“The Nether Sharks are here to attack!” Dewell’s expression changed. This sea conch’s blare was the highest-tier warning, signaling that the Nether Sharks attacking were very powerful.

“Weren’t we told there are still five more days? Why are they here already?” Kelly’s face quickly turned pale. She knew very clearly how terrifying the Nether Sharks were. She thought that there was nothing to worry about since they were going to the capital this time. She did not expect the Nether Sharks to attack before they even set off.

“Kelly, stay at home and don’t go running around. I’m going to check the situation outside.” Dewell picked up the long speargun by the side and turned to walk out of the door.

“Dewell…” Kelly grabbed the corner of his shirt.

“Hm?” Dewell turned back to look at her.

“Be careful,” Kelly said softly and loosened her grip.

“It’s no big deal. I’ll be back in a jiffy.” Dewell reached out and stroked Kelly’s hair as he smiled relaxedly before he turned to leave.

The sound of the conch horn echoed throughout Verell Town. A light blue glow started rising, and slowly enveloped the entire town.

Hundreds of merfolk warriors gathered outside the town, looking out at the darkness ahead solemnly.

“Mayor, we’ve received news that a large Nether Shark and two middle-sized Nether Sharks are swimming towards our town, and they will arrive very soon. What should we do now?” a merman asked an old merman, who was standing in the middle, worriedly.

The other merfolks were also very worried. Amongst them, the strongest, Katol, was merely an 8th-tier expert. Other than him, there were only three other 6th-tier merfolk, and the rest of them were all below the 6th-tier.

Although Katol was as powerful as the large Nether Shark, the Nether Sharks’ Nether Whirlwind and their ability to recover allowed them to be undefeatable when faced with an opponent of the same tier.

With Verell Town’s defenses, they would not be able to hold the three Nether Sharks back for long. The moment their defense system collapsed, the entire town would face destruction.

Katol rose slowly and turned to look at the other merwarriors as he loudly said, “I’ve already sent news back to Bulloch City and the capital. I believe that there will be reinforcements coming to help us very quickly. What we need to do right now is to hold those three Nether Sharks back before our reinforcements arrive!”

“Shake it!” the merfolk warriors shouted together, and their morale rose in an instant.

…

Around the altar, the high priest was calling out names to distribute mud casings. Every powerful merfolk that was named was delighted. They held the mud casing carefully with both hands and took a deep breath. After that, they stepped into the space devoid of water, put the mud casing in their mouth, chewed, and swallowed it.

“Cough, cough, cough!”

“Hack, hack, hack!”

Various sounds of choking filled the air. The merfolks all gripped their throats, coughing so much they were tearing, yet they did not dare to spit even a little of the mud casing out.

This was the miracle drug that the princess went through a lot of difficulties to get from the Chosen One. It was also the hope of the merfolk. No matter how difficult it was to swallow it, they’d have to do it, and they’d have to do it willingly.

“Don’t eat it just like that, actually it wouldn’t be so difficult to swallow it if you had it with some seawater,” Gina quickly suggested when she saw all the powerful merfolk with their faces flushed red.

When they heard that, they quickly stuck their heads out to take a huge gulp of seawater. Indeed, after soaking in seawater, the mud casing that was as hard as stone became much softer, and was much easier to swallow.

What was even more miraculous was that although the mud casing did not really have a taste, after the merfolks swallowed it, they felt a warm sensation flowing through their limbs. A strange feeling slowly surfaced, and their steps felt lighter. Their bodies felt as though they were about to float on their own.

The merfolk in the space without water started to feel something strange. The air that was initially unbreathable felt easier to take in, and they could slowly obtain some oxygen through their noses to soothe the suffocating feeling.

The change was very slow but very clear.

The high priest, king, and queen were the first batch of merfolk to eat the mud casing. Right now, they were already starting to attempt expelling the seawater around them and trying breathing in the air in the space with no water.

Although it was more difficult than breathing in water, and they felt that the air that they breathed in was difficult to use, this new experience still made them very surprised. For merfolk to be able to breathe in the air was a dream that their ancestors had been cherishing for centuries. Now, it was easily obtainable by just taking this piece of miracle drug.

It felt surreal since it all came so easily.

When they could master the breathing technique completely, they should be able to go past that curse, and would no longer be trapped by a small seal.

The normal merfolk also started staring fervently at the merfolk who had taken the mud casings. Although most of the merfolk there did not qualify to eat the miracle drug, that did not mean that they’d not qualify in the future.

Just then, a merfolk warrior wearing armor came up anxiously to tell the king, “Your Majesty, we’ve got the news that three Nethers are invading prematurely, and are already past the borders, heading for Verell!”

The noisy drug-giving scene suddenly quieted down.

The excitement that the miracle drug brought them still could not let the merfolk overlook the threat of Nether Sharks.

“How powerful are the Nether Sharks invading us?” The king turned serious. The residents of the border town had yet to retreat. If these three Nether Sharks were very strong, they might be able to attack straight in, bringing inestimable destruction.

“One large Nether Shark and two middle-sized Nether Sharks. Bulloch City has already sent people over as reinforcements after receiving the call for help,” the merman quickly replied.

The king fell silent for a while before saying, “Send orders out to get the army at the borders over to Verell quickly as reinforcements. At the same time, send out orders to get the residents over to Ivo City immediately. The Nether Sharks might bring forward their invasion.”

“Yes!” the merman replied and left quickly.

The king walked over to the high priest, and very softly said, “High Priest, what do you think…”

The high priest transmitted his voice to the king. “Carry on with the original plan to withdraw all the people to Ivo City. Although we’ve already found the Chosen One, I’m afraid it’s very hard for him to deal with such a large number of Nether Sharks with his power alone. We have to be sufficiently prepared.”

The king nodded thoughtfully.

“The Nether Sharks’ movements are very odd this time. I will make a trip to the border personally,” the high priest said again. However, this time, he said it aloud instead of transmitting his voice.

“But the Chosen One is still waiting for us, High Priest…” The king was hesitant to speak. Meeting the Chosen One would evidently seem more important compared to a small town at the borders.

“The miracle drug has yet to completely take effect. I reckon we will still need at least two hours before we can try to pass the Cursed Wall.” The high priest shook his head. He then waved his hand, and two gemstones with a faint gold color appeared on a spell formation beside the altar. The golden light flickered very quickly.

“I’ll be back quickly.” The high priest stepped on the teleportation portal.

“High Priest, I’ll go with you.” Gina also stepped on the teleportation portal as well, standing at the side respectfully.