Deep Sea Embers

The man’s trembling, shaken by the sea of bloodied flame that’s still fresh in his mind.

After a few more seconds of silence and loss, he finally managed to calm his unsettled head to mutter the echoing words.

“Usurper of the flame, extinguish me, please…”

Duncan frowned, sure he had not misheard the whispering words.

This is…… that round “sun” conveying his wish to me? That thing detected my snooping and sent an SOS for help?

Duncan rubbed his temple, contemplating the implications of this distress signal.

Undoubtedly, that “thing” was what the followers of the “Ancient True Sun” worshipped, what they called the “real sun”.

To be honest, in the brief moment when he first saw it, Duncan really felt a stir in his heart at how incredible the star appeared. However, no matter how amazing and incredible it looked from his angle, it was still not the sun he remembered from Earth….

Sure, the front end appears exactly like the cosmic-powered stars he knew as an earthling, blazing and burning, but the back side was a darn eyeball!

Then Duncan recalled back to the pale and dull tentacles withered around the pupils.

The “creature” wrapped in the sun’s shell does not seem to be in very good condition….

In truth, Duncan had no question of the creature being dead. There’s an intense breath of death oozing out of the body. Even from a distance, the sense of lifelessness was undeniable.

It was simply a burning corpse of an ancient god.

And the corpse of the ancient god was asking him for help, hoping that someone could come and extinguish the flame on his body.

It’s a truly contradicting and horrific notion, but in a world without logic, this somehow seemed fitting.

Duncan sorted out his confused thoughts little by little, recalling in that brief moment of voyeurism that he performed, another interesting point had popped up. That was, the sun called Duncan the usurper of the flame.

Is that indescribable mass of flesh really calling out to me? Did it really sense my approach? Or is it just randomly murmuring out?

If the cry for help was really addressed to himself though, then the intent and meaning couldn’t be anymore obvious.

Duncan lowered his head and gently rubbed his fingers, watching a cluster of green flame burning quietly at the tip, ready to usurp the other paranormal powers out there.

In the next second, he dispersed the ghost fire in his hand.

Regardless of whether the “sun” was really speaking to himself, this was not something he could tackle as of now. The group of cultists in the Pland city-state are still hiding in the shadows, and he has no ability or position to deal with the “sun god” behind the gang of cultists.

What’s more, how could he know how to “help” that burning sun? Rely on this little ghost fire to burn that big piece of thing? He couldn’t burn it even if he exhausted himself! Besides, the other party was just asking for help from himself, which does not mean the thing was”his own ally”. God knows what will happen after extinguishing the fire on the sun’s body. What if the flame was some kind of seal? What then? The giant creature wouldn’t necessarily return the favor like a human would. In fact, based on the way the cultists acted, he’s more worried the creature would destroy him after the act.

It’s simply not wise to casually deal with a god-like thing without knowledge.

Duncan shook his head and sighed in his heart over how little he knew.

Perhaps, I will never see the real “sunshine” in this world again.

The golden mask, modeled after the sun, still rested quietly on the table, it’s surface a little dull after his little venture. Picking it up, he traced the shape’s outlines with his fingertip until a faint cracking sound hit his ear.

The item was made out of iron with a layer of copper on the surface. Yet, it had started to corrode and decay like it had been through a million years of weathering. Before Duncan knew it, the mask in his hand had disintegrated to dust.

Ai jumped over, spreading her wings in front of Duncan and gesturing: “Happy, pop, gone!”

Duncan didn’t care about the bird’s nagging behavior because he had a vague understanding over the outcome.

This mask was just a fake after all, a “mass production holy relic”. There’s no way it wouldn’t have side effects.

“Maybe I’ll have to find a way to get the real thing in the future…” Looking at the ashes floating in the air, Duncan said thoughtfully. “This thing can’t even burn for three seconds at this rate…”

He didn’t really plan to “save” any sun god, but he was still quite interested in the secrets kept by the sun cultists. Moreover, he was also curious about the history before the Great Annihilation since he believed some extraordinary answer awaited him there.

But as all researchers know, science requires great funding, and these cult sheeps should be able to provide him with plenty of wool to sell.

After a short break and regaining his spirit, Duncan left his bedroom.

The goat head, who was in a daze at the mapping table, immediately turned his head when he heard the movement from the bedroom. He first confirmed whether the dove had come alone or not, then when he saw Duncan, the statue noticeably heaved a relieved sigh. “Ah, great captain, your most loyal first mate is here at your service and has kept a firm grip on the helm on your behalf. May I know if your long journey has gone well? I sensed your soul going off to a faraway place again, but it doesn’t seem to be a city-state of humans. If you want to go far next time, you can actually in advance….”

“How much do you know about the ‘true sun god’ that those sun followers believe in?” Duncan waved his hand and asked bluntly.

After getting along with this goat head for a while, he has become more and more graspful of the other party’s temperament. Not only was Duncan more confident in his “captain status”, but he was also no longer as cautious when speaking with the statue unless it’s directly related to the Vanished. Everything else could be casually asked like now.

“Real Sun God?” The goat head became startled for a moment and then hesitated, “Honestly, I don’t know much. I only know that those followers of the Sun God are crazy and stupid. As to the god’s identity behind them… I don’t have a clue. However, the blessing those mad fools get is indeed real. It does exist. It’s the main reason their religion can spread so widely and far throughout the years….”

While speaking, the goat head gradually noticed the oddity: “Ah, why did you suddenly mention this? Did you just…”

“I was just thinking, what would those believers do if they found out the so-called god they worshipped was in fact being roasted by them. Their effort and overtime to get the blessing is nothing more than the byproduct of the corpse oil that leaked out…. Wouldn’t that be ironic?” Duncan leisurely and confidently states, “Talk about one hell of a sadistic joke.”

A long silence swept across the mapping room, with the goat head not daring to follow up on that shocking subject. In the end, it was Duncan who broke the calm with an inquisitive look at the response: “Why aren’t you talking? Normally you would be commenting on this and that by now.”

The goat head spoke with defeat: “The topic is too intense… I don’t dare to add my opinion to it. I can only say the captain is wise…”

Duncan grew quite happy at one-upping the statue.

He didn’t know if it was an illusion on his part, but this goat head’s evil and dangerous image no longer seemed so strong. In fact, everything on the ship was changing according to his perception. How to say it, more lively and better?