eyes, which were already blurred by the seawater, were now blurring even more. But when the faces of Jaci villagers flashed in his mind, children snatched from their mothers' arms, freedom exchanged for chains, their sorrowful screams sealed by transparent walls. There are fates worse than drowning.
Joker gritted his teeth, determined to turn pressure into motivation, to convert pain into strength. That thought kept Joker's consciousness awake for 10 seconds so his body could recover like new. Maintaining his consciousness and muscles, he continued to release strong water pressure from his hands and feet to push his body forward, following after the Deep Gold Fish chasing the clam ship.
[Go back inside the building, Joker!] Jarek's voice rang out inside Joker's headset. [You can't breathe underwater, and the water pressure down here is too much for you!]
"...Tell me, what am I." Joker whispered, water bubbles kept coming out of his mouth.
[...The brave, kind, and strong warrior.] Jarek said with a slightly hesitant voice. [And the person I want to be by my side-]
“WRONG!” Joker shouted loudly. “I AM INVINCIBLE, JOKER!”
[Eh?]
Joker’s unusual response made Jarek confused. He rushed towards the Deep Gold Fish, both hands switched to firing steel wands at the enemy. With maximum firepower, Joker’s fingers were completely broken by the recoil. The weapon was fired, piercing through the enemy’s shell shield. However, the water pressure prevented the wands from causing any damage to the enemy!
Slap
“Ugh!”
The white bone spears of the Deep Gold Fish, on the other hand, easily flew towards Joker and turned him into skewered meat! Both the salty smell of the seawater and the stench of blood filled his mouth. Inside the black mask, he grinned, not knowing whether he was smiling or gritting his teeth. He immediately pulled out the C4 detonator switch from his Bag of Holding, and shouted loudly.
“BITE ZA DUSTO!”
Click
As soon as Joker pressed the detonator button, flames erupted from Deep Gold Fish’s building and himself! White foam filled the area, the building and many fish creatures were caught in the explosion.
“JOKER!”
Jarek shouted, but there was no one on the other end of the line to answer. The clam ship shook from the explosion, the Beastfolk of Jaci Village became anxious, they looked around, held their heads, or even crouched down on their chairs. Even so, none of that made Jarek as anxious as the fact that his companion was trapped outside.
“He’ll be fine,” Yong placed a hand on the female Shapechanger Dragon’s shoulder to reassure her. “Trust Jozo. He’s not the heroine of Little Mermaid.”
“But…”
Jarek shivered as she looked out the window. Where the foam had dissipated, there was no trace of Deep Gold Fish following, but at the same time, she couldn’t see Joker anywhere.
“Death is not something I fear for him.” Jarek still tried to control the ship, but his heart was in turmoil like a tidal wave. “But this harsh environment will continuously torture Joker!”
“Don’t worry.” Yong walked to the entrance of the ship, but turned around and raised his hand. “Give me two oxygen tanks, and an atmospheric diving suit.”
“Wait, you should bring one too-”
Jarek advised, while her tail sprouted diving equipment. She used her tail to throw three items to her teammate.
“Hahah, it would be a funny story if Demon drowned~.”
Yong laughed out loud. He raised his hand to grab the equipment and quickly put an oxygen tank on his back, while his mouth was holding the end of the snorkel.
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“Dai hui er jian~.” The Demon-turned-boy waved his hand lightly and closed the door, preparing to open the water-filled door to go outside the clam ship.
“Xiaoxin.”
Jarek tried to smile back, not forgetting to say his best wishes. Yong got out of the submarine and closed the door, letting the submarine go a little before he started moving. He fanned with one hand and kicked his feet, his whole body gliding through the seawater faster than a fish. In the dim water, he saw his friend had reappeared, but he was no longer wearing any clothes after the explosion, only the bag was still tucked into his waist. With his already agile hands, now with the power of a Demon, Yong dressed Joker in an atmospheric diving suit and attached an oxygen tank almost immediately. He also put another black suit into Joker’s Bag of Holding - the thing he received when he opened the atmospheric diving suit.
“Ugh…” Joker opened his eyes, his mouth letting out a foamy groan. “Yong?”
“I’m here to pick you up, Jozo.” Yong smiled kindly, his eyes shining like candles in the night. “Let’s go back to shore, Jozo.” He said as he pointed his thumb behind him.
“...Not yet.”
“Eh?”
Joker turned his back and looked towards Deep Gold Kingdom, much to Yong’s surprise.
“I can’t go ashore until I make sure to destroy this place.” Joker’s eyes were fixed on the cursed kingdom.
“...To make sure they can’t take revenge on Jaci Village, right?” It only took a few seconds for Yong to understand the reason.
“I’m not afraid of suffocation, but what about you? With only one oxygen tank, you can’t fight down here for long.”
The wolf boy in the diving suit turned his head and asked. Instead of an answer, Yong summoned a blazing knife in his hand. The high temperature from the blade caused the water to continuously bubble white. The Demon boy placed the blade under his face, the bubbles continuously rushed up to his face, he inhaled them until his mouth opened wide.
“Hah, I said I was a daredevil, but look at you.” Joker sneered. “Are you trying to inhale bubbles instead of air?”
“My brother isn’t normal, why should I be normal?” Yong put his arm around the other’s shoulder and asked. “So how do you plan to destroy this place, Jozo?”
“Let’s fill them with rice flour! And you’ll help me burn them to make bombs!”
“I like that idea~.”
The two boys bumped their fists and swam towards the Deep Gold Kingdom. Their hearts were burning with a passion that couldn’t be quenched by the seawater, a determination that couldn’t be stopped even with the pressure of the seawater 10km deep.
--- In the Sand World---
After a long night, Allan and his teammates discussed solutions to deal with the Black Scale Monsters, creatures they tentatively called Giant Black Snakes. They decided to prepare weapons and effective ways to attack. First, the group received weapons in exchange from the fox girl Kuzunoha.
“Hey,” Kuzunoha grinned, both her fox ears and tail bristling. “I told you not to turn these kids into Beastfolk! Creating these kids isn’t free!”
“That’s evolution!”
Jei stood opposite, he spoke with a serious face, his eyes looking straight at the opponent, not trembling at all. Kuzunoha had to argue with Jei from time to time, when she created powerful living creatures with the appearance of lions, with ivory teeth, and heavy guns on their bodies, they were called Gun Beasts. In contrast to Doctor Jei, his Dreamer ability turned those living weapons into Beastfolk girls with lion ears and tails, in their hands they held guns but less than when they were in their beast form. Kuzunoha complained that her creation had become weaker, while Jei argued that it was a significant upgrade! Everything made the fox Beastfolk even more upset when she learned that the lion girls now somewhat listened to Jei! They no longer obeyed their creator at all. Instead, they would hesitate when both their biological father and the monstrous doctor gave different instructions, like being in the middle of two arguing parents!
“Calm down, you two.”
Yoru chuckled lightly. He tried to stop the two from arguing to the point of talking about weapons or spells. He wiped his sweat as he tried to make Healing Potions with Goodberry - a fruit that quenches thirst and hunger, and heals wounds.
“Everyone, have some cake and tea~.”
Albina smiled. In her hands was a plastic tray, on which were two cups of iced tea and a plate full of puff cream cakes. Kuzunoha and Jei might not get along, but they could agree on some things. Tea time was when they would stop fighting, just to enjoy refreshing drinks and soft cakes.
Yoru, with his Druid-like spell-casting ability from his Cleric ability, created Goodberry. He collaborated with Elina and Albina to create a Magic Tool - a microwave and refrigerator that could create complete food and drinks. Thanks to it, the group was still hydrated and nourished despite the fact that there was almost no life in this desert.
“You two should take a break.” Albina took out two caramel puddings in plastic cups from the microwave Magic Tool.
“Thank you, Albina.”
Elina took the pudding. Scooping a spoonful of the condensed egg custard, she felt her blood pressure drop faster. Her energy was recharged as she enjoyed the dessert, full of milky flavor, richness of egg, sweetness of caramel, and softness. With the help of Jei’s side job, Artisan, and Albina’s alchemist skills, the female doctor easily completed her masterpieces. Despite the fact that she had only learned about Magic Tool creation technology for less than a week!
“You should also take a break, Albina.” Yoru advised as she took the pudding. “It would be wrong for the doctors and assistants here to create more patients.”
“Yes~.”
Albina replied, the gentleness and energy in her voice still intact. The Alchemist girl once again took out a can of Heineken beer and a can of Coca from the microwave. Along with it was a plate of grilled squid jerky and a bag of potato chips. She brought them outside, where Cide was sitting at the mouth of the stall holding binoculars, while Yona walked around the cave to patrol.
“It’s break time, Yona~.” Albina called out to her robot friend who was only 10cm shorter than her.
“Wah~.” Yona’s eyes literally lit up as the tray in the 3m tall Alchemist girl’s hand was broken in half. “It’s snack time~.”
“Thank you, miss~.”
Cide jumped down, holding the can of beer with a smile on his face to create a good impression. The Hunter opened a can of beer with a crisp sound, and took a sip of the cold beer that flowed down his throat. Following that, he took a bite of squid with a strong taste of the sea, which combined with the aftertaste of the beer to create satisfaction for the person enjoying it. As for Yona, she immediately opened a bag of snacks and a can of soft drink. She also offered Albina some, but the other party refused.
Yona and Cide were observing outside the cave. The two of them had wide-brimmed hats on their heads, which were Magic Tools with the Prestidigitation spell - another product of Elina. One of the functions of the Spell allowed them to adjust the temperature around them to hot or cold, thanks to which the heat of the desert did not turn Yona into a walking grill, or Cide into a dried-out person.
“I wonder when Allan will come back here…”
Albina looked towards the horizon, where the lower half was only yellow and the upper half was full of brown. Allan was the one who volunteered to go out of the cave with his trusty armor on, without asking anyone to accompany him. That confidence and recklessness also made her somewhat worried. Passionate, reckless, even the first one to uselessly shoot back at Giant Black Snake. Those things made it difficult for Albina to feel at ease whenever the young Hunter went to this dangerous place alone.
“Yo ~.”
“AH!”
Allan was already behind him, patting Albina on the shoulder. The little girl startled and exclaimed out loud.
“Brother Allan!” Yona happily ran over and hugged her brother’s waist. “Welcome back ~.”
“Uhm, I’m back ~.”
Allan picked up his robot sister and spun her around a few times in the air. Luckily, Yona wasn’t holding the bag of snacks and the can of coke, otherwise both of them would be covered in the smell of cola and the potato would sleep with the yellow sand.
“When and how!” Albina blinked, her mouth barely closing. “Try going around the other side of the cave and climbing down from above.” Allan grinned as he pointed his thumb behind him.
“Impressive, I didn’t notice.” Cide took a sip of his beer and commented, his face looking as annoyed as ever. “Learning a different approach to facing a stronger enemy is a good tactic.”
“Wow, you figured it out quickly.” The English Hunter scratched his cheek, smiling sheepishly at being seen through so quickly. “I’ve determined that there are a total of nine Giant Black Snakes, and around them are many similar but much smaller ones.”
Allan’s group had been in this place for the past few days without any problems. No Monster had attacked the shelter yet. By working together using their Raw Magic and Dream abilities, they had turned this life-or-death trip to another world into a picnic.
Notes:
Bite za dusto: bite the dust
Dai hui er jian: see you later in Chinese
Xiaoxin: take care
Druid: a high priest of the Celtic people
