161: Leviathan's Expedition

Seeing that further fighting would lead to the complete annihilation of the army, the Merfolk leader pulled out a glowing conch and blew into it with bulging cheeks.

An invisible wave emanated from the conch, reaching the ears of every Merfolk.

The meaning was singular—retreat!

Indeed, the leader did not intend for the entire Merfolk army to be lost here; at least, the Merfolk's own forces could not be lost here.

Upon hearing this, the other members of the Merfolk had their sea beasts entangle the enemies, while they seized the opportunity to escape.

Some extremely fast dolphin-like sea beasts rushed in front of the Merfolk, who then clung tightly to them, fleeing the battlefield at high speed.

However, the battlefield was too chaotic, and only a few Merfolk managed to escape; most were caught in the quagmire of war.

Seeing this, the leader had no better plan and could only order the dolphins to return again, hoping to pick up some more of his people.

Unfortunately, the effect was minimal.

Cain also discovered this small group of Merfolk, knowing that they were the true main force of the Merfolk Kingdom.

So, Cain immediately arranged for sea beasts to intercept them.

Seeing the enemy divide his forces, the Merfolk leader gritted his teeth and quickly fled with his remaining troops.

As for the remaining forces, they could only leave it to fate.

The sea beasts behind them pursued relentlessly, unwilling to let them go.

Some faster sea beasts were gradually closing the distance between them.

However, the Merfolk were not to be trifled with; one by one, they aimed their spears at these sea beasts and launched attacks.

These Merfolk generally knew some water magic, and while its power was not exceptionally high, it was sufficient to deal with these sea beasts.

Soon, under their concentrated fire, this group of sea beasts perished on the spot.

By the time Cain realized something was amiss and wanted to send troops to intercept them, they had already vanished.

Although not a complete success, absorbing this force would greatly enhance the strength of the Abyss Navy.

Soon, under the fierce offensive of the infinitely resurrecting Abyss Army, all remaining forces of the Merfolk army were annihilated.

This battle added 100,000 powerful sea beasts of various types and several thousand Merfolk to the Abyss Army, greatly enhancing its strength.

After the battlefield was cleared, Cain gave an order, and the army once again swept towards the deep sea.

Tens of thousands of sea beasts were nothing in the vast ocean; most sea beasts would detour when facing this massive army.

Fortunately, there were native Merfolk to guide them; they set their ultimate goal on the Merfolk Kingdom, sweeping through some sea beast gathering places along the way.

In the ocean, there were also some powerful individuals residing in their own territories, not under the jurisdiction of the Merfolk Kingdom.

These powerful sea monsters possessed enormous bodies and the ability to stir up rivers and seas.

Cain naturally would not let go of these powerful combat forces, killing and subduing them one by one under the guidance of the Merfolk.

King Squid, Brother Octopus, Pink Giant Starfish, Deep Sea Giant Crab, Lightning Mage King, Azure Dragon Lizard, Ancient Megalodon…

One by one, these deep-sea overlords quickly perished under the encirclement of the Abyss Army, becoming part of the Abyss.

These sea monsters were mostly at the fifth or sixth tier, possessing considerable supernatural power.

The Merfolk Kingdom was greatly alarmed upon receiving the message from the small swordfish.

They had not expected the enemy to possess such a shameless ability.

If regular troops were dispatched, they would likely only enhance the enemy's strength without much effect.

Within the Merfolk Kingdom, some sea monsters were also kept.

Although these sea monsters were powerful, they were few in number and difficult to command, unable to cooperate well with other troops, so they were generally not easily dispatched.

But could these sea monsters secure victory?

Or should a considerable number of ranged troops be dispatched to eliminate the enemy outside the kingdom's gates, denying them the opportunity to grow stronger?

The King hesitated, as he lacked detailed intelligence on the enemy and did not know how to decide.

Just then, the Merfolk army leader returned to the Merfolk Kingdom with his remaining, defeated troops.

Watching only a few hundred Merfolk return, the King's expression was grim.

But he knew that this defeat could not be entirely blamed on the leader, as no one had expected the enemy to possess such a rogue ability.

He summoned all the strategists and generals in the kingdom to the royal palace, listening as the leader recounted the course of the war.

Upon hearing that the enemy could not only resurrect both friendly and enemy forces but also open teleportation gates at any location for surprise attacks, the faces of the Merfolk high-ranking officials grew even uglier.

This meant that even if they possessed a large number of ranged troops, they would likely be caught off guard by these elusive teleportation arrays.

After a brief discussion, the ministers presented two proposals.

One was to have the "Old Ancestor" Leviathan take action and directly crush the enemy, and the other was to rely on the defense array of the royal capital to eliminate the enemy army.

However, no one was sure if this defense array could withstand the enemy's teleportation gates.

Ultimately, for the sake of caution, the King decided to have Leviathan take action once to overcome this difficulty.

Since Leviathan was currently awake, the King arranged for guards to herd a large number of Pig Fish for the Old Ancestor to feast upon.

Afterward, the King personally went to Leviathan's habitat and recounted the events.

Leviathan did not refuse upon hearing this; he had lived for countless years, witnessing the birth and death of many Merfolk.

To Leviathan, these Merfolk were like his own descendants, and now that his descendants were in trouble, he naturally had to help clear these troubles.

Soon, the long-dormant Leviathan began to slowly move his body.

His prolonged dormancy had caused his body to merge with the seabed; when he broke free from this restraint, the entire sea area trembled with him.

Countless Merfolk felt a long-lost panic in this violent tremor; they had not experienced Leviathan's emergence and naturally did not know what it signified.

As Leviathan struggled violently, large amounts of mud and sand turned the clear seawater murky, and violent waves rose in the ocean, disorienting countless fish with turbulent currents and whirlpools.

Under Leviathan's violent destruction, he soon broke free from this sea area, successfully revealing himself to the world.

A young Merfolk girl looked at the massive shadow in the distance and couldn't help but exclaim:

"Mommy, look! What is that?"

A slightly older female Merfolk also discovered the colossal creature, muttering uncertainly:

"Is that… Leviathan?"

Countless Merfolk stared in awe at this legendary Old Ancestor.

Many Merfolk had only heard stories from their elders; they knew their home had a guardian deity, but they never imagined he would be so enormous.

In the past, listening to elders describe him didn't feel like much, but now, seeing him with their own eyes, they could truly feel their own insignificance.

After breaking free, Leviathan wasted no time and quickly rushed in the direction indicated by the King.

His massive body charged straight ahead, and any sea fish or sea beasts along the way that couldn't dodge were directly crushed into pulp by the enormous impact.