"Uh... uh..."

At this moment, Hawkins had almost transformed into a shapeless mass of flesh covered in writhing tentacles. With his bones dissolving, even breathing had become extremely difficult.

Maybe just a few more minutes would pass.

The so-called deep-thinking Tier 3 Peak Pirate King would either seal the end of his life under the curse of a Demigod or devolve into a low-intelligence creature incapable of thought.

But with a soft sound emerging from the ocean floor.

It was as if a rewind button had been pressed on Hawkins, and his alienated limbs slowly returned to their original form, the eight deadly tentacles under his chin transformed back into a beard.

In just a matter of breaths, Hawkins had completely reverted to that young and handsome human form.

Clearly, after activating a month's-worth of pre-arranged plans, he had gambled and won in this last uncontrollable phase!

But it wasn't over.

Because this soft sound signified that this "Exiled Prisoner" had finally completed the last prerequisite of the Tier 4 "Lawless" ascension ritual: "Liberate a powerful prisoner capable of world overturning"!

He didn't know if the former Black Sea Goddess "Hipponeo" could overturn the world, but overturning the power dynamics on the Black Sea was a piece of cake.

From today onward, the Black Sea would no longer be dominated by the "Mother of Sea Monsters" and her sea monster offspring alone, but by a power struggle between two mighty forces.

The final step of the ascension ritual was complete.

Hawkins released the powerful prisoner and simultaneously freed his own heart!

Crack!

The sound of chains breaking was also heard within Hawkins's heart.

Boom——!

Endless red as blood [Frenzy] gushed out from his body, weaving layers around him and, in the blink of an eye, wrapped him into a blood-colored giant butterfly cocoon.

Soon after, this giant cocoon began to float as if unburdened by gravity, hovering three meters above the ocean surface, thumping like an enormous heart.

"Shepherd of Tide" Tien Kute stood next to Hawkins, watching everything unravel, but due to the power radiating from "Hipponeo," he had lost all control over his body.

The "Sea Witch" Hipponeo ruled over the Black Sea itself, with raging waves and rapids as her embodiment. The "Mother of Sea Monsters" Echet ruled over its extensions, wielding powers to manipulate destructive weather phenomena and transform all marine life into sea monsters.

And from the title "Shepherd of Tide," it was clear that Echet's ambition and plans aimed to use Tien Kute to slowly encroach on Hipponeo's divine domain.

But when the rightful goddess returns.

The mere "Shepherd of Tide" holds no resistance whatsoever within the Demigod's divine realm, appearing more pathetic than an ordinary human.

With Tien Kute devoid of all power, he instead found solace.

He assumed Hawkins had made a last-minute decision, having somehow obtained the information about Hipponeo, the sealed "Sea Witch," as an opportunistic act to ally with her for greater advantage.

But in reality.

The Extraordinary Source of the so-called Extraordinary Profession "Exiled Prisoner" was indeed the most powerful prisoner in the Black Sea for centuries—the "Sea Witch" Hipponeo!

The game by the true player, the Demigod, didn't start a few years ago, as Tien Kute believed, but many decades ago when Hawkins acquired this exclusive Extraordinary Profession.

The "Brotherhood" couldn't deny suffering a justified loss...

At this moment.

Using the Black Sea's "Heart of the Ocean" as the key and the countless calls from the residents of the "Leiden River Valley" as an anchor, the resurrection path of the Sea Witch Hipponeo faced no further obstacles!

Within just a few minutes, the colossal shadow beneath the sea beneath them had gradually "floated" to the surface, breaking through the layered barriers of space.

Plop——!

The peculiar phenomena on the sea surface vanished entirely, the raging waves, shadows, and leaden clouds dispersing in the blink of an eye.

But beside them appeared an ordinary-looking figure.

She was a beautiful woman wearing a wave crown, holding a staff flowing like water, draped in a black linen robe and barefoot. Her chestnut hair and pale gold eyes appeared no different from a human.

Yet her skin was frost-white like eternal ice, her face was indescribably beautiful, and yet, it invoked infinite dread akin to facing the deep, dark ocean directly!

Even though rumors described her as a violent deity, upon her return to the mortal realm, she did not reveal her destructive Mythical Form as the "God of Opera" Percy once did, but chose to present a human-like exterior instead.

It was unclear whether this choice resulted from enlightenment during her three-century imprisonment, or if it was due to some reservations.

Silently.

A giant white whale gently surfaced beneath her feet, softly lifting her beautiful form.

For the first time, since regaining freedom, a slight change appeared on Hipponeo's otherwise indifferent expression, as she subtly curled her lips and gently called out the white whale's name:

"Mosidis!"

"Eee——"

The white whale responded with an extremely joyous cry.

Soon after.

Her gaze fell on the many layered marks left on the white whale by time, natural disasters, and battles, the latest wound only a few months old.

Hipponeo showed no reluctance toward her last surviving follower, as she lifted her water-like staff and lightly touched it on the whale's body.

The gods undoubtedly possess the miraculous power to transform decay into magic, especially for their beloved.

The great white whale, whose actual age clearly exceeds three hundred years and has been guarding the hometown of Hipponeo, the Atreid Sea, for three hundred lonely years, has finally awaited its master's return and the reward for its loyalty.

After a gentle wave, the body of the great white whale was renewed from inside out, with a light quality like white jade flowing over its surface, radiating an indescribable divine charm from head to tail.

Eee—!

A clear and enduring call spread across the sea.

Obviously, today's creature was no longer the ordinary demonized being that was once so weak it could be harmed by a harpoon.

Yet Hipponeo's actions did not stop, and the long staff, rippling like flowing water in his hand, lightly tapped on the gigantic blood cocoon that Hawkins had transformed into.

Thump! Thump! Thump!...

The heartbeat-like rhythm instantly accelerated dozens of times, with the power granted by the Extraordinary Source easily combining with Hawkins' own strength, hastening his transformation.

Moreover, thanks to Hipponeo's adjustments, the results would only be more perfect than a natural transformation!

However, after completing this action.

The Black Sea Goddess suddenly raised her head. Far away at the distant horizon, nearly black-out enveloping dense clouds were sweeping in, almost forming a black cloud sea.

Even before the cloud sea approached, she could already smell a scent she was not entirely familiar with, yet instinctively extremely averse to.

It was... "Mother of Sea Monsters" Echet!

"Ha! The welcoming ceremony is truly grand."

Even though she had just escaped captivity and her power was at its lowest, facing the undisguised hostility of the "new god" who had stolen her throne, Hipponeo showed no fear.

She glanced at the Son of Sea God, who belonged to the other side, hesitated for a moment before deciding not to make a move but instead urging the great white whale beneath her feet, riding it atop a majestic stream of the ocean as if it had life, heading forward.

Boom—!

A moment later.

The distant sea seemed to welcome a disaster's end—thunder, lightning, gale, rainstorm, churning angry waves, and whirlpools... all the sea's extreme weather imaginable by humans had begun to alternately unfold!

...

After Echet's arrival and Hipponeo's departure, the Son of Sea God, Tien Kute, was gradually regaining his powerful strength.

However.

Click—

The blood-colored giant cocoon silently shattered, and Hawkins' figure reappeared before everyone.

"Hahaha..."

His appearance changed little, just an immediate increase in height to over 2.3 meters, and more robust, no less than the tall-statured Tien Kute beside him.

Besides the significant enhancement of physical fitness, the biggest change was his status at the moment. Without any movement or assistance, he was freely floating mid-air, unbound by gravity.

Obviously, just as the name of his profession "Lawless" suggests, at this moment he is no longer restricted by planetary gravity or certain superficial physical rules (beneficial ones are obeyed, harmful ones are ignored).

Gravity, inertia, center of balance, friction... he can fully indulge in the taste of freedom!

With this, Hawkins finally accomplished the ultimate transformation he had longed for, achieving the fourth-tier "Lawless" of the "Exiled Prisoner"!

Having gone through an array of incomprehensible upheavals, the pirates aboard the "Eternal Imprisonment Sacred Statue", nearby, finally responded, uniformly kneeling on one knee on the deck, welcoming the Pirate King's rebirth with all their ecstatic fervor.

"Congratulations Lord Hawkins on advancing to Lawless!"

Before this.

Even Danfo, who understood Hawkins' plan the most, did not know the Pirate King's complete plan to unseal the goddess and simultaneously advance to Peak Extraordinary at the very first opportunity of seizing the treasure.

Moreover, with the rising tide, his subordinates and disciples have gained the backing of a Tier 4 powerhouse, clearly destined for greater success!

What is the concept of a Tier 4 powerhouse?

Now, tracing the lineage of every kingdom's royal family on the continent invariably finds a Tier 4 powerhouse ancestor!

Though not every Tier 4 Extraordinary is capable of founding a nation or willing to assume the responsibility to protect one, the value of a Peak Powerhouse is unquestionably evident.

Laughing, Hawkins accepted the congratulations from his subordinates and proclaimed the true declaration of a king:

"Starting today, we are pursuers of freedom and dreams marching across the seas!

My soul tells me such, unlike those pitiable creatures pleading for the charity of the mighty, letting their masters drive them for amusement.

We are princes of freedom, with the privilege to declare war on the world, regardless of whether the enemy possesses a hundred warships or a hundred thousand soldiers!"

"Declare war! Victory to the Pirate King!"

"Victory!"

"Victory!"

Amid the resounding cheers, a clear voice suddenly rang in the pirates' ears.

"Oh? Is that so?!"

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