Chapter 304: Chapter 265: Tracing the Origins of the Deep Sea: 666_2
Now, not only had the Captain been promoted to the Third Order, but their vessel had also been completely refurbished.
How many sailors on this vast sea could ever dream of serving a lifetime aboard a Sacred Relic Warship?
Everyone believed that tomorrow would be better, and they firmly believed that Sea Hunter Byron Tudor would lead them onto a glorious path, fit for kings.
This unwavering confidence, cultivated step by step, was clearly more precious than any advanced equipment!
It also made Byron’s Anchoring even more stable; resisting the Greedy Worm Mamon from the other side of the World Rift wouldn’t be a problem for a short time.
"You all go to Gornaf Island to take care of business and, while you’re at it, conduct sea trials for the new Golden Deer. I still have a lot of work to do, so I won’t be joining you at sea."
The career-minded Catherine greeted them and then hurried off in her Crystal High Heels.
Her mind was now full of ambitious financial ventures like "online trading platforms," "stock markets," and "offshore financial hubs."
The blueprint of her ideal was grand, but successfully bringing it to fruition, even with the help of several maids skilled in these matters, still required a great deal of preparatory work.
As they watched Catherine walk away, Violet suddenly took Byron’s hand, their identical azure eyes meeting.
The girl seemed to muster a great deal of courage before saying to him, "Byron, I’m coming with you. Actually, my second ritual, ’Deep Sea Tracing,’ requires inscribing Runes on my body using the fresh blood of various sea Demon Monsters, to ultimately bear the complete Bloodline Codex. To make it easier to capture various sea Demon Monsters, once they appear nearby, I, as a prospective Witch, can sense their location. If the May Wind—the one said to have tentacles and be fused with a Sea Monster—appears, I might be able to warn you immediately."
So the Middle Sequence ritual of a Calamity Witch is called... Deep Sea Tracing? Byron thought.
Although Byron had used many of the whalebone talismans Violet had made, this was the first time he’d heard her speak of the conditions for her second non-human metamorphosis.
Completing the second sublimation ritual for a [Witch of Calamity] would allow Violet to transform into a non-human Transcendent Species: a [Witch].
Beyond being able to cast various spells, she would additionally gain the ability to transform into three types of aquatic Demon Monsters.
What she would transform into was completely random; there were hundreds of documented Demon Monsters and Transcendent beings alone. Humanoid Demon Monsters like Mermaids or Sirens were one thing, but she feared randomly transforming into something else... something most people would find unbearable. That was why she hadn’t told Byron about it.
If she didn’t bring it up herself, Byron, of course, wouldn’t ask about matters concerning a Transcendent’s fundamental path.
If it weren’t for the May Wind, Violet probably would have kept it hidden for a while longer.
Now that she had broached the subject, she decided to reveal a bit more of the hidden details to Byron, "The core of the Forbidden Book, ’Calamity Curse,’ consists of twenty-four Runes, which can be combined into thousands of different variant runes. At Low Sequences, whalebone is what bears the Runes. Once all the whalebone talismans are mastered, the second ritual, ’Deep Sea Tracing,’ can be initiated. This involves hunting powerful marine creatures and using their blood to inscribe a set of at least six Curse Seals onto one’s own body. By harnessing the power of these Curse Seals, one’s bloodline is transformed, leading to a non-human metamorphosis. If she’s lucky enough, she might even inherit some of the abilities of the blood’s original owner. Naturally, the stronger the aquatic Demon Monsters, the better."
"Does the Promotion Ceremony require at least six Demon Monsters?"
Byron firmly committed this number to memory. His mind was already whirring, eagerly pondering which of the famous Demon Monsters in the Bantaan Archipelago he should target. It was somewhat regrettable. After Blue Hair Halding became bald Halding and fell to the Fourth Order, his Heart of the Beast King had collapsed. This caused many of the Sea Monsters under his command to break their contracts and flee. However, the blood of the large-species Sea Monster he controlled, the Barnacle Crab, should be usable. The ’Deep Sea Leap’ ability was definitely worth acquiring, no matter what.
Violet nodded. "Yes, at least six Demon Monsters, corresponding to the Church’s ’number of the beast,’ 666. After all," she said, playfully sticking out her pink tongue at Byron when she mentioned being a Witch, "I am a Witch the Church is eager to eliminate."
Even those who weren’t Transcendent knew what the number 666 truly signified, thanks to the Church’s years of propaganda.
The three digits ’666’ appear in Chapter Thirteen, Verse Eighteen of the Book of Creation Gospel, representing the number of the Evil Beasts.
It is said that before the end of the world, the Devil will rampage through the world, manifested as a monster: "Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six."
They represent the antithesis of God, the faction of Beastliness.
Therefore, among all believers of the Creator, ’666’ is not only far from a compliment but is directly linked to the Devil, causing people to pale at its mere mention.
The young Witch continued to explain, "The Forbidden Book states that deep in the Sea of Origin Matter, a total of 666 types of powerful aquatic Demon Monsters or Bizarre entities are hidden. Prospective [Witches of Calamity] can sense their presence. In the future, once I’ve obtained suitable blood, I’ll need your help to inscribe six Curse Seals on my body: on my hands, feet, the root of my tongue, and the nape of my neck. The book says this process will be very painful and extremely dangerous, almost impossible to complete alone. Right now, you’re the only person I can completely trust."
Byron, naturally feeling obligated, immediately slapped his chest and promised, "Don’t worry. We’re much better equipped now. If we don’t encounter that elusive creature, so be it. But if we do, we’ll take its blood first to make one Curse Seal for you!"
Saying this, he took her hand, and they soared into the air, landing as lightly as two feathers on the deck of the Golden Deer.
Seeing them come aboard, Chameleon Jacqueline immediately rushed over, waving a copy of the Lighthouse Weekly, and excitedly calling out to Byron, "Cousin, I found it! The Seagull Messenger just delivered today’s paper. It really does have a coded message published by Lancaster, inviting ’Byron Lancaster’ to rendezvous with them. Do I need to notify those guys in advance to prepare for your arrival?"
Byron gave this mischief-loving little troublemaker a sidelong glance and said testily, "We’re not going for an inspection. Do we need to tell them to clean up beforehand?"
Jacqueline didn’t insist, instead laughing with a touch of schadenfreude, "Hahaha, let our York Family’s bandit-suppression squadron sail right over and scare the pants off them! Especially that Preempting the Enemy, Borel Tanya! He always wears such a sour face, as if everyone owes him thousands of pounds. This time, I’d like to see who still dares..."
She glanced up at Byron beside her and, with hands on her hips, continued haughtily, "Who else would dare speak loudly to us two! Let’s go!"