CHAPTER 626: CHAPTER 115

Flames ascended from Big Fish’s body, forming what seemed like a thick pillar of fire.

Swelling appeared incessantly at the fish’s snout, yet it remained tightly shut.

Yu Xuzi struggled with all his might, but Big Fish’s resentment was endless.

It knew its fate was already sealed, but it could choose the way to end it.

"Those willing to take the bait,"

was its final decision.

As a fish, it was well aware of what being hooked and pulled out of water implied.

Yet in its eyes,

rather than being merged and enslaved by this guy, it would prefer to have the Dragon King deliver a swift end to its own life.

After all, he is the legitimate descendant of the Liu family, the future Dragon King. You, a lousy Taoist who killed his own brother and disciple, what are you worth!

Yu Xuzi and his fellow senior apprentice, were both admirers of the Dragon King of the Liu Family. Actually, from another perspective, wasn’t the Big Fish too?

It might have regretted it too, when facing that terrifying woman, why did it exhaust all its cunning to escape, enduring countless decades of agony, leaving itself helpless.

Hiding and enduring for three hundred years, at this moment, there was but one thought in Big Fish’s heart:

"Perish together with me, till every fish is gone!"

Li Zhiyuan stood there, holding a newly opened can of Jianlibao.

The light from the fire shone on the young man’s face, and he finally understood why those little fish he had released each had their own little schemes—it was inherited.

This time, the journey was easy but also lucky.

The Arrays set by the senior predecessors Xue, Zeng, and Zheng for their descendants, guarded not only against their own master but also against themselves.

When all is said and done, it was also thanks to the efforts of Binbin and Meng Meng.

They not only accomplished their task but also brought the future generations along.

If any link in the chain had even a slight issue or delay, in the end, it would have turned into a bloody and terrible battle.

Run Sheng, Tan Wenbin, and Yin Meng watched Li Zhiyuan as well; while the young man was still reflecting on his comrades’ sacrifices and efforts, his comrades looked at him with even more wonder in their eyes.

From their point of view, ever since they entered the sealed Zhengmen Village, the three of them just muddled along with the act.

And as they kept acting, Yu Xuzi came to them on his own, lying there motionless, begging to be beaten.

After stripping away all the scales, even the soul was reduced to ashes.

Then, having transformed into a Corpse Demon, it inexplicably charged at its own newly set Array and ended up being punched down by its own skeleton.

Thinking that they had already taken enough advantage and it was time to get serious and commit to a fight, the young man said a few words, and Big Fish immediately turned on the Daoist and swallowed him whole.

Looking at Li Zhiyuan who was drinking his beverage, a line from Tan Wenbin’s high school Chinese textbook emerged in his mind: "In laughter, masts and paddles disappear in smoke."

At this moment, among a team, the leader and his companions saw each other through a filter, which could be considered a win-win.

Finally, the fire extinguished.

Left before them was a hill-like pile of ash.

Li Zhiyuan took out the Seven-star Hook from his backpack, extended the hook, and started poking and prodding in the ashes.

This was his moment of enjoyment.

Alii was waiting for him at home, and he had to gather more raw materials for her handicrafts.

The find came quickly; a fishbone as clear and translucent as jade was pulled out.

This could be taken back to make a "jade hairpin" for Alii.

Li Zhiyuan continued searching, hoping to find something more, ideally the materials for next year’s new Bone Ring.

But soon, the tip of the hook encountered something hard, and it felt a force pulling and struggling against him.

Li Zhiyuan promptly let go, "If you want it, you can have it."

Sent along with it were Run Sheng and Yin Meng.

Yin Meng’s whip lashed out, scattering the ash, revealing Yu Xuzi from within.

The Daoist looked quite wretched at that moment, with most of his body burnt away, only his chest upward and a single arm remaining.

Li Zhiyuan thought this was quite a fitting image and shape, suitable for display in an art academy’s exhibition room.

The Daoist’s hand still gripped the tip of the Seven-star Hook, but his face lacked any angry or sinister expression, instead showing confusion.

Run Sheng stepped forward, holding the Yellow River Shovel, and with one scoop sliced off the remaining arm.

As he prepared to aim at the head, the Daoist spoke, "Besides the stele at the riverbed, I have also left some notes in another place."

Run Sheng stopped.

Logically, this was not the time to pause and give the enemy another chance to speak. He always got angry at that moment in those gangster movies from Hong Kong he watched.

But the thing was, the Daoist was dropping gold coins.

It was like when he used to live at Mr. Li’s place, and Binbin borrowed a Little Tyrant learning console from a classmate.

The little characters would hop around, making a "ding ding ding ding" sound.

Li Zhiyuan approached the Daoist.

The Daoist, facing the oncoming youth, said, "In the house where my senior brother died, there’s a study room on the second floor. Inside, you’ll find some of my reflections on Arrays, which are not well-written, so don’t laugh too hard when you read them."

Li Zhiyuan nodded.

The Daoist asked, "Do you think, if I hadn’t been greedy back then and joined hands with my senior brother to suppress this Fish Demon, could the two of us have had the chance to meet the Dragon King of the Liu Family?

Could we have had the chance to pay homage to the Dragon King?

Even if we didn’t meet her, if I continued my Daoist cultivation and led my disciples, wouldn’t we also have been able to leave more stories in the Jianghu?"