The abyssal sea trembles.
Dark currents coil like beasts beneath the
ocean floor,
where five cloaked figures hover in a loose formation, their auras concealed, their hearts pounding.
"Don't panic."
One of them sneers beneath his hood.
"It's five of us versus just one him.
We will definitely kill him today."
The water suddenly stills.
A presence arrives.
"…Really?"
The voice echoes from everywhere—and nowhere.
Before the cloaked man can react,
space collapses.
BOOM—!
A white-bearded man appears in front of him,
fist already buried deep in his chest.
The cloaked man is launched like a meteor,
tearing through water, pressure, and stone—
CRASH—!!!
He PLUMMETS THROUGH THE SEA FLOOR,
vanishing into the depths below.
The impact reverberates endlessly.
The ocean floor fractures.
A colossal UNDERSEA AVALANCHE
detonates outward.
Miles upon miles of water and sand spiral
into a roaring hurricane.
Far away, El-Mond braces himself,
cloak whipping violently as the pressure
slams into him.
Sea boulders shatter.
Ancient coral forests are uprooted like weeds.
"That has to have done the job,"
El-Mond mutters calmly.
"No one is surviving that.
Myself not included."
His eyes narrow as he watches the chaos
unfold.
Behind the storm—
The remaining four cloaked men recoil in terror, instinctively distancing themselves from the
white-bearded man.
Then—
He opens his hand.
Floating in his palm—
A STILL-BEATING HEART.
Blood disperses slowly through the water.
"Ha…"
The white-bearded man chuckles, lips curling unnaturally.
"What a lucky dog.
An easier escape, thanks to my momentary outburst of rage."
His smile twists.
"But don't worry.
The rest of you will have to bear…
extra torture."
His crazed gaze locks onto another cloaked
figure.
"Shit!"
The man screams at the top of his lungs.
"RUN!!"
BOOOOM—!
A sonic explosion tears through the sea
as all four scatter in different directions,
tearing space apart with desperate speed.
"Don't even think about it."
The white-bearded man lunges forward—
Then stops.
Something binds him.
Invisible ropes—
Four glowing yellow runic strands—
Wrap around his wrists and legs,
anchoring him in place.
"What's this…?"
His brows furrow.
"Rune magic?"
A cloaked man turns back mid-flight,
eyes wide.
"Damn it… we miscalculated.
He's a Mid-Rank Mortal-God!"
Sweat drips beneath the hood.
"I have to report back immediately.
The sect leader's rune magic should hold
him for a while—"
"Hold who?"
The voice whispers from above.
The cloaked man freezes.
Slowly… he looks up.
The white-bearded man floats right over him.
In his right hand—
The lifeless body of the Orca King.
In his left—
The crushed corpse of the Whale King.
The cloaked man gasps.
His eyes widen in pure horror.
No words leave his mouth.
SNAP—
His head detaches cleanly, drifting away
into the darkness.
Silence.
The white-bearded man turns, sensing but
couldn't find the last one fleeing cloaked man.
His energy ERUPTS.
Red aura floods the ocean like burning blood.
He screams.
"THOSE SURFACE DWELLERS…
WILL PAY FOR THIS!!"
Suddenly—
His head snaps to the left.
"I see… you."
His eyes pierce through five hundred miles of ocean.
Locked directly onto El-Mond.
In less than a nanosecond—
GLITCH—!
The white-bearded man vanishes.
And instantly reappears in front of El-Mond.
Red energy pours off his body like living flame.
He looms over him.
A beastly, abyss-shaking voice growls:
"FOUND… YOU…!"
El-Mond stands motionless.
Seconds pass.
Then—
The invisibility skill dissipates.
He lifts his head slowly.
Through the shadows of his cloak,
his eyes meet the white-bearded man's.
Calm.
Cold.
Absolute.
He speaks.
"Recede.
OR
Decease."
The impossible happens.
The white-bearded man steps back—
His body reacting before his mind.
"…What?"
His eyes widen in confusion.
"What just happened…?
Every cell in my body screamed to escape."
His gaze sharpens, wary.
"But why…?
He's only an Emperor-Rank Evolver…"
The abyss trembles once more.
TO BE CONTINUED.