The return trip to Earth for Su Ming and the others with their spaceship went smoothly, but they arrived here a little late.
Due to the global communication breakdown, there was no way to locate Barry's position.
Fortunately, Barry had caused a Speed Force storm while clearing the ancient tomb, and this unnatural phenomenon was detected by Steel Bone, allowing the spaceship to sneak over under the guise of invisibility.
As soon as they arrived, they saw that a battle underwater was required, and Zhen Hai had summoned a large array of various heroes to besiege the three of them.
If underwater combat was needed, it could only be Su Ming and Black Alice, along with Night Shadow and Blue Demon; others would undergo mutation if they went underwater.
But bringing along people like Shadow Contract would be more of a hindrance because even with four people going down, it would be impossible to fight against so many heroes plus Zhen Hai.
So Su Ming transformed into an unfamiliar Fish-Man form, blending in with the alien reinforcements, waiting for the right moment.
It was crucial to deal with mage roles like Zatanna first. Although Su Ming could withstand it, now they were in a tomb, and if a great magic spell was unleashed, everyone would be buried alive.
When he saw the enemy retreating, if only Mera could lend him the Hard Water Sword, Zhen Hai and Manta Ray should have been dead.
But they fled too quickly, and Mera's weapon was a type of magic that land people couldn't handle, so that thought had to be abandoned.
So Su Ming remained hidden, only revealing himself to save them after ensuring Zhen Hai and the others had indeed escaped.
And immediately, he knocked the Deathstroke from the Main World flying.
Su Ming had no personal vendetta against him, but since they were wearing the same uniform, it was blatant animosity—wasn't this stealing business?
So, with one Shield strike, that Deathstroke from the Main World would probably need a day or two to heal.
When he infiltrated the Blood Reef, he realized that Fish-Men had no means to recognize each other—there were loopholes everywhere.
Transforming into the Captain America Fish-Man form was a similar consideration.
No one was familiar, so identity didn't matter; he was just another Fish-Man.
He was loafing at the back of the team, only striking at the crucial moment to secure victory.
The opposing mages had all been ambushed and knocked down without anyone noticing, and next up was dealing with the superpowered heroes.
But Su Ming saw LOBO here, known as Violent Wolf, which was a bit unexpected.
Because this guy is an alien, how did he become a Fish-Man too? But it doesn't matter, as long as the Purple Water remains ineffective against symbiotes.
Violent Wolf was quite powerful, but extremely unstable—strong enough to swim in the sun at times, and at others, anyone could defeat him.
He even tangled with the Deathstroke from the Main World before, resulting in a 50-50 outcome.
But Su Ming would give him no chance, transforming the Godslayer back from the Shield form and swiftly taking him down with a flurry of strikes.
For a self-healing ability user, hitting hard didn't matter, and besides, if not acting quickly, no one knew how long the ground would hold.
Barry sat resting inside the protective barrier, knowing they survived when the Deathstroke blocked the tomb chamber door.
Those Fish-Men were no match for the Otherworldly Deathstroke, seemingly familiar with everyone's weaknesses.
With precise tactics, sharp transforming weapons, exceptional defense, and endurance, Deathstroke could battle these hundreds of people all day long!
At this thought, Barry tilted his head, scratching with a lobster claw.
How strange, where did this all-day concept suddenly pop into his mind? A side effect of turning into a Fish-Man?
Deathstroke wasn't one to waste time pointlessly, nor would he fight all day. While furiously striking the enemies before him with a golden staff, he turned and pointed upwards.
Superman grasped the hint immediately, having cooperated with Batman for years—deciphering puzzles, reading eyes, understanding gestures, all basic skills.
He immediately used Heat Sight to open a path through the ceiling, and the heroes capable of flight, already downed by Deathstroke, found flying away to be the best choice.
As they ascended above the sea through the barrier, they saw an alien spaceship resembling a sailing ship floating overhead, with Diana and Arthur watching them from the deck.
The Female Hero tossed the Lasso, pulling their water sphere onto the ship, and the group finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Superman's abilities were gradually recovering under the sunlight, Mera was slightly exhausted, and Barry was in the worst condition.
Su Ming emerged from the hole, knocking down the giant-chasing Giantess with a smash, watching her collapse into the water as the earth shook.
He boarded the deck, with the Magic Floating Cloak expanding back to its original size, shaking off the seawater in the air.
"So, Barry, wasn't I timely? Aren't you touched?"
Barry leaned on the ship's side, looking at him with his half Fish-Man face: "Touched, yes, but earlier would've been better."
Su Ming shrugged; what could he do? Without being able to lock onto their position earlier, finding them was all in vain.
"I don't have Divine Speed, not to mention... you usually like eating lobster pizza?"
"Hmm? Why ask that?" Barry looked puzzled: "I still prefer something traditional, like cheese and bacon."
Su Ming pointed to Barry's left hand, now resembling a large pincer: "I thought you liked shrimp, a new look?"
"No, I still like being human. Also, turning into some kind of aquatic monster doesn't relate to what you like to eat, right?"
Barry suddenly felt drained again. Why did these jokes always exhaust him? Why did Deathstroke love these cold jokes that had him wanting to retort?
Su Ming leaned in closer, whispering: "It's okay, Barry, relax. Your Fish-Man transformation can be reversed. Look around at the warlocks; with whom are you familiar?"
Barry was naturally most familiar with Raven; the Titan Squad was a loyal follower of the Justice League. In comparison, the connection with Shadow Contract was much more distant.
However, to release the Inverted Man's dispel spell, Raven couldn't do it. She's the Demon Princess of Another Dimension, using a different kind of Hell power, not borrowing anything from the Inverted Man.
The Banshee is much the same. So, in the end, the only one who could cast the spell was Night Shadow.
But Su Ming still had to ask, because only at times like these could you see which girl Barry was close to, if there were any unspeakable little secrets, things not sketched out in the comics.
Then Deathstroke would jot down these secrets to use as leverage at critical moments in the future...
But aside from his wife before Flashpoint and his current girlfriend not being the same person, Barry had little dark history. He just glanced at the warlocks present, shaking his head.
"No, I'm not really that familiar with them, except for Zatanna and Constantine... but she turned into a fish, she's down below."
"Hmm, I saw that earlier. I gave her a fierce strike to the back of her head; she should be unconscious for about four hours." Su Ming confirmed with a grin, as if nothing had happened: "Anyone else?"
Barry opened his mouth but ended in a sigh: "That's it... "
"Tsk... Night Shadow, come help!"
Su Ming had been squatting talking to Barry, but upon hearing that, he made a disappointed sound and turned to call Night Shadow over directly.
After all, she had already cast enough spells today; she wouldn't fret over more debt. Worst case, when the flood recedes, Superman could catch some rabbits for her.
Night Shadow was present when the Inverted Man explained curse magic earlier, and she knew what she should do now.
Although there are too many heroes turned into fish people below, she couldn't pay the price for all of them, but saving just The Flash was manageable.
Bringing the Speed Force back to the Justice League would exponentially increase combat power; her own costs could be considered a sacrifice for the world.
After a brief spell, Barry recovered instantly; he just needed to eat something, drink some water, and he'd be as good as new.
"Thank you, you saved my life."
Barry nodded to Night Shadow, happily rubbing his left arm, feeling good about being human again.
He swore to never again attend any lobster festival for free crawfish; he didn't want to eat crab either, at least for a while.
Meanwhile, Night Shadow was being harassed by the Holy-Mother-Syndrome Superman, who wanted to save the fish people down below. Yet Night Shadow had to explain a whole slew of things to him, who understood nothing about magic.
It's not that she didn't want to save them; the key issue was the high-interest debt!
So Night Shadow didn't directly respond to Barry's thanks; she just smiled bitterly and nodded her head.
Su Ming hooked his arm around Barry's neck, dragging him into the ship's cabin.
"Oh come on, Barry, we're brothers here. You don't need to thank me. Just remember to help me out if I end up fighting Batman next time."
Barry pulled off his mask with a look of resignation, ruffling his messy hair: "...."
Why did he feel like he'd boarded a pirate ship? Why would you fight Batman? Isn't he your boss?
Su Ming didn't bother explaining and suddenly dragged Barry to hide behind a corner.
It turned out that not far in front, Sea King and Mera were passionately locked in a kiss.
"Did you bring your phone?" Su Ming asked.
"Hehe, of course I did." Barry, forgetting his previous doubts, took out his phone.
In this information age, capturing a short video first was a given, regardless.
Below lay Aryan's submerged tomb, countless unconscious heroes floating like dead fish on the sea's surface, while Mera and Arthur kissed passionately.
Tsk tsk, if this video was shown to the folks down below, they'd probably go berserk.
"Good job with the video, make sure to send me a copy later," Su Ming whispered to Barry before walking out, heading straight beside the engrossed pair, tilting his head for a closer look.
To be honest, it did feel a bit like watching Beauty and the Beast, and definitely the R-rated kind.
Never mind Sea King's full beard; he's actually younger than Barry by a fair bit, not even thirty yet, only older than Steel Bone in the Justice League.
The engrossed pair took a good while before realizing someone with a lone eye was very close, almost right beside their face.
"Ahem!"
Arthur let go of Mera, unsure where to place his hands, eventually scratching his own back, too embarrassed to make eye contact.
"Why are you here?"
"It's nothing, just enjoying the buzz. You guys continue," Su Ming waved, indicating he was no bother: "Do you need a room? There's no bed, but at least there's a door."
Arthur felt a black line writhe across his face; with the world in crisis and intense scrutiny from Su Ming, how could he continue?
"No need, is it time for a meeting? We'll be right there."
Su Ming nodded with a smile, watching the two hand-in-hand walk into the command bridge.
This wasn't the Justice League's meeting, just wait for me to assign tasks...
At present, it seems there's no adverse reaction from the close contact between Power of Life and Tear of Extinction, proving the Tear of Extinction doesn't contain the 'Death' concept.
What Su Ming wanted Barry to record wasn't the Atlanteans' fluid exchange, but information and experiments.