Endless Ocean: Survival Begins with a Dugout Canoe-Chapter 107 - 104: A Big Score
The next day, after several excruciating hours of waiting, there was still no sign of another sea beast attack.
Shi Ming was rather disappointed.
’Wasn’t this Eye of Extreme Cold supposed to attract sea beasts? Did killing just one A-rank beast scare all the others away? Could the Glacier Dragon’s aura have been too powerful, frightening off the lower-ranked sea beasts?’
’Even the extraction rate for Ice Jade Marrow is incredibly slow! For a Crystal Stone whose value is comparable to a Pure Dome Crystal, the drop rate is just too low!’
An entire night passed, and only one more had dropped!
’Sigh...’
’If this is how it’s going to be, maybe I should consider a temporary retreat and sell this Glacier Dragon?’
Fortunately, the cold aura from the Glacier Dragon’s corpse was contained within it, so its surface temperature was no longer prohibitively low. The few D-rank Awakened on the ship could just about tolerate the temperature of its scales as they used sturdy steel chains to haul it onto the deck of the *Great Fortune*!
The solid glacier it had formed had also mostly melted.
Shi Ming gazed into the depths below, his eyes profound.
This particular marine phenomenon was known as the "Eye of Extreme Cold."
The unique thing about the Eye of Extreme Cold was its temperature structure, which was the inverse of a typical Ice Sea. The temperature dropped the closer one got to the seafloor. However, because it was usually accompanied by a high concentration of Sea Crystal Stone energy, the water wouldn’t freeze no matter how low the temperature fell.
According to the data from the *Huangshi*, this unique marine phenomenon only occurred in the inner seas of the Endless Ice Sea and had never been recorded outside the zero-degree sea line.
For one to appear here in the European Sea Region was very strange indeed.
He had tried to investigate with his Eye of Intelligence that morning, but unfortunately, it hadn’t provided any relevant information, only offering Shi Ming a few special uses for the Glacier Dragon’s scales.
Therefore, he decided to seize the opportunity. With no sea beasts daring to approach and his crew busy hauling the Glacier Dragon’s corpse, he would head underwater to investigate. The area below was currently devoid of sea beasts; he had already lured up and killed any that were there yesterday.
It was the perfect opportunity to explore.
Even if he ran into unexpected trouble, his General-rank Drifting Ship’s "General Trait," [Super Overload], would allow him to make a swift escape in deep-sea diving mode, turning peril into safety.
And that was to say nothing of the new A-rank skill he had just acquired.
"Stay put. I’m going under the ice to investigate!"
...
WHOOSH.
The *Shooting Sun* activated its diving mode. The air shield reformed, and the vessel began its descent.
The glacier created by the Glacier Dragon had mostly melted, and the water temperature was returning to normal, though it still hovered around zero degrees Celsius. To Shi Ming, this was merely a refreshing coolness. After all, the Glacier Dragon’s breath could drop as low as negative fifty degrees, and he had been able to withstand that for several minutes.
Now, having bathed in its blood, his resistance to cold was even greater.
’A walk in the park.’
But the deeper he descended, the more Shi Ming felt that something was amiss.
The seawater temperature was dropping precipitously.
It was falling far more rapidly than any records on the Eye of Extreme Cold had described.
The water of the Endless Ocean contained Sea Crystal Stone energy, giving it a theoretical freezing point of around negative thirty degrees Celsius.
The A-rank Glacier Dragon’s Ice Annihilation ability produced temperatures even lower than that, which was how it could create glaciers on the ocean’s surface.
Depending on the concentration of Crystal Stones within the water, it could remain liquid at temperatures as low as negative fifty degrees. This was precisely why the Endless Ice Sea in the Extreme North, despite its frigid temperatures, rarely formed large glaciers, allowing Drifting Ships to navigate its waters.
By the time Shi Ming’s *Shooting Sun* reached a depth of 3,000 meters, the temperature outside the cabin was already approaching negative thirty degrees.
At 4,000 meters, the temperature of the seawater outside had dropped to nearly negative fifty degrees.
This had already surpassed the lowest temperature recorded for an Eye of Extreme Cold.
’Is there some kind of anomaly on the seabed?’
Fortunately, this part of the ocean wasn’t excessively deep, bottoming out at just over 4,000 meters. Even in the dim, lightless Ice Sea, Shi Ming’s eyes could clearly make out the anomalies on the seafloor.
He could tell that this had once been an ordinary stretch of ocean. The remains of flora and fauna, such as coral, were much the same as in other regions and showed no polar characteristics. Instead, he could see the carcasses of creatures that had died from the sudden change in temperature.
Even through the air shield, Shi Ming felt a genuine chill. Despite his powerful physique and having bathed in the Glacier Dragon’s blood, he still felt a bit of discomfort.
"The *Shooting Sun’s* energy consumption is soaring. Maximum exploration time remaining: 10 minutes."
The *Shooting Sun* cruised along the bottom.
Shi Ming’s eyes scanned their surroundings intently, missing no detail.
Suddenly, he felt the temperature plummet again. The abrupt cold was so intense it made his skin tighten.
’Hm?’
’Something this strange can’t be natural.’
He scanned the area carefully and finally, half-buried in the pitch-black seabed, he discovered a blue, spherical object shimmering with a faint, almost imperceptible light.
’What is that?’
Out of habit, Shi Ming activated his Brain of Creation to scan it.
Most natural objects couldn’t be upgraded and were therefore unscannable. But Shi Ming had developed a habit: when in doubt, scan it first. It didn’t cost any Physical Strength, and you never knew when it might yield a surprising result. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢
BEEP!
To his surprise, a prompt materialized before his eyes.
[Unformed "Formless Pure Ice."]
[Level: 9]
[This should have been "Formless Pure Ice," ranked 48th on the List of Endless Ocean Marvels. Buried within polar ley lines for a millennium, it was dislodged by the movement of continental plates, losing its final chance to fully form.]
[Upgrade Requirement: Pure Dome Crystal x1000]
’Huh?’
’Level 9!’
’Ranked 48th on the List of Endless Ocean Marvels!’
Shi Ming immediately latched onto the key phrases.
’This seems to be... an incredible treasure?’
’No wonder an Eye of Extreme Cold appeared here in the European Sea Region, so far from the poles. It was because this ice-attribute treasure was dislodged by tectonic activity, affecting the temperature of the surrounding sea.’
’Since fate has brought me here, it would be a crime against nature to leave it behind!’
’But its temperature seems extremely low. If I try to grab it recklessly, I’ll probably get severe frostbite!’
’Maybe I can use this General-rank Drifting Ship?’
Shi Ming skillfully maneuvered the *Shooting Sun*, probing the edge of the seabed. Finally, with a deft spin and flick of the ship’s prow, he pried the "Formless Pure Ice" from the rock-hard frozen seafloor. With a CLINK, the irregular spherical crystal tumbled into the ship’s cabin.
CHATTER CHATTER CHATTER...
Even with his immense cold resistance, Shi Ming couldn’t help but shudder.
He adapted quickly, though.
With the treasure secured, Shi Ming didn’t linger. He piloted the *Shooting Sun* and began a rapid ascent.
...
SPLASH—
The *Shooting Sun* burst from the surface, trailing a spray of half-formed icicles!
His coordinates had drifted slightly during the ascent; the *Great Fortune* was now waiting a full nautical mile away.
Just as Shi Ming was about to head over to rendezvous, he heard a strange CRACKLING and CRUNCHING sound. In a radius of several hundred meters around the *Shooting Sun*, the seawater began to freeze at an incredible speed. The once-azure ocean flash-froze, solidifying into a vast, white sheet of ice.
At the same time, Shi Ming seemed to hear the roar of a sea beast.
The sound seemed to come from a great distance, yet also felt chillingly close.
"What is...?"
A sense of foreboding washed over Shi Ming. He quickly retrieved the Map of the Endless Sea from his system inventory and poured his S-rank Awakening Power into it.
