After reviewing the information from his Eye of Intelligence, Shi Ming gazed at the Abyss Lord’s severed arm. He had obtained it through a cunning stratagem, using his own body as bait, and now he had a rough idea of how to use it.

First, he would have to use the blood in two separate instances; he couldn’t feed it all to his Right Arm Red Pattern.

He first suspended the Abyss Lord’s severed arm in midair. Without making contact, he extracted about half a small bottle of the energy-rich blood and stored it away.

Then, he cautiously and slowly touched the wound on the severed arm with his right arm.

He could almost feel the red pattern quivering. His entire arm grew hot, burning, and every cell seemed to rejoice in delight, like a young man meeting the love of his life, eager to embrace her in a passionate tide.

HSSS—

The moment his fingers touched the surface of the severed arm, a jolt shot through Shi Ming as if he had been electrocuted, making him almost shudder. The discomfort wasn’t intense, however. A moment later, all the red patterns on his right arm glowed with a rich, blood-red light. The light slowly spread, causing the ends of the pattern to grow. The red markings, which had originally stopped at the end of his arm, visibly began to creep up toward his neck.

WHOOSH—

In a flash, like a sudden jolt, Shi Ming felt a power as vast as the sea being rapidly absorbed by his right arm. It converted the raw, violent energy into a form his body could withstand and slowly transmitted it throughout his system, concentrating in his right arm, eyes, and head.

For that brief instant, his mind felt supercharged, his vision seemed to clear and sharpen, and the strength in his right arm became terrifyingly immense.

The sensation was incredible.

But it only lasted for an instant.

He involuntarily covered his right eye, then slowly opened it.

[Eye of Intelligence has evolved.]

[Eye of the World has been activated.]

[...]

[Your right eye has evolved into the Eye of the World. An eye that overlooks the mortal world.]

[The Eye of the World inherits the abilities of the Eye of Intelligence. It will continue to provide you with one piece of highly relevant information each day, just as before.]

[Additionally, the Eye of the World will passively alert you to noteworthy events and occasionally offer useful hints. In some cases, these suggestions could even turn the tide of battle and help you achieve ultimate victory. However, the frequency of "occasionally" cannot be guaranteed, though it is certainly more frequent than the "occasionally" of the Three-Eyed Golden Crow.]

[The Eye of the World’s power relies on the present. Therefore, it cannot glimpse the future and will not provide you with advice concerning it.]

[Unless you integrate the "Great Prophecy Technique".]

...

Shi Ming blinked.

If he were to look in a mirror right now, he would see that both of his eyes were as bright as a clear spring. His right eye in particular seemed capable of piercing through the mortal world, and it was exceptionally limpid.

’It evolved just like that?’

’I thought the evolution process would be long and painful.’

’I never expected it to be the complete opposite.’

’And it even felt intensely pleasurable?’

A few seconds later, the light in his eyes gradually faded away, returning to normal, though they now seemed a bit deeper.

"Eye of the World, how about a hint?"

"How about you trigger that ’occasionally’ thing?"

"It’s the first time, can’t we have a little ceremony?"

Unfortunately, the "occasionally" trigger was uncontrollable; it didn’t even come with a listed probability.

Shi Ming had no choice but to give up.

’But judging from the prompts, it seems the Eye of the World can evolve again. If I integrate the Three-Eyed Golden Crow’s Great Prophecy Technique, I’ll gain power over the future and receive advice about it?’

’Excellent.’

He coveted the Golden Crow’s blood even more.

But now the Three-Eyed Golden Crow had found a powerful backer. With the Holy Hall-level Sea Beast, the Abyss Lord, guaranteeing its safety, Shi Ming had no way to deal with it for the time being.

He could only wait for an opportunity.

He looked at the Abyss Lord’s severed arm, frozen in midair under the control of his Ice Annihilation Power. The arm had now lost all the energy from its blood. It had withered, losing most of its original vitality and malevolent aura. The oppressive feeling it once radiated was gone, and even the unnamable barbs on its surface were no longer sharp.

Using a sharpened Ice Blade, he slowly carved off 100 grams of the Abyss Lord’s flesh, like slicing a steak from a large cut of beef.

’I might not be able to handle the Abyss Lord, but I can damn well handle you!’

After precisely cutting off 100 grams, he froze the remainder once more and stored it in his system space for later use.

If the great Abyss Lord knew a part of its body was being used and desecrated in such a way, it would surely fly into a rage, perhaps even hunt him down from a thousand miles away.

Unfortunately for it, it had no idea.

With a casual wave of his hand, Shi Ming retrieved a lamp from his system space.

It was the "Extinguished Star Lamp" he had acquired in the Scorpion King’s Pyramid.

Next, he planned to use the Abyss Lord’s Flesh and Blood to upgrade the Extinguished Star Lamp and relight it.

He suspected the lamp could be located by something in the starry sky, and with no way to upgrade it before, he had originally planned to keep it hidden. But now that he had some Holy Hall-level Flesh and Blood, he could finally repair it. Using it for a short time wouldn’t cause any major issues. Letting fear of a potential risk cause him to shelve a great treasure would be a tremendous waste.

[Star Lamp (Extinguished)]

[Level: 9]

[After soaking in the sea for over a decade, its light has finally gone out. The once-powerful lamp of guidance is now lost in eternal darkness.]

[Upgrade Requirement: Holy Hall-level Sea Beast Flesh and Blood x100 grams]

[Upgradeable material detected. Upgrade now?]

’Upgrade!’

In an instant, the 100 grams of the Abyss Lord’s flesh were torn apart, its tough tissues deconstructed into tiny, atomized particles. Controlled by the power of the Brain of Creation, they swirled around the Star Lamp, slowly fusing with it. The process was an upgrade, using the residual power in the flesh to gently nourish and repair the extinguished lamp.

The process was incredibly slow.

Twenty minutes later, a faint glimmer finally sparked to life at the wick.

The remaining one-third of the flesh’s energy from the repair process transformed into lamp oil, solidifying in a shallow pool within the Star Lamp’s reservoir. It became the fuel that would allow this unassuming lamp to once again shine.

[Star Lamp]

[Level: 10]

[An otherworldly object, not on the ranking list of the Endless Sea Region’s wondrous items. But theoretically, if it were included, it would probably rank near the top?]

[This Star Lamp is said to be made from a small piece of core Star Marrow taken from the star Kochab. It can always point the way, allowing the lost to find their way home. However, keeping its starlight lit requires exceptionally precious fuel. It’s a very picky eater!]

[Trait 1: Lodestar]

[Trait 2: Starburn]

[Upgraded to maximum level. Cannot be upgraded further.]

Just like the Formless Pure Ice, the perfected Star Lamp also had two traits.

Trait 1: Lodestar. When the lamp is lit, its bearer will never be lost. The starlight will guide you toward your heart’s destination and show you the way home.

Trait 2: Starburn. The bearer can burn all the power within the lamp oil to replicate the signature skill of the oil’s source, as if the source itself had cast it. The Star Lamp is very particular about its oil; each type can only be burned once. After each use of Starburn, the lamp enters a seven-day rekindling period during which it will be completely extinguished and cannot be relit.

Shi Ming was ecstatic after reading the description.

’So much for Edward!’

’No, wait.’

’How could some roadside hack like Edward even compare to my Star Lamp?’

’Edward’s Naked-Eye Roulette was total garbage. It even compressed his combat power down to A-rank. He used the skills of seven S-rank Sea Beasts against me when I was already battle-worn, and he still got completely annihilated. He brought nothing but shame to the three great S-rank skills: Abyss of Devouring, Tide of Confusion, and Eye of Dream Weaving.’

’If the Deep Sea Leviathan, Tide-Calling Whale, and Sea Jade saw that, they’d probably be angry enough to come back from the dead.’

’But my Star Lamp’s Starburn replicates the signature skills of these Sea Beasts as if they were casting it themselves!’

’Just imagine!’

’The oil in the Star Lamp right now is from the Abyss Lord’s own flesh and blood!’

’If I use Starburn now, I can treat everyone to a personal demonstration of [Extremely Evil Sanctuary] from the Holy Hall-level Sea Beast, the Abyss Lord! If one day I’m pissed off or backed into a corner, I can just "invite" the Abyss Lord to come out and blast everyone to kingdom come!’

’Who the hell does Edward think he is!’

’How could I possibly keep a treasure like this hidden away!’

Of course, such power came with a price. The lamp oil was a bit of a hassle.

Oil from any given Sea Beast could only be used once, and the lamp would be unusable for seven days afterward.

Taking stock of his reserves, Shi Ming now had: the Abyss Lord’s Flesh and Blood; the Deep Sea Leviathan’s Flesh and Blood (a specimen obtained from the Yellowrock); the Netherworld Feathered Serpent’s Flesh and Blood (purchased on the Pharaoh); and three drops of blood gifted by the Nameless Cocoon, the third-ranked unborn Sea Beast. In the prize redemption pool on the Black Gold, there was also one type of S-rank Sea Beast Flesh and Blood available, but the point cost was extremely high—a full eight hundred points—and it couldn’t be bought with Pure Dome Crystals.

All of these could be used as lamp oil.

The only ones with real strategic value at the moment were the materials from the Abyss Lord, the Deep Sea Leviathan, and the Nameless Cocoon.

’As for the Netherworld Feathered Serpent, forget it.’ Its S-rank skill, Nether Snake Feather, was a curse and transformation ability. Just like Black Tortoise Shield and Descent of the Titan, it wasn’t suitable for use with the Star Lamp.

’If I’d known, I would have collected the feathers the Three-Eyed Golden Crow dropped during the lulls in our fight.’

But hindsight was twenty-twenty, and now he had one less skill in his reserves.

The Great Sun Wheel’s destructive power was immense, after all.

As for Sea Beasts below S-rank, they weren’t even worthy of being used as fuel.

Shi Ming put away the Star Lamp with immense satisfaction.

...

...

...

「The Pharaoh」

Ptolemy sat cross-legged on a luxurious carpet beneath the Golden Dome, showing none of the airs of a leader.

Three people sat before him.

A cheerful, handsome young man with blond hair.

A middle-aged man with a scar on his forehead, a stark black Shadow looming behind him.

A girl of about thirteen or fourteen whose expression was exceptionally detached, as if she had stepped right out of a comic book. She wore a delicate feather ornament in her hair.

Ptolemy smiled.

He personally poured a pitcher of mead, filling the cups for his guests who had traveled a long way.

"We have all gathered here for a common purpose—be it for revenge, or for justice."

"That Shi Ming, no matter how capable he is, will not escape the Sea of Yellow Sand."

"A toast!"

"To the friendship between the Lighthouse, the Pharaoh, the Black Society, and the Moon Shadow!"