CHAPTER 743: THE SEA KING’S LAST TIDE

Ethan didn’t hesitate. He reached out and took the crystalline sigil from the Sea King’s hand. The moment his fingers brushed its surface, a chill ran up his arm—a cold, pulsing vibration that sank deep into his bones.

He drew a steady breath and channeled his own power into the sigil.

It lit up.

A soft glow rippled outward like a drop in still water, and with a flick of his wrist, Ethan hurled it into the swirling vortex behind him.

There was a faint chime—then the vortex flared open.

A heartbeat later, Namyanna emerged, riding the crest of a wave that surged from the portal like the ocean itself had carried her home. Her sea-blue trident gleamed in her hand, and the moment she stepped through, the air changed.

The sea answered.

Power surged from both of them, crashing outward in a tidal wave of ancient, living energy. It smelled of salt and storm, of deep currents and distant tides. Blue light spilled across the sky, spreading like breath returning to a long-dead world.

The ocean below responded.

Where once the water had been gray and still, now it shimmered with soft light. Faint patterns—sea runes—rose from the depths, glowing like veins beneath the surface. The color shifted from lifeless slate to vibrant blue, and the silence gave way to a low, resonant hum.

The sea was waking up.

As the energy poured into the water, the Sea King let out a quiet sigh.

His hands trembled as he stepped forward and held out his trident to Namyanna—not as a gift, but as a return. Like he was handing back something that had always belonged to her.

Then he stepped back, and the light caught the lines of exhaustion etched deep into his face.

"My power..." he said, voice rough but calm, "has reached its end."

He looked out over the glowing sea, eyes reflecting the light like glass. "This ocean is stirring again. It can help you break through—maybe even push you to the next Tier. Don’t waste it."

Ethan froze.

The energy in the water was thick enough to touch, dense and potent—more than enough for several breakthroughs. And yet this man had given it all away. No hesitation. No reservation. Not even a drop kept for himself.

Ethan opened his mouth to speak—but stopped.

The Sea King’s body was already fading.

Like the tide pulling back from the shore, his form withered, collapsed inward, and dissolved into motes of gray-blue light. Within seconds, he was gone—swept away by the wind and the sea, as if he’d never been there at all.

The ocean and the breeze fell silent, mourning him together.

Ethan stood still for a long moment, then bowed deeply toward the sky where the light had vanished.

When he rose, his expression was set.

He turned and raised both hands, calling to the sea.

The ocean answered.

Warm, surging waves of power rose up, drawn by his will. He guided them, shaped them, and sent them flowing into Namyanna like rivers into a vessel.

Time passed like the tide—silent, steady, unstoppable.

No one knew how long the sea poured its strength into her.

But when the final thread of light faded, when the last ripple stilled, Namyanna’s aura snapped into focus—sharp, vast, and unmistakably stronger.

She had broken through.

Tier 23, early stage.

...

In the days that followed, Ethan led the Emerald Castle forces through the fractured layers of the multiverse.

They hunted down the remaining twisted lords, swept through the broken realms, and gathered every scattered ally they could find. Slowly, methodically, they reclaimed the power that had once been stolen.

It turned out this world hadn’t withered on its own. Its energy had been hoarded—siphoned off by a handful of greedy, dominant lords.

But one by one, those lords fell.

And when the last of them died, the locked-away power came flooding back like a tsunami—and Ethan was there to catch it.

He didn’t just reclaim it.

He harvested it. Rebuilt it. Reforged it into something new.

By the time the dust settled, Emerald Castle had transformed.

Their numbers had swelled, but more importantly, their strength had exploded.

Over a hundred warriors had reached Tier 22 and beyond.

Ten had broken into Tier 23.

And Ethan himself—bathed in the sea’s rebirth and the energy of countless worlds—had stepped into Tier 23, mid-stage.

Emerald Castle had never been stronger.

When the army finally returned to their home plane, Ethan wasted no time. He issued a single command: spread out. Begin the summoning rituals at every known Creature Dwelling.

One by one, the summoning circles lit up.

Energy pulsed through the land, and from the depths of those ancient altars came the birth cries of new power—battle spirits, magical beasts, and long-lost contract familiars, all awakening from slumber.

In just a few days, Emerald Castle had rebuilt its army.

And this time, it was stronger than ever.

A month passed.

In that time, with relentless restructuring, cultivation, and a flood of resources, Emerald Castle’s power surged to its peak.

Now, Ethan stood once more at the head of the army, eyes fixed on the ancient, enigmatic fortress floating in the sky—Sky Citadel.

Last time, it had loomed like an uncrossable chasm.

But today, behind him stood a force reborn: battle-hardened generals whose strength had doubled, hundreds of warriors at Tier 22 and above, legions of contracted spirits, and a storm-charged belief that this time, they would not be turned back.

He was ready to take it in one strike.

Ethan raised his hand.

A long blade of pure energy formed in his palm, its edge glowing faintly.

He gave it a light swing—and with that, the order rippled outward like a wave of light.

The army surged forward without hesitation, flooding into the entrance of Sky Citadel like a rising tide.

In moments, they reclaimed the 21st floor—the place where they’d once been forced to retreat.

But this time was different.

The guardian of this level, once a daunting foe, now barely registered as a threat before the might of Emerald Castle’s renewed forces.

The battle passed like a gust of wind. In a blink, they had stormed into the 22nd floor.

"Kill!"

The cry thundered through the air, echoing between the sky and the floating fortress like rolling thunder.

They carved a path upward, unstoppable, reaching the 25th floor in what felt like no time at all.

Each floor’s lord wielded a different kind of power, but none could withstand the momentum of this resurrected army.

The fighting never stopped, but casualties were negligible—Emerald Castle’s dominance needed no further proof.

Ethan was just about to issue the next command when a wave of energy slammed into the army, cold and monstrous enough to raise the hairs on every neck.

Boom—

A figure began to coalesce in midair.

Holy radiance and demonic aura burst from it at once, clashing and spiraling outward in a storm that shook the ground and made the air itself tremble.

Then, the figure fully emerged.

...