Chapter 127
Chapter 127: Legend-rank Quest
It was said that cockroaches possessed the ability to escape and reproduce even when they were decapitated, although it was a pity that their brothers, the Celestial Towerists, were incapable of such feat.
Just as what was said previously, that resilient Lamos’s Eye, without even making a real appearance in the text, died in the midst of a series of retorts.
Due to the high altitude he was flying at, he was way too near to the clouds, thus providing an opportunity for three aerial units to swipe down towards him. Before he could even react, he was decapitated by the swiftest Camisia.
Based on his strength and identity, being surrounded and lynched by two Aurora Knights and one Undead Lord-level Dullahan, at least he wasn’t really wronged in his death.
After he had been decapitated, his body was frozen and thrown into the sea. I didn’t believe that fellow would still be capable of climbing out of his tomb to cause trouble like that.
What was noteworthy was his staff. It wasn’t an ordinary treasure.
【The Will of the Queen of the Storm: Through this staff, the wielder chosen by the Queen of the Storm can become the oracle of her will. The wielder would be able to order the Sea Monsters under her command. Prerequisite: Worshiper of the Queen of the Storm or someone chosen by her.】
【This is a simple staff made from ancient oak. The craftsmanship and material for its creation is inferior and the God Power that is contained inside is not worth mentioning.
System Notice: Through this wooden material, a certain lady who had undergone menopause for more than ten thousand years is able to view the surroundings about the wielder, and she is currently staring at you. You understand.】
Of course I do.
Kacha.
I smashed the wooden staff over my knee and the staff infused with God Power broke into two as the energy within started to dissipate into the surroundings.
The container that was used to hold God Power had been destroyed. As a result, the God Power would either return to the God or dissipate into the surroundings. However, this time, the situation was slightly different.
As one of the very few existences who had personally comprehended the nature of a true God’s God Power, I could vaguely feel the sliver of God Power shrouding around me, as though it was unwilling to leave.
God Power was devoid of intelligence, so I did not think that it was possible for the God Power to set its eyes upon me. So…
“Is this it?”
There was nothing unique about the antique-looking old bottle. However, the moment I took it out, the intangible and formless God Power started to seep into it and a sliver of water appeared on the bottom of the carving of billowing waves on the bottle.
In this world, God Power required a suitable container to hold it; not just any material could become a constituent of a God Equipment.
This Sidunwar’s Ocean Bottle was once a God Equipment, except that the God Power it contained within had completely dissipated through the long ages, along with the fall of the God. At present, after absorbing a part of the Queen of the Storm’s God Power, it regained some strength.
【Sidunwar’s Ocean Bottle. Unable to be evaluated. Mystical object (Can be upgraded. However, due to the fall of its original owner, it can only reach the level of a Semi-God Equipment)】
【The Calm Ocean: After activation, it returns all fluids surrounding the user back to its most basic form and nature. Upon absorbing the God Power of the Goddess of Storm, it has gained the ability to calm storms.】
【The Favored One of the Sea God: The owner of the bottle becomes the oracle of the Ancient Sea God. It is easier for the owner to gain the trust and goodwill of ancient Sea Monsters and ancient Sea Dwellers. When the goodwill reaches a certain level, it is possible for a Companion Contract to be signed. After the Companion Contract is signed, the contractee can be summoned to battle for you.】
【Wrath of the Queen of the Storms: That fiery lass has already realized that her God Power has been stolen, and the bottle has become evidence of her setback. Thus, the owner of the bottle will be viewed with enmity and pursued by the Queen of the Storms】
【Osweyar’s Displeasure: The current Sea God views every single existence who could threaten his Jurisdiction seriously. Do not give him an opportunity to pull one over you.】
【System Notice: This would prove to be a massive problem, so I recommend you to throw this bottle into the sea. Of course, with great risks come great benefits. What would you earn from offending these two true Gods? You want to know? Yeah … actually I don’t know it myself either.】
Looking at the System Notice, I breathed in a breath of cold air. Ignoring the System’s disgusting attempt to act cute, “Osweyar’s Displeasure” and the God Equipment automatically fusing with the God Power on its own accord explained a lot about the bottle.
“God Equipment and God Power are often specific to one another. The God Power melding into the bottle and that subduing effect of ‘The Calm Ocean’ provides quite a bit of hint. Sidunwar’s God Power is connected to the God Power of the Queen of the Storms. Furthermore, they probably come from the same source. That’s why they would be able to meld with one another and curb each other. Since the incumbent Sea God feels that this bottle would threaten his Jurisdiction, that could only mean that hidden in this bottle is… a God Soul or a Jurisdiction?!”
I could vaguely figure out a few things and I immediately went into action. I stuffed the bottle into my luggage and activated the Anti-Detection Magic Ring. The longer this object was exposed for, the higher the possibility that it would bring about trouble.
“Recommending me to throw it away, ‘with great risks come great benefits,’ what is this? Are you trying to dupe me? Why don’t you just say that this toy is involved in some great secret, and I would reap great rewards the moment I succeed, so don’t throw it away? Wouldn’t that suffice?”
【System Notice: You would need to be alive to spend the money you earned. Are you sure you want to keep it? Alright, I admire your guts. Then, prepare to accept the Legend rank quest. System will be counting down from ten. Final confirmation: 10, 9, 1! Confirmed!】
“Wait, why did ‘9’ suddenly drop to ‘1’! I haven’t confirmed anything! Besides, what do you mean by Legend rank quest? Is it even more damned than Epic rank quest?”
At this point, if I still did not realize that I was scammed by the System, I would truly be a fool.
【Congratulations for triggering the Legend rank quest: Revival of the Ancient Sea God】
【The Ancient Sea God Sidunwar was the strongest God of his time. At his pinnacle, there were multiple Main God-class existences under his faction. Back then, the Queen of the Storms was just a rookie who couldn’t even fit into the ranks. The grandfather of current Sea God Osweyar, Ancient Sea God Bose, wasn’t even born then. Sidunwar single-handedly ruled over the oceans, the area of which far exceeds that of the entire continent. In fact, he even challenged the prestige of the Goddess of Order. As for the results of that, since his bottle is in your hands now, I shouldn’t have to elaborate too much on it.】
【Although he has already fallen, due to some coincidence, the God Equipment which holds his heritage and his profound secrets fell into your hands, and was activated by a God Power of the same origin. Perhaps, in the era nearing the end of the Gods, the might of the Ancient Sea God will be known to the world once again.】
【System Notice: Due to the overwhelming difficulty of the quest, the possibility of you accomplishing this quest is low. Thus, this quest has been divided into three portions. Rewards will be granted for the completion of each part. Furthermore, there are no punishments upon failure. Yep, that is because if you fail, there is no need for me to punish you anyway.】
【Quest Requirement Part 1: Collect God Powers related to the ocean to feed Sidunwar’s Ocean Bottle and evolve it to its Semi-God Equipment form.
System Notice: Do not think about provoking the Sea God from the very start. Also, powerful Sea Monsters that survived the ancient and immemorial era would contain a trace of God Power of the Sea God within them.】
【Part 1 completion reward: Semi-God Equipment Sidunwar’s Ocean Bottle, 100,000 Fate Points. Additional rewards will be granted based on the level of completion of the quest.】
Granting 100,000 Fate Points just by completing the first part of the quest? Then, if the whole quest were to be completed, wouldn’t the final reward be 400,000 or 500,000? Previously, so much effort was expended to complete an Epic rank quest and in the end, I even had to kill a Demon Count. Even so, only 120,000 Fate Points were given.
However, looking at it from another perspective, if a Demon Count were to appear in an Epic rank quest, then it would be difficult to imagine what kind of enemies would appear in a Legend rank quest.
“Do it! Make those with large guts swell and starve those with small guts! With these points, not only will I be able to keep up with the progress of my plan, it might even be able to be carried ahead!”TL: It means that those who are daring would get what they want, while those are timid would end up with nothing.
In Camisia and Fanderk’s eyes, my hesitation seemed like worry for the current situation.
“Your Highness, do you need us to make a move?”
Even though Lamos’s Eye, who instructed the Sea Monsters to attack the Borealis had died, the battle on the ocean did not cease. In actuality, it got even more out of control. As the Sea Monsters started to rely on their own basic instincts to fight, the battle grew even more intense and bloody.
The giant octopus was one of the most commonly seen Sea Beasts, to the point that it couldn’t be called a Sea Monster. However, possessing a 100- to 200-meter long massive body, it was one of the stronger Sea Monsters. Before it, even the powerful Sea Giants are only a delectable meal.
The snowy-white octopus was an Ice Element Magic Beast that often appeared in the Belor Oceanic Region and was reputed as the “Living Glacier of Despair.” Regardless of the kind of ship, if they came into contact with the octopus, they would definitely end up sinking into the sea.
With a thick layer of ice armor covering it, the octopus magic beast looked exceptionally beautiful. If it were to be shrinked by countless folds, it might have been a suitable pet for a lady of nobility. However, the lethal poison contained in its ink made it too dangerous for such a possibility to be realized.
Upon finding out that it was unable to pull the warship into the sea, the giant octopus entangled half of its body onto the Borealis, making full use of its physical advantage.
Not only was the body of water surrounding the Borealis frozen by Ice Magic, the tentacles of the octopus that were full of suction pads held the body of the ship firmly in place. Some of the tentacles even carried ice blades that were the size of glaciers. Poisonous ink sprayed down upon the boat like a tempest.
Naturally, the Borealis wasn’t sitting there idly. The poisonous cannons that carried the power of corrosion kept blasting at the octopus, but due to the incompatibility of attributes, especially in the face of the ice armor of the magic beast, its corrosive abilities did not take effect. Even so, under the bombardment of over a hundred cannons, the octopus was soon wounded all over and its left eye burst from an accurate shot. There were many times that the auto-regenerating ice armor failed to recover in time to ward off the attacks.
Massive beasts tended to be powerful but slow. Their way of fighting heavily relied on the physical body they were blessed with, and they were inflexible in such an aspect as well. From our perspective, the brawl between massive beasts was not much different from a street fight between hooligans.
The massive octopus that was riding on the ship and brandishing those ice blades bore some resemblance to a frenzied female using her purse to hit an unfaithful man. The poisonous ink was not much different from the saliva she would spit onto his face. As for the Horned Whale on the other side, it resembled a powerful man wielding a thousand-pound hammer, looking for an opportunity to deliver the fatal blow.
Whales were born the largest natural creature in the ocean, and the Horned Whale was an enlarged version of a normal whale. Just the portion of the monster that surfaced above the water was already a dozen stories high. From head to toe, it was around 300 meters long. Its gigantic body granted it a majestic presence. With just a slight whip of its tail, it was able to generate giant waves. Even more so, its ram possessed the strength to suppress everything.
Before it, the super warship Borealis could only be considered a malnourished dwarf. Every single ram carried the strength of the mountains, and the giant horn at the forefront of the ram was like an incredibly sharp blade that increased the threat of the attack by severalfold.
Just by looking at the situation below, the Borealis had been suppressed to the point that it might break apart at any moment now. It was no wonder that my two knights would ask if we should make a move.
However, I shook my head in response. The battle beneath us was not suitable for us to interfere in, and there was no need for us to interfere in it as well.
“… There’s no need. Don’t underestimate that boat. It is the brother of your captain.”
Hearing those words, the both of them froze for a split moment. Then, Death Knight Fendark exclaimed in shock, “Again? Your Highness, Omar has just escaped…. You are creating all kinds of weird things again. Aren’t you afraid they will escape your control…”
Before he could finish his words, Camisia hurriedly covered his mouth.
“You fool. Have you forgotten that our prince hates people criticizing his creations the most? He treats them all as his children. If you were to reprimand his children before him, he would surely find an opportunity to get back at you. Furthermore, what do you mean by ‘all kinds of weird things’? If these words were to travel to Captain Bastian’s ears, how do you think he would deal with you?”
“Do you want to perform as a clown riding a unicycle past a ring of fire? Or do you want to put on a lion costume to play with rascals? If you want to commit suicide, don’t pull me down with you! I had suffered enough back then when those rascals kicked my head around like a ball. The more I think about it, the angrier I get. I had pleaded to you for help, but why didn’t you save me? Instead you chose to leave this headless knight running about to find his missing head. I even injured some innocent bystanders! Do you know how miserable I was?”
“Back then, I saw the ‘ball’ calling out so excitedly, the rascals were also having fun, and everyone was so happy. I thought that you were all having great fun playing together. So we took this opportunity to take a break. The last time old Liester played with the rascals, they took away one of his ribs. Eventually, he found it in a hole dug by a dog after his lunch meal. The smell of fermentation…. If it gets to such a point, I would much rather duel the Church of Holy Light to my death!”
Recalling the most severe punishment of the Red Hunting Hounds, “Playing with the Rascals”, and those rascals whom even demons and gods went all out to avoid, even my fiercest knight couldn’t help but concede defeat.
“That…. Your Highness, I’m sorry. I have misspoke. Please do not hold a grudge against me.”
Initially, when my beloved one was criticized, I was slightly angry. However, when I thought about Omar, who turned against me a few years after his birth, and the fact that I might meet him very soon, I could no longer find any interest in squabbling over this.
“In order to allow them to reach the pinnacle independently, after designing the optimal road to becoming stronger, I didn’t impose any restrictions on them so as to give them sufficient space to develop freely. Was my decision to give them freedom wrong? Omar, now that I think about it, the things that happened then were my fault.”
I shook my head. “Envy” Borealis and “Pride” Omar were two completely different beings. Envy was just the modification of a boat. No matter how strong it grew, it would remain as an individual. On the other hand, Omar was different. He was capable of creating the most powerful army single-handedly. At his peak, he was able to stand up against a combined assault by the other Deadly Sins by himself.
Pride was the foremost of the Seven Deadly Sins. From the very start, I designed him to be a leader figure for the Seven Deadly Sins, as well as my assistant. He was unique from the moment of his birth. Due to the excessive expectations stacked onto him, he became excessively ambitious and arrogant. Not to mention, he was still way too young and lacked self-control and rationality. Although his abilities were outstanding, his mental state was too immature for him to be independent.
In the end, when I chose Bastian to serve as my captain, Omar saw what ought to have been his being taken away. To Omar, the incarnation of “Pride,” this was a heavy blow compared to the smooth-sailing life he had had. How could the young Pride tolerate this huge disparity between his expectations and achievements? Anxious, he chose to flip the table like a child and used his strength to start an uprising.
“Hm? What ability is that!”
Just when I was reminiscing the past, a change occurred in the battle happening below.
The severely damaged Borealis suddenly glowed with a green light and the surrounding seawater bypassed the layer of ice and gushed towards the ship. Bathing in seawater, the green glow radiated even more brilliantly and the damaged surface layer and spare parts started to regenerate automatically.
In ten seconds, along with the retreating of the seawater and the fading of the green light, the ship that was filled with holes a moment earlier looked brand new at the current moment, as though it freshly came out of the workshop.
Did it seem very familiar? That was the main ability of the Nine-headed Dragon, the regeneration ability that left us with a headache then!
The Borealis started to counterattack. Its first target was the Horned Whale, which was preparing to ram itself into the boat again.
Red light shined on the dragon figurehead at the bow of the ship. Finally, the prerequisites of the ability of the “Envy,” which had been prepared for a while now, was met and started to activate!
The red light struck the Horned Whale and it started to thrash about in agony on the surface of the water. Following which, a savage apparition of the Nine-headed Dragon Emperor flashed past the head of the massive whale and a giant, bloody wound suddenly appeared on the head of the whale. Fresh blood spurted out furiously from the hole, dying a huge volume of the sea red.
A few seconds later, that giant horn floated to the bow of Borealis and attached itself onto it. From now on, the warship Borealis would have the strongest ramming horn!
“Envy? It all originates from comparison. Nobody’s perfect, so it is perfectly natural to meet someone stronger than you in certain aspects and feel envious and indignant over your inadequateness. If it is an optimal amount of envy, it can propagate growth and this is known as one’s drive. However, if it is excessive, it will be warped into resentment against them, and when it happens, envy will become dangerous.”
“The butterflies have beautiful wings, but I don’t. I’m envious of it, thus I rip off her wings to create a sample. This way, I can delight myself over my collection, and the butterflies won’t be flying around to incur my annoyance either.”
“The eagles have grand wings that can soar in the vast blue sky. We, humans, do not have wings, but we still dream of sweeping through the endless skies. Thus, through our hard work, we created a flying machine modelled after them.”
“My Envy of the Seven Deadly Sins, Borealis, is a combination of the two kinds of envy. If it is envious of the butterflies, it will rip off their wings and attach it to himself. That way, it would be able to fly in the skies.”
The designing process of this “Envy” wasn’t easy, but I had a plan in mind, and I also possessed the required technology for it already. All along, the biggest problem was the materials. After all, energy was required to drive the many spare parts that were required for its construction. However, it was already a blessing if the materials did not implode due to the clash of incompatible magic. So, how could the organs that originate from different sources operate normally?
“Do I have to provide a source of energy and main system for each of the spare parts and organs? Then what’s the point of ‘snatching?’”
However, the heart of the Nine-headed Dragon and the Legend-tier Nine-colored Tear Stone perfectly resolved the problem.
Each of the nine heads of the Nine-headed Dragon possessed different attributes, but it was able to release breaths of nine different attributes under a single energy source, and I had already deciphered the secret behind it.
【Legend-tier Mystical Treasure Nine-colored Tear Stone: Allows the attribute of mana with the same origin as the Nine-colored Tear Stone to change freely.】
It was just a simple explanation of the object by the System, but it clearly showcased the noble status the Nine-headed Dragon held as a Semi-God. After experimenting and making certain modifications on it, the Nine-headed Dragon Heart and Nine-colored Tear Stone were adjusted to create a multipurpose energy source that served as both an energy source and attribute modifier system for “Envy.”
Judging from how Borealis had successfully stolen the horn from the Horned Whale and melded with it, it seemed that the design of “Envy” worked.
Meanwhile, the battle was already reaching its end. After all, the enemy of the Sea Monsters was a fusion between Auland’s most powerful warship and my Undead Creation abilities. When science and magic mixed together, the result was the birth of the most powerful monster ship of this era.
The horn was originally attached to the skull of the Horned Whale, thus making it its strongest weapon as well as its greatest weakness. Losing its horn, even if it were to be left alone, it wouldn’t survive for long.
Seeing its companion on the verge of dying and the disappearance of the envoy of the Queen of the Storms, it released its grip on the warship without any hesitation and escaped into the deep sea.
“Let’s go, we probably still have matters to attend to.”
This was the first time Envy experimented with its unused talents in battle. If my estimations weren’t wrong, its internal system was probably in a wreck, so I needed to quickly make some adjustments.
As I moved forward, I realized that Camisia and Fanderk were still rooted to the spot.
“Your Highness, is it not suitable for us to be heading there in our state? We think it would be better for us to fly behind the warship. It is the same thing anyway.”
Initially, I was slightly puzzled over their reactions when I suddenly came to a realization. They were hesitating over their identities as Undead. They were worried that they would be unable to get along with the living.
Unlike Liu Huang Mountain City which was used to the presence of Undead, the fear and resentment the Surface humans held for Undead were deep-seated. It was perfectly normal for a Holy Knight to charge at an Undead to vanquish it upon catching sight of one. Camisia and Fanderk’s worry wasn’t unfounded.
However, in response to their hesitation, I firmly shook my head.
“Let’s go. An ugly daughter-in-law has to meet her mother-in-law sooner or later. The more we try to hide something, the likelier it is to be exposed. Eventually, the lie might lead to problems that are difficult to resolve. Since it is impossible to conceal the fact, we might as well do it openly then.”
***
Just like the River Styx, the Heavenly Pillar seemed as though it led straight up, but souls traveling through it would need to pass through innumerable dimensions before reaching the Heavenly Realms of the various Gods.
Of the many Heavenly Realms, there was one that was particularly desolate. As compared to the other Heavenly Realms that would accept an influx of innumerable souls every day, there were very few souls that entered here every month.
“The Heavenly Realm of the God of Law, Wumianzhe.”
Without the invitation of the owner, trespassing on one’s Heavenly Realm was a highly aggressive action. There had never been any visitors to Wumianzhe’s Heavenly Realm until this day, so no one, not even the Gods, knew the appearance of Wumianzhe.
The massive Heavenly Realm was forlorn. The devotees that should have been providing the God with the Power of Faith wandered about aimlessly, and not a single God Envoy that should have been upholding order here could be seen.
“Similar to the God of Holy Light, the God of Law has also lost his sense of self. The Goddess of Moonlight must be truly furious for the unlucky Bastlar to be dumped on the God of Law, Wumianzhe.”
This event might have been a secret of the Gods in the mortal world, but to the servants of the various Gods, it was a well-known fact. Bastlar, who had incurred the wrath of the Goddess of Moonlight, was labelled as an unlucky fellow by the many onlookers.
After lazing about in boredom in the Heavenly Realm for many days, just as he had really started to think that he was abandoned, he was summoned by God Wumianzhe.
“Don’t be too surprised when you meet Wumianzhe.”
While awaiting his audience with Wumianzhe, Bastlar couldn’t help but recall the bizarre words the Goddess of Moonlight said to him a few days ago.
“Hmph, even if he has three heads and six arms, he won’t be able to scare me.”
But when he met Wumianzhe, in order to prevent himself from shouting out loud, he almost pinched his flesh out so as to prevent himself from exclaiming disrespectfully. Also, to prevent the overwhelming shock from being expressed on his face, the usually calm face of Bastlar forcefully scrunched up into a ball.
The reason? Wumianzhe didn’t don his mask in his Heavenly Realm, and he realized that he had met that face just a few days ago!
“Bastlar, obey my will. As my envoy, go to the mortal world…”
When Bastlar walked out of that hall, those legs of his, which theoretically should have never felt fatigue, trembled. The hero who had fearlessly partaken in all kinds of battle felt afraid. He finally understood the feeling of being a pawn in a massive battle.
“This time, the stakes you all have put in are high. However, since I’m already on the boat, then let’s take it to the end!”