Chapter 112: Chapter 102 Rare Evolution (Part 2)

“Put it on,” Qiu Shangqing threw a set of diving gear to Chen Xing, signaling him to prepare to go into the sea.

“We’re going into the sea?” Chen Xing looked down at the water beneath the boat.

The deep blue ocean was endless, like an immensely huge sapphire.

“That’s right,” Qiu Shangqing had already skillfully taken off his coat and changed into the diving suit. His movements were quick and agile, nothing like those of an elderly man.

Seeing this, Chen Xing hurriedly put on his diving gear as well.

Qiu Shangqing summoned the Emperor Crocodile of the Vast Seas, and the enormous crocodile appeared on the surface of the water.

Marine creatures that had initially come close to the boat due to its movements all stealthily went back into hiding the instant they perceived the presence of the Emperor Crocodile of the Vast Seas.

“Come down,” Qiu Shangqing, holding a box, lightly leaped and landed steadily on the crocodile’s back; his movement was graceful and nimble.

Chen Xing looked at the height and then at the Emperor Crocodile’s sharp, hard spikes on its back that were tougher than his life. He decided that it would be safer to descend using the ladder on the ship’s side. He carefully made his way down to the bottom, then jumped into the water and swam toward the crocodile.

Qiu Shangqing took out a special rope and secured it to the spikes on the back, then had Chen Xing grab the rope and sit tight.

“Sit? Don’t we have to lie flat?” Chen Xing had just asked when he understood the reason.

The surrounding sea began to part on either side, as if alive, creating a path for them.

As the Emperor Crocodile of the Vast Seas dived, the seawater automatically parted around it, forming a giant vacuum area with the creature at the center.

What kind of skill is this? It’s not showing up on the skills panel.

Chen Xing suddenly turned his head, thinking, that’s not right, old man, why do we need to wear diving suits if we have this ability?

Seemingly guessing Chen Xing’s thoughts, Old Master Qiu said with a chuckle, “Just in case.”

“…”

As the Emperor Crocodile of the Vast Seas continued to sink, the light around them grew dimmer and the temperature colder.

The extreme cold, icy waters, and pitch darkness made Chen Xing feel somewhat oppressed. He couldn’t help but ask, “Old Master, how deep are we planning to dive?”

Suddenly, Qiu Shangqing spoke up, “Chen, you don’t have thalassophobia, do you?”

“If you’ve got thalassophobia, you’re in for a rough time ahead, just like someone with acrophobia raising a flying Beast Taming creature.”

“I don’t have thalassophobia, it’s just the environment around us feels a bit suffocating,” Chen Xing shook his head.

“Feeling oppressed is normal in the deep sea. You’ll get used to it,” Qiu Shangqing stated.

As they continued to dive, mysterious light suddenly appeared around them.

Chen Xing noticed that the light was emanating from below.

His heart stirred—could there be a mysterious “Dragon Palace” below?

Sitting on the broad back of the Emperor Crocodile of the Vast Seas, he dared not move rashly and could only stare eagerly ahead. Due to the angle, he was unable to see what was directly below them.

Old Master Qiu leisurely walked to the wide ridge’s edge, overlooking the scenery below.

“We’ve arrived,” Qiu Shangqing’s voice came, breaking the surrounding silence. Chen Xing couldn’t wait to stand up, and the next second, he was stunned by the scene before him.

As Qiu Shangqing’s words fell, Chen Xing finally saw the awe-inspiring sight. They were currently above the seabed in the deep sea, where the surrounding water was separated by magical power, forming a relatively dry space.

The soft white seabed beneath them was covered with a layer of fine sand, like an endless white carpet.

On this vast expanse of sandy ground, a row of incredibly huge ribs extended fiercely upward as if trying to pierce the deep sea’s sky. Each rib was dozens of meters tall, towering mightily, like an array of monumental archways supporting this mysterious underwater world.

Chen Xing’s gaze followed these gigantic ribs forward until it finally rested upon the enormous skull at the end. It was a skull white as jade, so vast it resembled a colossal palace. Every part of the skull exuded a solemn and mysterious aura.

The imperial sea crocodile looked toward the skull with reverent awe, its movements becoming gentle, as if fearing to disturb it.

Around this enormous skull laid scattered other skeletal remains, big and small, intact and broken, but all emanating an ancient and mysterious aura.

Chen Xing couldn’t imagine what kind of creature could possess such massive bones. He had once conjectured that if a Taotie could grow to over two hundred meters, it would be a spectacular sight.

However, compared to the bones of this unknown creature before him, even a Taotie that grew to over two hundred meters seemed insignificant.

In front of this massive skeleton, the Taotie was like a pet kitten at the feet of humans, small and cute. The contrasting image of the Taotie and the skeleton emerged in his mind, and the immense disparity left him somewhat dazed.

But now, the Taotie’s actual length was only twenty meters, not even as long as one of the skeleton’s “ribs.” This thought made Chen Xing feel somewhat amused and bemused, and he found himself inexplicably thinking of humans raising flower-horned mice.

“Let’s go, it’s at the very back,” said Qiu Shangqing as he walked ahead with the chest.

Chen Xing followed behind him.

Having walked for a kilometer, they finally arrived at the base of the skull at the end. Gazing up close at the gigantic skull, Chen Xing felt an even stronger sense of shock.

He couldn’t imagine the kind of power and majesty that such a creature must have possessed in life to support such an enormous body. And now, only this lonely skeleton remained, lying quietly on the seabed.

Could it be a god from the legends of the Exotic Region?

In front of the skull was a massive, multicolored altar.

With practiced movements, Qiu Shangqing took out various items from the chest and placed them on the altar—one by one, with such gravity and sanctity as if performing an ancient ritual.

There was also a stele next to the altar; Chen Xing approached it, noticing that it seemed incomplete, violently broken by some force, leaving only half.

It was inscribed with Foreign Region script; Chen Xing took out his phone, which was in a waterproof bag.

“The network might leak information, but I have a translation.”

Old Master Qiu tossed over a special black-cased phone, and Chen Xing caught it, switched it on, and found that it indeed had a translated image. The text on the image corresponded with the content on the stele.

“Altar of the Sea God…” Chen Xing murmured the title on the stele, feeling an inexplicable stir in his heart.

He continued to read and discovered that the stele recorded a lineage, seemingly related to crocodile Beast Taming. From Water Attribute crocodile Beast Taming to Greedy Monarch Crocodile, and then to Imperial Sea Crocodile, it ended abruptly with a mysterious “Heaven” character, as if erased by some force.

On the right side of the lineage, there was also a record of the required offerings. Chen Xing noted that each type of crocodile Beast Taming corresponded to different offerings.

The offering needed for Greedy Monarch Crocodile: Sovereign Root, Water of Nothingness, Envy’s Fang…

The Emperor Crocodile of the Azure Sea required sacrifices: the Sea God Stone, the Blessed Conch, the Heart of the Abyss…

As the items were placed one by one, a hazy light emanated from the surface of the altar.

“Have Beast Taming stay on top of the altar,” Old Master Qiu said.

Chen Xing summoned Taotie. However, Taotie seemed to be overwhelmed by the scene before it and hesitated, crouching on the ground, not daring to move. After Chen Xing called out to it several times, it slowly shifted its body and stepped onto the altar.

As Taotie ascended the altar, the atmosphere around it abruptly became solemn.

The mystical light on the surface of the altar grew increasingly intense, and the sacrifices placed there cracked open one by one, transforming into strands of rainbow light that danced around Taotie.

Taotie looked around in a panic, staying put with Chen Xing’s comforting.

At that moment, a solemn music seemed to echo from ancient times could faintly be heard in the surroundings.

Taotie let out a cry of pain as every inch of its hide and bones began to mutate.

Its already thick legs swelled up even more, with short, rounded barbs growing out of the joints.

The previously pitch-black armor scales’ gaps sprouted slender blue-gold patterns. In a matter of moments, Taotie underwent visible mutations at an incredible speed.

The rapid pace was so astounding it left onlookers speechless.

“Keep it calm, draw its attention, don’t let its will collapse, and definitely don’t let it fall into unconsciousness. This is the power of rebirth. If it can’t control it, its body might become deformed,” Old Master Qiu instructed. “Keep calling its name non-stop.”

Chen Xing clapped his hands, “Taotie! Taotie!”

Chen Xing shouted loudly.

This was the first time Chen Xing had seen Taotie in so much agony, and he was beside himself with anxiety, wishing he could share its pain.

“Taotie!”

“Taotie!”

Taotie felt as if countless ants were crawling all over its body, gnawing at every piece of its flesh.

It hurt so much, so very much.

In just this short span of time, it recalled every experience from its birth to the present, and they all became inexplicably clear.

In its daze, Taotie seemed to hear someone calling out.

“Taotie?”

Are they calling me?

It sounds like my name.

Taotie opened its eyes and saw its master looking at it anxiously.

Ao~

Yes!

The master is waiting for me to return.

With great effort, Taotie endured the pain and fixated its gaze on its master.

Chen Xing shouted, “Don’t sleep! Hang in there, I’ll get you something tasty to eat when we get back!”

Hearing the promise of tasty food, Taotie’s crocodilian snout involuntarily lifted, but the severe pain forced its corners back down.

It gazed pitifully at its master.

“Ao!” (Double the tasty food!)

“I’ll give you triple!”

With the master’s promise, Taotie’s eyes brightened, feeling as if the pain in its body wasn’t so bad anymore.

Hum—

A tremor came from the seabed, as if the skeletons slumbering in the deep sea had been awakened and revived.

Releasing a golden divine light.

Streams of golden ripples vibrated and spread, forming a hazy golden mist that enveloped Taotie.

Within the golden mist, every inch of Taotie’s flesh roiled, taking on a pale layer of golden patterns.

After an indeterminate amount of time had passed, Taotie felt the pain throughout its body ebbing away like the tide.

Taotie quickly scampered down from the altar, eagerly rushing towards its master.

But it didn’t control its strength well, and in an instant, it had covered a great distance and sent Chen Xing flying.

“Damn, rebellious child!”

Climbing up from the thick, sandy seabed, Chen Xing couldn’t help but get emotional.

This rebellious child actually bumped into him!

As if realizing it had caused trouble, Taotie stood in place, not knowing what to do.

Taotie looked aggrieved, its eyes, slightly larger than before its evolution, looking at its master.

Getting up from the ground, Chen Xing observed the Taotie in front of him. Overall, it still had the appearance of a crocodile, but compared to before its evolution, its body proportions had slightly adjusted, especially the proportion of its head, which previously accounted for about one-sixth of its body, but now took up nearly one-fifth.

A larger head meant its crocodilian jaws appeared even more ferocious.

Besides that, white barbs had grown at the joints of its limbs, and its eyes had turned a deep blue.

Simultaneously, the surface of its body armor, with the gaps in its scale armor filled with glittering blue-gold patterns, looking from afar, resembled a “cybernetic” giant crocodile.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep