A huge sea beast type Danger Beast burst from the water.
Waves surged up around it.
The captain bit down on his cigar, raised his telescope, and shouted, "Hold tight. Big wave coming!"
Before long, the wave rolled in.
The sea heaved violently. The sailing ship was lifted onto the crest, then slammed back down onto the surface. The hull groaned and cracked as though it might fall apart at any moment.
The sound alone made hearts seize.
At last, the wave passed.
The captain let out a breath.
"Another life picked up from the edge. Good thing that thing surfaced far away. Any closer and we would all be swimming."
Caelum remained calm from beginning to end, not even blinking at the danger.
This trip to sea had truly opened his eyes.
They had not even finished the first half of the new route, and this was already the third gigantic super class Danger Beast they had encountered.
He asked with interest, "This is not common, is it?"
"This is cursed!"
After several days together, the captain had realized that Caelum did not seem as dangerous as he had imagined. At least his temper was rather good.
So the captain cursed without restraint.
"Not common? This is unheard of. This is only the first half of the route. Nothing like this has ever happened here before. If it is already like this now, what are we supposed to do in the second half?"
In truth, the captain was beginning to think about turning back.
Something was wrong with the new route.
Caelum, however, had noticed something the super class Danger Beasts shared.
They all seemed to be heading in the same direction.
Was something calling them?
Or attracting them?
Super class Danger Beasts were no less intelligent than humans. Some could even communicate with humans without difficulty. Most of the time, they simply did not want to.
Danger Beasts that were dozens of meters or a hundred meters long could still be handled. Someone with Legion Commander level combat strength would be enough.
The ones several kilometers long were much more terrifying.
A huge body meant unimaginable strength and destructive power.
To deal with that level of Danger Beast, combat strength on Kukured’s level would have to be deployed.
As for things ten to twenty km long, Caelum felt that outside of himself, this world probably had no one capable of killing them.
It was difficult to imagine how strong the muscles and bones needed to support such massive bodies would be.
It made no sense at all.
Then again, Danger Beasts themselves were creatures that made no sense.
Or rather, that lack of sense was one of the rules of the world of Legend of the Empire.
Even humans could break through physical limits and train their bodies to an absurd degree.
Half a month after the ship set out, when a whale as huge as an island swam beneath the sea, the captain finally made up his mind to return.
Super class Danger Beasts were appearing far too often.
If they kept sailing, they would end up sunk sooner or later.
Before they turned back, however, a deep, heavy sound rolled across the sea.
"Woo..."
To the crew, it was only the cry of some Danger Beast, something like a mournful roar.
But under Observation Haki, with its ability to sense thoughts, what Caelum heard was a perfectly clear call for help.
A super class Danger Beast asking for help?
The captain sighed to Caelum.
"I am very sorry, but I am afraid our ship has to return. There are too many Danger Beasts. Continuing forward is far too dangerous."
"Mm."
Caelum did not mind much.
If there was no ship, then he could simply find a Danger Beast instead. It might even be faster.
The moment he answered, his figure vanished.
A sharp rush of wind cut through the air.
Using the recoil of Armament Haki, Caelum stepped through the sky and headed toward the cry of the Danger Beast at extreme speed.
Dozens of kilometers away, an island floated on the sea.
A closer look showed that it was actually a gigantic island turtle.
Thick layers of rock and soil covered the turtle’s shell, forming a thriving ecosystem.
At the center of the turtle island stood a towering tree more than a hundred meters tall.
At the top of that tree grew a fruit, red as an apple.
The island turtle’s body was enormous.
Its shell alone was nearly 30 km across.
It raised a front flipper and slapped the sea, instantly throwing up huge waves to warn the surrounding Danger Beasts.
The waves struck a massive sea beast type Danger Beast, yet failed to shake it in the slightest.
Around the island turtle, both in the sea and in the sky, large numbers of super class Danger Beasts had appeared.
"Woo..."
The island turtle released a warning cry that sounded almost like grief.
The surrounding super class Danger Beasts stared at it hungrily, without the slightest fear. Instead, they looked ready to move at any moment.
Top tier super class Danger Beasts lived for extremely long periods, often beginning at a thousand years.
Island turtles stood near the peak even among them.
This one had been living in the sea since before the ancient kingdom was founded.
Now it was about to lay eggs and would soon enter a period of weakness.
The top tier super class Danger Beasts that sensed this began to covet it.
They wanted to tear it apart and devour its flesh and blood, using the island turtle’s body to increase their own strength.
That was exactly why super class Danger Beasts had been appearing so frequently in the first half of the new route lately.
This situation had already lasted for more than half a month.
With the super class Danger Beasts watching from all sides and its egg laying period close at hand, the island turtle had grown anxious.
At that moment, Caelum crossed the air and landed on the island turtle’s head.
Even though it was only a head, Caelum standing there was like a grain of sand falling onto a beach.
"Woo..."
"Roar!"
The cries of the super class Danger Beasts rose together, mixing with the island turtle’s mournful call.
Caelum used Observation Haki to sense their thoughts.
"Egg laying period..."
"Eat it..."
"Help me..."
"Human who does not know death..."
Soon, Caelum understood the general situation.
The island turtle wanted to lay its eggs safely.
The super class Danger Beasts wanted to eat it while it was weak.
Because of that, it had no choice but to call for help here.
Sensing Caelum’s arrival, an ancient and heavy voice sounded directly inside his mind.
The island turtle could not speak, but it could communicate with humans through thoughts.
This was Caelum’s first time communicating with a super class Danger Beast, and he found it rather novel.
Under the hungry stares of countless colossal creatures, he seemed not to care at all.
"Human, help me!"
"Help you?"
Caelum answered the island turtle with a question.
"Give me a reason."
He needed a Danger Beast to carry him across the sea.
The island turtle was indeed a very good choice, but it was not the only one available.
Caelum had always been too lazy to bother with anything that offered no benefit.
The strong survived. The weak were eaten.
Without another reason, he had no real interest in interfering.
The island turtle immediately made a promise, its tone sincere.
"If you can help me drive away these super class Danger Beasts, I will help you increase your strength. I will make you more than ten times stronger than you are now."
The offer was attractive enough.
Caelum had no reason to refuse.
Black and red lightning erupted.
Caelum released his Conqueror Haki at twentyfold intensity without restraint.
Like a god descending among mortals, he drew Cloudrend from his waist.
"I accept that condition."
"If you cannot do it, I will cut you down before you lay your eggs."