Volume 3: Global Vanguard & The Advanced Pinnacle
Chapter 207
Battle upon the Tsunami's Crest
RUMBLE, RUMBLE, RUMBLE, RUMBLE!!
The surface of the ocean at the Dead Coral Reef was no longer a simple, placid expanse of water; it had completely transformed into a colossal meat grinder forged by nature itself. The fathomless abyss at the bottom of the deep ocean trench collapsed, creating a pitch-black, gargantuan water funnel over half a kilometer in diameter, frantically devouring millions of cubic meters of saltwater along with shattered shards of coral into its dark, roaring vortex.
From the very epicenter of this oceanic black hole, the Eight-Desolations Behemoth Whale surged upward.
The colossal, two-hundred-meter-long body of the ancient behemoth breached the surface like a mobile underwater island. Its entire spine was encased in a layer of pitch-black obsidian rock, harder than high-grade magical alloys, interwoven with ancient mossy grooves and razor-sharp fossilized stone spikes pointing upward like a reverse forest of swords and spears. Along its massive flanks, dense layers of dark purple thunder scales overlapped tightly, grinding against each other to emit crackling chains of electric sparks reeking of toxic ozone.
The behemoth’s two eyes burned crimson like erupting volcanic craters, radiating the brutal, predatory ferocity of an apex predator that had slumbered at the bottom of the ocean trench for thousands of years. A single violent flick of its tail instantly hurled tens of thousands of tons of seawater high into the air, condensing into a towering, pitch-black wall of tsunami waves fifty meters high, crashing down furiously toward the coral reef island and the warship Xuanwu!
A Category 12 gale howled mercilessly. The already gloomy sky suddenly darkened as if covered in spilled ink, churning storm clouds pressing down right atop the mastheads. Rending thunderclaps tore through space, blending with the roaring ocean to compose a destructive symphony of wild nature.
At the command center of the World Magic Tournament stationed in Venice, the live magical broadcast signals from the remote sensing satellites suddenly shook violently. On the massive giant sapphire crystal screens erected in the middle of Saint Mark’s Square, the magical fluctuation graph abruptly shot straight up into a blinding crimson column.
“Red-level alert! An ancient Overlord-tier superior creature has been detected in the Dead Coral Reef sea area!”
“The magical energy fluctuation level has exceeded sixty thousand magic stone units! Good heavens, that’s the Eight-Desolations Behemoth Whale, the abyss overlord recorded in ancient marine charts!”
The frantic cries of the international magic monitoring specialists echoed through the command tower system. The veteran referees of the International Magic Association seated in the VIP stands simultaneously leaped to their feet, their expressions turning gravely solemn. The appearance of an Overlord-tier superior sea beast within the survival examination zone for twenty-year-old students completely exceeded every safety protocol!
On the satellite positioning sea charts near the coral reef, the warships of prominent teams such as the British Empire, the German Empire, and Northern Europe instantly flashed highest-priority alarm signals. Their magical engines roared at maximum capacity, their prows turning around frantically by one hundred and eighty degrees as they tore through the water, fleeing for their lives out of the impact zone of the tsunami battlefield. Even some substitute members of smaller teams, upon catching sight of the behemoth’s massive back rising in the distance through telescopes, were terrified to the point of trembling, shamelessly shattering the rescue wristbands on their wrists to activate the teleportation array and escape!
Yet right in the eye of the storm, atop the bright crimson dot representing the warship Xuanwu of Team China, the vessel did not turn back at all.
It still stood unflinchingly, tearing through the rainstorm and charging straight toward the fifty-meter-high tsunami wall!
CREAK... CRACK...
The ancient thousand-year-old fir wood hull of the Xuanwu groaned under the suffocating pressure of seawater weight cascading down from its peak. Salty, bitter sea spray lashed fiercely against the faces of everyone on deck. The air grew so stifling that the magic energy within their bodies felt as though it were freezing over.
“Captain! The tsunami wave is over fifty meters high, and the descent angle is practically vertical!” Xie Zhaoyuan tightly gripped his platinum guardian wand, his knuckles turning white from sheer exertion. Cold sweat streamed down his temples, but the gaze behind his wire-rimmed glasses maintained intense concentration. “At this rate of collapse, the moment it hits bottom for three seconds, the hull of the Xuanwu will be crushed into kindling!”
“The other national teams have all turned back and fled or pressed their retreat buttons.” Ye Qingwan stood on the right starboard side of the deck, the magical silk ribbon binding her hair fluttering wildly in the storm. Her gaze fixed directly upon the gigantic ancient beast ahead, her voice laced with tension alongside a blazing fighting spirit: “Are we... going to face it head-on?”
At the summit of Xuanwu’s highest mast, Lin Feng stood with his hands behind his back against the howling gale.
The hem of his tactical combat uniform embroidered with a golden dragon fluttered fiercely in the violent wind pressure. The hailstones and purple lightning bolts falling around him were all batted away by an invisible layer of thunder radiance radiating from his body. Lin Feng’s eyes were as deep as an ancient swamp, calmly sweeping across the raging tsunami before locking onto the massive physique of the Eight-Desolations Behemoth Whale.
Fleeing?
Deep within Lin Feng’s eyes, a passionate fire burned fiercely. He understood the rules of the World Tournament better than anyone. Wilderness survival battlefields awarded points based on the danger level of spoils. Slaughtering a thousand Servant-tier or a hundred Warrior-tier beasts could never compare to the achievement of slaying an Overlord-tier superior beast right inside its own lair!
If they fled, even if China kept the points plundered from the Japanese team, they would still merely be ordinary victors. But if they slaughtered this giant whale, China would set an unprecedented points record in the century-long history of the Venice tournament, delivering a thunderous display of dominance to all Western magical superpowers!
“What is there to run from?” Lin Feng’s voice was deep and resonant, cutting through the magical sound array runes distributed across the hull, echoing clearly in the ears of every teammate amidst the roaring tempest: “Avoiding wind and waves is for the weak. Before Team China, tsunamis must part their ways, and ancient behemoths must bow their heads! All team members, take your battle positions. Today, we’re hunting sea whales!”
Every single word of his sounded like battle drums urging the soul, instantly sweeping away the heavy tension weighing on everyone’s hearts and igniting the arrogant flame of the top prodigies of the Divine Land!
“Understood!!” The four on deck roared in unison, their killing intent soaring into the sky.
“Ye Langtian, clear the way for the ship!” Lin Feng pointed forward, giving a decisive order.
“Leave it to me!”
At the bow, Ye Langtian stepped forward, standing proudly right upon the bronze-carved dragon head of the Xuanwu. His short hair whipped backward.
Facing the massive wall of water weighing millions of tons crashing down furiously, now less than thirty meters from the ship’s bow, Ye Langtian did not blink even once. His pupils abruptly transformed into a pure silvery hue, sparkling like an endless galaxy.
SWISH! SWISH! SWISH!
Without any cumbersome buildup, Spatial Element magic energy—one of the rarest and most noble primary elements in the world—surged frantically from Ye Langtian’s spiritual sea. His ten fingers intertwined at demonic speed, tracing brilliant silver Star Paths across the damp air. In the blink of an eye, seven Star Paths connected to form a magnificent Spatial Star Map!
“Spatial Wall — Bending Curvature!”
BOOM!!
A muffled shockwave echoed through the air. Roughly fifteen meters directly ahead of the Xuanwu’s bow, a translucent wall of light rippling with silver waves suddenly condensed out of thin air. This wall was not flat like ordinary defensive magic; under Ye Langtian’s precise manipulation, it curved into a giant triangular wedge, its sharp point aiming straight at the tsunami wave!
CRASH, CRASH, CRASH, CRASH!!
The earth-shattering moment of impact arrived!
The fifty-meter-high tsunami bearing nature’s terrifying destructive force smashed directly against the spatial wedge. The immense shockwave exploded like booming artillery fire, splashing white foam hundreds of yards into the air. Yet the bent spatial current completely deflected the forward momentum of the saltwater mass!
The giant tsunami wall was sliced straight from peak to base by an invisible blade, tearing apart down the middle! Two roaring currents of water, churning with foaming white bubbles, glided along the two slanted edges of the spatial wall before plunging straight down both flanks of the Xuanwu!
WHOOSH, WHOOSH...
The warship sped swiftly through the dry gap between the two towering walls of water, gliding smoothly across the ocean surface without shaking even a fraction of an inch!
“Well done, Ye Langtian!” Xie Zhaoyuan cheered, instantly pointing his light wand skyward: “Light Blessing — Holy Shield Domain!”
BOOM!
A brilliant golden dome of light resembling a divine turtle shell erupted, enveloping the entire warship and completely blocking the flying underwater rocks and coral shards whipping through the foaming spray.
As the tsunami completely collapsed toward the rear, the forward field of vision suddenly burst wide open. And the sight that greeted everyone caused their chests to constrict tightly.
The Eight-Desolations Behemoth Whale had closed in to a distance of less than a hundred meters!
This proximity allowed them to clearly see every single rugged, ash-gray muscle fiber of the ancient monster. Its massive physique was so enormous that it blocked out an entire corner of the horizon. Realizing its tsunami attack had been effortlessly neutralized by the humans, the Eight-Desolations Behemoth Whale emitted an angry rumble from deep within its chest. The muffled infrasonic waves swept across the sea surface, forming fan-shaped shock ripples that tore through the water’s surface layer.
It arched its body, lifting its colossal thirty-meter-wide tailfin entirely out of the water, preparing to smash down fiercely and dive deep into the coral reef abyss!
Once an Overlord-tier superior aquatic beast plunged into the fathomless depths of the ocean, it would completely dominate the battlefield. It could launch destructive pillars of water from the seabed or use a terrifying head-on collision to crush the hull of the Xuanwu from a blind spot!
“Trying to dive into the sea?”
A crystal-clear voice as cold as millennium glacial ice echoed from the left port side of the deck.
Han Yue stepped to the ship’s railing. The hem of her pale blue combat dress fluttered gently with every step. Within the proud phoenix eyes of the Divine Land’s Ice element goddess, a chilling blue vortex began to spin.
SURGE!
A bone-chilling, extreme frost aura suddenly erupted from deep within Han Yue’s body!
That was the breath of a preliminary Ice-system Soul Seed—the Extreme Ice Soul Spirit! Although she had only fused and unleashed one-third of its original might, a Soul Seed’s tier far surpassed ordinary primary elemental Spirit Seeds in this world. The very moment this aura was released, the temperature of the surrounding sea area instantly plummeted nose-first down to minus forty degrees Celsius!
Every falling raindrop in midair instantly froze into razor-sharp ice needles, pattering down onto the deck. Han Yue’s long, silky black hair turned a pristine snow-white in the blink of an eye, accentuating her translucent skin and ethereal, fairy-like disposition.
<div>
— Ice Lock — Extreme Ice Life Chains!
</div>
Han Yue raised her delicate white hands, her slender fingers forming hand seals at blinding speed. The Ice-system Nebula within her body spun to its absolute limit, pouring abundant magic energy straight into the pitch-black ocean!
SNAP! CRACK! CLANG!
Deep beneath the ocean surrounding the Eight-Desolations Behemoth Whale, the seawater abruptly stopped boiling, replaced by the crisp, cracking sounds of freezing frost. Over twenty deep blue ice vortices surfaced on the water.
Immediately afterward, from the depths of the abyss, more than twenty colossal ice chains tore through the water surface, screaming as they lunged into the air!
Each and every ice chain was over two meters thick, crystallized from crystal-clear perpetual ice harder than quenched steel. Along every single link, glowing green magical ancient rune inscriptions flashed, emitting cold white wisps of smoke so freezing it literally crystallized the surrounding air!
WHOOSH! WHOOSH! THUD! THUD!
Under the precise guidance of Han Yue’s will, over twenty Extreme Ice Life Chains surged forward like enraged ice dragons, piercing straight toward the vital joints of the Eight-Desolations Behemoth Whale!
The razor-sharp anchor point at the tip of the ice chain pierced deep into the left swimming fin joint!
Four other chains wrapped tightly around the base of the massive tailfin!
Eight chains crossed and intertwined, embedding themselves firmly into the crevices between the thunder scales under the beast’s belly and flanks!
WHOOSH!
The thick, foul, pitch-black blood of the ancient monster just spurted from its wound, before it could even mix with the seawater, was instantly frozen solid into ghastly dark red blood-stone pillars by the bone-chilling cold of the Extreme Ice Soul Spirit!
The ice magic continued spreading along the chain links, rapidly sealing the blood vessels and motor joints of the behemoth. The seawater surrounding the two-hundred-meter body of the Eight-Desolations Behemoth Whale froze at a terrifying speed, forming a colossal floating ice plain dozens of meters thick, undulating and locking the giant whale right on the surface of the water!
ROAR!!
The Eight-Desolations Behemoth Whale struggled frantically, but its thousand-ton tail had already been pinned firmly to the underwater ice shelf by dozens of two-meter-thick ice chains. Its entire body weight was held rigidly on the ocean surface, completely stripping it of the ability to dive back into the abyss!
“Awesome, Sister Han Yue!” Ye Qingwan cheered admiringly.
Yet the Eight-Desolations Behemoth Whale was an Overlord-tier superior ancient overlord; how could it simply allow humans to imprison it?
Driven mad by the pain, the obsidian rocks on the behemoth’s back suddenly flashed with dark purple thunder-vein patterns. Dense clusters of ferocious lightning bolts resembling a swarm of venomous snakes burst outward from its body, frantically bombarding the ice chains in an attempt to shatter the seal!
CRACK! A few ice chains began showing spiderweb cracks under the beast’s destructive lightning firepower.
“Don’t even think about acting wild!” Ye Qingwan raised her hands lightning-fast. Pure turquoise Wind-element magic energy from her body transformed into a gentle gale, rapidly splitting into four wind-pressure currents that enveloped her teammates: “Wings of Gale — Incarnation!”
WHOOSH... WHOOSH...
Behind Lin Feng, Ye Langtian, and herself, transparent, gorgeous wind wings instantly sprouted. The wind wings fluttered lightly in the air, creating a flawless lifting force field that kept them suspended in midair amidst the tempest, completely escaping the rocking of the warship and readying them for close-quarters combat!
At the same time, atop the highest mast of the Xuanwu, Lin Feng gently raised his right hand.
His tactical jacket whipped wildly, revealing the rugged chest of the eighteen-year-old youth. Beneath his clothing, the Primordial Dragon Talisman radiated a golden brilliance so intense it shone right through the thick fabric. The supreme primordial energy aura from the Dragon Talisman faintly activated every meridian in Lin Feng’s body.
The Summoning-element Star Palace in his spiritual sea spun at a dizzying speed!
The seven fourth-tier Summoning Star Beads shone like nocturnal stars, connecting into a brilliant Star Path that tore across the boundaries of two worlds!
“Open — Summoning Gate!”
Lin Feng roared in a deep, powerful voice, violently sweeping his right hand into the stormy space before him!
RIP!!
A pitch-black dimensional rift abruptly tore through the gray rainstorm. From that rift, a colossal Summoning Gate twenty meters high descended grandly into the void!
The gate was forged from pitch-black dark metal, its borders framed by screeching purple-black thunder patterns. A ferocious, brutal aura resembling a starving beast from primordial times poured out turbulently from inside the gate, causing the frozen ocean surface below to shake violently!
HOWLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!!
An earth-shattering wolf howl exploded across the stormy vault of heaven!
The howl carried the majesty of an apex predator, blending with destructive electrical sound magic to instantly drown out nature’s rolling thunder.
From the deep darkness of the Summoning Gate, a massive claw encased in dark purple thunder scales stepped outward fiercely, trampling the storm clouds to pieces!
Nether Prison Black Wolf!
After devouring countless magical essences, absorbing a sliver of supreme Primordial Dragon Qi, and reinforcing its meridians through hundreds of life-and-death battles, Lin Feng’s contractual battle beast had now completely transformed, erupting into the ultimate combat form of its ancient bloodline:
Abyssal Taotie Giant Wolf!
BOOM!!
The massive, fifteen-meter-long body of the giant wolf stepped proudly out of the dimensional gate. Its entire body was covered in a sleek layer of pitch-black fur resembling eternal darkness, but along its spine grew a row of sharp, dark-purple thunder scales, each spike over half a meter long, crackling as they discharged violent electric arcs. On the fierce brow of the giant wolf, a solitary obsidian Thunder Horn stretched straight toward the sky, emitting dark purple thunder radiance that warped the surrounding space.
Most distinctive was its maw—when opened, its knife-sharp, sword-like fangs gleamed, inside which swirled a bottomless dark vortex reminiscent of the mythological divine beast Taotie capable of devouring all things!
Half-Step Overlord aura! Its robust physique was no inferior to any genuine Overlord-tier creature!
BANG!
The Taotie Giant Wolf landed on the ocean surface, its four sharp claws embedding themselves deeply into the colossal floating ice floe Han Yue had just created. The landing impact was so forceful it cracked the three-meter-thick ice layer, spraying thousands of bright purple-black electric sparks across the sea!
From atop the mast of the Xuanwu, Lin Feng leaped downward. The wind wings on his back fluttered gently, carrying his body gliding through the gale before landing rock-solid right upon the wide spine of the Taotie Giant Wolf!
The wind whistled by his ears, hailstones lashed his face, but Lin Feng’s eyes burned like torches, staring straight at the ancient monster struggling less than fifty meters away.
“Black Wolf, tear it apart for me!” Lin Feng patted the giant wolf’s mane hard, shouting aloud.
HOWL!!
The Taotie Giant Wolf roared in response to its master. The bulging muscles on its four hind legs tensed like catapult bowstrings, then suddenly unleashed their power!
CRASH!
The thousand-ton ice floe beneath its feet shattered into a hundred pieces. The fifteen-meter massive body of the giant wolf transformed into a dark-purple afterimage tearing through the wind and waves, treading across the undulating ice floes on the sea at a speed too fast for the naked eye to catch!
The Eight-Desolations Behemoth Whale instantly sensed the monstrous killing intent hurtling straight toward it. Seeing a black wolf and a human youth dare to arrogantly charge right into its territory, the deep-sea overlord’s pride was utterly insulted!
ROAR!!
The giant whale threw its head back and roared, its massive maw opening wide like a pitch-black abyss at the bottom of a ravine. Thousands of dark purple thunderbolts from all the obsidian rocks on its back frantically converged toward its throat, condensing into a destructive thunder sphere up to five meters in diameter!
Desolating World Thunder Cannon!
The violent lightning energy caused the surrounding seawater to boil furiously, warping space itself!
“Captain, be careful! It’s going to fire the thunder cannon!” From behind, Ye Qingwan’s anxious voice carried through the rain.
“Let it charge its power!” Lin Feng stood atop the wolf’s back, the corners of his mouth curving into an arrogant, chilling smile.
The exact moment the thunder sphere within the giant whale’s mouth was about to erupt, the Taotie Giant Wolf had dashed to the edge of a raised ice floe jutting upward like a natural ramp.
GATHER POWER! LEAP!
CRACK... BOOM!!
The four claws of the Taotie Giant Wolf crushed the ice ridge, its fifteen-meter body borrowing the terrifying recoil force to vault over thirty meters high into the air, soaring straight over the top of the thunder sphere which fired harmlessly beneath it, tracing a flawless arc across the stormy sky!
And right at the highest falling point amidst the eye of the storm...
Lin Feng launched himself off the wolf’s back!
His feet kicked forcefully against the air, wind and thunder magic combining to propel his body another ten meters higher. Amidst the gray stormy night and blinding purple lightning bolts, the heroic figure of the youth stood out crystal-clear before the eyes of global audiences watching through magical screens!
Lin Feng’s right hand clenched into a fist.
BANG! BANG!
The crimson Scarlet Flame Flowing Fire blazed furiously, enveloping his entire arm, intertwining with the enchanting dark purple lightning bolts of the Raging Thunder Absolute Shadow as they shrieked and twisted tightly around each other, forming a violent dual-dragon thunder-fire howling around his fist!
Plummeting from a height of forty meters, Lin Feng descended straight down like a flaming meteorite!
THUD!!
The soles of Lin Feng’s combat boots stomped directly onto the pitch-black obsidian rock slab right atop the spine of the Eight-Desolations Behemoth Whale!
The tremendous impact force combining Dragon Might’s enhanced physique with free-fall momentum caused the millennium volcanic rock on the behemoth’s back to fracture into a spiderweb of cracks five meters wide. Splintered volcanic rock sprayed crimson sparks everywhere!
ROARRRRRRRRRR!!
The Eight-Desolations Behemoth Whale emitted a shriek of pain sharp enough to pierce eardrums, its entire two-hundred-meter colossal body shaking violently!
Standing proudly atop the spine of the ancient beast, amidst the sea of fire and lightning tearing viciously around him, Lin Feng lowered his head to look at the cracking thunder scales beneath his feet, the smile on his lips growing even more radiant and bloodthirsty:
“Deep-sea overlord? Today, your life is mine!”
The thunder-fire on Lin Feng’s fist blazed up to the sky, preparing to deal a fatal blow to the behemoth’s vital point. But at that exact moment, from deep beneath the fractured obsidian rock, an ancient purple-blue thunder core suddenly emitted a blinding light, accompanied by a terrifying gravitational pull attempting to swallow all the intruder’s magic energy...