With Shi Ming’s full-powered strike, the battlefield illusion created by the Dusk Whale’s "Ragnarok" skill burst into flames. The whale shrieked as the right side of its body, which had been intact, began to rot at an accelerated rate, the decay spreading rapidly from its eye to its spine like a burning leaf...

[An excellent strike!]

[But the gravely wounded Dusk Whale, on the brink of death, has decided to go all out. It has stopped suppressing the corruption in its body, allowing the decay to spread unchecked! In 10 minutes, it will enter a fully corrupted state—its final act before death, the ultimate counterattack against its enemy.]

[If you cannot stop it, it will enter its third and final stage.]

[The Silent Extinction Whale.]

[Once it enters the Silent Extinction state, the whale will possess a brand-new skill: Sunless Heat Death. Even if you manage to block the world-shaking blow with your Black Tortoise Shield, the skill you gain from being bathed in its blood will change from ’Ragnarok’ to ’Sunless Heat Death’.]

[This may not seem like a loss, but it will cause you to miss an evolutionary opportunity.]

[Now, use the Arm of Power to destroy its still-squirming heart! Stop it!]

The Dusk Whale was a very peculiar creature.

When first born, it was known as a Dawn Whale, and its skill was "Pillar of Dawn."

The ’dawn’ state was fleeting.

As its body rotted, it would inevitably and irreversibly enter its ’dusk’ state, its skill changing to "Ragnarok." From that point on, it was on an unstoppable path toward death. Although the decay was a long process, only by swallowing Formless Pure Ice could a Dusk Whale suppress the predestined corruption within its body and stave off death.

By completely digesting the Formless Pure Ice, the Dusk Whale could evolve into a [brand-new, unknown state].

This brand-new, unknown state was the evolutionary opportunity the Eye of the World had mentioned.

’How could I let such an opportunity just slip away?’

He leaped up again, searching for an opening to land a fatal blow. He had already noticed a wound on the whale’s rotting left side, through which he could faintly see its heart squirming within. The heart, too, was covered in slime, simultaneously rotting and remaining healthy—but now, the rot was spreading like a plague, and the healthy portion was steadily shrinking. 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

The Divine Hall of Time had collapsed, and his Titan skill had entered its echo phase.

During his fifty minutes in the Divine Hall of Time, Shi Ming had gained a total of 250 "thirteenth seconds." He had experienced 250 more seconds than anyone else, and to achieve balance, this extra time would now be burned through at an accelerated rate over the final 10 minutes. This sped up his personal flow of time to about 1.7 times that of the Dusk Whale’s! It was like a fast-forwarding videotape, allowing him to experience 600 seconds of external time in only 350 of his own!

As a result, his speed was also boosted 1.7-fold.

Shi Ming, already incredibly fast, was now like a bolt of lightning.

He seized his chance, activating the Black Tortoise Shield.

Even Quert, after using his skill eight times, couldn’t withstand the corrosion from the Dusk Whale’s bodily fluids on contact. But Shi Ming activated his Black Tortoise Shield and, bracing against the viscous liquids and putrid tissue, plunged directly through the rotting flesh and into the Dusk Whale’s body cavity.

’Ten times the power, still active!’

’This opportunity is fleeting. I can’t let it pass.’

A Frost Greatsword covered in dense, crimson patterns plunged viciously into the Dusk Whale’s squirming heart at point-blank range.

HSSS—

ROAR!

The Illusion Realm of Ragnarok completely collapsed, the ancient battlefield dissolving over the sea. The whale let out the final cry of its life. After a few last twitches, its body finally ceased struggling and sank heavily into the ocean depths.

The great whale had fallen after its dusk.

Shi Ming activated the Calm Sea Pearl.

He took out the Formless Pure Ice.

Then, as if his entire body was embedded in the whale’s heart, his right arm began to uncontrollably absorb the power of its blood—half potent, half corrupt—and convert it into his own.

This wouldn’t take long.

He had already received a prompt from the Eye of the World.

’Awaken first, then consume the ice.’

...

...

...

An unknown amount of time passed.

Quert, covered in wounds, dragged himself back to his ship under the starlit night.

The [Constantinople], one of the Twelve-Star Alliance’s admiral-class Wandering Ships, was even more influential than Wright’s [Fontainebleau]. This was because Quert himself was an S-class Awakened. In a world where strength commanded respect, his voice naturally carried more weight within the Alliance.

"Captain, you..."

Quert’s expression was grim.

’This time, not only did I fail the Vortex Renhuang’s request, but I also let that Prince Wude die at sea. Of course, none of that mattered. What was important was that I’d wasted eight uses of my Invincible War God ability, gotten nothing in return, and been played for a fool by some kid!’

’These eight new scars weren’t badges of honor, but marks of shame!’

’That kid actually turned back to face such a powerful and bizarre sea beast? Hmph. Does he really think he can kill it and snatch the prize?’

’So naive!’

’You’d better not die to that sea beast.’

’The fight between us isn’t over yet.’

"Return to the Twelve Stars, full speed."

"Get me in immediate contact with the First Secretary-General."

"Tell him I’ve discovered an S-class sea beast—one I suspect is high-ranking. It’s gravely wounded right now. We can rally the Awakened and press the advantage. This is the perfect opportunity to kill it!"

...

RUMBLE...

All the citizens on the Twelve Stars were shocked to discover that the King-level Wandering Ship, which hadn’t moved in a very, very long time, had begun to tremble faintly. Its towering, steel-forged hull, as massive as a mountain range, was signaling its departure.

Then, it truly departed from the spot where it had long been anchored.

It began to move, slowly at first.

After one year and three months, the [Twelve Stars] was on the move again!

This was big news!

!!!

Dignitaries of all ranks on board began scrambling for information.

The editors-in-chief of the *Dawn Post*, the *Old Daily News*, and the *Twelve Morning Stars* were dragged from their sleep, instantly thrown into a flurry of activity. This was a major story that had to be reported immediately.

Agents from the various stationed factions all rushed to relay the news back to their respective powers.

Far across the sea, powers like Da Yu, Lighthouse, Black Gold, Kindling, and Katyusha would all receive the news within the hour and begin monitoring the situation closely.

Everyone was curious—

What was its target this time?

The [Twelve Stars] accelerated, but constrained by its immense size, its top speed was only that of an ordinary Silver-class ship. It was like an aircraft carrier from the old world—the larger the vessel, the harder it was to increase its speed.

Three admiral-class Wandering Ships, which had been in port, shot out from the sides of the [Twelve Stars] like arrows loosed from a bow, taking a distant lead.

They were the vanguard, launched from the carrier.

They were:

The [Constantinople], belonging to Ancient Rome, captained by Quert.

The [Fontainebleau], belonging to Fontainebleau, captained by Wright.

The [Tudor Rose], belonging to Britannia, captained by Elizabeth VI.

In addition to the three vanguard admiral ships, two S-class Awakened who were not currently on a mission happened to be on board. They stood at the highest point of the [Twelve Stars], gazing down upon the star-dusted sea under the night sky.

An S-class sea beast, gravely wounded and not far off, was worth the [Twelve Stars] mustering its full strength for a personal expedition. Even if the beast had already left the area, the King-level Wandering Ship [Twelve Stars] could use the residual energy from its Beast Blood in the water to track it with precision.

They didn’t need to concern themselves with such technical details; the research personnel would handle the analysis.

What they cared about was,

This time, which lucky soul would be the one to obtain its skill?