An "island" slowly emerged from the center of the lake.

But it wasn’t an island at all. It was a turtle shell, unimaginably huge and covered in moss and aquatic plants!

As it rose, a massive head, like a small mountain, slowly broke the surface of the water.

Its skin was a rocky, grayish-brown, covered in the wrinkles of time. A pair of ancient eyes, like two deep pools, silently stared at Raylo on the shore.

The Eternal Giant Turtle!

"G-Gods..."

Lillian covered her mouth, a gasp catching in her throat.

She could feel the aura emanating from the Giant Beast—an aura as profound and ancient as the earth itself. It was an absolute suppression on a fundamental level of life, making even a genius Mage like her feel utterly powerless.

’This is the new friend my brother was talking about?’

’An Epic Level Magical Beast that’s been alive for who knows how many ages?’

With a slight shake of Raylo’s shoulders, a flash of light appeared, and Moonlight and Coal Ball materialized, one on each shoulder.

When the Eternal Giant Turtle saw Raylo, it lowered its massive head slightly in greeting.

Then, it opened its mouth and spat out a huge, crystal-clear bubble, which floated down gently in front of Raylo.

Raylo patted Lillian’s shoulder reassuringly before stepping into the bubble.

The bubble completely enveloped him, yet there was no sense of suffocation. The sounds of the outside world and the pressure of the lake water were completely blocked out.

The Eternal Giant Turtle’s head sank back into the water. Pulled by a gentle force, the giant bubble drifted slowly toward the center of the lake, finally sinking silently beneath the surface.

ROAR!

The Golden Dragon Sun in the sky let out another draconic cry. Its colossal body, like a golden meteor, plunged headfirst into Amber Lake, sending a tremendous spray of water into the air.

It was diving into the water to protect Raylo.

As a king of the sky and land, Sun’s strength would be limited in the water. However, a Tier Five Golden Dragon, even underwater, was still a presence formidable enough to strike fear into any enemy.

Upon entering the water, a bizarre and vibrant world unfolded before Raylo’s eyes.

Sunlight pierced through the golden lake water, forming swaying pillars of light that illuminated the underwater scenery.

Schools of multicolored fish swam past him, and in the distance, aquatic plants swayed like a forest.

Propelled by the Eternal Giant Turtle’s Magic Power, the bubble housing Raylo moved forward steadily.

Not far from his side, the Golden Dragon Sun’s massive body swam along slowly. 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

Amber Lake was far deeper and vaster than it appeared from the surface.

A huge number of Aquatic Magical Beasts lived here. Raylo even saw one that resembled a giant python, over twenty meters long. The moment it saw the Eternal Giant Turtle’s silhouette, it turned tail and fled in terror, vanishing in an instant.

The Eternal Giant Turtle’s might was the absolute Law in these waters.

Wherever they passed, all beasts submitted. Every Magical Beast fled from a great distance, not daring to come any closer.

They searched the vast lakebed for several hours, passing several clusters of underwater ruins, but none matched the description of the Temple from the intelligence reports.

Raylo sat in the bubble, perfectly patient. He knew that finding a Temple that had been dormant for countless years couldn’t be rushed.

Just as he was thinking he might have to return empty-handed for the day, the Eternal Giant Turtle’s enormous body suddenly came to a halt.

ROAR!

A low growl echoed through the water.

The sound manifested as a visible shockwave, throwing the surrounding water into chaos.

Raylo immediately focused his attention, looking in the direction the giant turtle was staring.

It was a vast area, completely covered by thick silt and aquatic plants, forming a massive mire at the bottom of the lake. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary.

The Eternal Giant Turtle seemed to have confirmed something.

It opened its massive maw, and a tremendous amount of Water Magic Power began to gather.

The next second, a giant whirlpool formed above the mire.

A terrifying suction force erupted, frantically pulling in countless tons of silt, plants, and rocks, churning the lake water into a murky mess.

Raylo sat steadily within his bubble, watching the spectacular scene unfold.

The Golden Dragon Sun also drew closer, standing guard vigilantly at his side.

This crude yet efficient "dredging" operation continued for over ten minutes.

When the whirlpool dissipated and the murky water gradually cleared, the true face of the area was finally revealed to Raylo.

A massive, dilapidated Temple stood silently on the lakebed.

Most of its main structure had collapsed, with only a few huge stone pillars, etched with ancient patterns, barely supporting a ruined dome.

On the Temple walls, one could faintly make out reliefs depicting a young maiden and sacrificial scenes, but most had been eroded by the water and were now blurry and indistinct.

A desolate and ancient aura washed over them.

’Found it!’

Raylo’s heart leaped with joy, and he was about to have the giant turtle move closer.

But his gaze was suddenly riveted by something else next to the Temple.

A massive head lay half-buried in the freshly cleared silt, sleeping peacefully.

It was a ferocious head, its size no less than that of the Eternal Giant Turtle.

Half-buried in the silt, it looked like a jagged, black mountain crag.

The head was long and narrow, covered in bony spikes and Armor Plates. Through the seam of its tightly closed mouth, one could vaguely see ghastly white fangs.

Even in slumber, it exuded a brutal and savage aura that seemed to come from the abyss.

The Abyssal Snake-necked Dragon.

The name flashed through Raylo’s mind instantly.

This was a legendary creature that only existed in ancient texts, renowned for its brutality and greed. It was once an apex predator that had ruled over an ancient ocean.

’How did it end up sleeping here?’

’And right next to the Temple, of all places.’

ROAR!

The Eternal Giant Turtle’s roar sounded again, filled with warning and hostility.

Its act of clearing the silt had undoubtedly disturbed its neighbor’s long slumber.

The tranquility of the lakebed was utterly shattered.

The massive head moved.

Silt cascaded off it, revealing an even longer neck.

A pair of eyes, like two giant red lanterns, snapped open.

Those eyes locked onto the Eternal Giant Turtle, and a terrifying Spiritual Shock swept out like a storm.

The bubble containing Raylo began to shake violently, as if it would shatter at any moment.

His expression darkened. He knew a war between the Giant Beasts was now inevitable.

Both of these Domain Level behemoths were overlords in their own right. Neither would tolerate the other’s presence.

"Sun, get in the Temple and find ’Broken Flow’!"

Without a moment’s hesitation, Raylo gave the order to the Golden Dragon.

’This might be the only chance.’

Moonlight, on his shoulder, understood immediately.

At that moment, Moonlight’s pale golden eyes began to shimmer with a condensed gleam of Magic Power.

Intricate, silver Magic Runes lit up in the water, instantly blanketing Sun’s hundred-meter-long draconic form like a spiderweb.

Following Raylo’s breakthrough, Moonlight had also benefited, its Magic Power growing purer and its control over the Transformation Technique reaching a new level.

It had only been able to shrink Sun down to ten meters before, but now it could compress him to about eight.

Though smaller in size, the Golden Dragon’s Power and might were not diminished in the slightest. In fact, they had become even more condensed.

An eight-meter-long body made it much more agile, allowing it to navigate the narrow Temple ruins with ease.

ROAR!

The Abyssal Snake-necked Dragon moved.

Its hundreds-of-meters-long, python-like body pulled itself completely free from the silt, stirring up a storm of mud.

Its massive head, like a siege ram, smashed viciously toward the Eternal Giant Turtle with overwhelming force!

THUD!

The muffled impact sounded as if it would shatter the entire Amber Lake.

The Eternal Giant Turtle, however, chose the most steadfast response.

It dug its four limbs deep into the lakebed’s rock layer as earthy-yellow Magic Runes lit up one by one across its shell, forming an incomparably thick Magic Shield.

BOOM!

A silent earthquake erupted on the lakebed.

The terrifying shockwave transformed into a circular white wave, spreading wildly in all directions.

Wherever it passed, aquatic plants were instantly shredded, rocks were pulverized into dust, and countless fish were blasted into a bloody mist.

The Golden Dragon Sun seized this golden opportunity. At the very moment the two Giant Beasts collided and the water turned murky, it shot past the side of the Eternal Giant Turtle’s massive body like a bolt of golden Lightning and plunged silently into the dilapidated Temple ruins.

But Raylo, who was rapidly ascending, was a step too slow.

The devastating shockwave had already caught up to him.