The ancestor could communicate with the Deep Diver, so there’s no reason I can’t. I can’t afford to lose to the ancestor.

Lance is not someone who easily gives up, and having already eliminated the Deep Diver, he immediately set about studying how to control the Giant Pincer Tidestealer with his new ability.

How did the shaman manage to control it?

Lance seems to have overlooked something...

Let’s say, is it possible that the ancestor was actually communicating with a shaman, a wise Deep Diver, and not the Tidestealer—the creature with a head smaller than its pincers?

But in his lifetime, Lance was no lesser to anyone.

Soon, by reviewing the Siren’s behavior, he found the key.

Why couldn’t he understand the Deep Diver’s ghostly calls, yet could comprehend the Siren’s voice?

Curious?

Enlightenment!

The sound was merely a carrier; the true key lay in the intention it carried!

It seemed Lance understood something and picked up the snail horn to blow it again.

The sound transformed from the previous jarring noise into something mellow, with a beautiful tune almost rivaling that of the Siren’s play.

The Giant Pincer Tidestealer ceased its agitation as if entranced by the sound.

Lance easily calmed it down, which confirmed his speculation.

The true core of this ability wasn’t the simple sound but the emotion underlying it, so even if it couldn’t understand human language, information could be transmitted via the snail horn.

Once Lance confirmed it was non-aggressive, he rescued it from the mucus and used it as a subject for study.

In the cave, melodies echoed endlessly, sometimes serene and gentle, sometimes passionate and inspiring, eventually transforming into a few simple words, and Lance commanded the Giant Pincer Tidestealer without the horn.

After some training, Lance understood that this creature didn’t have much of a brain to comprehend extensive information; it only understood simple commands like advance, retreat, attack, and escape.

"Go, take me to the important place."

Lance played the final command, which was why he kept the Tidestealer alive.

He had gone on a killing spree earlier, forgetting to leave a survivor, which was crucial.

Without a guide, how could he find the Deep Diver’s treasure?

It was the treasure that even astounded the ancestor, a variety of rare deep-sea treasures, those ships that sank to the ocean’s depths...

Let’s just put it this way: however many treasures the sea has, that’s how many the Deep Diver possesses.

Yet he hadn’t seen a single thing since he entered here, clearly indicating that they must be hidden by the Deep Diver.

The Giant Pincer Tidestealer was tearing apart a Sea Snail mollusk with its giant pincers to eat, but hearing those words, it offered up the chewed flesh.

"I don’t mean food, you’re ridiculously stupid." Lance was speechless at its actions; did it think important things equate to food?

After Lance explained quite a bit, the Tidestealer seemed to grasp something, leading Lance down the passage.

"Clack clack clack!"

Its sharp feet tapping on the rock sounded like keystrokes on a keyboard, as the Giant Pincer Tidestealer swiftly traversed the passage.

After Lance’s thorough cleaning, the entire bay was devoid of living creatures, allowing for an unimpeded journey.

Soon, he arrived at a place following the Tidestealer, raising a torch to look up.

The torchlight couldn’t illuminate the full view, only revealing a massive circular stone sculpture before him, carved with repeated wave symbols, looking like a gate, a grand and solemn emblem.

"Quick, go up!"

Lance’s breath quickened uncontrollably, urging the Tidestealer to ascend, himself holding the torch while following.

This great fortune wheel should turn to me now...

However, upon entering it, he realized that the Tidestealer had led him astray once again.

For at the end of the passage, instead of treasures, lay a dead fish.

A massive whale, split open, stretched across the space, its body about five to six meters long but lying tall enough to reach a human’s height.

The Tidestealer quickly went up to tear at the wounds and devour the flesh upon seeing it, leaving Lance in no doubt why it came here.

This creature simply misunderstood him, thinking they came for food.

"Eat, eat, eat! All you think about is eating! I’m truly exasperated!" Lance was fed up; had it not been the last survivor, he would have steamed it by now.

See what happens when all you do is focus on eating!

Nonetheless, having come this far, Lance went forward with the torch, circling the whale carcass once.

Scattered hooked spears were embedded in it, the exterior was covered in wounds but still showing stains of blood; from Lance’s experience, the whale was alive when it got here.

And the fatal injury was the most exaggerated wound—its gutted abdomen.

There its organs had spilled out, vast amounts of blood staining the surroundings red, refusing to fade.

What’s more puzzling is, how did these Deep Divers transport the whale here?

And why place it here?

"Stop bloody eating!" Lance kicked it aside and held the torch to examine the wound.

He noted the whale’s abdominal wound was specifically cut open without signs of biting, discounting the recent damage from the Tidestealer.

These Deep Divers went to such lengths to bring the whale but didn’t eat it; surely there was a reason.

Lance began to move away from the whale, holding the torch high to survey the surroundings, and indeed, he soon spotted something.

In the dimness, he could faintly see a shadow about a person’s height.

Promptly, Lance raised the torch and approached, only to discover it was a strangely shaped fish-face idol.