The scene was extremely awkward.
At the same time, the various powerful figures of the sea tribes on the scene all changed their expressions, and many of them looked quite remarkable.
Initially, everyone believed that the Merman King would become the new Sea Emperor, but reality had slapped everyone in the face.
Now, the problem was serious.
Given the Merman King's personality, he would not submit to the new Sea Emperor, which meant a major incident was likely to erupt.
After roaring for a while, the Merman King regained some composure. His sharp teeth gnashed loudly, and his eyes seemed to spew flames.
"The Eternal Ice Crystal must have been deceived. It recognizes a false emperor."
The Merman King immediately dismissed the new Sea Emperor, refusing to acknowledge him.
"But according to the traditions of the Arctic Ocean throughout the ages, whoever obtains the Eternal Ice Crystal is the rightful Emperor of the Arctic Ocean. Divine artifacts cannot be wrong, especially since the new Sea Emperor has been recognized by the Eternal Ice Crystal, which has never happened before!"
An old sea monster voiced his true thoughts.
How could a divine artifact be deceived? That was a joke.
If there were truly a way to deceive the Eternal Ice Crystal, then its true power would be heaven-defying, and no one would dare to disobey.
The old sea monster's words echoed the sentiments of many present, but no one dared to agree.
In fact, the nearby sea tribes were quietly retreating, distancing themselves from the old sea monster.
"Heh heh..."
The Merman King's gaze was chillingly cold as he stared at the old sea monster, intending to make an example of him.
He raised his right hand and clenched it tightly.
Boom...
The seawater behind him churned into a massive vortex, spewing endless immortal light, accompanied by a surge of sacred aura.
A trident, radiating terrifying pressure, slowly emerged from within.
Everyone present couldn't help but tremble, feeling immense pressure. Those with weaker cultivation almost collapsed.
"Spreading heresy, die!"
The Merman King gripped the trident and thrust it into the air.
A terrifying ripple spread outwards. The old sea monster, who had reached the peak of the Supreme Immortal realm, was decapitated before he could even utter a sound, dying on the spot.
Hot blood splattered everywhere. Silence fell upon the surroundings, and no one dared to speak up for the old sea monster.
The Merman King scanned the crowd menacingly, looking for anyone else who dared to be disobedient, to oppose him.
"That's right, the Eternal Ice Crystal was deceived. We will never acknowledge the identity of that false emperor."
"Indeed, indeed. The Merman King is the undisputed ruler of the Arctic Ocean. I am willing to support him as Sea Emperor."
The powerful figures of the sea tribes on the scene all declared their stance, willing to stand with the Merman King.
At this juncture, if one wasn't smart enough to choose a side, their fate would be obvious – they wouldn't survive today.
"Esteemed sirs, your choice is wise. Although the false emperor has been recognized by the Eternal Ice Crystal, my trident is not to be trifled with. Furthermore, my Merman tribe has countless experts and dozens of undead creatures. Who can rival us? If that false emperor is sensible and willing to surrender to me, then so be it. But if he remains stubborn, we shall eradicate him completely."
The Merman King's voice was filled with dominance, revealing his ambition to seize power by force.
He now controlled nearly eighty percent of the Arctic Ocean's strength, looking down on everyone, confident that he could sweep across the entire Arctic Ocean.
The lucky individual who received the recognition of the Eternal Ice Crystal was destined to be miserable, a complete unlucky fellow with no chance of resisting him.
Following this, the Merman King mobilized his intelligence network to investigate all information about the new Sea Emperor.
The next day, he received the first-hand intelligence.
"What? The new Sea Emperor is that runaway little princess of the Mermaid tribe, a greenhorn girl?"
The Merman King was somewhat dumbfounded. He couldn't understand why the Eternal Ice Crystal would recognize Ponyo.
That little mermaid lacked any imperial aura, and her talent wasn't exceptionally heaven-defying. Why had she received the favor of the Eternal Ice Crystal?
It was utterly perplexing.
However, for him, this was a good thing. Dealing with this insignificant little girl would be incredibly easy, without any pressure.
The Merman who reported the intelligence looked somewhat solemn and said, "My King, it's not that simple. Princess Ponyo has an incredibly ferocious and perverse guardian behind her, who should not be underestimated."
"Heh, how ferocious can he be? To me, he's just a clown."
The Merman King was arrogant and didn't take anyone seriously.
The Merman continued, "That person is named Ji Mo. He is infamous, known as the 'Shark Butcher,' a beast that has reversed the order of nature. According to intelligence, the Blood Shark tribe is finished, the deep-sea behemoths have been conquered by him, and the Flood Dragon tribe is wholeheartedly on Ponyo's side. The mastermind behind all this is this person named Ji."
"Ji Mo!"
The Merman King gritted his teeth, filled with hatred for the name. Just hearing it inexplicably angered him.
Because years ago, that old schemer, the Great Immortal Void, had almost wiped out the Merman tribe.
If it weren't for his father, the previous Merman King, defecting to the darkness and assisting that great figure, uniting with many powerful individuals to kill the wicked Great Immortal Void, the Merman tribe would likely be extinct by now.
The Merman King snorted, "Even if the Great Immortal Void were reborn, he would be finished. How could I fear a mere Ji Mo? My trident once dripped with the blood of the Great Immortal Void. This time, I will let this Ji meet his end under my trident, vanishing into thin air."
Immediately after, the Merman King summoned the various powerful figures to discuss how to deal with Ponyo and eliminate these stumbling blocks on the path to imperial power.
The power disparity between the two sides was immense. He intended to win beautifully, stepping on the corpses of Ponyo and Ji Mo to showcase his prestige.
As they were fervently discussing, more intelligence arrived.
"This is bad! The false emperor's side has gone on a rampage. In just one day, they swept through three major tribes. The Clam tribe suffered the most, with countless casualties. Their most powerful ancient clam shells were shattered, their bodies roasted and eaten by Ji Mo, leaving nothing behind. Even the little clam spirits did not escape his clutches; they were forcibly pried open, their inner shells scraped for three layers of pearl essence. It was truly tragic."
No one expected that before they could even deal with Ponyo, the other side had already initiated the attack.
And in just one day, they had annihilated three large sea tribes, and still had time to eat barbecue and scrape pearl essence. This was truly outrageous.
The leader of the Clam tribe heard this news and immediately fainted.
Having been out for only a few days, their ancestor was eaten, their home was gone. Who could endure such a change?
"Heavens above, the next victim won't be my Olli Crab tribe, will it?"
A golden crab, as large as a small mountain, was jumping anxiously, pacing in circles.
Its tribe was neighbors with the Clam tribe, and it was possible that Ji Mo's next target would be them.
The golden crab quickly took out its communication artifact, intending to contact its tribesmen and warn them to flee quickly.
It took a while for the connection to go through.
Just as the golden crab was about to speak, it heard an extremely horrifying voice from the other end.