'Argh!' Krune mentally bellowed with immense ferocity, tightening the rope as his vision was filled with only blood. All the worm-like fishes swimming above him parted way like a stream coming across a boulder.
At present, there weren't any worm-like fishes swimming directly above him. As for the two worm-like fishes that had been immobilized at the start, they were trembling as the ocean currents pushed their bodies away. When they had moved a certain length, they regained the ability to move once again, swiftly escaping from the scene.
'It…burns!' Krune screamed mentally, not even being able to open his mouth due to the fear of the water gushing into him. When the blood of the worm-like fish fell on his body, they were absorbed into him, turning into faint marks all over his body.
Immediately, as if actuated by a vortex, all the blood flowed out from its twitching body and seeped into him, creating a coating over his skin. All along, Krune felt as if he was being burned in boiling water.
He screamed amidst the pain, almost losing grip over the rope. Though surprisingly, his heart thumped with vigor, making him realize that his life would be forfeit the moment he let go of his hold. So, no matter what happened, Krune didn't relent in his actions.
He banked on his experience in living for two centuries, making use of the determination and willpower he had accumulated through it, pressing forth with sheer effort. The blood of the worm-like neon fish continued to seep into him as its body began to wither up.
Eventually, the burning sensation disappeared as he was able to pull the rope as much as it could go. His vision cleared up as Krune noticed that the worm-like neon fish he was wrangling had withered up into a husk. Even its bones had become brittle, compressing into mush when he tightened his hold.
With that, Krune looked up and noticed that the worm-like fishes had completely moved past, revealing clear water now. Despite their disappearance, there was still enough light around him, allowing him to see.
It was at this moment he noticed the oddity, looking around to notice the light was only in his surroundings. He then looked at his hand, noticing it glisten with a neon glow. His entire body was the source of the light now.
Dragging the withered husk of the worm-like fish, Krune surfaced soon after, gasping for air a couple of moments before he gathered his bearings, muttering, "Damn it! What just happened?"
He then noticed how he was feeling a bit tired, immediately realizing the cause was his glowing self. "Did I somehow gain their glowing ability?"
Pondering over it, Krune willed himself into turning off the light, immediately noticing his glowing self dim until his surroundings turned pitch black. There wasn't any speck of light in the surroundings, causing him to feel fear immediately.
With a single thought, his body began to glow once again. Krune then experimented with himself a little, realizing that he could control the intensity of the glow and determine the places of his body that glowed. If he wished to, he could only make his palms glow while modifying their intensity.
In any case, it wasn't free to use. Instead, it seemed to be a biological evolution. When he emitted the light, Krune began to feel a bit tired. So, the ability was consuming the energy in his flesh to work. It was an ability highly reliant on his flesh.
He was currently like a firefly in that his skin could emit light. Krune opened his mouth to see if he could emit light from within it, closing it a moment later in embarrassment when it didn't work. He determined that when the worm-like fish's blood seeped into him, it formed a coating on his skin, causing it to glow.
To experiment, he made his left hand glow while he scratched its surface. He noticed that the glowing property wasn't diminished on the contact area just because he scrapped a patch of dead skin from it.
"Is there anything else?" Krune double tapped his glabella after that, summoning his tablet, using his left hand to grab hold of it immediately. His right hand was holding the withered husk of the worm-like fish.
There was a new message on it now, surprising him.
[Killed one Neon Radiance King: 1 Godly Point obtained]
[Obtained Passive: Neon Radiance]
[Total Godly Points: 26]
"Just what are the factors that gave me this ability? A passive?" Krune muttered as he thought out loud, getting a few hints as to how it functioned. "So, after killing this Neon Radiance King, I obtained this passive ability of Neon Radiance."
"At least, it's something," he said not long after, double-tapping the tablet using his index finger as he watched it return to his glabella. He was tired now, no longer having the mood to do anything. Nevertheless, he couldn't relax.
After all, he no longer had the Escapist to rely on to move. His legs were slowly paddling to keep him afloat. Though, the reason his inexperienced self could remain afloat was thanks to the withered husk of the worm-like fish.
And judging by its name, it was called the Neon Radiance King. "Then, are the others called the Neon Radiance…fishes?"
The Neon Radiance King's withered husk had a certain buoyancy to it that allowed him to remain afloat by grabbing onto it. As its body spanned a length of five meters, it was enough for him to remain afloat.
Krune felt all over its body, noticing that the bones in it had turned brittle while it had lost all its blood. Using the rope, he tied it, creating a small plank-like surface where he could rest on. As Krune boarded it, he heaved a sigh in relief, noticing that it barely managed to retain his weight without sinking.
But that was all. He couldn't row using it since even the slightest movement would just topple it. Even now, he had to balance himself carefully and spread his body weight evenly. Otherwise, it would tip over. Thankfully for him, the waves were small and didn't affect him much.
In any case, it was a burden to maintain balance due to all the shaking. At least, it was better than remaining in the water and freezing up when his stamina ran dry.
"But, what should I do now?" Krune frowned as he gasped for air, feeling pain all over his body. He was injured all over from the skirmish and was bleeding. Moreover, he could still see a faint neon line far away from his line of sight, watching it move further and further away.
"At least, I escaped the first wave…wait, first?" Krune double tapped his glabella after pondering over this, summoning his tablet as he punched it, making it display the basic information of the place.
[Layer 3: Double Ocean]
[Total people: 288,146]
Krune inhaled a sharp breath of air, seeing the rapid drop in the number of cultivators. The first wave hadn't even ended yet. All it did was pass by his current location. So, it meant that the losses were disastrous. Moreover, as it had the term 'First,' it naturally meant there were subsequent waves to face.
"I can't waste my time like this. I have to recuperate from my injuries first," Krune frowned as he muttered to himself, looking around as he increased the intensity of the glow he emitted, failing to spot anything living. He then reduced his glow to a bare minimum, only enough to make out his silhouette.
He then faced his palm upwards, unleashing the maximum brightness from it as he emitted a neon glow like a beam. The light fell on the ocean above, spreading out a little as it traveled fairly deep before dispersing completely.
Krune didn't manage to notice any fishes in it, frowning as he directed his beam all over it. He then stopped when he noticed a silhouette on the ocean surface. It was the body of a worm-like fish, one that had died thanks to its injuries.
Krune then noticed how its carcass was floating, realizing that their bodies were naturally capable of floating upon death. "I can't let this chance slip."
He then took in a deep breath, crouching as he grabbed hold of the ends of the rope. After a moment of thought, he tore off most of his pants and the sleeves on his arm, extending the length of the rope.
He tied its end around his hip, looking around with the beam of light to ensure there weren't any other living beings moving around. Then, after taking in a deep breath, he jumped, almost making the float he had haphazardly made with the carcass drown into the water as his body shot forth.
Krune extended his hands as much as he could, heaving a sigh of relief when more than half his body weight passed through the midpoint of the air layer. There didn't exist any specific line pointing it out.
But when he stood up, he could feel the change in gravity acting on his shoulder and above, giving him a rough estimate. For a moment, the pull of gravity on both sides almost reduced the momentum behind his jump as his body slowly moved towards the other sides before plunging into the ocean above.
His perspective shifted as Krune surfaced from the ocean, marveling at the fact that the ocean he was on until now was above him now, acting like the sky in his perspective. The rope he had made was long enough to extend from the float to himself.
It was fully tugged. Thanks to its weight and the difference in gravity, it was akin to an object that tried to lift him up. As Krune had calculated the length, even if he fell asleep now, he wouldn't drown.
The weight behind the float would prevent it from falling towards him, while the tension in the rope would keep him afloat. Though, remaining in contact with the water for so long would sap all his body warmth away.
Krune had no such intentions. Thanks to the tension in the rope keeping him on the ocean surface, Krune was able to paddle his way. In this way, even his inexperienced self was able to move forward. As he swam, the rope pulled the float, causing it to move on its respective ocean surface accordingly.
After what felt like an eternity, he approached the body of the worm-like fish, climbing aboard it as he grunted in exhaustion while lying flat on its body. "Right, I have to eat to recover my strength."
Followed by another grunt, Krune sat up and looked at the long body of the fish, sighing.
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