The Origins of Ring Tree Island (Part 2)

"So from then on, there were no more Sea Kings in the surrounding waters, and the people settled down on Ring Tree Island!"

Everyone was astonished. They marveled at the Divine Tree's miraculous nature and wisdom, and had never expected that the island's people had come to be this way!

Their ancestors had actually arrived at Ring Tree Island after being shipwrecked in a storm.

They had truly never thought of that before! They had assumed they had always lived on Ring Tree Island.

They had never imagined that Ring Tree Island had been shaped by a giant tree struggling to survive.

Hearing this, Luo Han felt something stir within him. Even a tree possessed such a powerful will to survive and grow stronger.

Then why can't I keep striving to survive and become stronger in these cruel seas?

"Then doesn't that mean there's no meat to eat? All the fish ran away, and we can only eat fish cake powder from the Divine Tree. Isn't it awful not having any meat?"

Cole asked doubtfully from the air. Clearly, when it came to food, I, Cole, was serious!

Uncle Kate chuckled heartily.

"So that's why I said the Divine Tree has wisdom. It used its roots to dig several underground passages hundreds of meters wide deep beneath the seafloor.

"The exits of those passages are far away from Ring Tree Island. Once the passages broke through the seafloor and connected to the seawater, whenever the Scale Fruit ripened...

"The fish from the deep sea would naturally follow the scent through those passages to Ring Tree Island. Large Sea Kings could only damage the distant seafloor and could no longer affect the Divine Tree.

"During the journey to Ring Tree Island, as the salinity of the water gradually decreased, those fish and some small Sea Kings would slowly lose their strength.

"But the scent of the Scale Fruit would drive those fish mad. And so...

"By the time they reached Ring Tree Island, they could only float helplessly on the lake's surface."

So that was why the Scale Fruit Festival was also called the Harvest Festival, everyone thought at once!

"It's said that when the Divine Tree first emerged from the sea, its growth was relatively slow in the beginning. It was also attacked by Sea Kings, but those attacks were all dealt with by the people who had been shipwrecked on Ring Tree Island—the people who became our ancestors.

"So perhaps to repay them, and also to keep them here, the Divine Tree spent several years opening up the passages and drawing fish over.

"With enough food, the ancestors finally settled permanently on Ring Tree Island."

"Were the Rainbow Light Fish drawn here the same way?" Rein asked. Everyone was curious about how the Rainbow Light Fish had arrived on Ring Tree Island as well. They were freshwater fish, after all!

"The Rainbow Light Fish weren't originally called Rainbow Light Fish. No one knows what they used to be called. All anyone knows is that they were originally a very rare type of fish capable of living in both seawater and freshwater.

"They were also drawn here by the Divine Tree. Since freshwater didn't affect them, the islanders had to put in a great deal of effort to catch them at first. There were many Rainbow Light Fish, and they were extremely fast in the water.

"So people kept catching them for years without ever seeming to catch them all. Instead, the fish made their home at the bottom of Divine Tree Lake.

"Everyone simply treated them as an everyday source of meat.

"Later, they discovered that Rainbow Light Fish ate the old bark on the Divine Tree's roots, and could even promote the Divine Tree's growth.

"After discovering this, people stopped catching them so often. Anything that helped the Divine Tree grow was beneficial to the people living on the island.

"But later, they had no choice but to catch them again. Rainbow Light Fish are very lazy. If no one disturbed them, they could keep eating in one place until there was nothing left to eat.

"After eating all the old bark on the roots, they began eating the roots themselves.

"So the islanders had no choice but to send people to drive them away every day.

"Then they discovered that after eating too much of the Divine Tree's root bark, the Rainbow Light Fish had actually become fish that emitted rainbow light. Even their flesh and bones glowed with rainbow light. They also completely became freshwater fish. Once they left freshwater, they could only survive in seawater for ten breaths before dying."

"Later, everyone discovered the body-strengthening effects of the Scale Fruit and the energy replenishment provided by Rainbow Light Fish. That was how Ring Tree Island and its residents gradually survived until today!"

After a long while!

Everyone slowly came back to their senses. The way they looked at the Divine Tree now carried a different feeling, as though they had gotten to know a new friend and companion all over again.

From now on, the Divine Tree would not merely be a miraculous tree that provided Scale Fruit and fish cake powder. It was also a companion who fought alongside them.

Seeing the change in everyone's expressions, Uncle Kate revealed a gratified smile. Growing up on such a miraculous island, shouldn't they cherish it and protect it?

Then he looked at Luo Han and Cole! Ring Tree Island would need the two of you to protect it in the future.

"Then what's the deal with the Salt-Eating Sharks, Captain?" a Hunting Squad member sitting on another ark asked.

Everyone else was also puzzled! How had the Salt-Eating Sharks appeared? No one had noticed before, but it seemed that only Salt-Eating Sharks lived in the waters around Ring Tree Island.

Could it be that the Salt-Eating Sharks had also eaten the Divine Tree's roots and gained the ability to survive in seawater with an extremely high salt concentration?

"The Salt-Eating Sharks were attracted by the salt discharged by the Divine Tree. The Divine Tree constantly desalinates seawater and expels a massive amount of salt.

"So the Salt-Eating Sharks treat Ring Tree Island as their nest. Other than heading out in groups to hunt Sea Kings, they remain beneath the island.

"That's also why we get attacked when we go to collect salt. To the Salt-Eating Sharks, we're basically competing with them for food."

At that moment, the arks slowly rowed into waters thirty kilometers away from Ring Tree Island.

Once they arrived, Luo Han's far-reaching Divine Sense began sensing several Large Sea Kings hidden ten kilometers away in the deep sea.

"Alright! We're almost at the boundary between the high-salinity seawater and the ordinary sea! Begin circling the island along the boundary and patrol it. Keep within one thousand meters of each other, front to back. If you spot a Sea King, notify me immediately."

Uncle Kate had noticed as well and promptly reminded everyone.

The slowly moving arks soon reached the area the Hunting Squad normally patrolled.

"Uncle Kate, since there are no Sea Kings in the surrounding waters, how are we supposed to hunt Sea Kings when we come out here? And weren't we supposed to be hunting Sea Kings? Why are we circling the island on patrol now?"

Luo Han looked completely dumbfounded. They had agreed to hunt Sea Kings! Yet now that they had arrived, they could have continued forward and hunted Sea Kings, but instead they were patrolling!!!

"Yeah! Yeah! If there aren't any Sea Kings, how are we supposed to have meat later?"

Uh! Cole cared more about whether there would be meat to eat! Everything else was outside Cole's range of concern.

"Little Luo Han, Little Cole! Don't think patrolling is easy. One careless mistake could cost you your lives. This isn't like fighting Salt-Eating Sharks, where you might survive. You could die in an instant, so take it seriously!"

A man nearby spoke up. He looked to be around Brother Rhine's age.

"That's right! Jack is right! Although the waters around Ring Tree Island have become a high-salinity zone, Sea Kings have often been lingering near the boundary over the past few decades. They should be the same group of Sea Kings that once tried to destroy the Divine Tree. After all, Large Sea Kings possess a certain degree of intelligence."

"Then why don't those Sea Kings go to Ring Tree Island?" Luo Han asked worriedly. With Sea Kings capable of swallowing half an island in one bite constantly eyeing them nearby, how could he not worry?

"Your Uncle Witt and I guessed that as the Divine Tree stabilized, the Scale Fruit began bearing fruit only once every four years.

"The intelligent Sea Kings likely came through those Divine Tree passages. Since there was no scent luring them into madness..."

"Once they reached the boundary, they no longer wanted to advance through the high-salinity waters toward Ring Tree Island.

"They seem to loathe seawater with a high concentration of salt."

Uncle Kate explained the guess he and Uncle Witt had made. It should be so, otherwise there was no way to explain it.

"So that's how it is. That's a relief. Otherwise, Ring Tree Island couldn't withstand the ravages of those Large Sea Kings and even Super Giant Sea Kings." Luo Han let out a breath, and everyone else relaxed as well!

"Haha! But the instinct of life will always drive some Sea Kings to cross the boundary and swim toward Ring Tree Island.

"That's when we need to stop them in advance. We can't let any Sea Kings get through. Otherwise, the islanders will be in danger."

Just as Luo Han had relaxed, Uncle Kate made him tense up again.

Seeing Luo Han's anxious expression, Uncle Kate continued.

"But don't worry! We don't know whether the salt expelled by the Divine Tree exists specifically to retaliate against Sea Kings.

"It's somewhat different. It seems to have a restraining effect on Sea Kings. The bigger the Sea King, the more helpless it becomes upon entering the high-salinity sea, just like a Devil Fruit user encountering Seastone. It isn't quite as severe for Sea Kings, though. They can still swim slowly.

"So we only need to drive them away. If we can't drive them away, then we do this!"

As he spoke, Uncle Kate took out a bag of high-purity white salt and demonstratively scattered some into the sea.

"Scatter these high-concentration salt crystals at the Sea Kings. This is the salt Salt-Eating Sharks like best. After that, the Salt-Eating Shark schools will come and eat the helpless Sea Kings.

"With their lives threatened, the Sea Kings will have no choice but to retreat, unless they want to be eaten by the Salt-Eating Sharks."

"But blood will also attract Sea Kings, even drive them mad.

"Only Salt-Eating Sharks can make those Large Sea Kings calm down. After all, Salt-Eating Sharks specialize in hunting Large Sea Kings in the deep sea. They're like ant colonies on land—once their numbers reach a certain point, even lions can only become prey."

Luo Han had never expected that Salt-Eating Sharks hunted Sea Kings in the deep sea, and Large Sea Kings at that. One could only imagine how many Salt-Eating Sharks lived beneath Ring Tree Island!

"Alright! Even though we can handle them all, you must be careful when Sea Kings enter the high-salinity sea. They will often first burst out of the water before diving back beneath it.

"During that process, they will eat anything that appears in front of them. Once you're swallowed by a Sea King, your chances of survival will drop drastically.

"And even if you aren't swallowed and fall into the sea, you still need to watch out for the Salt-Eating Sharks hunting."

Uncle Kate reminded them.

Afterward, Luo Han and Cole followed Uncle Kate on patrol the whole way!

Nothing unexpected happened, and by evening, everyone had returned to Ring Tree Island.

This Sea King hunting trip had ended perfectly. If they had not heard Uncle Kate tell the story of Ring Tree Island's origins, this afternoon would certainly have been a very boring Hunting Squad debut.

Sigh! I thought I'd get to see Uncle Kate use the giant secret technique, Elbaf's Spear: "Hegemony Country," again! Luo Han thought regretfully.