On the seafloor of the Devil's Delta in Bermuda, directly above the Kingdom of Atlantis, two figures were locked in a fierce battle. A powerful burst of energy from their clash drew the attention of the Atlanteans.
Meanwhile, a scout in the palace of Atlantis reported to the High Priest: "High Priest, the king is fighting a human from the surface ".
"A human from the surface ? So deep under the ocean? I understand. You may go." After the scout departed, the elderly, blue-skinned High Priest remarked to General Sartu, who stood beside him, "It must be his child who has returned".
"His? You mean the traitor?" Sartu inquired.
The High Priest nodded.
Arthur and Namor were engaged in an intense fight, exchanging punches and kicks. While neither could gain a decisive advantage immediately, Arthur gradually found himself at a disadvantage.
Arthur sensed that Namor's abilities were remarkably similar to his own: a body highly resistant to blows and super-high-speed explosive power in the water, though Namor's raw strength wasn't quite on par with his. However, Arthur was not in peak condition, and his opponent wielded a superior weapon and possessed far better combat skills. Moreover, this was Namor's territory, and more soldiers were constantly arriving. Arthur felt the situation deteriorating and realized he needed to find a way to escape.
Seizing an opening, Arthur allowed Namor to send him flying. Using the force of the blow, Arthur turned and fled as swiftly as he could.
Seeing Arthur trying to escape, Namor immediately gave chase, shouting, "Catch him! Don't let him get away!" Countless Atlantean soldiers followed suit.
Arthur's speed increased, and he quickly outdistanced his pursuers. He dared not be careless and headed directly towards the source of the power that had called to him.
Suddenly, Arthur felt his pursuers gaining on him again. He turned to see Namor leading a multitude of soldiers, now riding various fish equipped with saddles and reins.
"Damn it, they have mounts? Isn't that cheating?" Arthur cursed inwardly.
Arthur could only accelerate with all his might, speeding towards his destination. Yet, the pursuers' speed was also incredibly fast, and the distance between them was steadily closing.
He heard a whooshing sound as a barrage of energy water cannons shot at him from behind. Arthur deftly dodged the shots darting left and right.
During his frantic escape, Arthur was accidentally struck by a water cannon. He stumbled slightly but quickly regained his balance, gritted his teeth and pressed forward.
Arthur had never been in such a predicament. He wondered if this day was destined to end with his death or capture rather than triumph.
He felt the mysterious calling force intensifying, indicating it was directly ahead. However, with the pursuers closing in, Arthur suddenly conceived a clever plan.
Arthur stopped, extended his hands towards the approaching pursuers, and unleashed a series of mental waves.
Immediately, the fish mounts beneath the Atlanteans went berserk, turning on each other and throwing the Atlantean soldiers' formation into chaos.
Seizing this opportunity, Arthur turned and fled forward. He finally reached the mysterious summoning place: a massive, bottomless trench. The powerful, enigmatic energy emanated from its depths.
Should he descend and investigate? Arthur hesitated, but at that moment, a massive water cannon energy blast shot from behind, striking him directly. It was Namor, who had finally caught up.
Arthur was propelled backward by the energy. Then, more water cannons struck him relentlessly as dozens of Atlantean soldiers lined up in a fan shape and fired at him.
"Ahhhh..." Arthur screamed in agony under the brutal bombardment of the countless energy water cannons.
Arthur was repeatedly hit, his body flying backward until he finally tumbled into the trench. The continuous energy water cannons blasted him deeper into the abyss, and the Atlanteans ceased firing only when he was out of range.
Namor, looking down at Arthur as he was blasted into the bottomless trench, remained expressionless.
A nearby soldier asked, "Do you wish to continue the pursuit, Your Majesty?"
Another soldier slapped the questioner, retorting, "Do you want to die? This is the forbidden land of the bottomless abyss, the Sea God's domain. Who dares to go down there?"
Namor raised his hand. "No, no one who enters the Sea God's Forbidden Land comes out alive. Let's go".
The surrounding soldiers raised their tridents and shouted joyfully, "Long live the king! Long live the king!"
As soon as Namor returned to his palace, a report came: "The High Priest requests an audience, Your Majesty!"
"Let him in!" Namor handed his armor to the servants and sat on his golden throne.
The elderly High Priest entered, trembling slightly with his cane. "Your Majesty, I heard that a human from the surface just broke in?"
"Yes, it was a young man who looked to be under 20. He was very powerful. Not only are his abilities comparable to mine, but he can also move just as freely in the water".
The High Priest cautiously asked, "Then, is he a descendant of that person?".
"It must be! Other than the traitor's evil seed, there can be others of the Atlantean bloodline remaining!" Namor was clearly furious about Arthur.
"Unexpectedly, this child with royal blood survived our pursuit," the High Priest sighed. "By all accounts, he is your younger cousin!".
"That traitor was secretly executed back then, and as such his evil seed was naturally not recognized by Atlantis!" Namor clearly harbored deep disgust for Arthur, a hybrid of Atlantean and human.
Namor's mother was once the great princess of Atlantis. She fell in love with a human, and together they gave birth to Namor. Because of his human skin color, Namor was scorned by everyone from childhood, enduring a life of abuse.
Arthur, on the other hand, was born to Namor's uncle, his mother's younger brother and a woman from Wakanda. Atlantis and the Wakandans had a long-standing feud spanning century. Arthur's father had secretly been meeting a Wakandan woman, which had greatly angered the former king at the time. He banished Arthur's father to the bottomless abyss and hunted down Arthur's pregnant mother. It was later said that Arthur's mother had been executed, but Arthur had somehow survived.
"Enough, I have already sent that evil seed into the bottomless abyss. Let's put this matter behind us. I don't want to hear anyone speak of it again," Namor ordered.
"As you command, Your Majesty!" The High Priest understood the full context. This incident was a disgrace to the Atlantean royal family, and few people knew about it. The royal family still needed to keep Arthur's existence a secret.
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The vast canyon not far from the Kingdom of Atlantis is known as the bottomless abyss, also referred to as the forbidden land of the sea god. Legend has it that this is where Poseidon, the god of the sea, fell, and the grand canyon itself was formed by the battle between the god of the sea and the demon god.
Arthur was already unconscious when he was thrown into the bottomless abyss. His body fell freely into the chasm, and it took a long time for him to finally settle on a large boulder on the seabed.
Beneath the boulder was fiery red hot magma, and the surrounding seawater was extremely hot. Arthur was fortunate not to have fallen directly into the magma. Lying on the boulder, Arthur appeared lifeless, but then countless blue energies, invisible to the naked eye, began to gather around his body.