HPDBC Chapter 39 Fishman
Chapter 39 Fishman
At 11 p.m., the surface of the Yongding River was as black as ink.
Li Shancheng submerged in the water, the power of the Kan position flowing through his body, making the water flow no longer an obstacle, but an extension of his limbs. He could "hear" the sound of the water—not the sound itself, but the information of the water flowing over the riverbed, the trajectory of schools of fish, and the subtle energy pulses emitted by underwater detection equipment.
As planned, Liu Wei, Xu Qingqing, and Su Yan entered the Shuanglong Bridge cordon area half an hour earlier as part of the "Chen Ya Expert Team." Cheng Xu's monitoring showed that they were temporarily safe and were "inspecting" the construction site according to the predetermined procedure. However, the guards from Hanshan Technology were clearly more vigilant, and someone accompanied them every step of the way.
Li Shancheng slowly approached the third pier of the Shuanglong Bridge along the riverbed. In his energy vision, the pier resembled a giant energy antenna, drawing power from the earth's veins deep underground and transmitting it upwards to the altar on the bridge surface. The surface of the pier was covered with runes, mostly dark red ones later engraved by Hanshan Technology, but a few ancient blue runes stubbornly resisted—the original protection of the array's core was being gradually eroded.
He reached out and touched the blue runes, and his Wen Shu bloodline responded automatically. The runes glowed faintly, transmitting a painful and weak cry for help:
"Invaded... Energy stripped... Guardians... Help..."
"I will," Li Shancheng replied in his mind, and at the same time began to carry out the first step of the plan—modifying the rune structure of the bridge piers.
This wasn't destruction, but rather "disguise." Jiang Han taught him an ancient rune technique: layering a camouflage layer on top of the existing runes, misleading energy detection devices into thinking everything was normal, while in reality altering the energy flow. The key to the technique was synchronization—the camouflaged energy frequency had to perfectly match the original runes, otherwise it would be detected immediately.
Li Shancheng closed his eyes, allowing his consciousness to connect with the network of runes on the bridge piers. His Wen Shu bloodline allowed him to understand the meaning of these ancient symbols, while the power of the Kan position provided a rhythmic sense synchronized with the flowing water. He began to carve the runes with his fingers, not with physical tools, but with a "carving knife" formed from condensed energy.
With the first stroke, a dark red Cold Mountain Technology rune dimmed slightly.
With the second stroke, the rune structure began to distort.
The third stroke completely changed the nature of the rune, transforming it from energy absorption to energy leakage.
This process was extremely slow; each rune modification took at least a minute, and there were hundreds of runes on the entire bridge pier. Time was running out, so he had to choose the most critical location—the main node for energy transmission.
The knowledge from the Book of Light provided assistance, automatically marking the twelve nodes on the bridge pier where the energy was most concentrated. Li Shancheng focused his efforts on modifying these twelve points, and with each modification, he could feel the energy being transmitted upwards from the bridge pier diminishing.
An hour passed, and he had completed seven nodes. There were five more to go, but it was already close to midnight. According to the plan, Liu Wei and her team would create the first "anomaly" at this time to attract the guards' attention.
Right on time, a commotion arose on the bridge. Cheng Xu reported via encrypted channel: "Qingqing triggered the energy detection alarm; guards are gathering towards the ancient book storage area. Su Yan created a small fire alarm to further distract them. The number of guards on the bridge has now been reduced by half, but the core altar area remains heavily guarded."
"Understood," Li Shancheng replied, speeding up.
The eighth node, the ninth node... Sweat mingled with the river water, and the headache from intense concentration began to worsen. Maintaining three layers of protection, modifying runes, and staying hidden all at the same time was consuming far more energy than expected.
As he completed the tenth node, he suddenly felt a pang of anxiety—not from himself, but from the deeper underwater. Something was approaching, moving very fast; it wasn't a fish, nor a human...
"Something's underwater!" Cheng Xu's voice suddenly rang in the earpiece. "Thermal imaging shows three high-speed moving objects approaching your location from downstream. They're huge, and the energy reading... they're modified creatures! Aquatic modified creatures!"
Li Shancheng immediately stopped modifying the runes and turned to face the approaching enemy. In the darkness, three slender figures emerged from the water. They had humanoid torsos, but their limbs were covered in scales, their fingers were webbed, and their eyes emitted an eerie green light. Most bizarrely, their heads were half-human, half-fish, with fine, sharp teeth in their mouths.
"A fish-man modified form." Cheng Xu quickly analyzed the data. "It combines the genes of humans, fish, and some kind of water demon. Its underwater speed can reach fifteen meters per second, and its bite force is enough to tear through steel plates. Its weaknesses may be its gills and the energy core at the back of its neck."
The first fishman charged forward, its claws aimed straight for his throat. Li Shancheng dodged to the side, the water current, guided by the power of the Kan position, forming a whirlpool that swayed the fishman. But two others flanked him from both sides, sealing off any escape route.
There was no time for a prolonged fight. Li Shancheng formed hand seals, mobilizing all the power within his body from the Kan position. The silt in the riverbed suddenly boiled, condensing into dozens of sharp stone spikes, which shot towards the fishman from below. This was the Kan position's basic attack spell, "Earth Spring Spike," whose power was weakened in water, but the sheer number of spikes could compensate for it.
The two fishmen were struck by the stone spikes, momentarily stunned. But the first fishman recovered and lunged again. This time, Li Shancheng didn't dodge, but met the attack head-on.
In the instant before contact, he removed all defenses, fully releasing the power of the Wen Shu bloodline. A silvery-white light erupted in the water, not offensively, but as a manifestation of "information flow"—the vast knowledge recorded in the Book of Light directly impacted the brain of the fish-man modified body.
The fish-man's movements suddenly froze, a chaotic light flickering in its eerie green eyes. The modified creature's brain was still human, only controlled and altered. A massive flow of information overwhelmed the control program, awakening repressed fragments of human consciousness. It let out a agonizing roar, not the sound of a fish, but the scream of a human.
The other two fishmen were also stunned by this scene and hesitated.
Seizing the opportunity, Li Shancheng quickly inscribed a special rune—neither offensive nor defensive, but "purification." The knowledge power of Wen Shu, the water purification of Kan position, and the trace of the ancient guardian's will he obtained from his grandfather's ring merged into a silver-blue light rune.
The light rune was imprinted on the foreheads of the three merfolk, who froze simultaneously. The eerie green light in their eyes gradually faded, revealing the original color of human eyes—empty, but no longer insane.
"Let's go," Li Shancheng said to them, "Get away from here, the farther the better."
The fish-men hesitated for a moment, then turned and swam quickly into the distance. They might not live much longer; the modified body structure was irreversible, but at least they could regain a sliver of their original selves before they died.
The crisis was temporarily averted, but fifteen minutes had already been wasted. Li Shancheng immediately returned to the bridge pier to continue modifying the last two critical nodes.
Just then, a violent energy fluctuation suddenly came from the bridge. It wasn't an illusion created by Liu Wei and the others, but a real, powerful energy burst.