CHAPTER 492: CHAPTER 377: THE GREATEST EVOLUTION: JOIN A CLASS

The Golden Deer aimed to be the oriole behind the mantis, the fisherman reaping the rewards; they naturally had the leisure to observe the Pirate King as he steadily advanced, step by step, toward the center of the Triangle Sea Area.

However, the two Heretical Cults also witnessing this scene found it difficult to continue sitting idle.

"Abyssal Horror" Dagon slammed the gold table before him, gazing at the "gods" seated in the Legendary Warship, as well as at the "Father of the School of Sharks" Bonaparte via projection, and gravely said,

"We can’t just keep waiting like this.

If we allow them to continually plant Law-Breaking Stone columns along the seabed ridge, the connections between Fortress Bridgehead, Luanyun City, and Chasm Trench—these three major ritual nodes—will be forcibly severed.

Even if we could hold out until the full moon, the ’Nightmare Triangle’ ritual formation still wouldn’t achieve the expected might to annihilate the enemy in one fell swoop."

The Deep Dive Church and the Rift Monastery initially only wanted to bide their time. They planned to wait until July 4th, when they could directly turn the entire Nightmare Triangle into a Living Hatch, sending their opponents directly before the corpses of the Old Gods to be pitilessly slaughtered.

Even temporarily retreating to engage in guerrilla warfare at sea was a considerable option.

Clearly, the Pirate King also knew time was short and had already devised a strategy to force them into a decisive battle.

"Dagon, take action!

This tug-of-war, with the enemy steadily planting Law-Breaking Stone columns, means the ’Nightmare Triangle’s’ power will weaken to its nadir in about a day. Only afterwards will it begin to rise with the full moon.

We cannot gamble on successfully enduring this period of weakness. We must take countermeasures now, at the very least preventing him from continuing to plant the sealing pegs at his leisure.

Barbarossa is a Fifth-Order Kingly Title. He’s bold enough to make a move, and he might have reinforcements, but at best, that’s just one more Fifth-Order Legend.

We follow the ’Bloodline Codex’ path. As Fifth Order Divine Beings, our power is even greater. Should we fear a direct confrontation with them?

Your plan has already failed.

Let’s follow my idea: fight them head-on in the center of the Nightmare Triangle and show these humans who truly rules these seas."

As the "Father of the School of Sharks" Bonaparte spoke these words, he had already sprung into action.

Rising from his divine throne in Chasm Trench, he fiercely struck his ornate scepter, sending a murky ripple throughout the entire Nightmare Triangle.

That was his Authority—"[Dominion over Sea Creatures]."

CRACKLE AND POP...

Countless sea creatures shuddered violently as if electrified, and immediately they began a comprehensive "evolution"!

When the "Father of the School of Sharks" deployed his Authority, Byron was still hidden beneath the great Fleet in the guise of a fish, silently observing the construction efforts of the swordfish warriors.

The assault teams, the swordfish warriors, and the Sea Monsters coordinated closely, their construction progressing at remarkable speed.

The magic-suppressing effect grew increasingly potent. Even when another nightmare attack erupted, the damage it caused was still less severe than the White Ship incident from the first act.

Others may see their combat effectiveness greatly reduced by the influence of the Law-Breaking Stone, but I have already mastered ’Divine Sight,’ and the Dead Magic Environment is precisely what I fear the least. Once the Nightmare Triangle reaches that state, I dare to charge at a Fifth-Order Legend with my blade in hand! A single use of my cannon-drawing technique would send him straight to the Western Paradise.

Hmm?

Just as that ripple swept over, Byron’s avatar, a fish whose structure and genetic code were identical to that of a common sea fish, suddenly felt an electric current run from the tip of its tail to its head.

Its body began to swell rapidly, its tail shrank, its fins thickened and coarsened, and sharp claws gradually sprouted at their tips...

What’s going on?

To guard against deception, he immediately abandoned the fish form and switched back to his original perspective, only to find that all the mundane sea creatures around him were rapidly undergoing bizarre mutations.

Jawless fish evolved into jawed fish and lobe-finned fishes, then into amphibians capable of living on land...

Internally, their brain capacity increased; swim bladders transformed into lungs, gills into vocal organs, and fin tips into fingers and toes...

Within the entire Nightmare Triangle, fish, shrimp, turtles, shellfish, crabs... without exception, they all evolved towards humanoid forms!

In the memories of the Divine Son and Goddess, during the Mythological Era of the Silver Continent, it was known as the "Dragon Court," while the Southern Continent was called the "Hundred Beasts Paradise."

The various creatures inhabiting these lands and seas were already exceptionally large.

After their transformation, they appeared especially formidable.

Each transformed into a hybrid of sea creature and giant, exuding an astonishing presence. Even their eyes began to sparkle with a more sentient light.

It seemed they had gained basic self-awareness, comparable to the "ape-men," humanity’s ancestors.

"ROAR—!"

"WAIL—!"

However, they did not realize that every gift of fate carried a hidden price tag.

When countless sea creatures completed hundreds of thousands, even hundreds of millions, of years of evolution within mere minutes, something terrifying occurred instantly.

The first thing they had to do was... enlist!

A thunderous laughter rang out in everyone’s ears:

"Hahaha, although fish crawling from the ocean to eventually evolve into humans is a betrayal of the deep sea, this step is undoubtedly the greatest in the world’s biological evolution.

It is thanks to this that we, who endured suffering and finally realized our true calling, returned from the land to the sea, to the embrace of our Lord Leviathan.

My children, join my ranks and seek revenge against the humans who betrayed the sea!"

Recruited by the "Father of the School of Sharks," the evolved sea creatures, against their will, gathered with many of their kind. They quickly learned to cooperate and formed ranks like an army.

Like the weakest humans, they even managed to suppress their fear of "Dragon Dung Potions" and powerful Transcendent Species Sea Monsters, banding together to encircle the Pirate Fleet.

For them, this was truly a cathartic, nightmarish evolution.

Witnessing these once carefree ocean creatures following in humanity’s footsteps, Byron, though not a fish, couldn’t help but break out in a cold sweat.

One wonders, if that first fish ancestor to crawl ashore had known what the future held, whether it would have smashed its own fleshy fins—that small step for a fish, giant leap for fish-kind—to bits with a stone on the spot.

SPLASH...

Simultaneously, gargantuan Blue Holes opened before the Fleet.

Thousands of half-whale, half-shark, half-human adherents of the Rift Monastery, wielding heavy axes, anchors, and chisels, emerged from the waters.

They appeared as hybrids of Meis Leviathan Whales, megalodons, and humans.

Each stood over five meters tall, their skin a deep blue matching the deep-sea hues, noseless, with only a blowhole from which white plumes of water jetted occasionally.

Their pungent, fishy odor had a corrosive quality, inducing nausea.

Even without any transcendent abilities, their sheer size was enough to inspire awe and fear.

Amidst their ranks, a vortex resembling a waterspout slowly rose. At its pinnacle stood the "Father of the School of Sharks," Bonaparte, scepter in hand.

He waved the scepter expressionlessly.

"Kill!"

WHOOSH! WHOOSH! WHOOSH! WHOOSH!...

The sea instantly boiled as countless white streaks surged towards the Fleet from beneath the waves.

"What are these things?"

"Are the natives of the New Continent no longer human?"

The adventurers, ignorant of the New Continent’s secrets, clearly hadn’t anticipated such a scene and were mostly caught off guard.

But faced with the situation, they could only fight back reluctantly.

Captains’ shouts rang out one after another:

"Orders! Prepare for battle! Furl the lower sails, load the scatter bomb canisters..."

Standing on the forecastle of the Flagship, the Pirate King, [Ocean Throne], only had eyes for the Fifth-Order Pseudo-God, the "Father of the School of Sharks," before him.

He squinted, speaking coldly, "I despise those who presume to stand above me, looking down from on high."

CLANG!

He drew the Fischer Slash Sword from his waist, raising it high. His mighty voice thundered across the Fleet,

"Warriors of the Seven Seas!

"I, Barbarossa Hailiding, the Pirate King, [Ocean Throne], swear this day to lead you to the pinnacle of the seas and the world!

"Let those gluttonous, bloated fools—those Fat Whales occupying the top of the food chain without earning it—return to their rightful place!"

His gaze, sharp as a blade, cut across the battlefield.

"This magnificent, splendid world will soon dance to the tune of Barbarossa’s Pirate Flag!

"A Pirate Kingdom will be born by my hand, right here!

"Only I, and you, my loyal followers, are worthy to stand in the heavens as masters of the sea and the world!"

His direct lineage of Barbary Pirates, their faces flushed with excitement, drew their swords without hesitation and roared:

"Your Majesty!"

"Your Majesty!"

"Long live the King!"

Their deafening shouts seemed capable of overturning the very ocean.

Without a distinctive personality and a grand ideal one is willing to die for, one can never achieve the rank of Fifth-Order Legend.

This was true for the [Sailboat Collector]; how could the [Ocean Throne] be any different?

The Whale Hunter once told Violet that there were too many "whales" in this world—whales that would never die and become Whale Falls to nourish the world. So many, in fact, that they were becoming a burden to the planet.

They ruthlessly exploited every creature in the food chain, greedily devouring them, growing ever larger but never satisfied.

And they intended for themselves and their descendants to forever occupy the apex of the ecological pyramid.

Essentially, Barbarossa shared a common goal with the [Whale Hunter]: to hunt those immortal "whales" that never contributed back to the world!

But while the Whale Hunter, Jack Harold, sought to liberate the beings of lower ecological niches, allowing the 12,490 species dependent on Whale Falls to survive, Barbarossa simply wanted to drag the overlords from their thrones. He aimed to overthrow the powerful, bury the decadent old world, and crown himself the new king.

He sought to build his own Pirate Kingdom, dominate the world, and wield supreme power!

A terrifying pressure and Supernatural Aura erupted from the [Ocean Throne] with his resounding declaration, seeming to tear the very sea apart.

He stared at the "Father of the School of Sharks," a cold, bloodthirsty smirk playing on his lips,

"No one in this world can hinder me. Let’s start with you!"

With a single thought.

BOOM!

A colossal shadow, a hundred meters long, burst from the depths, carrying with it an immense volume of seawater.

It opened a maw tens of meters wide and lunged, savagely biting towards the Father of the School of Sharks.

It was none other than the titan among Sea Monsters, the [Deep Sea Yama]—an ancient species, a Sea King Dragon!