In an instant, the magnificent and beautiful dreamlike landscape before him faded completely. Dense dark clouds swept across the sky, thunder rolled within the clouds, and the pitch-black sea surged with enormous waves as a terrifying storm gathered.
The Spell ship, the only remaining source of light in the world, seemed to be sailing into a terrifying and eerie ghost realm.
The boys who had been playing on the deck began to panic, retreating towards the cabin. Crew members rushed out, loudly calling for everyone to return to their rooms. Ronan saw the green-haired girl also turning back towards the cabin, protected by the cold, stern man with black markings beside her, glancing back at the two of them repeatedly.
"How did the weather change so quickly?"
White light surged in Ronan's eyes, weaving the pattern of the "Eye of Truth" on his forehead as he fixed his gaze on the distant gathering storm. He saw countless glimmers representing the drifting energy particles of heaven and earth rapidly converging. Beneath the dark sea, deep blue energy pillars surged upward, as if something was moving below.
"I've noticed that as long as I follow you, nothing good ever happens."
Moriel shook her head gently beside him.
"Why not say it's the misfortune you bring?"
Ronan replied casually, not bothering to bicker with Moriel any further. He solemnly instructed her, "Go back to your room. I need to see what's going on."
Moriel didn't argue with him, but she also appeared indifferent. Both of them understood that if the ship truly encountered an unstoppable disaster, hiding in their rooms would make no difference.
Ronan quickly descended the deck. By this time, the heavy rain had begun to fall, with large raindrops pounding against the ship's Rune Array light membrane. Although everything was kept outside, the protective shield was violently shaking, creating countless ripples.
The protective magic array of this Spell ship was only at a barely second-tier level, even less sturdy than Ronan's own casual defensive spell. If they were caught in the storm or faced with slightly larger waves, they could easily be smashed to pieces.
It was clear that the ship's owner was well aware of this. By the time Ronan reached the first layer of the deck, the entire Spell ship had already begun to turn around, and the ship was rising higher, trying to escape the forming storm area.
"Boom! Boom!!"
One giant wave after another surged beneath the sea surface, like rapidly rising walls that quickly collapsed.
Vast water vapor rose, and the ship shook violently.
Ronan's expression turned serious. Even though he had witnessed the full force of a fifth-level Wizard, he still felt a deep shock at this moment.
This was the great power of nature, and individual strength was utterly insignificant in the face of such might.
Against a fifth-level Wizard, Ronan still had the courage to fight back.
But facing the wrath of nature, he couldn't even muster a thought of resistance; the only thing left to rely on was fate!
On the first layer of the deck, the passengers had dispersed, leaving only a few crew members straining to pull the ropes. They were ordinary Wizard apprentices, but their physiques were much stronger than typical apprentices, likely having practiced knightly techniques.
Ronan was contemplating how to offer them some help.
Suddenly, a thick bolt of lightning, nearly a hundred feet long, flashed overhead.
"Boom!"
In an instant, the sound of the thunder stunned the crew members, freezing them in place. At the same time, from the torn darkness, everyone clearly saw—
Not too far from the Spell ship, beneath the black sea surface, a massive silver "mountain" broke through the waves, rapidly rising above the turbulent sea surface, quickly reaching a height greater than that of the Spell ship.
An ancient, heavy marine creature, so enormous that it exceeded any conventional imagination, burst forth from the water.
Its body shimmered with a metallic silver, as if illuminated by moonlight and starlight, radiating a dazzling brilliance.
The enormous silver fins sliced through the sea surface like blades, creating a thunderous sound of rushing water. The fins were so large that they could cover a significant portion of the sea, refracting countless rays of light.
The waves rolled violently, and the tide crashed back like a landslide. The surrounding seawater surged into waves, even the clouds above were rising and falling in response. As it entered the water, the massive fish fin resembled a silver crescent moon, reflecting a mysterious and unknown radiant light. At that moment, everyone on the ship, including Ronan, felt their minds go blank, their bodies frozen in place.
Everyone stared dumbfounded at the scene before them, like a group of ants holding their breath as a giant's ankle brushed past.
When the shock faded and the noise returned, Ronan remembered the instinct to breathe. He could clearly hear the sound of his heart racing in his chest.
In that brief moment, he felt as if his soul had left his body. Even though he was already a third-level Wizard, compared to that indescribably massive creature, he felt no different from a speck of dust.
The Spell ship's protective magic array had been completely torn apart at some point, and the torrential rain poured down on everyone without obstruction.
An old crew member, soaked to the skin, stared blankly, repeatedly murmuring, "Sea Dragon God... the ancient Sea Dragon God."
Ronan took a deep breath, realizing at that moment what had caused the storm and giant waves before him.
The image of that colossal marine creature was still deeply etched in his mind, impossible to erase.
He had seen such enormous creatures before; in the legacy dream of Hekalto, he had witnessed the true form of the Ancient Frost Hydra and even seen it battling the Phoenix.
But separated by time and the mist of illusion, everything had seemed less clear, and the shock and impact were nothing compared to the experience of being there in person.
Ronan inexplicably felt a strong impulse rising within him.
He wanted to chase after the traces of that ancient, colossal creature, even if it meant dying in its wake!
This impulse was so uncontrollable, like a devout pilgrim suddenly called by the faith in his heart.
"I... I'll distract it..."
Ronan hurriedly uttered a sentence, then recklessly dashed towards the ship's edge, leaping in the direction where the massive marine creature had submerged.
He didn't even know why he had such a crazy thought; it felt as if all the blood in his body was boiling.
Countless raindrops and splashes hit Ronan, and bolts of lightning streaked overhead.
Just as Ronan stepped off the ship, he completely lost his sense of direction. Suddenly, a towering wave crashed in, swallowing him whole into the icy sea.
Ronan struggled desperately, his seven Mental Power Crystals shining like golden diamonds in his mind, his mental power unleashed to its utmost, but the area he could perceive was pitifully small compared to the vast ocean.
He searched continuously in the water, almost forgetting what he was trying to find.
Suddenly, the surrounding seawater calmed down, and a beam of hazy silver light shone down, enveloping the entire underwater world in a dreamlike silver hue.
Ronan stopped moving, his body quietly floating in the water.
He saw that enormous ancient creature once again.
This time, he could see its full form clearly.
It was an incredibly gigantic silver fish, long and serpentine, resembling a type of sea eel.
Its back was adorned with jagged fins, and each scale bore exquisite patterns resembling natural runes. Above its head was a grove of silver corals, radiating a soft, ethereal glow.
When it turned around, Ronan locked eyes with it. The silver eel's deep-set eyes held no trace of Ronan, yet he saw an entire vast, boundless deep-sea world within them, time flowing silently, and he didn't know how long had passed.
A slight warmth spread across his cheek, and Ronan slowly opened his eyes.
The bright sun hanging in the sky cast down brilliant sunlight, somewhat blinding.
Ronan raised his hand to shield his eyes, propping himself up, only to find himself lying on a gently rippling water surface.
The sky was clear, the blue expanse washed clean, and everything around was calm and peaceful.
The thunder, rain, storm, and that enormous silver eel—all had vanished, as if it had all been a dream.
Ronan felt an inexplicable emptiness in his heart as he looked up at the sun above, his expression blank.
He sat on the water's surface for a long time before slowly gathering his thoughts and following the connection with Moriel, flying in a certain direction.
After a while, he suddenly saw a figure flying towards him.
It was the green-haired girl, accompanied by the cold, stern man with black markings on his face.
Upon seeing Ronan, the man's expression visibly relaxed, and he nodded slightly at Ronan. The two exchanged no words and flew towards each other.
Soon, they spotted the Spell ship sailing through the air. The ship's Rune Array had been reactivated, and someone was standing on the deck, gazing out at the calm and serene sea.
As Ronan and the cold, stern man caught up to the ship and landed, Ronan was unexpectedly tackled by a small figure.
Ronan's body stiffened, his senses filled with Moriel's scent. He heard her sobbing like a kitten in his embrace, and when he looked down, he only caught a fleeting, mischievous glint in her eyes.
"You were too impulsive."
"Often, being brave is equivalent to being reckless. Since you chose to bring her out, you should think more for her. Without you, she won't survive."
The cold, stern man's voice rang in his ears, causing Ronan's mouth to twitch slightly.
The man gently patted his shoulder and then walked past him. At the end of the deck, the green-haired girl looked at them with a face full of reassurance and blessings.
Ronan: ...
Moments later, in Ronan's room.
Moriel kept patting her body, seemingly disgusted by the scent of Ronan on her.
"Is it interesting?"
Ronan looked at her expressionlessly.
"I find it very interesting."
Seeing Ronan's expression, Moriel seemed to enjoy it, perhaps this was the only way she could "retaliate" against him at this stage.
"Let's talk about you."
Moriel stopped patting her robe and looked at him with a half-smile, saying, "I thought you wouldn't come back. I was already prepared to 'sacrifice' myself for you at any moment."
Ronan fell silent. After a while, he shook his head and said, "I don't know why. I just wanted to do that."
"That's normal."
Moriel spoke lightly, and Ronan looked up at her in surprise.
"The more powerful and ancient a creature is, the more its life force can attract the weak to chase after it. It's like moths to a flame; this is especially evident in Wizards with bloodlines."
"Then why weren't you affected at all?"
Moriel rolled her eyes. "What a stupid question. Have you ever seen fire chase after water?"
Ronan fell silent, but Moriel looked at him with a cold smile and continued, "You can't even control this basic instinct of bloodline. I really don't know why the 'Nirvana' ritual failed in the first place."
Ronan naturally wouldn't say that it was the power of the "Arliss Ice Ring" that caused all this. He paused, then changed the subject and asked, "Did you see that creature? Do you know its origins?"
Moriel shook her head. "In the areas filled with oceans between continents, there are too many ancient lives like that.
Many have survived since ancient times, or even from a more distant primordial era.
Only a tiny fraction of them have been observed by the Wizarding world, and of course, not every ancient life is powerful enough to have its own name."
Ronan pondered thoughtfully, while Moriel clapped her hands and walked towards the door. "Alright, it's about time. Some little cutie outside is probably waiting for me to tell her a story."
Ronan ignored her, lost in his own thoughts.
He carefully recalled the scene when he saw that silver giant eel yesterday. Besides what Moriel said about the attraction of bloodline instincts, what truly drove him to recklessly pursue it might be "fate"! In the face of an unstoppable disaster, that silver giant eel leaping out of the sea had, at that moment, seemed to Ronan to embody the irresistible "fate" itself.
During the contest for the genius title, he had understood the path he wanted to take in the future, what he wanted to pursue.
So he recklessly followed, trying to see the truth of "fate" and grasp the power to control his own destiny.
"Ha—"
Ronan exhaled lightly. After a night of reflection, he felt as if his spirit had undergone some transformation, and certain beliefs had become even more steadfast.
He casually took out a rune, immersed his mind in it, and time flowed slowly in his cultivation.
After the incident with the silver giant eel, the subsequent journey returned to calm.
This route from the southern Wizarding world to the eastern coast was the safest, confirmed by countless fleets coming and going. The silver giant eel was merely an extremely rare event, and unfortunately, Ronan and the others had encountered it. Fortunately, nothing unexpected had occurred.
Ronan continued his days of hard cultivation, and before he knew it, they had already passed the halfway mark of their journey.
On a sunny morning, Ronan and Moriel stood side by side on the highest deck, gazing at the distant sea view.
Beside them stood the green-haired girl and the cold, stern man who had been inseparable from her.
"In less than a week, we'll reach the eastern coast, Moriel. Are you really not considering coming with us?"
Leaning against the railing, the green-haired girl said to Moriel with a reluctant expression.
In less than two months, this girl named Beatrice had formed a deep friendship with Moriel, like two sisters who shared everything.
As parting approached, she had already said similar things to Ronan and Moriel many times.
(End of Chapter)