Chapter 3048 - 61: Inevitability Pieced Together by Coincidence

Chapter 3048: Chapter 61: Inevitability Pieced Together by Coincidence

After the Sea Demon King was promoted to Ancient One, his situation became somewhat sensitive.

He originated from demons and took an almost ’opportunistic’ path to advance to Ancient One, which meant he was not on the same path as Abraham or Panda, who followed the traditional way.

During his advancement, he further defied the world by devouring another legendary Cthulhu from the Starry Sky, which was a great offense to Nicolas, Yog, and Nya’s Child, the three rulers of the Starry Sky.

Moreover, his appearance disrupted the Demon Ancestor’s plans, violating taboos among demons.

Thus, from the beginning, he was destined to be a solitary figure—caught between conflicts among other Ancient Ones, but fortunately, he received some protection from earlier mentors, allowing him to gradually stabilize his position—this description perhaps captures the essence of certain truths within the demonic path, as he soared from a junior among legends to the apex of the food chain as a Great Demon, through sharp and lucky maneuvers.

However, he gained great freedom and autonomy.

The Big Sea Monster under his command could not shake off the shackles of bloodline.

Demons controlled by the Demon Ancestor over both body and soul naturally chose their position, and the advancement of the Sea Demon King granted these Big Sea Monsters a special status, subtly higher than other Great Demons.

At the very least, no legendary demon dared to risk angering the Sea Demon King by taking his abandoned position: the loyalty of Sea Demons to the Demon Ancestor was one matter, but asking them to be loyal to a mysterious outsider Sea Demon King was another.

This meant the new Sea Demon King must and can only emerge from the existing Big Sea Monsters.

So after the Battle of the Black Prison, the entire Sea Demon community fell into a strange and uniquely balanced state.

The original four Big Sea Monsters—of course, this title would likely not be used, but in fact, they did need a ’alpha wolf’ between the Ancient Ones and the Big Wizard—if this balance was not maintained, it would surely lead to intense conflicts and cause major internal discord among the Sea Demon community. Once such chaos erupts, it could potentially spread to other demon groups, even the entire Wizard World.

This is a result that no one wishes to see.

Out of respect for the newly ascending Ancient One, other forces might not directly intervene in the Sea Demons’ choice. But they would not coldly tolerate this ticking bomb staying below the surface for too long.

Zheng Qing became the best choice to defuse this ticking bomb.

He was the dean of the First University, a legend, and had a special relationship with R’lyeh. By his involvement, it could accommodate various interests without causing misunderstandings.

Coincidentally, he also needed a sufficiently substantial trophy to silence some old antiques within and outside the Alliance.

"—On the surface, there are four Big Sea Monsters competing for the position of Sea Demon King: Foggy, Iceberg, Poseidon, Whirlpool, but in reality, only ’Whirlpool’ or truly, the former captain of the Whirlpool Sea Demon ship has the strength to assume the role of Sea Demon King."

The young legend walked slowly across the vast icy plains with two cats, his voice torn to shreds by the fierce wind: "Because in the Black Prison, after Whirlpool and Mark Bridget merged into one, there is no longer a genuine ’Whirlpool’ in this world. The current problem is whether the merged ’Tiber Dragon’ still counts as a member of the Sea Demons. Or, does it now represent the interests of the Witch Demons... As far as I’m aware, the other three Big Sea Monsters are somewhat conflicted, feeling it could go either way..."

Whirlpool is a Big Sea Monster.

Mark Bridget is a Big Wizard Demon.

Their merged identity is indeed tricky to define.

"—Sounds like it now resembles a bat."

The Shadow Cat lowered its head, observing the tiny snow particles blown by the wind on the icy surface, and sighed deeply with a sense of awe: "—Beasts think it has wings, so it’s not a beast anymore; birds think it gives birth to live young and suckles them, so it’s not a bird either. Dealing with such an outlier wouldn’t anger the Witch Demons or upset the Sea Demons, and it solves the Alliance’s problem of a Great Demon with legendary combat power. Truly a multi-fold benefit... The issue is, removing this ’Tiber Dragon’ won’t actually solve the Sea Demons’ troubles, right? Without this nearest legendary presence, the other three Big Sea Monsters are even less likely to be mutually convinced."

"That’s not necessarily the case."

Yellow Flower Cat’s head poked out from Zheng Qing’s hat again, meaningfully reminding: "Three is the most stable state in this world... Two people together may feel lost, but three people won’t have this trouble... With the absence of that Tiber Dragon, the remaining three similarly strong Big Sea Monsters can actually maintain peace and stability more enduringly."

The Shadow Cat had reason to believe the Flower Cat had a point.

It sneaked a glance at the young legend, only to find him squinting at the distance, seemingly oblivious to Yellow Flower Cat’s chirpings. It followed the Warlock’s gaze, seeing only white vastness at the icy plain’s edge, with nothing else visible.

"—What do you see?" It asked, curiously.

"An interesting possibility."

Zheng Qing’s tone suddenly carried a touch of sentiment: "At the Big Wizard level, flair and appearances aren’t as important, but interests are more concerned. A faction composed of three Big Demons naturally ranks lower than one near-legendary and three Big Demons... For greater interests, the Big Sea Monsters wouldn’t mind yielding a bit of autonomy—in any case, they already have two big bosses above them, not minding having more small bosses—in contrast, their ’understanding’ is not something other forces would welcome."

"Are those Sea Monsters ready to acknowledge Tiber Dragon’s status?"

"Just begun to reconsider acceptance." Yellow Flower Cat stretched its neck, looking afar and answering the Shadow’s curiosity for the young legend: "—But once that first step is made, everything following can naturally proceed."

"Mmm, luckily, we’re not too late..."

"Ha, luckily? This world doesn’t have so many coincidences." Zheng Qing chuckled lightly, sighing softly: "Just like me choosing to light these two fires... originally pieced together from countless coincidences into inevitability."

...

...

Below the icy abyss.

The black river still roared furiously.

The white bear and the giant dragon ultimately didn’t fight.

As analyzed by the young legend on the icy plain, since the white bear chose to represent the other two captains to meet the former Whirlpool, it meant they had room to negotiate.

Of course, necessary amendments were still required.

"—Since His Majesty the Sea Demon King didn’t erase you immediately, it proves he recognized your existence." The white bear spoke gloomily, somewhat impatiently: "So there’s no need for you to keep hiding here pretending to be dead anymore."

The azure-black dragon remained silent, only rolling its eyes, contemplating quietly. Iceberg’s words did resonate with it; since it didn’t die in the grave it chose for itself, why not climb out for a look?

Then suddenly.

The crevice above in the depths of the abyss started to emit crackling sounds.

The sound was terrifying, signifying the icy plain being compressed, distorted, and about to break—such sounds weren’t uncommon before, but today it appeared exceedingly clear and immense.

Tiber Dragon slightly widened its eyes, its bodies curling even tighter, as if truly morphing into a bronze-colored pocket watch.