On the early morning of the next day,
the God of Lightning and Thunder, Taranis El Thunderbane,
the Snow Goddess, Nymeria El Snowbane,
the Goddess of All Beasts, Gumiho,
the God of Strength, Jambavan, and
the God of Hunt and Stealth, Vyaghra, bid their farewell to the Hundred Sky Mountains, setting out on a journey for an uncertain length of time.
Taranis and Nymeria naturally felt a little low for the first few days, being parted from their family. However, they soon recovered, thanks to Jambavan's humour and Ume's loving nature.
Voltrex provided them with the Golden Chariot, one of the fastest and most luxurious magical chariots on the Western Continent. They used it to cover only half the continent and chose to travel the remaining distance on foot.
On their journey, they passed countless human settlements such as sects, villages, and cities, as well as numerous natural landscapes like valleys, forests, savannas, and rivers.
They would stop at random intervals to help an old farmer lift the weight of his crops, share stories with children, defeat mountain bandits, cure a deadly plague afflicting an entire village, or simply rest.
They wore simple clothes, slept beneath the shade of trees, and bathed in the cold waters of waterfalls.
No one could have guessed, from the way they lived and traveled, that they were gods.
Even though Taranis had left behind comfortable warm mattresses, silken clothes that adorned his body, and servants ready to attend to him at a moment's notice, it was the most peaceful he had felt since he had regained his memories.
The Corruption of Death within him had decreased to 90%. He had even regained 5% control over Golden Lightning, thanks to the reward he received from the Main Quest: Save Nymeria, and the many people he had helped along his journey.
On the one hundred and seventy-first day since they left the Hundred Sky Mountains, the squad reached the shores of the Western Continent.
---
"So this is the Abyssal Sea," I murmured, my eyes locked on the endless dark ocean before me.
Giant waves, along with a cold breeze, struck the land with heavy splashes. The air echoed with an ominous hum, as if warning us not to dare enter these forbidden waters.
"I haven't even entered the water, and I can already feel my Soulforce dissipating," Nymeria said, her voice laced with shock. "No wonder people say it is suicide to sail on these waves."
The Abyssal Sea was the greatest and most formidable natural array of Vyoman. It nullified all flying abilities above its expanse, and any being who fell into its waters had their Soulforce suppressed, reducing them to an ordinary human until they left the sea.
The relentless waves were another threat, capable of tearing any ship into countless pieces that dared oppose its tides.
"Taranis, do you really wish to sail in this darkness?" Nymeria asked, turning toward me.
"Don't worry. I have a certain method to travel across these waters," I answered, opening a massive inventory portal above the shore.
From within, something enormous began to emerge, its illuminating surface painting the shore white with its glow.
First appeared a figurehead of a beautiful mermaid with long sea-green hair, holding a blowing conch with both hands resting upon her lips. It was attached to an enormous ship, its planks radiating an ethereal glow.
From its towering structure and design, it seemed capable of tearing through mountains without suffering even a scratch.
"Beautiful," Ume and Nymeria gasped simultaneously.
"When did you prepare such a ship?" Ume asked, curious.
"Her name is Mermaid. She was a gift prepared by my father for Uncle Stormir," I revealed, my half-open eyelids reflecting the weight and sadness behind my words.
Taking a deep breath, I steadied myself to avoid making the mood awkward and continued,
"Mermaid is made from the wood of the World Tree. She is capable of piercing through these harsh waves like a knife slicing butter."
"Bwahaha, a never-before-experienced adventure," Jambavan exclaimed in excitement. "I can't wait anymore. Let's move out already."
He leapt off the ground, landing directly on the deck of the ship.
"How undignified," Vyaghra muttered, shaking his head as he dissolved into his shadow before emerging on the deck as well.
"Let's go," I said, offering my Soulforce-formed hands to Ume and Nymeria.
As they placed their hands in mine, our feet left the ground, and we reached the deck in a smooth, elegant motion.
From there, we moved to the lower deck, where multiple quarters, a kitchen, a central hall, and a control room were built. The interior was adorned with intricate patterns of gold and silver across the planks, giving it an atmosphere no less luxurious than that of a grand hotel.
"Take the quarters of your choice and make yourselves comfortable," I said. "This is going to be our home for several months if not years, from now on."
Vyaghra chose the room at the far corner, the one farthest from the rest. Jambavan selected a room at random before heading back outside, more interested in witnessing the ship's performance against the giant waves.
Ume and Nymeria chose the largest room, since the three of us were obviously going to share it.
But before that, I needed this beauty to move, so I entered the control room.
A large wooden wheel was embedded at the center. A screen-like artifact was set into the front wall, displaying the outside of the ship, much like a camera feed.
The wooden interior, along with several glass-like artifacts and numerous buttons embedded into the dashboard, gave the ship a blend of modern and medieval aesthetics.
With the help of the control manual, I input the coordinates of the Southern Continent, which had been given to me by my father, who had learned them from Uncle Stormir.
Once the coordinates were set, all that remained was to press the green button embedded at the center of the helm.
The moment I did, an invisible spherical barrier enveloped the entire ship, and slowly, it began moving forward.
A few bumps were unavoidable before it finally entered smoother currents.
There was a reason I had chosen the Southern Continent as our destination.
After claiming the reward from the Main Quest, the second reward I received was a hint about the location of an ancient relic needed to remove the third ban from my bloodline. And the location it revealed was the Southern Continent.
"Here I come, Southern Continent."
Reviews
All reviews (0)