Chapter 655: Divinity

The fishman youngster was a divine emissary, and in recent times, his understanding of deities, sects, and faith had advanced by leaps and bounds.

Thus, when the magic formation hosted by Teacher Si Ling activated, the aura it generated was instantly sensed by the fishman youngster.

As time passed, this aura grew increasingly potent.

Staring at the magic projection, the fishman youngster's Adam's apple bobbed as a deep-seated yearning welled up within him.

Moments later, this craving grew more intense.

“Teacher Si Ling is manipulating this formation to condense something.”

“It's profoundly connected to the deities, far from mundane.”

“But something feels off...”

Through the Deep Sea Monster Fish's reconnaissance, the fishman youngster's vision was wide. He observed not only the changes in Teacher Si Ling and the magic formation but also the expressions and attitudes of others.

What puzzled the fishman youngster was that these people showed no strong reactions.

They were utterly indifferent!

Cang Xu was curious and puzzled, Zhou Zhang wary and suspicious, while Teacher Si Ling wore a grave expression, as if controlling this formation imposed considerable mental strain.

“They seem unable to sense it?”

“But why is my perception so intense?”

In an instant, a flash of insight struck the fishman youngster's mind.

He swiftly examined himself and made a new discovery.

“It's the passive divine spell [Perceive Divinity]!”

This was one of the gifts bestowed by the Charming Blue Goddess during his previous prayers.

This passive spell had remained active ever since the divine blessing was received. The fishman youngster had experimented with many divine spells, yet he'd never quite grasped how to use this one.

But now, he realized his intense sensations stemmed from this passive spell.

The answer was becoming clear.

“So...”

"Teacher Si Ling is using the magic formation to condense divinity?"

“The reason I felt it so intensely is because I possess the passive divine skill [Perceive Divinity].”

“They lack this perception ability, so they don't understand what exactly is being condensed within the formation.”

Yet as time passed, the radiance within the formation gradually shrank. Before Teacher Si Ling and his companions, a luminous sphere as vast as a mountain took shape.

The aura emanating from the sphere grew more surging and colossal.

At this point, the expressions of Teacher Si Ling, Zhou Zhang, and others shifted first. Soon after, Cang Xu, Jian Gui, and the rest followed suit.

Zhou Zhang and the rest felt an extreme oppression, as if a deadly blade were pressed against their throats, sending shivers down their spines and chilling their hearts.

Meanwhile, Teacher Si Ling, Cang Xu, and other undead beings sensed boundless vastness, profound stillness, and brutal cruelty.

“Teacher Si Ling, what... exactly is it?” Cang Xu could no longer contain his curiosity and attempted to ask.

Teacher Si Ling did not evade the question, stating plainly, “This is divinity.”

“Death... divinity?!” Cang Xu and the others stared wide-eyed.

The very name itself revealed its profound connection to the deity.

However, concerning such advanced knowledge, even Archbishop Zhou Zhang was not entirely clear.

“Do you know what divinity is?” Teacher Si Ling asked Cang Xu.

Cang Xu quickly shook his head.

Teacher Si Ling's expression grew solemn as he explained, “Divinity is a fragment of a deity's power.”

“It embodies the concepts of the world, the rules of nature, and simultaneously contains aspects like personality, beliefs, and behavioral tendencies.”

"For example, the fallen storm god Raging Storm possesses the storm divinity. This divinity records the natural laws governing wind within the world, while also embodying the storm god's impatience, violence, and fear-based proselytizing."

"If we were to acquire a fragment of storm divinity, we could gain knowledge of wind from it. Such as how wind forms, how it moves, how it dissipates, and its myriad effects on other things."

“Simultaneously, we become influenced, our temperaments grow volatile and quick to anger, favoring violent solutions to problems.”

Jian Gui's voice was dry: “So... are we currently condensing the Charming Blue divinity?”

“What do you think?” Teacher Si Ling turned to ask Cang Xu, his gaze carrying a hint of expectation.

Cang Xu pondered for a moment before shaking his head. “What I sense from this divinity is deathly stillness, murderous intent, and a silent, boundless emptiness...”

“It likely isn't Charming Blue’s divinity.”

Teacher Si Ling heard this answer, a hint of admiration for Cang Xu flashing in his eyes. He then inquired, “So, what do you think this divinity is?”

Cang Xu had already formed an answer in his mind while responding to the previous question. He immediately replied, “I believe it must be the death divinity.”

“Correct. You've guessed it right,” Teacher Si Ling nodded.

His gaze swept across the distant horizon, as if taking in the entire trench. His voice carried a weight of experience as he continued, "The White Hair Trench is immense, reaching depths of 15,000 meters and stretching approximately 3,100 kilometers in length. Its widest point spans 70 kilometers, while the narrowest section still measures over 30 kilometers."

"This place teems with life, sustaining a complex and tightly woven ecosystem. Feeding, hunting, reproduction, death, these cycles perpetually unfold."

“Yet each beast tide overwhelms the existing ecosystem, triggering massive hunts by countless civilized races.”

“Throughout countless ages, death has been one of this place's defining themes.”

“If left unchecked, a natural death divinity would eventually emerge here.”

“And now, I have merely accelerated that step.”

Jian Gui was profoundly shaken, stammering uncharacteristically: “D-death divinity... is something we can create?”

Teacher Si Ling corrected him: “We are not creating it. It already exists, merely dispersed and not yet condensed into a congealed entity.”

"This super-magic formation of divine script and magic has gathered the scattered concepts of death throughout the White Hair Trench. Now it has accelerated the process of condensation."

Teacher Si Ling looked at Cang Xu, his words laden with meaning: “To us magicians, everything follows logic; all things operate according to laws.”

“The greatness of deities must be underpinned by the logic and laws that support that greatness.”

"Divinity itself is one of the secrets behind their greatness."

Zhou Zhang snorted coldly, her expression displeased.

Cang Xu immediately understood: Teacher Si Ling was teaching him once more, attempting to win him over from the Charming Blue Church's faction.

Cang Xu's bloodline mutation was still progressing; he might well possess the potential for the saint level in the future. This alone was sufficient reason for Teacher Si Ling to act thus.

Cang Xu pondered: “What distinguishes naturally produced death divinity from ordinary divinity?”

Teacher Si Ling replied: “The overall differences are minor, yet some exist.”

"For instance, natural death divinity lacks pronounced individuality. Whereas the death divinity of deities often bears the distinct characteristics of the deity itself."

"Take the Ghost World's Death God, Yazi—He possesses a fierce, vengeful nature. Thus, His believers often sacrifice their enemies' corpses and blood to Him after successful vengeance. Such acts frequently earn the favor of the Death God, Yazi, greatly increasing the probability of divine blessings."

“I'll share another secret: Yazi maintains quite good relations with our undead orthodoxy.”

“I've gathered some of the death divinity, which will serve as crucial bargaining chips in our dealings with him.”

Death divinity.

Dealings with the Death God...

Teacher Si Ling's words sent shockwaves through Cang Xu and even Jian Gui.

The undead orthodoxy was undoubtedly a legendary superpower!

“It is precisely because the undead orthodoxy hold such status that the Charming Blue Church agreed to equal cooperation.”

“I see.” Cang Xu pieced together more hidden truths in his mind. "Back then, the undead orthodoxy and the Charming Blue Church joined forces to establish a super-scale magic formation here. The Charming Blue Church sought to perform a blood sacrifice, while the undead orthodoxy used that sacrifice to more readily condense death divinity!"

Through the magic projection, the fishman youngster also learned more from Teacher Si Ling.

“So, it was death divinity.”

The fishman youngster still felt perplexed, his hand pressed over his heart. “Why do I crave this divinity so intensely?”

At that moment, Jian Gui inquired, “Teacher Si Ling, how much death divinity can we harvest this time?”

Teacher Si Ling shook his head slightly. “This is the concept of death accumulated over countless ages in the White Hair Trench. I cannot say precisely how much.”

Cang Xu added, "Death divinity is crucial to the Death God. As necromancers, we should draw closer to divinity. Can we absorb it?"

Zhou Zhang snorted coldly. "Pure delusion! Even those at the saint level are scarcely different from mortals in the eyes of the great gods."

“Deities stand above legends, yet not all deities deign to acknowledge legendary beings.”

“Only You Shen is an exception!”

You Shen, the undying one who founded the undead faction. Even among legends, he stood in his own class.

Teacher Si Ling offered no rebuttal: “Indeed, that is true.”

"Divinity is extremely dangerous to us."

"Even the slightest proximity can cost a weak individual their life."

"Even someone like me cannot lay claim to divinity. To rashly devour it is suicide!"

“However,” Teacher Si Ling shifted his tone, “it's not that no transcendents can bear divinity.”

“Provided their bloodline reaches god level and possesses sufficient concentration, they can bear a measure of it.”

Cang Xu's heart stirred. His first thought was of his own commander!

“Divinity...” The fishman youngster's eyes gleamed.

“Divinity is here!” Da Han's body trembled violently.

His eyes widened in disbelief as he stared at the wine in his hand.

Qian Xing, beside him, frowned immediately, retorting, “How could there be divinity? If there were, we'd be dead already.”

“Neither of us possess god level bloodlines.”

Da Han shook his head; his gaze fixed on the wine in the glass. “I'm certain it's present.”

"Only, the divinity contained here is utterly fragmented and incredibly faint. But it is indeed divinity..."

Da Han turned to the first mate. “You mentioned earlier, what kind of wine is this?”

“Sorrow-dispelling red wine!” the first mate replied hastily. "Pirates salvaged a drifting barrel and opened it. A note inside the barrel revealed its name."

“All this wine was brewed by the Intoxication Church.”

“The Intoxication Church's fleet was recently annihilated by the Divine Wind Pirates.”

"Now, the church's branch in Drunkard Harbor has posted hefty bounties to recover their losses. Especially this sorrow-dispelling red wine."

“It's said the primary ingredient in this wine is the blood of the Wine God.”

Da Han nodded sharply: “That explains it.”

“The blood of the Wine God naturally contains the divinity of the deity.”

Qian Xing studied the red wine in his glass once more: "Even diluted ten thousand times over, divinity remains divinity. This batch of wine is priceless!"

“Divinity...” Da Han sighed deeply, then abruptly asked, “Where are the Divine Wind Pirates now?”

The first mate opened his mouth to answer, but Da Han cut him off with a command: “Contact Feng Lian. Tell him I'm very interested in the sorrow-dispelling red wine in his possession!”