Since he was awake, Shi Ming didn’t go back to sleep.

He sorted through his spoils of war, looking over the treasures he had acquired from Miss Yan and Iwami.

The Dinglan Pearl, a treasure ranked 109th on the List of Marvels.

Its rank was just a few places behind the Map of the Endless Sea. Everyone who had used this treasure, which allowed one to ignore the crushing pressure of the deep sea, had nothing but praise for it! With it, one’s combat power would no longer be restricted by the environment when fighting sea beasts in the deep, allowing them to unleash their full strength!

The Taunt Stone, ranked 176th on the List of Marvels.

It was a stone that looked like a mirror. A person reflected by this marvel would emit an aura that sea beasts despised, attracting their priority attacks for a short period.

Heh, the Black Society had really been specializing in delivering treasure for thirty years.

My lucky star!

These two items were both natural marvels and couldn’t be upgraded with the Eye of Creation, so naturally, no information could be gleaned from them.

The only way was to damage them. Then, the Eye of Creation would think they could be repaired through an upgrade, allowing him to glitch out their information, similar to a bug exploit. It was just like with the "Unformed Formless Pure Ice." However, damaging a treasure just for information was a complete waste and not worth it. 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

He could also figure out their specific uses by experimenting with them over time.

He put the two treasures away.

Then, he took out their two "Hives."

Hives were storage devices made from the nests of Sub-aquatic Spatial Worms, but they were far less convenient than the system’s space.

’Let’s see what’s in here.’

’Sea Crystal Stones, Dome Crystals... clothes, weapons, documents...’

’Miss Yan’s collection is just too extensive!’

Shi Ming sifted through everything, moving all valuable materials into his system’s space and leaving the items he confirmed to be worthless in their original Hives.

’A "Compendium of Marvels in the Endless Sea Region? Volume Two"?’

’An "S-Rank Sea Beast Ranking"?’

’As expected of an S-rank Awakened affiliated with the *Shenqu* and backed by Lighthouse. She had some good intel!’

Shi Ming had heard of the "Compendium of Marvels in the Endless Sea Region" before and was very interested. He just never had the chance to read a genuine copy. It was said that on the black market, even a copy of dubious authenticity could sell for several Pure Dome Crystals. An original, authentic copy from the Xirang Research Institute cost as much as 500 Pure Dome Crystals!

This was great. It saved him a lot of money.

Shi Ming read through the document and saw brief introductions for the Map of the Endless Sea and the Calm Sea Pearl.

The other document, the "S-Rank Sea Beast Ranking," had a few more entries than the "Sea Beast Ranking" Shi Ming had seen on the *Huangshi* ship.

[78. Whale Fall—White Dragon Whale]

[89. Red Lotus Prison—Red Marrow Bone Dragon]

[91. Flame Demon’s Kiss—Flame Demon Serpent]

And at the very bottom of the report, there was a line of information marked in red.

[Holy Hall 004, Immortal Evil Eye—???]

[Holy Hall 007, Great Black Heaven Dragon—???]

Immortal Evil Eye?

Great Black Heaven Dragon?

Seeing the words "Great Black Heaven Dragon," Shi Ming knew that the information the Black Society thought was a well-kept secret had already been discovered by Lighthouse.

It was no wonder.

How could a mere Admiral-class Wandering Ship possibly withstand infiltration from Lighthouse?

Not to mention, there were disruptive elements like Nailu Ye constantly on the move...

Lighthouse had just been keeping the information secret, probably because they weren’t confident yet. Not that they weren’t confident in dealing with the Black Society, but that they weren’t confident in dealing with the Great Black Heaven Dragon.

At present, humanity’s understanding of beings that surpassed S-rank sea beasts was far too limited!

As he flipped through the intelligence reports, the sky in the east unknowingly began to brighten.

Shi Ming put away the documents, walked out of the captain’s cabin, and went onto the deck.

"Captain, what’s our next course?"

"Return to Twelve Stars."

The Deep Sea Titan was dead. That was an undeniable fact.

Whether it was the testimony of Wright and his group or the subtle evidence at the battle site, this point could be clearly established.

Lighthouse and Twelve Stars would inevitably have to "compare notes." At that time, Wright’s side would learn that Miss Yan was dead, and Lighthouse’s side would learn that Wright’s group had suffered heavy casualties and gained nothing, with the prize surely snatched by someone else.

In everyone’s eyes, Shi Ming had been turned to ash by lightning. It would be fine if he remained hidden, but if he were to reappear, "back from the dead," he would surely become the prime suspect.

And if he were to use Descent of the Titan again...

Then, without any evidence, he could be directly labeled as the "murderer" who killed Miss Yan.

It was an S-rank skill. Now that Shi Ming had it, it was impossible for him not to use it.

Sea beasts were always killed by those who had the ability. Miss Yan had used every trick and scheme in the book, calculated everything, yet failed and died. In the end, it was because her own strength was insufficient; no one else was to blame. But given Lighthouse’s domineering nature, they wouldn’t care about any of that. Once they learned Shi Ming was the killer, they would definitely seek revenge.

Shi Ming wasn’t afraid of revenge.

He was never one to hold back for fear of collateral damage.

’So what if Lighthouse is strong? Its King-level Wandering Ship is difficult to move. At most, they can only dispatch their Admiral-class Ships to hunt me down!’

’Why can’t I use a skill I obtained with my own abilities? If they push me, not only will I use it, I’ll use it to slap them hard in the face!’

’Bring it on!’

’Guerrilla warfare? Who’s afraid of whom?’

He also had a plan he’d been formulating for a long time for this return to Twelve Stars.

Previously, when Demon Sword and Edward failed to kill him and were killed instead, the Black Society and Lighthouse had joined forces to post a bounty as high as 2,000 Pure Dome Crystals, which had long made Shi Ming’s mouth water. Now that making a mortal enemy of Lighthouse was a foregone conclusion, he might as well cash in before his identity was exposed.

Even if he couldn’t earn the full 2,000 Pure Dome Crystals, getting even a part of it would be awesome.

’Let’s do it!’

He stood at the bow, watching the *Dayun* cut through the wind and waves. His heart surged with excitement as plans began to form in his mind, one after another...

Now that he possessed a true combat-type S-rank skill, he could let loose and do many things.

...

...

...

「Twelve Stars.」

It was already past ten in the morning.

"Hoo~"

"So refreshing!"

Reinhardt, the captain of the *Chuiyan*, a notorious playboy from the European Sea Region, had made a long-awaited return to Twelve Stars. He had spent a tender and passionate night, followed by an all-out morning, at the Little Milk Cow Bar, not finishing until past ten.

Occasionally, he liked to try different flavors.

A smoke after the fact—better than being an immortal.

Reinhardt lay on a velvet-like sofa bed, receiving a massage from an attendant.

"Captain."

His assistant walked in.

Reinhardt waved his hand, and the massaging attendant left, proactively closing the door behind her.

"So, what’s the latest news in Twelve Stars?"

No matter where he was, Reinhardt was always keen on keeping up with major events in this sea region. As a merchant, he knew full well that a lot of information that could lead to a fortune was hidden in inconspicuous details. If he could seize it, he could earn unimaginable wealth.

"Captain, here is today’s intelligence and news."

"First, Wright of the Albert Clan returned in defeat from an attempt to kill an A-rank sea beast. His seven-person team returned with only four, suffering heavy losses. The upper echelons of Twelve Stars have expressed their concern."

"Oh?"

The very first piece of news was one he was extremely interested in!

"Hahahaha! What an idiot! An A-rank sea beast, and three out of seven died? Oh, Wright, Wright, to think you’d see a day like this!"

Reinhardt sat up gleefully on the sofa bed, pulling up a velvet-like blanket to cover himself.

"Second, the King-level Wandering Ship Lighthouse will dispatch its subordinate Admiral-class Wandering Ship, the *Shenqu*, to Twelve Stars for discussions. This is a rare and important diplomatic event in the Wandering Era, marking..."

"Interesting."

"Third, according to rumors, an important figure from the Admiral-class Wandering Ship Black Society, Iwami, was killed by a member of the Wright Squad. The Black Society has condemned this and will be sending a diplomat to Twelve Stars to investigate."

"Oh?"

"What a coincidence. Don’t tell me the Black Society and Lighthouse are coming for the same reason?"

"Check if there are any Americans in Wright’s team."

"Fourth."

The assistant lowered his voice.

"An informant from the *Chuiyan* reported that this morning, in the waters near Twelve Stars, a Silver-level Wandering Ship was spotted. It’s suspected to be the one from Lighthouse’s 2,000 Pure Dome Crystal high-value bounty. Its appearance is roughly similar, and its crew members all have Eastern features."

Reinhardt shot to his feet, not even bothering to catch the downy blanket as it fell from his body.

He snatched the report directly from his assistant’s hands.