Above Destiny

Chapter 738 The Federation Sets Fire, Caught in the Crossfire (Thanks to Yu Shi for the Silver Alliance)
The mermaid has arrived!

Surprised? Unexpected?

Before the music and dance could even resume, the experiences and news of the many survivors spread like wildfire throughout the seven cities, and even the media censorship of the seven cities couldn't stop it...

There are too many routes, and the seven cities are too hasty.

As for Luo Island, Ji Jue could manage it, but he felt there was no need to.

The existence of the mermaid problem should make those self-proclaimed wise people who preach every day that the trouble is nothing to worry about see the situation clearly and stop being blindly optimistic.

These bloodthirsty behemoths, some ten or twenty meters long, are now migrating and spreading eastward into the Endless Sea in droves.

Based on the location and direction of the ocean currents, at least several of them will pass through the waters near Seven Cities. If they were to enter Seven Cities via the sewers or underground rivers, the consequences would be unimaginable.

Mermaids, in particular, as hunters in the ocean, naturally possess a strong affinity for desolation and entropy, and their destructive power cannot be measured by common sense.

What's even more terrifying is that, unlike other large predators that hunt alone, mermaids are a species with a very strong sense of community. They often act in groups, with clear divisions of labor within them. Moreover, they are quite intelligent, reaching the level of a human eleven or twelve years old when they reach adulthood.

Each mermaid colony, large enough to be called a group, consists of anywhere from a dozen or a hundred members to hundreds or even thousands...

Even a single encounter with a mermaid would likely result in a deadly defeat for an ordinary fishing boat. And when these mermaids gather in large numbers, they even dare to attack warships of the Federation and the Empire.

If a large number of mermaids gather and, under hormonal intervention, exhibit atavistic genetics, giving birth to juvenile serpent species, then the scale will expand even further.

That would be an absolute natural disaster.

However, if such a situation were to actually occur, Seven Cities wouldn't need to worry.

Historically, such a situation has only occurred once before in the northern part of the Endless Sea, and the damage it caused was far too exaggerated. The Federation and the Empire will definitely be the first to be uneasy. When the sky falls, the tall ones will hold it up; everyone else can just lie back and watch the big shots handle things.

What's disgusting about this is that it's neither so small as to be ignored, nor so big as to be nothing to worry about.

Unfortunately, if the problem cannot be solved, it will cause endless trouble.

For example, it's like being hit on the head unexpectedly, making your head buzz.

The most urgent task for everyone right now is to figure out: where did the mermaids come from, what are they doing, and why the hell are they in the eastern waters?

So, the Seven Cities Council took the lead, and the seven organizations investigated and investigated until finally... after combining information from all sides, they found that, in the end, the problem was still the fault of the Federation!
Although theoretically, as long as you are close enough to the Federation, you can blame everything on the Federation, this time the blame is especially justified.

Because during the previous rainy season, the Haizhou Security Bureau wiped out the mermaid population near the Federation so thoroughly, they completely eradicated them!

As a result, with the threat of mermaids gone, the fish population has been exceptionally abundant this year, experiencing an explosive growth under the influence of ominous signs of wind.

The aroma of abundant food continuously draws groups of merfolk from outside the area, much like nomadic tribes chasing after aquatic plants.

The balance of the ecosystem is truly amazing.

They're here for a buffet!

But if you think about it more carefully: the reason why the security bureau had to confront the mermaids before was because the ocean temperature rose abnormally, causing the fish to become chaotic. The mermaids chased the fish and moved in large numbers towards Haizhou.

The reason for the temperature rise is that the old dog Wuyou Gong went to great lengths to reignite the calamity of the Flaming Tide, burning through the walls of the ancient sacrificial temple...

As for the calamity of the firestorm...

In the end, Ji Jue realized that, all the blame ultimately fell on himself!

"This is fucking bizarre!"

Ji Jue looked at the briefing in his hand over and over, and the more he looked, the darker his vision became—wasn't this making him look like a jinx, causing problems wherever he went!
He thoroughly examined himself, wondering why he always seemed to be implicated whenever something went wrong. In the end, he realized it was all because those bastards were so indecent and always wanted to drag him down with them!
if not?
Could I possibly be wrong?

Absolutely impossible!
And so, after leaving the briefing behind, he threw himself into his research and paid no further attention to it.

Meanwhile, news of the mermaids' impending arrival spread rapidly throughout the seven cities.

Many old news stories are being dug up on social media, and the scale of the mermaids is becoming increasingly exaggerated. The number of migrations has increased from a few groups to a dozen or so groups, and now to dozens or even hundreds. Many people are repeatedly sharing the same news with great confidence, and with the addition of embellishments, the numbers and threats are becoming more and more exaggerated.

Panic spread like wildfire.

Mermaids are clearly far away, and their numbers couldn't possibly be that outrageous.

But at least one thing is true... Once the migrating mermaids pass by, they will definitely not ignore the existence of the Seven Cities—mermaids' sense of perception and taste are even more exaggerated than dogs', they will not miss the taste of food from dozens of miles away, let alone a large-scale population gathering.

Putting everything else aside, the daily discharge of large amounts of wastewater and excrement alone would be enough to turn any passing mermaid into a pervert.

Who wouldn't want to try something new?

Various alarmist rumors were rampant, which annoyed Ji Jue to no end. However, he soon realized why such rumors were so persistent...

The Dan City Alliance has made a high-profile announcement that it will drive out and hunt down the merfolk who are about to arrive, ensuring that none of the seven cities will be harmed. As long as Dan City exists, these beasts will never be allowed to disturb everyone's peaceful life!
In no time, not only did he win the praise of the villagers, but the strength of Dancheng's military, good deeds and noble character also spread throughout the seven cities through various channels. In a short time, he almost became a beacon of civilization on the endless sea.

"They're already building hype?"

Ji Jue glanced at the news and almost burst out laughing.

“Yes,” Minkler sighed. “It seems the Empire gave quite a lot.”

The Dan City is ruled by the Dan City Federation, a group of merchants, and its powerful backer is the Sacred Tree Family, which is the empire's favorite to expand overseas.

The Sacred Tree family, which rose to power through the Empire's native religious sect, possesses vast wealth and resources. They love to bet on multiple fronts and wield considerable influence in the Endless Sea, the Middle Kingdom, and even the Federation. It's not surprising that they've extended their reach to the Seven Cities.

“You haven’t been here these past few days, and the old man has been running around like crazy, winning over quite a few people,” Minkler remarked on the phone. “He even went after Chopra. You’ve missed quite a few exciting developments.”

"If I were there, they might not be able to do their job properly."

Ji Jue smiled nonchalantly. He knew perfectly well what the pretext and excuse were for Dancheng's actions... It's quite possible that the current alliances and rivalries are based on the threat posed by Ji Jue!

When Ji Jue realized that everyone thought so highly of him, he didn't know whether he should feel honored or not.

Everyone was hoping that the Sukarno family would die suddenly, but unexpectedly, they did die suddenly and the Sukarno family was gone. Then Ji Jue arrived.

He's not even as good as Sukarno!

Even if the Sukarno family becomes the leader, Seven Cities will still be Seven Cities. But if Ji Jue takes that position, only ghosts will know what Seven Cities will become.

When they start causing trouble, it's as natural as breathing. When they kill, they're like a madman slaughtering his chosen people. When they play games, they're like a usurper; when they deal with their opponents, they're like a stagnant rotten plant.

And this guy is a Golden Ribbon Craftsman of the Taiyi Ring, a notorious arms dealer in the Federation, whose identity is so complicated it's dizzying... What can you do? With such a monster moving in next door, anyone would probably have trouble sleeping!

Sukarno's family is still watching you from the assembly line!

In contrast, even a die-hard reformer like Fernand seemed amiable.

"That old bastard Garisto even went so far as to invite you to come along this time to expel the mermaids," Minkler said on the other end of the phone.

"..."

Ji Jue paused in his movements, remaining silent and momentarily bewildered: "Who is Garisto?"

"..."

So Minkler also fell silent.

You were in a meeting in Pucheng just a few days ago, shaking hands and smiling like you were brothers. So you didn't even remember my name?
He sighed and reminded her, "The president of the City Devouring Alliance."

"Oh, Insect Number Two." Ji Jue slapped his forehead, finally recalling the name from the corner of his memory. "Great."

He said, "Then let's go."

"what?"

Minkler was taken aback and instinctively sat up. "Really?"

"if not?"

Ji Jue finished his work: "They put in a lot of effort, made a big show of themselves, and if you don't go, all their preparations will have been for nothing."
I'd like to see what the Sacred Tree family is capable of.

"I understand."

Minkler sighed knowingly, as if suddenly realizing something: "You're going to stir things up again, aren't you!"

In reality, Ji Jue really just wanted to broaden his horizons!
The main purpose was to go and hunt some wild animals!
The long-awaited wind has finally arrived. Does that mean that just because the mermaid is eating at a buffet, he can't have some too?
Besides, apart from the mermaid material that Sister Wen brought back as a souvenir, Ji Jue had never actually seen a live mermaid. Even with so many records and materials, he still needed to make a personal assessment. Let's catch a live one first!
On the very day he agreed, Ji Jue set sail, leaving Lou Feng, still grumbling, to continue pulling his never-ending millstone...

Under the cover of night, the Prosperity sped through the mist along the migration route of the merfolk, like a ghost, without even causing a ripple.

Because the entire Prosperity was floating on the sea!

Compared to its previous dilapidated state, the Prosperity is now completely different, and outwardly it is even more dilapidated and worse.

It doesn't resemble a cargo ship at all; instead, it looks like a section of ship-shaped rock. The hull, after being completely peeled away, reveals a natural iron-gray color without any reflection, and it feels like stone when you tap it.

Some of the irregularly shaped hulls occasionally have a protruding section, and their size is more than double that of the others...

More importantly, Ji Jue can finally add various equipment without worrying that the calf might accidentally suck all the material clean.

Because it was finally full!
Experience has shown that progress still depends on peers. When it comes to the richness and nutritional value of resources, the wilderness is still the place to be!
Ji Jue directly fed the corpse he had obtained for free from the Blood Feud Trial to Ju Que. The rebirth form and broken circle that the old Transcendent had accumulated throughout his life flowed under the Three-Phase Alchemy and were completely absorbed by Ju Que.

The body alone weighed over ten tons, and the solidity it contained surpassed countless rare and precious materials; otherwise, how could it be considered a fine and precious material?

Along the way, Ji Jue was not idle. The blessings that were peeled off the corpses were also disassembled by him in the past few days and made into expansion modules for the Giant Sword, which were then installed.

Following the "Immovable as a Mountain" blessing chain, two new blessing chains have been added: "Mountains and Rivers" and "Seas Dry and Rocks Cry". The former has a simpler and more straightforward effect - it adds an extra layer on top of defense, allowing for double defense and two shields to be used alternately, resulting in faster armor stacking and faster recovery.

At the same time, [Sea Drys and Rocks Crack] increases its own upper limit and durability, and reduces the consumption of maintaining a defensive state for a long time.

It was all layered armor, layered armor, and more layered armor!

With the gaps in the Giant Sword Project now completely filled, the Prosperity's defensive capabilities have reached a terrifying level. Even without activating its blessing, it can withstand the direct firepower of the warship's main cannons and close-range bombardment.

Ji Jue's ideal level is that even if Sister Wen suddenly gets angry and wants to beat him up one day, the Crystal Dragon Spear can withstand it for half an hour when it falls from the sky!

Now it seems that if it's just the Crystal Dragon Spear, it might be able to withstand the attack.

As long as she doesn't breathe fire, it's fine.

As for the cost... the cost is that, apart from looking like a ship, the entire Giant Sword has nothing to do with ships anymore, and it can't even float on water.

Its own weight already exceeds that of a solid iron block of the same size. If it relies solely on buoyancy, it will sink to the bottom of the sea instantly, no matter how deep.

At the same time, as a giant sword, it is constantly responding to the stars and the earth. It doesn't even need to consume any spiritual energy; it can float lightly between the sea and the sky simply by relying on the pull of gravity and the support of repulsion.

There's no need to ride the wind, much less break the waves.

Like an iron mountain silently soaring over the sea, it comes and goes easily. Although its acceleration is slightly slow, once the speed is increased, even relying solely on its own inertial potential energy, it can crush everything in front of it like a cannonball.

This is the purest quality.

The Giant Sword doesn't need any extra weapons; its own physical weight is enough to crush all obstacles!
Not much time was wasted. Before dawn, the Prosperity had already reached the waters outside the Seven Cities and ventured deep into the endless ocean. In this desolate sea area where there were no fixed shipping routes, there wasn't even a ghost in sight for thousands of miles.

After roughly estimating the speed of the mermaid horde's advance, Ji Jue drew a circle on the sea chart and found that they were still thousands of miles away.

We arrived too early.

However, even though the main body of the species is still far away, the advance teams sent out by the mutated species should already be nearby.

To some extent, these seemingly mindless wild beasts actually know how to send out scouts to explore the way ahead. They even possess some kind of primitive language, and their interactions are extremely complex. Different groups also have different dialects.

No wonder she's called a mermaid.

This intelligence alone surpasses that of other beasts by a great margin, not to mention the threat it poses.

After finding a good spot, Ji Jue skillfully set up the nest and lowered the line...

Get ready to go fishing!

After fishing with bait in various ways for so long, this was the first time he had truly put his skills to use on the fish. To avoid coming home empty-handed, he spared no expense.

After using a broken scale from the resource library to extract a considerable amount of mutated flesh and blood, it was released into the ocean.

Right there in the seawater, the scarlet, writhing flesh began to twitch and spasm rapidly. Skin and scales grew, and its internal structure gradually changed.

Just as flesh and blood contain the structures and tissues of countless species, they naturally evolve after encountering different environments.

The flesh and blood grew rapidly in the seawater, and soon it became a strange mass of tissue. Beast-like fur and scales grew out of the skin, swimming haphazardly, and even began to extend tentacles to catch the fish and shrimp around it.

Even without any consciousness or reason, the instinct of a living being revealed the characteristics of a marine species. After successively preying on several octopuses and crabs, tentacles and carapaces began to appear on the writhing flesh, and fish-like eyes grew.

Right under Ji Jue's nose, it survived!
It was merely a scale that fell from the Great Evil Fish, and the byproducts that appeared in the blood seeping from the scale are now rapidly growing and evolving...

A few minutes later, the skin, after the scales fell off, revealed mimicking patterns that clung tightly to the reef like inconspicuous designs.

If left unattended, it might not be long before a new, terrifying predator appears in this sea area.

Unfortunately, it's too late.

Even before it entered the water, its blood and essence had already blended into the seawater, spreading silently and startling the enormous creatures roaming the surrounding area.

In the deep sea, where sunlight cannot reach, waves suddenly surge.

Its enormous, serpentine body swayed, chasing after an unprecedented sweet scent, and began to accelerate, speeding away. Yet, in its speed, it stirred up no undercurrents whatsoever, and not even a sound could be heard.

The thirsty mermaid moved silently, its swaying, sharp scales like blades, easily slicing the tangled seaweed into pieces before lurking nearby.

Despite the delicious food being delivered to their doorstep, they remained quite wary, even keeping a watchful eye on their surroundings. Unfortunately, they completely overlooked the Prosperity, which resembled a rock on the sea, slowly approaching, closer and closer.

Until, suddenly, it erupted!
A massive wave erupted in the deep sea, and a mermaid over twenty meters long shot out, its enormous mouth opening with a deafening roar before snapping shut.

With a snap, it pulverized the carapace, and the flesh and blood derivatives were gnawed apart by two rows of sharp, knife-like teeth, while the viscous blood spread from the seawater and was swallowed whole by the thirsty whale.

The mermaid's bite force is even more exaggerated than that of a hippopotamus. From the moment its teeth close, no matter how much the derivative resists, it can no longer break free.

But just as it was happily sucking the sweetness, it felt the flesh and blood in its mouth suddenly melt, change, and swell. When it realized something was wrong and tried to spit it out, it found that it could no longer open its mouth.

It was as if it had been completely glued shut; bizarre flesh and blood blocked its mouth, rapidly changing and spreading. No matter how the four human-like arms pulled, they couldn't pull it off. The melting flesh and blood continued to spread rapidly, even sticking to its hands in turn...

By the time it tried to escape, it was too late.

The bomb buried in flesh and blood was detonated.

Under Jing Zhen's impact, the mermaid convulsed for a moment before completely losing its ability to resist. Pulled by a thin yet strong silver thread, it involuntarily floated upwards little by little.

It was pulled into the cabin by the winch and dragged onto the operating table that had been prepared for it.

Even in its paralyzed state, the mermaid remained ferocious, twitching and struggling until it completely lost its strength.

In the end, all it could earn was a sigh of admiration from the humans before it.

"This kid is quite energetic..." Ji Jue clicked his tongue in admiration, then leaned forward to examine him closely: "Tell Uncle, how old are you this year?"

The mermaid cried out weakly.

Those venomous and hungry eyes stared at him intently, weak and powerless. But just as Ji Jue threw his head back and laughed, the mermaid, who should have lost all strength, suddenly jolted and sprang forward. Beneath the torn scales, an arm had somehow regained its mobility and reached out to grab Ji Jue's throat!
then……

It then fell into Ji Jue's hands.

It was easily held in one's hand; even the sharp claws couldn't leave a scratch on those long, slender, fair fingers.

In fact, it was grabbed by the other side.

It's like the groping hands of KTV owners, wantonly groping and rubbing.

"Wow, they're quite enthusiastic."

Ji Jue grinned, "Come on, let Uncle read your palm. Hey, why is there no career line? The marriage line isn't very good either, you've never been in a relationship, and the life line is a bit short, hmm..."

He paused for a moment, and finally sighed regretfully, "At this length, I'm afraid it can only live until today."

　Thank you so much, Yu Shi, for the Silver Alliance donation to "Apocalypse Forecast".

　　
　
(End of this chapter)