Lu Jun's expression changed drastically—this was like a dog sneaking into a wolf pack only to be suddenly exposed.
That was exactly his situation now. At any moment, he could be torn to shreds by the sea monsters.
For a time, the two monster factions battling in the nearby seafloor both discovered Lu Jun and actually stopped fighting, falling into a brief silence.
Roar roar roar! Moments later, the sea monsters erupted into a frenzy, each of them opening their blood-filled maws, their bloodthirsty eyes locking tightly onto him. All of them surged forward together—such a delicious human, what a rare treat.
Only because the Merman tribe was caught in the midst of a siege and unable to protect themselves like a clay bodhisattva crossing a river, did they not also charge in his direction.
Lu Jun's expression turned grave. His Level 4 Intermediate Psychic Spell had failed, and he couldn't reactivate it. After all, Psychic Invisibility was a kind of psychological deception.
If he was exposed in full view, attracting a massive amount of attention, then the magic's effect would drastically diminish. Unless he could rid himself of that attention and completely change his identity, it couldn't work again.
"Just who was it?"
Though facing danger, Lu Jun remained calm. Since hiding no longer worked, he would simply unleash a massacre. The only thing that gave him pause was the being who had secretly broken his spell.
After all, Psychic Invisibility was only an intermediate spell—far from invincible.
Some powerful Monarch could see through it, and those specialized in the spiritual domain, such as the Queen of the Netherworld, could perceive it even more easily.
But Lu Jun knew his own spiritual cultivation was already quite advanced. To detect him under such circumstances could only mean the presence of a terrifying psychic-type demon.
Whoosh whoosh whoosh!
Sea monsters attacked from all directions. Lu Jun let out a cold snort and moved his thoughts. A three-foot black-gold sword light burst from his body, splitting into hundreds of blades, interweaving into a terrifying metal storm that enveloped everything around him.
Level 4 Magic Tool Control – Overlapping Storm!
In an instant, the chaotic seafloor erupted with a massive blood mist. Outside the black-gold haloed barrier, hundreds of attacking servant-class demons were shredded into pieces, severed limbs flying in every direction.
"Courting death."
Lu Jun sneered. His Space, Psychic, and Water elements were out of mana, but since no humans were around to witness, his Metal Element could finally go all out.
Buzz buzz buzz!
His eyes gleamed with platinum light. The White Tiger Pendant around his neck trembled, extending fine golden patterns. The Metal Element's power doubled as he activated the Tai Bai Domain.
A wave of platinum brilliance surged into the sky, quickly expanding to cover several kilometers. Countless metallic ions were extracted from the vast seawater, condensing into fine sharp needles, invisible in the water as they stirred about.
Many sea monsters were struck, grievously wounded. The pressure of seawater on all sides crushed their bodies out of shape.
The battle here had drawn the attention of those leading the command-level battlefield farther away. Suddenly, a dark shadow darted toward Lu Jun to kill him.
Splash—! A long object whipped down like the heavy tail of a python, raising wave upon wave of cascading water.
Lu Jun had sensed it early. His terrifying control over metal surged forth. Shaping Metal, the metallic ions melted and reformed, forming a thick fortress around him. Infused with magic energy, it activated the Diamond effect.
Boom!
It was like a giant golden bell on the seafloor, its surface shimmering with platinum radiance. It was struck hard and flung away, the violent sound echoing across the seabed.
That python-like thing struck repeatedly. The ringing of metal clashing continued endlessly underwater. But no matter how it attacked, the Golden Bell Shield remained immovable.
The Tai Bai Domain itself had the ability to extend the Diamond effect onto other metal constructs.
Though the Diamond trait dropped by one level in strength, it could still block attacks from commander-level creatures in the advancement stage. As long as the magic energy held out, he would remain unscathed.
Lu Jun was able to calmly lock his spirit onto the mysterious being ahead and saw its true form.
The next moment, his expression turned to shock: "This is..."
He saw a towering, majestic figure, standing proud like a female giant in the deep sea. Its entire upper body was covered in blue skin, with a sharp, narrow head—this was its upper half...
The monster's lower body was made up entirely of thick, ferocious tentacles, growing from the waist of this half-woman sea demon. They intertwined like chaotic seaweed strands. As they contracted and opened slightly, they resembled a skirt rippling in the water…
This was no graceful sight at all.
This creature was strange, deformed, grotesque to the extreme. Though its silhouette somewhat resembled a woman, in truth it looked far more like a female ghost from the deep sea, its appearance so utterly alien that it defied all human understanding!
"Damn it," Lu Jun muttered. He could feel his thalassophobia acting up—this eerie, illogical monster before him looked far too much like one of those indescribable Cthulhu-like beings straight out of myth.
In a way, such legends likely originated from the bizarre, nightmarish creatures of the deep sea.
Down there in the dark depths, where pressure is high and vision nonexistent, creatures evolve unchecked, growing into grotesquely asymmetrical abominations. Even a flounder would be considered "handsome" among them.
What shocked him even more, however, was why this creature had shown up here.
This wasn't the right time. This wasn't the right place. And yet, it had appeared.
Lu Jun knew this type of demon. It was known as a Demon Trench Wraith, its formal name: the Sea Fiend Divine Race.
They possessed unparalleled intelligence, their attainments in Psychic Magic reaching the pinnacle. In the future, the Disaster Afflicted Psychic Mage, Ding Yuming, had sparred with one and nearly died. Even Zhang Xiaohou's Forbidden Spell operation had once been infiltrated by one of these creatures and its secrets stolen.
They were called a "Divine Race" because their entire species served as the oracles and priests of the Sea Monster Empire the core brains of the empire, responsible for military and strategic planning.
No wonder Psychic Invisibility had been broken. The Sea Fiend Divine in front of him was nearly Monarch-level, and with its specialization in the spiritual domain, shattering a mid-tier spell was hardly surprising.
What's more, their abilities were especially sinister. They could devour a human's soul, completely absorbing their memories, and then mimic them, replace them, and control them.
Lu Jun never imagined he would encounter these monsters so soon.
"Three or four years early... The battle between the sea monsters and merfolk—is it because of this thing? Are they plotting something?"
Countless thoughts spun through his head, but Lu Jun's heart gradually settled. To face a near-Monarch being, he'd have to go all out with all six of his magic elements, barely enough to stand against it.
Not to mention, his current state was far from ideal. He was surrounded by a sea of sea monsters on all sides—this was extremely dangerous.
Still, Lu Jun didn't dwell too much on the reason for its appearance. After all, the Sea Monster Empire did truly exist in the Pacific. Thousands of years ago, it had clashed with the Four Great Totems, leaving both sides heavily damaged.
Mo Fan hadn't encountered them only because his activity range was too narrow.
Screeeee!
The Sea Fiend Divine let out a sharp screech like that of a female sea ghost, commanding the surrounding sea monsters to attack.
Splash!
Countless sea monsters surged forward like a tidal wave, each one ferocious and crazed. The Sea Fiend Divine standing behind them activated a Psychic Illusion to assist in the offensive.
Lu Jun's expression hardened. He muttered under his breath, "Fine then... capture you, and I'll just soul-search to find out what's going on."
Rumble!!
In an instant, a vast, majestic power erupted from his body as he ignited all six elements in his spiritual domain—transforming into his White Tiger Ascension Form.
Lu Jun's muscles swelled, his hair turned instantly silver-white and flowed behind him. His eyes became heterochromatic, and he manifested Sword Wings and a Dark Crown—majestic and imposing. The traits of all six magic elements circled around him.
Of course, compared to before, most of his magic energy had already been consumed. At most, he could maintain this battle state for twenty seconds. He had to end this fast.
The good news was, he had deliberately brought along a small piece of Elemental Diamond from the Lu Family's territory. Its pure magic energy could extend his battle time by two to three minutes.
That was the real reason he dared to dive so deep without calculating his return mana cost.
As for the Ancient King's Armor Robe... cough cough, he'd rather not use it unless absolutely necessary.
For additional chapters
Versatile mage {40 chapters}
Douluo Dalu:This Soul Master is to Weird {30 Chapters}
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