137: Chapter 137 The Bottom Lane of Heart of the Tide

Before Zhao Guoliang could finish speaking, the Silver-Armored Dragon Lizard in the incubation pod suddenly moved.

Its body tensed abruptly, and a blinding golden-brown light erupted from the newly healed wound on its back.

The light grew brighter and more intense.

The Silver-Armored Dragon Lizard raised its head and let out a deafening Dragon roar.

Fine cracks appeared on the glass wall of the incubation pod, and nutrient solution seeped out from the fissures, pooling on the floor.

"Step back!"

President Ye Wenyuan grabbed Lin Fan and pulled him back.

Zhao Guoliang stood in front of the incubation pod, his hands pressed against the glass wall, watching the Silver-Armored Dragon Lizard inside with reddened eyes.

The light lasted for about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, then gradually subsided.

The glass wall of the incubation pod shattered with a roar, and the nutrient solution poured out.

The Silver-Armored Dragon Lizard... no, it should be called a Golden-Armored Earth Dragon now.

It stood up from the shattered incubation pod.

Its size was a full circle larger than before, its limbs were as thick as stone pillars, and its claws were deeply embedded into the floor tiles.

The scales on its back had changed from snow-white to golden-brown, and a short, thick golden horn had grown on its forehead.

Its eyes opened; the pupils were golden-brown, no longer the dull gray from before, but like two burning stars.

It lowered its head, rubbed its head against Zhao Guoliang's chest, and let out a low whimper.

Lin Fan's left eye heated up slightly, and information appeared in his field of vision.

[Race]: Golden-Armored Earth Dragon

[Rank]: Level 68

[Aptitude]: Saint Spirit Low-Grade (Upper Limit: Saint Spirit High-Grade)

[Attribute]: Earth/Metal

[Status]: Healthy, Evolution Successful, Rejection Reaction Eliminated

[Evaluation]: Evolution completed after the Silver-Armored Dragon Lizard absorbed the Golden-Armored Tyrannosaurus spine. Broken and then rebuilt, its defense and attack power have greatly increased.

Zhao Guoliang reached out to embrace its head, his palms gently stroking those golden-brown scales.

His shoulders trembled slightly, but he did not make a sound.

Standing behind, Lin Fan watched this scene and suddenly felt his nose tingle.

He turned his head to look at President Ye Wenyuan, who was watching the Golden-Armored Earth Dragon with a hint of a smile on his lips.

Not long after, Zhao Guoliang released the Golden-Armored Earth Dragon and turned to look at the officer standing at the door.

"Go, bring those two boxes here."

The officer was stunned for a moment, and Zhao Guoliang glared at him.

"What are you standing there for? Go!" The officer turned and ran.

In less than the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, the officer ran back, panting, holding two palm-sized jade boxes in his hands.

Zhao Guoliang took them and handed them to Lin Fan himself. "Open them and take a look."

Lin Fan took the jade boxes and opened them.

In the first box lay a dark gray stone, the size of a fist, with fine cracks on its surface, and moonlight faintly flowing between the cracks—moon-erosion stone.

In the second box was a small bottle of silvery-white gravel, as fine as dust, shimmering with starlight under the light—star-fall sand.

His left eye heated up slightly, and information appeared... Excellent quality.

He closed the jade boxes and carefully put them into his backpack. "General, thank you."

Zhao Guoliang waved his hand.

"I'm the one who should be thanking you. If it weren't for you, it would have been ruined for life."

He patted the neck of the Golden-Armored Earth Dragon, and the giant beast lowered its head, rubbing its head against his shoulder.

"Kid, how old are you this year?"

Lin Fan was stunned for a moment. "Seventeen."

Zhao Guoliang nodded. "Seventeen years old and having this ability is not simple. President Ye has taken in a good disciple."

He looked at President Ye Wenyuan, whose lips curled up slightly; for once, he did not show false modesty.

Zhao Guoliang withdrew his gaze and looked at Lin Fan again.

"What else are you missing? You came this time to gather evolution Materials, right? moon-erosion stone, star-fall sand, what else do you need?"

Lin Fan answered truthfully. "heart of the tide."

Zhao Guoliang was silent for a moment, then said something that made Lin Fan's heart race.

"I know where the heart of the tide is."

Lin Fan's eyes lit up instantly. President Ye Wenyuan also looked over, his brows slightly furrowed.

Zhao Guoliang walked to the experiment table, took out a yellowed map from a drawer, and spread it out on the table.

The map marked the distribution of Secret Realms around Dongyun City, with different colors indicating their Rank—green for Elementary, blue for Intermediate, red for Advanced, and black for Special.

"Things like the heart of the tide only form in marine environments. And the ocean is the most dangerous environment at any time. Especially in this era where Armor Beasts run rampant, the Armor Beasts in the deep sea are more ferocious and troublesome than those on land."

He pointed to several red and black marked areas on the map.

"Within the scope of Dongyun City, there are only three Secret Realms with deep-sea terrain. Two Advanced Secret Realms and one Special Secret Realm."

Lin Fan leaned in, looking at the markings on the map.

Zhao Guoliang's finger first landed on the black marking.

"The Special Secret Realm—Abyssal Trench. Don't even think about this one. Even if you have the guts to go, you won't have the life to come out. The Armor Beasts in the Special Secret Realm are at least Armor Sovereign Rank; any one of them could crush you into dust."

His finger moved toward the two red markings.

"The Advanced Secret Realms—Tidal Abyss and Blue Wave Rift Valley. These two are worth trying, but they are currently in a semi-developed state."

Lin Fan frowned. "Semi-developed?"

President Ye Wenyuan took over the conversation.

"Semi-developed means that the military has a general grasp of the Secret Realm, but has not yet fully mastered it, and there are still potential hidden dangers. For example, unknown Armor Beast nests, unexplored dangerous areas, and unstable spatial nodes."

He paused. "Therefore, these two Secret Realms are not yet open to the public."

Lin Fan's face fell. "Then how can I get in?"

Zhao Guoliang looked at him.

"Through normal channels, you can't get in. But through extraordinary channels, we can find a way."

Lin Fan's eyes lit up. "What way?"

Zhao Guoliang pointed again at the location of the Tidal Abyss on the map.

"Three days from now, the military will organize an exploration operation for the Tidal Abyss. I can arrange for you to join one of the squads and enter with the military."

Lin Fan was happy, but then hesitated. He opened his mouth, wanting to speak but stopping himself.

Zhao Guoliang noticed his expression and raised an eyebrow. "What's wrong?"

Lin Fan scratched his head.

"General, if you squeeze me into the military's exploration team, wouldn't that count as abuse of power? I'm just an ordinary citizen; how could I be qualified to enter a semi-developed Secret Realm with the military?"

He paused. "Besides, you've already given me the moon-erosion stone and star-fall sand; that's already a huge favor. If I ask for more of your help, I'm afraid I won't be able to repay it in the future."

Zhao Guoliang was stunned for a moment, then burst into laughter.

He patted Lin Fan's shoulder.

"Kid, you're overthinking it."

He put away his smile and said seriously.

"There are millions of Secret Realms in the world. If we relied solely on the military to explore them, we wouldn't have enough manpower. That's why the military has always had a policy... to hire external Beast Armor Masters to participate in exploration in the form of paid recruitment."

"As long as you have enough strength and a good reputation, you can sign up. You just need someone to vouch for you."

He pointed to himself. "If I vouch for you, it doesn't count as abuse of power."

Lin Fan suddenly realized.

"So that's it. Then does that mean I'm an external hire?"

Zhao Guoliang nodded.

"Yes, an external hire. The kind with compensation. You go in to find the heart of the tide, and by the way, help the military do some work; both things can be done without delay."

He paused.

"But I'll say this first: external personnel do not have military equipment support; everything depends on yourself. There is no pension if you die. Furthermore, you must strictly obey the orders of the leading officer and not act on your own initiative."

Upon hearing this, Lin Fan looked at President Ye Wenyuan.