The Whale Arrived at the Loyal Sea of Sand

At first, they were merely excited.

It had been a long time since they had eaten flesh with that faint milky scent.

Fine food!

But in the next moment, the faint milky scent faded, and what replaced it was no pleasant smell.

In fact, these Sand Sand Crocodiles had smelled something similar before.

Crocodiles like them could survive in the ocean.

But why had they chosen to live where the ocean met fresh water?

One reason was that the two currents converged here, making it a place naturally rich enough in resources to sustain their entire species.

Another was that, in the vast ocean, there were too few places suitable for their crocodile lineage to live.

They needed somewhere to bask in the sun.

They needed an ample supply of food.

And such places were often occupied by even more terrifying Soul Beasts.

At least, before their king reached the ten-thousand-year realm, they had no chance of even venturing into those places.

Once, after reaching ten thousand years, their previous king had ventured into the territory of a terrifying Soul Beast, provoking the enormous creature into retaliating without restraint.

Their species had only driven the enormous Soul Beast away after their king and many other crocodiles close to the king had sacrificed everything.

No, it would be more accurate to say that after the king and those crocodiles had filled the Soul Beast's nearly bottomless stomach with their own flesh and blood, the tide had receded, forcing it to leave.

That creature's scent had been just like the one drifting through the air.

Exactly the same!

The faint milky scent proved that the Soul Beast had only just left its parents and was still a half-grown juvenile.

But that was what terrified the intelligent Sand Sand Crocodiles even more.

Had that creature chosen their entire species as the first meat it would eat on its path to adulthood?

The crocodiles began to stir.

Some bellowed, roaring in the direction of Mu Tian'en.

Others, as though they had seen some incredible being, let out the low, rumbling roars unique to crocodiles while silently retreating, until their bodies began to sink into this natural refuge of water and sand.

"Hehe, you're not afraid of me, but you're afraid of the little fellow."

Golden Crocodile Douluo narrowed his eyes as he looked at the largest of the crocodiles roaring at him, a red light flickering in his eyes.

His desire to kill was rising.

But this time, Golden Crocodile Douluo, who had not been controlled by his own wild thoughts, still remembered the purpose of his visit.

He had no time to get tangled up with these crocodiles.

He still needed to find Mu Tian'en a Sinking Sand Water Turtle of a suitable age.

In that case, he would simply kill their king.

Until the crocodiles chose a new king, Mu Tian'en would be free to come and go in this sea of sand with Golden Crocodile Douluo's help.

And so, from the edge of the sea of sand, Mu Tian'en watched Golden Crocodile Douluo charge straight into the crocodile horde.

Amid the snapping jaws of countless crocodiles, he effortlessly took the roaring giant crocodile's head and, while he was at it, shattered the Soul Ring that had just emerged from its body.

Watching the crocodiles scatter like startled birds, Golden Crocodile Douluo stood atop the sea of sand that could swallow anyone at any moment and beckoned to Mu Tian'en.

"Come here, little fellow!"

"This sea of sand certainly can't stop you, who possess both the earth and water attributes."

"Besides, the creature we're looking for probably won't appear on the surface. It's at the bottom of the sea of sand."

With that, Golden Crocodile Douluo lifted a foot and tapped the sea of sand, which surged freely beneath him but could not swallow him.

Behind that bloodstained face lay a test of Mu Tian'en's mettle.

The oath Mu Tian'en had just sworn had merely caused the old Golden Crocodile to lower some of his guard against him.

Until he fulfilled his dream, the little fellow would be loyal to Spirit Hall.

But becoming a powerhouse took mettle as well as talent.

If he could not conquer even this sea of sand, then he could not possibly inherit Golden Crocodile Douluo's mettle, much less become another pillar of Spirit Hall after him.

To this day, Golden Crocodile Douluo could not forget the look in that so-called Pope's eyes.

With his own elder brother keeping him in check, he probably could not kill that woman.

Xiao Xue'er could not possibly move against that woman either.

That left him no choice but to personally train a Titled Douluo strong enough to suppress the madwoman.

When that woman's existence threatened Spirit Hall's survival, his disciple would personally kill her in the future.

There was affection in Golden Crocodile Douluo's gaze as he looked at Mu Tian'en, but behind that affection lay the deepest calculations and expectations of a man in power.

Mu Tian'en, however, could not read Golden Crocodile Douluo's complicated gaze.

For him, Golden Crocodile Douluo's suggestion that he step into the sea of sand was already a challenge to his courage.

But~

He had no choice.

Mu Tian'en looked at the old man, who had stripped off the clothes covering his upper body and had not a single injury, only the blood of those crocodiles all over him. With a gulp, he swallowed and stepped forward.

"Martial Soul Possession~"

This time, Mu Tian'en went all out.

He no longer concealed the ferocious side that appeared when he used Martial Soul Possession.

With a single whale cry, folds like those found on a whale's body began to appear across Mu Tian'en's skin.

Thick layers of protection slowly formed over his body.

At the same time, as Golden Crocodile Douluo stared in astonishment, Mu Tian'en's eyes vanished in an instant. In their place, a pitch-black shadow erased everything between his eyes, joining the space into a single patch of black.

Within it, one pair—no, twelve pairs of eyes, glowing faintly gold, slowly emerged from the shadow.

Not only that, a storm began to form around Mu Tian'en.

But it was not a gathering of the wind attribute.

The instant the surrounding air came into contact with Mu Tian'en, he devoured most of what was beneficial to his growth from it. The storm was merely the visible collapse that followed the resulting void.

The possession alone caused Mu Tian'en to begin growing taller.

Mu Tian'en had originally been a six-year-old boy who already stood 1.5 meters tall, taller than normal children his age.

But after completing Martial Soul Possession, Mu Tian'en's height instantly exceeded two meters.

Mu Tian'en, however, paid no attention to his appearance at that moment.

He simply did as Golden Crocodile Douluo had asked and cautiously began to explore the sea of sand, which looked as though it would swallow everything.

While Golden Crocodile Douluo watched Mu Tian'en complete his Martial Soul Possession, the head he had personally taken from the Sand Sand Crocodile king had already been partially swallowed by the sea of sand.

Mu Tian'en stepped forward with one foot~

He felt no resistance at all, nor did he feel himself sinking.

Only after planting it firmly did Mu Tian'en set down his other foot.

Then waves began to rise.

Mu Tian'en had set foot in a world that belonged to him.