Goblin Dependency

The experiences from her childhood left a shadow in her heart, still wishing for the other party to be punished accordingly. However, on the surface, she completely hid everything related to her origins, avoiding contact with anything related as if in escape.

Until that day, when the Black Tide Hunter Team was wiped out due to a mistaken pursuit, leaving only her, alone, just as when they arrived.

Standing on the deck of the Vengeance Blade, she overheard the adventurers discussing attending the Moon Tide feast.

Sarisa suddenly had an indescribable and mysterious intuition.

It seemed like all the hardships she had encountered in her life would soon come to an end.

She couldn’t explain or understand why she felt this way, even instinctively resisting contact with anything related to "Algae Scale" Dodd.

But deep down, she couldn’t help but feel a trace of hope.

By some strange twist of fate, she ultimately chose not to disembark earlier, as if she wanted to witness something, following the Vengeance Blade Ship Group to Stodd Island.

Of course, she still didn’t have the courage to step ashore, choosing instead to stay on the ship at the port.

When the ritual screen fell, unexpectedly encountering Flynn under "Algae Scale" Dodd, Sarisa was naturally affected by the ritual and swept into the Secret Realm.

Just like most adventurers pulled into the ritual at the moment, Sarisa quickly figured out the situation and made a guess that Dodd might have deliberately designed using the Sea Rhythm Festival.

But for some reason, entering the Secret Realm and inhabiting a sparrow’s body, she unexpectedly discovered that she seemed to be able to sense the position of the nearest adventurer.

And using her flying ability and small body, after further observing the adventurers she found, Sarisa judged that this ability should be unique to her.

She didn’t know what it meant, nor had she yet figured out the reason behind it.

But undoubtedly, even if only for the obsession in her heart, being swept into the Secret Realm, she had to do something.

In this regard, Sarisa’s plan of direction was similar to that of Wind Forger Flynn, attempting to find teammates who had also entered the Secret Realm.

And her luck, evidently wasn’t too bad as well.

In just two days, she found a distinctly familiar acquaintance.

Although she didn’t know why despite being pulled into the ritual and losing human form to become a beast, the other party could still use their previous Battle Skills.

But that unique wolf-like Mimesis Charge Battle Skill and the rare ability among adventurers to cause Force Field damage.

Made Sarisa almost instantly recognize the other’s identity and chose to expose her presence during combat to assist.

Regarding this, out of caution, Xia Nan didn’t immediately give complete trust to the other party.

Only after inquiring including "the dish of the last dinner before arriving at Stodd Island - mushroom stew fish soup" and "the way he killed the Windkind Octopus—with the help of a Druid teammate, descending from the sky", information known by crew members on the scene, did he finally confirm Sarisa’s identity.

"So ’Algae Scale’ Dodd is your father?"

The fur color visibly shifted from pitch black to pure White, ice-blue eyes glanced at the little sparrow on the ground, Xia Nan’s tone carried a hint of oddness.

Even though Sarisa’s identity as a Dragon Descendant had long been confirmed, such a race, much like Dwarves, Elves, and Half orcs, belonged to a class frequently seen among adventurers, it couldn’t solely be due to this that the two were inexplicably linked with "Algae Scale" Dodd.

Besides, who would have guessed that such a Great Pirate’s biological daughter would hide in a completely unrelated adventurer team, making a living hunting sea beasts?

[It’s indeed true, but...]

Small bird claws scratched the ground repeatedly, as if unsure how to explain to Xia Nan, Sarisa’s expression was conflicted.

[Rather than saying we’re father and daughter, our relationship is more like enemies.]

Xia Nan immediately understood.

Such a narrative, whether in various entertainment works from previous lives or in the legends and epics of the present world, had numerous examples.

Even if the other party didn’t wish to say explicitly, he could roughly guess the situation.

"You must have confirmed my identity using the Battle Skills I just employed, right?"

The bird Sarisa had morphed into gently nodded.

"Then was encountering me just by chance?"

Regarding this, Sarisa didn’t hide her ability to sense the nearby adventurers’ positions that she detected upon entering the Secret Realm.

Given that to some extent, the Vengeance Blade crew were pretty much the only ones in the Secret Realm she could truly call teammates now.

Sensing positions?

Seeing the other respond this way, Xia Nan’s heart was touched.

But he wasn’t eager; instead, he controlled the flashing thoughts in his mind and began introducing to the other his discoveries in the Secret Realm over the past few days.

Concealing the attribute panel’s existence, yet revealing that one can evolve in life level by absorbing the residual Life Energy from other adventurers.

Speculating that "Algae Scale" Dodd is likely using this ritual to achieve some purpose.

And given his hosting the Moon Tide feast and the numerous arrangements he made in advance on Stodd Island, Dodd evidently had been planning for a long time.

A White wolf, a sparrow, two completely unrelated creatures, one talking while the other wrote on the ground, exchanged information in the forest in an extremely awkward manner.

Perhaps not too close originally, but indeed part of the same alliance.

For Sarisa, given such an opportunity, she certainly hoped Dodd’s ritual wouldn’t progress smoothly and wished the other would face a corresponding end for his lifetime of crimes;

For Xia Nan, he cared little about the success of the "Algae Scale" ritual but saw the [Dream Weaving Corridor] key in Dodd’s possession as a critical objective to attain, plus unexpectedly found that killing adventurers in the Secret Realm could enhance Battle Skill Skill Level, now even having Sarisa as an ally resembling a bodily radar.

After a brief exchange, understanding each other’s desires.

Cooperation became a natural outcome.

However, for other adventurers in the Secret Realm apart from the Vengeance Blade crew, this clearly wasn’t a good phenomenon.

...

...

"Algae Scale" Dodd certainly wasn’t aware that the whole Secret Realm scenario was about to enter a significant transition at the current crucial juncture.

At this moment, he was nestling within his sand cave lair located deep in the desert, quietly resting.

Compared to when he first descended into the Secret Realm as Gravel Scale Lizard, his figure had already transformed into another creature.

With a body length of nearly two meters, its massive form was covered with what seemed like crystallized earth-yellow scales, and translucent skin that appeared weak but was actually tough, one could even see the writhing internal organs and tendons from a lower angle.

However, the planned wings and dragon horns stayed remained undeveloped, clearly diverging from his previous "giant dragon" evolution direction.

Dodd’s actions during this period hadn’t been smooth.

On one hand, although he could clearly sense the positions of all adventurers inside the Secret Realm, the Secret Realm’s size, paired with his movement abilities, became the major hurdles limiting his evolution speed.

Often, his four lizard legs had to crawl across the desert for a whole day to find an adventurer, spending vast time and energy.

Even knowing the Secret Realm would soon shrink, greatly increasing the chances of encountering adventurers, he was determined to raise the Life Level as quickly as possible to complete the initial accumulation, he certainly couldn’t slack off.

On the other hand, this was also the main reason he sacrificed precious development time, resting in the underground lair.

Not every adventurer was as weak as the sand rat he hunted in the first instance.

Some with particularly good luck might attach themselves to beings whose strength surpassed other adventurers who had already undergone one evolution.

The adventurer he ran into a few days ago was attached to a "Desert Rock Snake" grown to an almost Level 2 Challenge Level adult, protected by a complete clan.

Restricted by the environment and speed of movement, it was already too late when he wanted to retreat, barely escaping the nest after killing the opponent at the cost of serious injury.

Estimating his current body’s recovery ability, it would require at least another three days of rest to regain about eighty percent of combat capability.

However...

Given that other adventurers in the Secret Realm couldn’t sense the position of others, resting for a few days notably wouldn’t affect the progress of his subsequent plans.

"Algae Scale" Dodd lay in the sandy depths of the cave, thinking this, and fell into slumber.