On the final day of the Wean Selection, two major events began on Sumatra Continent. First was the start of Wittral's evolution into the Zinger Representative. Second was the figure of Brangara who exited the Guna Caves.
Seated in one of its exits, Brangara observed the Dralh Sea, "It's overrun by the Bludders."
The Bludders had been having a field day ever since the Second Major Disaster. Their population continued to grow unabated, 'Even when they're swarming the Cooter Clan, their numbers haven't stopped growing.'
He then noticed the Phells in the Dralh Sea, serving as nutrition for the Bludders to consume and grow further.
The Phells were a suicidal race. But despite being Expert Iron Grade Pranic Beasts similar to the Bludders, they were unevenly matched.
The explosion generated by the Phell was significantly more powerful, as the entirety of its Prana reserves were used to unleash it. Unfortunately, the trigger to the explosion was its needle-like nose to stab into the target. That was the trigger condition.
In a contest of speed and manoeuvrability, the Bludders came on top. They casually spun atop the water surface of the Dralh Sea and bid their time, trying to lure as many Phells as possible. And then, once the target alignment was perfect, they unleashed an Eddy Blade, severing a group of Phells.
The Bludders targeted the Phells without making contact with their needle-like noses. Hence, the Phells never managed to explode even once, treated as a food farm by a similarly Graded existence.
'Indeed, it's not without substance that Bludders have managed to kill even Silver Grade Pranic Beasts in a one-on-one fight.' Brangara thought, 'They're fierce.'
The number of Bludders that successfully managed to take down a Silver Grade Pranic Beast was few, but they had happened enough times to give them the label as one of the strongest Iron Grade Pranic Beasts.
A Bludder spun across the water surface and gathered more and more Prana towards its extremities by taking advantage of the centrifugal force. And upon swiftly gathering enough Prana, it unleashed an Eddy Blade, only to notice it fail to sever its target.
"It's pretty sharp," Brangara muttered as he stared at his index finger, failing to see any wounds. He did feel a prickling sensation from the attack though, 'I should gather some Natures that can allow the user to spin better. With that, Yarsha will be able to use Eddy Blades with greater strength.'
As he hadn't unleashed his presence, the nearby Bludders and Phells began to target him. Ignoring their attacks that failed to damage him, Brangara stared at his Astral World, 'Fifty Tangible Natures of Bloody Affection, twenty of Eddy Blades, twenty of Shredded Lunge, and ten of Drifting Tunnel. I'm ready.'
The influence generated by him in his Astral World had already affected the hundred Tangible Natures, allowing him to better wield them. Unfortunately, just this alone consumed all his time. Hence, Brangara was unable to elevate any of the Tangible Natures to the 2-Life Stage.
If he were to waste any time, there was a chance the Cooter Clan would be able to stabilise further, which would become detrimental to him.
But he had a goal now, which was to bring Bloody Affection to the 10-Life Stage and possibly turn it into a Minor Treasure. The entirety of the blood from over forty-plus Empyrean Snappers would be used for the purpose.
'If necessary, I can even limit myself to the 2-Life Stage.' He thought, intending to gain a Silver Grade Tangible Nature using this once-in-a-lifetime chance. As long as he succeeds, he'd be able to use the power of the Decaleech whenever he wants and could even equip it onto the bodies of anyone he wishes.
Moreover, the combo of Bloody Affection and Subtle Terrain Domination was terrifying, especially when coupled with his Celestial Boar physique. As long as he succeeds in creating a Minor Treasure of Bloody Affection, he'd be closer to his goal.
With that thought in mind, Brangara began to run alongside the shore of the Dralh Sea, for he was faster on land than on the sea. He didn't run at top speed though, for that would result in sonic booms, which would reveal his location.
Hence, he only ran at subsonic speeds, keeping an eye on the Dralh Sea to see where the Cooter Clan was currently at. "What the…?"
He arrived at a stop, observing a massive ship rowing across the Dralh Sea. Reaching a length of two kilometres and a breadth of 600 metres, it was a behemoth, surrounded by drifting clouds on all sides as it rowed at a decent speed, able to cover a distance of twenty kilometres every hour.
Unlike three years ago, the Dralh Sea's water level had recovered enough for such a large ship to travel through it. The Brimgan Empire had been on the lookout for a suitable water source, and upon finding it, they erected a canal to the Brimgan Sea.
The canal supplied enough water to gradually fill up the Brimgan Sea and the Northern Lakes in the Brimgan Empire, following which the region began to gradually recover its original water cycle.
From the Brimgan Sea, water began to funnel into the Dralh Sea, sparking its recovery. Moreover, by taking advantage of this water crisis, Boul Brimgan made deals with the Gold Grade Pranic Beasts in their vicinity, forming peace deals.
On one side, they controlled the water. On the other side, the Brimgan Empire's Guardian Deity was none other than the Royal Zinger, a powerful show of force. Using the two, Boul Brimgan negotiated trade deals with every worthy Pranic Beast race with a Gold Grade member amongst their numbers.
With this success, the Brimgan Empire was fiercely expanding its control, sending envoys to various Free Human Kingdoms to tighten their control as the leader of the Free Humans.
And the tool they used to exercise their authority was none other than the medicines created by the Cooter Clan.
The Cooter-Brimgan Trade Agreement!
The massive ship travelling through the Dralh Sea was a product of the agreement. Currently, it was heading to the Cooter Clan from the Brimgan Empire, carrying a large batch of minerals that weren't available in the Dralh Sea and the other regions controlled by the Cooter Clan.
Using these minerals allowed the Empyrean Snappers to create new Spirit Pools and birth a greater variety of strength in the Cooter Clansmen. Thanks to the trade agreement, the strength of both sides began to increase.
"That's impressive," Brangara muttered upon seeing both Cooter Clansmen and Free Humans onboard the ship. There were at least three hundred Life Stage cultivators among the group.
And at a mere glance, he observed four Brimgan Royals, one of whom seemed to be the representative of the Brimgan Empire for the trade agreement, having cultivation at the 7-Life Stage.
"Hm, I know this place." As he continued to travel, Brangara soon came across Fral Island, which was where Wittral met Amita Brimgan.
Originally, 5800 Free Humans lived on the Fral Island, mining for minerals. But now, the population had doubled, as the mines were expanded further.
As the Cooter Clansmen fought the Bludders, they suffered a lot of deaths, which created a necessity for more births. The ones who fought and survived day after day experienced a need for more strength, which made them request the creation of Spirit Pools that suited their needs.
To create a Spirit Pool, the Empyrean Snapper needed to consume the respective mineral, which increased the demand. As a result, the Cooter Clan increased the number of Free Humans on every single island in the Dralh Sea.
During the time Amita Brimgan lived at the place, Fral Island had 19 Cooter Clansmen, which was more than enough to manage the place. But now, to guard against the Bludders, their numbers had quadrupled.
"These guys are breaking out of their shell." Brangara frowned, feeling the strength of the Cooter Clan was higher than what he had observed before.
Cooter Clansmen generally fought a minimal number of battles, and in conditions favourable to them. Hence, they weren't living to their full potential. But now, the endless swarm of Bludders forced them to reinvent new methods to deal with the crisis, which allowed them to explore facets of their power that they had never thought about before.
Bludders were generally individualistic in nature, but during an invasion, they acted as a collective, learning from the mistakes of their brethren. As a result, they formed plans to counter the arrangements of the Cooter Clan in real time, forcing the latter to innovate a solution all the time.
"If left like this, they'll reach whole new heights." The moment he arrived at the conclusion, Brangara made the decision, "Before their accumulation reaches a critical point, I'll get rid of them. This way, the Brimgan Empire's growth too would slow down."
Astral World—Drifting Tunnel X10!
A tunnel formed underneath him as Brangara fell through it, falling through a route that he constantly opened. The tunnel grew in length, travelling ten metres underneath the surface like a worm. But inside it, Brangara was continuing to fall.
It was as if he was flying from an outside perspective, though technically, he was falling through the length of the tunnel. The stacked power of Drifting Tunnel allowed Brangara to create a tunnel faster than his speed of fall, allowing him to travel without rest.
From time to time, he surfaced, and observed the Dralh Sea to look for traces of the Cooter Clan before diving back in. Eventually, he began to travel underground the Dralh Sea, feeling scalding hot water leak in through the porous rock and flood him.
As a Mystic Grade Pranic Beast, he was able to endure the heat, despite not being part of a race native to the Dralh Sea's environmental conditions. Soon, he surfaced on an island and looked around, noticing the stunned faces of the Cooter Clansmen nearby, "I think I am close."
"What the fuck…" A Cooter Clansman shrilled as the Celestial Boar appeared on the island and unleashed a suction force, consuming all the Cooter Clansmen. "Oh, they're tasty!"
Reaching a height of eight hundred metres, the Celestial Boar had enough height to stare afar, noticing a faint line of mountains along the horizon, "They're there!"
"You're mine!" Followed by a grin, Brangara reverted to human form and made another tunnel, intending to head straight to the group of Empyrean Snappers.