Mutated Tao

Li Huowang was suddenly overcome by a constant ringing in his ears, causing him to lose all sensation. Convulsing uncontrollably, he sank into the water.

“Huo.. Huo..” Several faint voices seemed to come from the distance.

His hearing suddenly snapped back, and the voices became incredibly loud. “Li Huowang!”

Two large hands burst from the water and laboriously pulled him up.

“Li Huowang! Are you crazy? Holding up metal in a thunderstorm? Do you have a death wish?!” Wu Qi shouted furiously at him.

Li Huowang glanced downwards, his eyes landing on the knife in his hand. It had turned completely black. Burn marks traced their way along his veins, starting from his hand and spreading everywhere.

He replayed the events in his foggy mind and realized he had been struck by lightning.

He wiped the seawater from his face and lifted his gaze to the vast, swirling black clouds overhead.

Li Huowang took a deep breath, then tilted his head back and unleashed a hysterical scream toward the sky. “You want to kill me? No way!”

He hoisted Yang Na’s corpse with some difficulty, clutching her tightly. “Death is on my side! If you’re so powerful, strike me down!”

“You can’t fight it! Now is not the time to go crazy. We need to go!” Qing Wanglai grabbed Li Huowang’s shoulder and tried to pull him underwater, but Li Huowang violently pushed him away.

His face twisted in rage as he shouted, “No! I can’t leave! If I go, it’s all over! Yang Na will never come back!

“We still have a chance! If we retreat, they will seize the Heavenly Daos of Decay, Pain, and Death. It will be the end for us if we let them!”

Zhao Shuangdian’s voice echoed in Li Huowang’s ears. “Li Huowang, I understand how you feel, but you need to look around.

“This time, the enemy is a spiraling rainband. It’s nothing like the factory we faced the last time. You can destroy a factory, but how can you destroy a typhoon?

“It isn’t even alive. It has no life. How could you kill something like that?”

Li Huowang’s rage subsided. He looked down at Yang Na and said, “Nana, did you hear that? This Siming isn’t alive. It doesn’t even have Death.”

He flashed a sudden, gentle smile. “But that's alright. We have you. You are the Siming of Death. You can give it Death!”

“Exactly!” The realization hit Li Huowang like a thunderbolt. Disregarding the raging waves, he grabbed Yang Na and plunged underwater, rushing toward the distant waterspout.

Even as he got close, the fierce winds prevented Li Huowang from breaking through the surface.

Li Huowang took off his oxygen mask while still underwater. He held Yang Na close, kissed her passionately, and then pushed her towards the surface with both hands.

Yang Na reached the water’s surface, and the strong gusts of wind quickly swept her upward, flinging her toward the sky like the cruise ship.

As he watched Yang Na sway in the wind like a ragdoll, a wave of reluctance washed over him. It’s okay, don’t be afraid. I won’t let you face this alone. I’ll be with you! ℞åɴǒВΕŚ

Li Huowang kicked hard with his flippers and burst through the water’s surface. The violent wind and rain instantly swept them up toward the towering waterspout.

The fierce wind chilled Li Huowang, soaked to the bone, yet he could barely feel it. The lightning had already numbed him.

“It’s alright, Yang Na, don’t be afraid!” Li Huowang squinted through the fierce storm, gripping his military knife tightly with both hands as they approached the waterspout.

“I figured it out!” Zhao Shuangdian’s voice suddenly rang in Li Huowang’s ear. “It’s topology! I was approaching it from the wrong direction earlier!”

As the waterspout loomed closer, Li Huowang roared, “What the hell is topology?!”

“Li Huowang! Listen carefully!” Zhao Shuangdian's voice turned uncharacteristically urgent. “I'll guide you! Don't do anything rash! Let go of Yang Na and grab her again after one second!”

Li Huowang hesitated briefly, then released his grip.

Though he didn't fully understand her reasoning, he trusted her. Zhao Shuangdian was on his side and wouldn’t betray him now.

Yang Na drifted from his grasp and floated leftward like a kite in the wind.

“Now!”

Li Huowang’s hand shot out and grabbed the “kite string” tightly.

With the lift from the kite, Li Huowang was instantly pulled higher, narrowly skirting past the left side of the waterspout.

“Let go of Yang Na and strike it!”

He tightly gripped his knife with both hands, letting out a fierce roar before slashing at the swirling waterspout.

A powerful force instantly engulfed him, causing the world around him to spin rapidly.

When Li Huowang's vision stabilized, he found himself upside down, plummeting down with a terrifying sense of weightlessness.

Thump! Li Huowang crashed into the water. Intense pain shot through him, as if he’d been smashed to pieces.

He summoned his last reserves of strength and dragged himself onto a nearby shipwreck, despite his multiple fractures.

He panted heavily and looked around. The sea was eerily calm and quiet compared to before.

Although the thunderclouds still loomed low and the sky was dark, there was no wind at all. The sea was so calm that it resembled a mirror.

“Where... where is this? Why is it so strange?” Li Huowang muttered as he reached into the water and pulled Yang Na up.

Yang Na had done it. Death was now in place. Soon, he could kill the Siming.

“This... the eye... of the typhoon...” Zhao Shuangdian’s voice cut off with a crackling sound in his earpiece.

“The eye of the storm? I see! So this is the Siming’s weak point!” Li Huowang stood up, aching all over. He looked at the calm sea around him and gripped his military knife tightly. Then, he plunged it into the water with all his might.

However, nothing changed. He had merely made a small splash.

Li Huowang froze and stood still in confusion. He climbed back onto the shipwreck and looked around blankly.

In the distance, black clouds loomed like towering mountains, pressing ever closer.

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