The water swirling around Ling and Lingqi formed the image of a massive blossoming lotus as thousands of Madam Diao Yu’s razor sharp teeth which were slick with the blood of the few unlucky souls that had previously fallen prey to her.
“Rise!” Ling commanded, creating a column of water to form underneath her feet. As Madam Diao Yu’s gigantic jaws began to close the lotus with Ling and Lingqi standing at its center began to rise into the air.
“Overflow and freeze!” Ling said as she flicked her wrist and made the petals of the massive water lotus fold outward and created what resembled waterfalls above Madam Diao Yu before freezing over. Despite taking a bit of time describe, Ling and Madam Diao Yu’s movements occurred but in a flash.
Soon enough a layer of completely frozen ice encased most of Madam Diao Yu’s head. But of course as a sea dweller ice and water attacks obviously wouldn't have too much of an effect on Madam Diao Yu since after only being frozen for but a few seconds the layer of ice shattered into thousands of fragments.
Upon seeing how ineffective her attacks where Ling clicked her tongue before moving away to safety atop her column of water.
“Come back here my lovely new lures, there’s nowhere for you to run.” Madam Diao Yu’s voice echoed through the air as her massive head sank back into the ground when suddenly her puppet maid appeared and blocked Ling and Lingqi’s path in midair.
With a single thought, Ling made the column of water beneath her feet split into two allowing her and Lingqi to shoot past Madam Diao Yu’s puppet.
“Not so fast my lovelies.” Madam Diao Yu’s voice could be heard from the lips of her beautiful puppet as three silhouettes appeared and encircled the two fleeing beauties.
Seeing as they had nowhere to flee, Ling made the two water columns that she and Lingqi were standing on combine together once again.
“Although these lures aren't as pretty as the two of you, you should know that I don't just add anyone to my collection.” Madam Diao Yu’s voice could be heard from four different bodies which made the hairs on Ling and Lingqi’s body stand on end.
“This is too creepy… Even by the standard of things we've come across…” Lingqi said with a shiver as she looked into the lifeless eyes of Madam Diao Yu’s lures and imagined herself in their place.
“I have to agree with you on this one.” Ling said.
“It'll only hurt for a second.” Madam Diao Yu’s puppets said as rows of teeth once more punctured out of the earth and rose into the air.
“Silly fishy, go find a something better to do with your time and stop trying to ruin other people’s lives!” Ai’s voice could be heard as Madam Diao Yu felt a powerful force smash into the side of her head while the sound of cracking bone ringed in her ears.
Coincidentally Ai was somehow standing a measly few feet away from where Madam Diao Yu had emerged without being detected. Thus when Madam Diao Yu’s main body emerged from the earth, using her otherworldly brute strength Ai performed a series of kicks which sent Madam Diao Yu flying out of the ground and smashing into one of the castle’s wall.
“You'll be added to my collection of lures also. Resistance is futile, they all struggle but only a single mistake is all it takes.” Madam Diao Yu’s puppets said in a low agitated tone as they appeared in front of her, preparing to engage the beauties in battle.
“Or perhaps you'll be added to my collection!” Yuying said as she clapped her hands together and made thousands upon thousands of bones to appear all around her.
These, of course, we're the bones collected during her expedition through the former Rainbow Rock Province. However, what was different about these bones since their last appearance was that a portion of them now possessed intricate looking carvings of runes on them. There were also a few bones that appeared to be made of a jade-like material that belongs to deceased saints mixed in as well.
With a snap of her fingers, Yuying initiated a storm of bones.
As the bones pierced through the air and closes in on Madam Diao Yu and her four puppets, Madam Diao Yu’s eyes began glowing as four tethers connecting her puppets to her became visible.
In but, a fraction of a second, hundreds of silhouettes appeared in from of Madam Diao Yu.
“Madam how could you!? One or two perhaps even four beautiful fish from the sea isn’t much but this is simply outrageous! Without a doubt, you're an enemy to all men and we'll women too...” Lord Chan Chu said as he saw the hundreds of beautiful women who were a part of Madam Diao Yu’s collection.
Despite voicing his thoughts to Madam Diao Yu, Lord Chan Chu’s words fell on deaf ears as the sound of hundreds of thousands of bones cutting through the air through the sky made it impossible to hear.
The hundreds of puppets all brandished weapons and swung wildly at Yuying’s bones. But regardless of their efforts and the number of bones, they succeeded in destroying, Madam Diao Yu and her puppets found themselves riddled by bones.
“Activate!” Yuying said as she performed a series of hand signs and then began reciting a strange incantation in a low tone.
With each passing word Yuying uttered and hand sign, she performed the runes carved onto some of the bones began to glow. The glowing bones then began vibrating and in a dazzling display of power, they began exploding one after the other in succession.
With her puppets left tattered and heavily damaged while her main body sustained serious but not life threatening wounds, Madam Diao Yu was left shaken to her very core as her body began sinking into the ground beneath her.
Perhaps if Madam Diao Yu’s true form not been an anglerfish and was a different kind of fish, one with protective scales then Yuying’s attack wouldn't have done as much damage as it did. But due to the soft nature of an anglerfish’s body, many cute and open wounds could be seen all over her massive body.
“Now that I think about it I don't want something so ugly in my collection.” Yuying said with a sneer as she could be seen standing beside the other three beauties. Alone they would have had their hands full when facing a tricky adversary such as the madam, however, as a group of four full saints, the beauties were a force to be reckoned with.
“Kill me, and when the forces of the Starry Sky Sect arrive in a few days they'll have your heads. However, spare me and I can ensure that you'll be able to leave with your lives.” Madam Diao Yu said as half of her body sank beneath the earth.
“Threatening my wives means death, regardless of who your backer is.” Zhang’s voice could be heard as hundreds of spears pierced through the air and stuck themselves into Madam Diao Yu’s body.
Of course, these spears alone weren't enough to kill a divine beast who is a full saint, so following soon after a storm of red lightning rained down from above. Using the spears are makeshift lightning rods, Zhang caused thousands of volts of lightning to travel through Madam Diao Yu’s body.
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As the lightning descended, every single fight within the Blood Coral Castle ceased and everyone watched in awe and horror as Madam Diao Yu’s body shook uncontrollably while being burned to a char.
Seeing an excellent opportunity to distribute some misleading information and possibly gain a new ally, Yuying bent down, placed her hand on the ground and made a trail of runes appear on the ground.
Before anyone could see it, the trail of runes reached Madam Diao Yu’s burning body and transcribed itself onto her. Normally the process would have taken quite some time due to the fact that Madam Diao Yu is a full saint and was individually stronger than Yuying. However, due to her heavy injuries and being on the verge of death, Yuying was able to quickly take over her mind.
“Heed my words you wretched fools, once the Starry Sky Sect arrives they will skin you all alive! I am certain of it! They will surely avenge me for giving them a piece of the Ascending Beauty Painting! Now that the Blood Coral Cove had lost a huge portion of its forces, it will stand no chance!” Madam Diao Yu said in a loud voice while secretly being under Yuying’s control moments before her body turned to char and eventually ash.
Upon hearing the words that left Madam Diao Yu’s mouth filled with thousands of jagged teeth, Lord Long Feng, who was still stuck in an invisible box contracted of the force of reversed gravity, opened his eyes in shock.
“You wretched whore! You plotted against me! How dare you!” Lord Long Feng roared in rage believing that Madam Diao Yu had used Xiao Haishi to trick him into fighting Lord Chan Chu and Zhang.
Despite feeling his innards boil, Lord Long Feng wasn't able to do much because the effect of the Bloodline Tempering Pill that he had consumed had expired and left him rather powerless.
Although after shrinking back to his regular size, Lord Long Feng wasn't as constructed as before he still couldn't break free so all he could do was curse at the top of his lung.
“Long Feng, seeing at you were tricked and were unknowingly used in a plot orchestrated by Madam Diao Yu and the Starry Sky Sect, I'm willing to free you if you promise to behave yourself and not act as unruly as you did before.” Zhang said as he looked toward Lord Long Feng with a smile before waving his hand and dispelling the repulsing singularities that had bound Lord Long Feng.
Despite not having any evidence whether Madam Diao Yu was under Yuying’s control or not at the moment, Zhang followed his gut feelings and perfectly pulled off what Yuying was hoping to accomplish, which was hopefully resolving their current problems with Lord Long Feng and perhaps use his connections to the Dragon God Palace to stop the incoming forces of the Starry Sea Sect.
Upon being released from his makeshift prison, Lord Long Feng descended onto the ground where eighteen lesser saints instantly gathered around him, creating a protective wall around their master. Of the sixty lesser saints who had assaulted the Blood Coral Castle, only roughly thirty were remaining while the rest of them had been slain.
Following Lord Long Feng’s example, Lord Chan Chu and Zhang both descended onto the ground where they were also surrounded by their subordinates.
“You guys moved in too quick… We are supposed to stand over there with them...” Lord Chan Chu said to a group of eight lesser saints and a few dozen level ten cultivators while pointing to where Zhang’s forces were standing. While an unhappy look on his face, Lord Chan Chu, and his entourage slowly made their way over to where Zhang’s people were standing.
“Oh looky what we have here! Old Long come sit and have a drink.” Lord Chan Chu said as he picked up an intact bottle of wine and picked up a fallen over chair from the ground and walked forward toward Lord Long Feng’s group.
“Pour me a cup also.” Zhang said as he was caught in Lord Chan Chu’s pace.
With a deep sigh, Lord Long Feng soon pulled up a chair and joined Zhang and Lord Chan Chu.
“Old Long, I must say you have to apologize for ruining the banquet. It was such a great opportunity for me to meet the beautiful daughters of the other important people in the city.” Lord Chan Chu said as he shook his head and gulped down a cup of wine.
After Lord Chan Chu’s a long silence filled the courtyard until Lord Long Feng spoke.
“Young fellow, I apologize for ruining your banquet and for the needless battle that had occurred.” Lord Long Feng said with a deep sigh as he had come to completely believe that everything was a setup by Madam Diao Yu.
“No need to feel too down, besides some broken tables and shattered plates, for the most part, I didn’t really suffer any losses...” Zhang said with an apologetic look on his face as he glanced back to the group of lesser saints who serve under him. For the most part all of the lesser saints who serve Zhang were free of any fatal injuries and only suffered light wounds thanks to the small power up they had received prior to the battle and in part thanks to the beauties who had roamed the battlefield drawing all of the enemy’s attention to themselves.
“Regardless, I feel terrible for doing what I did. However, I cannot say that I would have acted any differently because the mission of collecting the pieces of the Ascending Beauty Painting was handed down directly from the Emperor of the palace himself.” Lord Long Feng said.
“Mind telling us what this Ascending Beauty Painting that you're talking is? What makes it so important and how come I’ve never seen or heard about it…” Lord Chan Chu said with a curious look on his face.
“Yea what’s so important about this painting?” Ai said as she appeared behind Zhang, wrapping her arms around his neck and resting her head on his shoulder.
“The reason you haven’t heard about it is probably because you’ve only been around for a few hundred years and wasn’t around a thousand years ago when the painting had surfaced.” Lord Long Feng said to Lord Chan Chu.
“Well on with it, tell us a story Old Long.” Lord Chan Chu said as he crossed his legs, causing him to appear like a child ready to listen to a fairy tale being told by a storyteller.
“Do tell.” Zhang added as his curiosity was peaked.
“Roughly a little over a thousand years ago.” Lord Long Feng said after gulping down a cup of wine.
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