Chapter 5

The muddy waves filled the sky, and the sea and sky were one color.

Huang Rong only felt her whole body cold to the bone, and the salty seawater kept pouring into her mouth and nose, making her almost suffocate.

She was a bit disheveled, and her heart was filled with regret.

Had she known it would be like this, she wouldn't have argued with her father and sailed out to sea in a fit of anger.

Her father was always so stubborn, managing this and that, even questioning who she made friends with.

In a fit of anger, she wanted to come out to relax and prove that even without Taohuadao, she could be perfectly fine.

Who would have thought that although there were occasional winds and waves, she had never seen such a fierce scene as today.

The dark clouds pressed down, the wind was like a knife, and the giant waves were monstrous, as if they wanted to overturn the entire world.

Her small boat, in the face of such heavenly power, was as fragile as paper; after a few waves, it was already in pieces.

Had she not practiced Taohuadao Wu Gong since childhood, with agile movement and decent swimming skills, she would have long since been buried in the belly of a fish.

Even so, she was exhausted at this moment.

The cold seawater kept stripping away her body temperature, making her hands and feet stiff.

"Father..."

Huang Rong bit her lower lip, a flash of stubbornness in her eyes, but also a trace of grievance.

Although she was clever and bright, known as the "Little Eastern Heretic," and prided herself on having countless schemes, she felt a deep sense of powerlessness in the face of this pure heavenly power.

Human power has its limits; this saying is true.

She tried hard to calm herself down.

The more critical the moment, the less one can panic.

Her father often said that only by staying calm in the face of events can one find a glimmer of survival.

She took a deep breath, the cold seawater making her cough, but her eyes gradually became clear.

She must find a way to escape!

She cannot die here!

Taohuadao, Father... and so many things she couldn't let go of.

She began to carefully observe the surrounding waves.

Although the giant waves were fierce, they were not without patterns to follow.

Between waves, there was always a brief interval.

A flash of inspiration struck her mind, and she remembered the peerless skill of Taohuadao—the Spirit Turtle Steps.

This footwork was originally meant to simulate the swimming state of the spirit turtle in the sea, emphasizing going with the flow and borrowing force to strike.

Perhaps she could try to borrow the power of the waves to go against the current and find a path back to Taohuadao.

Although difficult, it was better than sitting and waiting for death.

Huang Rong didn't hesitate, gave a delicate shout, slapped her palms on the water, and lifted her figure by borrowing the force.

Her toes tapped lightly on the surging waves like a dragonfly skimming the water, and her figure actually followed the rise and fall of the waves, sliding forward for a short distance.

It worked!

Huang Rong felt a slight joy in her heart.

She hurriedly focused her mind and energy, bringing the essence of the Spirit Turtle Steps into full play.

Tapping the waves again and again, borrowing force again and again.

Her figure appeared and disappeared amidst the waves, like a small boat in a storm, stubbornly moving toward the direction of Taohuadao in her memory.

Although the speed was slow, at least there was hope.

As long as she could persist, perhaps she really could...

Just as the flame of hope reignited in her heart, an indescribable stench, and a hair-raising sense of crisis, suddenly came from not far behind her!

Huang Rong felt a chill in her heart and looked back sharply.

She saw a huge gray shadow approaching her at an astonishing speed beneath the surging muddy waves!

It was a massive gray shark!

Its blood-red maw was half-open, revealing rows of razor-sharp teeth, its cold eyes staring fixedly at her, filled with greed and bloodthirsty light.

Huang Rong's face turned pale in an instant.

A gray shark!

And such a huge one!

In this wind and giant waves, she was already inconvenienced, and now she encountered such an ocean overlord...

She could almost foresee her own end.

If it were a normal day, she might be able to use the exquisite Wu Gong of Taohuadao to maneuver and find a chance to escape.

But at this moment, the impact of the giant waves and the ferocity of the gray shark, both combined, were simply adding insult to injury!

She couldn't escape at all!

"Could it be... that heaven wants me dead?"

A trace of despair quietly crept into her heart.

She was unwilling! She still had so many things left to do, so many delicacies she hadn't tasted, and...

The gray shark was getting closer, and the strong scent of blood almost drowned her.

She could even see the rough texture on the shark's skin.

The shadow of death instantly enveloped her.

At the critical moment!

Just when Huang Rong was about to close her eyes and wait for death—

"Splash!"

A huge sound of breaking water exploded between her and the gray shark!

A massive black figure, like a ghost of the deep sea, suddenly lunged out from the depths of the seabed, stirring up monstrous waves!

It was a snake!

A giant snake, six meters long, pitch-black as ink, its scales shimmering with a cold luster!

Its head was rugged, its eyes were blood-red, carrying an indescribable majesty and ferocity!

The moment this black snake appeared, the gray shark that had been charging fiercely seemed to sense something, and its massive body stalled suddenly!

But it was too late!

The giant black snake's speed was extreme, like a black bolt of lightning, instantly coiling around the gray shark!

"Hiss—!"

A sharp, powerful hiss pierced the roar of the wind and waves.

The giant black snake's thick body, like the toughest chain, coiled around the gray shark tightly, circle after circle.

Muscles knotted, power erupted!

"Crack! Crack! Crack!"

The teeth-aching sound of bone shattering clearly reached Huang Rong's ears, appearing so piercing even amidst the wind and waves.

The originally ferocious gray shark, under the Death Coil of this giant black snake, couldn't even put up a decent resistance.

It twisted its body frantically, trying to break free, but the giant black snake's coil became tighter and tighter!

Blood poured out from the gray shark's mouth, nose, and the gaps in its scales, dyeing the surrounding seawater a dark red.

Within a few breaths, the huge gray shark that had made Huang Rong feel despair stopped struggling under the terrifying strangulation of the giant black snake, its massive body floating powerlessly on the sea surface, already dead.

Huang Rong stared dumbfounded at this shocking scene, almost forgetting to breathe.

Her small mouth was slightly open, her beautiful eyes wide, her face filled with disbelief.

What... what kind of monster is this?!

How could there be such a huge snake?

And, so easily strangled a ferocious gray shark?

That was one of the overlords of the sea!

After the shock, a more intense chill rose from the bottom of Huang Rong's heart.

This giant black snake was more than ten times more terrifying than that gray shark!

The wild, ferocious aura it emitted made her heart palpitate.

She subconsciously wanted to escape, but her limbs were a bit disobedient, trembling slightly in the cold seawater.

It's over; just escaped the shark's mouth, only to enter the snake's maw?

Her small face turned even paler than before.

However, just when Huang Rong thought she was doomed, the giant black snake loosened the dead gray shark and slowly turned its massive head toward her.

Those blood-red snake eyes watched her quietly.

There was no greed or bloodthirst as she had imagined.

Instead... it carried a trace of indescribable... calm? And even a trace of... curiosity?

Huang Rong was stunned.

She was a bit bewildered.

This giant black snake didn't attack her immediately.

Did it just... appear specifically to strangle the gray shark that was about to attack her?

Could it be...

An absurd yet hopeful thought emerged in her mind.