132: M card? Summoner?

A stream of water, manipulated by Shui Yuqianxi, transformed into a water membrane that wrapped around her wound, staunching the flow of blood.

She led a group of Orcas away from the monster's territory.

However, this was merely a temporary measure.

Given the monster's speed, it was likely to catch up soon.

Shui Yuqianxi did not harbor the thought of successfully shaking off her pursuer.

The monster was extremely dangerous; underestimating it meant being close to death.

Swimming at high speed, Shui Yuqianxi pondered where she could shake off the monster.

Generally, once a monster appears, it does not remain for too long.

As long as she stalled, the opponent would naturally disappear.

Some monsters disappear forever after vanishing, while others reappear.

"Squeak!"

An Orca let out a cry and quickly approached Shui Yuqianxi from the front.

Shui Yuqianxi turned her head.

She recognized the approaching Orca.

It was Tiger Three.

Seeing Shui Yuqianxi's attention on him, Tiger Three immediately opened his mouth and swayed his head up and down, indicating for Shui Yuqianxi to focus on what was in his mouth.

Only then did Shui Yuqianxi notice the item in his mouth, and her eyes lit up.

It was!

Lying in Tiger Three's mouth was nothing else but something Shui Yuqianxi was especially familiar with.

A poker-sized card!

Tiger Three and she had known each other for a long time; he knew that his big boss's weapon was this kind of card.

Shui Yuqianxi took the card.

The card's underside was a light blue, subtly patterned with ocean waves.

It was not like the Mermaid F's black underside.

A black underside was the mark of a natural-type card.

And this light blue-backed card…

Shui Yuqianxi flipped the card over and discovered what was on its front.

The background was a deep sea, with a black and white, quite mighty… Orca in the center!

In the upper right corner was the letter “m”.

Unlike the capital letter of Mermaid F, this card's “m” was lowercase.

‘What kind of card is this!’

‘Why is it the letter m?’

Shui Yuqianxi looked at the card, then at Tiger Three in front of her.

Where did Tiger Three get this card?

She tentatively waved the light blue card in her hand in front of Tiger Three, signaling to him.

Tiger Three tilted his head, seemingly understanding Shui Yuqianxi's meaning.

"Squeak!"

He cried twice, then left the group and swam in a certain direction.

Shui Yuqianxi stopped, and all the Orcas also stopped.

Tiger Three, who had swum some distance, turned his head to look at Shui Yuqianxi, as if waiting for Shui Yuqianxi to decide what to do.

“…”

After a second of thought, Shui Yuqianxi caught up with Tiger Three.

The Orcas behind them looked at each other, squeaked, and then also caught up.

There were too many Orcas.

If they didn't disperse, there was no suitable hiding place in this sea area.

But if they did disperse...

It would seem like giving the monster fish an opportunity to pick them off one by one.

It was better to follow the Orca and confirm the location of this special card.

Holding the Orca card in her hand, she felt the power within it.

Although its style was the same as Mermaid F, the essence of its power was completely different.

The power within seemed to be under a very strong seal.

Without a “key,” the power she could use was only a small portion.

Holding it in her palm, her swimming speed noticeably increased.

In addition…

Shui Yuqianxi clenched her hand; both her strength and physical fitness improved.

"Squeak!"

After swimming at full speed for a long time, Tiger Three let out a cry, then slowed down, his movements becoming more deliberate.

Shui Yuqianxi immediately understood that they had reached their destination.

So she also reduced her speed, following Tiger Three towards the seabed.

As they approached, Shui Yuqianxi also saw a large coral reef.

In the center of this large coral reef, there was a clearly raised rock platform.

Above the rock platform, several metal objects reflected faint light.

One of them, a thick blue-gold metallic book, floated defying gravity above the reef.

The metal book slowly fanned open in the seawater, revealing its contents.

The contents were not profound texts.

Nor were they strange patterns.

Each page had a silver metal base, with cards embedded in the very center.

As it fanned, the contents of each page's card were revealed.

Sea Turtle m, Jellyfish M, Shark M…

On the thick metal book, each page had a card of a marine creature!

The power of each marine creature card was completely different.

And one of the pages had an empty card slot.

Shui Yuqianxi glanced at the Orca M in her hand and finally understood the origin of this card.

This fanning metal book was undoubtedly the most conspicuous.

But after seeing it, her gaze naturally fell on the other items on the reef.

And the other items shocked her even more!

‘This… how is this possible!’

One item was rectangular, with a half-open slot, neatly stacked with cards inside.

The other item was a symmetrical, irregular rectangular prism, with a golden bead embedded in its center.

The components embedded on both sides were symmetrically arranged around the central axis.

Above were two empty card slots.

It was…

‘armor Summoner!’

How could an armor Summoner be here!

Had something happened to Fire Finch!

Shui Yuqianxi couldn't help but consider this possibility.

During the brief delay, Shui Yuqianxi, through Mermaid F's keen perception, sensed a rapidly approaching presence.

In this sea area, only one thing could swim at such speed…

‘Damn it, it really caught up!’

Shui Yuqianxi looked at the group of Orcas.

Even though the Orcas were now calling out to each other in panic, they still did not disperse.

Instead, they lined up behind Shui Yuqianxi, protecting her, their leader.

‘…I thought you were the smartest in this sea area.’

Shui Yuqianxi looked at Tiger Three, the largest Orca, who was swimming at the very front of all the Orcas.

Even though her eldest daughter had just passed away, she showed no wavering now, leading her clan to protect herself.

Orcas are truly intelligent; they form groups as a clan, and all Orcas within a clan are related.

Like siblings, cousins, and so on.

Shui Yuqianxi gripped the two cards in her hand and looked at the reef below her.

From now on, she would become the leader of the entire ocean.

‘Become the true Mermaid Princess ruling this sea area.’

Shui Yuqianxi rushed towards the reef.

She grabbed the thick metal book, as well as the card holder and the Summoner.

The fanning metal book stopped in Shui Yuqianxi's hand, closing motionless.

At this moment, the monster also appeared from the dim seawater, rapidly approaching.