The little mermaid's face was full of innocence as he happily swung his tail, seemingly excited about the happy life to come.
Han Tao pondered his words carefully, her expression unchanged, and asked softly, "Then how did you suddenly appear?"
"It didn't just appear out of nowhere!" The little mermaid suddenly stood up, her two little hands clenched into fists, her round little face full of anger. "It was those bad people outside the house! One day they suddenly came to our house, and Daddy and Mommy were afraid I would get hurt, so they opened a door and said that I could go in and hide for a while, and that I could see Daddy and Mommy again after I took a nap."
At this point, the little mermaid became aggrieved again: "I had just woken up when the bed I was on collapsed, and then I saw my mother's tail. If I hadn't grabbed it quickly, I would have fallen to my death!"
"Father, is Mother angry with me? Does she think I didn't hide properly? Is that why she's being so cold to me?"
Each mermaid tear turned into a pearl, making Han Tao's palms itch slightly.
The little mermaid's description was somewhat incoherent, but Han Tao could piece together the gist of it. An unbelievable guess popped into his mind, and just as he was about to ask another question, he saw Fu Mingxu open his eyes and walk towards him.
His aura was captivating, and his robes fluttered as he walked. Dressed in a blue robe, he stood amidst the spiritual energy of the mountains and rivers, making the scenery behind him seem like mere background.
"Mother!" The little mermaid, who had just been crying, immediately beamed with joy upon seeing the newcomer, and with a flick of her tail, she was about to jump over.
Han Tao withdrew his hand, stopping him from rushing into Fu Mingxu's arms.
"How are you?" Han Tao walked quickly to Fu Mingxu and asked with concern, "Are you still feeling unwell?"
"It feels great." Fu Mingxu was taken aback by the question, but then his attention was drawn back to the pitiful little mermaid. He straightened his clothes and sighed softly, "I just never thought that I would end up becoming a merman."
"Not entirely, but I can freely switch between the two body types."
His mind was now completely calm. The phantoms of the merman with forked fingers and the man in blue had been completely dissolved and became nourishment for his consciousness.
With a thought, Fu Mingxu could see half of the Dragon and Phoenix Realm in his field of vision. He could even clearly see the details of a small bird spreading its wings and flying in the dense forest.
The little mermaid received no response and twisted and writhed in Han Tao's hand, angrily crying out, "Daddy, let me go!"
Once the little mermaid had successfully stuck to Fu Mingxu, he nudged Han Tao with his elbow and teased, "What? You really want to be his dad?"
Han Tao's throat bobbed, and after a moment of thought, she said, "If you're willing to be a mother."
What he received in return was a hard blow from Fu Mingxu. Fortunately, he was thick-skinned and tough, otherwise he would have coughed up blood by now. Seeing that he was full of energy, Han Tao didn't pay attention to the strength of his blow.
"Eek—" The little mermaid nestled in Fu Mingxu's arms with a satisfied look on her face, her pure white fish tail swaying as she chuckled, "Daddy and Mommy are flirting again."
Fu Mingxu's cheeks flushed red, and he grabbed the fish by the tail in a fit of exasperation, glaring at him: "Where did you learn all this nonsense, kid?"
The little mermaid swayed contentedly with his movements and said smugly, "Mother, you've forgotten again. The storybooks you used to read were the ones you used to teach me to read."
Although he didn't know who his mother was, Fu Mingxu felt that it was probably not very reliable.
Han Tao, fearing he might say something inappropriate again, interrupted their conversation, saying, "Some changes have occurred in the Mermaid Domain. Let's go out and take a look."
"By the way, in the inheritance you received about the ancient merfolk, are there any records about the witch clan?"
When the topic turned to business, Fu Mingxu shook his head in distress: "No."
"I know, I know, the record is under the tomb," the little mermaid hurriedly said. "Mother, you forgot to take it."
Fu Mingxu sensed something was wrong: "How did you know?"
"I just told him." Han Tao glanced at the little mermaid and changed the subject before he could speak. "We need to get out of here quickly. Something has crawled out of a few graves. I'm afraid they've taken the records of the Witch Clan."
As for the little mermaid, he wanted to find out the details before telling him.
The little mermaid was angry that her father had stolen her credit, but she didn't want to expose him, so she just kept her head down and sulked.
Hearing this, Fu Mingxu became anxious and urged, "Then quickly open the Dragon-Phoenix Realm."
Han Tao nodded, and with a flick of his sleeve, the two of them returned to the grave without a tombstone.
As the white light of chaotic energy flashed, the records about the Wu tribe were finally unearthed from their buried location underground.
Fu Mingxu did not check it immediately, but carefully placed it into the inner space of the Heaven and Earth Mystic Mirror, finally feeling at ease.
As the two walked back, they indeed saw that many more graves had been opened from the inside, leaving only empty, dark spaces.
"Can you still pretend with your Dragon and Phoenix Realm?" Fu Mingxu walked halfway, then thought for a moment and felt that he still had to do something.
Han Tao seemed to be deep in thought, raising an eyebrow, but did not disagree. "You want to put the corpses of True Immortal Yuan Tong and the others into the Dragon-Phoenix Realm?"
“Although I don’t know why this place is like this, the person behind it is definitely not up to any good.” Fu Mingxu pointed to the surrounding graves and said frankly, “These people shouldn’t be lying here.”
"Moreover, there are indeed traces of the presence of demonic seeds in this newly opened tomb."
Each additional dark, humanoid figure that crawls out means that a human or demon might be replaced.
He didn't know what the person behind the scenes' ultimate intentions were, but someone who used such evil methods certainly couldn't have done anything good.
The Dragon and Phoenix Realm is a world unto itself, and it is located in the void, making it the best place to hide.
"How much do you want to move?" Han Tao was already figuring out what method to use and how much time it would take.
“All of them.” Fu Mingxu said solemnly, “If we break the Life and Death Array, and it’s not easy to move one grave, then we’ll bring this space into the Dragon and Phoenix Realm.”
"When this group of graves disappears into thin air, do you think the person behind it will go crazy with rage?"
They need to stir up trouble and alert the enemy.
Han Tao was skilled at breaking formations, and Fu Mingxu had just received the inheritance of the ancient merfolk, so he knew how to create illusions in the deep sea so that the two would not be suspected.
Han Tao lowered her eyes to look at him, and whispered in his ear, "Okay."
A note from the author:
Little Mermaid: Mother is mighty!
Han Tao: My wife is amazing!
Chapter 80
The rapidly spinning whirlpool in the deep sea had not yet stopped when, in the abyss at the bottom of the ocean, a beam of brilliant white light rose from the ground.
This white light carried a vibrant life force; it caused no destruction wherever it went, but it did cause the earth to shake and the seabed to boil.
"What is that?" Countless aquatic creatures huddled together, and a jellyfish that had developed self-awareness cried out in surprise.
Immediately after that white light, it was as if the sky had descended upon the seabed, and a thick, dark, and eerie atmosphere swept over.
Above the floating city, above the massive vortex outside the barrier, countless tombs suddenly appeared, as if hell had erupted in an instant, and the underworld had descended.
The once clear sky above the East China Sea suddenly lost its light, and the bright sun disappeared, vanishing without a trace.
No one knew where these graves came from. When the rest of the Cangling Continent discovered this change, they only saw a dense mass of graves, which sent chills down their spines.
Countless screams came from all directions, and countless beams of light leaped up from all places, but instead of wanting to explore as if they had encountered a secret realm, they landed under the tomb scene in the sky and dared not easily step in.
A burst of brilliant white light erupted once more, followed by a crimson radiance, like the fiery flames of a karmic lotus from hell. The flames licked at the graves, engulfing them one by one, and then dragged them back to hell, returning them to where they belonged.
The mirage-like scene lasted for the time it takes to drink half a cup of tea. Before anyone could react, it vanished without a trace, as if they had just fallen into a bizarre dream.
The clouds dispersed and the rain stopped, allowing a sliver of pale sunlight to penetrate the deep sea.
Outside the Merfolk Domain, Fu Mingxu's azure fish tail swayed a few times, causing its scales to grow larger and gleam sharply in the dim light.
"Are you done?" He then tucked the little mermaid who was perched on his shoulder into his arms, turning to ask Han Tao beside him, "Won't anyone notice if we do this?"
The chaotic energy combined with the phoenix fire disguised as the Red Lotus Karmic Fire looked like a soul-reaping messenger from hell dragging the dead, who were forcibly left in the mortal world, into hell.
"Everything's done," Han Tao nodded.
Just in case, he completely shut down the Dragon-Phoenix Realm this time, placing it in the endless void.
The inexplicable cluster of graves and the traces of demonic seeds within them existed in a truly bizarre way. Apart from Han Tao, no one could find any trace of them.
Fu Mingxu felt this was the best way to handle it; let the person behind it worry about it. They had obtained the records of the Witch Clan, and it was time for them to leave the Merfolk.
The two returned to the floating city with ease, and as soon as they arrived, the Mermaid King invited Han Tao over.
While communicating with him telepathically, Fu Mingxu was surprised to find that this time it was indeed the Merman King. In the few days that the two of them were away, this Merman King had already dealt with a group of mermen who possessed demonic energy.
Now, there really aren't many merfolk left in the floating city.
Listening to the two exchanging polite words, Fu Mingxu lost interest in continuing. Since no one in this floating city could defeat Han Tao, he confidently cut off their telepathic communication.
Fu Mingxu strolled around the floating city with his fishtail swinging. There were indeed many spiritual plants in the deep sea that were not found on land. Although he could pick them himself, it was far less time-efficient than buying them directly.
Fortunately, spirit stones rich in spiritual energy are popular everywhere. He made a great return after taking a stroll around the floating city.
Halfway there, he encountered Li Chixue.
The other person's gaze swept over his fishtail, and their expression was very complicated.
"Was this your original plan?" Recalling everything that had happened during this period, Li Chixue automatically assumed that Fu Mingxu's solo trip was a strategy devised with Han Tao.
Otherwise, how could everything be such a coincidence?
"It's a long story." Fu Mingxu didn't know where to begin, so he simply skipped the topic and asked him, "How's your matter going?"
Li Chixue lowered his eyes slightly, his eyebrows seemingly covered with winter snow. He pursed his lips, then tugged at the corners of his mouth: "Things are far more complicated than I imagined. What I know is only the surface."
His gaze swept past Fu Mingxu and landed on the now-calm floating city barrier. Before he could speak, Meng Bai, flicking his silvery-white fishtail, caught up from behind.
"Fellow Daoist Li, are you leaving already?" The turmoil among the Merfolk was about to subside, and the Merfolk King had announced the suspension of the teleportation array with the Qingheng Sect in Jianxiao City. As a result, Meng Bai's plan to go out had fallen through.
Li Chixue didn't notice the disappointment in Meng Bai's eyes. She calmly hummed in agreement and then looked at Fu Mingxu again.
Having witnessed the previous encounter, Fu Mingxu keenly sensed the undercurrent between the human and the mermaid opposite him. As Meng Shui's gaze turned towards him, the chaotic energy within his body shifted, and the azure fish tail vanished with a burst of azure light, while the human legs reappeared within the hem of his robes.
"You...you're all better?" Meng Bai looked at him in surprise, then quickly remembered another question, "The marriage alliance between the Merfolk and the Dragon Clan?"
Fu Mingxu pressed down on his sleeve, trapping the little mermaid who was eager to come out inside.
He smiled slightly, and the azure color in his pupils faded, revealing a shimmering, jet-black hue.
"Naturally, it counts." He didn't explain further, and in a flash, the fish tail reappeared and disappeared. "I obtained the inheritance of the Merfolk in the Merfolk Domain."
"Well, I guess I'm half a merman now."
Meng Bai opened his mouth wide, not knowing what to say, while Li Chixue, meeting those dark pupils, knew that things were not so simple.
But Fu Mingxu clearly saw no need to explain further. After learning that Li Chixue was going back, he didn't say much, only nodding slightly.
When Li Chixue met those clear eyes, she ultimately didn't reveal that Yan Yun wanted to invite her to visit the Qingheng Sect.
The two parted ways briefly. Fu Mingxu strolled around the floating city again, spending almost all of his spirit stones, before Han Tao finally emerged from the Mermaid King's Palace.
"Let's go." Han Tao's gaze fell on his feet for a moment, then he took his hand as if no one else was around. "Let's go back first."
News of Fu Mingxu's acquisition of the merfolk's inheritance spread like wildfire. The merfolk in the floating city craned their necks to watch the two, but none dared to approach them. The Merfolk King, presumably acting on Han Tao's orders, was astonished but remained silent.