Chapter 867
"Rise."
A massive creature burst from the sea.
Ron turned his gaze toward it. Its body was primarily blue, and its scales shimmered with a cold light like blades. An overwhelming aura radiated from its form.
"This life energy... based on Gourmet Paradise rankings, it would easily be over level ten."
"So this is the sea beyond the Human World?"
"Even a random catch has this level of strength."
Just as Ron was about to reel in the fish, the ocean surface below began to boil. A far larger creature appeared.
Crunch!
It sank its jaws into the fish Ron had hooked, biting off half its body.
Ron's expression turned cold. "You dare steal my prey?"
With a thought, a figure appeared beside him—it was Wither.
Splash!
Wither dove into the sea.
Immediately, the boiling of the ocean intensified. But before long, the waters fell silent again.
Though the creature that had stolen Ron's fish was undeniably powerful, Wither was an S-class being, and a unique one at that. She possessed the formidable physiology of a Chimera Ant combined with the bizarre powers of Killer Queen.
Dragging a creature even larger than the one Ron had hooked, Wither surfaced. It, too, was a fish—primarily red, with a fierce, intimidating appearance. The energy radiating from it was several times stronger than the previous one.
"By Gourmet Paradise standards, this one would rank above fifteen. Stronger than a Bux Dragon."
A blade appeared in Ron's hand. He placed the fish onto the deck of the Black Whale. With a flash of the knife, the fish was swiftly dismembered into countless parts. Ron sent the fish meat into Sumas's space.
Erina emerged and began preparing the meal.
"If all the creatures in this sea are like this, then my Gourmet Cells will gain massive nutrition throughout the journey. My physique will improve—perhaps even evolve."
Ron looked forward to it.
He already understood the secret behind the Succession War. The Egg Ceremony was merely a means of creating Ascension Relics. It had little to do with him. There were no direct benefits to be gained, and he had no intention of interfering.
That left only one objective for Ron: absorbing Kakin's unique traits.
Currently, Observer's True Intent had already reached over 90% completion. Without exerting much effort, Ron could naturally bring it to full mastery.
However, the Black Whale's voyage to the Gatekeeper's Continent, then the subsequent resupply and departure for the Dark Continent, would take considerable time.
Ron didn't want to waste it. Sea fishing was the best way to use this time—strengthening himself through his Gourmet Cells.
Before long, Erina finished the dish.
With a swipe of Ron's hand, a door appeared. Erina passed the plate through. Ron caught it.
"Pan-seared fish fillet? Smells good."
He picked up his chopsticks, lifted a piece, and tasted it.
There had never been a single bad dish from Erina. Ron had eaten her cooking countless times. Even without the God Tongue, his palate had become extremely refined.
Yet this dish still impressed him.
"As expected, the quality of a dish isn't just determined by skill—the ingredients themselves are crucial."
He looked out over the sea.
"These sea creatures seem perfectly suited for cuisine. With no large-scale human hunting, the resources remain abundant."
Ron only ate a single piece. The rest he passed to Cell.
Cell's ability was unique—by consuming things, he could absorb their power. In fact, his ability was quite similar to Ron's Gourmet Cells, but likely even stronger.
Gourmet Cells had the highest effect upon the first consumption. After that, the returns diminished. But Cell didn't seem to have that limitation. Though the first bite had less impact than Gourmet Cells, subsequent meals offered nearly the same benefit. The more he consumed, the more he gained.
Ron poured the remaining food into Cell's mouth.
Gulp!
Cell opened his jaws, and the food disappeared into his stomach in one go. His body swelled visibly—but only for a moment. Then it shrank back to normal.
In no time at all, the massive fish had been completely devoured by Ron and Cell. Mostly by Cell. Ron only sampled each dish made from different parts of the fish.
"Again."
Ron flicked his fishing rod. The line and hook dropped back into the sea.
"Cell, keep an eye on things," he instructed.
Soon, the line began to tremble.
"Got a bite!"
"Shu!"
Ron channeled aura through the rod, enveloping every part of it. Seeing this, Cell leapt into the water.
Ron noticed that as Cell entered, the seawater caused mild corrosion—but with Cell's power, it didn't matter. For ordinary people, however, such corrosive water would be lethal. Even most Nen users couldn't last long in this environment.
Ron pulled another fish from the sea—identical to the first.
"Erina!"
He disassembled the fish and sent it into Sumas's space for Erina to continue cooking.
Cell returned to Ron's side. A stream of information transmitted directly into Ron's mind—what Cell had seen underwater.
"The resource volume and richness down there is astounding."
"But with such massive biomass, could it eventually impact the Black Whale?"
"Some of these creatures have very clear territorial instincts. To them, the Black Whale is an invader."
"Still, it probably won't be a big issue."
"Even if the Black Whale hadn't yet reached the Dark Continent in the original storyline, there's no reason it wouldn't. Otherwise, the plot couldn't continue."
"If everyone aboard the ship died en route, the story would collapse."
"Besides, the V5's ships have already visited the Dark Continent multiple times."
"No need to worry too much."
"Just focus on fishing."
At the same time, Nasubi had already noticed that Ron was no longer inside the Black Whale.