Chapter 17: Destined to Quench the God’s Wrath and Sorrow with Blood.

Chapter 17 Fated to Quench the Divine Offspring's Rage and Grief with Blood

Rewind ten minutes earlier.

Luo Shengle borrowed a colleague's phone on some pretext, her thumb hovering hesitantly over the dial button as she asked, "Then, how should I describe you? If you're willing, you may reveal your holy name."

Yi Fengchu fell silent.

Previously, he had only spread his so-called "holy name"—which was, in truth, nothing more than a product of his chuunibyou (delusional teenage) phase—to strangers.

But to say it aloud to someone familiar...

For the first time, Yi Fengchu's usually calm demeanor wavered with an unfamiliar sensation. After a moment of introspection, he realized it was "embarrassment."

After waiting a few seconds, Luo Shengle saw the Narrator's response: "Use your first impression to describe me."

"Any description or title—as long as there is a connection, it will link to me."

"Me? Describe you? Are you sure?"

Luo Shengle paused, suddenly feeling the weight of responsibility. How to accurately and respectfully describe a deity had always been the task of followers of divine beings, Apostles, or even High Priests. No High Being was without devout believers composing, praising, and spreading their names.

Their revered names and powers were often recounted in the most poetic verses, echoing under the resplendent frescoes and painted domes of cathedrals, lifted by the pure voices of choirs, ceaseless day and night.

But now, the unexpected burden of describing a mysterious High Being had fallen upon her shoulders...

Mr. Narrator had spoken lightly, casually—but how could she describe him carelessly?

To what extent should she describe him without causing offense? That was another dilemma...

Yi Fengchu watched as Luo Shengle pondered with grave seriousness before finally pressing the call button with resolve: "Hail to you, the great Mr. Narrator."

—Well, this was the title he had provided himself. Surely, it couldn’t be wrong.

Considering the scepter of omniscience over past and future that Mr. Narrator had displayed, Luo Shengle cautiously added, "Lord of the River of Fate."

And then...

As the words formed on her lips, her mind conjured the image of intertwined silver-white serpents and those brilliant golden eyes. Unconsciously, she uttered:

"—King of the Silver White Snakes..."

The moment the words left her mouth, the call was cut off again.

Luo Shengle asked nervously, "Mr. Narrator... was that acceptable?"

"You did well."

Yi Fengchu was pleased. At last, he had a revered name composed by someone other than himself—no longer a complete loner, at least able to pretend to have followers beyond "Chu Fu."

And the moment this revered name reached another person's ears, a "connection" was forged.

On the phone screen, a thin golden thread passed through the wall, stretching straight toward a distant point, connecting to a bright speck of light—as conspicuous as a lighthouse in the vast darkness.

"Let’s go," Yi Fengchu tapped the glowing spot and smiled. "Let’s remind this gentleman—hanging up without letting the other party finish speaking is impolite."

...

Returning to the present.

This time, Director Jiang reluctantly answered the call, his pleading voice trembling faintly: "What do you want to know? I'll tell you everything! Just... just make the being you serve spare me..."

He seemed utterly terrified. Luo Shengle couldn’t help but wonder what Mr. Narrator had done to him earlier...

A spark of curiosity surfaced in her mind before she squelched it, refocusing on the matter at hand.

Calmly and solemnly, she said, "Don’t be afraid, sir. Mr. Narrator is a benevolent deity. As long as you cooperate and answer the following questions truthfully, He will not be angered."

"Y-yes..." The voice on the other end was weak. "What do you want to know?"

"I want to know—what became of the whale bone in the history of the Whale Bone Aquarium? Where did it go?"

"......"

Director Jiang fell silent. Luo Shengle could only hear his rapid, uneasy breathing, as if he were trapped in some horrific nightmare. After a long pause, he finally spoke in a hoarse voice:

"Truthfully, the whale bone disappeared before I was born, so I can’t confirm its whereabouts either. I can only speculate based on the records left by my ancestors."

"My great-grandfather—the original Founder of the aquarium—had a habit of keeping daily logs due to his years of sailing. In his later years, his notes showed his mind on the verge of collapse, repeatedly expressing remorse and guilt to our family."

"He said he should never have salvaged that 'whale bone'—that he had offended the offspring of a divine being, thus bringing disaster and a curse upon the land."

"He also said—'It' was growing, bigger and bigger. He could scarcely imagine what size that 'whale bone' would reach by today, a century later..."

Yi Fengchu tapped the phone screen thoughtfully, assembling the information gathered so far.

First, the so-called "whale bone" was alive. It wasn’t just the remains of a whale but likely originated from a divine being or a demigod.

Second, the entire aquarium also showed signs of being alive, with unknown text surfacing inside—perhaps the thoughts or diary of some creature.

Finally, the "whale bone" was growing. Eventually, it might become too large for an ordinary building to contain—and coincidentally, the aquarium had been torn down and rebuilt decades ago...

"The whale bone must still be inside the aquarium."

After a moment's thought, Yi Fengchu quickly concluded, "Or rather, the new aquarium was built around the bone. To conceal it, the previous director chose to construct walls following the shape of the massive skeleton, building corridors, halls, and rooms within its remains..."

"I’d guess the whale bone belongs to a divine being of the ocean? That would explain why the staff’s perceptions were distorted into believing 'fish are the most perfect.'"

"To the offspring of the sea, humans—who cannot survive in the ocean—are indeed inferior beings." Yi Fengchu speculated.

The phone, silent until now, suddenly spoke up, confirming his suspicions: "The whale bone is likely the offspring of the Mother of the Tides."

"In the mystical world, as the bloodline and followers of a deity, it and its kind are called the Tidal Prince."

"In their prime, they once dwelled at the depths of oceans across countless worlds, serving as the royal lineage that aided their mother in ruling the seas..."

Then, the phone added enigmatically: "Unfortunately, ever since the Mother of the Tides entered an anomalous state, no longer responding to prayers or offering protection, the era of the Tidal Princes gradually ended. Little did they know they’d be reduced to this state..."

Gripping the phone, Luo Shengle realized she had been walking within the remains of a divine offspring all along, exposed to high-level contamination and danger...

Her face fell. Now, the immediate question was: How could she possibly quell the weeping of a demigod’s remains?

It wasn’t as if she could summon this demigod’s mother for a "mother-child reunion," right?

No.

Even if she could, considering the depth of hatred the whale bone had shown toward humans in the dream, it likely wouldn’t spare her.

In the eyes of this divine offspring, humans had first dragged its sunken bones—meant to await its mother’s return—back to land for exhibition. Then, they made it witness humans confining fish—creatures closer to its own kind—in tanks as entertainment...

Just imagining its fury sent shivers down Luo Shengle's spine.

Perhaps, in its eyes, imprisoning humans in tanks and transforming them into fish was both an act of vengeful punishment and a form of mercy and evolution?

After Director Jiang revealed everything he knew, Luo Shengle hung up the phone, her expression grave as she spoke: "Mr. Narrator, it seems this side quest is beyond me."

"All I can do is carefully survive these three days."

Yet Yi Fengchu thought she was being too optimistic and continued to guide her: "Not just you—no ordinary player could possibly resolve a conflict involving a demigod."

"Then why does the system keep selecting you all to complete tasks that are theoretically impossible?"

Luo Shengle froze, an icy dread creeping up her spine from the soles of her feet.

Yi Fengchu remarked with a hint of mockery: "In this amusement park, you are toys for the gods' amusement, offerings to appease the wrath of divine offspring, pawns to probe the True God's condition."

"—But never yourselves."

"From the moment you entered this scenario, you were abandoned, fated to briefly quell the demigod's hatred and sorrow with your blood."

Amid Luo Shengle's stunned and furious expression, the "Narrator" bluntly pointed out the system's true purpose in an unusually straightforward tone.

So the side quest wasn't impossible to complete... On the contrary, every player who perished in the aquarium would accomplish the task in their final moments.

Only, they couldn't survive to complete it.

Luo Shengle felt as though her heart were being tightly clenched, her face burning with a stinging pain, as if lashed by thorns. Disbelief, sorrow, and rage at being treated as a sacrificial offering and discarded piece—all these emotions converged into a swirling vortex.

At the heart of this turbulent vortex, she seemed to hear Mr. Narrator's soft chuckle as he asked, almost seductively: "Are you content with this?"

These four simple words lingered in Luo Shengle's mind like a pale silver bird skimming the water's surface, its wings stirring towering waves, leaving her unable to calm down.

She stood motionless, like a frozen statue, yet within her, white-hot fury erupted from her heart, bursting forth in her increasingly rapid breaths.

After a long silence, Luo Shengle's voice was slightly hoarse as she declared with resolve: "No, I am not."

"Then call for me in the dream, and welcome my arrival."

Through the slowly fading silver-white text, Luo Shengle could faintly imagine a mysterious smile.

If He truly were a malicious deity, perhaps no one could escape His temptation and provocation, Luo Shengle thought.

In many myths and legends, the imagery of snakes represents temptation, mystery, wisdom... Just like this King of Snakes, who always seemed capable of unleashing the most violent storms with a calm, effortless demeanor.