Seahorse Taotao
It was the most peaceful hour Mu Yu’s group had in quite a while as they admired the exuberant marine life under the water palace and the sound of splashing water. The community of corals and fish sung of living in their colours, a sort of visual choir eyes saw and the soul heard. Nonetheless, Mu Yu dragged Qiao Xue to the rear of the group, suspecting something was amiss.
Connecting Wood Spirit to Water Spirit as a means of communicating through their minds, Mu Yu inquired, “How much do you know about Archfiend Yujiang’s island? They don’t look as though they know it very well.”
“You can think of the ten fiend king’s dynasties as your cultivation sects that only unite when facing the elemental demons’ threat. In our case, we also unite against human cultivators. Otherwise, they wouldn’t know each other’s sect, or anybody could invade anybody, right?”
“I can’t get used to you referring to yourself as part of the fiend race.”
“Why not? I’m a fiend to begin with; I grew up with them.”
“This isn’t wise if we don’t know Archfiend Yujiang’s place. We’re injured personnel. Meanwhile, Gui Yeming is lurking somewhere.”
“We can’t just watch Ghost Gate invade, though, can we? Furthermore, we don’t know where Archfiend Yujiang is sealed. He will be in danger if Ghost Gate locates him first.”
“Who’s that singing? Their voice is almost as nice as mine,” Xiaoshuai popped out and asked, referring to a clear voice they could hear all around them.
“You scared off every fiend beast the last time you sung at Moyun Mountains, Rodent.”
“Stop,” called Lu Xiong, coming to a fork in the road.
“Which way?” Mu Yu queried.
“I don’t know,” answered Lu Xiong.
Xiaoshuai turned his head to listen in closely and then raised his claw. “Right. The nice voice is coming from the right.”
“Xiaoshuai, translate the lyrics for us,” requested Mu Yu.
Xiaoshuai cleared his throat and took in a big breath. “Aaaahhh.”
“I didn’t tell you to sing!” scolded Mu Yu, flicking XIaoshuai in the hand.
Xiaoshuai pouted. “You want the translation or not?”
“Okay, okay, you win.”
Xiaoshuai cleared his throat and started again. “Ah, ahlu, ahlula, Beautiful Xiaoshuai, you are my King’s embrace. Foreigners, be careful. Harbouring ulterior motives will shorten your lifespan. Ah, ahlu, ahlula, Beautiful Xiaoshuai, you are my paradise. Only those respectful shall be granted an audience with my king. Only the astute survive on the ocean waters. Ah…”
Mu Yu knew Xiaoshuai well enough to know “beautiful Xiaoshuai” meant “beautiful ocean”. That said, he had to ask, “What does ‘Only the astute survive on the ocean waters’ mean? What does it mean, only the smart can pass through?”
After he deliberated on the lyrics, Lu Xiong suggested, “Archfiend Yujiang is a brilliant fiend and, therefore, demands that all fiends learn about the ocean. I believe he wants fiends to pass his test in order to gain entry to his island.”
“When you’re handsome, like me, you can skip the test,” jubilantly remarked Xiaoshuai.
“Who’s singing?” Mu Yu inquired.
“Likely mermaid fiends. Judging from the voice, the mermaid fiends haven’t developed intelligence,” opined Lu Xiong. “I suppose the lack of fiends in this heaven made it hard for underwater fiends here to develop intelligence.”
“How much do you know about the ocean?” Mu Yu asked.
“Not much. I can’t communicate with mermaids, either. Ol’ Gui knew the most, but…”
Mu Yu pressed a hand on Lu Xiong’s shoulder. “He’ll be all right. Let’s keep going.”
Mu Yu chose to go left since Xiaoshuai chose to go right. They ran into a coral reef wall blocking their way.
“Qiao Xue, shall we break it down?” a fiend asked.
“Don’t! Don’t damage anything along the path, or it will disappear,” Lu Xiong warned.
“Can we enter the ocean then take a detour around the wall to re-enter Sacred Path?” asked Qiao Xue, sticking her hand into the water wall.
“No. If we veer off Sacred Path, we will have to start all over again, so we must stay on,” educated Lu Xiong.
“We’ll have to see if there are any mechanisms to move the wall, or search for a detour, then,” opined Mu Yu.
Lu Xiong inspected the coral reef and discovered a water chain in between the rocks that he could pull out with his fingers. The other side of the water chain was anchored to a sleeping, purple hand-sized seahorse’s tail. He touched the seahorse and hollered, “Hello?”
The seahorse only needed a second to escape its fatigue due to the sight of so many people. “Hello. I’m the guard, General Seahorse Taotao. Who are you?”
“We are subjects of Green Dragon Kingdom. We are on our way to Ocean Archfiend Kingdom. Would you be able to notify your superiors?” requested Lu Xiong.
Seahorse Taotao cleared his throat. “As you are not part of the underwater fiend race, you need to answer a few questions to enter.”
“What is this, an intelligence test just to walk a path?” complained the dragon vine.
“It is His Majesty’s rule. All fiends living in the ocean must be erudite about the ocean as that increases their chances of survival, understood?”
“Do I get a free pass for looking handsome?” Xiaoshuai enthused.
“I can. Not you.”
Xiaoshuai pouted again.
“We are ready to answer,” expressed Lu Xiong.
Seahorse Taotao tumbled in the air, then asked, “What’s Seahorse Taotao’s favourite colour?”
Is he messing with us? wondered the fiends.
“Purple,” Mu Yu drawled, shaking his head.
“Correct. You have potential,” responded Seahorse Taotao.
The fiends pulled a double chin as they stared at Mu Yu. Qiao Xue whispered in his ear, “How did you know?”
“Look at what colour he is. Recall what his answer to Xiaoshuai’s question is. They’re cut from the same piece of cloth.”
“Second question: what shape does the ocean’s flow create? How do fiend beasts level five and below living underwater navigate?”
Everyone looked to Mu Yu.
“What do I look like to you? An aquatic animal?”
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