Becoming a God Starts with Acting-Chapter 335: Crocodile Tears

That Merfolk sat atop a creature that looked strikingly similar to the one that had attacked Silvanus’s group earlier. However, this one was clearly larger, and the two horns on its head gleamed a vivid crimson.

Sensing Silvanus’s gaze, the Merfolk tilted his head, grinning as he licked his lips. "A human, huh? Perfect—just right for an appetizer."

Silvanus: "..."

At that moment, the creature beneath the Merfolk’s feet began to step through the clouds, descending closer and closer toward Silvanus. The Merfolk laughed again. "What’s wrong? So scared you’ve gone stiff? Hahaha!"

Right then, Silvanus suddenly yanked his spear free, stomping against the massive ice wall behind him as he twisted his body midair—gravity seemingly no longer applied to him.

Gripping his spear tightly with both hands, he raised it high and then drove it down hard into the icy surface once more!

Boom! Crash!

A blinding light burst forth like an explosion. Nerio watched in astonishment as the enormous spear actually pierced through the thick wall of ice. With that second strike, a gaping hole appeared, and the human immediately darted through to escape!

Nerio’s eyes widened in excitement, his tail slapping Kirin’s side repeatedly as he shouted, "Quick! After him!"

"Please stop scaring people like that. You don’t even eat humans," Kirin muttered helplessly, an almost speechless expression visible even on his majestic dragon face.

Still, the beast charged forward through the clouds.

As for Silvanus, he felt every ounce of strength drain from his body after that last attack. He knew there was no way back now, but his body was already at its limit.

No way... Was he really going to die here? Become that Merfolk’s appetizer?

As he ran, Silvanus’s thoughts spun in chaos, the taste of blood rising in his throat. In front of him, massive ice spikes surged upward one after another at blistering speed—each one enormous. He barely managed to dodge them, his movements frantic, while the egg he carried within him trembled restlessly, as if sensing his panic.

Meanwhile, Nerio, still perched on Kirin’s back, watched the struggling human below and chuckled. "What do you think? Ah, I really do make quite the villain, don’t I?"

Kirin: "..."

Kirin sighed. "Don’t you think this path looks... a little familiar?"

Hearing that, Nerio frowned and narrowed his eyes at the route ahead. Then, his large tail smacked down hard on Kirin’s side—so hard the poor beast nearly coughed up blood on the spot!

"You’re not a child anymore..." Kirin said wearily.

"Why didn’t you tell me sooner?!" Nerio snapped in frustration.

Kirin could only remain silent.

At that moment, Nerio raised his voice and shouted, "Human! Stop running this instant!"

Silvanus: "..." What, do you think I’m stupid? You tell me to stop running, and I’ll actually stop?

He completely ignored whatever the Merfolk were yelling. All around him, countless icy spikes suddenly shot up from every direction, as if determined to pierce him full of holes.

Silvanus frowned, realizing that this time, the Merfolk wasn’t just toying with him anymore—he genuinely intended to kill him.

But why?

What on earth was ahead?

Silvanus leaped into the air, the fierce wind pushing him higher. Even as his legs were impaled and the biting cold seeped into his blood, he poured every last bit of strength into lunging forward!

And then...

Silvanus fell into empty space. Below him lay a lake, its surface so clear and still that just one glance told him how freezing the water must be.

But now, he no longer had the strength to summon the wind...

Splash!

The sound echoed loudly as water exploded upward.

Only then did Silvanus realize the lake didn’t contain just water.

Strange plants grew straight up from the lakebed—slender trunks with alternating leaves sprouting from them, the higher they went, the smaller the leaves became.

All of them were a pure, snow-white color. When Silvanus crashed into them, they immediately shed a flurry of leaves, and the plants he struck shattered into clouds of icy dust.

"You! Get up here this instant!"

The furious roar of the Merfolk echoed from above. Silvanus, soaked to the bone and freezing, gritted his teeth and stayed still, using the last traces of his energy to warm his body.

Just then, he saw the Merfolk—Nerio—frantically sliding off the creature’s back, his fish tail struggling as he crawled toward the edge of the lake.

When he saw the drifting frost and the fragments of vanished plants on the water’s surface, Nerio’s expression crumpled almost instantly. He covered his face, head bowed low, shoulders trembling.

Silvanus could hear soft sobbing sounds, followed by pearls dropping one after another from the Merfolk’s face, clinking as they struck the icy ground.

He froze for a moment. It seemed those strange plants were... essential to this Merfolk.

At that moment, Nerio lifted his head. His exquisitely beautiful face was covered in tears, his delicate brows arched upward, his lips drooping pitifully—he looked utterly heartbroken.

"Those were tea trees I’ve been growing for over a hundred years, and you destroyed a fifth of them, sob sob... You’re so cruel, sob sob..."

Silvanus: "..."

Silvanus couldn’t help but say, "You were the one attacking me first."

If he hadn’t been lucky enough to fall into this lake, he probably would’ve been killed by this Merfolk already. Though honestly, he felt like he was still on the verge of death anyway—the water was freezing!

Nerio ignored Silvanus’s protest, continuing to sob. "When the harvest season comes, if I don’t have enough tea leaves, King will definitely punish me. I’ll be trapped here for another hundred years, sob sob sob..."

"I’ve been imprisoned here for so long. Aside from this mutt, you’re the first different person I’ve seen. I just wanted to be friends with you, sob sob sob... I only wanted to play a little, sob sob..."

Kirin: "..." Mutt?

Nerio didn’t seem to care what Kirin thought. His tears kept falling, and the pearls had already piled up into a small hill.

Hearing the Merfolk’s pitiful story, Silvanus nodded slightly. "You really are a little pitiful. But you shouldn’t ’play’ like that—I almost died because of you."

His words trembled slightly from the cold.

Nerio looked at Silvanus with wide, clear eyes, looking even more innocent and fragile. He nodded meekly. "I know I was wrong. Can you come up to shore? It must be freezing down there."

He extended his hand toward Silvanus, tilting his head and blinking up at him.

Silvanus looked at him for a moment, then finally shook his head. "No. Just have that creature take me back where I came from. I won’t damage your tea anymore. That way, we’ll both be fine."

Nerio’s fingers twitched. Then, without warning, he slammed his hand down on the lake’s surface. The water erupted in a violent surge, swallowing Silvanus whole—but without pushing him anywhere near the tea trees.

"You dare destroy my Heavenly Tea and still dream of leaving here alive?!"

Silvanus: "..." So it really was crocodile tears after all.

Summoning every last ounce of strength, he swam forward, ignoring the icy water tearing at his skin until it bled. He didn’t stop, aiming straight for the cluster of tea trees.

But just as his hand was about to touch one, a strange energy enveloped him—

And in the blink of an eye, Silvanus vanished entirely from the lake.