Chapter 863 Mermaid Shell <TOC> Chapter 865 The Shadow of Peace Tower
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Translator: SumTLMan
Mermaid Shells, though a kind of seashell, have a penchant for burrowing deep into the sandy sea floor. To uncover them, one might need to excavate several meters of sediment. And by the time you’ve done the digging, the Mermaid Shell would have already scampered off.
However, when mermaids begin to sing their songs, the Mermaid Shells, entranced, would cease their movements and listen to the melody, even instinctively pushing their way towards the surface of the sand. Hence, it’s generally only mermaids who can successfully locate these elusive creatures – hence their name, Mermaid Shells.
Valued highly enough to be exchanged for magic crystals – a single one of which can cover the living expenses of a mermaid for many years, even decades – these shells are treasures of inestimable worth to every mermaid residing in Rhodes.
Yet, in the face of imminent danger, the small mermaid didn’t even stop to pick up a fallen Mermaid Shell. This piqued Angel’s curiosity: what horrifying vision had the Mermaid Seen under the influence of his Nightmare Fear Spell?
With this in mind, Angel quietly withdrew a small portion of the nightmare power from the mermaid’s brow. An ordinary fear spell wouldn’t permit retraction of the illusion nodes, but the Nightmare Fear Spell was a different story.
However, after withdrawing some of the nightmare power, he could only capture a fragment of the fear subject seen by the victim. Furthermore, the moment he did this, a massive flaw would appear in the Nightmare Fear Spell. Any transcendent being would be able to recognize the illusion and exploit this flaw to break free from the fear spell.
Despite this drawback, he was dealing with an ordinary little mermaid; even if she were to discover the flaw, it would do her little good.
With the retrieved fragment of nightmare power in hand, he closed his eyes to examine it.
“This is… a shrimp?” The scene Angel saw depicted the small mermaid being pursued by a colossal shrimp, its body adorned with barnacles, boasting large, hook-like teeth that radiated an aura of ferocity.
Could this be the natural predator of mermaids?
Angel couldn’t recall encountering such a shrimp in his memory. It could possibly be a unique sea creature residing in the deep sea.
Roughly ten minutes later, the little mermaid, driven by fear, swam to the seafloor. She darted through pitch-black underwater tunnels and, after passing through a spiral that resembled a staircase, Angel saw a light in the distance.
He instructed Toby to extinguish the luminescent stone, then he concealed his own aura and leisurely swam forward.
He had assumed that the light would lead to Rhodes, but to his surprise, he came upon a small village.
About twenty houses, mostly vibrant coral houses, but some were built from stacked stones. These houses bore a resemblance to those of the Rogue Tribe, with the entrance located at the top of the dwelling. He had previously learned that the Rogue Tribe shared bloodline with mermaids, and it seemed that was indeed true.
The small mermaid dashed to the entrance of the village, tearfully recounting her experience to two male mermaids armed with tridents.
Her plaintive and frightened voice drew out many mermaids from their homes. Upon hearing her tale, they all seemed shocked, quickly seizing their weapons and casting wary eyes towards the outskirts of the village.
Nevertheless, a significant amount of time passed, and there was no sign of the so-called “natural enemy”.
The trident-bearing mermen sported a puzzled expression, but the mermaid’s terrified demeanor appeared genuine. After contemplation, he placed a conch shell on his forehead.
Suddenly, ripples of water began to radiate out from the conch.
“Using water waves for detection?” Angel curiously observed from the darkness. When the ripples reached him, they didn’t cause the slightest disturbance.
The mermen conducted his probing for an indeterminate length of time, gaining no insights. His expression turned sour as he looked at the mermaid, harshly scolded her a few times, and then pushed her away.
The mermaid was utterly aggrieved, and the surrounding merfolk joined in blaming her.
Angel watched as the mermaid argued back defiantly, eventually pulling out a bag and pointing at the open hole. She seemed to be saying, “I picked up a Mermaid Shell, but because of that creature, I didn’t even bother to pick it up when I dropped it!”
However, no one believed her. In the end, the crowd dispersed, and the mermaid could only bow her head, on the verge of tears.
“Poor thing indeed,” Blaire remarked.
“If you feel sorry for her, then give her the Mermaid Shell,” Angel glanced at Blaire, only to see it promptly stuff the shell, previously nestled in its wings, into its mouth, showing a stingy demeanor that indicated it wouldn’t share with anyone.
Angel’s gaze returned to the village. This place was a gathering spot for the merfolk, likely not far from Rhodes.
However, blind searching would still be a waste of time. Angel pondered whether or not he should venture into the village and kidnap another merfolk to serve as his guide.
While Angel was mulling over this, a serpentine movement began to stir beneath the muddy sand where none of the villagers were paying attention.
By the time Angel noticed, cries of fear were already emanating from the distance.
Suddenly, a dozen electric eels burst forth from the sandy ground, illuminating the entire village with electric sparks. Many of the merfolk who were hit by the electric shocks showed varying degrees of burns and sluggishness, with several unfortunate ones directly hit and killed.
In response, everyone rushed towards their homes. Inside these structures, the electricity couldn’t penetrate, and the strength of the eels couldn’t break through the hard walls.
In a matter of seconds, the merfolk scattered, each retreating into their respective homes.
Only the little mermaid seemed to be an outsider in this village. She loitered vacantly outside the village, desiring to rush inside for shelter. But as she finally seized an opportunity and approached a nearby house, the green-tailed merman inside shoved her out and closed the door and windows.
In such a situation, the little mermaid seemed to also feel the indifference of the other merfolk in the village. Biting her lip, she braced herself and dashed away from the village.
As she dashed away, several eels slithered in her wake.
The villagers had the same calculation in mind: the little mermaid’s departure would undoubtedly lure away the other eels. As it turned out, this theory was indeed accurate.
The young mermaid was running for dear life, summoning even the strength she used to nurse. However, she failed to notice that none of the eels tailing her, merely a dozen meters behind, spared their electric shocks.
These eels were all conjured by Angel within the illusory realm. As for the genuine eels that previously existed, Angel had split them all into pieces—some discarded, others became fodder for Toby and Blaire’s hunger.
The escape route chosen by the little mermaid was quite secluded, weaving through various holes in rocky cliffs, some unmistakably handcrafted, others naturally formed. These paths were wildly imaginative and had it not been for the little mermaid guiding the way, Angel might not have found them.
Roughly half an hour later, the little mermaid emerged from a pitch-black tunnel, revealing a wide expanse of kaleidoscopic light in front.
When Angel looked over, his eyes were instantly brightened by the splendid light emanating from a colossal underwater city!
Through the nearby darkness, the sight of the city’s architecture—filled with captivating colors and stretching beyond sight—seemed even more vibrant and varied.
Even Angel, who had seen the city of the fishfolk, had to commend the ingenious craftsmanship of this city.
“Correct, this is Rhodes!” Blaire announced excitedly to Angel, “See the water membrane in the central area of the city? That’s the waterless zone, our destination. The headquarters of the Ashen Time Merchant Group is located there.”
Rhodes was vast—so vast that its end was not visible at first glance. Of course, the possibility that the deep, dark water in the distance was magnifying the visual difference couldn’t be ruled out.
But even in the areas Angel could see, the city was already on par with most grand cities.
Moreover, the architecture here brimmed with an oceanic fantasy style. Aside from the usual structures built along the city walls, there were also floating coral structures in the city sky, radiating intense luminosity.
In addition to that, various merfolk were swimming in the city sky, some even frolicking with massive whales.
It was even more enchanting than the mermaid world described in fairytales.
With an air of fascination, Angel made his gradual way towards Rhodes. Once again, he saw the little mermaid fervently explaining to the guards at the entrance of Rhodes. As with the previous encounter in the village, no one believed her, and she was once more shooed to the side.
The little mermaid, deflated once again, helplessly swam along the outskirts of Rhodes. As she reached a deserted area, her eyes fell upon an ink-coloured crystal silently embedded in the sand.
Her eyes lit up, and she quickly swam over to retrieve the crystal: “Is this… a magic crystal?”
On the other side, Angel had entered Rhodes.
Blaire curiously asked, “Why did you give her a magic crystal?”
“For her guidance,” Angel responded succinctly. Behind this response, however, lay the balance of “cause and effect” in his heart. He had his own standards. The malice the little mermaid had shown him from the beginning was part of her nature. The consequences of this malice, whether it was intimidation or the loss of the mermaid shell, had been settled. As for the guidance, he initiated it, so he felt the need to offer some kind of compensation. That magic crystal was his chosen reward.
Angel had no desire to cause a stir. Therefore, upon entering Rhodes, he concealed his presence and did not swim over the city, simply navigating through it.
His journey was uneventful as no one noticed anything amiss, allowing him to smoothly make his way to the outer layer of the central water membrane.
Angel had assumed that, like the gathering place of the Rogue species, he could directly penetrate the membrane to enter. However, it was not so. When he touched the membrane, it felt like a balloon, impossible to penetrate.
“Even though the strength of this water membrane is not high, don’t think about destroying it. Because inside Rhodes, there are many extraordinary beings. If you damage this membrane and the surrounding seawater pours in, it will immediately provoke a backlash from the extraordinary beings inside,” Blaire warned. After a pause, she added, “There are also official wizards inside. Doing so could very likely offend them.”
“The way to enter is through the main gate.” Blaire pointed towards a main road in the distance. At the end of this road was a speck of black, which was the entrance to the water-free zone.
Upon arriving, however, Angel discovered that one needed a pass to enter this zone. Yet, Eureka had not prepared any such pass for him…
Chapter 863 Mermaid Shell <TOC> Chapter 865 The Shadow of Peace Tower