Chapter 21: The Red Carp and the Great Black Fish

Xu Xuan’s eyes flashed with a sharp light when he saw the weeping man in red, and he instantly grasped the situation. In the depths of a remote forest, a man in red, covered in wounds, was crying—this was anything but normal.

Drawing near, Xu Xuan’s certainty deepened. The faint scent of demon aura emanated from the man, confirming he wasn’t human. Observing more closely, Xu Xuan saw that the man’s body was riddled with gashes, many still bleeding, making him appear pitifully tragic. The man in red buried his face in his hands, oblivious to Xu Xuan’s approach.

“Brother, why are you crying here?” Xu Xuan asked softly, casting a glance at the weeping figure.

The man heard the question but gave no answer; he merely looked up at Xu Xuan, then broke into even louder sobs.

Zhao Jinqian, annoyed by this disregard, silently cursed the man for his lack of courtesy.

Xu Xuan, seeing that his words were ignored, decided not to press further. He turned his attention to the terrain around Dragon Roar Pool.

Just then, something in his robe began to emit a gentle glow. Xu Xuan looked down, surprised to see that it was the golden fish scale given to him by Lang Lihuang, the fish spirit. The gleaming scale puzzled him—what could it mean? Glancing between the glowing scale and the man in red, Xu Xuan gradually understood.

He said nothing more. The man in red continued to sob as Xu Xuan walked toward the edge of Dragon Roar Pool.

The pool stretched for miles—not large, but not small—and was shrouded in mist, with jagged rocks surrounding its banks, obscuring the full view.

As Xu Xuan circled the pool, the weeping man suddenly ceased his sobs and walked toward the waterfall. Xu Xuan, seeing this, immediately followed.

The man didn’t stop at the waterfall; instead, he plunged straight through it. In an instant, the crashing falls swallowed his figure, and he vanished without a trace.

Xu Xuan was marveling at his disappearance when, from the water below, a giant red carp appeared.

The carp was at least five feet long, its scales glowing faintly like rubies, dazzling to the eye—a clear sign of spiritual intelligence.

It swam near the surface, blowing bubbles, and its eyes shone with unmistakable fear. The carp’s body was covered in wounds, blood seeping into the water and staining it red.

Remembering the vanished man in red, Xu Xuan immediately realized that this carp was none other than the man himself.

Suddenly, a whirlpool formed in the pool, and bubbles surged as ripples spread across the water. A colossal black fish—fully seven or eight feet long—surfaced.

The black fish looked savage, darting toward the red carp, jaws agape, revealing rows of sharp teeth, and bit down viciously.

The carp’s blood scattered at once. A deep wound was torn open, and the black fish ripped off a chunk of flesh and devoured it.

Wracked with agony, the red carp thrashed wildly, sending up sprays of water, dyeing the pool crimson.

“What a brute! That beast’s teeth are like knives!” Xu Xuan hadn’t expected the black fish to be so cruel, tearing flesh from the living carp.

No wonder the red carp was so battered—clearly, the black fish was the cause.

But this was truly too much—if you must kill your prey, end it swiftly. This black fish, though, didn’t kill; it feasted at leisure, biting off pieces whenever hunger struck, treating the carp as its larder.

The carp, symbol of auspicious transformation, was being tormented by this malevolent creature.

Seeing the black fish prepare to bite again, Xu Xuan knew he had to intervene.

Without hesitation, he gathered his magic, formed a sword seal, and his wrist flashed with light—the Scarlet Mist Sword shot like lightning into the water.

“Cut!” Xu Xuan commanded coldly.

The Scarlet Mist Sword turned into a streak of light, aiming for the black fish’s head.

But the moment the sword entered the water, the black fish sensed the danger; a murderous glint flashed in its coppery eyes. It flicked its massive tail, dodging the fatal blow by a hair’s breadth.

Though it escaped with its life, the sword was swift and sharp. It missed the head, but sliced clean through the dorsal fin. Blood bloomed in the water, and with its fin severed, the black fish lost its balance and slowed.

Wounded and vengeful, the black fish burst from the water, swelling to ten feet long. Its enormous tail lashed out at Xu Xuan with thunderous force, as if to smash him into pulp.

With a clang like clashing metal, Xu Xuan raised his golden wolf-tooth mace to block the blow.

But the fish’s strength was tremendous—Xu Xuan was flung back a dozen steps before he could steady himself.

“Beast, you’ve got some strength!” he spat, catching his breath.

He leapt back to the water’s edge, poised to unleash his sword again and finish the black fish. But the creature, now wary of the sword's power, turned and fled into the depths.

“Trying to run?” Xu Xuan sneered. If the beast got away, his plans for braised black fish would come to nothing.

He dove into the pool without a second thought.

The water was icy, murky, difficult to see through. But in the next instant, the golden scale in his robe began to glow, illuminating the water and letting Xu Xuan move as if on dry land.

At that moment, Zhao Jinqian appeared beside him.

The water was her domain—she was, after all, a water ghost. Already beautiful, she was now ethereal and radiant, like a mermaid.

But Xu Xuan had no time to admire her beauty; catching the black fish was his sole focus.

“Let me help you, young master,” Zhao Jinqian said gently.

With a wave of her slender hand, a solid curtain of water formed ahead, blocking the black fish’s escape route. Yet the beast crashed through it without pause, plunging deeper into the pool.

“Coward! There’s nowhere left to run!” Red light shimmered from the Scarlet Mist Sword, darting like a fish of its own, gleaming under the water.

With a hiss, the sword pierced the black fish, sending a spout of blood into the water. The beast writhed in pain.

In that moment, Zhao Jinqian cast her spell, summoning columns of water that solidified into a prison, binding the black fish tightly.

Badly wounded and now trapped, the black fish’s eyes glinted with malice. It threw itself at the watery cage with all its might, heedless of its injuries.

With a muffled boom, the black fish smashed through the water prison, breaking free once more.