Ren Tao enjoyed a good, long sleep. He had no idea how much time had passed, but when he woke, the Sea of Inheritance had finished its "self-renovation."
"Ding-ding~"
Ren Tao supplied the Sea of Inheritance with a sound effect, imitating an artificial intelligence's tone. "Sea of Inheritance, second-stage foundational renovation: one hundred percent complete!"
Pale purple clouds filled the entire sky, dazzlingly beautiful yet soft and gentle, without the slightest glare.
A faint golden glow shimmered over the sea. The trees on the mountains were still green, only their colors were many times more vivid than before. If he had to make a comparison, it was the difference between 8K high definition and 2K standard definition.
Well, that wasn't quite accurate, but this space was even more "real" than the real world outside.
There was another change, too: the red sea from before had disappeared, transforming into red crystals that stood in the water like reefs. Ren Tao didn't yet know what they were for, so he treated them as decorations for now.
What was more, upon entering the second stage, his evolution now had a clear direction.
Ren Tao would most likely never again face the awkward predicament he had encountered with the Sea Witch, because now he could evolve without using "Devour" on living creatures.
He could obtain genes from the "corpses" of organisms, too.
That sounded a little disgusting, but it really wasn't. Medicinal ingredients sold in apothecaries and ingredients used in cooking could all fuel his evolution, expanding his choices countless times over.
And now Ren Tao had a rough idea of what kinds of biological genes he needed. Just as foxes and lions instinctively knew what they wanted to eat, this was an instinct for survival.
It was all good news.
Ren Tao now had a chart in his mind, something like an atlas of marine life. After all, the ocean was the birthplace of life, so he could gather almost all the genes he needed from the sea.
He only needed to follow the chart in search of what the evolution system required, and he would soon complete the second stage.
Of course, this so-called "soon" was relative to the long history of biological evolution. The ocean was enormous, after all, and finding the organisms he needed would inevitably be a lengthy process.
Still, Ren Tao had no intention of searching for each one himself. He had a better solution.
For now, there were other things to do.
A powerful pull came from the source of the earlier ocean frenzy, urging him to hurry over like the beating of war drums.
Although he couldn't discern anything more, Ren Tao had a feeling that an immense source of energy really was waiting there for him to devour.
In that case, could the Sea of Inheritance advance even further? Divine power was formidable, but he had only obtained a sliver. It had improved the Sea of Inheritance's quality without doing much to increase its size.
I have to keep working!
Ren Tao left the Sea of Inheritance, and his body in the outside world woke as well.
"How long has it been since I entered the Sea of Inheritance?"
"One day. To be precise, one day and four hours!"
Tae Hee answered immediately. Tae Hee had been keeping time ever since Ren Tao entered his meditative state and was now waiting for the boss to ask.
"So, twenty-eight hours?"
Ren Tao glanced at Tae Hee. He didn't ask how Tae Hee knew so precisely, not wanting to offer a chance to show off that intelligence. Instead, he immediately asked, "Has anything happened outside?"
"The sea soul beast tide ended, but there were several tremors in the meantime, coming from the open sea. Nothing else!"
Hu Dong answered this question. Hu Dong and Tae Hee had clearly divided their duties: Tae Hee stayed beside their boss, while Hu Dong patrolled the perimeter. "Oh, Tang San and the others haven't shown up either. Big brother, did you kill him?"
Ren Tao still hadn't told them about the battle since the day before yesterday, so they were all very curious.
"I can't kill him yet. He's useful alive. Once you can all hold your own, that's when he'll lose his value completely!"
Oh!
After hearing Ren Tao's words, the Evil Spirit Orcas began thinking and analyzing in earnest.
Big brother wants to keep him around to motivate us!
That was the first layer of meaning they worked out. But he might have other uses, too, and their big brother didn't want to explain, so they could leave that question unasked.
Then came...
"Why do we need to hold our own? Big brother will always be our big brother!"
"Yeah! Big brother, are you going to leave us?"
The Evil Spirit Orcas grew worried by the results of their deliberations. Life without Ren Tao was unimaginable to them. After weathering so many storms together, Ren Tao was now the one and only god in their hearts!
"Just treat Tang San as a target. Once every one of you can beat him, you'll be able to hold your own. Oh, Jenny and Yeonnie aren't included! Surely you don't expect me to do all the fighting and killing forever?"
Ren Tao didn't tell his orca followers that he would go to the Douluo Continent in the future. He wasn't leaving just yet. At the very least, he had to wait until the orcas could protect themselves before he could leave with peace of mind.
"Big brother, can I beat Tang San too?"
The simple-minded orca followers immediately shifted their attention, each looking eager to give it a try. "What do we have to do to beat Tang San?"
"I have a 'vanguard training plan.' Once we've dealt with the business in the open sea and prepared the necessary materials, we can begin."
Ren Tao looked toward Sea God Island, a cold smile curling at his lips. Tang San, soon you'll know what it feels like when someone else gets cheats. Look forward to it!
Six hours later, Ren Tao finally reached the open sea, even after traveling at full speed through both water and air.
By then, nearly two days had passed since the sea soul beast tide erupted.
This stretch of ocean seemed to have returned to calm, but occasional tremors still came through, and tiny, high-frequency ripples appeared on the surface from time to time. He couldn't shake the feeling that something extraordinary was happening.
Almost all the nearby sea soul beasts and ordinary creatures capable of moving had fled, leaving the place feeling lifeless.
Using his ripple detection, Ren Tao discovered two old friends beneath the surface: Jin Hai and Yin Zhang.
They actually hadn't left! But they looked rather grave, busy with something around a circular ocean trench. Several other figures surrounded them, all hundred-thousand-year soul beasts without exception.
Only they could survive the intense disturbances and radiation while retaining the ability to act.
As for what exactly was causing the energy radiation, Ren Tao's ripple detection couldn't perceive it.
He retracted his wings, turned back into an Evil Spirit Orca, and swam toward the seabed.
Jin Hai and Yin Zhang noticed his presence from afar.
"Orca King, you've come too?"
Jin Hai was delighted, revealing a sincere smile. He had now taken human form as well, looking like a little old man, except his face was so rosy that he resembled an elderly child. He also had no hair.
"Call me Ren Tao. 'Orca King' can lead to misunderstandings!"
Ren Tao corrected him somewhat sternly, then asked, "What are you doing here?"
"This is our home. We're protecting it!"
Jin Hai sounded a little melancholy. "An evil power inside this trench has been trying to get out all along. We're working together to seal it, but we don't know how much longer we can hold it back!"
"So, Ren Tao, can we trust you?"
Yin Zhang had been studying Ren Tao all this time. He, too, looked like an old man, wearing a silver robe embroidered with black octopus patterns. Unlike Jin Hai, he had hair, making him look much more normal-and more serious.
The other soul beasts nearby all looked over: a Giant Python, a Giant Crocodile, and a huge Jellyfish flickering with electricity.
"An evil power?"
Ren Tao didn't answer immediately. Instead, he looked into the depths of the trench.
There probably wasn't anything else down there, yet invisible energy emanated from it. It even seemed to carry a certain consciousness, straining to break through the boundary and penetrate real space.
As Ren Tao sensed this information, his spiritual power also made contact with that energy. Their collision immediately produced rings of faint ripples that spread in all directions.
"Hm?"
As the ripples spread, a husky female voice rang out, its low, resonant tones reaching the minds of every hundred-thousand-year soul beast.
"Someone with enough weight has finally arrived! Stand aside. I have something to say to him!"
Ah!
Jin Hai and Yin Zhang widened their eyes. They had spent an entire day working here without obtaining any information. So it was because they didn't carry enough weight?
But what did the owner of that voice want to say to Ren Tao?
"The ocean isn't just your home. It's the home of all marine life. If you trust me, will you let me talk to her first?"
At a critical moment, they had to unite their thinking and rally every force that could be rallied. That was a truth their great leader had taught them. Ren Tao immediately made his position clear, promptly winning the agreement of the hundred-thousand-year sea soul beasts.
"Right, it's our shared home!"
"We trust you!"
The hundred-thousand-year soul beasts moved aside, and Ren Tao stepped toward the edge of the trench.
I was writing just now and accidentally lost track of time, so the update is late!
From now on, I'll do my best to keep updates at 10 a.m. and 8 p.m.!
Before you continue