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[Crossover] Ch 48: Water Tree
🕑 Added 2025-05-27 23:40:18 +0000 UTC— — — — — —
Above the lake.
The water god was floating upside down, belly-up in the water like a dead fish, her massive body twisted in defeat.
Standing right on her stomach, Ryo looked a little confused. He clenched his fist experimentally, then tilted his head and muttered with a strange expression:
"…I barely even tried. You're already down?"
Was this snake really ranked in the five-digit class?
Ryo's skeptical gaze said it all.
He'd only used a combo: a momentum shift plus a straight punch technique he'd picked up from Yamamoto Genryūsai.
That was it.
And yet, with just those two moves, the serpent goddess had collapsed.
Just like that.
Before coming to this world, Ryo had heard rumors that this particular serpent goddess was the embarrassment of the five-digit tier—but he always thought that was just a joke.
Turns out… it wasn't.
The serpent water goddess stirred below, her head slowly rising from the water. Ryo could feel her body struggling beneath his feet, the frustration almost palpable.
With a splash, the serpent goddess lifted her head and bellowed in fury:
"You shameless cheat!"
"In all my years of life, I've never met a spirit so disgustingly brazen!"
"A monstrous being with world-shaking power, and you dare pretend to be some weak little human? You despicable scoundrel!"
"Whoever you are—Spirit God #16—I, the great serpent goddess, name you the most shameless creature alive!!"
With that, the serpent goddess let out a final pained groan and collapsed back into the water with a loud splash, her body twitching as she moaned in agony.
She wanted nothing more than to rip Ryo to pieces.
A spirit-type with a top-tier bloodline among the five-digit ranks, and she had actually believed he was just a regular human? He'd completely fooled her and lured her into a trap!
Weren't spirit-types supposed to be straightforward and loud-mouthed? Bold older brothers and warm-hearted older sisters, wasn't that the stereotype?
This guy—he must be some weird subspecies of spirits. A devil in disguise.
No… even the most underhanded devils weren't this sneaky.
This guy was on another level entirely—an absolute scoundrel.
The more she thought about it, the more furious she got. And the angrier she was, the more her body ached.
A spirit-type's punch wasn't something you could just walk off.
A spirit at the five-digit level could rip a mountain out of the ground and use it as a baseball bat.
And she'd taken a direct hit to the face.
Worse, it wasn't just any punch—it was a focused, technique-driven strike she'd never seen before, one that condensed Ryo's bizarre strength into a devastating blow.
The only reason she was still alive was probably because of her superior lineage.
That punch? Only someone in the four-digit class could survive it.
So yes—this bastard pretending to be a weakling was absolutely the lowest of the low!!
— — —
"..."
"It's over."
Leticia stared at the water mirror in front of her, face calm and composed.
Beside her, Shiroyasha was hiding behind her fan, practically dying of secondhand embarrassment. She looked like she was one step away from digging a hole and burying herself in it.
She'd just been going on and on about how Ryo would need clever tactics to beat the serpent goddess… and now?
SLAP! SLAP! Reality had just smacked her in the face.
Hard.
What the hell just happened?
A five-digit class divine beast with dragon lineage and centuries of training got one-shotted?
Since when were five-digits this fragile?
And how the hell did we end up with such a weak snake?
What the hell was the North Sea Dragon King thinking?
Sure, Ryo had that spirit transformation blessing or whatever—but still! That shouldn't have ended the fight this fast!
Would it kill you to at least put up a fight? Give me some face here!
Shiroyasha's face was twitching, but she forced herself to act dignified and said:
"Well done, well done. Beating Shirayuki so easily—it's just as I expected."
Really? Leticia shot her a sidelong glance, eyebrow raised.
Shiroyasha clearly felt the judgment in that look, and awkwardly wobbled her fan as she added:
"Haha, yeah, you know... Back when the North Sea Dragon King begged me on his knees to take in his illegitimate daughter, I already suspected she didn't have much combat talent."
Weren't you just praising her bloodline a minute ago…?
Leticia didn't say anything, letting Shiroyasha save face, but she couldn't help glancing at her again with an expression that practically screamed, "FOR REAL?"
Feeling her pride start to crack, Shiroyasha quickly changed the subject.
"Anyway, since Ryo won so fast, I guess our original goal wasn't exactly achieved... Should we add another trial?"
Leticia let out a small sigh.
"No need, Lady Shiroyasha. The agreement was to guide the one who passes the serpent goddess's trial. Since that's what happened, we should honor our word."
Then she looked over and added pointedly:
"Besides, isn't Ryo one of your own?"
Sure, her own snake lost so fast it was embarrassing—but the one who won? That was yours too.
Leticia's gaze even held a trace of comfort, like she was trying to reassure Shiroyasha.
"Ah, that's true. You're right. Hahaha!"
Shiroyasha laughed awkwardly.
"After all, he got his Divinity from my Sun Authority. It's only natural he'd beat someone from my Yasha Authority. Speaking of which—man, the Buddhist authorities have been getting lamer by the year. Those baldies are really falling off lately."
Her Sun Authority was her original divine identity. The Yasha Authority? That was a second-rate one the Buddhist faction handed out for free.
Shiroyasha's Translation: the serpent goddess's poor performance was Buddhism's fault—not hers.
Meanwhile, Ryo's strength? Clearly a result of her excellent judgment.
Look at him! A kid this talented, and she had the foresight to give him a god-class authority under her Sun domain. Now that's what you call taste.
"..."
Leticia just rolled her eyes and cast a light-avoidance blessing on herself before spreading her bat wings.
"I'll go announce the results," she said, floating into the air.
"Mhm, you do that," Shiroyasha waved casually.
As Leticia flew off, Shiroyasha turned back to the water mirror, where the serpent goddess still lay unconscious like a dead whale. Her face darkened, nose practically twitching with rage.
"You useless pig! What the hell have you been doing for the last few centuries?"
CRACK! She snapped her folding fan in two with a furious twist.
"Damn it! If you weren't so good-looking, I'd skin you alive tonight!"
"Hmph!"
With a cold snort, Shiroyasha narrowed her eyes, staring at the fallen goddess, her thoughts unclear.
— — —
At the waterfall.
Ryo was busy raiding Shirayuki's treasure vault.
According to the rules, the victor of the trial was allowed to take one gift from the serpent goddess's hoard as a reward.
"Trash, trash… Oh? High-quality rice with a yield of ten tons per acre? Not bad—but not what I'm here for."
After some digging, Ryo finally found what he was looking for—one of the original story's gifts buried in her exclusive vault.
—Water Tree.
A gift that naturally gathers moisture from the air and produces an endless supply of high-quality living water.
It was rated as a five-digit-tier item.
Why? Because the water it created wasn't just clean—it was rich in energy and perfect for enhancing growth. A high-value, high-utility production gift.
With this thing, he could literally make a fortune selling water.
And for [No-Name], who had lots of land but no water source? It was the perfect solution.
"Perfect. I'll take this one."
Ryo stored the Water Tree and looked over at the snake goddess foaming at the mouth nearby. He couldn't help but laugh a little.
They were technically both under the Authority of the same god after all, so out of some decency, he dragged her unconscious body back into her cave under the lake before swimming back to shore.
Just as he reached the edge, his eyes narrowed slightly and turned toward the forest.
"You've grown a lot, haven't you…"
Leticia's voice, gentle and nostalgic, drifted through the trees as she slowly stepped into view.
.
.
.
