Goblin Dependency

"Thousand Pile Island" Stodd, at the core of the island.

Buzz—

With the complete conclusion of the Secret Realm ritual, the barrier that once enveloped the sky over the island shattered, and the azure beam of light that pierced into the sky rapidly contracted into nothingness.

"Thud."

A heavy figure cloaked fell from mid-air, crashing hard onto the ground.

With a physique near Transcendent, such a height should not have caused any harm, yet an unprecedented sense of weakness swept through his body, causing him to whimper in pain upon landing.

Not being pure-blooded Dragon Descendant, his body retained distinct human features in various aspects.

Just as if he had just undergone a vigorous exercise, "Algae Scale" Dodd panted heavily, his arms trembling as he propped himself up, sitting on the cold ground.

Beneath the dense platinum scales, those amber vertical pupils gazed at the small pavilion woven from Water Iron Wood in front, his face, already pale and bloodless, appeared even more powerless and weak under the dimming azure runes in the pavilion that started extinguishing as the ritual ended.

"Failed..."

He had prepared for years, pouring an immense amount of time and effort, investing almost all of his life’s savings, even at the cost of alienating most of the Southern Islands’ forces, all to perform the ascension ritual...

At this moment, it completely turned to nothing.

If he had never seen the hope of success, perhaps he would feel a bit better in his current situation.

But just when the ritual was about to succeed, with only a few adventurers left in the entire Secret Realm...

It’s difficult to describe Dodd’s feelings at this moment.

Anger, regret, confusion... these emotions filled his entire being, almost bursting his physical body.

His facial expression, therefore, seemed like a puppet—paralyzed and void.

His mental consciousness was swallowed by emotions, his mind blank.

He sat utterly still for almost ten minutes before he slightly gathered himself, taking a deep breath as his chest heaved violently, and awkwardly got to his feet.

After all, he was a Senior Adventurer who had roamed the seas for many years. Facing a "Waterloo" moment that could be called a turn in his life’s journey, "Algae Scale" Dodd, though his spirit and morale took a severe hit, did not completely lose his fighting spirit nor resign himself to idleness.

The long tail behind him languidly swung, shedding a few leaves stuck to the flesh scales.

Dodd forced himself to gather his spirits, carefully thinking about his situation.

According to the original plan, he cooperated with the Sha Hua Fishmen, who provided the deep sea resonating stones needed for the ritual. In return, he would let them slaughter the weakened adventurers in the Secret Realm as sacrifices.

Even if the adventurers, dragged into the Secret Realm and used as stepping stones, held grudges against him, the Fishmen would kill most of them first. Then, by capturing some as examples after his Transcendence or eliminating all of them to prevent future troubles, the impact of this event would be minimized.

However, the situation now was different.

Originally the crucial part, his Transcendent ritual had completely failed. Thus, without the identity of a "Transcendent," all privileges granted to the strong were no longer available.

It is foreseeable that in the not-too-distant future, his behavior of colluding with a Mysterious Race and betraying his kin would severely damage his reputation in the Southern Islands.

Even among pirate and fugitive underground forces, his reputation would be in tatters.

If he wanted to continue operating in the Southern Islands... at the very least, until he ascends through other means, he would face immense resistance.

This is the scenario Dodd could foresee, one that is bound to happen in the future.

As for what he should do in the future, though he disliked admitting it, he indeed had considered the worst-case scenario of failure before performing the ritual, leaving a retreat path for himself.

First of all, the first thing he must do after escaping from the Secret Realm.

—Run.

Hmm... perhaps that term sounds too disgraceful, "retreat" might be more dignified.

Currently, Dodd, not only due to the beast he possessed in the Secret Realm being slain, leaving his main body weakened but also because the failure of the ritual—which centered on him—further weakened him in all aspects.

In such conditions, while he might still hold a considerable combat advantage over ordinary adventurers, facing nearly a hundred senior adventurers and their teammates on the island was clearly unrealistic.

The wisest choice was to leave the battlefield to the Sha Hua Fishmen coming ashore for sacrifices while he took advantage of the chaos on the island to urgently retreat and seek another opportunity for Transcendence in the future.

For this, Dodd had, many days prior, arranged for backup crew and ships along a hidden coastline at the island’s edge as a contingency.

Now, it was just the right time to utilize them.

As for how many adventurers would survive the Fishman’s massacre?

Dodd didn’t care at all, he even hoped the Fishmen would kill more, preferably slaughtering all the civilians on Stodd Island as well.

This way, with no one to leak information, perhaps his notorious name might spread slightly slower, and he would have fewer enemies.

Thinking so, he slightly oriented himself through the woods.

With intense resentment, "Algae Scale" Dodd cast one last glance toward the location of the ritual array.

He reached up to his neck, felt through his cloak, and confirmed that the peculiar metal ring pendant was still there.

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