Chapter Six: Companionship Under the Moonlight
2015-05-05
Author: Floating Tower
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Under the pitch-black night sky.
Soren stood at the dock of Fury Sand Island, gazing into the distance. This night was bound to bring joy to some and sorrow to others. Although Soren had defeated Pirate King Asrold and unified the pirate forces along the Southern Coast, he had also thoroughly offended the Naga Royal Family and the Rosad Duchy because of today’s battle. The Naga Royal Family was relatively manageable; as long as the Ocean Goddess had not fallen, they dared only to plot behind the scenes and wouldn’t openly take action against him.
However, the situation with Duchess of Red Dragon from the Rosad Duchy was less favorable!
This woman was not only a legendary Dragonblood Sorceress but also mastered resurrection spells like ‘Life Concealment,’ making it almost as difficult to k*ll her as it was to challenge a Saint.
The Naga Sea Clan.
Soren had little knowledge about them from memory, just that they were a matriarchal society that once had a deity. However, this deity later became a malevolent being, seemingly referred to as some kind of banshee. In Soren’s original memory, the Naga Sea Clan had indeed triggered some Legend Rank quests, but they were always overshadowed by a powerful Ocean Goddess, resulting in their every effort ending in failure. In other words, they were beings that could not stir up much trouble, and thus Soren did not pay them much attention.
Meanwhile.
While Soren worried about the threats posed by the Naga Royal Family and future retaliation from the Rosad Duchy, the Naga priestess within the Ocean Temple was having a difficult time as well.
Upon seeing the avatar of the Ocean Goddess, she realized she had made a mistake.
She had always feared that Soren’s power would grow too large, ultimately leading to the Ocean Temple being unable to control him, resulting in a situation where he became uncontrollable. However, her worries were trivial in the eyes of the deities; the Ocean Goddess did not care whether there was a rising Pirate King beyond the temple; she only cared if this Pirate King was of any use to her.
From this perspective.
Soren’s existence was indeed significant. Firstly, he killed the Swamp King, a believer of the Abyss Demon Lord Dagon, which meant he was clearing out the enemy’s pieces in the ocean. Pleasing the whimsical Ocean Goddess with the enemy’s head. Secondly, Soren expanded the Overseas Islands. As a favored by the Ocean Goddess, his activities in expanding this area accumulated population and, in turn, spread her faith, amassing a considerable amount of raw believer resources.
For example, many of those pirates believed in the Ocean Goddess, albeit not as zealots.
Then, Soren defeated Asrold.
This bloody massacre occurred on the ocean. It could be understood as a sacrificial ritual akin to that of an evil deity. The Ocean Goddess, being a deity of the Chaotic Evil Faction, had unpredictable moods like the sea; thus, she would not reject such sacrificial acts of slaughter. On the contrary, she might even enjoy it.
From beginning to end.
Although Soren was gaining strength, he also brought benefits to the Ocean Goddess.
Looking at it this way, the actions of the Naga priestess appeared somewhat incompetent; the lofty deities would not see Soren as a threat. It was the Naga priestess who saw Soren as a threat. Therefore, every action she took to restrict Soren’s development merely became a reverse limitation on the expansion of the Ocean Goddess’s influence. If that were the case, the Naga priestess’s current position could become quite dangerous.
The Ocean Goddess did not respond to her prayers.
However, in a moment like this, she directly descended in avatar form to assist Soren, which meant that Soren’s position in her heart had surpassed that of the Naga priestess who presided over the Ocean Temple.
Deities are often very pragmatic!
The Ocean Goddess would not care how ambitious Soren was. Whether he wished to have a status higher than that of the Naga priestess was of no concern to her; she only cared if Soren could expand her influence, spreading her faith to farther places.
The Overseas Islands represented a breakthrough.
If the Overseas Islands became a breakthrough point for faith, it would mean that she had driven a nail into the territory of the God of Storms.
Soren was more useful than the Naga priestess.
Now.
After witnessing the Ocean Goddess’s avatar today, the Naga priestess began to gradually realize this point.
The goddess would not care whether Soren’s strength exceeded that of the Ocean Temple, as Soren’s power was very weak relative to the Ocean Church, and for deities, it was hard to believe that a mortal could present too significant a threat with great power. The Naga priestess’s concerns were not shared by the Ocean Goddess; on the contrary, her recent behavior might have likely displeased the Ocean Goddess.
Thinking of this, the Naga priestess felt a chill!
She had always worried that Soren’s power was too great and that ultimately the Ocean Temple would not be able to control him, but she had never considered that Soren’s repeated growth was also elevating his status in the eyes of the Ocean Goddess.
He might even be on par with her now!
This was akin to Soren’s relationship with Half-Elf First Mate and the Red-Haired Pirate Adele regarding power struggles; he did not care which of them wanted to place themselves above the other; he only cared about which of them could effectively accomplish what he tasked them with. Therefore, the competent Half-Elf First Mate was promoted, while the failing task of the Red-Haired Pirate resulted in her losing some of her power.
To Soren, no matter how they fought, neither could threaten his rule.
It was the same for the Ocean Goddess.
………………
In the tranquil night.
Soren stood on the tower, gazing at the night sky, where the stars were becoming increasingly dimmer, many of them appearing hazy. This indicated that certain deities were unable to maintain their divinity, and it wouldn’t be long before these hazy stars, representing the divine realms, would be stripped away, causing the deities governing these realms to fall one by one into the mortal realm.
The tumultuous years were fast approaching.
The stars in the night sky grew darker, and many people had already noticed this, realizing that chaos was looming.
“Brother.”
Vivian’s footsteps came from behind; the little girl wore a white dress, seemingly having changed into a new outfit today.
Soren turned around and smiled slightly.
The little girl walked to his side, raising her small, pale hand to hold one of Soren’s fingers, just as she did when she was little, softly saying, “What are you thinking about? Ever since we left Amber City, you’ve liked staring at the sky more than before.”
Soren reached down to lift her petite form into his arms and gently kissed her forehead, softly replying, “Nothing.”
He looked up at the moon.
Lady Silver Moon’s power was also waning, though the night did not seem to be greatly affected.
“Brother.”
Vivian rested her little head on Soren’s shoulder, her small body sitting in his arms, quietly saying, “Vivian has grown up. And has become stronger than before.”
“No matter what happens.”
“I will be by your side, Vivian can help you.”
“Really!”
The little girl nodded earnestly, her expression unusually serious.
The moonlight was bright.
Soren smiled, tightly holding little Vivian in his arms; he looked up at the bright moon, murmuring in his heart: “Lady Silver Moon!… I wonder how fate will arrange things!… Can this battle with you be avoided!…”
In the Year of the New Moon 1677, September, late month.
The Fear Witch—Lilian, died at the hands of Lady Silver Moon, and the remnants of the fearsome Demon Son were few, marking the official commencement of the tumultuous years as the avatars of the gods tore the earth apart.
Now it was the Year of the New Moon 1676, February, mid-month.
In about three months, the first batch of deities with weak divine power would fall into the mortal realm as Saints, while the shadows of demons would frequently appear worldwide. Soren had moved quickly enough, but he still felt the time was tight; having traveled all the way from Amber City to the Overseas Islands, although his strength surged rapidly in slaughter, the approach of the tumultuous years became ever more imminent. When the deities with strong divine power also fall into the mortal realm as Saints, it would signify the official beginning of unprecedented turmoil and catastrophe.
He used to love the moon.
However, upon knowing Vivian’s identity, the moonlight representing Lady Silver Moon was like a thorn stuck in his heart.
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