Chapter 425

Chapter 425: The Red-Haired Young Lady Became Ugly

"Ah—!"

"Help!"

"How did I get caught in such an ambush?!"

The demon god, taken by surprise, screamed in despair.

He might have dodged such an attack.

After all, his divine body was well-suited to the Ether Sea and very sharp-sensed; especially in the Ether Sea, he could use divine power to scan large areas ahead.

This scan couldn’t tell what was coming, but it could spot troublemakers hiding on the Bottom of the Ether Sea or buried shallow in Ancient God Fragments.

After one ally had fallen due to overconfidence, these selfish Chaos Demon Gods should have been more careful.

Sadly, their Soul was swayed by their master, Guxin, who held the Powers of the "Border Shallows"; this made the demon gods focus too much on hunting the mortal cricket who slew a god, so they forgot to check their surroundings.

That let the long-hidden Sneak Attacker catch them off guard!

Maybe it wasn’t his fault, but now it was too late!

The attacker didn’t use magic, and the teeth of the "avatar body" were small but sharp; they dug in like nails, holding the demon god tight and yanking him down to the Bottom of the Ether Sea.

Tangled and biting, lots of Ancient God Fragments and Primal Mud got stirred up by the fight, swept upward and spread through the Ether Sea.

The once-clear Ether Sea turned muddy at once.

Suddenly, nothing could be seen.

The murky mud blocking the view was just the start of the mess.

Many floating "Ancient God Fragments" particles badly messed with the gods’ searches, making the chaos worse.

The living saint, who seemed cornered by the demon god’s chase, dove into the "mud fog" and vanished.

This left a few demon gods behind, confused and unsure.

But after thinking it over, they chose…

"Kill—!"

There was no turning back.

If they saved their friend in time, it would be four against two; if not, three against two.

Even if they couldn’t beat the mortals, they had more numbers; the enemy likely had fewer and no real edge in strength.

Striking back, not running, was the smartest move.

Just then…

"Roar—!"

A colossal creature burst from the mud fog of the Ether Sea, its blood-red mouth gaping wide!

"Ah!"

The weird, scary look of the Ancient God shocked the demon gods, making their eyes go wide.

They were scared by the beast, didn’t expect it to attack when losing, and never thought the mortal cricket’s "avatar body" could be so much stronger than their "true god body"!

A violent shock struck their Souls, leaving the demon gods stunned for a moment.

That moment plunged them into the abyss of defeat!

“Boom—!”

A colossal shadow surged from above!

“Swoosh—Crash—!”

A massive head plunged straight from above into the Ether Sea, sending towering waves crashing!

Its saber-toothed giant jaws gaped wide.

“Rrraa—wrr—!”

“Agh—!”

The attacker clamped onto a demon god, yanked him from the Ether Sea, and slammed him onto the ruins of the former “Ancient God World.”

“Chomp…”

Another bite cleanly severed the prey’s neck—swift and decisive!

The Giant God was feeding.

—-

“Mmm!”

“Excellent!”

Trilobite savored a bite of fresh sea dragon meat, his eyes lighting up with delight.

“Sea dragon truly is delicious!”

“This flavor… can’t put it into words…”

“Simply amazing!”

“Thank you!”

“My spawn.”

Earlier, the three sea dragons had frozen in terror at the sight of his “number two paper young lady”—a perfect opportunity. Trilobite’s reflexes couldn’t keep up with moving targets, but snatching a motionless one? That was as easy as snapping up still prey!

As for the murky waters hiding the prey below…

Others might struggle, but not Trilobite.

He wasn’t just a “saber-toothed Bopolong”; he was a “saber-toothed Bopolong with Olfactory Membranes and a Lorentz Jar.” With those, underwater hunting was effortless.

Seizing the moment, Trilobite chomped down on a sea dragon, relishing his feast.

Yet…

“Gulp…”

“Er…”

He glanced at the “number two paper young lady” darting through the “sea,” feeling his appetite fade once more.

“Well, ‘Number Two Young Lady,’ the species you represent may be unsightly now, but don’t worry—I’ll upgrade you.”

"The Gorylia Wrinkled-gill Shark looked a bit creepy, but it was really strong!"

This time, Trilobite upgraded the "number two paper young lady," changing the Chondrichthyan Shark into a Gorylia Wrinkled-gill Shark, a species that appeared later.

It was likely during the Late Cretaceous period.

Back then, an inland sea formed in North America.

The Gorylia Wrinkled-gill Shark was a fierce predator that roamed inland and shallow seas.

As for its fossils…

Sorry, only a bunch of teeth remained.

This wasn’t surprising, since sharks are cartilaginous fish.

Though their bones had tough fibers and crystals, the main body stayed soft.

This structure didn’t hurt survival or strength; both underwater and fully hardened vertebrae had pros, but it made fossil preservation hard.

Of course, this evolution worked fine—sharks didn’t grow cartilage to become human fossils after death.

But it meant sharks rarely left complete fossils; usually, just teeth stayed intact.

Luckily, sharks are tough survivors.

Even today, many sharks thrive in oceans.

From top predators to bottom fish-eaters and filter feeders, cartilaginous fish led by sharks filled all sorts of ecological niches.

Paleontologists could easily identify fossil teeth by comparing them to modern shark teeth. Based on living relatives, they reconstructed looks and habits boldly.

Except for the wild "shark freaks" like the Eugene Shark family before the Permian, rebuilding other ancient sharks’ habits was easier than for dinosaurs with good fossils.

After all, no "living dinosaurs," "true dragons," or "lizard-like" species held dinosaurs’ old niches anymore.

This truly was…

Sad for the fine lizards.

As for the Gorylia Wrinkled-gill Shark…

Their close kin still exist!

These sharks lived on ocean floors hundreds of meters deep, with eel-like long bodies, no proper tail, just a primitive slanted one, perfect for chasing small prey around reefs.

Living deep, they had six pairs of gills for better oxygen; gill folds overlapped, so they were named Wrinkled-gill Sharks.

But unlike other sharks, their mouths faced forward, not down; they looked fierce, like lizards or eels.

With their wrinkled, gray, skinny look, no one called them "beautiful."

The teeth stood out most.

This shark had 25 rows of teeth lined up, about 300 total, looking scary when it opened its mouth.

Each tooth base had many forks.

Primitive, basic shark teeth were built that way.

Since they lived deep where humans rarely go, known groups were few, but they spread wide, almost worldwide.

This showed these seemingly basic sharks were great at adapting!

Their deep-sea mystery often got them labeled "unknown giant monsters" by marketing accounts.

Actually, Wrinkled-gill Sharks looked creepy but weren’t big—far from giant.

Adults measured 1.5 to 2 meters long.

But the Gorylia Wrinkled-gill Shark differed; it was bigger and fiercer, a scary marine predator.

The "giant monster" title fit them well.

These creatures could reach five meters or more!

When the Gorylia Wrinkled-gill Shark slid over the seabed with its ugly, huge body, casting shadows on reefs, nightmares began for medium marine vertebrates!

Even not-fully-grown medium Canglong might face threats!

"Of course, the ‘number two young lady’ was better than the real Gorylia Wrinkled-gill Shark."

"At least I swapped her teeth for standard shark teeth better for tearing, so her open mouth wasn’t so horrifying."

"It worked well now."

"See…"

Trilobite paused his half-eaten feast, walked to the sea edge, and squatted quietly.

Sure enough…

Soon…

"Roar!"

With a panicked cry, a Dorsal-toothed Canglong, cornered and desperate, leaped from the "sea surface," trying to jump onto a reef.

It splashed its tail, barely getting half its body out, ready to cling, but…

"Ah!?"

Its double eyes reflected the emotionless calcite double eyes!