"Boom!"
Thunderous crashes erupted from an unnamed trench in the outer sea.
Sand and dust surged up from beneath the water. Massive shock waves shredded every strand of seaweed within a thousand meters, while savage forces churned the currents into an enormous vortex. The Evil Spirit Orcas watching from the perimeter had to retreat again and again, terrified of being dragged into the battle between two hundred-thousand-year soul beasts and unable to escape.
Amid the mud, several enormous tentacles suddenly surged out like flood dragons, snapping straight like gigantic whips as they lashed toward Ren Tao.
"He's incredible!"
Feng Ba and Zhen Jiu exchanged looks, both feeling that this hundred-thousand-year Giant Octopus would be difficult to handle.
They knew how powerful the Evil Orca King had been before devouring the Whale Pearl. Although attacks like these would not have injured him, he would certainly have had to handle them cautiously.
But Ren Tao merely drew a breath and spat out an enormous blue jet of water, roughly two to three meters in diameter. Though launched later, it arrived first, striking the tip of Giant Octopus's tentacle with precision and blasting it back.
Immediately afterward, he swayed, and dense flashes of electricity erupted all over his body, forming a ball of lightning over thirty meters across. Crackling arcs wrapped him entirely inside the "electric sphere."
He had actually gone on full defense, taking Giant Octopus's attacks head-on.
"Crack! Crack! Crack!"
Giant Octopus's tentacles struck the lightning, throwing up showers of white and blue-violet sparks, but they could not breach Ren Tao's defenses at all.
Then a rich aroma of roasted meat wafted out.
"Oh, oh, oh!"
The golden Sea Star cried out repeatedly, "Brother Octopus, stop hitting him! Your flesh is cooked!"
"Phew..."
The silver Giant Octopus exhaled and withdrew the tentacles, revealing most of a head from the pile of sediment on the seabed. Staring at Ren Tao, Giant Octopus said, "I admit you're strong, but do you really just want to spar, or are you trying to dominate the Ghost Sea Region?"
Oh? This is the Ghost Sea Region?
Ren Tao withdrew the blue lightning, revealing himself as well. "I'm the Evil Orca King, from the inner sea. Sea God Island hunted me down and forced me to flee here. I'm not interested in domination, but I do want to establish an alliance of hundred-thousand-year sea soul beasts so we can resist our enemies together and maintain order in the ocean. What do you two think?"
"Sea God Island?"
The silver Giant Octopus tapped the ground with a tentacle and said thoughtfully, "Twenty thousand years ago, there was a Sea God who said he would protect all sea soul beasts and bring peace to the ocean. But twenty thousand years have passed, and he hasn't done a damned thing! This Sea God Island you're talking about is his territory, right?"
"Right, I remember too! He was a big talker, blowing his own trumpet loud enough to shake the heavens, then slipping away once he was done!"
The golden Sea Star chimed in, then turned to Ren Tao. "You're not planning to follow in his footsteps, gathering the power of faith and fooling us, are you? We won't fall for it!"
"Hahaha!"
Hearing Giant Octopus and Sea Star's words, Ren Tao could not help laughing. These two sea soul beasts really were adorably foolish.
"My name is Ren Tao. What should I call you? I truly want to establish the Sea Soul Beast Alliance, because the Sea God's Heir will soon pursue me here. He wants to hunt hundred-thousand-year soul beasts and seize your Soul Rings. But forgive my bluntness: neither of you alone would be a match for them."
"What's there to fear? We're known as the Golden and Silver Twin Stars. I'm Jin Hai, and this is Yin Zhang. We have a Soul Beast Fusion Skill... if we really join forces to unleash it, we wouldn't fear even a Super Douluo!"
Jin Hai glanced at Yin Zhang and spoke proudly.
"That's all right. I only came to tell you two the news. Please inform the nearby sea soul beasts as well. Even if we can't form an alliance, we can still become friends!"
Ren Tao had never expected to persuade them immediately anyway. This was not some pyramid scheme. Establishing a soul beast alliance was merely his vision; he hoped soul beasts could escape their plight of being hunted by humans. But the outer sea seemed fairly peaceful, and Jin Hai and Yin Zhang felt no sense of crisis, so naturally they felt no urgency either.
"I can feel your sincerity."
Golden Star looked at Yin Zhang for a while, seemingly engaged in some kind of communication, before turning to Ren Tao. "We'll spread the news. If danger really comes, you'll come help us, right? In that case, we're an alliance!"
"Boss, I think they were just brushing us off. They weren't sincere at all!"
On the return journey, Tae Hee-the young orca who liked showing off cleverness-said indignantly, "Neither of them was a match for you. Why didn't you just devour them?"
"Yes, neither of them was a match for me!"
For once, Ren Tao answered Tae Hee's question in complete seriousness. After devouring the Whale Pearl, he had indeed reached the threshold of a two-hundred-thousand-year soul beast. Even if his opponents used their Soul Beast Fusion Skill, he was confident he could divide and conquer, defeating them one by one. But the crucial point was that his evolutionary instincts showed no interest in these two soul beasts.
"But who was a match for the Deep Sea Demonic Whale King? Do you know how he died?"
Puzzled, Tae Hee asked in return, "Didn't you kill him, boss?"
"Wrong! The Deep Sea Demonic Whale King died because of his bad reputation! You wouldn't understand even if I explained, but remember this: reputation is the second most important thing after life itself."
Ren Tao conscientiously carried out his work of educating the pod. To turn the Evil Spirit Orcas into a race "with aspirations," he spared no effort, seizing every opportunity to subtly teach them.
"Oh!"
Although they did not understand what Ren Tao meant, the Evil Spirit Orca underlings still put on thoughtful expressions, working hard to digest and remember his words in an attempt to close the distance between themselves and their boss.
Even if only by a little.
"If you want to survive and prosper in the deep sea, you must have a good reputation. Otherwise, things like being hunted by the Demon Soul Great White Sharks will happen again and again. No matter how strong you are, you can't stand against the entire ocean. Understood?"
"Yes, boss!"
This time, the orca underlings understood. The Evil Spirit Orca pod could no longer afford any losses. Only a scant handful remained. If they kept throwing their weight around as they had before, their race would be wiped out sooner or later.
"Then, boss, are we still going to make trouble for Sea God Island?"
Tae Hee finally grew cautious and asked carefully, "We're definitely no match for them right now!"
"We are. We absolutely are! This is a fated showdown between Tang San and me. Only by defeating Tang San head-on can the Evil Spirit Orca pod continue to survive."
Ren Tao was speaking both to his underlings and to bolster his own courage.
Even with two hundred thousand years of soul power, Tang San was a cheat armed with the protagonist's halo. His endless tricks, along with the Tang Sect's hidden weapons and poisons, were all things Ren Tao was unfamiliar with. He had only managed to escape by luck before because the book's contents had guided him, letting him know what Tang San would do at every step.
In a true head-on confrontation, he really could not confidently claim he would defeat Tang San.
But if he hesitated, he would be the one to suffer. If Tang San's strength advanced further, or if he obtained the Sea God's Light through some cheat, he would soar straight into the heavens. Ren Tao would never have another chance.
Given how much the Sea God favored Tang San, it was not even impossible that he would change the Fourth Trial to let Tang San cheat his way through.
So even if he could not win, he had to win.
Amid constant doubt and self-denial, renewed consideration of strategies and tactics, and efforts to familiarize himself with his various skills, two days quickly passed.
Leading nine Evil Spirit Orcas, Ren Tao had returned to the inner sea and was heading toward Sea God Island.
Soon, Demon Soul Great White Sharks discovered their presence and went back to report.
But Ren Tao turned a blind eye, treating them as though they did not exist. He had returned with one goal and one goal alone. Every other obstacle would be removed in the simplest way possible.
"Evil Tiger! You're alive after all, and you actually dare invade Sea God Island! Such arrogance! I failed to kill you last time, but this time, none of you will escape the Sea God's judgment!"
Xiao Bai's voice came from far away.
The situation was urgent. She had no time to fetch Tang San and rushed out alone first.
What do you know? If Sea God Island really were as solid as an iron plate, as you claim, I wouldn't have come!
Bo Saixi doesn't want to sacrifice herself to help Tang San succeed at all. She's merely enduring it and watching for now. All I have to do is prove that Tang San isn't the best choice and give Bo Saixi a reason to waver.
Ren Tao stared expressionlessly at Xiao Bai, realizing he had absolutely no desire to speak with her.
"You're no match for me, and you don't speak for Sea God Island. Tell Tang San to come out and meet me. I want a fair fight with him!"
Some readers suggested giving the male lead an inheritance. There will be one! Exactly what it is will remain a secret for now!
Before you continue