Lord: I can see loyalty.

The clipper cut through the waves again, and the sea breeze gradually became stronger.

Vio stood at the bow of the ship, gazing at the deep blue sea in the distance, with only the horizon in his eyes.

There was no land in sight; all around were the boundless sea and the occasional seabirds flying by.

"Your Excellency," old Ballow said, furling the sails and slowing the ship down, his expression turning grave. "That stretch of sea ahead is where sea monsters often roam."

"Common marine mammals include reef lizards, armored sharks, and even occasionally you can see giant deep-sea squid... I've only been here twice in my life."

Vio nodded, his gaze sweeping across the surrounding sea.

On the surface, this place is no different from other places; it is still that deep blue sea, sparkling and even calmer than the nearshore waters.

But he could sense that the underwater currents were more turbulent than elsewhere, as if some enormous creature was swimming in the depths.

After the ship had traveled for some time, a small island finally came into view.

"Let's dock," he said.

Old Barlow paused for a moment, "Ashore?"

Vio pointed to the small island not far ahead.

The island was larger than the broken reef island, with steep cliffs along its edges, the cliff faces densely covered with seabird nests.

The island is covered with dense shrubs, and there is a flat reef at a higher elevation, which can be used as an observation point.

"You wait here." Vio jumped off the boat and onto the rocks. "Just make sure you're safe."

Old Ballow opened his mouth as if to say something, but seeing Vio's unquestionable expression, he swallowed his words.

He nodded, moored the boat in a relatively secluded crevice, and hid behind a huge rock, only peeking out with half his head, carefully observing his surroundings.

Vio then walked alone to the other side of the island.

He walked through the bushes and finally climbed onto the flat reef.

Standing here, you can have a complete view of the sea in front of you.

The sea was as calm as a mirror, reflecting the sunlight with a somewhat dazzling light.

But he could sense that beneath this calm surface lay countless enormous creatures.

Vio took a deep breath and slowly closed his eyes.

The breathing technique begins to work rapidly within the body.

This time, the breathing lacked the rapid bursts of the battle; instead, it became a longer, deeper exhalation.

The airflow flowed slowly through Vio's body, rising and falling like the tides, each breath longer than the last.

He tried to spread his aura out of his body, to blend with the surrounding sea breeze, waves, and even seawater.

This is exactly what he learned in his battle with the Reef Dragon Lizard.

Breathing techniques are not just a set of attack formulas; they enable one to communicate with the world around them.

What Vio needed to do was not to hide his aura, but to amplify it and spread it to every corner of this sea.

They deliberately let the sea creatures hiding underwater know that there was prey there.

Vio made his aura resemble that of a powerful but worthy prey.

The surrounding rocks began to tremble.

It couldn't possibly be caused by an earthquake or something similar; rather, it was caused by the outflow of the energy within Vio's body.

The air currents swirled around him, forming a visible vortex that drew in the fog from the sea.

His robes were disheveled in the wind.

His hair danced wildly in the wind, but he remained motionless, standing there quietly like a sculpture.

On the other side of the island, old Ballow also suddenly raised his head.

He sensed a terrifying aura emanating from the other side of the island, an aura so powerful that it almost suffocated him.

He had been a sailor for forty years and had seen countless storms, but he had never felt such pressure.

It's as if a powerful beast has awakened on the island, announcing its presence to the entire sea!

"This commotion, could it be... the Earl...?" he murmured, his voice trembling.

Sure enough, unusual activity began to appear on the sea surface.

First, small ripples appeared on the distant sea surface, as if something was swimming rapidly underwater.

Then, the ripples grew larger and denser, and then surged toward the island from all directions!

Beneath the surface, one can vaguely see huge black shadows swimming around. Some are long and narrow like snakes, some are wide and thick like mountains, and some have long trails of shadows as they slowly wriggle in the deep water.

The seabirds were the first to sense the danger.

They were prey for these sea beasts, but they weren't just sitting idly by. They were incredibly fast and had exceptional senses, so they would flee the moment they detected the sea beasts.

The seabirds cried out in alarm as they took flight from the cliff face, their dark plumes obscuring half the sky.

Some flew away into the distance, while others flew higher, circling above the island and emitting mournful cries.

Old Barlow's face was deathly pale. He gripped the edge of the reef tightly, his knuckles turning white.

He also saw huge dorsal fins and dark shadows rising to the surface of the water in front of him, and saw the seawater being churned and the shadows becoming more and more numerous and closer.

"They're here...they're all here..." His voice was almost a groan, and he was too frightened to move.

But soon, the dark shadows beneath the sea passed him and the boat and rushed toward the other side of the island!

Old Ballow simply stared dumbfounded at the departing shadows as they charged toward Vio.

Vio opened his eyes at this moment.

The sight before him made even himself gasp.

The sea surface was already densely covered with all sorts of sea creatures.

The closest one was a group of reef lizards, about seven or eight of varying sizes. The largest one was twice the size of the previous one, and its dark blue scales gleamed coldly in the sunlight.

Some of them lay crouched on the edge of the reef, their vertical pupils fixed on Vio on the reef, emitting low growls.

Some lurked in the sea, peeking out with half a lizard's head to scout the enemy on land.

Behind the group of reef lizards were several even larger armored sharks.

Their appearance resembles a shark magnified countless times.

However, its body is covered with a thicker, iron-gray carapace than that of the Reef Dragon Lizard, and several rows of sharp bone spurs grow on its back.

Their eyes are small, yet they exude a chilling killing intent, and their mouths split open, revealing rows of barbed, sharp teeth.

Further away, several enormous tentacles were rising from the water.

Those tentacles were as thick as buckets, covered with suckers and barbs, and gleamed darkly in the sunlight.

They writhed slowly on the water's surface, as if testing something.

That must be the giant deep-sea squid that old Barlow was talking about.

Vio gripped the Southern Will tightly, his face quickly regaining its composure. He was confident that he could handle this group of enemies.

Or rather, these enemies are exactly what he needs.