Gospel of Blood

The endless sea shimmered with sapphire-like waves, reflecting the azure sky.

Golden sunlight pierced through the clouds, casting a radiant glow over the sea, like countless sparkling stars fallen to earth.

The North Sea.

This is the largest and most bountiful, yet also the most mysterious sea area in the northwest of the Myria continent.

It is a famous fishing ground for the Northlanders and Starfall people, as well as the homeland of sea monsters that are both mysterious and awe-inspiring in various fantastical stories of Myria.

Suddenly, a crimson light streaked across the sky, piercing the clouds like a meteor.

Eventually, that light fell into a fog-covered sea area, transforming into Charlotte.

The Misty Sea.

This is the deepest and most mysterious part of the North Sea.

Mist, sea monsters, ghost ships… various bizarre legends and tales are intertwined with this sea, adding even more enigma to the already mysterious Misty Sea.

However, to another organization, the Sea King Church, one of the three major churches that have been passed down for thousands of years in the North Sea and surrounding areas, this place is a revered and longed-for holy land of myth and legend.

This place is rumored to be the resting place of the Ocean God “Sea King Oceanus.”

Charlotte stood in the air.

Crimson divine power supported her, the sea breeze blowing her long silver hair in her divine form.

The golden sunset cast a layer of golden-red radiance over her, making her look even more majestic and sacred under the mist.

She gazed down at the ocean below, her golden-red eyes reflecting the shimmering sea, her expression tinged with nostalgia and complexity.

Time is a truly wondrous thing.

A thousand years can change many things.

But some things seem to be frozen in time, remaining unchanged even after nearly two thousand years.

For example, this sea, this perpetually lingering mist.

Coming here and seeing the familiar sea, Charlotte almost felt as if she were back a thousand years ago.

As if in the next moment, Sea King’s emissary would sail through the mist, respectfully greeting her.

As if in the next moment, the sea would part, and the waves would take on the rugged form of Oceanus, who would glare at her uninvited presence.

But some things have inevitably changed with the passage of time.

Charlotte could no longer sense the emissary of Sea King.

Nor could she sense the presence of Oceanus.

All she could feel was the familiar salty sea breeze, the unchanged sea surface even after a thousand years, and the significantly diminished magic in the air compared to a millennium ago.

With a light sigh, Charlotte leaped into the sea.

Divine power enveloped her as she descended, following her memories to the depths of the ocean floor.

What met her eyes was a dilapidated underwater palace.

Collapsed columns and coral-covered statues still hinted at past glory, but everything had become part of history.

Charlotte sighed softly.

Although she had guessed it long ago, actually coming here still made her feel complex emotions.

She had few friends in the world of Myria, and Sea King Oceanus was one of them.

Though she initially approached him out of curiosity about true Gods and to strategically align with him for historical development, she gradually became close friends with this mythical figure.

Charlotte knew that “Helios” had once impersonated Oceanus and that the Sea King Church, one of the world’s three major churches, had been declining for centuries.

She knew the signs indicated that something had likely happened to Oceanus in this era.

But having traversed history, she had warned Oceanus multiple times to beware of future disasters, so she held onto a sliver of hope.

However, reality proved that history could not be altered.

What had happened could not be changed.

Setting aside her thoughts, Charlotte walked into the Sea King Temple.

The ruined temple was both familiar and strange, still faintly showing traces of its former arrangements.

Charlotte even saw the underwater courtyard where she often chatted with Oceanus and asked him about mythical spell, seeing the coral table and chairs where they once sat.

But alas, everything had changed.

There was no trace of life here, let alone residual divine power, and judging by the state of the temple, it had been abandoned for hundreds of years.

Reaching the temple’s center, Charlotte thought for a moment and chanted a cryptic spell.

Divine power quietly flowed, converging in Charlotte’s hand, eventually forming a phantom conch.

This was a divine communication spell she learned from Oceanus when she traversed history, used to summon Sea King’s followers and guide her.

In the era she traversed, she often used this method to summon the ferryman of the Misty Sea, sea King’s follower, the skeletal captain Krystoff.

Divine power surged, and the conch emitted a deep hum, rippling through the sea.

Charlotte waited quietly.

Waiting for a possible response.

But as time passed, there was still no response.

At this moment, Charlotte had to admit that there was truly nothing left here.

Shaking her head, Charlotte prepared to leave.

However, as she turned, she sensed something and looked in a certain direction.

She felt an unfamiliar presence approaching.

No…

That presence wasn’t unfamiliar.

A low wail came from afar, seemingly responding to Charlotte’s call.

The heavy seawater began to ripple, and Charlotte saw a massive shadow slowly emerging, growing larger and larger.

Finally, a colossal octopus swam from afar, appearing in Charlotte’s sight.

It was the Legendary Sea Behemoth Kraken.

This pet of Sea King Oceanus was actually nearby and had been summoned by Charlotte.

Charlotte was somewhat surprised.

After all, by her estimation, with Oceanus’ identity being replaced by “Helios”, this sea monster was likely also under the latter’s control and should not have responded to her divine spell.

But Charlotte quickly noticed the changes in the beast.

Compared to the last time she saw it, the beast had lost many tentacles and bore several gruesome scars.

It seemed to have experienced a fierce battle, and although the battle seemed to have happened a long time ago, some of the wounds were still festering with black mist lingering around them.

Charlotte’s eyes narrowed.

She recognized that mist.

“This is… ‘Origin’ corruption.”

Charlotte murmured.

Origin corruption.

The source of the blood frenzy for bloodbornes, the culprit behind the decline of the Harcos Clan, and the power wielded by “Helios.”

Charlotte looked at Kraken.

Kraken also scrutinized Charlotte.

Unlike the frenzied beast she remembered, this time, Kraken’s eyes were clear, with a hint of surprise.

However, that surprise quickly turned into confusion, doubt, and vigilance upon seeing Charlotte.

Additionally, there was a hint of human-like tension.

Evidently, it did not remember their previous confrontation.

Of course, Charlotte had never seen it in her traversed era because Oceanus had not yet kept an octopus pet back then.

But this was enough for Charlotte to deduce much information.

The festering wounds, the change in temperament, the familiar black mist, and the timeline of the scars’ existence…

Charlotte had a revelation.

“I see, it seems… the last time I encountered you, you were already under the control of the Sun Temple, right?”

“And now, you have taken advantage of the three and a half years of his absence to free yourself from his control?”

Kraken did not respond.

However, it clearly understood Charlotte’s words, as its eyes gradually became less vigilant.

Charlotte exhaled lightly and raised the conch in her hand.

Blood divine power surged, enveloping Kraken.

Kraken immediately tensed and began to struggle.

“Don’t move, I’m just trying to heal your wounds.”

Charlotte said.

Kraken did not stop, but it soon realized that Charlotte’s divine power was not attacking it.

The crimson glow merely spread over its body, engulfing the black mist in its gruesome wounds.

Gradually, Kraken calmed down, floating stiffly and accepting Charlotte’s treatment.

The crimson glow persisted for about a minute and a half, gradually absorbing the black origin corruption, leaving only the raw wounds.

At this point, Kraken completely calmed down, looking at Charlotte with eyes still filled with doubt and vigilance but also with a trace of gratitude.

“I’ve cleared the corruption from your body, so your wounds can heal now. You are a follower of Oceanus and still have some of his power within you. Your body is too weak right now, so I didn’t use divine power for further healing to avoid divine power rejection.”

Charlotte said.

Upon hearing this, Kraken finally let go of its vigilance.

It looked at Charlotte seriously and, after a moment, finally spoke.

“Esteemed one…”

“To my knowledge, the conch of my Lord can only be summoned by his divine favored within the church, and outside the church, only one entity has ever been granted permission.”

“May I ask… are you the True Ancestor of Blood?”