"The Merfolk even have a Priest…"
Looking at the Merfolk casting magic skills, Chen Heng thought to himself and his expression became quite grim.
Different from Human Sorcerers, the Merfolk Sorcerers relied on their innate bloodline power. Only Merfolk with dense bloodlines could awaken their bloodlines and become bloodline Sorcerers.
Comparatively speaking, there was a lower chance of a Merfolk Sorcerer appearing than a Human Sorcerer appearing.
Usually, those who could awaken their bloodlines and become Priests all had royal blood, and it was quite rare to encounter them.
However, they had now encountered them.
Sorcerers who had awakened their bloodlines not only had the ability to cast magic skills, but they also had magic power.
Even though they did not receive a traditional education, causing their magic skills to be quite simple, but with their magic power, their strength was comparable to that of Third Rank Apprentices.
Right now, apart from Chen Heng, there was only the Guardian Sorcerers who was a Third Rank Apprentice.
"Troublesome..."
After dodging to the side, Chen Heng lightly sighed and thought to himself.
He had never thought that he would encounter such a situation right after going out.
There were indeed many Merfolk living in this world's oceans, but in regions close to land, they were usually cleared out by Human Sorcerers to make transportation more convenient.
Given that this was a place that ships usually passed through, it was uncommon to see them here.
And yet, here they were.
It was most likely because of the war that the Merfolk had begun to relocate.
This was quite rare and would usually be dealt with quite quickly.
It could only be said that they were quite unlucky this time.
Chen Heng sighed and did not know what to say.
However, it was not too bad.
Even though their luck was quite bad to run into these relocating Merfolk, these Merfolk were not too powerful.
Even though they had a Merfolk Priest, there was only one.
As for the other Merfolk, even though they were powerful, they could not compare to Third Rank Apprentices.
With the various Apprentices' strength gathered on this ship, they should be able to deal with them.
Chen Heng thought this as he gripped his sword and rushed forwards.
The Merfolk Priest looked at him and slightly raised his head, preparing to attack again.
Boom!!
Magic power ripples swept out.
On the ship, the Third Rank Apprentice appeared on the deck and faced the Merfolk Priest.
"Your opponent is me," the middle-aged black-robed Sorcerer's expression was serious as he spoke.
The intense battle was still going on.
On the deck, the Merfolk continued to attack and press forwards.
The Sorcerer Apprentices held their swords and sabers and also rushed at the Merfolk.
The two sides continuously clashed on the deck, and howls continuously sounded out.
Comparatively speaking, the Human side had the advantage.
Even though they had fewer people, they were all Sorcerers.
To be able to be called Sorcerers, they were all Apprentices who had gathered magic power.
To be able to gather magic power, this meant that their bodies would continuously become stronger because of the magic power.
Even a First Rank Apprentice was not inferior to a Knight Apprentice.
A Second Rank Apprentice could rely on their body's strength to fight with a true Knight.
With this kind of strength, the Merfolk were unable to gain an advantage.
As such, the situation began to turn towards the Humans' favor.
As the Sorcerers' swords and sabers descended, the Merfolk would howl and then fall down one by one.
On the other hand, the Sorcerers' situation was much better. Even though many people were injured, there were very few people who had died.
However, the Merfolk had their own advantage: They had great numbers.
Including the Guardian Sorcerer, there were only 20 Sorcerers fighting.
On the other hand, the Merfolk had hundreds of people, as well as a Merfolk Priest.
It was a ten to one situation.
Facing such great odds, even though the Human Sorcerers were stronger, they could not completely suppress the Merfolk.
"We can't keep going on like this…"
After cutting down a Merfolk and looking around, Chen Heng frowned.
He could feel that as time went on, the Sorcerer side was becoming weaker and weaker.
Many people's actions had begun to slow down.
It seemed that they were running out of strength.
However, it did not look like the Merfolks' numbers were going down at all.
Chen Heng could tell that the situation was quite bad.
If nothing changed, the Sorcerers would fall into a disadvantage, and they might even be completely destroyed by these Merfolk.
Thinking to there, Chen Heng deeply breathed in and did not hesitate.
Standing there, he waved his hand.
Formless mental ripples spread out.
Mental Intimidation!
This was the first magic skill that Chen Heng had grasped, and this was a very suitable time to use it.
As Chen Heng unleashed the magic skill, the formless ripples spread out and covered the area in front of him.
Boom!
With Chen Heng at the centre, dozens of Merfolk froze in place.
When attacked with Mental Intimidation, those who did not have strong enough minds would have their minds fall into chaos and be unable to control their bodies.
This was why all of the Merfolk in front of him stopped moving and froze.
This would not go on for long, and they would all quickly recover.
After all, Chen Heng had used this magic skill in a large area, so the effect on each individual Merfolk was not too great and could only keep them frozen for ten or so seconds.
Normally, this would not be much, but in such a situation, it was critical.
The other Sorcerers did not hesitate or waste any words; seeing the Merfolk stop moving, they continuously slashed out and cut those Merfolk down.
A dense stench of blood spread out incredibly clearly.
"It's a magic skill!" shouts sounded out.
Mental Intimidation was different from other magic skills; it did not have any significant physical manifestations and was difficult to detect.
However, almost everyone here was a Sorcerer, so it was natural that they would realize this.
They all knew about the effects of Mental Intimidation, and they also sensed the abnormalities with their mental energy and quickly understood what had happened.
Someone had used a magic skill to stop these Merfolk.
It seemed that among the Sorcerers, there was another Third Rank Apprentice.
This news boosted the morale of the Apprentices, making them all feel excited and confident.
By now, there was no point in Chen Heng hiding anything anymore.
Standing there, he gripped his sword and silently gathered power as he once again cast a magic skill.
Mental Intimidation!
It was not that Chen Heng did not know other magic skills but that it was the most suitable one to use right now.
Compared to other magic skills, this magic skill had the best effects but also used the least magic power.
Moreover, this magic skill could not be easily seen and would be good for targeting the Merfolk.
Even though the Merfolk had tough skin and powerful bodies, their minds were relatively weak and had low intelligence.
Apart from some specific species, most Merfolk's intelligence was equivalent to that of a Human child's.
Against such creatures with powerful bodies but weak minds, Mental Intimidation was the most suitable skill to use against them.
As Chen Heng cast the magic skill, more Merfolk fell into a stupor and were felled by the Apprentices.
The situation quickly turned around.
It could be said being able to use magic skills and not being able to use them was a massive difference.
Often, with the right magic skills, one could cause massive changes.
This was why Third Rank Apprentices who could cast magic skills were so valued.
At this moment, Chen Heng clearly understood this.
Following this, the rest of the Merfolk continued to wildly rush up.
Apart from the Merfolk Priest, these ordinary Merfolk did not have very high intelligence. Even though the situation was so dangerous, they still fearlessly rushed up.
In fact, smelling the dense stench of blood, they were emboldened and furiously roared.
However, they were soon cut down.
There was no way around it.
Mental attacks were fatal to the Merfolk.
No matter how strong their bodies were, it was useless; they could not use them at all.
While they were still in a stupor, they would be easily cut into multiple pieces.
Everything seemed to be going smoothly for the Humans.
Not too far away, the Guardian Sorcerer and the Merfolk Priest were still battling it out while more and more Merfolk streamed forwards.
It was just that given the situation, it did not seem like the Merfolk would be able to do much.
"Something's off!"
Looking around, Chen Heng cast a magic skill as he thought to himself.
Even though the Merfolk were not very smart, the one commanding them was not an idiot.
For the Merfolk to attack them and have a Merfolk Priest among them, there was definitely someone commanding them.
If there was no one commanding them, after fighting for so long and suffering such losses, they would have stopped fighting.
However, why were they not retreating even in a situation like this?
If there were other Merfolk Priests, they should have come out long ago and would not have watched these Merfolk die for nothing.
Could it be that this was a diversion?
Soon, he understood the other side's intentions.
"The ship!"
Within the hold of the ship, someone cried out, "They're attacking the bottom of the ship!"
The bottom of the ship!
The Sorcerers were all stunned, and their expressions greatly fell.
Even though as Sorcerers their constitutions were stronger than those of ordinary people's, this did not mean that they could breathe underwater like fish.
Even if Third Rank Apprentices fell into the ocean, they would be greatly limited and would not be able to use their strength—this was much more so for First Rank Apprentices and Second Rank Apprentices.
However, it was the opposite for the Merfolk.
As Merfolk, they naturally lived in the water; that was their main stage.
"No way!"
"They're retreating!"
Voices sounded out.
Looking at the Merfolk's actions, the Apprentices' faces were ashen.
As they watched on, the Merfolk who had been desperately advancing to fight with them were now retreating.
It was evident that they were just a distraction while the ship was being destroyed.
Time gradually passed.
As time went on, the ship started to sink.
Standing on the deck, Chen Heng frowned and looked forward.
He could see many figures with a humanoid shape but had fish tails.
These were most likely the Merfolk nobles commanding the ordinary Merfolk.
They had hidden quite well.
"So troublesome…" Chen Heng lightly sighed and made preparations.
The situation had become incredibly dangerous, and he was prepared to die.
If he fell into the ocean, even as a Third Rank Apprentice who could cast magic skills, he would be incredibly weak.
The Merfolk would not have to even fight him; they just had to wait until he used up all of his mental energy before capturing him.
Chen Heng could not see any hope for him.
However, even so, he still had to fight until the end.
That was how people were—it was not over until it was over.
This was the case for ordinary people and even more so for Chen Heng.
He looked around and silently made preparations.
The black-robed Apprentice who had been fighting with the Merfolk Priest walked over with a dark expression.
Evidently, he had also realized how dangerous the situation was.
Of course, by now, it would be strange if anyone did not realize the danger that they were in.
Standing on the deck, he thought for a moment before walking towards Chen Heng.
The Apprentices in the surroundings instinctively made way for him.
"Friend, do you have any ideas?" the middle-aged man asked seriously.
"I don't have any ideas; we can only do our best to escape," Chen Heng said as he sighed, "As long as we can get on a nearby island, we might have a chance…"
"There are indeed some small islands nearby…"
The middle-aged man gave a bitter smile, "But we might not be able to last until then."
"That's right."
Chen Heng nodded before lightly sighing, "We can only do our best…"
"I know a place close to here," the Third Rank Apprentice said, "What do you think, friend?"
"You want to head there together?" Chen Heng asked as his eyes lit up.
"That's right," The Third Rank Apprentice nodded with a serious expression.
"There is still some distance," he said, "If we were by ourselves, we most likely would not be able to make it. However, if it's the two of us, then perhaps…"
"Is that so?" Chen Heng thought for a moment before making a decision and nodding, "Let's go with that."
Seeing Chen Heng agree, the middle-aged man gave a slight smile, and Chen Heng also smiled.
Following this, the two of them walked away but did not tell anyone else about this.