Sandy was definitely the most lopsided creature Jake had ever come across. Okay, maybe something like the Termite Hive Queen was equally lopsided, but Sandy was definitely so specialized and weird that it boggled his mind.

Most creatures Jake knew could fight. Like, fighting was a basic skill of the multiverse, right? Jake had yet to come across a single C-grade that couldn’t at least fight back in some way. But Sandy? Sandy and fighting were not a thing at all.

And yet, out of every C-grade, Jake did not want to mess with Sandy and make the worm an enemy. Because he was damn sure that would only result in everything he held dear getting eaten and the worm flying away unbothered.

Sandy was good at three things. Like a Sand Worm, a Cosmic Genesis Worm was incredibly good at moving about. Jake thought his new Wings skill was good at escaping, but Sandy had several skills that allowed escape.

Secondly, Sandy was incredibly resilient. The rock-like hide was not for show, and Jake found that even with Arcane Powershot, he could not break through, even if Sandy did say “ouchie” when he hit the massive worm. That was the upgraded version of Arcane Powershot too.

Thirdly was finding and collecting resources. Jake could sense natural treasures due to his boots and Sense of the Malefic Viper, but damn, Sandy was on a whole other level. The worm picked up on things of value up to thousands of kilometers away, and Jake had a feeling it could be even further.

What Sandy was not good at was fighting, but the worm also sucked at detecting enemies. Luckily, or unluckily, it was nearly impossible to find a natural treasure not guarded by something powerful, and Sandy had a good sense of how valuable a natural treasure was and, thus, what kind of power-level one could expect the protector to be. Sometimes Sandy was still wrong, but that is where numbers one and two came in, allowing the worm to just leave. Even the one time they accidentally bumped into a mid-tier C-grade, probably around level 250. Sandy just flew away as the beast chased for a while until it realized it was wasting its time.

All of this is to say that Sandy was only good at running – worming - and eating. But damn, the worm was good at it. He had pimped himself the best ride around, and he clearly felt he was getting closer to Sylphie with every passing day. Now that they found themselves crossing the ocean, Jake also saw an entirely new part of Earth.

Amazingly enough, Jake had avoided underwater combat for the entire first day since they began their journey. This part of the trip would be a lot faster than the one prior as Sandy quickly realized that unless you were willing to dive into the depths, there were few treasures in the open ocean.

Sandy had only found a single island that didn’t even have a C-grade on it but only a whole bunch of D-grade birds, making them avoid it. No reason to mess with the local wildlife without any rewards.

This resulted in Jake spending a lot of time within Sandy’s stomach just working. He considered working on upgrading some more skills, but without fighting, Jake had a tough time doing it. Jake’s entire fighting style was also just so damn instinctual, so trying to take a logical approach and researching a skill seemed too foreign to him.

Thus he focused on alchemy once more. Everything was just peaceful as nothing tried to attack Sandy, and what did try did not have the slightest chance of catching the Cosmic Genesis Worm. At least everything was peaceful until the third day when suddenly Sandy called out to him.

“Out. Now,” the worm said as Jake was thrown out. He didn’t even have time to stabilize himself before his eyes opened wide, and he turned his head and saw it.

Still only half-emerged, an utterly massive creature exited the infinitely deep ocean below. Its skin was blue and rough, with fins and a massive tail still hidden in the water below. It looked like a blue whale, just oversized to the extreme, with its emergence reminiscent of a large island choosing to take to the skies.

[Sky Whale – lvl ???]

Jake estimated it to be a bit over ten kilometers long, and it was by far the largest creature Jake had ever encountered. As for if he would fight it? No fucking chance because the aura it gave off was also far above anything.

It was a late-tier C-grade, well-beyond level 300. No matter how many skills Jake upgraded, he had no confidence in facing such a foe. This was also why Jake froze and gritted his teeth as he felt the whale’s attention on him. The beast was still over a hundred kilometers away and moving incredibly slowly, but he still saw its stadium-sized eye turn to look at him.

”Sandy, why are we stopping here?” Jake asked the worm.

”It asked for you,” Sandy simply answered.

”What?” Jake asked with surprise.

”Said they had been tracking us for a while and wanted to talk… I did want to run, but it seems friendly enough, you know? Anyway, I was promised a treat if I got you out, so get talking,” Sandy said, having just sold him out to the massive whale.

As Sandy as said, he felt the whale reach out to him mentally. Jake accepted, wondering what the beast could possibly want from him outside of eating him. Wait, blue whales were herbivores pre-system and pretty chill creatures overall, so maybe this one was too? Let’s hope.

”I greet thee, Malefic’s Chosen,” a deep voice echoed in Jake’s head. It sounded like the whale was talking to him from inside a large cave or something. The voice was also obviously male.

”To what do I owe the pleasure?” Jake responded in kind. He felt no animosity but instead a lot of caution from the massive Sky Whale. Clearly not fearful of his power but his identity.

”If you would allow me to speak frankly?” the whale asked.

”Of course,” Jake allowed it, now even more curious.

”We have felt the waves of change for a long time. We, being those who reside within the vast waters of our planet. From the beginning, we were aware a war would come, and it has already spread to our waters. Factions have been born, and lines formed. I do not mean to ask you for anything, but I do have a request,” the massive Sky Whale said.

”What could I possibly do for you that you cannot do yourself? You are the most powerful creature I have seen on this planet so far,” Jake also spoke frankly. If the whale asked him for help in a fight or something, then he had to admit he was way out of his depths. Pun intended.

”The ones who will ultimately take control of this planet will not be those like me. When that happens, I fear what our fates will be. Perhaps I myself could leave behind this world and explore the wider universe, but many trusts in me and hide under my fins for protection. What I am asking of you is not assistance in any task but simply to allow us to stay once the time comes. In return, we shall support you in taming the parts of the world you do not wander yourself, Malefic’s Chosen,” the whale said.

Jake frowned, even more confused. He felt like this all came out of nowhere, and he wasn’t even sure how they had tracked him or known he had been inside of Sandy. No one had been observing them besides Villy, and he had a hard time seeing Villy informing a C-grade Sky Whale about him out of the blue. Yet clearly, it had known he was coming and intercepted him. The whale was also aware of the entire Ell’Hakan and United Cities Alliance situation from the sounds of it. He had to know how.

”This has nothing to do with your request, but I have to know… how did you track me and know we were coming? Who told you? How do you even know the situation on land when you reside within the oceans?” he asked the massive whale.

”I apologize sincerely, but I am unable to answer that question. Just know that neither my Patron nor those following me are against you. All we seek is a path of survival and, hopefully, a healthy relationship moving forward with both the Chosen and his Patron. What I can share is that my Patron is no threat to you nor the Malefic One, and he realizes his station,” the Sky Whale answered, now fully emerged from the water.

Jake pondered and couldn’t figure out who or what it could be. What he could do was guess, and his guess was that the whale had a Patron that wasn’t a god Jake had heard of before. Potentially not even that powerful of a god, but simply one that hoped to foster a good relationship with Jake and Villy. Why he had chosen to back Jake and not this Ell’Hakan if he knew both, Jake had no idea. Maybe he just wasn’t a moron?

He admired the massive body of the whale for a moment as he wondered how damn deep the oceans had to be to facilitate such an enormous creature to live within it. Much less the treasures it had to hold for such a monster to reach its level of strength.

”I understand,” Jake simply answered, feeling the nervousness of the whale decrease.

”I thank you, Malefic’s Chosen, and godspeed in your journey. Allow me to offer you and your companion tokens of goodwill,” the Sky Whale said as it opened its ridiculously large mouth. Out flew two objects, one being a large pearl the size of a volleyball and the other a crystal container about the size of Jake himself. It looked naturally formed, but an odd dark blue liquid was contained within that instantly triggered Jake’s Sense of the Malefic Viper. Needless to say, he could not hold himself back from identifying it.

[Lifeblood of the Emperor Urchin (Ancient)] – The Lifeblood of a slain Emperor Urchin, an incredibly poisonous creature only found in areas with extremely dense water affinity. Its very blood is toxic to consume and especially toxic if directly injected. The Lifeblood is of a neurotoxin nature. Has many alchemical uses and is especially when combined with other neurotoxins or poisons with the water affinity.

Jake was not one to say no to a good thing and gladly accepted his gift. Sandy had already zoomed forward and eaten the Pearl without a care in the world. Jake shook his head and put the crystal container in his inventory.

”Thank you, from both of us. I am sure we can figure something out if you are sincere. Me knowing who is backing you would also help, but I can accept it if you want to stay secretive,” Jake said with a smile

”No, I am the one to thank you. I have been allowed to say that my god is indeed far more aware of you than others, and you have briefly brushed Paths before. You and your Patron have both helped him, perhaps unknowingly, and he wishes to pay back that favor,” the Sky Whale said.

Still no idea who it could be, Jake thought. Considering the whale said unknowingly, he assumed it truly was a god he had never met or interacted with. He was also confused at Villy having helped this mystery god. Moreover, he didn’t get the feeling the whale was lying. Why would it lie? What would it get out of it?

They exchanged some more pleasantries before the whale took to the air. Yes, rather than dive down underwater, it flew upwards into the vast skies above, doing whatever Sky Whales do.

“That was a nice whale,” Sandy said.

“Yeah, very whalecoming,” Jake agreed.

“That was bad… like, I can feel you snicker through the connection, and you should not feel proud about that one at all,” Sandy scolded him with exasperation.

“Whale then, I guess I will fin-ish this conversation here,” Jake said, unable to hold back a grin.

The worm did not respond but just cut the connection and gulped him down. Jake did not resist as he was tossed into Sandy’s stomach, still smiling proudly to himself.

“I do wonder what god that whale was associated with,” Jake wondered out loud. It was a mystery that would likely take a long time to sol-

“Hey Jake, remember that god Karroch that was in charge of your Tutorial? Yeah, that is the god that blessed the whale and apparently a shitload of other beasts on your planet,” Villy came in, spoiling the mystery.

“Wait, that beastmaster kind of guy? Why would he say I helped him, and moreover, why would he say you helped him? Well, unless you did help him… is this him paying you back a favor or something?” Jake asked instantly in return.

“Not really. As the god in charge of your Tutorial – despite him being trumped and just working for Eversmile, the Holy Mother, and others – he was the one in charge on paper. Which means he got rewards based on the performance of the participants. You becoming a Progenitor was a major boon to him. Then afterward, I killed the Brimstone Hegemon, an enemy of this god. One can say that we both changed his life. You allowed him to break through and no longer stagnate in strength while I removed an enemy trying to hunt down and kill him,” Villy explained. “He truly got lucky by crossing paths with you and me.”

“Huh, guess you learn something new every day. So, what is he trying to do? Get on your good side through me? Or just repaying some perceived favor?”

“Bit of both from the looks of it. Just let him; Karroch is an unaffiliated god that does not belong to any Pantheon, and honestly, him helping you out can be very beneficial. As a beastmaster, his Blessing can help beasts tremendously, and the guidance he can offer is also better than what most other gods can. You must remember that one of the primary abilities of beastmasters is to make their beasts stronger and allow them to grow in strength. If that Augur is a guide for the enlightened to find their Paths, a good beastmaster is a guide for beasts,” Villy further explained.

“I see,” Jake said. “But are these beastmasters not effectively just tamers forcing beasts to fight for them? Is it a good idea for a beast to be influenced by someone like that?”

“Beastmasters tend to have two classifications of beasts. Tamed beasts and companion beasts. Companion beasts have a connection more like the one you have with the Sylphian Hawk, while the tamed beasts are indeed just expendable chess pieces. Companion beasts are naturally what these beastmasters care about the most and the kind of Records you can expect if blessed by one,” Villy said.

“Good to know,” Jake said.

“Anyway, I just thought I would let you know as it was something god-related. I shall let you get back to your travels. Keep up the good work,” Villy said before cutting off the connection. It was just a brief talk but rather enlightening. He also failed to hold himself back.

“Hey Sandy, can you do me a favor and tell the Sky Whale to say that I am happy Karroch benefitted from my Path?” Jake asked the worm.

“Who is Karroch?” Sandy asked.

“A mutual acquaintance of the whale and me.”

A few moments passed. Sandy always made the walls transparent and allowed Jake to look outside, and he saw the Sky Whale, now far up in the air, react as Sandy spoke to it. A few more seconds passed.

“The whale talked about you truly being a monster or something like that, which makes no sense as you said you are a human, right? Humans aren’t monsters,” Sandy relayed to him.

Jake just shook his head. “Who knows? Maybe I am also a giant whale in disguise.”

“Doubtful, considering whales aren’t scared of water,” Sandy scoffed.

“I am not afraid of water,” Jake argued. “I just recognize I am not adept in fighting in it.”

“Sounds like something someone who is scared of water would say.”

“It is not about fear, but-“

“Maybe you are… what was it… a chicken? Yeah, maybe you are a chicken in disguise? Because you sound like a chicken right now,” Sandy cut him off.

“No, it is not that, I-“

“Chickens also don’t like water, right? What a coincidence…”

Their “argument” continued… Jake not realizing he had fallen into a trap – or being too stubborn and prideful to back down - until it was too late.