novelraw Chapter 358: The Gods Shall Not Be Insulted!
Chapter 358: The Gods Shall Not Be Insulted!
The gloomy sea breeze swept through, and the massive ruined city fell into a brief tranquility.
Under the pounding of the waves, the Sea God statue still stood tall and imposing. Beneath its hundred-meter-long robe, its cold, merciless eyes radiated the domineering aura of the deep sea, maintaining its supreme dignity!
"Sea God..."
Chen Qi could faintly sense the Sea God's predicament.
Under normal circumstances, a deep-sea titan from the Great Sea Coffin, even sold at the lowest price, would be worth more than twelve thousand Ancient Currency.
Not to mention, this was combined with the price of the numerous fish he had previously offered.
The Tentacle Merchant and many monsters raised their heads, believing in the deity who allowed them to survive in the Great Sea Coffin, quietly awaiting the god's instructions!
Chen Qi had heard about some of the New Sun World's deities on the forums.
Most gods, though powerful, had to follow certain laws and principles.
Especially bound gods—if they couldn't maintain their specific principles, they would become extremely weak.The Sea God, as the master of maritime trade, was the guardian of Beiguo's trade during the era of prosperous seas. He was the god of Shell and Scale affinities, representing the fair trade of the seas.
Even in the Great Sea Coffin, with only one Sea God statue, his laws still influenced the many brutal, cold-blooded monsters of the sea, upholding the Shell Principles!
As the god of Shell affinity, the Shell Principles of fair trade were his law!
How could the Sea God be in debt? Chen Qi wondered silently.
Ding-dang! Ding-dang!
The Sea God statue didn't give up;
the huge scale in its hand kept shaking.
After its continuous shaking, two more crooked Ancient Currency coins appeared on the scale!
Through its relentless efforts, it successfully produced two more Ancient Currency coins!
It was actually twelve thousand and two Ancient Currency coins!
Little Crow watched this scene and murmured softly:
"Sea God... is it out of money?"
"Shut up!"
The Tentacle Merchant puffed out her chest, glared at Little Crow with demon-like eyes, and said sharply:
"Gods must not be insulted!"
As the protector of the Merchant's Coffin, how could the great Sea God owe money to two mere adventurers!
This was blasphemy against a deity!
The Tentacle Merchant bit her tentacle hair:
"The Shell Principles are not something you can blaspheme, you weak ant!"
The Tentacle Merchant turned her head, extending a sticky little hand, ready to teach the blasphemous Little Crow a lesson.
However, the next second, an icy chill ran down the Tentacle Merchant's back.
The Tentacle Merchant abruptly turned around and saw the bronze eyes beneath the robe on the hundred-meter statue staring fixedly at her.
The Sea God still had instructions!
Sea God, do you want me to imprison these adventurers... The Tentacle Merchant rubbed her little hands together, eager to try.
Then, shell, scale, and star-patterned runes emerged from the Sea God statue, conveying its decree:
"This is my divine domain, my believers uphold my Shell Principles. When you see them, you see me."
"???"
Chen Qi's mind went blank.
He never expected the Sea God to convey such clear words.
But what did this mean? Chen Qi turned around and suddenly noticed all the monsters had taken a step back.
The Tentacle Merchant's pupils contracted sharply;
her mouth hung open as she looked at the supreme Sea God statue in disbelief.
The Sea God's words, translated into plain language, meant:
His affairs were his believers' affairs!
Therefore, the remaining money would be paid by his believers!
To this end, the Sea God specifically designated the most devout and prestigious believer in the Great Sea Coffin.
The monsters pushed the Tentacle Merchant to the front.
The Sea God statue finally shook the scale, promising a final price.
Chen Qi's offering could be exchanged for a total of twenty-two thousand Ancient Currency.
Such a huge amount of Ancient Currency was an indescribable fortune even for these monster merchants!
Chen Qi's mouth opened slightly.
There's such an operation?
So when a god is short of money, they can make their believers pay it back? No, strictly speaking, that's how believers should be used... Chen Qi suddenly understood.
But what was even more shocking was the arrogant Tentacle Witch behind him.
She was chosen!
"Huh?"
"Huh? Huh?"
The Tentacle Merchant waved her arms and tentacle hair, appearing completely at a loss.
If the Sea God hadn't granted her power, she really wanted to flip the bird at him right now.
The Tentacle Merchant smiled bitterly, adopting a praying posture:
"But, great Sea God, even for me, this amount of money is still too much..."
The Tentacle Merchant gave part of her money to the Sea God, ate another part to enhance her strength, and used the rest to trade with other merchants for food.
The Tentacle Merchant currently only had two thousand Ancient Currency in her pocket, and that included the money paid by the Blackfin Crew.
Facing the Tentacle Merchant's prayers, the great Sea God statue stood silently amid the waves.
Chen Qi looked at the pitiful little tentacle and said solemnly, like a priest:
"Little tentacle, reflect on yourself. Haven't you been slacking off lately? Haven't you been working hard to earn money to offer to the great Sea God?"
"?"
The Tentacle Merchant turned her head, looking at Chen Qi with nearly hateful eyes.
As the wealthiest and most hardworking merchant monster in the Great Sea Coffin.
While other monsters were resting or hibernating, she was out alone piloting her merchant ship, salvaging shipwrecks, luring transcendents!
And all of this was for the great Sea God, to have enough power during the Dimensional Tide to conquer the real world!
Yet, facing the adventurer's humiliation, the Sea God remained silent.
The Sea God statue's scale shook slightly, and a parchment scroll with a 'Debt Contract' inscribed with mysterious runes flew into Chen Qi's hand.
Then, the Sea God statue fell completely silent, no longer uttering any words.
Chen Qi picked up the parchment scroll and said softly:
"I'll exchange ten thousand Ancient Currency for the Nethersea Ship's engine.
According to the contract, little Tentacle Merchant, you still owe me twelve thousand Ancient Currency."
The Tentacle Merchant was completely stunned.
Before the offering, these two were deceived lambs who had to repay money!
Why after the offering, do I need to pay them money!
This isn't fair!
Could it be that in the Sea God's eyes, I'm not even worth a fourth-tier adventurer... The Tentacle Merchant's heart was gradually filled with boundless sadness, teetering on the edge of losing control.
Little Crow hid behind Chen Qi and said:
"Gods must not be insulted."
The god's decree cannot be defied... The Tentacle Merchant blinked and said softly:
"Correction, it's 11,998 Ancient Currency."
Since it was the Sea God's rule, she had to comply.
Her small feet stepped across the cold ground:
"Follow me, I'll install the Nethersea Ship's engine for you."
"Two hundred Ancient Currency installation fee."
Two hundred Ancient Currency installation fee! Chen Qi added:
"According to market rates, one hundred Ancient Currency should be enough."
"You..."
The Tentacle Merchant suppressed her anger and led Chen Qi and the other to the ruined city's shipyard.
As he walked, Chen Qi observed the Tentacle Merchant's back.
Compared to other monsters in the rift, the Tentacle Merchant clearly possessed higher rationality and intelligence.
Indeed, these 'monsters' were once human too... Chen Qi thought to himself.
These little tentacles were likely beings transformed by deep-sea power.
They were influenced by deep-sea bloodline power, not born with deep-sea bloodlines.
This might also be why his Deep Sea Affinity didn't fully take effect.
A moment later, the Tentacle Merchant emerged from her collection ship house, holding a spherical object three times her height...
That was... Chen Qi's pupils suddenly contracted.
A spherical engine pulsed continuously in the Tentacle Merchant's hands, each pulse creating ripples on the sea surface.
The engine's core was surrounded by rings of ghostly blue flames that leaped and flickered without emitting any heat, only casting cold, distant glows like stars in the netherworld.
Beneath the ghostly flames, ancient runes and unknown totems intertwined and coiled together, slowly flowing with the rhythm of the flames, releasing a powerful Lamp affinity force!
This engine far surpassed any engine Chen Qi had ever seen;
its power was so immense it exceeded Chen Qi himself.
Even the energy-consuming space leap engine probably couldn't damage this engine in any way.
The Tentacle Merchant explained:
"This is the former Noah Engine. Legend says it was crafted by the hammer of a Hammer affinity demigod and the cold blade."
"Of course, while its energy is vast and stable, it's not infinite. It needs regular replenishment of deep-sea spiritual energy to recover."
After explaining, the Tentacle Merchant asked:
"By the way, where is your ship?"
Chen Qi pointed to their Ghost Ship.
"Hmm?"
Looking at the Ghost Ship's appearance, the Tentacle Merchant couldn't help but curl her lips, showing a disdainful expression:
"Your ship has the feel of a ghost ship, but in terms of capability, it's just a copy of a copy, the shrimp among shrimp, the trash among trash."
The Tentacle Merchant pouted:
"As expected, weak humans can only use shabby, weak things."
"A copy of a copy..."
Chen Qi didn't refute.
If they were in a B-tier rift, the Ghost Ship with its space-leaping ability would undoubtedly be a good ship.
But placed in an A-tier rift, it was undoubtedly just an ordinary vessel.
It could withstand storms and volcanic rain, but couldn't sail through magma or air, let alone navigate dangerous rifts.
Just from this day's voyage, the piercing cold had already caused many cracks in the Ghost Ship, greatly reducing its speed.
The Tentacle Witch seized the opportunity to repay the debt, trying to stimulate Chen Qi's desire to spend:
"Customer, although you're weak and could die at any moment, if you had a good ship, you could become a powerhouse in the Great Sea Coffin."
She needed to repay this debt as soon as possible to maintain her sanity:
"Do you want to buy a ship or build one?"
"Build one."
Chen Qi looked toward the shipyard. Most ships sold in the Merchant's Coffin were cursed vessels.
Therefore, the best approach was to dismantle parts from these cursed ships and assemble a new vessel.
Deal made! The Tentacle Merchant rubbed her little tentacles:
"For just twelve thousand Ancient Currency, we can build you a ship that can freely navigate the Great Sea Coffin and pass through deep-sea titan territory..."
Twelve thousand Ancient Currency! Little Crow held a lantern and muttered behind Chen Qi:
"Um, Miss Tentacle?"
"What is it? Trash worth only one Ancient Currency!"
The Tentacle Merchant bared her fangs and cursed.
In her eyes, if Chen Qi was trash, then Little Crow was like shrimp.
If not for the Sea God's decree, she would have long ignored these two adventurers.
Little Crow said softly:
"I heard the Sea God is the god of fair trade... Is twelve thousand a reasonable price? I'm not sure how much Ancient Currency it actually takes to build a new ship?"
Little Crow looked at the Tentacle Merchant and added:
"If I'm worth one Ancient Currency, I think building a ship should be cheaper? By the way, Miss Tentacle, how much Ancient Currency are you worth?"
Little Crow mustered her courage, trying to ask as politely as possible.
She wanted to understand the 'price standard' in the Tentacle Merchant's words to help Chen Qi with the transaction.
How much Ancient Currency am I worth? I'm not even comparable to an adventurer... The Tentacle Merchant curved her eyebrows and smiled politely:
"The Sea God's believers are priceless."
"As friends, I can give you a discount. For three thousand Ancient Currency, I can help you modify your ship. Rest assured, these three thousand Ancient Currency include the best building materials in the Great Sea Coffin."
"After modification, your ship will have the defensive power of a deep-sea titan."
The Tentacle Merchant tried hard to offer a 'reasonable' price.
Three thousand Ancient Currency, that leaves nine thousand... Chen Qi stroked his chin.
The rewards from this deep-sea titan offering far exceeded his expectations!
Unfortunately, this Sea God statue was truly poor—it went bankrupt after just one titan offering.
If the Sea God statue hadn't collapsed, Chen Qi even felt he could buy the entire Merchant's Coffin.
I wonder if there are wealthier deep-sea gods elsewhere... Chen Qi thought to himself.
Then he walked to the seaside and looked at the various goods on the Tentacle Merchant's small boat.
As he looked, he asked:
"Little tentacle, how long does shipbuilding take?"
The Tentacle Merchant said:
"If it's a ship comparable to a deep-sea titan, four days..."
Four days... Chen Qi opened the map and inquired about some detailed ship information.
If they didn't build a new ship and continued from this place to reach the Witch's Coffin, plus some unexpected delays, it would also take about four days.
And within these four days, Fen's food, medicine, and injuries were all major problems.
Chen Qi weighed the options for a moment.
With the new ship's speed, plus continuous use of spatial leap, they could probably reach the Witch's Coffin in just one day.
Most importantly, the seriously ill Fen could rest for a while.
The timeframes were similar... After thinking, Chen Qi decided to wait in the Merchant's Coffin for the ship to be built.
At the same time, he had to find a way to spend all the remaining 'debt'!
Nine thousand Ancient Currency! In the real world, this would be an astronomical price, enough to empty multiple legendary merchants' mysterious shops!
"Little Crow, let's rest for a while..."
Chen Qi said quietly.
Hearing about resting... The Tentacle Merchant took a step back.
Chen Qi took out his communication radio device, sent a message to the Ice Demon Pirates, and began examining the Tentacle Merchant's collection.
Chen Qi vaguely remembered that among the Tentacle Merchant's collection, there were some items that could significantly enhance his strength.
Chen Qi scanned them one by one.
"The Ice Saintess Necklace that can increase Ice affinity comprehension."
"The forbidden weapon from the Winter Kingdom, Blizzard Blade."
"Fertile Seeds that enhance reproductive desire and vitality."
"Forbidden skill cards 'Shadow Blade', 'Undying Dragon Heart'."
"Books by renowned research scholars: 'The Coffin of Condensation', 'The Forging Method of Azure Flames', 'The Origin of Deep Blue Flames'..."
"Tyrant Dragon Blood that enhances Flesh Armor power..."
"Cold Medicine that alleviates extreme cold illness..."
Weapons, books, medicine—everything was available... Chen Qi didn't hesitate at all, buying everything he saw that might be useful!
Chen Qi coughed and said:
"Everything I point to, I want it all."
"Customer!"
The Tentacle Merchant excitedly sold items, but unfortunately, the goods on these small boats were all priced, making it hard for her to raise prices.
Soon, a pile of transcendent resources accumulated beside Chen Qi.
These included not only medicine to treat Fen, but also items that could help Little Crow and Fen grow!
In the end, Chen Qi spent a staggering four thousand Ancient Currency in total!
Still five thousand Ancient Currency left... Chen Qi thought to himself.
Normally, for a legendary to qualify for breaking through to the fourth tier, they needed lengthy training, time, and countless resources.
But the items purchased from this A-tier rift could greatly enhance his strength, even allowing him to quickly bypass the legendary's long growth period!
Yet even with such extravagant spending, he still had five thousand Ancient Currency left!
The money just can't be spent... Chen Qi felt somewhat troubled.
Unlike other money, this sum existed as 'debt'.
If he couldn't spend it in the rift, he wouldn't have another chance later!
Should I find other merchants to buy some materials, see if I can find suitable equipment? Chen Qi couldn't help but feel conflicted.
The Tentacle Merchant called the Merchant's Coffin's shipbuilders and said softly:
"Respected customer~ Your shipbuilding service has been arranged. Do you need to buy anything else?"
The Tentacle Merchant bent over, rubbed her little tentacles, her eyes flashing with greed!
Chen Qi was a big client!
What else can I buy... Chen Qi couldn't help but think of the upcoming major operation at the Witch's Coffin.
Chen Qi vaguely remembered that in the original storyline, the Ice Witch's resurrection occurred during the time of international warfare.
At that time, the corrupted Flower Witch bloodily avenged the Blood Blade Pirates' great enemy, three respected Navy Admirals. Finally, with the support of the Blood Blade Pirates and the Blade Witch, she became the undisputed hero of the Blood Blade Pirates.
Finally, she united with the Blood Blade Pirates and set off for the Witch's Coffin during the weak period when the Book Tower and Blackfin Crew were fighting!
And ultimately, Fen, at the cost of over ninety percent casualties of the Blood Blade Pirates, plus one of her hands, twenty years of lifespan, and the Blood Blade Pirates' secret treasure, briefly attained Saint-level strength to barely resurrect the Ice Witch.
But because Chen Qi changed the timeline, the situation in the Witch Sea had become unpredictable.
Since the Blackfin Crew deployed many legendary figures to deal with the Black Hunter, the Blood Blade Pirates had already completed part of their revenge plan on their own.
And now, the situation at the Witch's Coffin was even more severe.
The Blackfin Crew and the Azure Beast had joined forces, and the troops they dispatched remained a mystery.
This event concerned the Ice Witch's arrival and the future of the entire Witch Sea.
Chen Qi shook his head, vaguely sensing a bad premonition.
As expected, in this battle, the Blackfin Crew and the Azure Beast would pour all available forces to stop them!
At the Witch's Coffin, there might already be terrifying Blackfin leviathans waiting for them.
They had to make more preparations for the final battle at the Witch's Coffin, otherwise, there could be serious casualties... Chen Qi pondered.
What else can I buy to enhance combat power?
Thinking this, Chen Qi couldn't help but fix his gaze on the flattering Tentacle Merchant before him.