143: Chapter 143 The Power of the Tides, Leading the Way

Shen Shuang walked over and glanced down at the beast pouch.

"Is it stable?"

Lin Fan nodded.

"It's stable for now. I'll give it proper treatment once we get out."

He paused.

"But it's too weak right now. I need to form a contract with it first, establishing a spiritual energy connection, so I can better help it recover."

Shen Shuang did not object.

"You decide."

Lin Fan looked at the small fish in the beast pouch.

It kept its eyes open, its pale silver pupils watching him. It didn't struggle, nor was it afraid; it just lay quietly in his palm.

Lin Fan bit his index finger and dripped a drop of fresh blood onto the small fish's forehead.

The bead of blood landed on the silvery-white scales and slowly seeped in along the patterns.

The small fish's tail gave a gentle flick.

Lin Fan closed his eyes, his consciousness sinking into his body.

The newly opened armor aperture on his back began to heat up. An invisible force surged from his spine, extended along his Meridians to his right hand, and then sank into the small fish's body from its forehead.

He felt a faint light flickering in the darkness—it was the small fish's life fire, very weak, but not extinguished.

His spiritual energy wrapped around that fire, warming it with his own temperature.

The small fish's spiritual energy began to recover slowly, like a parched riverbed finally receiving its first rain.

Nourished by Lin Fan's spiritual energy, its condition improved slightly; there would be no danger to its life for the time being.

Lin Fan opened his eyes and let out a long breath. The contract was complete.

A faint halo appeared around the small fish; that was the connection established after the contract. Spiritual energy began to flow from Lin Fan's body into the small fish, slow but continuous.

The small fish's wings fluttered slightly, and it flew out of the beast pouch, hovering in mid-air.

It swam in a circle, then returned to Lin Fan's palm, rubbing its head against his finger.

Lin Fan smiled. "From now on, you'll be called Xiao Kun."

Xiao Kun's tail flicked, as if in agreement.

Yu Nian leaned over from the bow of the boat, looking at the palm-sized small fish in Lin Fan's hand.

"You've already formed the contract? Aren't you afraid you won't be able to keep it alive?"

Lin Fan put Xiao Kun back into the beast pouch and patted it.

"I can keep it alive. With me here, it won't die."

After the contract was established, a faint, almost imperceptible connection formed between Lin Fan's consciousness and Xiao Kun.

Lin Fan reached into the beast pouch and gently stroked Xiao Kun's back, focusing his intent on Xiao Kun, attempting to convey a question.

"You stayed in the clam shell for so long before; where did that power of the tide that nourished you come from?"

Xiao Kun's response was very vague, like pulling a single thread from a tangled mess.

Lin Fan perceived some fragments.

Deep blue seawater, dark trenches, the sound of water crashing against rocks, and a mass of ghostly blue light, flickering in the darkness like a beating heart.

That mass of light was huge, much larger than the abdomen of an Abyssal Squid; just being near it, one could feel rich fluctuations of spiritual energy.

Lin Fan opened his eyes, his heart rate accelerating.

"Xiao Kun, do you still remember where that place is?"

Xiao Kun's tail flicked a few times, and clearer fragments arrived in his consciousness—a seafloor Rift Valley, with hot springs deep within the Rift Valley, and the area around the hot springs was covered in glowing coral.

That mass of ghostly blue light was in the deepest part of the coral thicket, like a moon sunken to the bottom of the sea.

In Xiao Kun's memory, there were no directions, no coordinates, only those images.

Lin Fan opened his eyes and looked at Shen Shuang.

"Captain, is there a Rift Valley on the seafloor of this area?"

Shen Shuang was looking at a map and looked up upon hearing this. "How do you know?"

Lin Fan did not answer but continued to ask.

"Are there hot springs deep in the Rift Valley? Is there glowing coral around the hot springs?"

Shen Shuang's brow furrowed.

She stared at Lin Fan for a few seconds, then nodded.

"Yes. That is the deepest part of this sea area; we call it the 'Abyss Eye'."

She paused, opened the map, and drew a circle in a sea area west of the ninth island.

"The location of the Abyss Eye is right here. Our patrol route happens to pass over that sea area."

"I want to go."

Lin Fan made the request seriously.

Shen Shuang looked up at him, silent for a moment.

"Are you sure? The water depth there exceeds five hundred meters, and the water pressure is so great that we must constantly protect our bodies with spiritual energy. Moreover, that is the source of spiritual energy for this sea area; it's very likely there are guardian beasts stronger than the Abyssal Squid."

Lin Fan nodded.

"I'm sure. My goal for this trip is the heart of the tide. Since we've already arrived nearby, there's no reason not to go take a look."

He paused. "Besides, Xiao Kun knows the way; it can lead us to the most accurate location."

Shen Shuang was silent for a long time, then finally nodded.

"Fine."

She glanced at Yu Nian and Xu Tao. "In a moment, Lin Fan and I will go down; you two stay on the boat and keep watch."

Yu Nian opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but in the end, he just nodded.

Immediately, the inflatable boat headed toward the Abyss Eye.

The color of the seawater changed from deep blue to ink black. The waves became smaller and smaller, and the sea surface became calmer and calmer—unbelievably calm.

There was no wind, no waves, only the rustling sound of the boat's bottom gliding across the water.

The air became thick, as if something were pressing down from the sky.

Not long after, Shen Shuang put away the map and stood up.

"We're here. This is it."

The inflatable boat stopped.

Lin Fan stood up and looked into the sea.

The seawater was black, bottomless, like an entrance to another world.

His left eye pierced through the seawater, seeing the outline of the seafloor.

A huge Rift Valley, like an open eye. Dark red light flickered at the edge of the Rift Valley; that was the glow of the hot springs.

Lin Fan reached into the beast pouch and brought out Xiao Kun.

Xiao Kun's wings fluttered slightly, hovering above his palm. Its pale silver pupils stared at the sea surface, its tail flicking rapidly a few times.

It let out a thin, soft hum.

"Xiao Kun, lead the way."

Lin Fan placed Xiao Kun on the sea surface.

Xiao Kun's tail slapped the water surface, and the whole fish transformed into a silvery-white stream of light, diving into the water.

Its wings spread out underwater like two pairs of thin veils, each flutter stirring up ripples in the water.

It swam a circle in the water, then turned back to look at Lin Fan, its tail flicking.

Lin Fan took a deep breath, his spiritual energy surging within him, forming a thin protective barrier on the surface of his body.

He leaped into the water.

The seawater was bone-chillingly cold. The spiritual energy barrier blocked the water pressure, but it couldn't block the cold.

Shen Shuang followed closely behind. She had an ice-type Armor Spirit, making her even more at ease in the water; she slipped into the deep sea silently like a fish.

Yu Nian and Xu Tao remained on the boat, one standing at the bow and the other at the stern, keeping watch on the surroundings.