There was no time to worry about anything else. After opening the door, they would have to face the tidal wave rushing towards them.
The deep blue light bloomed on the deck. Almost the moment the ritual was activated, countless tentacles, as thick as arms, impatiently emerged from within. But soon after, a stronger force suppressed them, and a sharp screech made the people on the deck painfully cover their ears, but the sound did not stop there; it drilled directly into their brains.
The screech deprived them of their five senses, leaving them with only extreme pain to perceive.
The pain didn’t last long, but it brought them unimaginable suffering. When the screech finally dissipated, they looked up to see the ark being tossed into the sky by the incoming wave.
They saw the waves crash against the ice walls, and the aftershocks made them feel like their bodies were about to fall apart.
Then, the cracks on the ice wall connected into one and, during the ark’s descent, collapsed with a rumble; it seemed to them as if they were witnessing the world’s disintegration process.
The council members screamed, but were soon drowned out by the roar triggered by the collapse.
At that moment, there remained only one piece of good news.
The tentacles were gone.
With Ethan’s disappearance, the apocalyptic scene was also locked on the other side of the door.
Ethan felt himself falling.
His vision was pitch black, in a deep sea where even light couldn’t reach, a scene that had also appeared in Yue’s dreams. The noise disappeared, and the world finally quieted down.
For the past few days, Ethan had been pondering the Lofic Consortium’s plan to awaken Aelium. In his view, these rituals weren’t difficult; the only requirement was to sacrifice some ancient bloodlines. If their ultimate goal was to destroy Ophira, they could easily act before reaching Ophira.
However, the consortium deliberately waited till they stayed in Ophira for a few days, gathered much intelligence about the Master of Tides and Aelium, and even had ample time to prepare.
Ethan didn’t think this was due to the consortium’s incompetence granting them an opportunity.
Thus, only one answer remained.
They wanted him to enter the abyss and confront this giant octopus that had been dwelling there for epochs.
In the darkness, a bit of light appeared. Ethan saw the mountain-like body Yue had described, and just one open eye was enough to make anyone with a fear of the deep sea die on the spot.
As Uerta had anticipated, this giant octopus wasn’t very friendly, and it attacked Ethan immediately.
The gigantic sea monster dwelling in the deep sea, the culprit behind the tsunami that engulfed Ophira.
If this were a heroic epic, he would have to kill Aelium in the abyss and then be praised by people after returning triumphant, like those heroic figures.
For some reason, the Lofic Consortium hoped he would kill this giant octopus, and he suspected it might be related to the abyss’s seal.
Ethan quickly observed the unusual parts, which were the sores Uerta mentioned. Within flowed the root of corruption, constantly repeating many voices — "They betrayed you, used you as a tool and abandoned you."
"They’re not your friends."
"How pathetic, your so-called friends didn’t even come to see you before they dispersed."
"Do you know what else he did?"
"He hid the monument people built for you."
"They even call you an Evil God, how pitiful."
Such was the result of facing the sores, as if hundreds of voices rushed into Ethan’s mind in an instant, also making him realize that Old Ai was very ill, suffering from extremely severe mental illness, likely driven mad by these incessant murmurs.
Imagine, for countless epochs, people whispering negative energy in your ear, which is unimaginable torture for an ordinary person.
But the good news is, Old Ai was sick enough, with sores covering its entire body. Those negative energies surged through every inch of its skin, sparing Ethan the need to explore the cause and diagnosis.
The giant octopus’s eyes were stained crimson, its mountain-like tentacles lashing out at Ethan.
Yet the human who intruded into the abyss vanished before it, leaving no trace of presence.
More strangely, those incessant murmurings disappeared as well.
For the first time in hundreds of thousands of years, it regained a moment of peace.
For Ethan, it was also a journey whose direction was unknown, as he pursued the trace of negative energy, traversing the pitch-black space.
The air was filled with a strong fishy smell, and he suffered mental attacks:
"How foolish, walking into the trap."
"You can’t go back now."
"Then what?" The source of thɪs content is NoveI~Fire.net
"Do you know how those people will treat you? They’ll pretend to write your name in the books, honor your self-sacrifice, but soon, they’ll return to their old ways."
"They’ll continue holding banquets and playing power games."
"They’re such pathetic creatures, no matter what you do for them, you can’t stop them from degenerating."
This was undoubtedly the most formidable opponent Ethan had ever encountered. The most terrifying aspect was that it could speak ten sentences a second, and even blocking hearing couldn’t remove these murmurings from his mind.
Although there was no physical harm, its impact was far more profound than physical wounds.