novelraw Chapter 428: Ascending to Tier Five—Herding the Seas!
Chapter 428: Ascending to Tier Five—Herding the Seas!
The pale sky's flames blazed fiercely, illuminating the world.
Chen Qi sat wearily atop the Coastal Apex Predator's head, sailing toward an unknown abandoned small island in the Moonstone Archipelago.
"Dawn has arrived..."
Chen Qi raised his head, gazing at the sun suspended high in the sky.
The entire sea, originally in the dawn hour, should have displayed a bright coloration.
However, under the pollution of the A-rank rift, faint black mist permeated the distant sky, casting the entire world's palette in a thick post-apocalyptic tone.
The wind gently blew past, carrying a steam-like hot breeze.
As expected, another A-rank rift is about to be born above the sea... Chen Qi muttered inwardly.
A single A-rank rift is enough to cause earth-shaking changes to a region, bringing unprecedented ecology.
And multiple A-rank rifts overlapping would thoroughly and drastically alter the sea's ecology.The sea will soon no longer be the sea I know... Chen Qi sat silently atop the Coastal Apex Predator's head, pondering.
Bang!
Suddenly, a loud noise interrupted his thoughts.
The directionally-challenged Coastal Apex Predator let out a mournful cry, gently swaying its tail, creating layer upon layer of dozens-of-meters-high waves upon the sea.
"Alright, it doesn't hurt, doesn't hurt..."
The Coastal Apex Predator is still just a child who gets lost... Chen Qi casually rubbed out a fish bait while comforting it.
Immediately after, he leaped from the Coastal Apex Predator's head onto the abandoned island before him.
"The Hammer Witch's ruins are on this ordinary island?"
Chen Qi looked toward the island ahead.
On the land before him, residual oil stains and discarded steel machinery were visible.
Clearly, this had once been a special location for refining high-end materials.
Then, from within the steel wreckage, a small figure emerged from a crevice.
Its jelly-like, round, plump body was tied with a bow and wore a tall gentleman's hat—
"Waku waku (Honorable master, please follow me!)"
Is this an elegant butler water spirit? Or perhaps a maid water spirit? Chen Qi rubbed his chin, looking suspiciously at the water spirit Number Seven before him.
Water Spirit Number Seven's eyes still held love for its master, but also obedience and admiration for Big White Hair!
For some reason, Chen Qi felt inexplicably displeased inside.
While he was busy with various matters, Big White Hair had quietly poached one of his water spirits.
And ultimately succeeded in training the simple-minded Water Spirit Number Seven into an obedient butler water spirit.
Had to admit, Big White Hair truly lived up to her name, possessing extraordinary charm.
You must understand, anyone else wouldn't have been able to poach even a single water spirit from someone with Deep Sea Affinity like him!
Now, Water Spirit Number Seven seemed to have completely transformed into Big White Hair's shape.
"Alright, Number Seven."
Chen Qi didn't say much more, following the butler water spirit all the way toward the island's center.
Water Spirit Number Seven opened a hidden door to a basement.
Chen Qi stepped over a hundred steps, finally arriving at a pitch-black room.
This is the repaired temporary workshop... Chen Qi gently touched the wall before him.
The wall displayed a pitch-black metal color, extremely smooth.
The entire rift workshop resembled a giant black box.
And upon careful touch, he could feel his own spiritual energy being absorbed... Chen Qi removed his hand from the cool wall:
"Big White Hair, are you here?"
His spiritual energy perception told him the entire black box was empty, containing nothing.
Click!
"..."
Time freeze again... Chen Qi didn't even want to complain anymore.
Because of Big White Hair's own uniqueness, for her, occasionally activating time freeze was as simple as drinking water.
Then, a white-haired witch appeared quietly on tiptoe behind him, her silver-white hair strands brushing past his face, then turned her head back, smiling slightly at him.
"Hehe—"
Big White Hair let out a mischievous laugh for some reason.
Afterward, she went to the center of the abandoned rift workshop, pulled out a mysterious match covered in magical runes from her Wormhole Backpack, fixing it mid-air.
Finally, she placed a stool, poured a cup of black tea, took out a lighter, and lit this match.
Click!
Time began flowing again.
Chen Qi played along with her performance, his eyes slightly widening, showing an astonished expression.
Then, without any warning, in the empty black box, a light suddenly ignited!
And within the gradually expanding light, as if appearing from nowhere, an extremely elegant white-haired witch sat upon the chair, gazing at him gently.
"When did you arrive?"
Chen Qi spoke word by word, his face full of disbelief.
The Ice Witch accepted the black tea from Water Spirit Number Seven, taking a small sip:
"I've always been here, Little Black Hair. Whenever you need help, I will appear before you."
"..."
She really pulled it off... Chen Qi thought to himself.
The Ice Witch snapped her fingers:
"Alright, the ceremony is about to begin. Assistant, bring the operating bed over!"
"Yes, teacher..."
Behind Chen Qi came a weak, hoarse female voice.
Little Crow, whom he hadn't seen for a long time, carried a simple folding bed and medical box, slowly descending the stairs.
Little Crow... Chen Qi turned his head, watching her pass by.
The last time he saw Little Crow, her illness was already very severe.
Now, Little Crow had shed her previous attire, wearing a black doctor's coat, with a thorny collar visible around her neck.
This thorny collar was a mental calmness relic the Ice Witch had obtained from some unknown ruins.
And Little Crow herself had already advanced to fourth-tier Disaster Messenger, though her current physical condition was worse than when she was third-tier.
Even wearing heavy black clothing, numerous scars from medication treatments, flogging, and self-harm were still visible on her skin.
"Qi..."
Little Crow's hair was disheveled, her back hunched, extremely gloomy. Due to low self-esteem and fear of infecting others, she didn't even dare look directly into Chen Qi's eyes.
The Little Crow who once dreamed of becoming the Pirate King had already been consumed by illness.
The suffering from the Black Blood poison kept her in unprecedented agony.
Chen Qi pressed his hand on Little Crow's head, looking directly into her reddened eyes, saying:
"Little Crow, we already have a method to treat the black whale blood.
Also, we obtained a rift weapon called Abyssal Afterimage, perfectly suited for your Disaster Messenger profession..."
Treatment method, Abyssal Afterimage... Little Crow was momentarily stunned.
"Yes, Little Crow, but this still depends on you, depends on your research regarding the Abyssal Sea Flower!"
The Ice Witch said.
Although they had obtained the Abyssal Sea Flower, what they possessed was merely a possibility;
there was still a long road ahead before completely resolving the black whale blood issue.
In fact, she had already given the Abyssal Sea Flower to both Fen and Little Crow for research, hoping to find methods for mass-producing Abyssal Sea Flowers and develop a specialized medicine capable of curing the black blood disease.
Although Fen had inherited the Flower Witch's knowledge, she severely lacked research regarding sea ecology and had insufficient theoretical understanding of mutation diseases and deep sea illnesses.
And Little Crow happened to compensate for these deficiencies perfectly.
Perfect complementarity!
If the two of them collaborated, they could greatly accelerate the research progress for the specialized medicine.
However, currently, their relationship wasn't particularly good, and communication problems existed... The Ice Witch rested her cheek on her hand, sighing, saying:
"Alright, Little Crow, we should attend to the main matter. Today is Qi's sublimation day;
there cannot be the slightest mistake."
"Teacher! Thank you for your trust! I, this worthless sinner, will do my best!"
Little Crow placed her hand over her chest, speaking excitedly.
She stepped forward, placing the operating bed beneath the burning flame in the air.
The torment of illness... Chen Qi stepped forward, looking toward the flame ignited by the Ice Witch.
His gaze was involuntarily drawn to the flame's radiance!
This flame burning in the air, though its light was faint, emitted immensely vast spiritual energy.
And simultaneously, within the light, some special scenes faintly appeared—
Within the light, Chen Qi saw himself and Fen going together to the Goldenfinch Kingdom to meet her parents, welcoming the New Year together!
He saw himself without Deep Sea Affinity, instead originating from the Black Blood Empire's dungeons, eventually struggling his way up, accidentally obtaining a ring harboring an ancient Black Blood Emperor, and with its help, becoming an S-rank bounty hunter!
He saw himself born in a White Tower Federation academy, studying together with An, both accessing the Magic Net, possessing unlimited spiritual energy, completing the highest-level spell examinations, becoming a White Tower Academy legend!
"What is this..."
Chen Qi blinked, only feeling his consciousness becoming somewhat blurry.
The Ice Witch answered briefly:
"A fully contained B-tier Lamp affinity rift, The Little Match Girl.
Within this rift, a little match girl appears who lights matches, asking about your wishes—
Once corresponding wishes appear in your mind, based on your desires, terrifying illusions manifest, consuming you.
Essentially, it's a lower-tier rift of fate projections."
Chen Qi pressed further:
"A lower-tier rift of fate projections?"
The Ice Witch said with a smile:
"In some cases, many seemingly weak rifts are actually gateways to larger rifts;
they interconnect, mutually dependent—
The fate projections I rely upon are precisely such a powerful rift, an ancient rift surpassing A-tier!"
The Ice Witch's eyes flashed with excitement, her fingertip gently touching the flame:
"And this rift, The Little Match Girl, is the rift you need to connect with today."
Warm firelight shone on Chen Qi's face.
Lamp affinity rift... Chen Qi nodded.
Relying on the rift weapon 'Blade's Wrath' provided by the Ice Witch, he had obtained a spiritual energy source far exceeding ordinary legends, thus gaining the foundation to fight against Saints.
However, ultimately, Blade's Wrath was merely a weapon, just an imitation mimicking Saint-level power.
"Qi, please lie down..."
From Little Crow's shadow, black bubbles squirmed, emerging shadowy hands one after another, retrieving various instruments from the medical box.
After advancing to Disaster Messenger, Little Crow had gained the power to manipulate shadows.
Lie down... Chen Qi was momentarily stunned.
He didn't say more, then took a deep breath.
His heart involuntarily pounded fiercely.
Next, this B-tier Lamp affinity rift emitting boundless spiritual energy would connect with his body!
In this simple basement, on this seemingly ordinary small island, he was about to welcome a new tier!
He would truly stand atop the waves' crest, stirring these chaotic tides!
Chen Qi silently lay down, closing his eyes.
Everything around turned dark, yet he could still feel the flame's warmth.
Little Crow said:
"Need anesthesia? It will hurt a little..."
The Ice Witch answered:
"Unnecessary. Anesthesia reduces perception, hindering the connection between flesh and the rift."
No anesthesia needed!
Chen Qi closed his eyes, gritting his teeth, only feeling a scalding, burning sensation emerge from his chest.
This feeling was as if being sawed apart by a chainsaw!
Amidst cries of agony, Chen Qi's body turned slightly red. The Blade's Wrath within him was extracted, while simultaneously, a terrifying ten-centimeter-long rift was brutally torn open on his chest—
The Ice Witch activated time freeze, moving Little Crow aside.
"Preparations complete—"
Chen Qi stood up again, taking out the Sea Shepherd profession card, baptizing it with his blood—
It was time to unleash this Saint profession card's full power!
The Sea Shepherd's card slowly melted, an immensely vast power surging forth!
The narrow abandoned rift workshop instantly melted, undergoing unimaginable tremors!
Storm and seawater forces ran rampant.
An endless stream of seawater and storms filled the room before him, washing over every inch of his body.
Instantly, intense pain sensations erupted from every inch of his body.
Heavy and massive, fierce and brutal!
This enormous power even caused his muscles to squirm, like centipedes crawling, rising and falling like waves, celebrating wildly like a tsunami—
[Your constitution increased by 10 points—]
[Your strength increased by 10 points—]
Prompts for strength and constitution increases continuously popped up before Chen Qi's eyes, his blood also began changing, heart pounding fiercely—
Afterward, his spiritual energy began burning involuntarily, transforming into scalding burning blade energy, burning layer upon layer!
The entire abandoned rift workshop rumbled loudly, absorbing this massive power.
If not for these vast Magic-Banishing Crystals continuously absorbing this power, these surging tides would have been enough to destroy this island in an instant.
This power no longer affected just his flesh, but his soul, his Spiritual Core!
Chen Qi's brain was also instantly flooded with infinite knowledge.
In that split second, he felt as if he had undergone decades of learning.
From a shepherd boy, to encountering pitch-black giant goats, to practicing herding knowledge upon the sea.
Storms, seas, enslavement, herding—
Various kinds of knowledge continuously flashed by, impacting his perception!
Fortunately, this duration wasn't long;
soon, he emerged from the intense pain of this knowledge impact—
Changes in power and knowledge had already begun.
Chen Qi gasped heavily, pus continuously flowing from his pores and mouth.
After advancement, many substances within his body would become impurities.
Next was accommodating the Spiritual Core, digesting this power!
In the room submerged by storms and waves, Chen Qi raised his powerful right arm, reaching out, touching the flame amidst the storms and waves—
The materialized flame of the Lamp affinity B-tier rift!
Chen Qi extended his blood-covered hand, firmly grasping the flame, slowly placing it into his own heart.
Slowly placing it—
The runes on the rift workshop also suddenly lit up, placing him and the flame in a resonant state.
However, despite having the rift workshop's power, the flame's minute movements still caused intense agony!
But simultaneously, he also felt his soul vibrating—
In that instant, his heart was no longer his Spiritual Core!
A massive rift was being branded onto his blood.
Blood boiled, spiritual energy expanded!
Every centimeter moved required exhausting his entire body's strength, taking several hours!
If moved slightly faster, his blood would explode, utterly destroying his flesh!
Throughout history, many powerful individuals had died at this step.
Amidst the waves and storms, the Ice Witch sat on her stool, holding a pocket watch, watching the scene before her intently.
She had to ensure that the moment any accident occurred, she could activate time freeze to correct it.
And so, days and nights cycled—
Chen Qi resembled a statue within the tides, continuously absorbing this massive power.
Bit by bit—
Bit by bit, the flame approached his heart—
Thirty hours later, his entire body was soaked with sweat, trembling uncontrollably.
Within the rift workshop, the surging seawater and storms gradually ceased.
"Hoo—"
"Hoo——"
Chen Qi slowly exhaled a long breath, his consciousness already blurred, his weakened body riddled with holes from the seawater erosion.
He looked down;
on his chest, a fiercely burning flame blazed, branded onto his body.
Although his body was covered in scars, he only felt incredibly powerful, the spiritual energy within his body reaching an absurdly dense level!
Just the spiritual energy field itself was enough to trigger a storm.
And before his eyes, finally, the extremely exciting prompt appeared.
[Traveler, you have advanced to fifth-tier Lamp-Heart Transcendent—Sea Shepherd!]