This single droplet contained a vast number of memory fragments. The information from the Nameless Cocoon originated from various Insect Realms and was incredibly disorganized, requiring a great deal of Spiritual Power to parse. After carefully reviewing it all, Shi Ming summarized a good deal of useful intel.

The more he watched, the more he realized that Holy Hall-level Sea Beasts were truly in a league of their own.

It also made him all the more expectant for his new skill, "Holy Hall 008: Fallen Sanctuary," which was being fused from Ragnarok and the Third Law!

Great Black Heaven Dragon, Holy Hall 007.

Skill: Nine-Headed Sanctuary.

It was also the lowest-ranked Holy Hall Sea Beast at present.

In appearance, it was a pitch-black, nine-headed giant dragon over 900 meters long. It possessed an extremely strong desire to attack, was ferocious and violent, and symbolized the very essence of destruction.

According to one battle recording, a single, casual basic attack from the Great Black Heaven Dragon was powerful enough to rival an A-rank skill at its peak offensive capability, like the Demon Sword’s "Eightfold Wall" or the White Dragon Whale’s "Whale Burst"—in fact, it was even slightly superior.

This meant it rarely needed to unleash its signature skill at full power when facing challengers.

But the Nameless Cocoon’s memories were a boundless ocean.

And within them, he actually found footage of it unleashing "Nine-Headed Sanctuary."

This was from an era before humanity.

The Great Black Heaven Dragon’s nine heads reared with wild abandon as it instantly awakened the purest Destructive Power within its body. It became the very incarnation, the essence of "Destruction" itself, and unleashed an epic Celestial Calamity that affected an area of roughly 360,000 square kilometers!

How could he so accurately judge it to be 360,000 square kilometers?

Because a certain country was exactly that size. Using it as a reference point, Shi Ming could easily make the calculation.

Lightning tribulations, meteor strikes, cataclysmic decay, earth-rending fissures... Nine great Celestial Calamities descended at once, unleashed to their absolute limit. A continent once formed from four major islands thereby collapsed, burned, and was annihilated, only to re-form over a vast stretch of time into a vaguely familiar landmass.

A true Destroyer of Island Nations!

Utterly terrifying!

Shi Ming had personally unleashed the Abyss Lord’s "Extremely Evil Sanctuary" during his previous battle against the three S-rank Awakened.

Thus, he had a rough idea of its nature. The keyword for "Extremely Evil Sanctuary" was [CONTAMINATION]. In addition to dealing massive physical damage, it released malice through its vile tendrils, injecting a horrific contamination into the enemy’s body and inflicting true damage that traced back to their very source.

As for Nine-Headed Sanctuary, if one had to represent it with a single word, that word would be [DESTRUCTION].

Absolute brutality.

A walking catastrophe.

No wonder the Nameless Cocoon had said that its mere awakening would be a catastrophe.

Luckily, it remained in a state of deep slumber.

If it truly awoke, Shi Ming believed that not only would the sunken Fujing Mountain be affected, but even the "Black Society"—now known as "Renhuang"—stationed in the Old Domain of Vortex Country would face immediate annihilation. There wasn’t a shadow of a doubt.

A General-class Wanderer Ship?

There probably wouldn’t even be scraps left.

Humanity’s strength was still too weak in the face of these ultimate sea beasts!

Realizing the power gap between himself and this Holy Hall-level Sea Beast, Shi Ming wasn’t the least bit discouraged. Instead, he began to look toward the future, his mind filled with possibilities and aspirations.

At the same time, a great many questions arose.

Such as—

’Unleashing Nine-Headed Sanctuary at its full potential requires nine heads. If I were to acquire its skill, but I don’t have nine heads, how would I maximize its power?’

’Does that mean I could also transform into a dragon when necessary?’

’Or perhaps, three heads and six arms?’

This wasn’t baseless speculation.

In some myths, the Divine Great Black Heaven is depicted in a "three-headed, six-armed" form.

...

...

...

As the saying goes, know the enemy and know yourself, and you can fight a hundred battles without defeat. Shi Ming diligently rewatched the memory recordings, analyzing the Holy Hall-level Sea Beast’s attack patterns.

The upcoming operation didn’t require an outright victory. Merely harvesting some of its flesh—enough to evolve his Brain of Creation or Arm of Power—would be sufficient. He would then give a portion of this flesh to the Twelve Stars for their research, keep some for himself as a reserve, and preserve one use of the "Star Lamp." That alone would be a huge win.

He wasn’t about to use his own body as a "thatched boat to borrow arrows" again, like he did last time.

Luckily, the "arrows" he’d taken last time were just basic attacks, not the true Extremely Evil Sanctuary.

And as he watched, the Eye of the World, which had been silent for a long time, suddenly voiced its opinion. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝕨𝕖𝗯𝚗𝚘𝕧𝕖𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝕞

[!!!]

[Well, I’ll be!]

[The Eye of the World is seeing "Nine-Headed Sanctuary," something that hasn’t appeared in nine thousand three hundred years, inside the memories of a mere insect!]

[How incredible!]

[Do you want to acquire its skill?]

[You already know how to slay the Great Black Heaven Dragon. Use the Extreme Cold Power to simultaneously sever all nine of its heads. Simple and direct, isn’t it? No need for flashy, convoluted methods. That is your offense. That is your defense. Go forth, young man, and slay the evil dragon!]

[Slaying it ≠ Awakening its power.]

[Based on data analysis, the Eye of the World has meticulously and accurately calculated the basic conditions for inheriting the Great Black Heaven Dragon’s "Nine-Headed Sanctuary" ability. This isn’t the Vortex Country’s casual speculation or wild guessing! These are the results of genuine research! Very scientific.]

[Condition 1: Once your combined Physical Strength and Endurance reach a total of 500, you will be able to withstand the destructive corrosion of its blood, earning the right to bathe in it.]

[Condition 2: To be acknowledged by this power, however, you must first synchronize your body with the very source of destruction.]

[Satisfy both conditions, then slay the Great Black Heaven Dragon and bathe in its blood, and you will obtain "Nine-Headed Sanctuary"!]

[...]

[Additionally, here’s a little bonus answer.]

[The "Nine-Headed Sanctuary" unleashed by a human is completely different in its manifestation from the one unleashed by the Great Black Heaven Dragon! You don’t have nine heads, after all! But rest assured! Its power and oppressive presence will be identical, with no reduction whatsoever.]

[You’re going to love it. The way it manifests will be incredibly cool.]

Shi Ming was already used to the Eye of the World’s occasional tendency to speak in riddles.

But the conditions it laid out gave Shi Ming real, tangible motivation and a clear goal.

He only needed to meet two conditions to obtain its power.

Condition one: a combined Physical Strength and Endurance of 500. While demanding, he was confident he could eventually reach it with the devouring power of his Right Arm Red Pattern.

Condition two: synchronization...

’I feel like I’ve heard that somewhere before...’

Wait!

The Sea-Rising Cherry Root?

In the *Overview of the Endless Ocean’s Wonders (Part 2)* that Da Yu had released, the 64th-ranked wonder was the Sea-Rising Cherry Root!

[64. Sea-Rising Cherry Root.]

[A deep-sea plant rooted deep within a volcano. Due to the influence of ■■■■■, it transformed into a treasure. After consuming the root, one can obtain a faint ■■■■■ power and achieve energy resonance with it.]

It all made sense!

The goal was clear!

The path was clear!

The motivation was clear!

A fiery fighting spirit ignited in Shi Ming’s eyes!

...

’Hm?’

’Speaking of which, in the Nameless Cocoon’s memory recordings... what is this phantom fighting the Great Black Heaven Dragon?’