Harry attacked the Sea Ghost Mountain again, intending to create distance and evade its attack. However, his legs inexplicably weakened, rendering him unable to move. Just as the Sea Ghost Mountain's massive pincers were about to descend, two towering Troll Ninjas burst from the shadows, their enormous palms forming a shield for Harry.
Harry was no fool. The Troll Ninjas were devoted to his master. Their appearance meant his master had already intervened. Knowing he was outmatched, Harry wasted no time in signaling his subordinates to retreat.
The Sea Ghosts, seeing their prey attempting to escape, were unwilling to let them go. As they prepared to pursue, ninjas clad in black and sporting blue skin appeared before them, swiftly scattering them once more.
By the time the Sea Ghosts regrouped, their opponents had changed to a group of undead ninjas. These beings not only exuded no trace of life but also appeared bizarrely monstrous. Some possessed crab-like claws, others mantis-like scythes, and some lacked legs entirely, having only a long tail.
They had initially considered themselves strange, but now they encountered beings even more peculiar than themselves.
Not only the Sea Ghosts but also the area surrounding the Sea Ghost Mountain was encircled by Troll Ninjas, three layers deep. They rained down blows with fists as large as sandbags upon the Sea Ghost Mountain.
The Sea Ghost Mountain was not unintelligent. Despite the massive creatures merely using their fists, leaving no immediate visible damage, it understood the principle of water dripping wearing away stone. If they continued this assault, its shell would eventually break.
The Sea Ghost Mountain had considered fleeing, but these strange beings, fearless and seemingly immortal like the Sea Ghosts, coupled with its own slow speed, made escape impossible.
Harry, having retreated to Bai Qi's side, observed the besieged Sea Ghost Mountain. He then turned to Bai Qi and offered flattery, "My lord's magical power is truly boundless. This monster is no match for you at all."
Bai Qi, sensing the unspoken meaning in Harry's words, stated directly, "If you have something to say, spit it out."
"Yes, my lord. I merely wished to ask why you are not directly dispatching it yourself, but only deploying the Shadow Ninjas?"
Bai Qi's lips curled into a smile. "Shattering the shell of a creature of dark energy is a simple matter for me, but what benefit does it bring me?"
Harry, not a fool, immediately grasped Bai Qi's implication.
"Then, my lord, you intend to subdue this monster?"
"It is not a monster," Bai Qi shook his head. "If you trace its origins, you and it are actually of the same lineage."
Hearing this, Harry felt as if struck by lightning. He looked at the Sea Ghost Mountain and then at himself, realizing that, in a fundamental sense, he shared an ancestry with such a creature.
This was not Bai Qi's fabrication. The Sea Ghost Mountain was a product of dark energy's influence, and werewolves were also products of dark energy's influence. Thus, claiming they were of the same origin was not entirely unfounded.
Before Harry could recover from this somber realization, Bai Qi, seeing that the time was right, acted. He traversed the entire battlefield from the air, landing before the Sea Ghost Mountain.
Upon seeing Bai Qi, the Sea Ghost Mountain froze. After tentatively extending its aura towards Bai Qi, it began to tremble violently. Its shell emitted cracking sounds, as if on the verge of collapse.
"It seems you already know my identity."
Bai Qi extended his right hand. "Now, I offer you two choices: surrender or death."
The Sea Ghost Mountain did not hesitate. It shifted its body slightly, bringing one of its eyes close to Bai Qi's hand, a gesture of loyalty.
Simultaneously, the emission of dark energy ceased.
Sensing the interruption of dark energy, the Sea Ghosts turned to look at the Sea Ghost Mountain, witnessing its act of submission to Bai Qi.
"Sea Ghost Mountain! How dare you break your promise and betray us!"
Seeing this, the leading Sea Ghost chieftain became enraged. Wielding his刺剑 (stinging sword), he lunged forward, ready to fight to the death.
The Sea Ghosts, though their human senses were lost due to the influence of dark energy and their minds somewhat distorted, were not entirely devoid of reason. A madman is not necessarily a fool.
The pact between the Sea Ghost Mountain and the Sea Ghosts was that the Sea Ghosts would provide protection, and the Sea Ghost Mountain would supply them with dark energy. In return, they were permitted to spend a period on land periodically.
Now, they were fighting to the death against an intruder, and this seemingly loyal subordinate not only failed to assist but had actually defected.
As the Sea Ghost chieftain broke through the layered defenses of the Shadow Ninjas and reached Bai Qi, the latter calmly unleashed a palm strike. A shockwave sent the chieftain flying several meters, crashing onto the ice.
The fallen chieftain remained motionless on the ice for a long time, while the surrounding Sea Ghosts stared in stunned silence.
After what felt like an eternity, the Sea Ghost chieftain shakily rose to his feet, staring at his hands and shouting ecstatically, "Ah! Pain! I feel pain!"
The chieftain's extreme reaction was understandable. They had lost so much.
While most people avoided pain, these Sea Ghosts had lost all their senses since the Sea Curse befell them: smell, taste, touch, and even the sensation of pain.
Humans, after all, cherish what they have lost the most. After such a prolonged deprivation of senses, many Sea Ghosts' thoughts became extreme and twisted, leading them to self-harm in a desperate attempt to re-experience the pain of their former human lives.
Alas, the Sea Ghosts were no longer human; no matter how they injured themselves, they felt no pain.
The fact that the Sea Ghost chieftain was now experiencing pain so vividly naturally drove him to a state of near madness.
With another gesture, Bai Qi summoned the Sea Ghost chieftain, enveloped by a force of telekinesis, to his presence.
"How was that feeling? Do you wish to experience it again?"
The Sea Ghost chieftain blinked in surprise, then nodded vigorously. "Yes, I want it so badly."
The other Sea Ghosts quickly gathered around upon hearing this.
For Sea Ghosts, ordinary physical attacks were ineffective. Even standard magic could at most disperse them, but not inflict pain.
The reason Bai Qi's seemingly unremarkable palm strike could make the Sea Ghost chieftain feel pain was the infusion of the Monkey Talisman's power, which directly affected the soul.
However, such an action could not be repeated excessively. It was an attack on the soul, the most vulnerable part of any creature. Over time, even with mild attacks, the soul would be unable to bear it, leading to utter annihilation.
These details, however, Bai Qi had no intention of sharing with the Sea Ghosts.
Bai Qi looked at the Sea Ghost chieftain and then at the other Sea Ghosts surrounding him. "I possess the means to restore your human senses – taste, smell, touch, all of them. But you must pay an equivalent price: pledge your loyalty to me. Can you do that?"