Drift Of The Multiverse: [Marvel] [Resident Evil] [DC] [Bleach] [DB]

Standing on the stern castle of the Goddess of Dawn, Ethan looked back at the distant horizon behind the ship. The massive island that had previously blocked the sea route and everyone's path forward was slowly collapsing, breaking apart from a single landmass into segments, and then into even more fragmented islands.

Ethan estimated that it would take a long time for such a large piece of land to completely sink to the seabed, and the waters in this area would remain unstable during that time. Even though the energy that had affected this sea region had dissipated, the waves caused by the island's collapse were still quite intense.

"It's not truly over yet."

Ethan turned his gaze south. Although they had resolved the issue in the northern sea route this time, they had already learned from Bruno that Beckford had gone to the southern sea route to do something similar.

Moreover, unlike this time, Beckford himself was personally present, and Ethan wasn't sure what kind of power he possessed.

"Judging by his skill and proficiency in using energy, perhaps he has broken free from the constraints of magic stones and equipment and has truly mastered death-attribute energy on his own."

Most adventurers in this world utilized energy by activating specific attributes within magic stones through equipment, thereby indirectly tapping into the power stored inside.

Wilson had been like that, and Brent, who was not far away, was the same. Ethan didn't know much about Christina's situation. The first time they clashed, it was only a clone, and the second time, she didn't even get a chance to speak before being killed by Ethan's blizzard.

If Ethan's guess was right, he would have to treat Beckford as an opponent similar to himself. To be safe, he should even consider Beckford to be more powerful.

"In that case, just rushing over there would be suicide."

As they moved farther away from the region, the turbulent waves gradually subsided, and the sea surface became noticeably calmer. However, the few ships returning to the Central Island did not slow down. Everyone seemed eager to return as soon as possible.

Brent wanted to return early to inform the guild of the bad news and hoped the guild would mobilize more powerful adventurers to deal with Beckford.

Beckford had now become a threat to everyone. This was no longer something Brent could resolve alone by relying on his personal reputation and calling in a few helpers.

A major battle was about to erupt, and Ethan would likely become the most critical combat force in it. His name would soon spread throughout the entire sea region.

Ethan could already guess as much. He didn't care about becoming famous; what he cared about was whether his current strength was enough.

"Should I ask Diana to help hold the line?"

Ethan thought it was a good idea, but there was no need to summon Diana immediately. He could make that decision based on how things developed. If the situation worsened, he could go to Paradise Island for reinforcements. Then he would unleash Diana and teach Beckford a lesson within minutes.

Now that the issue had been resolved, Ethan relaxed again. He pulled a lounge chair onto the deck, lay back to bask in the sun, enjoyed the gentle sea breeze, and read a book, as if he were on a leisure cruise.

Naturally, his behavior was seen by people on the other ships. This "expedition" had actually resulted in heavy losses. The adventurer teams that came with Brent had lost many members, and several captains had even died in this sea region. After experiencing all that, and knowing the mastermind was still stirring up trouble on another sea route, many people felt uncertain about what the future held.

From time to time, people would stand on the deck in a daze, only to see Ethan lounging without a care in the world.

Some thought Ethan's behavior was inappropriate. Of course, others believed this powerful captain was simply full of confidence. After all, all the dangers they had encountered had been trivial in front of Captain Ethan and were resolved with ease.

Ethan didn't care what others thought. He was thinking about other matters.

Having wasted so much time on this island, he began considering his next traversal.

His previous plan was to settle this issue first and then fulfill the promise he had made—to find a way to resurrect Tony's parents.

He had considered many possibilities, including the Dragon Ball anime world. However, he didn't plan to go there directly because that world was far too dangerous, and with his current strength, he wouldn't even be able to protect himself.

After careful thought, the first world he considered was the Mummy world, which contained the Book of the Dead and the Book of the Sun. Although the resurrection spells there were tied to local deities, as long as Ethan mastered the "soul summoning" part and integrated it into his magical knowledge, resurrecting Tony's parents wasn't out of the question.

Even if he couldn't reconstruct a body with magic, it didn't matter. With Tony's technology and financial resources, it would be entirely possible to create new bodies using his parents' genes. These would also have high compatibility with the soul. Ethan's task would be to guide the soul into the body and ensure a perfect union of soul and vessel.

Summon the soul, provide a body, and fuse the two together—that would be a perfect resurrection. The specific methods could be adjusted. Although Ethan was a mage, he wasn't a rigid purist who rejected all non-magical approaches.

Of course, it would be even better if he could find a method like the Dragon Balls to resurrect someone in one step.

That had been Ethan's original plan, but now it seemed some adjustments were necessary.

He had Diana, a demigoddess, as his backup, so he wasn't afraid of the threat posed by Beckford. However, he still hoped to solve this problem through his own efforts.

It wasn't about some stubborn pride. Rather, he was concerned that if he became too reliant on others to solve everything, he might lose the drive to keep growing stronger.

He had only just begun his journey. Although the continent formed from his mental power had taken shape, the magic power condensed upon it had only formed a few thin streams, not even rivers or lakes, let alone a vast sea of magic. To lose his motivation now would be to waste all the opportunities he had gained so far.

Not to mention, the Ancient One, Merlin, and the others who had helped him would be disappointed. Even he wouldn't forgive himself.

"So the next step is to find a way to rapidly increase my strength."

He had not slacked off in his magical training. Since obtaining the Book of Inheritance, unless he was in the middle of battle and unable to find time, he practiced almost every day. He had completed all the parts of the Book of Inheritance related solely to mental power. The next stage involved a combined meditation method that cultivated both mental and magical power simultaneously, condensing magic while refining the mind.

He had also continued his physical training. After breaking through his potential limit, his current physical capabilities had already surpassed ordinary humans. As long as he kept training, his strength, speed, and agility would keep improving.

It seemed that as long as he kept cultivating step by step, Ethan would grow stronger—and this was indeed true. What Ethan lacked was time. Even if he traveled to a world without any helpful resources, time could still be converted into magical power.

"The Mummy world will definitely involve a major battle. Even if I don't clash with the local deities, there's no avoiding a conflict with Imhotep."

He was a powerful mage. Ethan now wanted to train, not throw himself into desperate battles. So it was better to visit another world first.

Thinking of this, Ethan closed his book and got up from the lounge chair.

Standing on the deck and looking around, there weren't many people around. Only Logan was at the helm, steering the ship.

Although Selene was no longer afraid of sunlight, centuries of habits were hard to change. Most of the time, she still avoided the sunlit deck and stayed inside the cabin.

Laura wasn't on the deck either. She was either studying with Selene or playing video games.

"Where's Loki?"

Ethan looked around and finally discovered that the guy had gone to the warehouse for food. When Ethan ran into him, Loki was holding a pile of fruit, preparing to sunbathe on deck.

Loki really knew how to enjoy life. Even if he spent only a fraction of his thousand-plus years indulging himself, he would still accumulate more experience in food, drink, and entertainment than most people ever could.

Some time ago, Loki had been enlightened by Ethan. With strong enough motivation, he had trained hard for a while. Now that he had reached a certain level, further improvement required long-term accumulation. There was no need to rush, so Loki had returned to his usual relaxed rhythm.

"Are you looking for me?"

Having spent more time together, Loki and Ethan were becoming more like friends.

"I'm planning a plane traversal. Interested?"

Ethan had asked Logan earlier, and after thinking it over, Logan declined. He had no pressing needs and wanted to stay behind to take care of the ship.

If Logan wasn't going, Laura typically wouldn't go either. Despite how hard Logan could be on her, he cared deeply for his daughter. If he didn't go, he usually wouldn't let Laura go either.

Since father and daughter weren't going, Ethan figured Loki might be interested. He also needed time to accumulate strength. But as it turned out, Loki wasn't interested either.

"I plan to relax for a bit. I don't want to jump into another world with you and stay busy for a year."

Ethan shrugged. If Loki didn't want to go, that was fine. That left only Selene.

Fortunately, Selene didn't refuse and was willing to go with Ethan on this traversal.

Before departing, Logan and Laura each gave Ethan a list, asking him to bring back anything on it if possible.

"You think I'm going shopping?"

Logan and Laura both nodded. They clearly did.

(To be continued.)

***

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