When the Begonia Salamander still failed to mention the reward for the [Succession Trial], Qin Siyang asked, "Lord Sacred Salamander, I passed the [Succession Trial]. What's my reward?"
The Begonia Salamander fell silent for another long while before reluctantly saying, "You've already received it."
"Huh? I already received it?"
Qin Siyang looked down and around him, but there was nothing there. No new items at all.
Then he closed his eyes and checked the information panel in his mind, only to find that his Sequence Abilities and Sequence Level hadn't changed.
Next, he went to the Path of Self-Verification. The road hadn't grown any longer, nor had the [primordial starshine] he received increased.
He opened his eyes, utterly bewildered.
What was this supposed to mean? The emperor's new clothes?
At that moment, the Begonia Salamander prompted him, "Feel your cheeks."
Qin Siyang immediately raised both hands to his cheeks, and his eyes widened in surprise.
Three shallow marks had appeared on each side, running symmetrically through the area between his cheeks and his neck.
He gave them a gentle push and felt the skin lift.
"What's going on?!"
"Those openings are gill slits, the reward bestowed upon you by this [Succession Trial]. These gill slits are invisible. You can only find them by touch."
"Gill slits?"
"Yes. With gill slits, you can maintain normal vital signs in any environment, instead of nearly suffocating like you did during the trial."
Qin Siyang tilted his head. "...That's all they do?"
"Isn't that useful enough?"
"Well... it sounds pretty useful. But Outside the Safe Zone in our [Evolutionary Sequence Domain], there isn't even a drop of water. Ninety percent of my battles happen on land. These gill slits won't do me any good..."
"How shortsighted! Just because you can't use them now doesn't