Super Gene

The lantern fish king was eventually going solo, for it had gone so fast, none of its brethren had been able to keep up. Only Han Sen could stick with it. Bao’er was still sitting atop the fish king, and as she sat there, she had a serious look on her face.

Han Sen kept following the fish king at this speed for two whole days. Fortunately, the wings were a beast soul. If he was using his own energy to fly, he would have been knackered far earlier.

Eventually, though, Han Sen saw the end of the long river he had traversed. It led to a big mountain, the peak of which was high up in the clouds someplace. An accurate estimation of its height could not be guessed.

There was a big waterfall on the mountain, too. It descended from someplace above the clouds, as if it were a tether to hold the sky and clouds in place.

It was a gorgeous sight, and before that grand waterfall, even the fish king looked small.

The waterfall descended into a lake. When the fish king reached this lake, it began to stream up through the waterfall into the sky. Bao’er held onto the fish king tight, flying up with it.

Han Sen shouted in her direction, but Bao’er ignored him. She remained fixated on the mountain they had come to.

The fish was swimming against the waterfall, and as it cleaved its way upwards, many splashes were created.

Han Sen had the power to do this, as well, but he refrained for now. And as Han Sen was lost in thought over the place he had come to, something came down from above the clouds.

Han Sen stood on the shores of the lake watching. Then, he saw a purple vine descend and try to lash the fish king as if it were a whip.

The fish king puffed up its belly and withstood the blow like a red sun.

Pang!

The fish king received that hit and bled a copious amount of blood; so much, the waterfall and lake below were dyed red.

The fish king opened its mouth and did not relent in its ascension of the waterfall.

Pang!

The vine was still there, and it lashed the king again. Many of the fish’s scales were stripped from its body.

Han Sen was frozen at the scene of this terrible sight. The fish king was incredibly powerful as it was. But the purple vine was able to nearly wreck the beast with but a single hit.

“What in the sanctuaries could that thing be? Is it a plant?! Is it a weapon?! Is someone controlling it or what?” Han Sen wondered, aghast.

His Dongxuan Aura was not efficient enough for him to detect what might have lurked above the clouds.

What Han Sen couldn’t understand the most, though, was why Bao’er was acting the way she was. She was determined to remain on the fish king, and her face was extremely serious. Han Sen had never seen her behave this way before.

“Does she know what is up there?” Han Sen thought to himself.

It did not seem possible. She had never been there before, so how could she know?

Regardless, one thing was for sure: she wanted something. There had to be something up there and she wanted it.

Pang!

The fish could not withstand this blow, and it could no longer continue its ascent. It fell all the way down to the lake below, creating a massive splash and tidal wave.

Han Sen knew the fish king could fly, but it must have been too weak to do so, following its third and final strike.

The fish king was not wholly defeated yet, though. It shone brightly, swimming around in circles before resuming its upwards flight.

The head of the fish was now crowned with a golden horn. The moment the vine came down, the fish king was able to skewer it with the horn.

The purple vine emitted a mist, following this. And it was still active; it lashed the horn.

Pang!

The golden horn was shattered, and the fish king fell back down into the lake once more.

The fish king was determined not to give up, though. It shone even brighter than it had before, and it was so bright, Han Sen found it difficult to watch.

Han Sen used his Dongxuan Aura to view the king, and he was able to see it regenerate. The scales around it healed, and its tail at the back was like a chipper cloud.

The fish king leaped out of the water and flew upwards like a rocket.

The purple vine whacked the fish again, shattering more of the scales. But the fish king did not submit to gravity this time, and it continued onwards and upwards. As it went, the obliterated scales were like golden stardust, left as a wake for its starbound pursuit.

The vine was unable to stop the fish king this time, but the seeming victory appeared to be short-lived. The illusion of success looked likely to crumble, as another vine appeared.

But the fish king kept going. It pushed on and accelerated, despite the loss of its scales.

It was so fast that the second vine was actually unable to do anything. And witnessing its failure to prevent the fish king’s ascent, the vines retreated above the clouds.

Bao’er’s face looked more dour than ever, after withstanding all that. She now held the gourd in her hands as she stared up at the clouds she was fast approaching.

Han Sen watched as the bleeding fish penetrated the clouds and then, from somewhere above, the noise of thunder sounded. Purple lights appeared in the sky.

The clouds were torn asunder by these lights, and the fish became a bloodfish. Its scales had all been stripped away.

The moment the clouds were torn, Han Sen was able to see the peak of the mountain. There, atop the mountain, was an old vine. The two vines that had assaulted the fish were only a part of it.

And the purple light that now flashed was sent out by the old vine.

“What is that thing?” Han Sen looked at it in surprise.