Chapter 2162 Absorbing <TOC> Chapter 2164 Skin of Seamus
Translator: SumTLMan
The gloomy sky, covered by somber clouds, witnessed raindrops the size of beans noisily falling down.
The ocean, too, was tumultuous under the fierce storm, making this usually tranquil sea area resemble the Devil’s Sea.
However, any ship nearby, using a telescope, could discern the limit where the dark clouds ended and catch glimpses of sunlight reflecting off the sea’s surface in shimmering waves.
The chaotic weather was confined to this small part of the sea.
For mortals, this area might be called the Sea God’s Prison, but those actually in this region would realize that these phenomena are not natural but something else entirely.
At this moment, Angel was navigating the Gondola through these dark skies.
“There should be a small, unnamed island of red soil nearby. Sailing straight in the direction of the abandoned tower on that island leads to the merchant shipping route of the Whale Whisker Sea,” Angel muttered quietly, searching for the rumored island to maintain their course.
However, the sky was too dark, and the sea too tumultuous, making it impossible to spot any island.
After a long search with no sight of the island, Angel sighed in resignation and looked back at the sky: “Can’t you calm down for a while?”
Several miles away from the Gondola, in the midst of the sudden rain, a massive griffin with a flaming mane on its tail and neck was battling another strange creature.
This flaming griffin was one of Toby’s incarnations: the Griffin of Fury.
The creature Toby was battling looked much smaller than the griffin, resembling the difference between an elephant and a baby. Yet, despite the significant size disparity, its combat prowess was astonishing.
It seemed evenly matched with Toby, but in reality, the smaller creature was entirely dictating the pace of the battle. Toby’s furious attacks were effortlessly dodged; its fiery assaults, occasionally quenched by rain.
Even when Toby employed Gravity Lines far beyond his realm, bringing terrifying speed and formidable force, it only struck the opponent’s illusory form.
Undoubtedly, Toby was much faster, but it lagged in reaction speed.
If not for some unknown reason that the opponent didn’t attack Toby in its moments of weakness, it would have already lost.
Any observant wizard could tell that this smaller creature was far more powerful than Toby.
But Toby didn’t see it that way. Its eyes, like bronze bells, glinted with obstinacy. It believed that just a bit more speed would allow it to thoroughly defeat this detestable Flower Bearing Wildcat.
After once again being effortlessly dodged, Toby stomped and roared in frustration.
——If the Master hadn’t restricted my use of the Serpent-Bird form, you would have been hammered to the bottom of the sea by now!
To Toby’s roars, the “Flower Bearing Wildcat” remained silent, as if oblivious to its fury.
“Alright, come back,” a crisp voice cut through the storm and sea, reaching them directly.
Although Toby was still fuming, snorting fiery breaths from its nostrils, it did not defy Angel’s request. With a ‘humph’, it transformed into a seabird, and with a sonic boom that echoed across the sky, the seabird vanished in an instant, reappearing on the Gondola.
Toby hopped onto Angel’s head, chirping and hooking its claws into the red hair to protest being restricted to the Serpent-Bird form earlier.
Angel wasn’t annoyed, and even found some joy in Toby’s rare childlike behavior. Facing Toby’s anger, he showed restraint out of courtesy.
After Toby returned, a shadowy figure landed on the edge of the Gondola.
This shadowy figure was the same entity that Toby had previously battled.
Before landing on the edge of the boat, it was an intangible black shadow. But as soon as it touched the boat, it naturally transformed into a strange creature, shifting from ‘nonexistence’ to ‘existence’.
At first glance, this creature resembled a Wildcat, but its fur was a ghostly blue color, emitting a transparent, jellyfish-like glow in the darkness.
Apart from this, the differences between it and a Wildcat were its tail and the top of its head. Its tail was a misty black phantom, lacking substance; atop its head was a bizarre Blue Lantern Flower, continuously releasing bubbles.
Angel shifted his gaze from the peculiarities and focused on the ‘cat’s’ eyes.
These eyes were unlike those of any beast, filled with an array of complex emotions, predominantly negative. In fact, the fury in its eyes seemed even more intense than that of the Griffin of Fury.
However, all these emotions were suppressed by a silent force emanating from around its body.
This silence originated from a spherical object on its chest, covered in tentacles——The Seed of Distortion.
“Eremy, transform into a defensive state,” Angel whispered softly.
The ‘cat’ complied without resistance, gradually turning into a shadow and attaching itself inside the Gondola. The only exception was the Blue Lantern Flower, which maintained its original form and positioned itself at the front of the boat.
As it shifted into a defensive form, the clouds overhead slowly dissipated, revealing a clear sky.
Throughout this process, the Blue Lantern Flower kept emitting a certain vibration, clearly responsible for the changes in the clouds.
Angel quietly observed the Blue Lantern Flower, contemplating this parasitic entity brought from the Profane Wings Station.
At that moment, Toby overhead communicated with chirping sounds.
Angel, fluent in bird language, understood Toby’s inquiry about the identity of this ‘Flower Bearing Wildcat’.
“Don’t just call it a ‘Flower Bearing Wildcat.’ Its original name is Eremy, a demon from the Panic World, or rather, an Awakened Demon who lost its sanity after being possessed by a sealed monster.”
The Panic World is a world far from the Wizarding World. Due to the distance and lack of valuable resources, few wizards venture there.
Moreover, the Panic World is a powerful world comparable to the Wizarding World, filled with dangers. Hence, it’s even less frequented by wizards.
The demons of the Panic World are actually ordinary humans who, due to the dangers of the world, rampant monsters and rampant weirdness, have developed a method to fight these creatures by sealing them within themselves. They borrow the monsters’ power to survive in this perilous world.
The demon hunters of the Sin Hunters group created by Angel also use this method.
Those who accept monster seals are known as demons. They are both protectors of towns and ostracized by ordinary citizens. If a demon overuses the monster’s power, they ‘awaken,’ with demonic nature replacing humanity, transforming from human to demon.
These Awakened Demons not only have greatly enhanced abilities but also possess human intelligence, making them more challenging to deal with than ordinary monsters. In the Panic World, a single Awakened Demon can destroy a medium to large city.
Such powerful and dangerous beings are naturally shunned by ordinary people.
And this ‘Flower Bearing Wildcat,’ Eremy, is an Awakened Demon.
According to Rhine, its strength nearly reaches the pinnacle of a first level true knowledge. If it fought without regard for destruction, it could even exert the power of a second level true knowledge in a desperate strike.
Initially, the Profane Wings Merchant Group lost two formal wizards while capturing Eremy. It was finally subdued by the deputy leader of Profane Wings.
The Awakened Demon possesses great strength, but its demonic nature and power are equivalent. To control it, one must not suppress its demonic nature, yet all methods of control necessitate the full suppression of this nature. Due to the lack of a perfect control method, the Profane Wings Merchant Group has been unable to deal with it effectively.
The Profane Wings Merchant Group has been burdened with it, waiting for someone from the Karabites, who are interested in otherworldly powerhouses, to purchase Eremy. Unfortunately, those interested in Eremy cannot afford it; and those who can afford it are not interested in Eremy.
It was only recently that Rhine made an offer, finally providing a way out for Eremy.
Upon acquiring Eremy, Angel immediately fused it with the Seed of Distortion cultivated by Boil Gentleman. Surprisingly, this truly brought Eremy under control without suppressing its demonic nature.
After a period of slumber, Eremy finally awakened.
Angel, on his way back to the Old Land Continent, released Eremy into the vast, empty sea to test its capabilities.
Toby voluntarily fought with Eremy.
It proved Rhine’s judgment correct; the Awakened Demon, indeed, made for the perfect parasitic host with its astonishing strength.
If Angel hadn’t instructed Eremy to control its power, Toby would have likely been defeated early on.
“Titter titter…” After hearing Angel’s introduction of Eremy, Toby’s chirping gradually subsided. Although it still claimed it could perform better in its Serpent-Bird form, it no longer had blind confidence in defeating Eremy.
After all, Eremy was specifically prepared by Rhine to protect Angel.
Angel then turned his attention back to the Blue Lantern Flower, recalling Eremy’s abilities.
According to the Profane Wings Merchant Group, Eremy’s key ability is the bubble-spewing Blue Lantern Flower, which can forcibly transform the battle environment.
For instance, during the battle with Toby, who transformed into the Griffin of Fury, a fire attribute creature, Eremy created a torrential downpour, perfectly countering the griffin’s flames. Moreover, if Eremy wishes, the Blue Lantern Flower can turn green fields into deserts, make the earth spout lava, and transform day into night, naturally giving Eremy the upper hand in combat.
Furthermore, Eremy’s environmental transformation is similar to a law-based ability; it can suppress spatial anomalies, calm chaotic spaces in a short time, and even momentarily restore connectivity to isolated spaces.
In the future, even if a powerful transcendent being were to target Angel and seal off space, Angel could use Eremy’s abilities to stabilize the space and escape.
This is why Rhine believes Eremy is well-suited for Angel.
Additionally, according to the Profane Wings Merchant Group, the Blue Lantern Flower has other unique uses that require further exploration. However, Angel suspects this might be just a marketing strategy by the merchant group. Nevertheless, the ability to transform combat environments alone is extremely powerful.
Besides the Blue Lantern Flower, Eremy’s physical defense is very strong, and its strength reaches the level of a true knowledge wizard with a bloodline; it can also transform into a shadow form, immune to most physical attacks. Its reaction speed is frighteningly fast, as already demonstrated in the fight with Toby.
All these abilities together make Eremy what it is today.
From Eremy, Angel glimpsed the terrifying nature of the Awakened Demon and the horror of the Panic World.
Indeed, it’s a transcendent world comparable to the Wizarding World.
Angel is very satisfied with Eremy. However, Eremy currently has a weakness, the Seed of Distortion in its chest. If the seed is destroyed, Eremy would immediately perish from backlash.
Although Angel has instructed Eremy to protect the Seed of Distortion, he feels an additional layer of precaution is necessary.
It would be best to craft a special item to conceal and protect the Seed of Distortion from targeted destruction.
Angel thought for a while, then instructed Toby to search for an island and correct their course, while he pondered and took out paper to begin designing a blueprint.
While Angel was swiftly drafting at his desk, the Gondola leisurely flew through the sky, and Toby occasionally dove into the sea to catch fish. Clouds reflected on the sea surface, and the flying boat cast its shadow on the waves, everything was so comfortable.
From dawn to dusk, and from early morning to when the morning star rose again.
It was then that Angel raised his head from his engrossment. In his hands was a draft of the blueprint, he asked Eremy to drop its defensive stance, compared its real form, and then instructed Eremy to remain on guard.
As Angel prepared to continue his design, Toby flew to his shoulder, chirping a few times, indicating Angel to look down.
Angel leaned over the railing and looked down, only to see a large number of dolphins chasing a young island whale, which swam gracefully, following the phantom on the sea surface.
This phantom was the shadow of the Gondola cast on the sea.
On either side of the island whale were four cargo ships, sounding their horns as they headed towards the distance.
Angel could clearly see many people on the cargo ships pointing at the Gondola in the sky, their expressions filled with surprise.
“These are the cargo ships of the Island Whale Association,” Angel recognized after glancing at the flags on the ships and the island whale cutting through the waves. He knew this because the Association was actually a part of the White Shell Shipping Company.
Behind the White Shell Shipping Company stood… the Sky Mechanical City.
As Angel was contemplating, two figures riding broom-like vehicles rose from the cargo ship.
Angel glanced at them, two third level apprentices, without any obvious organizational insignia, probably mercenaries under the White Shell Shipping Company.
Their target was clearly the Gondola, but before they got close, a black fog billowed, and Eremy’s crimson eyes pierced through the fog, staring straight at the two.
A feeling of extreme danger instantly froze them, preventing any further movement.
Angel sensed that these two probably meant no harm, likely just wanting to inquire about his situation.
However, even so, Angel couldn’t be bothered to respond. He instructed Toby to continue steering, and the Gondola flew away right before their eyes.
It was only after several miles that the two apprentices broke free from the sense of impending danger. They glanced at each other, said nothing, and landed back on the cargo ship, not daring to pursue further.
Meanwhile, Angel sat on the flying boat, whispering, “The Island Whale Association travels year-round between the Revelation Continent and the Old Land Continent. Encountering them here means we must be close to the Old Land Continent…”