DD Black White [397-398] (Patreon)

Chapter 397: A Helping Hand

Skirk fixed her gaze on Bai Xiuxiu's eyes—deep as the sapphire sea and brimming with pleading—and couldn't help a soft sigh in her heart.

She had no wish to involve herself too much in the strife of this unfamiliar world, yet at this moment, Bai Xiuxiu's grief-stricken entreaty struck the strings of her heart.

The last sliver of balance within Skirk finally tilted.

She drew a deep breath, attempting to suppress the dull ache of her lingering injuries. A sharp light flashed through her eyes.

"Stay close to me."

No sooner had the words fallen than Skirk blurred like a drifting afterimage, whisking Bai Xiuxiu with her. In a blink, they vaulted across the boundless sea and appeared at the fringes of the melee where the Demon-Soul Great White Sharks battled Osial's summoned creatures.

Skirk brought two fingers together like a sword and traced a light cut through the void.

The motion looked casual and caused no earth-shaking spectacle.

Yet the massive vortex brewing furiously before Osial was sliced by a strand of sword-qi. Its rotation halted in an instant, then fell into disarray, finally collapsing like a crumbling mountain. The powerful water-element monstrosities forming within were annihilated along with it—reduced to dust.

That precise, efficient strike was like timely rain, instantly relieving tremendous pressure on the sharks' front line.

The Great White Shark King, Xiao Bai, had just torn apart a water elemental creature when the abnormal, mighty fluctuation made her whip her head around. Her wary eyes instantly locked onto the suddenly appearing Skirk and Bai Xiuxiu.

Especially Skirk—her aura was deep and mysterious, even a shade stronger than the High Priestess of Seagod Island, Bo Saixi. Shock surged within Xiao Bai.

"Who are you?"

The giant shark's maw parted slightly, human speech flowing out, tinged with a fatigue barely noticeable to others.

"Those who won't ignore injustice."

Skirk was sparing with words, her gaze never leaving the roaring Osial in the distance.

She offered no further explanation and struck again.

Her sword-light slipped like a nimble fish swimming through the seam between reality and illusion. With each flicker, it precisely severed another monster, easing the strain on the Great White Sharks.

Xiao Bai took a long look at Skirk, then glanced at the blue-haired girl behind her—whose eyes, complex beyond words, were fixed on Xiao Bai. Excitement, sorrow, and filial yearning mingled there, making Xiao Bai's heart give a strange tremor.

But the battle left no room for reflection.

"Many thanks for your aid. Demon-Soul Great White Sharks, follow me—pin down the demon god's tentacles!"

Forcing down the odd feeling, Xiao Bai loosed a rousing howl and led her kin like a flurry of arrows, slamming into Osial's massive flanks.

Just then, at the center of Seagod Island—toward the Seagod Temple—a pillar of golden light erupted skyward like a column propping up the heavens, bathing sky and sea in gold.

Seagod Douluo Bo Saixi, graceful and poised, hovered within the light, a great golden scepter in hand. The Seagod's sacred, majestic phantom flickered behind her, as if an ancient deity had come to walk the earth.

At the same time, the seven sacred pillars roared like thunder. Seven slightly slimmer but equally vast golden pillars shot to the sky, linking with Bo Saixi's power into a tremendous, intricate array, encasing all of Seagod Island like a solid shield.

"Light of the Seagod, protect my people!"

Solemn-faced, Bo Saixi leveled her scepter at Osial. Boundless divine power turned into golden arrows, pouring down on the demon god like a torrential downpour. Where they struck, a sizzling sound of purification rose, as if scouring evil from the world.

Sensing the threat, Osial roared in pain and fury. Its many heads thrashed wildly, gathering even more terrifying, baleful energy that finally became a colossal dark-blue pillar of light. With world-shattering force, it slammed into the island's golden barrier.

Boom!

The blast was like heaven and earth collapsing. The golden shield shuddered violently, its glow flickering, as if on the verge of shattering.

The seven pillar guardians convulsed with the impact, faces turning ashen.

After all, it was a strike fueled by a level-100 true god's wrath. Even under the Seagod's protection, it was far from easy to withstand.

Skirk's eyes tightened.

She knew she could no longer allow Osial to batter the shield unchecked. Otherwise, Seagod Island would be doomed.

Forcing herself on despite her injuries, she flashed—and appeared above one of Osial's heads.

Her hands closed on emptiness; an ice-formed longsword condensed within her grip, exuding a chilling aura as if it could freeze all creation.

She slashed down at the vast demonic head. A thread-fine sword-qi carved through space, devouring and severing even light and energy in its path.

"Roar!"

Osial sensed true mortal danger. This seemingly small being's strike could wound its very essence.

It immediately abandoned its assault on the barrier. Several heads swung toward Skirk, dark-blue radiance surging in their maws—the breath of destruction itself.

Skirk struck and withdrew, her movement nimble. But facing simultaneous blasts equal to a lineup of Limit Douluo unleashing their full might, the halo around her flickered violently. A line of blood traced her lip.

Her injuries were hampering her; she could no longer sustain peak output for long.

The battle entered a stalemate—yet the advantage remained with Osial.

Bo Saixi and the seven pillars had to devote themselves to maintaining the shield; they could not take the offensive.

Skirk fought alone and wounded; each attack grew harder.

Xiao Bai and the Great White Sharks could only harass, unable to inflict decisive damage.

Osial's energy seemed inexhaustible. If this dragged on, the island's barrier would eventually fall.

At that desperate, eggshell-thin brink—

A long, ancient whale-song rose from beyond the distant horizon.

It was not shrill, but soothing in its deep cadence. Yet the ineffable pressure and power within it rippled outward like invisible waves, flooding the battlefield in an instant.

The shouts and screams, the demon god's roar, the sea's fury—everything was cowed by that power. For a moment, heaven and earth held only the whale-song that spanned time.

Then, on Osial's flank where the sea had been roiled and chaotic, a sudden transformation.

A titanic phantom broke the deep waters and emerged—the form of a whale made of ultra-compressed, utterly pure seawater. Every fiber glowed azure, its scales and markings vivid, like a primordial ocean sovereign striding the river of time to descend upon the world.

It came with force to crush mountains and calm tempests, slamming into the twisted immensity of the Vortex Demon God Osial with an unstoppable charge.

Boom!

The deafening impact seemed to shake the sky.

This blow eclipsed all previous strikes. Osial's mountainous body reeled, staggering despite itself. Several heads that had been about to spew devastating energy were disrupted—backlash sowed disorder, and the ominous dark radiance about it flickered and dimmed.

"Who is it?"

A flicker of incredulous surprise crossed Bo Saixi's flawless features.

As the island's high priestess, her sense for oceanic power was keenest.

This sudden aid was of the highest order—and within it was an oceanic authority like the Seagod's, yet not the same: older, purer, raw and mighty. As relief rose, so too did curiosity.

Skirk's ice-blue eyes also narrowed briefly. She steadied herself and looked toward the source of the attack.

On the sea's surface in the distance, two figures strode upon the waves, riding the wind at great speed. One moment at the horizon, the next close enough to make out.

On the left was a lithe woman with cascading black hair flying in the sea breeze, the tips fading into a dreamy violet—as if night sky and nebulae had wound themselves into her locks.

She held a strangely shaped zither-sword—instrument and blade perfectly fused. Harmonious, potent waves of energy rippled around her. Clearly, that earth-shaking whale strike was hers.

The other woman's bearing was entirely different.

She was not tall—almost petite—but carried an innate, undeniable authority.

She wore a crown of exquisite make, a blue flame burning serenely at its center—condensed immortality and noble divinity within it. It exuded warmth and majesty that commanded reverence at a glance.

They were Hysilens and Cerydra.

Swept into this strange world along with Shrek Academy, they had chosen not to travel together.

Hysilens had been drawn by the vast and mysterious ocean of this new world, while Cerydra nursed curiosity for foreign lands and customs.

As carefree travelers, they wandered aimlessly—until the Seagod's aura called to Hysilens, bringing them here, now, to Seagod Island's battlefield.

Their arrival broke the stalemate and brought a chance to turn the tide.

Hysilens's jade fingers brushed her strings, her blade tracing profound arcs. Clear zither tones fused with razor sword-qi, becoming visible, azure sound-blades imbued with pure oceanic power.

They tore the air with a terrifying keen, lashing Osial in a storm.

Each impact burst great fans of dark-blue spray from that body of sea and demonic power, carving deep marks—not fatal, but disruptive and weakening.

Cerydra merely flicked her hand. Phantasmal chess pieces, soft-glowing and varied in shape, appeared out of thin air and—like living things—sank with precision into each fighter present.

In an instant, Bo Saixi, Skirk, Xiao Bai and her kin—all felt a warm, powerful force surge within. Spent strength returned; fatigued minds were refreshed; their presence swelled.

Even Skirk's wounds were suppressed for the moment by the chess pieces' strange power, no longer hampering her movements.

Feeling the suppression of her injuries and the rare return of ease, the chill in Skirk's eyes sharpened again.

She hesitated no longer. With a graceful grip, she condensed ultimate frost into a translucent ice sword once more.

Her form flickered as she closed with Osial. Her sword shadows bloomed like icy lotus—each strike loaded with absolute chill and piercing force—finding nodes of energy flow and relative weakness with uncanny precision.

Bo Saixi's spirit lifted.

She raised her golden scepter high and unleashed the Seagod's remaining power without reserve.

Resplendent Seagod light surged skyward, becoming a massive golden tornado that bridged heaven and earth. Its sacred, majestic, purifying breath spread far.

The tornado intertwined with Hysilens's rolling tide of sound-blades, Cerydra's empowerment, and Skirk's ghostly icy swordwork. Four mighty forces converged from every side on Osial for the final, fiercest combined assault.

Under Xiao Bai's lead, the Great White Sharks roared, gathering their last reserves. Like a volley of white arrows, they launched a death-defying charge, slamming into Osial's writhing mass.

Besieged by annihilation from all directions, Osial howled in fury and defiance.

Its many heads whipped and spat dense beams of dark-blue energy, seeking to build a bulwark against the killing ring.

But under the four champions united, and the full might of Seagod Island, its defenses were torn and unraveled, inch by inch—

At last, amid the sea's raging protest and the demon god's waning lament, Osial's vast, terror-bearing body lost all strength to struggle. It collapsed with a thunderous crash, sinking into the deep sea it had shattered.

On the surface, only countless broken vortices spun in vain, and the waves—spent at last—slowly calmed.

Chapter 398: Mother and Daughter

With the Vortex Demon God Osial gone, the heavy overcast that had lingered over Seagod Island for so long began to stir and part.

A long-lost shaft of warm, golden sunlight speared through the clouds like a trumpet of victory, falling straight upon Bo Saixi's face. Though pale and tired, it remained resolute and dignified—now haloed in sanctity.

Lowering her scepter, she surveyed the ravaged seascape and finally settled her gaze on the three unknown saviors. Drawing a breath—voice weakened by the fight yet retaining a high priestess's poise and sincerity—she said:

"You three, we owe this battle to your aid. Please, come ashore with me, and allow Seagod Island to offer its humble hospitality."

At that, Hysilens's lashes trembled. She drew her gaze from the calming sea and inclined her head to Bo Saixi.

Her black hair, under the brightening sun, gleamed like deep-sea pearls—mysterious and soft. The violet gradient at the tips seemed ever more dreamlike.

Cerydra flicked her dampened sleeve, her delicate face unreadable—as if the cataclysmic battle hadn't impressed her. If anything, she looked more curious about the talk to come.

Skirk had already stowed her icy blade, returning to her cool, ethereal composure.

Bo Saixi led the three guests and Shark King Xiao Bai as streams of light to the island, alighting before the Seagod Temple.

Though the island had not been directly struck, the demon god's oppressive presence had left its people and spirit masters shaken.

On the square, the Seagod's soft light fell, seeking to soothe the wounds and unease of war.

Before Bo Saixi could speak, Cerydra idly rolled an obsidian-like piece between her fingers, lids barely lifting. In a casual yet undeniable tone, she broke the brief calm:

"Don't celebrate too soon. That big fellow's only been knocked back into the sea to slumber. It's not dead."

Her words were a dash of cold water into hot oil, tightening the atmosphere anew.

"A level-100 true god isn't so easily slain. When it's drawn enough power from the deep and repaired itself, it will return. It's only a matter of time."

Bo Saixi showed little surprise—if anything, sober agreement.

She sighed softly and nodded:

"You speak truth. With the Seagod's power, this is not the first time I've repelled it. But before long, it reappears."

Her eyes swept over Hysilens and Skirk, then returned to Cerydra, both grateful and probing.

"Even so, Seagod Island will remember your kindness. Without you, I do not know if we could have held on today."

She paused, turning to the core question:

"Only… forgive my bluntness. Your powers far transcend the norm, your realms unfathomable—especially this lady's oceanic authority, so pure and akin to, yet distinct from, the Seagod's. In this Douluo Continent, figures such as you cannot be unknown. Might I ask: where do you come from?"

A high priestess had to know.

These three were saviors, yes—but also unknown variables.

Hysilens and Cerydra exchanged a glance, making no move to hide the truth.

Hysilens's voice was clear as her music. "High Priestess, do not worry. We are not natives of this world."

"Not of this world?"

Bo Saixi blinked.

"Indeed," Cerydra said, the piece dancing in her fingers. "We were swept here by a temporal rift. In terms you'd grasp—we are travelers from beyond this world."

Bo Saixi and Xiao Bai were both startled.

Beyond the world?

Then Skirk's cool voice sounded. She looked to Bai Xiuxiu, who had followed quietly and now tensed at the mention of origins.

"Xiuxiu, it's time. Tell them the truth. It's your story to tell."

Skirk disliked talking—and if not for Xiuxiu's pleading, she would never have waded into another world's turmoil.

All eyes turned to Bai Xiuxiu.

With eyes so like Xiao Bai's, the girl drew a deep breath—as if steeling herself—and stepped forward. Facing Bo Saixi and Xiao Bai, her voice trembled, yet carried clearly:

"Like you two… I—I'm also not of this world. Where we come from is also called Douluo Continent. It has similar seas, lands, spirit masters, and spirit beasts… but it is Douluo a full ten thousand years later."

"Ten thousand years later?!"

Xiao Bai cried out. Bo Saixi's pupils shrank.

Struggling to calm herself, Bai Xiuxiu continued:

"Yes. The timelines differ, but in essence it's… a parallel world. And my true identity is…"

She raised her head and met the human-formed Xiao Bai's eyes—now full of shock and uncertainty—and said, one word at a time:

"I am, ten thousand years later, the daughter of Xiao Bai, Queen of the Demon-Soul Great White Sharks. I am the princess of the Demon-Soul Great White Shark clan—Bai Xiuxiu."

"What?!"

The words fell like thunder.

Bo Saixi snapped her gaze to Xiao Bai, disbelief written plain.

As for Xiao Bai, she was struck senseless.

Her beautiful blue eyes went wide, her mouth parted as she stared at the girl whose features resembled her by six or seven parts—though softer and sadder. Her mind emptied.

D-daughter? My… my daughter? From ten thousand years hence? Another world?

 The shock was too great; even a hundred-thousand-year beast's mind balked. It seemed absurd, baffling, unreal—yet from deep within her blood, a subtle tremor rose, making it impossible to reject outright.

The square before the Seagod Temple fell silent, save for the soft moan of wind in the colonnade.

Seeing Xiao Bai dumbfounded, Bai Xiuxiu's long-held tears finally fell.

She began her story—a tale of sorrow and despair.

Ten millennia hence, the Deep Sea Demon Whale King's consort, the Demon Empress, took revenge—unleashing a bloody massacre upon the Demon-Soul Great White Sharks… The clan was butchered; her mother fell in battle… The tribe was nearly wiped out, with only Xiuxiu left alive by a thread.

Her voice caught, the tale broken—yet each word bled. The marrow-deep grief moved all who heard.

Bo Saixi's face grew mournful; she felt the truth of that despair.

Compassion flickered in Hysilens's eyes; even Cerydra's toying hand slowed.

And Xiao Bai—listening to the fate of herself and her clan in another world, and to the sobs of the girl calling herself her daughter—the initial absurdity and awkwardness began to give way to a fierce empathy and a pain beyond words.

However abrupt it seemed, and though reason protested the impossibility, that stirring—perhaps of shared blood echoing across time—made detachment impossible.

She hesitated, then stepped forward to the girl.

Seeing the tear-streaked, fragile face, Xiao Bai awkwardly patted her shoulder—voice less breezy than usual, touched by rare gentleness and a hint of awkward care:

"D-don't cry. I… it sounds really… strange, but if it's true—that's too cruel… I—I'm here, aren't I? And the clan's here too… Don't be too sad."

It wasn't polished comfort, but it was Xiao Bai's own warmth and candor.

Feeling this unfamiliar yet longed-for care, Bai Xiuxiu froze—then, like a burst dam, her emotions surged. She could no longer hold back and threw herself into Xiao Bai's arms, sobbing, as if to expel all grievance, fear, and sorrow at once.

Xiao Bai stiffened, then relaxed, gently wrapping the trembling girl.

The skies over Seagod Island cleared completely. Sunlight bathed the mother and daughter embracing across time—warm and peaceful.

As Bo Saixi watched them, thoughts churning—glad for their bond yet weighted by responsibility—a vast, majestic intent seeped into her mind like gentle seawater.

It was a presence she knew intimately—the Seagod's divine sense.

It spoke little, only imparted a message.

"Hysilens bears pure oceanic authority, highly compatible with My godseat. Should she accept the divine trials, the Nine Trials of the Seagod will pose little difficulty. She could inherit My station. Then the crisis of Seagod Island would be resolved."

The will paused, heavy:

"That sea demon god is born of the ocean's rancor and chaos. So long as the sea endures, it is near-indestructible. Driving it back is easy; sealing it is hard; slaying it, harder still. Help from without cannot last. To uproot this calamity, a new Seagod must arise—wielding full divine authority to rule the ocean and purge its filth."

The oracle swept away Bo Saixi's worries—yet stirred grief.

She understood.

Hysilens and the others had already given aid; they would not stay forever as guardians.

Relying on outsiders was only expedience.

For lasting peace over the seas and island, a true god must be born to hold the oceanic authority.

And the Seagod's Nine Trials… their last gate required the High Priestess to serve as key—with her life and soul—to open the path to godhood.

This had been her fate since taking the post.

A complicated light crossed Bo Saixi's eyes—reluctance for life, regret for unfinished matters—but above all, a settled resolve.

Over two centuries lived, a lifetime guarding this island and its faith—perhaps it truly was time to meet the destined end.

She thought of the man once hailed with her as unmatched across sea, land, and sky—the one who wielded the Clear Sky Hammer, the heroic Tang Chen.

Fate had long told her he was likely gone.

And the city that worshiped the Angel God—the High Priest Qian Daoliu's aura had recently vanished as well, likely sacrificed for godly succession.

The three towering figures of an age—now, only she remained.

Old comrades had either fallen or faded. The roaring sea she had protected, the island she had tended—perhaps they no longer needed a guardian of the old era.

Better to kindle a new god's fire with what remained of her life—to win a truly bright future for Seagod Island.

Having thought it through, her last hesitation disappeared. Resolve took its place.

She straightened her slightly disheveled robes and turned solemnly to Hysilens.

Under puzzled looks, Bo Saixi performed Seagod Island's highest courtesy to Hysilens.

"Lady Hysilens."

Her voice was clear and weighty, echoing before the temple.

"I, Bo Saixi, High Priestess of Seagod Island and the Seagod's representative upon earth, beseech you—accept the Seagod's Nine Trials, and inherit the Seagod's divine seat!"

All but Cerydra were stunned—including Bai Xiuxiu, who had just stopped crying, and Xiao Bai, still digesting the word "daughter."

Even Hysilens blinked—starlit depths stirring in her eyes.

She did not answer at once, but turned instinctively to Cerydra.

Though powerful, she preferred the counsel of this wise, decisive queen in matters that shaped the future.

Cerydra met Hysilens's glance, tilting her delicate chin. The flame on her crown seemed to burn more tightly.

She had already sensed someone contacting Bo Saixi. To bypass them and speak privately could only be the island's patron deity. And she had learned this was the Seagod's inheritance ground.

The truth was simple then: the island, hounded by the vortex demon and ever on the brink, had no new Seagod. Now, she had arrived—with Hysilens—at precisely this juncture.