[Progress: 80%]
He couldn't believe it.
Ivan's jaw dropped like an anchor when he saw the humongous coral reef before his eyes.
Forests and mountains surrounded the kingdom of Ishgar while the sea skirted a very small part of the kingdom.
Thus, the lack of port cities and an even greater lack of naval might.
As for coral reefs, the ancestors of Ishgar had already destroyed them all since it hindered the merchant ships a lot several thousands of years ago, not knowing the importance of coral reefs to the sea's ecosystem.
Not only did destroying the coral reefs bring severe damage to the ocean's ecosystem around Ishgar, it also caused losses too much to be imagined to the fishing industry.
Adding on, sea monsters made more appearances than usual because their major source of food was destroyed by the idiocy of humans.
Those were hard times back then when Ishgar did not have that many wizards compared to present times.
Countless lives were lost everyday for hundreds of years.
Finally, a group of water and earth wizards spent 20 years building artificial coral reefs to restore the balance of the sea's ecosystem.
The leader of this project was none other than a son of Poseidon, Triton. And yes, demigods existed thousands of years ago.
Likewise, heroes like Achilles and Hippolyta were real heroes recorded down within the annals of Grklyul, a country located at the very edge of the world.
After blinking a few more times to make sure he wasn't dreaming, Ivan swam towards a reef.
The critters that lived within the reef weren't alarmed by his presence and continued on with their day.
"To think that such beautiful coral reefs exist within examiner Lucas's mind…I want to have coral reefs within my mind too!" Ivan exclaimed excitedly.
As Ivan spent his time observing the coral reefs of various colors, Chaos's familiar, the Coral King, spent his time thinking up on several scenarios that can explain Ivan's presence within his master's sea of consciousness.
'Is he master's subordinate? No no no, I know each and everyone of the 10 Heavens and this boy is not one of them…Also, his aura is rather weak for someone who can enter the master's consciousness.'
After thinking back and forth for another few minutes, the Coral King decided that it was safe to leave the intruder alone.
He deemed Ivan to be too weak to cause any harm to his master's sea of consciousness and decided to close his eyes to go back to sleep.
[Progress: 90%]
After spending several hours swimming around the coral reefs, Ivan began to feel bored.
Like any other 10 year old found around the world, Ivan began to look at the coral reefs with dull eyes.
"Ugh, I can't do anything to these coral reefs besides appreciate their looks. And there are no monsters for me to beat up…I'm bored! I want to do something fun!" Ivan whined.
Just then, something clicked within his mind.
Since there wasn't anything fun to do within the examiner's sea of consciousness, why don't he make something fun up?
Raising his hand towards an empty space of water, Ivan muttered out the chant of his creation art.
"With me as the bridge between Heaven and Earth…"
Golden coloured light particles appeared around the boy before it began to gather in the shape of a broadsword.
"...Create for me, Iron Sword!"
And just like that, Ivan created a perfect iron sword made from nothing but the metal elements found within the air around him.
Ivan swung his arm around a few times to test the center of balance of the iron sword. "Seems alright to me…Now let's test this against a breathing–"
Before he could finish his words however, a water dragon rose from the depths of the sea before him.
"–Sea Serpent?" [Ivan]
'I'm the Water Dragon King, you brat.' A voice as deep as the sea snorted back within the boy's mind.
Gripping the hilt of his newly created iron sword, Ivan eyed the water dragon vigilantly.
'No need to be vigilant against me, brat. If I want to harm you, there is nothing you can do about it.' The water dragon shrugged before sighing.
Of course, Ivan ignored the water dragon's words and remained vigilant. "Who are you and what do you want from me?"
'I already told you who I am. I am the Water Dragon King, Leviathan, who rules these parts of the ocean.' [Leviathan]
"Okay…and?"
'And?' [Leviathan]
"Why did you show up here?"
'I should be the one asking you that–' [Leviathan]
"I asked you first!"
'. . .'
'You do realize I can wipe away your meager existence with the flip of my fin, right?' [Leviathan]
"You still haven't answered my question."
'Okay, okay. You win, you brat. Haiz, I chose to show up here today because I sensed a familiar power within you.' [Leviathan]
"A familiar power from me?"
'Yes, the power of creation.' [Leviathan]
"The power…of creation? Oh! Do you mean my creation art?"
'Hm, yes…that must be it. Then, could you show me your creation art again?' [Leviathan]
Ivan nodded his head.
Dispelling his iron sword with the flick of his finger, Ivan raised his two arms against an empty body of water before muttering, "With my body as the bridge between Heaven and Earth…Create for me, Iron Great sword!"
The aura Leviathan felt from before has now appeared before him again.
'This…This is it! My senses weren't wrong! This boy possesses the same creation skill as my master!'
Golden light gathered and formed around Ivan before he felt something heavy appear in his hands.
A great sword capable of dividing oceans has been created!
'You've done well, child. I can tell that the great sword within your arms is a wonderful creation.' [Leviathan]
"Thanks!" Ivan smiled in response.