Devil's Whisper

Baker knew his own limits; the person capable of killing Buck was not someone he could contend with.

Compared to chasing after them only to be killed in turn, he understood that the ritual was the top priority.

Arthur burst into the Scimitar Bar, saw seven corpses hanging inside, and raised his Fear Musket in preparation for battle.

He held his aim for half a minute, only to realize that Baker had chosen not to pursue him.

"Moonlight grant me a cloak, fight with valor!"

"Warriors of the night!"

The Priest of Night chanted loudly, the Ancient Hermetic Language resounding across the island as three slivers of moonlight descended behind the three members of the Church of Night.

Bolstered by the moonlight cloaks, the trio moved as if skimming the ground, rapidly closing in on the Black Devil's ritual.

Arthur heard the ancient language from outside and understood that reinforcements had arrived.

Just as he prepared to step out, a frantic buzzing of "Moth Wing Flutter" erupted in his mind, his spirituality screaming a warning of "danger."

He had to leave this dangerous place immediately, or he would die!

This intense premonition was ten times more violent than when he faced the Fighter Buck; the feeling that "if I don't leave, I will die" had almost materialized into reality.

The transcendents of the Black Devil Order could not be their match, so there was only one possibility for his current spiritual intuition.

An extremely high-level ritual, one directed at the Great Existence "He," might have already been completed.

Baker used his own blood to fill the gaps in the ritual.

During this time, Simon recited the final passage of the ritual:

"Great Black Devil, the deceased who believes in trade, manifest and accept our sacrifice!"

As he finished the final line, the ritual burst into light, and Simon knelt down in excitement.

Even when he had served the God of Light back in the Theocracy, he had never witnessed a miracle.

But after coming into contact with the Black Devil Order, he had truly "seen" a majestic existence.

Under the witness of such moonlight, the great Black Devil was about to descend, accept their sacrifice, and bestow the power of desire in return!

The light of the ritual surged toward the sky, transforming into three streams of radiance in the heavens.

They injected themselves into the bodies of Raphael, Baker, and Simon, respectively.

The Priest of Night raised a hand to signal the others to stop, his expression grave as he said: "The sacrificial ritual has succeeded; they have already communicated with Him."

"We must stop them from continuing the sacrifice, otherwise, it is hard to imagine the ensuing disaster!"

Once a special sacrificial ritual begins, it continues indefinitely; the higher the quality of the sacrifice, the more terrifying the manifestation.

The Dark Swordsman Bruce frowned and said:

"They are low-sequence transcendents, they carry no holy artifacts, and Blue Bay Island is not considered special."

"How could they possibly hold such a high-level ritual and make contact with that kind of existence?"

Standing on the periphery of the ritual, their minds were struck by a powerful impact, with whispers faintly murmuring in their heads.

The voices seduced them toward corruption, urging them to abandon their faith and turn to the great Black Devil.

The Priest of Night did not say more, instead arranging the subsequent battle: "I will go to support Lady Arena; you two handle these people."

"Remember, kill, delay, and fight for your lives. Anyone who dies now will become a bargaining chip for the trade."

"Yes!" "Yes!"

Arthur hid inside the Scimitar Bar, his intuition telling him to leave immediately, but the reality of the situation felt wrong.

As a hidden leader of a secret sect and half of a Great Existence himself, he had held rituals of his own.

He had once used the "Ritual of the Moth," using a small lock of hair to send a musket to the Secret Sect Long Table.

Ritual: necessary procedures, necessary items, and necessary costs.

For rituals directed at hidden existences, the cost of the sacrifice depends on the recipient.

For example, when Arthur played "Mr. Mansus," the Moth and Mr. Red Grail held a ritual without any cost.

Because Mr. Mansus did not collect a price, they did not need to pay one.

Otherwise, such rituals to communicate with hidden existences would require high-sequence transcendents, contraband, and extraordinary costs.

Only high-level people, objects, and extraordinary costs could attract the attention of a hidden existence.

The members of the Black Devil Order were holding a ritual with such ease, communicating with the Black Devil and receiving His rewards.

Arthur could only think of two possibilities.

The first possibility: the famous evil god of the Age of Navigation, the "Black Devil," was a loner just like him.

Because he had too few subordinates and nowhere to vent his abundant energy, any random ritual could attract his attention.

The second possibility: the "Black Devil," like him, had canceled the cost of the ritual.

It was similar to the "Research" Arthur provided to Mr. Red Grail, a type of ritual that required no cost.

Mr. Red Grail would cast the Mermaid Book into the "Research," and after a certain amount of time, it would be deciphered.

There was no price to pay, and Arthur did not need to expend any energy.

If the first possibility were true and the Black Devil was watching the ritual, Arthur naturally could not act rashly.

As for the latter possibility, Arthur would have to consider carefully whether to make one last haul before switching identities.

The last time he thwarted the Black Devil's operation, there was no one to corroborate it, only the boasting of pirates.

This time, with a priest from the Church of Night as a witness, the value of the achievement went without saying.

The transcendents outside had already clashed, and it seemed the Black Devil did not care much about these low-sequence underlings.

The ability of the Reader was quietly at work; Arthur was reading the battle, searching for the right opportunity to strike.

The two transcendents from the Church of Night were a Sequence 8 Dark Swordsman and a Sequence 9 Swordsman.

The combat performance of the Sequence 9 Swordsman far exceeded that of Dorian, whom Arthur had seen before.

From the perspective of an observer, Arthur read a great deal of information.

The Swordsman's fighting style was no different from that of a pirate, yet his speed, strength, and agility far surpassed those of a well-trained man.

The Dark Swordsman's combat was interspersed with special techniques.

The transcendents of the Black Devil Order responded with great caution, as if they were wary of something.

"Darkness!"

The Dark Swordsman leaped suddenly, charging toward the Priest of Fury, Simon.

From Arthur's perspective, Simon suddenly took a large step back, the flames of rage rising in his eyes.

A very strange reaction... Arthur felt that for a split second, Simon looked like a blind man, his gaze unable to find a focus.

He did not know the specifics of the Church of Night's transcendent abilities, but it was a good opportunity.

Arthur raised the Fear Musket and aimed at the Priest of Fury, his finger resting on the trigger.

The ritual, which had already dimmed, began to glow once more.

Terrifying corruption poured out from the ritual; even just a wisp of it caused Arthur to collapse onto the ground.

A voice rang out in everyone's ears: "Kill him."

Pfft!

Arthur's mind suffered a shock; blood flowed from the corners of his eyes, ears, and nose, his chest caved in as if struck by a heavy blow, and he spat out a mouthful of blood.

The Whisper of the Black Devil!

"An oracle?! It's an oracle!"

The darkness in Simon's vision faded, and surging desires boiled within his body—the Black Devil had actually issued an oracle!

His gaze turned toward the Scimitar Bar.

Baker's eyes also turned toward the Scimitar Bar; that person had actually been singled out for death by the Great Existence.

He felt the power within his body approaching Sequence 8 now that the ritual was complete.

If he killed this person, he would definitely be able to advance to Sequence 7, or perhaps even higher.

No! If I face Buck now, I'll still die.

I don't know how Buck died, but even if I go in, the outcome will be death.

Baker activated the ability of the Rogue, kicked up a large cloud of dirt and sand from the ground, and turned to flee toward the port of Blue Bay Island.

The ritual was over, the power was obtained, and the transaction was concluded.

Only a fool would risk his life to kill a transcendent suspected of being Sequence 8.

Arthur stood up shakily from inside the bar; the frantic warning from the Moth had actually been referring to this!

The Black Devil had been watching the ritual the entire time and had even singled him out for death!

Pah!

A penniless loner!