Chapter 1015: Diplomatic channels
*Bing-Bong*
We interrupt this chapter to address the weird cliff hanger from the previous chapter.
We realize that it was too ambiguous of an ending, so we’re starting this chapter with what happened the moment Zhen Liu decided he was going to make sashimi.
Enjoy and thank you for your time.
*Bing-Bong*
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Meanwhile, as Zhen Liu was processing a weird demonic tuna…
“Hmm…that’s odd.”
“What’s odd, War Elder?”
“It appears the fishes I had created to serve as a means of distraction have finally gotten caught,” the War Elder explained. “I’m still connected to most of them, but one of them is being subjected to… interference.”
“Interference? How is that possible?”
“I don’t know, but-Ack!”
“War Elder?!”
Just as the War Elder Gao Ao Long was about to share his thoughts with his subordinates, a sudden sharp pain occurred in his head. It felt as if a large iron spike had just been jammed through it…but only for a brief moment.
Once that moment had passed, Gao Ao Long went from surprised to…realization.
“It appears that aside from being able to share their senses, these creations that Buzza has taught us to make are able tod hare their pain as well…one of my fishes appeared to have been killed.”
“Killed? I thought their infusion of [Chaos] made them invulnerable to everything save dragon force and [Chaos]. Was it the matriarch who did it?”
“No, if it was, I think I’d be complaining about a dull pain to my head,” Gao Ao Long answered. “It appears that the Zhen Clan has brought someone else who is also capable of wielding [Chaos], but I can’t seem to determine who…”
“Wait…War Elder, should we worried about them being able to track our location through your slain fish? I know that can be done with certain techniques when using aether markers, but-”
“There’s no need to worry. If what Buzza said is true, then what the Zhen Clan rabble will be handling by now will be utterly useless…that said, perhaps I should cut off my connection with the rest of the fish.”
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‘A pile of fish guts… great…’
After determining that the fish more or less functioned like a budget zako, Zhen Liu did the only sensible thing he could think of and decided to perform an autopsy to determined its capabilities and what he was going to be dealing with.
However, that required him to turn this flopping fish into a still corpse, so he took his [Veteran’s Bone Club], used the [Hammer of the Dearly Departed] to turn it into a spike, and jammed the thing through the giant fish’s head.
What followed after was something that he only seen happen to zakos whenever they were defeated…the fish exploded. More specifically, the [Chaos] that composed most of the body had broken down at the moment of death, leaving behind a small pile of fish guts as the only proof something was there moments ago.
Granted, that small pile of fish guts was only there for a few moments before the zakos that brought it in, one of the ones that looked like a zombified gillman, suddenly went ahead and ate it. Immediately afterwards, that particular zako suddenly felt a lot more cognizant from Zhen Liu’s connection with it, but that was something that had to be addressed later.
Right now, he had to share with what he knew with the others.
‘You wanna go back with the others, or do you wanna tag along with me?’
The zako in question made vague noises in agreement to the latter, before turning back into a slightly more polished, dirty brown colored marble.
‘Cool.’
With the zakos back in his pocket, Zhen Liu returned to the galleon’s deck to share the news with Zhen Xun Tian and the others.
“Okay, so the fish in question-”
Sound of yet another fish exploding into guys.
“Never mind, I’m too late.”
Apparently, his great grandaunt had the same idea of trying to see what made these fishes tick, so she used a [Chaos] made blade of ink to cut into the fish’s stomach. What followed was what happened to Zhen Liu, the fish exploded into a strangely neat pile of fish guts.
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Once the rest of the Zhen Clan warriors saw that these weird fishes were gonna explode the moment they tried to dissect them, they all proceeded to gingerly place the fishes within nets. They couldn’t exactly let these things go, but they couldn’t just handle them all willy-nilly…anymore.
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Once Zhen Xun Tian wiped her face clean of fish blood, she directed her focus towards Zhen Liu.
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In real time, Zhen Liu could see the soldiers go from despair to confusion at this strange announcement. Thankfully, Zhen Xun Tian didn’t leave them hanging for too long.
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The troops began to snicker over the fact that their leader managed to spoil an alliance that would’ve definitely hurt them in the long run. Once the snickering ended, Zhen Xun Tian continued sharing her idea.
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The Zhen Clan warriors looked a touch confused over Zhen Xun Tian’s words…until they finally put two and two together.
The Zhen Clan had been floating aimlessly for the last few days, chasing fish due to their tracking getting fooled. However, if they hooked up with this other faction and just lingered at their location, then they’d be able to use the place as a staging ground. After all, if the Fallen were still interested in making an alliance with these unknowns…then they’d have no choice but to come towards them.
After all, it was easier to lay in wait for an ambush then it was to chase down an enemy.
But as the soldiers applauded Zhen Xun Tian for clever idea, Zhen Liu was a touch more ambivalent.
Because, despite this being where he wanted/needed to go, he had to take note of one very important detail.
Whether or not a centuries old grudge is enough to prevent any form of negotiations.
That and whether or not this Kaijin has any lingering feelings for certain individuals of certain backgrounds.
…
‘Razorstella?’
[Yes, director?]
‘Please tell…what is this kaijin’s name again?’
[Tortallion.]
‘Tortallion, got it. Please tell Tortallion that we’ll be on our way shortly. Might take us a few days due to travel time. Oh and… I’ll leave it to you if you want to honest about my identity and who I’m travelling with. Easier to be upfront than is it to obfuscate…sometimes.’
[As you wish, director.]
‘Oh, Arachnidame. Lacerage. Are either of you available?’
[We are.]
‘Good. I need you two to notify Jin Fang, Jinju Ren and… Cornelius I guess? That we’ll be heading to the Undertow Kingdom soon.’
[Of course, young master.]
[Is there anything extra you want us to tell any of these individuals?]
‘Hmmm…tell Jin Fang that we’re going to be meeting someone who will probably be very interested in meeting her, tell Jinju Ren that she may need to hide the fact that she’s a princess related to the Pearl Scale Emperor specifically if she wants to come and inform Cornelius that he may need to obfuscate his entire identity if he wants to come. Adjust these messages accordingly as real time information gets directed towards you.’
[Understood.]
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“Huh?”
As Zhen Liu finished relaying his orders to the kaijin back home, Zhen Xun Tian made her way over to Zhen Liu. The look in her eyes were less jovial than what he was used to seeing, so he was assuming that this wasn’t a mere social call.
Especially after he felt Zhen Xun Tian put up a small barrier designed to hide their voices.
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