Closing the Net (Revised)
"Gurgle... gurgle... gurgle..."
Yuan Yuan stumbled through the underwater jungle in a disheveled state, his gaping, bloodied gills behind his ears frantically filtering the seawater.
He had never been so disheveled.
The injuries to my body continue to cause excruciating pain, and injuries that could have healed on their own in the past are now difficult to recover from.
The explosion of the Chain Torpedo was caused by the activation of Psychic Energy, thus directly restraining the Spirit Race, who construct their physical bodies from Psychic Energy.
The Dragon Spirit Species is a type of Spirit Race.
At this moment, his soul was locked within his tattered body.
Like a poor connection, one can only endure immense suffering while barely maintaining a link with the physical body.
He isn't unable to leave his body, but it's not safe here.
Having a physical body means that even if the physical body dies, his soul can escape.
Once he abandons this physical body, his soul will be exposed without any protection.
Being attacked means certain death.
This meant he needed to expend some of his remaining Psychic Energy to maintain his body's vitality.
At the same time, stop the bleeding from the ruptured wound.
Back then, even the clan's trials for testing the successor only resulted in him being seriously injured and spending a few days in the hospital.
As a prince and the eldest son of the legitimate wife, he enjoyed the support of many court officials and was always surrounded by a large number of personal guards.
He barely used any of his Ninth Realm Profound Realm cultivation, so how could he possibly be injured?
However, perhaps that's precisely why he's ended up where he is today.
My thoughts drifted away for a moment before being pulled back to the present moment of escape.
His injuries and depleted Psychic Energy, coupled with the deliberate control of [Survival in Desperate Situations], left his mind somewhat clouded.
So when he successfully located the remnants of the Sea Race using the map, he lowered his guard against [Survival in Desperate Situations].
Of course, he still harbored doubts, which was unavoidable.
Whether it's being Shisui or Survival in Desperate Situations, it's clear how difficult it is to gain someone's complete trust.
Therefore, Shisui allowed [Survival in Desperate Situations] to bring Yuan Yuan back to the tribe.
They would cooperate to stage a scene of escaping death.
In this way, the last remaining doubts can be dispelled in a short period of time.
On the Kaiyang Continent, at the temporary encampment of the remaining Sea Race troops.
Several hundred soldiers, ranging from the seventh to the Ninth Realm of the Profound Realm, took turns standing guard, vigilant against potential enemy attacks.
The original commander of this army should have been a Second Realm Earth Realm expert.
However, when attacking Yin City, everyone in the Earth Realm went to earn military merits.
Their captain was replaced by a Sea Race soldier who was at the peak of the Ninth Realm of the Profound Realm and was originally the vice-captain.
After hearing the massive explosion that had occurred in Yin City, they received "last words" from the main force.
They originally planned to evacuate immediately.
But before they could set off, they received the last communication from the captain of the Second Prince's personal guard before his death.
"The... prince... has... already... left... and is... rushing... to... the... south... bank..."
He only managed to say one sentence before the communication was abruptly cut off amidst the sound of artillery fire.
Although it was only a single, fragmented sentence, it was enough.
The current captain understood his unspoken meaning: they were to wait where they were and prepare to receive the Second Prince.
He immediately ordered them to rest on the spot and wait for the Second Prince to arrive before withdrawing.
And so, they've waited until now.
"Captain, five minutes have passed. Should we continue to wait?"
A soldier who usually had a good relationship with the captain asked in a low voice.
"Wait," the current captain nodded, "This is a prince."
If the prince dies on the front lines, that's naturally none of their business.
However, the prince had escaped and was on his way. If they left without retrieving the prince, it would be a capital offense.
In this way, even if we manage to evacuate safely, it's pointless; we're going to die anyway.
Just as the captain was lost in thought, a soldier hurriedly came over.
"Captain, His Highness the Second Prince has arrived!"
The Sea Race who came in to report spoke softly, but his excitement was palpable.
We can finally retreat.
"Quickly, quickly, summon the researchers from the Third Research Institute to immediately escort His Highness!"
The entire temporary encampment sprang into action, both quietly and rapidly.
Dozens of Sea Race soldiers swam towards the Yuan Yuan, while the remaining soldiers kept watch over the surroundings.
When they saw the Second Prince slowly swimming towards them in the dark sea, their pupils couldn't help but tremble.
Even if the scents weren't the same, the Psychic Energy fluctuations would still match.
They truly found it hard to believe that the bloodied man before them, almost completely stripped of his skin, was the refined and elegant Second Prince.
Several Sea Race dressed in black robes, who were clearly also within the protective circle, quickly stepped forward.
With one hand supporting Yuan Yuan, who could no longer swim, they continuously made hand seals with the other.
A special kind of Psychic Energy condensed and slowly merged into the Second Prince's body.
Yuan Yuan's skin began to grow at a visible rate.
As for the internal injuries...
"I'm sorry, Second Prince," said the black-robed figure on the right, "Your injuries are too severe to be treated at this time."
The black-robed figure on the left also spoke.
"The injury is too severe, and it involves the meridians. Treating it rashly may cause the meridians to heal improperly, affecting the foundation of your cultivation."
"Our suggestion is to contact the Second Research Institute to assist you in constructing a new body."
As for now, all we can do is treat the symptoms—stop the bleeding.
"Grateful..."
Yuan Yuan was naturally aware of his physical condition and knew that the findings of these studies were correct.
He was helped back to his temporary post and boarded a small warship.
Then, they finally received word that the prince's remaining troops were to immediately set off and retreat towards the nearby Ringwater Continent.
The moment they sailed out of the seabed cliffs, an invisible net suddenly contracted, completely sealing off the surrounding space.
The next moment, the lurking Shisui beneath the water stirred!
Powered by psionic energy, the tail-shaped gorilla frantically differentiated and constructed tail-shaped structures.
Eight long, slender metal ribbons instantly entangled the small warship.
Immediately afterwards, the Blade Scales on the Bikaku stood upright and pierced directly into the hull of the warship.
The Rc Cells begin to vibrate and flow rapidly, causing the Bikaku transform into a reciprocating saw blade that directly cuts through the ship's hull.
From its appearance to capturing its target and then sawing through the warship, the Shisui process took only three seconds.
The Sea Race's ships disintegrated in the water before the Sea Race soldiers inside finally realized what was happening.
One side protected the prince and researchers as they retreated, while the other half attacked Shisui directly.
"Snap!"
The sharp, standard trident clashed with the Bikaku, producing a piercing metallic scraping sound.
Then, the immense force that came from the trident disappeared.
With a sweeping motion, the Bikaku severed the Sea Race's weapons, and with undiminished power, it sliced open Sea Race bodies as well.
As the saw teeth rotated, the Sea Race's corpse was shredded into tiny pieces and dissolved in the water.
By the time Shisui transformed these Sea Race into Flesh Crystals, the fleeing group hadn't swum very far and was still within the encirclement of the Feather Powder.
With the seriously injured second prince delaying them, even if they escape quickly, they can't get much faster.
Shisui drove away the fleeing prey, and the Feather Powder circle moved accordingly, gradually whittling away the soldiers around the target.
The only ones useful to him were the prince and the few black-robed men next to him who had drawn the Tsunami-Summoning Array.
Apart from that, they are all just materials used to create Flesh Crystals.