“Hardly smooth,” the Sea God Emperor said in an unusual display of humility. “My sister almost won. It’s a pity she chose her champion poorly.”
“Oh?” Feng Ming said. “I only heard of the news in passing. I’d love to hear more about the Sea God’s ascension ritual firsthand.”
“Certainly,” the Sea God Emperor said. The two other men continued fighting. “The first trials were much easier than I’d ever imagined. With Advisor Zhou hiding our karma from the enemy, we passed in record time. I thought we’d have trouble in the second round, but that was where his capabilities really shone through. We managed to get through days before the crown princess. When they’d finally gotten through—”
The Sea God Emperor suddenly stopped and looked toward the dueling pair.
Feng Ming looked over as well. His hands were itching fiercely. He immediately detected the problem. Jiao Meng had wounded Gong Jian with his spear, but as a result, the man’s mount had attacked him in a fit of rage. Gong Jian had taken the opportunity to counterattack, so it was now two against one.
“Restrain your mount!” the Sea God Emperor bellowed.
“Hold!” Feng Ming shouted. He dashed forward, but it was too late. The opponent’s trident had already lodged itself into Jiao Meng’s shoulder, and the vicious-looking shark that made his skin crawl took a deep bite and bit off one of his legs. Jiao Meng screamed.
“What the hell happened?” the Sea God Emperor demanded.
Before the man could reply, one of the South’s ships exploded.
“Enemy attack!” a voice yelled. Drums began beating in the background as the South’s ships reacted to the explosion. Several more explosions rang out, and suddenly several men appeared on the prow of some Southern ships. They were dressed like Feng Ming’s troops, but he recognized none of them.
Trouble, Feng Ming sent to Li Fei.
“Genius move, Marshal. Let’s strike while they’re recovering!” a voice yelled from his own ranks.
“Stand down and sheathe your weapons!” Feng Ming roared. “And someone kill the man who just spoke.” As he sent out the order, however, he detected a few dozen beams of sword light coming from among his men. He dove into action, deflecting most of the blows with a well-timed and extremely lucky sweep of his spear.
Just as it seemed like he would intercept them all, however, a string tugged at his arm. His spear halted, allowing the blade through to pierce the wounded Marshal Jian, who was still bleeding from his wound and being restrained by the Sea God Emperor. Feng Ming traced the string and discovered it emanated from Zhou Li. Then he realized in horror that the blade light was also tethered. It was tethered to Marshal Jian’s head.
The man’s head exploded. His strong body didn’t have a chance to save him.
“You dare!” the Sea God Emperor shouted, his presence mounting. “You’d better give me a good explanation for this.”
Feng Ming shuddered at the man’s pressure but stood his ground.
“We’re obviously being instigated,” Feng Ming said. “I recommend you pull your men back. Unless you want to get dragged into a war, that is.” He heard another mental groan.
“You think we fear war?” the Sea God Emperor asked. “You think we fear anyone on this mortal plane?”
“I urge the Sea God Emperor to retreat,” an unexpected voice suddenly cut in. “This lowly advisor didn’t expect such a situation. It would be best if you let us deal with these sneaky Northern saboteurs before we resume negotiations. We wouldn’t want you to get dragged into a war.”
“If it’s a war they want, it’s a war they’ll get,” the Sea God Emperor said with a heated voice. A large blue trident appeared in his right hand, and his crown began glowing with a soft blue light. “I might not care for your petty squabbles, but I’ve never been so insulted in my life.”
At this point, Feng Ming felt another thread. This one was invisible, but it ran between him and the Sea God Emperor. The malevolent karma emanating from the thread made him want to retch.
Then he felt it. It wasn’t just him that was covered in threads, but everyone else as well. Every last one of his men were entangled with both the Southern forces and the Sea God Emperor’s men.
The strings were also connected to one other man: Zhou Li. Feng Ming suddenly realized that the man’s fingers weren’t forming hand seals—they were controlling karma. He’d been playing them like puppets the entire time.
As the Sea God Emperor’s presence bore down on him, his prime minister attacked Feng Ming’s men with his Sea God Scales. Meanwhile, the grand marshal rallied their elite troops. Their mounts, vicious demonic sharks from the deep, began emanating a baleful aura Feng Ming hadn’t noticed before.
“Fiendish demons!” Feng Ming exclaimed.
But it was too late. The Sea God Emperor let out a beam of blue light from his trident that swept toward him. He wanted to avoid it, but if he did, Li Fei would take the hit. And she wasn’t nearly as strong as he was.
Seven hells, he thought. He readied his Magma God’s Spear and prepared to accept a blow from the strongest mortal on the plane. It covered half the distance in a split second, and for a moment, Feng Ming was sure he was going to die.
Then he felt a shift in the waves below him. A pillar of water burst out, revealing a staff-wielding man in cultivation robes. He recognized that man.
“Cha Ming!” he called out in warning. The blue light enveloped Cha Ming’s body as thousands of robed men and guards in golden armor emptied out from the ocean. Every one of them bore Haijing’s emblem.
This battlefield was lost. He knew it when he saw them. But more than that, he felt utter despair. For the second time in his life, he was watching his friend die before his very eyes.
And once again, despite the many fortuitous encounters he’d had and all
