Ngư Tinh (literally "Fish Demon") is the secondary antagonist of Vietnamese mythology.
As its name suggests, it is a fish that became a giant demon and has terrorized the Eastern sea for centuries, until it is slain by the hero Lạc Long Quân. It is described as having the head of a fish and the body of an incredibly long serpent, with limbs all over its body, and possessing the ability to alter the weather at will.
Biography[]
Ngư Tinh presumably started out as a regular fish, until it somehow became a demon, growing gigantic in size to the point that its mouth alone can swallow an entire ship with 10 fishermen in a single gulp. It lives in a big cave under the sea, above which is a huge mountain that divides the sea into two areas. For centuries, Ngư Tinh terrorizes the Eastern sea, and whenever it swims, its waves will reach for the sky which drowns many ships on the way, and people who pass through the area will be eaten by it.
According to some versions of the myth, one night, a heavenly god wants to help the mortals despite Heaven forbidding gods from intervening with their affairs, so he descends to build a tunnel for them to avoid Ngư Tinh's cave. However, halfway through, Ngư Tinh awakes and transforms into a rooster and crows, tricking him into believing that morning has come and thus he has to go back to Heaven, preventing him from finishing the tunnel and destroying its lair.
When Lạc Long Quân arrives and sees the terror of the demon, he offers his help to the people by building a large ship and making a burning human-shaped piece of metal, before sailing to Ngư Tinh's cave and holding up the piece of metal to trick Ngư Tinh. Believing it to be a human, Ngư Tinh attempts to swallow it and Lạc Long Quân throws the thing into its mouth, causing Ngư Tinh's throat to burn. In agony, Ngư Tinh tries to sink Lạc Long Quân's ship. Quân takes out his sword and slices the demon into three pieces, killing it and ending its reign of terror.
Lạc Long Quân then throws the body parts of Ngư Tinh apart on the sea. The head becomes a small island, and the tail becomes the modern day Bạch Long Vĩ Island.
Powers and Abilities[]
Ngư Tinh's most notable advantage is its gigantic size, allowing it to swallow an entire ship with 10 fishermen at once. It is so big that one swim of it can cause waves so great that they drown ships. Additionally, its supernatural nature allows it to possess immortality or at least longevity, as it has been around for centuries. However, it is not invincible, as it still feels agony when swallowing the burning piece of metal and is easily slain by Lạc Long Quân using his sword, indicating that it is still subjected to fatal wounds.
In some versions of the myth, Ngư Tinh is also a master manipulator, as it once turns into a rooster to trick a god that is destroying its lair into believing that he is summoned back to Heaven. It also has the ability to transform into 100 different forms.
Gallery[]
