「Six months later.」

Onboard the Ghostly Flood Dragon, in the Dongning Sea Region.

The brass cannon roared as a Blood Flame Streaming Light shot forth.

It annihilated a school of first-rank demonic beasts on the distant sea, converting them into reserves of living souls for the Soul Abyss Blood Prison.

At the same time, they also became experience points for Su Ye’s panel!

[You have slain a sea demon. Tide Hunter EXP +22]

[You have slain a sea demon. Tide Hunter EXP +16]

[You have slain a sea demon...]

More than ten messages popped up in a row, granting Su Ye over two hundred experience points.

"The ecosystem in the Dongning Sea Region seems to be thriving. First-rank demonic beasts are forming large schools, almost like little colonies..."

Su Ye mused.

He recognized the species of these demon fish.

They were Iron-Bone Fish, a fairly common type of demon fish whose hard skeletons could be used as materials for Artifact Refining.

Normally, however, out of several thousand Iron-Bone Fish, only the Ironbone Fish King would reach the level of a demonic beast.

The rest were merely ordinary fish with a bit of spiritual energy.

And yet, this school of Iron-Bone Fish contained a dozen or so demonic beasts...

’A lone Demon Hunting Ship running into this school of Iron-Bone Fish would probably be destroyed, its crew along with it...’

However, Su Ye quickly pushed these stray thoughts aside.

He calmed himself and looked at his panel, a faint smile touching his lips.

[Profession: Tide Hunter Lv. 9 (4500/4500) +]

Over the past six months, he had relied on the Ghostly Flood Dragon’s mobility to hunt sea demons and kill rogue cultivators across the Dongning Sea Region.

He had finally accumulated enough experience points!

The familiar "+" sign appeared after his profession level.

"All hands, on alert! We’re returning to Donglong Island!"

Su Ye gave the order to return, and his announcement was met with cheers from the crew.

Meanwhile, he returned to the captain’s cabin.

HUM.

His Storage Ring flashed, and array flags emerged to form a first-rank, mid-grade Array providing concealment, aura suppression, and protection.

With Su Ye’s current skill as a first-rank, mid-grade Array Master, it would be difficult for even multiple Late-stage Qi Refining cultivators to break through the array while he controlled it with a sliver of his Divine Sense.

It was a necessary precaution.

He was about to advance to Tide Hunter Lv. 10 and condense the Divine Technique Seed: Soul-Chasing.

Furthermore, the subsequent class change to Pastor of the Sea might create a disturbance!

...

After making all the necessary preparations, Su Ye summoned his panel.

He extended his Divine Sense and gently tapped the "+" sign on the panel.

HUM!

A familiar, cool energy emerged from the void and surged into Su Ye’s body like the river Tianhe reversing its course.

His limbs, bones, Dantian, and meridians grew tougher and more resilient under the nourishment of this cool energy.

"Hm?"

Su Ye’s eyes flickered as he noticed something.

He looked inward with his Divine Sense, observing the bones of his hand. A jade-like luster was spreading across them at a visible rate!

’My jade bones... their transformation is accelerating?’

Ever since he started practicing the Taiqing Cold Jade Skill, through the properties of the Cultivation Technique and the effects of the Cold Jade Elixir, his bones had been slowly transforming into jade.

Once all the bones in his body had completely transformed into jade, he would achieve the ’Ice-Jade Physique,’ an acquired constitution that would improve the quality of his Spiritual Root! 𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂

However, this transformation was a slow process.

In the time since Su Ye had started practicing the Taiqing Cold Jade Skill, nearly a year, he had only managed to transform the bones of his right hand into jade.

According to his own estimates and the records of the Luo Family’s ancestors, it would take over thirty years to fully achieve the Ice-Jade Physique!

And that was assuming a constant supply of Cold Jade Elixirs.

Without them, achieving the Ice-Jade Physique would likely take another ten years or more.

Su Ye understood this.

’Improving one’s Spiritual Root quality is an act of defying nature’s limits, of turning the mundane into the miraculous. It’s understandable that it would take a long time.’

’In any case, I have a long lifespan. Thirty years is nothing.’

But now...

’When my profession level increases, the infusion of cool energy actually promotes the growth of my jade bones?’

As Su Ye observed with his Divine Sense, in the time it took for an incense stick to burn, the jade bone transformation progressed rapidly.

It spread from his palm, and by the time the cool energy faded, the bones of his lower forearm had completely transformed into jade!

By his estimation, this had saved him at least two to three years of cultivation time!

Moreover, an unconcealable look of joy appeared on Su Ye’s face.

’Just as I thought. Every subsequent profession level-up will accelerate the formation of my jade bones...’

The cool energy generated by leveling up his profession could promote the transformation into the Ice-Jade Physique!

’On second thought, it’s not that far-fetched. The cool energy’s ability to improve one’s constitution has been demonstrated before.’

’And while the jade bones are miraculous, from the panel’s perspective, they’re probably just another "ordinary constitution" in need of improvement?’

’It’s very likely.’

’Come to think of it...’

’Could the panel think... my transforming Ice-Jade Physique is just a poorly developed congenital one?’

At this thought, Su Ye couldn’t help but let out a laugh.

...

The accelerated transformation of his Ice-Jade Physique was a pleasant surprise.

Su Ye reined in his thoughts and turned his gaze to the panel, his eyes shining.

[Profession: Tide Hunter Lv. 10 (0/∞)]

[Profession Attribute Bonus: Lethality +33, Protection +13]

Having reached Lv. 10, the Tide Hunter profession had hit its cap!

However, Su Ye had anticipated this and had already obtained the item needed for his next class change.

Therefore, he remained unperturbed, his mind quite calm.

What concerned him more was the transformation of the "Divine Technique Seed"!

Su Ye focused his gaze on the panel.

The three traits of his Whale-Hunting Spear—Piercing, Soul Suppressing, and Fatal Pursuit—had all reached their max level!

The three traits stood in perfect balance, complete and without flaw!

HUM!

A halo of light appeared, and the three traits began to converge on their own.

Finally, they transformed into a diamond-shaped divine seed that hummed with the essence of the Dao and emitted a scarlet glow!

[Divine Technique Seed: Soul-Chasing, Life-Stealing]!

’A divine seed...’

Su Ye stared at the Divine Technique Seed on his panel. It bobbed and spun, emitting a profound, mysterious essence of the Dao!

He could sense that the Whale-Hunting Spear and its three traits still existed and were usable, their presence not affecting the stability of the divine seed.

’Is the only difference that a Divine Technique Seed was derived from them?’

Su Ye’s Divine Sense moved like a finger, gently touching [Soul-Chasing, Life-Stealing].

At the same time, he felt a sense of affinity from it, as if they were connected by blood—or perhaps something even closer.

’This feeling is truly marvelous...’

Su Ye chuckled and infused a stream of Magical Power into the divine seed.

The divine seed pulsed, swiftly devouring the Magical Power and instinctively exuding a feeling of ’longing’!

A Divine Technique Seed was, as the name implies, only a seed. It still needed to be nurtured by Su Ye before it could blossom into a true Lifebound Technique.

"Unfortunately for you," Su Ye said, "you’ll have to go hungry for the next few decades."

Su Ye shrugged.

He only planned to supply it with the bare minimum of power.

After all, nurturing a divine seed was a task for much more powerful cultivators.

If a Foundation Establishment cultivator were to expend large amounts of Magical Power nurturing a divine seed, it would severely hamper their own cultivation progress.

’If I nurture it at a minimal level, without harming my own foundation, I should be able to use the Quasi-Technique, [Soul-Chasing, Life-Stealing], roughly once every ten years?’

Su Ye estimated inwardly, feeling a surge of anticipation.

This Quasi-Technique would be his greatest trump card during the Foundation Establishment Stage!

...

Next, Su Ye took out the Sea Successor Remains.

He had now fulfilled all three conditions for advancing to the Pastor of the Sea class!