Is That A Wisp?

"The explanation to each item will appear when you tap it," the octopus said as it watched Krune follow its advice. 

With that, he tapped on the first item, reading its description aloud, "Passive (Underwater Breathing): Allows the user to breathe underwater freely."

"Fair enough." Krune nodded in satisfaction, though it was obvious from the name alone. He then tapped on the second item in the list, reading its description, "Water Essence: A concentrated essence of the healing substance present in the ocean waters. Consuming one would be able to heal most injuries, even regenerating lost body parts. If one is at death's door, consuming two would be enough to recover to an optimal state."

"This is great…" Krune then thought about something as he looked at the octopus, soon asking, "Based on what this is saying, then even if I were to lose a limb or two, as long as I immerse myself in the ocean waters, I'll regrow them?"

"Yes." The octopus splashed the water as it nodded. "But that would take a couple of years at the very least since the healing property is too scarce in the water. As for this Water Essence, it takes us about a year to condense one. With that, it's incredibly precious. That's why it's prized as such."

Krune then asked the octopus regarding the method used to condense it. Unsurprisingly, the octopus went silent, expressing its intention to not tell him. He then sighed in response to the sight before reading out the details of the third item, "Motor Fish: It's a special type of fish that is artificially bred to ensure it remains loyal to its owner for all its life. Its specialty is its rowing and pulling capacity. It would be caged in a cage of bone and can be either attached to a boat or ridden on directly. It would allow you to travel at great speeds in this ocean layer."

"Just the thing I need, but…" Krune frowned as he continued, "It's too expensive."

It cost 7 Godly Points. For every Godly Point, Krune had to kill a tremendously powerful fish. So, spending that much just to obtain a fish that would help in moving about seemed like a waste of his hard work. Besides, without any set destination in mind, obtaining the Motor Fish seemed useless. 

Krune then read the description of the fourth item. "Bone Arsenal: weapons, armor, and tools required for your survival, all made from the bones of a powerful fish. A boat is also included."

"Fair enough, but I don't need it." Thinking that he could just make one, Krune looked at the description of the fifth item as he continued to read it, "Ticket to Primary Landmass: It will transport the user to an island with a radius of 50 kilometers. The island would be filled with monsters and would be ruled by five Kings. Killing each King would result in a passive ability. There are 10 other monsters. Killing each one would yield a Godly Point. Duration of stay in the Primary Landmass is 1 year. Ripping the ticket during the stay would return the user to the Checkpoint Turtle."

After seeing it, Krune was interested in visiting it. It was a sure-fire method of obtaining Godly Points and passive abilities. After all, even though he had obtained two of them, those were purely coincidental. He didn't have a guarantee of stumbling upon such opponents again.

After all, the ocean layer was just too vast. After a month afloat, he hadn't ever come across another human. So, if he wished to meet up with his friends or even leave this place, obtaining more abilities and Godly Points was a must. 

Besides, there was a clear goal before him. As he could afford it, if Krune didn't choose it, he would be a fool. Intending to first look through all the treasures, Krune didn't buy it immediately, looking at the sixth item.

He read its description, "Ticket to Secondary Landmass: It will transport the user to an island with a radius of 150 kilometers. The island would be filled with monsters and would be ruled by 15 Kings. Killing each King would result in a passive ability. There are 30 other monsters. Killing each one would yield a Godly Point. Duration of stay in the Secondary Landmass is 1 year. Ripping the ticket during the stay would return the user to the Checkpoint Turtle."

He then looked at the seventh item as he continued to read it aloud, "Ticket to Tertiary Landmass: It will transport the user to an island with a radius of 500 kilometers. The island would be filled with monsters and would be ruled by 50 Kings. Killing each King would result in a passive ability. There are 100 other monsters. Killing each one would yield a Godly Point. It is also governed by a Supreme Monster. Killing it would yield an active ability. Duration of stay in the Tertiary Landmass is 1 year. Ripping the ticket during the stay would return the user to the Checkpoint Turtle."

"An active ability…?" Krune realized his conjecture was right as he looked at the octopus and asked, "We can obtain active abilities as well?"

"Only from the Tertiary Landmass," the octopus nodded as it replied. "Obtaining an active ability will make you feel like a King in this layer. Though, obtaining it is easier said than done. Also…"

It looked at Krune, speaking solemnly as it continued, "One person can have five passive abilities at most. If you obtain the sixth, you will have to overwrite it on one of your existing passive abilities or choose not to obtain it. That option will appear on your tablet at that time."

"I see, so five is the limit." Krune nodded, asking, "Then, what about the active ability? When I obtain it, do I have to forgo one of my Passives?"

"No." The octopus shook its head, splashing some of the water due to its size as it replied, "You can have only one active ability. It is independent of the number of passive abilities you possess."

"Fair enough." Krune nodded, not glancing at the Tertiary Landmass Ticket anymore since it cost 50 Godly Points. He didn't have that much on his hand now. Moreover, he wasn't prepared enough. He only planned to head there once he was geared up completely.

While thinking of it, he realized a certain line of thought that he hadn't pondered about before. The mountainous demon beast said that they could leave the Sub-Realm after a decade had passed. But it seemed it wasn't automatic. They would only be able to leave after a decade, not that they were guaranteed to do so.

Instead, they would have to buy a ticket to exit the Sub-Realm. If they failed to do so, they would be in the Sub-Realm for all their lives. Seeing the items listed on the tablet, Krune was able to understand the objective of the Sub-Realm creator.

'Maybe it's not a Sub-Realm, but the subspace being developed by a God. Through the allure of the treasures, he now has a significant number of cultivators living in this Sub-Realm. If developed over time, they would be enough to populate the entire Sub-Realm within a millennium.'

He didn't state his thoughts aloud, reading the eighth item description. "Return to Layer 4 (6 months): The user will be randomly dispatched to one of the regions in the fourth layer. After a stay of six months, he will be transported back to the Checkpoint Turtle."

"This is for those who wish to farm for more Godly Points, right?" Krune inquired, watching the octopus nod in response. 

He then looked at the ninth item description. "Entry to Layer 2: You'll be transported to the Second Layer."

Upon not seeing anything else, Krune looked at the octopus, inquiring for it to explain. 

The octopus seemed a bit tired as it spoke, "The Fourth Layer is like a demo. So, after some time has passed, everyone was transported to this layer forcefully. But unlike that, this layer is the full version. Cultivators could live here for all their lives. So, if you wish to head to the Second Layer, this is the only way."

'As I suspected,' Krune nodded as he thought. It wasn't easy obtaining Godly Points. Moreover, to head to the Second Layer, one needed 200 Godly Points. It was an outrageous sum. One would need to save up for all their life and would still have to be lucky enough to obtain that sum. After all, as a mortal, Krune realized the risk involved in obtaining each Godly Point. 

He then looked at the final item description, "Helper Whistle: It calls forth a predator fish from the ocean to help the user, either to escape or kill his foes."

"How strong is this?" Krune couldn't help but ask the octopus, "Is it powerful enough to help me kill those Neon Radiance…fishes from the First Wave?"

"It can at most kill 2-3 three before dying. Against the Neon Radiance King, it would be lucky to kill one." The octopus then iterated further, "As for the waves, it will only happen once every decade."

"Only once per decade." Krune sighed in relief, relaxing at the thought he didn't have to face something of that extent again. He didn't plan on remaining in the Third Layer for that long. After thinking for a moment, he decided to ask, "How can I leave this Sub-Realm?"

"I'm not sure about that." The octopus shook its head. "Only the First Layer will have a clue regarding that."

Krune then hovered his gaze above the first item, inquiring, "Will you be selling other passive abilities later?"

"No." The octopus shook its head. "This list will never change unless the owner of the Sub-Realm changes it personally. So, I'll only be selling this one passive ability here."

"Alright." Krune nodded before saying, "I'll take the passive, Underwater Breathing. I'll also take two Water Essences and one ticket to a Primary Landmass."

"Sure thing." The octopus nodded as it flailed its tentacles in the water, taking out three items from within. The first seemed to be a parchment, the second was a vial containing two pills, while the third one was a container with blood.

In the meantime, Krune noticed the Godly Points displayed in his Tablet turn zero. He had spent everything he had obtained till now. It seemed that the transaction was done through mysterious means as the octopus handed him the three items, pointing at the container with the blood and said, "Drink this, and you'll obtain the passive ability."

"Alright." Krune opened its lid and drunk it, not caring about its raw taste. He soon convulsed on the ground as his lungs, neck, and nose burned. Ten seconds later, he relaxed, dipping his head in the water before him to see he could breathe through his nose like normal. It was a bit more difficult than while in air, but it was doable. 

He safely tucked away the vial in his hip, placing the two Water Essences there and looked at the parchment. Following the instructions of the octopus, he dripped a droplet of his blood on it. Immediately, his body disappeared from the place.