On the outskirts of the Ring Sea trench.
Ren Tao and the exhausted Shui Ling'er and the others were resting where they stood. Shui Ling'er and the others were recovering their soul power, while Ren Tao was digesting the energy he had just absorbed.
All he could say was that this round of Devour had exceeded his expectations by far too much. Once the pleasure of devouring had passed, all that remained was the misery of "indigestion": dizziness, shortness of breath, tightness in his chest, weakness, and a creeping drowsiness.
The Sea of Inheritance had also overloaded and actually sealed itself off, shutting Ren Tao out completely.
Its reaction was even more violent than when he had absorbed divine power!
Right now, Ren Tao was like the man of a house undergoing relocation. He could only hear the rumbling inside the Sea of Inheritance, with no way to go in and take another look.
The hundred-thousand-year soul beasts beside him were still chattering away.
After fighting shoulder to shoulder, they truly regarded Ren Tao as one of their own this time.
They kept asking all sorts of questions. For example, how exactly had the Deep Sea Demonic Whale King died?
Or how had Ren Tao discovered that something was wrong in the outer sea and arrived to help so promptly?
Ren Tao brushed off all such questions with casual answers, until Yin Zhang raised an important one.
"Whale King, you said you wanted to establish an alliance of hundred-thousand-year soul beasts. What exactly would it do? I don't understand. We can just help each other when something happens. Why establish an alliance?"
Oh, that... that was something he could explain in detail!
Ren Tao straightened up and said rather seriously, "An alliance is a form of soul beast self-governance. The concept is a little complicated, and explaining it will take some time. First, let me ask you something. Over all these years, what have you thought of the Sea God?"
"Not much!"
Jin Hai answered without hesitation, "All he does is suck away our power of faith. He's never done a damn thing for us. You saw it yourself. Whenever there's danger, it's still Sister Shui and the rest of us who have to deal with it. What use do we have for a god like that?"
"A fraud!"
E Laosi said in a rumbling voice, "He's not even as good as you, Whale King. You stepped forward at the crucial moment. You're the real hero!"
Uh.
Please take back that admiring gaze!
"Then what about Sea God Island?"
Ren Tao continued questioning them.
"Does that even need asking? They're just like the Sea God! We've never seen them go out to sea, yet they claim to protect the ocean. What a load of crap!"
Ran Laowu had plenty of grievances too and seemed to have much more to complain about, but Sister Shui stopped the rant.
"Just say whatever you have to say. We're all friends here. There's no need to beat around the bush!"
Yin Zhang was still the most straightforward, going straight to the point.
"No, I've already made my meaning clear. Since the Sea God does nothing and we can't count on Sea God Island, we have to protect the ocean ourselves. That means uniting every tribe into a cohesive organization. Here's my idea: establish the Sea Soul Beast Alliance, set up an Enforcement Team, and focus on nurturing promising soul beasts from every tribe. We'll turn this place into a paradise for sea soul beasts-a beautiful, prosperous Soul Beast Nation!"
Ren Tao knew very well that establishing the Sea Soul Beast Alliance involved sociology, management... it was far too complicated to explain clearly to these simple-minded sea soul beasts. What mattered most was giving them a beautiful vision, letting them see hope first, and then guiding them gradually. Many things would fall into place as naturally as water flowing into a channel.
Otherwise, if he started by dumping a heap of practical problems on them, the sea soul beasts would only say, "Ah, that's so hard!"
Then they would turn around and go straight to sleep.
"A Soul Beast Nation? What's that?"
Jin Hai was clearly one of the more intelligent of the five soul beasts and caught on quickly. "Would it be like a human empire? Would we have to mine, trade, and engage in production too?"
"What do you want to do?"
Yin Zhang was the practical type and asked directly about Ren Tao's plans.
Ren Tao chuckled. Rather than rush to answer their questions, he said leisurely, "One last question. Have any of you ever been to the Human World?"
"No!"
The soul beasts shook their heads together!
"So you don't know where the gap between yourselves and humans lies. You don't know why humans can stand high above us, while we soul beasts can only submit to their slaughter. You don't understand why the Sea God enjoys supreme glory and reverence despite being nothing but a fraud."
"Do you think we sea soul beasts are weaker than human soul masters, or that there are fewer of us than humans? Neither! Then why are we still constrained by humans at every turn, with our destinies in their hands?"
Uh.
The soul beasts fell into thought. They had no answer to that question.
"Wait, you clearly said that was the last question. Why were there more questions after it?"
Ran Laowu suddenly spotted the flaw in Ren Tao's words.
"Did I say that?"
Ren Tao paused blankly. "I did... then I'll answer it myself. The reason we're in such a miserable position, able to become nothing but soul rings for humans, is that we've never understood our enemies!"
Exactly!
The soul beasts all looked up at Ren Tao.
Although they were enormous, the way they looked at Ren Tao now was like children gazing up at a giant. This Whale King was so knowledgeable, so wise, that they could not help regarding him with profound respect.
"So I suggest that we get to know our enemies, learn from their experience and knowledge, and use it to arm ourselves. In the end, we'll turn the ocean into a world belonging to sea soul beasts, where every one of us... every single soul beast can control its own destiny!"
"Oooooh!"
E Laosi immediately sprang up, waving those short forelimbs and letting out an excited howl!
"What exactly should we do? What do you need us to do?"
Yin Zhang truly was the practical type. Those thoughts jumped straight to implementation, as though ready to follow Ren Tao into a grand undertaking.
"Here's what we'll do. We'll be the founding members to start with. I plan to take you to study the Human World. We'll pass Sea God Island, reach Vast Sea City, and enter the Heaven Dou Empire on a sacred expedition. Then we'll bring the sea soul beasts an earth-shaking transformation!"
Oh.
The sea soul beasts were excited for a while, then suddenly quieted down again. The plan sounded magnificent, but it lay far beyond their understanding. After all, they had never left the ocean.
Ren Tao said nothing either. He knew Shui Ling'er and the others needed time to digest, absorb, and think it over.
His own plan to go to the Heaven Dou Empire was no passing whim, either. It was the result of weighing everything together.
The Sea Soul Beast Alliance really did need to study and learn from human methods of organization, and he himself needed to reach the Douluo Continent as soon as possible.
There was much to do. The timeline in Douluo was so tight that Ren Tao was beginning to feel agitated and gloomy.
First, he had to find Tang Chen and seize the Asura Sword. Just as he had decoded the "Sea God's Abhorrence," he would first obtain a portion of the Asura God's power. Failing that, he could at least gain a firsthand understanding of the Asura Domain.
Second, he had to stop Bibi Dong from obtaining the Sky Azure Bull Python's and Titan Giant Ape's soul rings. Whether he should save those two, of course, remained open to debate.
Then, most importantly, he had to stop the Heaven Dou Empire and Star Luo Empire from sending out their armies. Once that happened, everything would be pushed to extremes, and the devastation of countless lives would become unavoidable.
As for whether he could stop Qian Renxue and Bibi Dong from becoming gods... hehe, he was only a little Evil Spirit Orca. Stopping the Sea God and Asura God would already demand everything he had. Ren Tao did not believe he had the ability to strangle all four deities in their cradles.
He could only take one step at a time.
Ren Tao was weighed down with worry, but the sea soul beasts beside him knew nothing of it.
"Although I'd like to take a look around the continent, we're all sea soul beasts. We can leave the ocean briefly, but if we're away for too long, it'll be hard to keep going!"
Jin Hai raised a very practical problem. Hundred-thousand-year sea soul beasts really did lack the ability to travel on land for extended periods.
"Whale King, can you actually live on land?"
Of course! Because I'm the Evil Spirit Orca version 2.0 Plus. Ever since the Deep Sea Demonic Whale King and Evil Orca King merged into one and took human form, I've possessed the all-around capability for sea-land-air combat.
Ren Tao did not answer directly. "I have my own secret art. Besides, surely not all of you are unable to leave the ocean?"
"That's right! E Laosi can!"
Yin Zhang immediately turned toward E Laosi. Being amphibious, E Laosi would not actually face many restrictions.
E Laosi stood upright and gave Ren Tao a "bashful" smile. Traveling together with the Whale King he admired was simply an unexpected delight.
"Why... did it have to turn out like this?"
Although he knew perfectly well that E Laosi was the only candidate, Ren Tao still felt a little deflated.
"From now on, you're my big brother."
E Laosi deliberately tried to please him, saying with complete sincerity, "Please, be sure to call me Fourth Brother!"
"Then... then... that's... settled!"
Shui Ling'er seldom spoke, but her words settled the matter like the final blow of a hammer. She waved her tentacles and made the decision.
Ren Tao pursed his lips. Even if he disliked E Laosi's clinging gaze, there was nothing he could do about it.
Looking on the bright side, having another hundred-thousand-year sea soul beast beside him meant someone could watch his back. It would also make running errands and showing off more convenient. After all, a soul beast follower with the strength of a Titled Douluo would lend more grandeur to his own image.
"Big Brother, when do we leave? What does your little brother need to prepare?"
E Laosi had fully embraced his role as a follower and immediately began arranging the schedule.
"No rush. Before we leave, we still need to make a trip to Sea God Island!"
Ren Tao smiled broadly. Bo Saixi, there are still plenty of tangled ties between you and me to unravel!
Post first, revise later. That phrase really was incredibly useful.
The wisdom of those who came before was boundless!
Before you continue