CHAPTER 83: CHAPTER83-THE SAINT AND SAINTESS OF THE SEA RACE

"Ah, Saint Your Highness, please hold on a moment. Although I permit you to enter Heartstealer Island, there are a few conditions I must set," Godwin extended his hand, signaling Owen to sit down.

"Please speak, Grandmaster Godwin," Owen knew that the crucial part was coming.

"There’s only one condition: you cannot participate in the contest for the Heart of the Ocean," Godwin stated, his tone serious and earnest.

Owen fell into silence.

His very purpose for visiting Heartstealer Island was to seek the Heart of the Ocean.

If he couldn’t partake in its contest, what was the point of going to the island? Could he not strive to break through the grandmaster-tier elsewhere?

Godwin leisurely sipped his wine, observing Owen’s expression, feeling an immense weight in his heart.

"Dragons are indeed lucky to have a saint of such depth and cunning. The prosperity of dragons seems promising!" He mused inwardly.

Godwin would have preferred if Owen had reacted angrily.

After all, this was his territory in Gosa Waters.

Even if Owen caused an uproar and called upon other dragon powerhouses, the neptune race would still hold the upper hand in public opinion.

But Owen’s calm demeanor made Godwin realize he was a tough opponent to deal with.

"Let me be frank with you, Grandmaster Godwin," Owen pondered for a moment before devising his strategy, "My intention in coming here is indeed to use the Heart of the Ocean to break through the grandmaster-tier."

"Is that so!" feigned Godwin, playing dumb. "Your Highness’s desire to break through the grandmaster-tier is understandable, but it’s not necessary to rely on the Heart of the Ocean. I can offer empowerment assistance."

How could self-attained breakthrough and empowerment from another be the same?

For his ascension, Owen would never choose such a shortsighted method.

Moreover, Godwin was merely at the grandmaster-tier; the extent of his empowerment would be limited.

In contrast, the Heart of the Ocean was a subartifact, potentially containing fragments of incomplete Orders.

Both methods involved leveraging external forces for breakthroughs, but the choice of which would better benefit the future was clear.

Owen waved his hand dismissively, "Mr. Godwin, Barlo told me upon my arrival that in the path of cultivation, it’s better to rely on oneself than on others. Therefore, empowerment assistance is naturally unsuitable for me. I’d feel more at ease achieving the breakthrough on my own."

"Is it that you must have the Heart of the Ocean?" Godwin’s face darkened, exerting an invisible pressure on Owen.

"Not necessarily. Although I am the saint of dragons, I understand that being overbearing won’t lead to great achievements. The Heart of the Ocean is not exclusively mine; I merely hope we can freely compete for it," Owen proposed his solution.

Godwin shook his head, "Impossible. The Heart of the Ocean absolutely cannot fall into the hands of outsiders."

Owen smiled, "Grandmaster Godwin, do you have so little confidence in the young talents of your own race?"

He didn’t need to guess to know that there must be restrictions on who could ascend Heartstealer Island.

Otherwise, Godwin wouldn’t be wasting words with him.

The likely limit was probably the grandmaster-tier.

Godwin pursed his lips, clearly hit by Owen’s point.

The dragons, with their profound heritage, often had gold-tier dragons defeating diamond-tier warriors.

It wasn’t unheard of for diamond-tier dragons to fight toe-to-toe with grandmaster-tier opponents.

Why is Barlo formidable?

It’s because, at the diamond-tier, he single-handedly challenged nine grandmaster-tier warriors of the ifrit race.

He killed three fire demons and escaped from the other six. Since that battle, Barlo became renowned.

As a grandmaster-tier, Barlo was even more extraordinary.

In front of another grandmaster-tier warrior, he assassinated his grandmaster-tier disciple. Over time, as Barlo stepped into the grandmaster-tier, he plundered resources from various races, sparing not even the angel race, considered the foremost among them on the continent.

The saying, "No sage emerges, Barlo reigns supreme," was sung by minstrels for a long time.

If Barlo was so formidable, wouldn’t the talents of the saint of dragons be even more extraordinary?

Godwin noticed that Owen was currently at the pinnacle of the diamond-tier, yet he believed Owen capable of overcoming grandmaster-tier adversaries.

He lacked confidence that there was anyone in the sea race who could match Owen’s prowess.

At that moment, a member of the neptune race approached Godwin and whispered a few words into his ear.

Godwin’s expression remained unchanged as he nodded subtly.

The atmosphere in the tent grew more solemn.

Owen, too, remained silent, leisurely sipping the exquisite wine from Gosa Waters.

The sea race’s brew was remarkable, with a strong exotic flavor, sweet and rich, akin to a fine beverage.

After Godwin finished his conversation, he finally addressed Owen: "Your Highness, I agree to your request."

Owen smiled, raising his glass towards Godwin: "Thank you, Grandmaster Godwin."

The two men clinked their glasses from a distance, then simultaneously drained the wine in one gulp.

Finn watched enviously from the side.

As the second prince of the Laine Kingdom, he too held a princely title, yet he felt infinitely weaker compared to Owen.

Godwin, who barely acknowledged him, treated Owen with starkly different, respectful courtesy, which was almost irritating.

With the matter settled, the atmosphere in the tent became more lively.

Godwin, quite the conversationalist, chatted with Owen about various topics, ranging from the mundane to the extraordinary.

Then, someone reported:

"My lord, the saint and saintess have heard of the arrival of the saint of dragons and wish to meet him."

Godwin, beaming, raised his wine glass: "Excellent, bring them in quickly. It’s good for young people to get along well."

Owen was somewhat surprised; he hadn’t expected that the sea race would have their own saint and saintess.

During the Saint Selection Ceremony, his thoughts were disrupted by the [Prophecy], and he was engulfed in despair for not being chosen by his own race, so he hadn’t paid attention to which races had selected his fellow candidates.

The only memory that stood out to him was Roger being chosen by the angel race.

Roger had been in the spotlight, but Owen had slapped him in front of representatives from all races.

Soon, a young man and woman entered.

Both appeared to be around sixteen or seventeen years old, yet their arcanergy, enveloping them, indicated they had already reached the grandmaster-tier.

They greeted Godwin with a bow: "Teacher."

Owen looked surprised; these two were clearly not of the neptune race, so why did they address Godwin as their teacher? Godwin seemed to read Owen’s thoughts and sighed:

"You must be wondering, aren’t you?"

"A bit," Owen responded with a chuckle.

"Millions of years ago, the sea race was dominant, with the oceans covering ninety percent of the continent. But as the land evolved, the sea area gradually decreased, and the sea race’s influence waned. Now, the sea race is even more vulnerable, and saints are our only hope. Thus, these two are raised jointly by our sea race, in the hope that they will strengthen us," explained Godwin.

Owen smiled nonchalantly: "They surely will."

It seemed the sea race had undergone significant changes, Owen thought to himself.

Godwin, likely having important matters to attend to, stood up and announced loudly:

"You are of the same age and come from the same place; surely you have endless topics to discuss. I will leave you to it. Have a good chat and build camaraderie."

"Yes," Owen and the others responded, while the saint and saintess of the sea race answered more enthusiastically.

After Godwin left, the saint and saintess turned to Owen, their faces filled with excitement.

The young man introduced himself first: "Saint Your Highness, my name is Aldington Woodrow. You can call me Aldington. I am from the sea giant race."

His body was indeed giant-like, even taller than Godwin, with muscles bulging like steel, giving off an imposing presence just by his appearance.

The female companion, lithe and sinuous like a water snake, had a face marked by a pair of striking, triangular eyes, exuding a certain allure: "Saint Your Highness, I am Bessie Gregory from the sea serpent race."

Owen nodded slightly, responding simply: "Nice to meet you."

He didn’t recognize either of them. After all, during his time at school, with hundreds of students, he was more of an introvert, not a social butterfly.

He could barely remember all his classmates, let alone these individuals.

Aldington spoke with enthusiasm: "Your Highness, I vividly remember your impressive performance at the Saint Selection Ceremony. I always wanted to meet you and never expected to encounter you here."

Bessie smiled charmingly: "Your Highness, I felt the same. I hope you can offer some guidance when we enter Heartstealer Island."

Owen raised an eyebrow, puzzled: "Guidance? You two are from the sea race family; I’m the outsider here. How am I to guide you?"

Aldington’s expression turned slightly awkward: "Your Highness might not be aware, but our status within the sea race is quite awkward."

"Oh?" Owen grew more curious, "Could you elaborate?"

Bessie, biting her lip, sat next to Owen and poured him a glass of wine, familiarly: "Your Highness, with your commanding presence among dragons, you wouldn’t encounter the kind of predicament we face. Though we bear the titles of saint and saintess, we are, after all, outsiders. Some naturally talented members of our race don’t hold us in high regard."

Owen’s eyes flickered, sensing an opportunity to gather information: "Um, for example?"

Bessie became more alluring, appearing pitiable: "In the neptune race, there’s a young man named Stanbeck, about our age, but far more gifted. He has always looked down upon us."

"And in the merfolk, there’s a female named Phyllis with equally astonishing talent."

"Some even believe they are the true saint and saintess."