Ocean Master
Chapter 302 - Stepping Up To The Challenge; Taking The Mantle Of Leadership!

Old Mak died in the most explosive manner possible, something that he always feared. But at the last moments of his life, this enormous Great White Shark was proud of what he did with his old age.

Old Mak died with a conscience clear of guilt. He died knowing that he gave his all for his clansmen, and to him, that was the greatest achievement of his life.

His explosive show at the end revealed his explosive mindset at his end, he died with no regrets.

Boom!

Old Mak detonating his mana core was not a small matter considering that him taking the Detonation pill temporarily upgraded his mana core to a whole other level, containing Red tier magic power. 

The power that was released was extremely destructive, the fusion of lightning and thunder formed the most tyrannical combination ever and Ancestor Horamon was the one who suffered it more.

This turtle cultist was at the very heart of the explosion of magic power, there was no way that he was fast enough to escape its terrifying effects.

Whoosh!

The turtle cultist tried to resist but all his defensive measures, including his shell armor, were cracked open as the terrifying explosion rushed through him, submerging him completely in its horrifying might.

Ancestor Horamon was not a normal Red tier predator it seems, this predator went all out as he revealed his plethora of defensive skills.

Defensive skills were activated so much that his body was literally covered with them, every single inch but this still could not protect him completely.

His measures only delayed the inevitable, the force was only delayed for a moment before it exploded with even more terrifying power the next.

The aggressive magic power ruthlessly ravaged his body.

Boom!

The turtle's tolerance was exceeded as it exploded the next moment.

Ancestor Horamon, one of the legendary ancestors of the Turtle Confraternity died in this struggle for the unique skill.

Once the turtle died, the others who were behind him were exposed to the potent but slightly weakened explosive effects of Old Mak's detonation.

"Protect the Generals!"

The trump card warships of the various variant human races did not hesitate as they went all out to preserve the lives of their Generals against this explosive plague that was induced by a purple tier predator. 

General Tito and General Saber suffered amid the raging tsunami of the detonated mana, but with the protection of their warships, including the sacrifice of dozens of them including 2 Annihilators, they finally escaped.

This was a huge loss on the part of the variant human races, and it was a testament to the terrifying power of the explosion.

"I must protect those that I love!"

At this moment, this solemn declaration seemed to be ringing in the air in memory of the dead Great White Shark.

He may be just a purple-tier predator pitted against vastly more powerful opponents, but pushed by the power of love, he abandoned his instinct to cling to his life and voluntarily gave his life away to love.

By taking a suicide pill, he sold his life for power. The feat of killing 1 Red tier predator and pushing back such a powerful force of variant humans was the greatest battle feat that cemented Old Mak's illustrious battle career.

Due to all these delays, the distance between the pursuing force and the escaping group of Great White Sharks already increased more.

Despite this, they were still in the sights of their enemies.

Those with electroreceptor skills that were powerful enough saw all that just happened to their clan head. Elder Marble, the other elders, Queen Heareth, Sebastian, and Tungsten saw Old Mak's last moments.

A heavy mood weighed down on these predators' minds.

As for the other Great White Sharks, from the depths of their souls, they felt that something was wrong but they could not pinpoint what went wrong.

They didn't dare to turn and look back also since the elders kept urging them to move faster. At this moment, their minds were too focused on surviving that they could not spare attention for any other thing.

To this group of Great White Sharks, their lives became more important to them when it was really threatened now but a certain group among these escapees could no longer think this way.

Seeing his old friend and clan head die in such a brave and explosive manner, Elder Marble felt his perception of life experiencing a huge change.

For a long time, he had always bent to his more primordial instincts which were life preservation and it was the essence of who he was as a predator. 

He was a powerful predator, he could bite, he could punch really hard with his earth magic domain, but his survival instincts were his trump cards.

His survival instincts were the main trump card that enabled him to survive decades in this treacherous world, power alone could not make the cut to survive. 

His survival instinct at this moment was also screaming to him to escape for his life, that staying was suicide but for the first time in his life, Elder Marble resisted his primordial instincts.

What use was there if he survived but all his juniors died?

Witnessing Old Mak's sacrifice, this controversial question sprouted in the elders' hearts. He tried to ignore it but he could not, and it got to the extent where Elder Marble also stopped escaping.

Old Mak sacrificed himself to kill one of the stronger enemies and weaken the others, but the others were still hot behind their heels. Another predator needed to step up and continue from where their clan head stopped.

He decided that the best candidate for this predator was himself.

To Elder Marble's shock though, once he stopped, all his other elders, including the Queen, Tungsten, and Sebastian stopped.

"I'm staying with you". Elder Dangle resolutely declared.

"Me too". Elder Shine chimed in.

"Me too…"

"No". Queen Heareth did not finish before Elder Marble interjected. "The juniors need your guidance and protection the most at this moment".

"Unlike you, we can't heal, fighting and cannibalism are what we are best at. Heareth, please allow us to indulge and do what we're really good at for one last time, it is the best way for us to write a legacy for ourselves".

"Elder…" Queen Heareth's sadness became more tangible with time.

"Elder…" 

Elder Marble turned to the younger shark. "Tungsten, we have no time to talk, all I want from you is to take the mantle from your master".

"Old Mak is dead, the clan needs a new leader. It doesn't matter if we return or not. Now, with the power vested on me as the 2nd in command after Old Mak, I declare you the new alpha of this clan!"

Tungsten felt the weight of leadership that almost seemed to crush him immediately. "I will not disappoint your expectations, elder".

With that, a satisfied Elder Marble finally turned to face Sebastian. "I don't know what you are, I don't know your secrets, but you're by far the most genius predator that I've encountered in my mildly long life".

"Your life is more than this clan, live it the way that you want".

"I feel no regret if I get to meet my old friend in the afterlife today".

With that, Elder Marble turned his enormous body around.

"GO!"

Tungsten, Sebastian, and Queen Heareth all felt sad but they did not dare to linger. They recognized the sacrifice of their elders, and the best way to ensure that it was not in vain was for them to successfully escape.

"Go!" "Go!" Tungsten took the mantle as he roared at his fellow clansmen while swimming away with all his might.

Only the 3 elders were left waiting for the pursuing enemies.

Their methods may not be as extravagant as Old Mak's, but since today may spell the doom of the whole shark clan, Old Mak pulled out all stops and distributed all the best magic gadgets and weapons of the clan among them.

With all these goodies, there was no guarantee that they could breach the divide of the Red tier realm but at least, together, the 3 of them could touch the tip which was all that they needed.

"Bring it on, Atlantians!"

Whoosh!

The 3 Great White Sharks carried the battlefield to their enemies' position.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Another fierce battle started all just for survival.