Accompanied by a group of Empyrean Snappers was a large ship, on the deck of which stood Inala, his expression cheerful, inhaling the fresh air while gawking at the sprawling Dralh Sea.
"How the heck are you cheerful in this situation?" Wittral grumbled from nearby, feeling irritated upon seeing Inala happy, "We can't cultivate anymore."
"What's the problem with that?" Inala raised an eyebrow and shadowboxed for a couple of seconds, "I'm free from influence. At present, I'm at my natural self."
That was indeed the truth. Whether it was his identity as a Mammoth Clan, the influence of a Zinger through his Primary Nature, and the influence of an Empyrean Tusk through his Secondary and Tertiary Natures, Inala didn't feel any at the moment.
Here, inhaling fresh air, he was truly free. At this moment, he could care shit about the Mammoth Clan's fate, for he was no longer subjected to the influence every Mammoth Clansman experienced.
The only two Mammoth Clansmen he cared about were in his stomach biome. Hence, whether or not the Mammoth Clan survived mattered naught to him. This clarity of mind came as a surprise when his Spirit Container was extracted, but soon enough, he embraced it, for that was truly his natural state.
The only influence on him was his own, to be like Inala, the individual. 'Honestly, I don't mind living like this.'
He then stared at Wittral, 'The Cooter Clan will protect him. As long as I stay by his side, I'll live a comfortable life.'
He had yet to finish building his Zinger Body. So, he wouldn't live past a century. That didn't matter to him at present, since that already exceeded his original lifespan when on Earth.
But the moment he recovers his Spirit Container, he'll become the Inala from before, scheming for the betterment of the Mammoth Clan since his daughter would become the Empyrean Tusk that would lead them in the future.
His thoughts would grow complex, since he couldn't stop at thinking about him alone. Rather, many things were riding on him, causing him to constantly reinvent himself and make schemes, both short-term and long-term.
"I hate being like this," Wittral grumbled in anger and stared at his weak, mortal self, "I have never been this…useless since birth."
"You should learn to live like that until we find my teacher." Inala shrugged like it wasn't his problem and stared into the sea, exclaiming upon seeing a large marine creature jump out of the water, "What is that? How is it that huge?"
"That's a Silver Grade Pranic Beast, called…" Wittral stopped speaking, feeling his face heat up in response as he stared into the sea, "The Death Hour is starting!"
"This is…absurd!" He growled, unable to endure the heat in a matter of seconds to jump back deeper onto the deck, "Shit!"
When he had his power as an Empyrean Snapper, the Death Hour was merely an environment that raised his combat capabilities. During that hour, he was the ruler of the region, having no equal. The Dralh Sea became the heaven he ruled over, the environment beneficial for his actions.
But now, that very same environment spelled his death sentence, should he even dare peek at it, not to mention come into contact with it. The sheer contrast overwhelmed him, for he went from an invincible existence to the weakest of mortals.
The fact that the Free Humans he treated as servants, possessing Prana in the single digits were now many times stronger than him. That realisation overwhelmed his emotional state, causing him to leap into the Dralh Sea, indignant at his plight, "No! I refuse to believe I'm powerless! I'll recover my power once I touch the sea…"
"Calm down, Wittral." Inala hurriedly jumped after Wittral and grunted in pain, holding the rim of the deck to dangle forward. His left hand held the rim while his right gripped Wittral tightly, unable to bear his weight, "Don't be foolish! Gosh…you're heavy!"
"Let go, Inala." Wittral said, his expression absolutely serious, "The world is my ally. It always was and it always will be."
"Are you out of your goddamn mind?" Inala cursed in anger, wincing in pain as heat waves began to radiate out of the Dralh Sea with greater intensity, "Can't you feel this burning sensation?"
"No, I don't. So let go." Wittral exerted force on Inala's hand and began to open his fingers. He was delusional, ignoring his limbs trembling from the heat, unable to bear it.
"Someone!" Inala shouted upon seeing Wittral continue to slip from his hold, "Save this idiot! He's about to kill himself!"
"Leave me alone!" Wittral shouted and pushed away Inala, breaking out of the latter's hold. Unfortunately for the both of them, he pushed Inala with force, causing the latter's hold on the deck's rim to slip in response.
"Oh…shit!" Inala muttered, watching the Dralh Sea approach his vision, getting closer rapidly. He began to fall alongside Wittral. Staring at the latter, he sighed in realisation, 'Without the Mammoth Clansman's influence, I'm a fucking idiot, the same as I was on Earth.'
He was acting at the start. But when Wittral intended to commit suicide, he instinctively offered help. And that resulted in the current situation as he fell to his death, alongside the person he intended to save.
"I'm a fool to save you." He muttered and closed his eyes, resigned to his death. For a moment the faces of Gannala and Asaeya appeared in his mind, 'Life is fragile without strength. I'm sorry, you two.'
"…" Wittral's eyes widened in shock to see Inala fall alongside him. He reached out and grabbed the latter's hand when suddenly, a layer of clouds appeared between them and the sea. It was soft and warm to the touch, completely blocking the radiation emanating from the Dralh Sea.
'She instinctively dived in to save Wittral.' Geugeu thought, for a moment having a better impression of Inala as he addressed the two, "It's dangerous to play around the deck during the Dath Hour…"
He corrected himself a moment later, "No, at all the time. A slip into the water and you'll die."
Without Prana, the bodies of both Wittral and Inala were damn fragile, unable to heal. Hence, the boiling hot water of the Dralh Sea during the day was enough to kill them easily. The freezing cold water during the night was equally dangerous.
The cloud brought the duo to the deck as Geugeu landed before them, speaking softly upon seeing Wittral's disgruntlement, "Don't lose hope. We're doing everything in our power to find the Mudropper."
"The Mudropper is in the insane Boar King's possession." Wittral clicked his tongue in anger, "Finding him means another confrontation. I don't want us to suffer crippling losses just to save me."
"We won't abandon you, Wittral." Geugeu said and patted the latter on the shoulder, "We'll keep trying our best to figure out a solution."
"No, forget it." Wittral shook his head, resigning himself to fate, "That Mudropper's probably the sole existence of its kind on Sumatra. We'll be receiving the Boar King's undivided attention if we were to rescue it. Our fate would then be no different from the Mammoth Clan. We might end up losing dozens of Empyrean Snappers."
"So…" He sighed and stared at the massive clouds forming in the sky, "Let this be my last. If my existence causes crippling damage to the Cooter Clan, then we're better off without me."
"Wittral…" Geugeu muttered, his eyes red, angry, but helpless, watching the hope of their Clan resign himself to despair.
"Let's not give up," Inala broke the sombre atmosphere, giving them a tinge of hope, "I'm not as knowledgeable as the Mudropper, but I was taught a lot by it. As long as the Cooter Clan supports my…no,"
He made eye contact with Wittral, "Our research, we'll definitely make a breakthrough."
"Fine, you make a point." Geugeu nodded, "What do you need?"
"It's the Cooter Clan's speciality. I need a large quantity of them." Inala grinned, iterating upon seeing Geugeu's momentary confusion, "Medicines!"