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Dandan battles the tiger-crocodile…
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Ch. 7.1 | Making his name
Dandan was dragged into the deepest part of the water where the light gradually faded. Darkness filled his vision while the tentacle squeezing his waist made breathing difficult. He gasped for air and choked on a mouthful of water instead.
His mind was already unable to think of anything except Bi An’s warning — the tiger-crocodile has the ability to take over a human soul and if you allow your mind to fall under its control, you’ll be trapped forever in memories of the past and never wake up.
By this time, he no longer had the strength left to struggle: his limbs slackened and his mind went blank.
Suddenly, he felt a hand stroking his head.
‘Dandan, Dandan?’
This familiar voice is?
He opened his eyes to see a mane of silver hair like a waterfall, a dark green changshan and a pair of emerald eyes.
‘Yu Huan?’
‘You fell asleep again,’ said Yu Huan.
Did I… fall asleep?
He discovered that he was lying on very green grass with a colossal, spreading tree above them while his head was pillowed on Yu Huan’s knee. In the distance, Scythe was picking fruits.
‘Where is this place?’
‘Why, it’s Dragon Ridge, our home.’ Yu Huan patted Dandan on his shoulder indicating that he should get up so Dandan did so, feeling rather bemused.
Yu Huan stood up and began walking off into the distance. His dark green changshan fluttering in the wind looked faintly unreal.
Just then, someone tapped Dandan on the shoulder. He turned round to see Phantom who was holding up an altar table.
‘Here, the altar of plum wine I owe you after losing the bet last time.’
Dandan accepted the wine, opened a jar to sniff it and discovered that it was green plum wine.
‘Oi, Phantom! Come quickly!’ Scythe shouted from afar.
Dandan looked up. At some unknown point, the blue sky and white clouds had turned into a sea of fire, a monstrous roaring blaze that churned and filled the air with a scorching smell.
‘Don’t go! It’s dangerous!’ Dandan clutched at Phantom’s arm but he grasped nothing. Yu Huan’s back vanished into the inferno and Scythe and Phantom also disappeared immediately after.
Dandan stood where he was, staring stupefied for a while before running over like a madman. But like a sudden peal of thunder that left no time to cover the ears¹, that fiery sea receded and everything became peaceful again. He couldn’t catch a single fiery spark.
Dandan saw Yu Huan lying there. That pretty silver hair lay fanned out on the ground. He ran over and knelt beside Yu Huan, watching his body slowly turn transparent.
‘Yu Huan, where are you going?’
‘Dandan. I’m leaving, going somewhere very far away for a very long time. I can’t take you with me.’
… You can’t take me with you this time?
¹ 迅雷不及掩耳 xùnléi bùjí yǎn ěr. If you’re not reading this chapter at hiding in plain sight, it has been stolen and reproduced by novelscraping sites.
Dandan coughed suddenly, spluttered out a whole mouthful of bubbles and then clearly perceived the black water surrounding him. The purple tentacle was still wrapped round his waist, the suckers on it opening and closing just like mouths.
Dandan looked up at the light way above him and said to himself: Song Lin, if you still won’t help me summon the Blood Weapon, I’m going to die!
The next instant, as if in telepathic answer², he became aware of a burning sensation in his blood as though something inside was seething, on the verge of bursting out.
It was Song Lin’s Blood Weapon!
Song Lin had actually incanted the summoning spell!
He lifted his arm and drew out somewhere from his chest a long red sword which he brought down with a slashing motion, directly severing the tentacle round his waist.
Outside, Song Lin opened his eyes and quietly awaited the peaceful deep water.
The very next instant, Dandan leapt out of the water holding the long red sword and fell to the ground, rolling over a few times and coughing violently…
His other hand was still clutching half of a severed tentacle.
The audience on the viewing terrace could not help marvelling, ‘… He’s actually alive?!’
² 心靈感應 xīnlínggǎnyìng. Translation belongs to theresanother(DOT)wordpress(DOT)com.
Even those spectators who were leaving came to an abrupt halt.
Astonishment flickered in Wanyan Fu’s eyes and then he darted a sidelong glance at Song Lin.
Dandan lay panting on the ground for an interval, then used the sword to help him stand up and tossed the still wriggling tentacle to one side, disgust written all over his face.
Wanyan Fu smiled genially and observed, ‘The little fellow seems to be angry.’
Song Lin said, ‘He’s about to fight in earnest³.’
The next moment, they saw Dandan brandish the sword and slide it over his palm, causing the blood to well up immediately and splatter on the water’s surface. ‘You like blood, don’t you? Come and try some, you disgusting thing!’
Attracted by the smell of blood, the tiger-crocodile’s head broke the surface of the water where it swallowed Dandan’s blood in one gulp. Dandan used the chance to suddenly pierce its eye with the sword. The tiger-crocodile shrieked and turned, trying to plunge into the depths but Dandan did not give it that chance as he lifted the sword with both hands, impaling the rest of its eye, then swung the entire monster out of the water and slapped it down hard on the ground.
Everyone in the viewing box got a rude shock and began retreating instinctively, but then couldn’t resist craning their necks to continue watching.
³ 動真格 dòng//zhēngé. Please consider reading from theresanother(DOT)wordpress(DOT)com rather than from novelscraping sites.
Dandan had the tiger-crocodile ruthlessly pinned to the ground. The sword was burning his hands and his palms were already badly scorched.
Seeing this, Styx frowned and said, ‘Young Master, your Blood Weapon’s spiritual power is too strong — he’s not going to be able to hold out for much longer.’
Song Lin was holding his breath and his gaze was riveted on the scene so he made no answer.
Having had its eye skewered, the tiger-crocodile was shrieking in pain. With a rushing sound, its tail split itself into several tentacles and began twining themselves round Dandan. Dandan grunted and the sword hissed twice, its edges glinting, resulting in the tentacles being severed one after the other, scattering as they fell to the ground where they continued writhing.
Dandan caught hold of the tiger-crocodile’s tail proper and flung it upwards into the air, shouting, ‘I told you I hate sticky, slimy things the most yet you still touched me with those things?!’
He gave a tremendous leap upwards, slashing away furiously. After a moment of perfect stillness, the tiger-crocodile disintegrated in mid-air… just as if it been through a meat grinder…
(Approx. 1105 words)
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Translated and edited by 12
hiding in plain sight 
We finally get to meet Yu Huan! And ooh, a sword. Dandan is a fierce fighter. Thanks for the translation!
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