Because there had been precedents of pure creators storing divinity in special objects and passing them on, Shad knew that there was more to obtaining divinity than just confronting the gods directly.
After learning some information about the Sea Return Ceremony, he suspected that the "power of the evil god" in the deep sea refers to divinity. Although the probability is small, it is nothing compared to facing the evil god to snatch power, facing the tsunami that submerged the city, and exploring the secrets of the evil god's followers.
The reason why he went to Miss Carina to find out the secret of Haisong was for this information. In addition to the witch, Shade believed that the Guiding Light Hermitage also had information.
"you... ... "
Mr. Edmund looked at Shade in surprise. He didn't expect him to ask such a question:
"I thought you came to me to protect your friend... What do you want to do?"
"Protect this city."
Shade answered without a second thought, and of course both people in the lighthouse knew it was a lie.
"Oh, I really shouldn't have let you in. Young man, mortals shouldn't be greedy..."
The old man felt a little regretful.
"So you won't answer?"
Shad asked.
"Of course... I would."
Mr. Edmund, who was wearing pajamas, changed the subject and his expression became serious. He narrowed his eyes slightly and looked at Shade, and the frown made the wrinkles on his face more obvious:
"Whether you are crazy or not is none of my business. What will happen to you because of your greed is also not my concern. I won't take your gold, but I want you to promise another thing."
"You also want to see what that is?"
"Of course not. I'm not a lunatic like you."
Mr. Edmund shook his head and said very cautiously:
"I have been doing research on the three beliefs that have been spread in this land since ancient times - the guardian of the fishmen, the god of thunder and storms, and the god of the drowned in the deep sea. Over the years, I have come up with many interesting ideas and even tried to find traces of those secret cults. But these ideas are difficult to realize, and now that you are here, I have a chance."
Even though they were the only two people in the lighthouse at the moment, Mr. Edmund still lowered his voice, which made his voice unusually hoarse:
"If, I mean if, you are lucky enough to obtain the power left behind by the so-called Lord of the Scarlet Spiral in the material world, I want you to..."
Suddenly there was a loud thunder outside, and the waves hit the cliffs facing the sea violently. Xia De even felt that the chair was shaking.
"On that object, draw this symbol."
He picked up a book from the corner of the desk and opened the page with the metal copper bookmark. What Shade saw was a symbol that symbolized lightning in mysticism. However, unlike the commonly used symbols, the lines of this symbol were not straight, and the edges of the circular frame were filled with a large number of fine runes.
Xia De tried to interpret it, and immediately felt dizzy, with the hairs on his body standing up because of his bold action.
"What's this?"
"The native faith of Coldwater Harbor, the holy emblem of the evil god Raging Storm."
The old man explained in a low voice.
"You want me to paint the holy symbol of an evil god onto the power left behind by another god in the material world?"
Shade asked in surprise:
"Oh, sir, which of us is the madman? No, I am bold, but I am not stupid. Besides, even a fool would not do such blatant blasphemy. If you want to study the hostility of gods and the conflict of faith, why don't you do it yourself?"
"Because I'm scared."
The old tower keeper said naturally.
"I'm scared, too."
Shade followed up with this, and Mr. Edmund frowned and thought for a moment:
"Indeed, if I ask you to do this, the possibility of you coming back will be even smaller... Then I will change my request... The information I give you is my investment in you. If you can gain something, the items will belong to you, but the knowledge will be shared with me. I need more content for my book "A Study of the Three Mysteries of Coldwater Harbor"."
Only then did Shad realize again that this old man who lived alone in the old lighthouse outside the city called himself a folklorist.
He nodded:
"Of course that's no problem."
"Okay, but you have to mortgage something with me. If you die, your things belong to me. If you are not dead, these things can ensure that you will not leave Coldwater Harbor directly."
Xia De thought about it. All the relics on him were directly related to his identity. The only irrelevant one was the Eternal Youth Leaf, which was a life-saving item. He was going to do such a dangerous thing, and it was impossible for him to leave the Eternal Youth Leaf behind.
So he reached into his pocket and took out a bunch of money, and finally took out a thousand pounds. He was not afraid that Mr. Edmund would abscond with the money. The last time he came with Leicia, Shade saw his collection of ancient books and relics. There was no need for the other party to give up his long-lived residence for 1,000 pounds.
"Are you that rich? It doesn't look like your clothes can hold so much money."
The old man asked suspiciously.
The money was turned into toys by Xia De and placed in the inside pocket of his coat. He just restored them to their original state.
"This is all my belongings. I'll leave the money with you and I'll come back to get it. Now please tell me, what exactly did the sea return ceremony associated with the nursery rhyme awaken in the deep sea?"
Shad lied seriously, his current savings was 2,300 pounds.
Mr. Edmund put the banknotes away and nodded:
"In the course of history, myths and legends often deviate from their original meanings. For example, people say that eating mermaid meat can make you immortal. This is the most typical example. We must dialectically and critically draw lessons from legends..."
"Can you please get to the point? I don't have much time. I have to go into the city soon. My friends need me."
Xia De coughed and interrupted rudely.
Mr. Edmund smiled awkwardly:
"Okay, let's get to the point. What was I going to say? Oh, that's it. When the red ocean descends, the legendary ancient underwater city of mermen, the residence of the evil god, the Lord of the Scarlet Spiral, will awaken the giant mermaid corpse that the great man once used and bring it to the coast. It will bring tsunamis and storms, sinking Coldwater Harbor to the bottom of the sea forever."
"The giant fish-man corpse in the underwater city" is exactly what appears in the dreams of the cursed in the Sage-level relic Mermaid Song Curse.
"The power left by the gods, referring to that corpse?"
Xia De guessed, but the old man shook his head and denied it:
"No, the power left by the gods is a pearl in the underwater city of the ancient fishmen. According to legend, it was formed from the bubbles exhaled by the evil god Scarlet Spiral when he descended into the material world. The Sea Return Ceremony is a sacrifice to the pearl, so that the power in it can activate the giant corpse under the sea."