Kill

Boom!

A ball of flame ignited on the Fishman Prophet. The flames were pure yellow, writhing over his body like the yellow jelly-like substance from before.

Compared to quicklime, this sort of flame did not deal much damage to Fishmen. The concoction did not harm them at their core, though the fact that it was difficult to extinguish was rather troublesome.

Liu Zhi understood this flame very well. He had tested it on more than a dozen Fishmen before.

He knew that strong, hardy Fishmen might not die to the flames if they forced themselves to endure a wave of them.

So, the instant the Fishman Prophet caught fire, Liu Zhi pushed off hard from the sea, leaping three to five meters and pouncing onto the shark's back.

That shark had been trained by the Fishmen for a long time. It could twist its body within a small range on the water's surface while ensuring the people on its back would not fall into the sea. Such training had naturally severely reduced its diving and movement capabilities.

Liu Zhi landed on the shark's back, gripping its fin tightly with his left hand as he used his right hand to force himself upright.

By then, the Fishman Prophet had recovered from his earlier panic and confusion. Though the flames still burned, he had steadied himself. Enduring the fire on his body, the Fishman Prophet lunged at Liu Zhi and swung his mallet down at Liu Zhi's head.

"I'll beat you to death! Once I kill you, I can find the Golden City!"

The Fishman Prophet shrieked, his voice like that of someone being held underwater and struggling desperately before drowning.

Liu Zhi released his grip and slid into the water. At the same time, he twisted his right hand, and his curved blade slashed across the Fishman Prophet's foot.

Liu Zhi used the same technique as scaling a fish, cutting upward against the scales. Then he withdrew the curved blade and carved a cross into the Fishman Prophet's foot before the scales could fall back into place.

Only then did he lean back and plunge headfirst into the sea.

The Fishman Prophet's hammer failed to strike Liu Zhi's head. Instead, the force of his swing made his footing unsteady.

Underwater, Liu Zhi swiftly turned downward and drove his curved blade into the shark's belly.

The shark had no scales to protect it. Though Liu Zhi's curved blade met resistance from the seawater, it still pierced the shark's heart with relative ease.

The shark immediately began rolling wildly in the sea, flinging the Fishman Prophet from its back into the water.

Seeing this, Liu Zhi raised his hand and threw out a Throwing Net.

Though every movement was difficult underwater, he was not far from the Fishman Prophet. The Throwing Net still managed to entangle him.

At that point, the Fishman Prophet went all out. He forcefully dragged his hand to his mouth, sank his sharp teeth into it, and made a strange sound.

Liu Zhi, who had intended to swim over slowly, immediately sensed that something was wrong. With level 3 Magic Knowledge, he could clearly sense an electric current surging around the Fishman Prophet's mouth. He was probably preparing lightning magic.

Liu Zhi had no intention of giving his opponent a chance to turn the tables. He kicked off with both legs, shot out from beneath the water, and pounced toward the Fishman Prophet through the air.

The Fishman Prophet was in the middle of preparing magic. Without the ability to cast while moving, he had no way to move, much less while entangled in Liu Zhi's Throwing Net.

Faced with Liu Zhi's aerial pounce, the Fishman Prophet had no choice but to raise his bitten, mangled hand toward him early.

"Static Shock!"

Centered on the Fishman Prophet's bitten hand, a silver net of electricity spread out at once.

Already in midair, Liu Zhi had no choice. His left hand gripped the hilt as he brought the blade down hard at the still-burning Fishman Prophet's face below.

This time, Liu Zhi used all his strength. He aimed straight for the Fishman Prophet's Tentacles. Even when the electric net made his entire body go numb the instant it touched him, he did not deviate in the slightest. Using the force of his downward momentum, he severed the Fishman Prophet's Tentacles.

Sprayed across the face with green blood, Liu Zhi fell straight into the water. Yet both hands still clutched the curved blade tightly. In truth, luck had played a major part in this battle. At the final moment, Liu Zhi had not been sure whether the current would make him let go.

He soaked in the water for nearly ten minutes. Only when the Fishmen fighting by the ship broke and fled did Liu Zhi finally come back to his senses.

His curved blade was still in his hand. Forcing open his already stiff fingers, Liu Zhi did not care as the blade slipped into the sea. He swam with effort toward the Fishman Prophet's corpse.

By then, the flames on the Fishman Prophet had gradually gone out, burning his corpse black.

Yet in Liu Zhi's eyes, the Fishman Prophet's corpse emitted a faint White Light, as though guiding Liu Zhi to search for something.

Liu Zhi turned over the Fishman Prophet's corpse and found that the back submerged beneath the seawater had not been completely charred. He noticed what appeared to be markings drawn on the Fishman Prophet's scales. At first, he thought they were tattoos, but when he examined the patterns closely, a small map appeared before him.

Before Liu Zhi could react, the small map vanished. Then three notifications appeared.

[Notification: The player has killed a Competitor. The Competitor is regenerating. Regeneration time: 30 days. After revival, the Competitor's actions will resume, and its strength will increase by one tier.]

[Notification: The player has killed a Competitor and obtained one Competitor Chest (Basic).]

[Notification: The player has killed a Competitor and obtained information related to the Identity Compulsory Quest—Curse of the Golden City. Please check the map.]

"Ha! Hahaha!" Liu Zhi laughed excitedly as he looked at the messages. He knew he had gambled correctly this time. Not only had he taken out the Competitor and secured another thirty days of safety, but he had also obtained a reward and a clue to the Identity Compulsory Quest.

"Cough, cough, cough!" After only a few laughs, Liu Zhi began coughing violently. Only then did he remember that he was still soaking in the sea. This was not the time to celebrate.

Pushing aside the Fishman Prophet's corpse, Liu Zhi felt around. His curved blade had already sunk to the seabed, and now he had only a dagger beside him for self-defense.

After looking around, Liu Zhi fixed his eyes on the Tortuga Port warship and prepared to swim toward it, but then he heard excited cheers from that direction.

Several small boats were rowing swiftly toward him, and people aboard them were loudly calling Sandru's name.

It took Liu Zhi a moment to realize that seemed to be the name he was currently using. Before he could respond, a wave surged up behind him and pushed him to the front of a small boat.

A man stood in the small boat, smiling at him. "Can you tell us what you used to deal with the Fishmen just now?"