The black snake head had turned grayish white from blood loss. All light had vanished from Ring Huǐ's vertical pupils; only the bundled muscles remained, twitching and contracting unconsciously as its snake jaws opened and closed.
"Ring Huǐ is dead."
The Great Demons lowered their heads.
The atmosphere was suffocatingly grim.
Lin Jie turned his head, his snake pupils sweeping across the scene before settling on the three Great Demons of the Black Huǐ. "What were you doing before Ring Huǐ died?"
"We... we..."
Black Huǐ, Lantern Fish, and Gar Fish looked at one another, hemming and hawing.
They could hardly say that, in a single exchange, the White Ape had plucked off Ring Huǐ's snake head as easily as picking cotton, skinned its entire hide, and even pulled out its tendons. The three beasts had not even seen the process clearly. Their fish gallbladders and snake gallbladders had been scared to pieces; apart from shrinking their necks, curling their tails, and not daring to move, all they did was retrieve Ring Huǐ's head from the mud after the White Ape had left.
Lin Jie clenched his snake tail, fury erupting from his snake pupils.
The Great Huai Army had been established for years. Aside from mining in the canyon, it had not earned a single merit. Yet its pay had never been withheld, and it had consumed immense amounts of Treasure Fish and Treasure Plants. After waiting so long for the White Ape to show itself in the Great Marsh, this was the result they delivered. How was he supposed to face the Flood Dragon King?
"Great Snake Lin! Great Snake Lin!"
Fat Catfish waved his long whiskers and led two Pufferfish as they wagged their tails, blasting out empty bubbles and flying hurriedly into the canyon. They were