Chapter 465 Odd-Colored Ribbonfish

After the battle ended, Xia Nan carefully studied the altar left behind on the beach by the Sahuagin.

It was just as crude, built from random reef rocks and sea stones scavenged from who knew where. Yet the complex patterns carved into its surface and its overall structure were almost exactly the same as the one he had found in the hollow on Cliff Rock Island.

This confirmed Xia Nan's suspicion.

This group of Sahuagin had been performing the exact same Sacrificial Ritual he had witnessed before.

Xia Nan wasn't sure what this ritual actually accomplished for the fishmen. Did it summon those powerful Shark Beasts? Or was it purely an act of faith?

Regardless, their use of humans as sacrifices was a stark reality.

The gruesome corpses of the fishermen lay quietly in the pit, growing cold and starting to rot.

"It's a little strange."

Rubbing her thumb against the carved patterns on the altar's surface, Hein looked thoughtful.

"These runes do form the spell structure of a summoning ritual, but there are glaring alterations throughout," she continued.

"I wouldn't call them improvements... It's more like several spell structures were mashed together."

"It's hard to decipher."

Although she wasn't an orthodox Academy Faction mage—barely qualifying as a Spellcaster thanks to her [Druid] class—Hein definitely had the deepest reservoir of occult knowledge among them.

Right now, she was studying the reef-rock altar left by the fishmen alongside Xia Nan.

"Is this kind of Sacrificial Ritual a Sahuagin tradition?"

Having recently arrived at Barracuda Bay, Xia Nan knew absolutely nothing about Sahuagin culture, so he directed the question to the two people beside him.

"Definitely not." Nearby, with one foot planted on the corpse of an elite fishman, Lorraine held a smoldering rolled cigarette in her right hand and shook her head with absolute certainty.

"Sahuagin are one of the more aggressive species in the sea. They view humans as mortal enemies and will slaughter any they come across without mercy."

"It all stems from racial hatred. While they might pillage useful items along the way, using human corpses as sacrifices for a ritual... at least, I've never heard of such a thing in all my years."

Encountering this twice in a row, at different times and locations, made Xia Nan almost certain that the Sacrificial Ritual before them wasn't the spontaneous whim of a single Sahuagin.

It was definitely prepared for some specific purpose they didn't yet understand.

So... what exactly were these fishmen after?

On some level, whatever conspiracy they were brewing had nothing to do with Xia Nan.

If the sky fell, the tall would hold it up. He was just an ordinary Adventurer who had only recently escaped poverty, and his Level 3 Class Level placed him at the very bottom of the world's Transcendent Tier pyramid.

If something major really happened, the high-level Class Holders in Barracuda Bay would naturally handle it. It wasn't his place to worry about every little thing.

Besides, barring any accidents, he would return inland in a little over two months once the "Lunar Tide Banquet" concluded.

When that time came, no matter how much of a fuss the fishmen kicked up, Xia Nan didn't think they could overcome their geographical constraints and aquatic biology to cross two provinces and affect him.

On the other hand, he had to admit that since arriving at Barracuda Bay, he had only left the port for two quests, yet he had encountered Sahuagin altars both times.

It inevitably left him a little concerned.

"Perhaps it's a task handed down by the deity they worship?"

Although the gods of this world were like chess players outside the board, sitting high in their divine kingdoms, they had distinct personalities. They had their own likes and preferences, their own ideals, and even their own desires, and many maintained fairly close communication with their followers below.

To put it nicely, they were "human-like."

It was hard not to suspect that the Sahuagin's unusual deviation from their traditional habits meant there was some movement among their superiors, or even from the deity they worshipped.

"That's not impossible."

Lorraine gave a slight nod, her gaze losing focus as if she were recalling something.

"Now that you mention it, during the few days I rested at the tavern, I did hear some talk about the Sahuagin."

"Normally, they wouldn't be brought up this frequently."

The deity worshipped by the Sahuagin was named Sekolah, also known as the Great Shark and the Caller of the Deep.

Its domains included [Pillage], [Tyranny], and [Hunting].

Xia Nan's knowledge base contained information regarding this deity's personality and behavior.

In short, it was an extreme and brutal racist.

Sekolah viewed other marine life as enemies to be purged, encouraging the Sahuagin to pillage and slaughter far and wide to manifest its power and ideals.

Just like this deity's holy symbol, Sekolah was like a terrifying shark prowling beneath the surface, scanning the ocean for prey with greedy, tyrannical eyes.

If this entity had indeed suddenly taken a whim to demand the fishmen show their devotion through a ritual using the corpses of other races as sacrifices... it would actually make sense.

With limited clues, just standing around talking wouldn't lead to any useful conclusions.

After quickly cleaning up the battlefield, the group dug some dirt to bury the pit filled with the villagers' corpses. It gave these innocent civilians who had suffered such a senseless disaster a decent resting place, sparing them from being left exposed in the Wilderness. Only then did they head back the way they came.

Having just finished the battle, they hadn't had time to properly clean off the blood and gore splattered on their bodies.

From a distance, the crew at the dock grew alert upon receiving warnings from a few Adventurers.

When Xia Nan and the others emerged from the woods, they saw that the crew had already assumed a combat formation, looking as if they were facing a formidable enemy.

Only after spotting their silhouettes and exchanging a few passcodes with Lorraine did everyone finally breathe a sigh of relief.

"What's the situation? Is there a problem on the island?"

The bald, muscular Aken hurried forward, hefting his bizarre, anchor-like greataxe.

His tone was genuinely concerned, but one could also detect his underlying eagerness to fight.

It had been a while since the storm ended. The inner fire from his Barbarian class, previously worn down by the wind and rain, had long since flared up again, burning in his chest and fueling his emotions.

He was craving a battle.

"It was a group of fishmen performing some kind of Sacrificial Ritual. We've taken care of them all. We'll talk about the details later."

Knowing her crewmate's personality well, Lorraine simply waved her hand and didn't elaborate.

She then turned to the shipwrights in charge of inspections.

"The situation has changed. Hurry it up; it's best we finish before sunset," she urged.

"We need to reach our destination as quickly as possible."

The frenzied Spiral-Toothed Shark School, the mysterious ritual of the Sahuagin... Something was very likely happening over in the Twin Oceans.

For the sake of their quest, and for the clues she hoped to find, they had to speed up their progress.

As the absolute core of the Blade of Vengeance and the captain of the entire ship, Lorraine commanded immense respect among the crew.

Especially for the sailors, who enjoyed benefits considered highly generous even in Barracuda Bay; they wouldn't dare slack off in the face of the captain's orders, immediately throwing themselves into their work.

Fortunately, thanks to Hein's timely casting of [Fast-Growing Vine Shell], the Blade of Vengeance Ship hadn't suffered any severe damage during the storm against the siege of the Spiral-Toothed Shark School. This drastically reduced the estimated repair time.

By mid-afternoon, the crew finished the inspections and repairs ahead of schedule. The group successfully departed from Hare Island to continue their journey.

...

...

Life at sea was as dull as ever.

In the blink of an eye, three more days and nights passed.

They were no longer far from their destination, the "Twin Oceans," and everyone on board was making their own preparations.

Following the helmsman's orders, the sailors climbed the masts to nervously adjust the sails, controlling the ship's heading with greater precision. Crossbows, swords, and axes stored in the cabins were brought out and distributed, while supplies like fresh water and food were thoroughly checked to confirm their reserves.

Even the experienced Adventurers on board were much more serious than usual.

Hein spent a third more time meditating at the bow than before. The brothers, Ryan and Gordon, never took off their equipment, keeping their swords and shields strapped to their backs even when directing the crew. Aken spent less and less time training, instead building up the Rage in his heart that served as the source of a Barbarian's strength. The Tabaxi, Sasha, also climbed down from his comfortable, sofa-like rope suspended between the masts, lightly stretching his limbs along the deck's railing.

Infected by the atmosphere on the ship, even Xia Nan gave the armor he wore a deep maintenance session for the first time in a while.

It was from Barracuda Bay, from the blacksmith shop Hera had recommended.

The quality of this Plate-Chain Composite Armor was quite good. Although it had suffered two deep scratches from harpoons during the battle with the Sahuagin on Hare Island, they weren't severe, piercing wounds, so its overall defensive capabilities hadn't been compromised much.

It was still wearable.

It made Xia Nan feel that he had been wise.

Good thing he hadn't listened to Hera's suggestion to "rent" it, and had instead paid up front to buy the armor outright.

Otherwise, those two scratches alone would have eaten up his deposit, and he'd still have to pay the rental fee for this period on top of that.

He considered it proof of his own self-awareness regarding how often his armor got wrecked.

Right now, the only person on the entire ship who hadn't changed, staying as relaxed as ever, was the Halfling, Alton.

Driven by his nature, the little guy always appeared incredibly laid-back and carefree.

Any worries seemed to go in one ear and out the other, never lingering inside him for long.

He was always grinning, full of passion and curiosity for everything.

At the moment, he was sitting on the railing, swinging his legs and fishing with a look of great enthusiasm.

Normally, this would be an incredibly dangerous thing to do.

Alton barely reached Xia Nan's waist. With his inherently short stature and lack of physical strength, sitting on the railing stripped away his final layer of protection at the deck's edge.

If a sea fish bit the hook and pulled even slightly, the little guy would likely be dragged off the ship.

The crew, including a few of the Adventurers, had been worried at first.

It wasn't until the fish buckets beside Alton were filled one after another that they finally relaxed, realizing that this Halfling, much like the black-haired youth, was someone who defied conventional logic.

Xia Nan was currently leaning against the railing next to Alton, but he didn't have a fishing rod in hand. He was just watching the other man fish.

As for the reason... Ahem, it certainly wasn't because he had spent the entire morning gripping a rod, only to reel in two tangled strands of seaweed.

Luck naturally ebbed and flowed; sometimes it was best not to force it.

Since his fishing luck was mediocre today, he might as well take half a day off to rest and build up some good fortune, ready to go hard at it tomorrow.

Xia Nan comforted himself with these thoughts, simultaneously hoping some of Alton's good luck would rub off on him.

Unlike the exaggerated performance of the past few days, where a fish would bite the second his line hit the water, the intervals between Alton's catches had been growing longer and longer recently.

Of course, this wasn't because his luck had run out.

It was because what the little guy wanted to catch had changed.

Compared to the sense of accomplishment from hooking and reeling in a fish, the Halfling Alton much preferred the novelty of catching a different species of fish with every cast.

As the days passed and the variety of fish he caught increased, the little guy's threshold also steadily rose.

Last night, Xia Nan even saw him reel in a bizarre, glowing, eyeless fish that typically only lived in the deep sea. Not even the most experienced veteran sailors on deck had ever seen anything like it.

"Zzzing!"

The previously relaxed fishing rod suddenly bent sharply, the line pulling taut.

Another fish was on the hook!

Xia Nan focused his attention, looking over at Alton.

The Agility granted by his Bard class ensured that even as he exerted force with his arms, his body—perched on the railing—showed no signs of losing its balance.

There was no need to tire the fish out, nor did he use any complex angling techniques. The little guy simply sat there and, following a set rhythm, formulaically jerked the rod up twice, then naturally reeled the line in for two seconds.

The fish on the hook beneath the surface seemingly cooperated—though in reality, it was just a coincidence—submitting to his rhythm and struggling pointlessly as it was smoothly reeled in.

"Smack!"

With a splash of sparkling water, an arm-length, slender ribbonfish landed on the deck. It stared with its ignorant, bulging eyes, thrashing and flopping about.

Waiting on the sidelines, Xia Nan found the perfect moment and lightly tapped his knuckles against the back of its head. The slender ribbonfish instantly passed out completely.

Thinking about the extra dish they would have for lunch later, he hooked his fingers into its gills and lifted the ribbonfish off the deck, preparing to toss it into the nearby wooden bucket.

But a second later, when Xia Nan caught a clear look at the fish in his hand, he couldn't help but freeze.

The marine ribbonfish, which he remembered should have been entirely silver-white, looked as though it had been roughly painted over with a pigment-soaked brush.

The scales on the right half of its body were a rare and bizarre brownish-red.

With the dorsal fin acting as a dividing line, it was silver-white on the left and brownish-red on the right, as if two ribbonfish of completely different colors had been forcibly fused together.

His mind involuntarily recalled how Lorraine and the others had described the destination of their quest over the past few days.

Staring at the strange, odd-colored ribbonfish in his hand, an understanding dawned in his heart:

'The Twin Oceans... We've arrived.'