The scene before him closely resembled the ritual site the Diving Club had created in the Artisan Academy's Factory Area, which Lin Yuan had discovered before, only larger and more complex.
But in that earlier ritual, the formation had been drawn on temporarily, and the materials laid out were all ordinary.
That sort of ritual was disposable, discarded after a single use.
The strange vessel Lin Yuan was looking at now, however, had clearly been permanently modified.
This was an altar that could be used repeatedly, with greater functionality and power than a ritual.
And Kin-level Crawlers could not create altars. Only Elders could.
"The Crawler here is actually an Elder?"
That was something Lin Yuan had not expected.
He had originally thought that a Crawler capable of commanding only D-rank sea beasts would be a Kin at most.
Among Crawlers, Kin ranged in combat strength from E-rank to A-rank, corresponding to the level of the Main Sea.
Elders ranged from A+-rank to Double A-rank, corresponding to the level of the Deep Sea.
Lin Yuan could now easily defeat a Kin-level Crawler, but against an Elder, the outcome was uncertain.
Still, he was not overly afraid.
He was in perfect condition now. Although Explore the Sea was not in its balanced, all-C-rank state, its power was certainly not to be underestimated.
And although the Crawler before him was an Elder, there was definitely something wrong with his condition.
Even now that Lin Yuan had reached the Crawlers' Altar, the reaction from his Templar Badge was still not particularly strong.
Coupled with the low level of the earlier Beast Tide and the lack of any response to Lin Yuan's arrival, everything indicated that the Crawlers Elder here was in an extremely weakened state.
This was the perfect opportunity to strike while