There was a gigantic, scary-looking...fish, which had a very human-like expression and was… grinning at him.
The sheer scale of it was overwhelming. Just the front 'face' of it was easily three times Eric's height.
Its body was monstrous, bluish-grey, like a whale made of rough, cold stone. Deep furrows and wrinkles carved into its face, and it almost had a cartoonishly wide smile, but the 'smile' was filled with countless sharp, long teeth.
Each tooth was wickedly sharp, long, and densely packed, almost like a forest of bone in a gaping maw that could chew him—or even a whale—entirely.
Its long, countless teeth looked so sharp that perhaps even a tank could be easily shredded to nothing in a few bites.
Its eyes, though partially obscured by darkness, were intensely unnerving. They projected intelligence, age, and utter devoidness of compassion.
Those massive eyes were currently piercing right through him, assessing him as if he were nothing more than a particularly interesting snack.
Eric had never imagined he would face such a horrendous-looking creature with such a lifelike expression right in front of him—and with such closeness—completely out of nowhere, as he had never noticed its arrival.
For a moment, he froze. Terror, dread, and helplessness spread throughout his body.
Anyone who saw such a monster for the first time would invariably freeze in terror, no matter how strong they believed themselves to be.
"B-Brother Eric!" Lyria's panicked voice transmitted from the Voice Transmission Artifact.
"W-Why do I feel like I'm being gazed at by a dangerous predator all of a sudden, almost like...like…?" Livy's voice was also shaking.
All three of them had trained extensively since childhood, and so their danger sense was extremely high, especially when facing life-threatening peril. The moment both Lyria and Livy felt an enormous threat directed at them—even though they couldn't see—they knew something was very wrong, and they might lose their lives at any moment.
Riya boomed loudly enough to wake Eric: "It's a physical-type Rank 2 Mana Beast—the Abyssal Grinner!"
Riya didn't wait and immediately sent Eric its information.
Even she had frozen in horror moments ago. Thanks to Lyria and Livy's reminder, she regained her senses and quickly sped up time inside Mind Space.
Eric rapidly reviewed the information.
Thankfully, Lysandra had provided them with information on most known Mana Beasts up to Elder-stage Rank 2. If he wasn't mistaken in his judgment, the Abyssal Grinner in front of them was either a newborn or young stage Rank 2.
After reviewing the information and assessing its rank, Eric felt they were all in real danger this time.
This was their first encounter with a Mana Beast, yet why did it have to be Rank 2? That required a group of Rank 3 Mana Wielders to take down, and they were underwater in terrible condition. How could they possibly survive now?
'Calm down. My ability is still working, and I'm no longer that weak. According to the information, the area below its body is its weakness—its heart and Mana Core are fairly close to that location. All I need to do is stab that place with a spear. Yes, it's fine!'
Eric calmed himself but remained deeply worried for Lyria and Livy. He could dodge using blink, but the girls couldn't.
Riya promptly reminded, "Don't forget about the Teleportation Stones!"
Eric's eyes shone.
That had been their plan—to use them after successfully breaking through during their stat trials, as they would be too weak and near death to calmly swim back up.
It wasn't entirely hopeless!
Due to the sudden change in situation, he had momentarily forgotten.
Since Riya had sped up Eric's thought process, it took him only a split second to reach this conclusion.
Eric rapidly spoke into their communication device, keeping his tone as calm as possible to avoid panic.
"Ly, Liv—take out the Teleportation Stone, cover it with your Mana, and put it inside your mouths. The moment I say to crush it, don't hesitate! Let me fight this fish. Also, take out two of your largest shields, cover yourselves the best you can, and if you ever feel extreme danger, crush the stone immediately!"
Lyria, Livy understood the gravity of the situation and didn't delay.
They immediately let go of the rope they were holding and did exactly as Eric instructed.
They knew they couldn't help, as their abilities were useless if they couldn't even see their enemy.
Throughout all this, the Abyssal Grinner wickedly grinned without attacking.
To it, any 'Mana Creature' was the best nutrition for its growth, and it had suddenly found three easy prey together.
It was like unexpectedly finding delicious food out of nowhere. So it didn't immediately attack—just admired its catch.
For some strange reason, it felt that although the three were only Rank 1 Mana Creatures, they were somehow extra crunchy, delicious, and nutritious.
Having eaten many such creatures before, it remained relaxed, confident they couldn't escape its sharp jaws.
Eric was thankful the Abyssal Grinner hadn't launched a sneak attack. If it had, he might have blinked to safety, but he doubted he could have rescued Lyria or Livy—and even if he had, they might have lost limbs in the process.
He didn't wait for the Abyssal Grinner to show any new expression. Without hesitation, he blinked beneath it and pulled out a high-grade Tier 2 spear inscribed with Thunder Rune.
He quickly imbued it with his Mana for extra penetration and activated its Rune. Then, with his full strength—despite the immense pressure—he stabbed just beneath its neck, where the information indicated its weakness lay.
Due to the ocean's crushing pressure and the beast's dense musculature, the spear didn't penetrate fully—only halfway—before lodging in place.
The Abyssal Grinner had been deciding whom to chomp first—settling on the male, who hadn't drawn any metal yet.
Just as it was about to suck the Rank 1 worm into its jaws, he vanished.
Stunned, it wondered where the male had gone—then suddenly felt something pierce deep below its heart.
Helplessly, it opened its mouth wide and screeched.
The Abyssal Grinner's painful howl sent shockwaves rippling outward.
Lyria and Livy weren't harmed—the attack wasn't directed at them—but the shockwaves hurled them deeper into the ocean, separating them from their original position.
A second or two later, Lyria—who had tightly gripped her shields to prevent them from flying off—shuddered.
She suddenly felt multiple shackles inside her break, and her senses momentarily vanished. Instantly, she knew her breakthroughs were complete—yet she felt no joy.
She quickly tried contacting the others through her device.
Yet after multiple attempts, only silence answered—no reply from Eric or Livy.
Ignoring the crushing pressure, her heart trembled with fear—had something happened to them?
She tried moving but had no idea where she was going.
Thankfully, after a few seconds, a voice crackled through her artifact:
"I-I—"
Lyria immediately recognized Livy and urgently spoke: "Break the Stone and return to the Island if you've broken through!"
Livy had wanted to report her breakthrough, but Lyria's rushed response arrived broken: "Br--- t... St-ne—"
She barely understood—Lyria was likely telling her to crush the stone in her mouth.
She bit her lip in anxiety.
For the last few days, she thought she had become invincible near a water source, only to realize now that she was still far from it—her abilities were too useless to be of any help to anyone.
Tears burst from her eyes, but she did as she was told and, with a short answer—"Okay"—she crushed the stone and teleported back to the heart-shaped island.
Lyria waited for a reply, but her device fell into complete silence.
She was equally distressed and disappointed at her own uselessness. She had thought that with her recent ability, she would be safe and able to properly help both Eric and Livy, only to learn she was completely helpless. She didn't even know where her enemy or allies were.
She suddenly realized the massive importance of vision and the ability to see. They had all taken sight for granted, subconsciously assuming their battles would be clear, visible, and upfront.
This wasn't entirely Eric's, Lyria's, or Livy's fault—due to their lack of experience, they had never encountered the unpredictability of battle or the unexpected situations that could arise.
With tearful, helpless eyes, Lyria also crushed the stone inside her mouth and teleported.
Due to the previous shockwave, she was still being dragged helplessly deeper, the pressure too much to bear. All she could do was save herself first and avoid becoming a burden to Eric. Sadly, she couldn't even report back properly.
Eric fell into a stupor from the shockwave and vibrations that followed after the Abyssal Grinner roared.
Though he knew the Abyssal Grinner could roar underwater and attack, that didn't mean he could defend against it—especially at such close range.
The attack was aimed directly at Eric, targeting not just his ears but his entire body, leaving him completely paralyzed.
"Wake up!" Riya thundered inside Eric's mind, forcefully rousing him with her Mind Space.
Eric regained his senses just in time to see the Abyssal Grinner's jagged jaws a hair's breadth from chewing him alive.
His soul nearly fled from terror—facing something so monstrous up close was an entirely different experience.
Eric immediately blinked backward, escaping the overgrown fish's bone-ridged maw by mere inches.
His back was drenched in sweat despite the freezing ocean water.
The Abyssal Grinner, realizing it had missed, began searching for its vanished prey.
Eric didn't waste a second. Barely surviving, he blinked beneath the creature's neck where a spear protruded from its abdomen.
He kicked the spear's end with full force, driving it deeper—but it still didn't reach its mark, stopping after only a slight advance.
Just as Eric grabbed the spear to push again, his body shuddered. He felt multiple internal shackles crumble, plunging him into a brief haze.
When the Abyssal Grinner felt another piercing pain near its heart, it screamed in agony. The force hurled Eric deeper, but the shock also snapped him awake.
Grinning, he ignored his body's dire state— which seemed seconds away from total collapse.
Unlike past breakthroughs, he distinctly felt all three shackles break. Though battered, he wouldn't lose consciousness this time.
Still, he couldn't stay underwater. He wanted to check on Lyria and Livy, but first, he had to end this threat.
After its pained screech, the Abyssal Grinner sensed mortal danger—the weapon had struck its fatal weakness. It immediately tried to flee.
Just as it was about to flip its tail, it felt the sharp object dig deeper into its heart, rupturing it from inside with explosive thunder.
The Abyssal Grinner's massive body froze.
A second later, its enormous eyelids slowly slid shut, and it began drifted lifelessly along the ocean floor.
It was dead.