Treasure Hunting System： The Ocean Conquerer

Chapter 403: Chapter 217 Human Upper Body with Snake Tail_3

”Tribe members?” Alka asked doubtfully.

Only now did he finally calm down. Letting his thoughts drift, he began to ponder the events that had occurred in the past hour or two.

”If she has tribe members, it means she lives here. There are other intelligent life forms... living here?” Alka said incredulously. ”This is the Forward Route, after all. The currents always flow onward, and it’s desolate beyond belief, with islands being hard to come by. It’s quite strange for an intelligent race to be living here under such circumstances.”

Alka then thought to himself, Judging by that young woman’s physical structure, she’s likely an aquatic race like Pororo. Perhaps for them, the eternally flowing currents aren’t a difficult problem. Food shortages and the scarcity of islands might not be issues for them either. Come to think of it, this so-called Forward Route is probably only inhospitable to land-dwelling creatures like us. For Pororo, it posed almost no problem. He was often seen leaving the ship to swim in these waters, sometimes catching a large fish or two to add to everyone’s meals.

”Don’t forget, when we passed through the Storm Sea Region, we happened to witness people from the Southern Storm Sea passing through the Gate,” Chadite reminded him from the side.

”Speaking of which, I suspect the storm’s intensity might be related to this situation,” Alka remarked. ”When we left the Homeland Sea, the storm was at its peak intensity, coinciding with the Gate opening. In the Sea of All Beings, the storm’s intensity had decreased. We didn’t know the exact timing of their previous Gate opening, but I now deduce it must have been a few years ago. When we were in the Minghuo Sea Region, the storm’s intensity was extremely weak, and we could confirm that the last Gate opening there was around ten years ago. This time, the storm was at its strongest, and we encountered it just before the Gate opened.”

Hearing this, everyone nodded. It seemed the storm’s intensity was indeed related to the timing of the Gate’s opening. The timing and intensity of the Gate’s opening likely followed a recurring cycle. The storm is strongest on the eve of and during the opening, gradually weakening over time.

”Forget it, let’s not dwell on this,” Alka said.

After all, they had already passed through this final stretch of the Storm Sea Region. Their next goal was to completely traverse the Forward Route and truly enter the Endless Sea.

With that, he turned to look at Pororo, who was sitting idly by.

”Pororo, tell us. You risked your life to face that final trial. Did you gain anything?”

After all, when that young woman first approached their ship, she had said she sensed Pororo needed help and that the sea had guided her.

Alka thought, Given what happened, it’s hard to believe Pororo hasn’t gained anything. He nearly lost his life; if there’s no significant reward, it truly wasn’t worth the risk for him.

Hearing this, Pororo grinned, revealing sharp, white teeth. He lifted his powerful arms, showing everyone the lightning-like patterns on his hands and back.

”These are the powers I’ve gained. I am no longer just a Warrior of the Sea; I am the Storm Champion!”

With that, he stepped onto the deck and raised his arms high. Blue electrical light flashed in his pupils, and one thunderbolt after another descended from the sky, striking the nearby seawater. The lightning patterns on Pororo’s body also lit up with a purple glow, purple electrical energy coiling around them.

”I have mastered lightning and will also master the power of the storm. This is a gift from the sea.”

Seeing Pororo’s transformation, everyone couldn’t help but smile, genuinely happy for him.

He deserved this.

Julia looked at Pororo. Remembering what he had done earlier, she couldn’t help but ask, ”The ’will of the sea’ you mentioned—is that the Sea God? Otherwise, why would we face the final storm trial just as we reached the Southern Storm Sea, where the Sea God resides?”

Hearing Julia’s words, Pororo nodded. ”That’s right. The will of the sea is the Sea God. He just cast His gaze upon me.”

Upon hearing this, Simon, a devout follower of the Holy Machine Church, looked on with envy.

Jason, standing beside him, watched this scene, then smiled and patted Simon’s shoulder. ”Why are you envious of him? Haven’t you considered that you survived because the Divine is watching over you, blessing you?” Saying this, Jason tapped Simon’s metal arm. ”Think about it. Wouldn’t that count as a blessing from the Divine too?”

Hearing this, Simon smiled. ”That’s true.”

Just then, Jason turned to look at Pororo and circled him curiously. ”So, does that mean we were all just seen by a Divine?”

Pororo replied, ”You could say that.”

”I hope the Sea God’s gaze brings me good luck, so I won’t be so unlucky next time I go fishing!” Jason looked sincere as he stared at the sky, closing his eyes in prayer.

Hearing this, Alka helplessly rubbed his forehead. ”That’s about all you aspire to.”

”Everyone’s tired. Let’s all get some proper rest,” Alka said, then nodded at Juanlu.

Juanlu smiled and said to the group, ”Looks like I need to prepare a feast for us all!” With that, he jogged into the dining room.

Jason leaned on the ship’s railing, looking ahead. ”We’re already on the final stretch of the Forward Route, right?”

”That’s right,” Alka confirmed.

”Finally, we’re leaving this desolate route,” Jason said, a clear note of relief in his voice. ”This place is really too barren.”

Hearing this, Alka said quietly, ”And then we’ll truly enter the Endless Sea. The journey is just beginning.”

The others stood listening to Alka’s words, silent as they gazed at the sea ahead.