Chapter 214 ·Assistance

“Get… lost!!!”

Dora was midair when her thick black tail suddenly expanded against the wind.

Boom!

That tail, carrying overwhelming force, slammed fiercely into the foremost escort ship.

That sturdy black iron warship, engraved all over with defensive runes, was like a watermelon struck by a baseball bat.

It exploded on the spot.

Countless black metal fragments, splintered wood, and the screams of Immortality Society members scattered in all directions.

A one-hit kill.

The entire sea surface boiled.

Massive waves were stirred up by the terrifying impact, nearly overturning the nearby ships.

“It’s a high-tier magical beast! Redirect the cannons!”

The fleet instantly descended into chaos.

The cannons that had been aimed at the palace were forced to turn in panic toward this sudden calamity.

“Nicely done.”

On the cliff by the shore, Lilia watched the chaotic scene on the sea, the corner of her lips curling into a sly smile.

This was the benefit of mastering core technology (dragon).

“Bulara, Xiao Hong, it’s time for us to get to work too.”

Lilia clapped her hands and turned toward the two behind her, who were still stunned.

The purple flames in Bulara’s eyes flickered, seemingly calculating the kinetic data of that strike.

Meanwhile, Xiao Hong trembled, watching the violent loli wreak havoc across the sea, grateful that she had only been punched once before instead of being hit by that tail.

“Where are we going?” Xiao Hong asked shakily.

Lilia pulled out a black face cloth from her system inventory and covered her face, leaving only a pair of sharp, gleaming eyes.

She pointed toward the lone bone palace standing over the sea in the distance.

“Since the guards have been lured away, it’s time for us to pay a visit to that ‘Deep Sea Queen.’”

“Remember, we’re not going there to steal.”

Lilia corrected seriously.

“We’re going for friendly technical exchange, and to collect a reasonable security fee along the way.”

After saying that—

Lilia tapped her toes lightly.

Amidst the chaotic backdrop of explosions and roars—

She silently slid down the cliff, sneaking toward the palace.

【Need navigation?】

“Cut the nonsense. Lead the way.”

Lilia replied in her mind.

On the sea—

Dora grabbed another ship’s mast and hurled it like a javelin straight at the flagship.

“Don’t touch my fish!!!”

Accompanied by the dragon’s roar—

A localized war, sparked by “braised fish,” officially began.

The explosions outside were deafening.

The black sea was churned upside down by Dora, and from time to time, burning planks crashed against the outer walls of the bone palace.

Lilia curled herself up, using the massive rib-like bones as cover, climbing toward the top of the palace with both hands and feet.

This place was absolutely unbearable.

【Host, slip through that gap on the left. Almost there.】

The system’s voice sounded at the right moment, carrying a tone of eager anticipation.

Lilia rolled her eyes and swiftly slipped through the gap between two enormous leg bones.

Her view suddenly opened up.

This was the highest point of the bone palace, and also where the white figure had just resisted the magic cannon.

What should have been a throne was now nothing but a pile of bone debris.

And in the middle of that ruin lay a figure.

Or rather, a fish.

Lilia held her breath and cautiously peeked out half her head.

Up close, the visual impact of this mermaid was far greater than from the shore.

She had long, thick, curly hair like seaweed, damply draped over her pale back.

Her lower body was a slender fish tail, its scales a sickly gray-white, like dried limestone.

And her upper body…

Lilia couldn’t help but click her tongue.

Although her current condition looked miserable, her skin pale like paper with no visible veins, her body proportions were simply perfect.

Even lying in a pile of debris pretending to be dead, that cold and noble aura couldn’t be hidden.

But…

Lilia frowned.

The mermaid didn’t move at all—not even her chest rose or fell.

If the system hadn’t insisted she was “evolving,” Lilia would’ve definitely thought this was just a specimen fished out of formalin.

“Hey, system.”

Lilia poked the system in her mind.

“You sure this thing can still be saved? She looks like she’s about to stiffen.”

【Host, please do not use your shallow medical knowledge to judge the condition of high-tier lifeforms.】

The system retorted righteously.

【She is currently at the critical stage of shedding her ‘old shell.’ Like a phone system restarting during an update—it looks like a black screen crash, but internally it’s frantically writing data.】

【As long as that last breath hasn’t been cut off, she can live. But the problem is, that cannon just now interrupted her progress. She is now in a state of energy depletion. Without external intervention, not only will her evolution fail, she will directly turn into a real statue.】

Lilia understood.

Simply put, it was like the power cutting off at 99% during an upgrade.

That was indeed fatal.

“Alright then.” Lilia climbed out from behind the cover and dusted off the bone powder on her hands. “Tell me, how do I help? If it’s artificial respiration or CPR, I’m not doing it.”

As she spoke, she kept a wary eye on the battle at sea.

Dora was fierce, but those ships weren’t pushovers either.

If that red-skinned loli got tired, or if the enemy got desperate and fired all remaining magic cannons at once, this place would instantly become flat ground.

Time was tight.

【Very simple.】

The system provided a solution.

【You have fused with the ‘Seed of Life.’ That pure life energy is the best support for the mermaid right now.】

【Go over, place your hand on her, and transfer your energy into her. Even a little is enough to help her complete the remaining progress.】

That’s it?

Lilia raised an eyebrow.

That didn’t sound difficult.

Ever since she absorbed that seed, her energy had been overflowing with nowhere to release it—she had to be used as a human punching bag by Hera every day just to fall asleep.

Now she could finally release some of that excess energy and save herself from being tormented by her boss later tonight.

“Your words, not mine.”

Lilia no longer hesitated. Staying low, she dashed to the mermaid’s side in a few quick steps.

Only upon getting close did she realize how terrifyingly cold the mermaid’s body was.

It was like approaching a thousand-year-old block of ice.

Lilia rubbed the goosebumps on her arms, crouched down, and poked the mermaid’s shoulder.

“Hey, wake up.”

No response.

The skin beneath her fingertips was stiff—indeed carrying a petrified texture.

Even beneath that gray-white surface, faint fine cracks could be seen, like porcelain on the verge of shattering.

This was worse than expected.

“Gotta hurry.”

Lilia took a deep breath, pushing aside all distracting thoughts.

She extended both hands and pressed them directly onto the mermaid’s icy back.

The texture under her palms was extremely rough—the decaying, peeling old skin layer.

“Payment for services rendered, fair for all.”

Lilia muttered, closing her eyes as she began to mobilize the vast life energy within her body.

But the moment it made contact with the mermaid’s body—

Buzz!

There was no need for Lilia to push further.

That originally lifeless, cold mermaid body was like a traveler parched for centuries suddenly finding a spring.

A terrifying suction force suddenly surged from her palms!