Chapter 2103 The Deep Sea Church
“Haha, it’s been a pleasure cooperating with you. Welcome back anytime. If you want any Divine Spells, you can tell me in advance so we can customize them,” the Tide Lord said with a smile as he saw us out.
Behind us was a large chest, neither gold nor jade, seemingly made of materials resembling coral or tortoiseshell. It was so large it looked like a cabinet, supported underneath by a trailer.
Behind the Tide Lord stood a grand treasure chest filled with diamonds, many of them large. This transaction was mutually beneficial, and the Tide Lord felt he had profited greatly. The Albatross Retreat would have enough funds for the next few years.
The Tide Lord and several other elders of the Mannan Church had previously decided to establish the Albatross Retreat as a mutual support society for believers, offering them various conveniences and benefits.
As the number of members gradually increased, the costs also grew year by year. This included building new ships to accommodate more believers for activities, supporting elderly or disabled members who had lost their ability to work, and providing rewards to contributing members. All of this required money.
The voluntary offerings from believers were clearly no longer enough. Sometimes, some elders had to chip in their own money to keep the Retreat running. Fortunately, everyone was wealthy, so no one regretted their decision.
However, this was not a long-term solution. Therefore, the Albatross Retreat had been looking for ways to generate income, such as opening a bar, selling Holy Salt at the entrance, and offering Sea God’s blessings and navigation services to passing ships, all of which were profitable means.
Now, with a chest full of diamonds, they had enough to cover their total expenses for several years. The Tide Lord breathed a sigh of relief regarding the budget.
Seeing that his mood was excellent, I took the opportunity to ask, “Excuse me, have you heard of the Deep Sea Church?”
The Tide Lord’s expression instantly changed. He looked at me and asked, “Where did you hear about those filthy people?”
“From a female ghost. I want to understand them. If you know, please tell me what the Deep Sea Church is,” I was overjoyed, knowing that the Tide Lord would surely know.
“They are a group of lunatics who worship three false gods and do not suppress mutations at all. They are a cult that originated in Iberian, aiming to corrupt all living beings in the world with their own corruption. You’d best kill them if you see them, or stay far away,” the Tide Lord said with loathing.
Usually, when one religion refers to another with which they are not on friendly terms, especially with animosity, they call them false gods. This did not surprise me. I continued to ask, “Corrupting other creatures? And for what purpose?”
“I heard they want to assimilate all life and call it evolution. The Deep Sea Church believes that by continuously absorbing good bloodlines and constantly modifying and mutating, they can eventually adapt to any environment and ascend to outer space to spread their lineage. What a foolish dream,” the Tide Lord said.
To fly to outer space with just their physical bodies? What kind of gene ascension is this? So, I asked again, “Then how should I identify them? According to you, their bodies should be highly mutated, and it should be obvious at a glance.”
“Indeed. If you see a grotesque hybrid whose body looks like a fusion of various fish, marine plants, and coelenterates, then they are likely members of the Deep Sea Sect. Please remember, never approach them. Once contaminated, you might be beyond saving, leading only to irreversible mutation,” the Tide Lord said seriously.
“I understand. Lastly, I’ll ask you, what are the names of the gods they worship? You only need to tell me their titles, not their true names,” I inquired.
“Even if you asked me to tell you their divine names, I wouldn’t,” the Tide Lord said. Although he had called them false gods earlier, when it came to actually mentioning them, he knew clearly that he absolutely could not casually speak their true names, especially towards those he had hostility towards.
The Tide Lord glanced at Illyret, clearly implying that she should answer. He had said too many disrespectful words just now and dared not speak anymore.
Illyret sighed. Since the other party’s status was higher than hers, she gritted her teeth and said, “Lifeblood of Origin, Heart of Corruption, Tree of the Deep Blue.”
I recalled and confirmed that I had never heard of these three divine names. As I wanted to ask for more specific information, I saw Illyret nervously staring at her arm, and the Tide Lord was also looking on nervously.
Suddenly, a small patch of fish scales appeared on Illyret’s arm. They were dark blue-black, and the surrounding skin turned into a white, transparent membrane, resembling a jellyfish. Through the membrane, her capillaries could be seen rapidly changing from red to blue.
“I’m mutating! Save me quickly!” Illyret cried out in fear. She never expected to mutate just by saying three titles; it was too terrifying.
Actually, those who believed in Mannan would also grow fish scales when they mutated. According to records, Mannan’s Demigod was half-fish and half-human. The reason Illyret was so nervous was that she clearly discovered that her mutation was not originating from Mannan.
In fact, I could also feel that the mutated part on her arm was filled with alien and chaotic Divine Power, which was reacting violently with her own Divine Power. If it weren’t for the two different Divine Powers resisting within her body, her entire arm might have mutated by now.
I immediately reached into my waist pack to get a scalpel, preparing to perform surgery to remove the mutated part from Illyret. After all, it was my fault that she mutated. Now, as long as the mutated part was removed, she could still be saved. Moreover, these were not vital parts, which was perfectly within my medical skills.
But before I could speak, the Tide Lord had already grabbed Illyret’s arm, applied a layer of Holy Salt to it, and quickly recited a few prayers. The Holy Salt automatically ignited, emitting a faint blue flame.
“Hiss!” Illyret revealed a look of pain. The flame burned on her skin, causing significant pain, but she endured it without struggling, allowing the blue flame to burn on her arm.
Her normal flesh was not burned at all, but the mutated part quickly became raw, blistered, and burst.
The Holy Salt even seeped into the mutated flesh, burning its way in until the entire mutated part was consumed, leaving an irregular cavity on Illyret’s arm.
The Tide Lord then waved his hand over her arm, and a layer of seawater flowed over her skin as his arm moved. The flames were extinguished, and as the seawater filled the void, it quickly transformed into new flesh.
Soon, Illyret’s arm healed. The new flesh perfectly matched her original skin, leaving no trace of a scar. The previous mutation seemed as if it had never existed.
“See? That’s the corruption and mutation of the Deep Sea. Please be extremely careful. This thing is insidious,” the Tide Lord said finally.
