Born in Blood

Obviously, this wasn't the proudest of Liam's crimes… but he wanted to end this debacle as fast as he possibly could. Everything was on the table.

Right before he catapulted Sumo towards a baby Stonefish, thin strings of blood rapidly unfurled through each of Liam's left fingers, each of which crystalized almost immediately and wrapped around Sumo's waist.

Then, Liam was yanked forward alongside it!

Like a sleigh of wolves pulling a carriage, Liam was using Sumo as a riding beast! He was already controlling the Abomination mentally, and with his right hand, he used the Black Blade to sever the barbed spines shooting his way. SHING! CRNK! SHING! SHING! One after the other, Liam swerved Sumo left and right, splitting in half the venomous spines as soon as they were shot towards him.

"Stop him!" Rock Blob shouted with pure panic. It was clear that he figured out what Liam aimed for. "Stop him now!" The baby Stonefish that Liam aimed for was towards the outskirts of their habitat. It was still premature and quite dumb looking, staring at Liam and the Abomination with an open mouth and blank eyes. Still, a Rank 4 middle-tier Stonefish stood as its protector, eyeing Liam dangerously and daring him to approach. Not to mention, upon Rock Blob's command, a group of furious Stonefish rapidly converged towards Liam's location.

Sure, they couldn't swim at higher altitudes, but that didn't mean they couldn't swim at all. They were quite fast, too. Well. Not really. Liam and the Abomination was faster.

But what kind of coward would focus on the weak?!

As the distance between Liam and the baby Stonefish was slowly closing, it was getting increasingly difficult to dodge and split the spinal projectiles.

Sumo suffered quite a few punctures, as well, which allowed Liam to see what exactly the venom did to flesh.

Well.

It wasn't pretty.

Sumo's right shoulder, left hand and right leg had been pierced with the spinal venom… which had subsequently turned those sections of the Abomination's body into stringy, pus-oozing, filthy paste.

The fizzing effect that the venom had on liquid was even worse on solids, making it seem like deformed lumps of cancer were multiplying over Sumo's skin.

Even to a hardened eye, it was hard to look at without gagging. Not to mention, the wounds slowed Sumo's swimming speed by quite a bit, making it increasingly difficult to dodge and evade the venomous needles. But by then, most of the distance had closed. Just one Stonefish stood in Liam's path.

The other Stonefish had stopped shooting their projectiles at him for one simple reason. If they took a chance, they'd risk hitting both the baby and their fellow Stonefish.

They had to trust their fellow fish! A moment later, Sumo fell apart into lumps of decayed, stringy flesh that lost the ability to propel itself forward. The small, hollow compartment in its chest filled with Chaos slowly degenerated… and didn't explode. The waters puffed it out.

But there was no need for it to explode in the first place. By now, Liam was just 30 meters away from the Stonefish and its baby. Almost immediately, the venom began to take its toll on Liam's body, starting with his skin. Ulcers and lumps festered on its surface, bubbling and multiplying like a vicious cancer which continued to spread. 20 meters.

Liam's Transfiguration and his healing factor worked fast to counter it, but the deeper he got, the more potent the venom was. 10 meters. Liam's shadows enveloped him, protecting his skin and empowering his body. Dodging a row of spines that shot past him, Chaos crackled on Liam's back heel, which smashed against the top of the Stonefish's head.

Focused Havoc. KHRSH!

A powerful shockwave spread throughout the waters, and a small patch of the blobfish's armored head shattered.

However, all the blow did was slightly discombobulate the fish. Barely a second later, it lurched out with its jaw wide open, filled with rows of disgusting teeth.

But as its maw closed, nothing entered it except lumps of filth and dirt!

The Stonefish panicked and whipped around, looking left and right for its baby.

The human was gone!

And so was the baby Stonefish!

"You can stop now."

The voice came from above.

Way above!

All of the Stonefish looked up.

Liam had reappeared a few meters away from the seaweed ceiling, covered with ugly wounds and fetid skin.

But wrapped around his hand, was a baby Stonefish, dumb, afraid and on the verge of tears. Liam had used Shadow Blink!

In reality, he wasn't hindered from using it, only that it took longer to execute and perform.

Using the brief moment that the Stonefish staggered, Liam began his Shadow Blink and wrapped his hand around the baby fish.

Now, the Stonefish were angrier than ever. But they didn't dare attack. After all, the baby Stonefish's defenses were barely Rank 1!

A simple squish of the hand could spurt out its guts for all to see.

Stonefish were actually quite familial and protective of each other. They valued each other's lives.

Liam smirked, dangling the baby left and right, which pissed off the Stonefish more than it was supposed to.

Rock Blob, especially.

"Let her go," Rock Blob commanded with a growl. "It's a her?" Liam asked, bringing the dumb-looking baby's eyes an inch away from his own.

It was quivering, on the verge of tears. "Tell me what you know about the kidnapping," Liam said to Rock Blob with a flat voice. Rock Blob growled in frustration. A moment later, it raised its fin, upon which a small, tattered parchment slowly floated towards Liam.

Liam grabbed it with his free hand.

It was a map, with several sections of it marked with 'x' shapes. "They're sightings of the princess our scouts have marked. I've given you what your previous version didn't have… now let her go and leave!" The seaweed curtains opened, and Liam slowly swam backwards. Then, as he passed the veil, he threw the Stonefish baby back at her parents, before using Shadow Blink once more. He was out.