What Does It Mean to Transform Fish into a Sword

At present, most players were around Level 50, and none of the Four Divine Beasts had been captured yet.

Most cultivators had come here by chance, passing through while pushing the main storyline in the desert. Once they discovered the place, however, they were unable to tear themselves away.

At a stage when Pals were still relatively scarce, Zhong Yi’s strength was unquestionably formidable.

His combinations of passives, team compositions, and skills aside, the sheer number of bizarre Pals he had produced through crossbreeding at his farm was already a height ordinary players could never hope to reach.

With the Shock Needle Demon and the Frostallion Noct he had acquired ahead of everyone else, Zhong Yi had formed an electrified team that, in the eyes of the players, was overwhelmingly powerful.

Both the Jetragon and Frostallion Noct unleashed high-pressure water cannons. The torrents were not only devastatingly powerful, but also inflicted continuous flinching, instantly turning Zhou Yue’s three Pals into helpless targets.

What followed was simple.

Zhong Yi’s attacks inflicted the Soaked status. With the Jetragon present, both the Pals and Zhong Yi dealt 50% more damage to Soaked enemies.

At the same time, thanks to the Shock Needle Demon, Zhong Yi’s attacks also carried Electric damage. Electric damage gained an additional bonus against Soaked enemies and could inflict paralysis through the Shocked status.

While an enemy was paralyzed, Water damage received yet another bonus…

With his left foot stepping on his right, Zhong Yi’s DPS shot straight through the roof!

Anubis and Ragnahawk died on the spot, unable even to use a second round of skills.

Taifeng, who had activated “Ironclad Guardian,” possessed exceptionally high defense, but was still at the end of his tether. After all, it was the paralysis caused by the stacking Water and Electric effects that was truly deadly.

Seeing that the duration of “Ironclad Guardian” was about to end, Zhong Yi was practically bursting with smugness.

“Lao Zhou, just admit defeat. I win~~”

Zhong Yi switched into showboating mode ahead of time, spreading his arms as he basked in the praise flooding the livestream chat.

At this point, the outcome of the Pal battle was already decided.

If this had been the world of Pokémon, Zhong Yi would indeed have won.

Unfortunately, this was the world of Palworld.

In an arena battle, there was another way to win besides defeating all of an opponent’s Pals: defeating the opponent themselves.

The countless clouds of dust kicked up by Taifeng’s opening skill were gradually dispersing. That was when Zhong Yi suddenly realized something.

Zhou Yue was nowhere to be seen.

By the time Zhong Yi sensed the danger, it was already too late.

“I can’t beat your Pals, but you think I can’t beat you?!”

“What the hell?! Lao Zhou, that’s totally unsportsmanlike!!!”

…

A few short minutes later, a new line had been added to the arena handbook Zhong Yi carried:

“Humans are more fragile than Pals. To catch the bandit, capture the ringleader. Remember this.”

After that, he obediently went to the spectator area and watched Zhou Yue continue fighting.

The opponent in the next match was even more unexpected.

“Junior Sister Li?!”

Zhong Yi was stunned.

The last time he had seen Li Moran, they had been a full thirty levels ahead of her.

Yet after only a few days apart, Li Moran’s level had already caught up. She was now less than three levels behind them.

Zhong Yi could not help sighing. His Junior Sister Li either spent her days in seclusion without playing the Illusion Realm, or, once she started playing, she went harder than anyone else.

Like the others, Li Moran had discovered the arena by accident while advancing the main storyline in the desert.

Unlike them, she had devoted herself to challenging all kinds of bosses, constantly walking the edge between life and death. Her entire journey had been filled with nothing but battle, and her level had risen at an astonishing speed.

Although treating Palworld like a Soulslike game was quite a challenge, it was impossible for her not to be interested in the strange and wonderful Pals.

Li Moran did want to experience fighting alongside Pals. Unfortunately, she had promised Lu Ze that she would not use Pals to complete the game.

However, Lu Ze had told her that the arena did not count as part of the main storyline and therefore was not covered by their rules. As a result, Li Moran had immediately brought her Shiny Lamball along to have some fun.

“But Junior Sister Li’s team is a little… shabby.”

Zhong Yi glanced at Li Moran’s lineup in the waiting area and immediately shook his head.

A Mozzarina, an ordinary Lamball, and one enormous Shiny Lamball.

If Zhong Yi had not miscounted, then aside from the Mozzarina, all four of the Pals in Li Moran’s waiting lineup were Lamballs…

“Looks like Junior Sister Li hasn’t put much effort into raising Pals. She usually relies on herself to do all the work?”

Zhong Yi muttered to himself. When it came to Zhou Yue and Li Moran’s abilities in the Illusion Realm, he understood them better than anyone.

They were both top-tier experts, but Li Moran’s potential was even higher. That was why she won far more often than she lost whenever the two of them fought.

“Looks like Lao Zhou is finally going to beat Junior Sister Li for once!”

The instant he finished speaking, the match began.

As usual, Zhou Yue sent his Pals out to launch a feint while he searched for an opportunity to circle around and strike.

On the other side, Li Moran calmly stroked the head of her Shiny Lamball before extending her hand.

Mozzarina, her primary combat Pal, instantly transformed into a deep-blue blade and appeared in her grasp.

“What the hell?! What do you mean, ‘turning a fish into a sword’?!”

Zhong Yi was completely stunned.

There were countless types of Pals. Unlocking partner skills required Technology Points, and since those points were limited, he had not been able to learn about all of them.

The various bizarre partner skills were one of Palworld’s greatest charms.

Take the Cattiva rocket launcher that had made everyone laugh until their stomachs hurt at the very beginning, or the Grizzbolt minigun that Mu Yawen adored above all else. Now that he had seen Li Moran pull off the “Fish-to-Sword” technique, Zhong Yi instantly understood.

Li Moran, equipped with an exclusive weapon, was terrifying to watch.

She dodged every one of the Pals’ skills and struck their weak points with pinpoint precision.

The blade formed from Mozzarina’s life force dealt frightening damage. After only a few exchanges, Li Moran had actually suppressed all three of Zhou Yue’s Pals by herself!

Zhong Yi could never have dreamed that someone could wield a sword made from a stinking fish and fight the enhanced Danfeng to a standstill. The sight was nothing short of spectacular…

“Junior Sister Li is a completely different person now that she has an exclusive weapon! Looks like the outcome of this battle… Huh? What do you mean Mozzarina suddenly croaked? This thing has a time limit?”

“Then congratulations to Lao Zhou… Uh? Why did Lao Zhou suddenly make a mistake and run straight into Junior Sister Li’s blade…?”

“The outcome of this battle really is hard to predict…”

Zhong Yi was commentating for the livestream chat when Zhou Qiaoling’s plea for help suddenly came through the team’s voice channel:

“Senior Brother Zhong, Big Brother, when are you two going to finish your matches?”

“We’re completely out of Spirit Oil at home!!”