I became a god through archaeology in the Wizarding World.

Rhodes snapped out of his thoughts and took out another sealed alchemical flask from the bag in his arms.

The flask did not contain any medicine, but rather a viscous, pitch-black liquid that seemed to possess its own consciousness and kept colliding with the flask walls.

This is the black blood he risked his life to collect when the Deep Sea Lord fled.

Although the fourth-ring deep-sea lord was repelled by the Titan, the blood it left behind still contained terrifying vitality and highly toxic laws.

"The genes of the tetracyclic organism..."

Rhodes looked at the flask, a glint of madness and greed flashing in his eyes.

If an ordinary wizard apprentice were to come into contact with even a trace of this black blood, they would be instantly corrupted by the deep-sea will within it and transformed into a mindless fish-man monster.

But he is different.

He owns "A Pictorial Guide to Species".

Rod took a deep breath, took off his gloves, and slowly placed his right hand on the surface of the flask.

"Buzz~~!!!"

Deep in his mind, the silent ancient illustrated book seemed to smell an unparalleled delicacy and erupted with an unprecedentedly violent tremor.

The pages flipped wildly, making a sound like thunder.

On the originally blank pages, countless ink lines were frantically drawn.

It was a turbulent black sea, and a giant whale, as large as a mountain, broke out of the water. Its skin was covered with thick barnacles and ancient shipwrecks. With each breath, it spewed out black poisonous mist, and the surrounding sea rapidly rotted and died as it swam.

Lines of scarlet text exploded on Rhodes's retina:

[High-level species successfully included!]

[Target: Deep Sea Lord - Corruption Black Tide Whale (Fourth Ring - Calamity Species)]

[Status: Severely Injured / Extremely High Genetic Activity]

[Description: A living totem worshipped by the Deep Sea Church, a mobile source of plague. Its blood flows with a deadly curse called the Black Tide, capable of transforming all organic matter into rotting minions. It possesses extremely strong regenerative abilities and a deep-sea-resistant constitution.]

[You can choose to extract two of the genes:]

[Black Tide Blood (Passive/Active)]: Replaces the host's blood. Gains extremely high toxin immunity and corrosion resistance. When actively activated, the blood possesses both strong acid and mental pollution properties, capable of corroding the body and sanity of those who come into contact with it.

[Body of a Giant Whale (Passive)]: Greatly increases body density and life regeneration speed. Gains deep-sea lungs, allowing indefinite underwater survival and resistance to water pressure at tens of thousands of meters.

【Whispers of Calamity (Active)】: Simulates the infrasound of a giant whale, causing widespread physical shock and mental dizziness.

Rhodes's eyes darted quickly over the three options.

[Whispers of Calamity] overlaps somewhat with his [Song of the Siren], and while [Body of the Whale] is tempting, his [Immortal Body] already provides sufficient defense.

What he lacks most right now is the ability to survive in the deep-sea environment and a lethal means to kill higher-level creatures.

"I choose... the fusion feature of [Black Tide Blood] and [Whale Body]."

Rhodes gave the order in his mind.

The encyclopedia seemed to pause for a moment.

The next second, the black blood in the flask vanished into thin air.

A cold, viscous energy with a strong, foul odor surged wildly into Rhodes' body through his arm.

"Ughh ...

Rod suddenly tilted his head back, the veins on his neck bulging and turning an eerie purplish-black.

pain!

Excruciating pain that penetrates to the bone!

This is not just a tearing apart of the body, but also a tampering and devouring at the genetic level.

The domineering Black Tide Whale gene, once it entered his body, attempted to devour Rhodes' original [Abyssal Wyvern] and [Ancient Sea Monster] bloodlines.

It felt as if countless tiny venomous snakes were crawling and tearing at the walls of his blood vessels.

His skin began to turn black rapidly, oozing a foul-smelling slime, and even faintly growing fine black scales.

"Trying to assimilate me? Dream on!"

Rhodes crushed the painkiller in his mouth and forcibly mobilized his mental energy.

"Dragon skeleton, suppress! Siren heart, synchronize!"

A deep dragon's roar emanated from his spine, and a burst of dark red light erupted, fiercely protecting his hematopoietic bone marrow.

At the same time, the heart, infused with the siren's genes, pounded violently, pumping out eerie blue blood as it fought a desperate battle against the invading black energy.

Three distinctly different high-level biological genes waged a brutal tug-of-war on Rhode's body.

Rhodes's consciousness began to fade.

In a daze, he seemed to see a pitch-black deep sea.

A massive shadow hovered above his head, and the Black Tide Whale opened its enormous jaws, uttering an ancient and malevolent whisper: "Return... return to the embrace of the deep sea..."

The voice was so alluring that it made one want to give up resistance and succumb to the eternal darkness and silence.

"Get out!"

Rhodes's soul let out a roar.

He is a wizard, a scholar who seeks the truth, and will never become a puppet of a beast!

Using the [Species Encyclopedia] as a central hub, he forcefully crushed the raging black tide's will, transforming it into the purest biological energy and integrating it into every cell of his being.

I don't know how much time passed.

The screams in the sealed room gradually subsided.

Rod collapsed to the ground, his entire body soaked in sweat and the black, foul blood he had expelled.

He was breathing heavily, his chest heaving like a bellows with each breath.

He slowly raised his hand.

The skin, which had been pale, had returned to normal, but beneath the skin, the blood vessels were faintly visible, displaying a deep, dark blue color.

Rhodes casually grabbed a steel dagger from the side and lightly slashed his arm.

No bright red blood flowed out.

A drop of thick, dark liquid oozed from the wound.

"Sizzle sizzle..."

The drop of blood landed on the steel dagger, and white smoke actually rose from it.

The hard steel was corroded instantly, as if it had encountered hot wax, creating a large hole.

"The Blood of the Black Tide..."

As Rod watched this scene, a chilling smile curled at the corner of his lips.

This blood is not only highly poisonous, but also contains a curse from the deep sea.

From now on, any creature that dares to drink his blood, or any enemy that attempts to engage in close combat, will pay a terrible price.

More importantly, he felt his vitality had become stronger than ever before.

The cut I had just made healed in just two seconds, leaving no scar.

[Physical fitness has significantly improved.]

[Gained Trait: Deep-Sea Adaptability (Perfect). You are now both the darling and the deadly poison of the ocean.]

[Current strength assessment: First-ring veteran wizard (physical strength approaching that of a peak second-ring magical beast).]

Rhodes stood up and clenched his fist.

The air was crushed in his palm with a crisp sound.

"Although I haven't broken through the mental bottleneck of the second ring yet, with this body alone, I already have the ability to survive in the deep sea."

Rhodes turned around and pushed open the door to the secret room.

Outside, the morning sunlight was a bit too bright.

He looked at the port being rebuilt in the distance, and at the busy soldiers.