The Creatures That We Are

Chapter 874: Little Creek

"Bastard!" Old Seven's fury erupted. He hadn’t held back, but he was hesitant to kill his own kind. Watching his companions fall one after another burned away his last shred of hesitance, though. Hatred blazed in his eyes.

Bam! His Finger Strength reached level 6 then. The muscles in his forearms swelled larger than his calves, his fingers expanding into ten deadly gourds. He unleashed a golden air bullet with the force of anti-aircraft artillery, the projectile screaming toward the falling Heavenly Dog and Muzitu.

A sudden gust tore through the air, hurling the pair sideways. The air bullet sliced through the empty space between them like a reaper's scythe, missing by a hair's breadth.

Nainai floated in the dark river, her limbs splayed. She had reverted to her normal size after her giant transformation, utterly spent. The waves rolled over her face and body with regularity.

"Hmph," she managed, one hand pointed skyward from where she'd launched her Gale. "They are this Empress' subjects, not to be hurt by kinds like you—ack, ack!"

River water filled her mouth mid-boast. Panic shattered her precarious balance as she thrashed in the current. She couldn't swim, and her depleted energy left Gale beyond reach.

"Help! Come to this Empress' aide—ack—help me..."

[Nine Frost: Heavenly Dog, save them! Retreat!]

The paralysis wore off just as Heavenly Dog neared the river. Fighting through his pain, he snatched Muzitu's hand mid-fall. Their momentum carried them toward the water where Nainai flailed. He swept her up in one fluid motion, skimming the river's surface and leaving violet ripples in their wake.

Level 6 Fly carried them from the battlefield in an instant, too fast for the Ocean River Union to intercept.

Almost simultaneously, another explosion rocked the river beneath the bridge's center. A blue shark, conjured by Sea King, erupted from the depths, jaws snapping at the Union members. Though barely a quarter the size of the earlier whale, its attack scattered their formation.

Sister Ling had no time for Praise without Rewind and her megaphone nearby. She leaped into action instead. The whale's earlier assault had left the bridge awash in pools. With a gesture, she transformed them into a massive ice cone that pierced the blue shark, pinning it against the sky.

"Die!" Veggie's delicate frame transformed as she unleashed her sonic attack. Her chest expanded dramatically, her neck doubling in thickness as layers of soundwaves hammered the impaled shark.

The construct shattered. Marine life, river water, weeds, and stones rained down, leaving only a skeleton of blue energy strands. At its core stood not Raven Shark, but Dead Pig, his tanned, burly frame gripping the giant ice cone.

A sudden realization struck; Dead Pig had used Displacement two seconds ago, swapping places with Raven Shark inside the blue shark construct.

Growl—

Dead Pig's bestial roar shook heaven and earth, threatening to shatter eardrums. He launched himself toward the bridge, his body already beginning to change as level 7 Beastly activated. Just a week ago, he'd comprehended this third Talent. The Buff Rune Circuit had pushed it to level 4, then it jumped to level 7 with Self Recovery already reaching the level, catapulting him to tier 1 overnight.

During the three seconds before he landed on the bridge, Dead Pig’s hair elongated and turned into a mane as thick and hardy as steel cables. His skin became darker and impenetrable. Then his nose grew longer and upturn, his nostrils large and round. His mouth split to the sides dramatically, too, growing two sharp white fangs.

Boom! The bridge trembled as Dead Pig landed, his feet sinking into the road.

Sister Ling froze. Before her stood a giant wild boar monster almost five meters tall with crimson eyes and a wild, violent crimson aura. Even the breaths coming out of its nostrils were heated and red.

At that moment, Sister Ling suddenly remembered the Zhu Majie drawn in a dark art style she had seen somewhere. That was what Dead Pig looked like.

“Run!”

“Out of the way!”

Her companions' voices reached her as if through thick glass, distant and muffled. Sister Ling didn't resist. Three high-intensity ice techniques had drained her completely. Her legs felt like lead, refusing to move.

Memories flooded her mind: weekly gatherings when Green Tea was still around, the team sharing meals, singing together, shopping trips filled with laughter. Then Green Tea vanished. Liao Liao joined them. Fewer gatherings, but at least they were safe.

Everything changed when the Hundred Rivers Union merged with the Qilin Guild. She was in the intelligence department first, then Team Yan Liang after acquiring Frost. Life turned harsh. Choices narrowed. Fear became her constant companion. Food lost its taste. Sleep became a stranger.

Ocean River Union, the ocean’s supposed to accommodate a hundred rivers.

That’s all well and good, but does the ocean ever consider how the hundred rivers feel?

I’m only a little creek. I prefer the deep valleys, the beautiful forests, the mist of dawn, and small critters play-fighting.

I don’t want to go to the o—

Bam!

The monstrous boar's strike met her fragile form like an excavator's blow. Her skull shattered, internal organs rupturing as her body sailed off the bridge into the Li River.

"No!!" Citrus's scream tore through the air. Rage consumed her as she drew her Black Gold gun, charging forward while emptying clip after clip into Dead Pig's hide.

The bullets might as well have been raindrops. Level 7 Self Recovery combined with Beastly's enhanced physique rendered Dead Pig's skin impervious. Not even Slow's poison could penetrate.

"Calm down!" Rain River grabbed Citrus's arm, her own fury contained behind gritted teeth. She pulled her colleague back. "Allow me!"