Deep Sea Embers

“A sacrifice has escaped!” One of them yelled after a brief delay.

“Quick! Stop him! Don’t let him run!” Another shouted and began running over, believing Duncan would flee.

“Don’t let him run! A sacrifice has escaped!” They kept repeating this despite the other side not moving an inch.

As a result, Duncan’s shrug and honest act of standing in the middle of the tunnel somehow created a weird and awkward atmosphere that didn’t befit the situation. Naturally, this didn’t escape the hooded people who had noticed how wrong this was halfway over. Nevertheless, they didn’t stop running over and quickly circled their target.

“Should I have run? The mood is already like this….” Duncan scratched his nose like he should’ve acted a little to match their enthusiasm.

Ignoring the cold joke that could freeze a ghost, two of the black hoods warily eyed the escapee and began murmuring something.

“Why did one manage to escape?”

“Could it be that the hounds of the Church discovered this hiding spot… But this one doesn’t look like he was let out…”

“Regardless, let’s take him back first. This sacrifice doesn’t look right…. We need to dispose of him quickly.”

“Let the emissary decide.”

Duncan was completely confused about the background of this gang, let alone what the “emissary ” mentioned by the other party meant. But upon thinking about what he had seen along the way and the word “sacrifice,” he could vaguely guess the truth.

He didn’t know what kind of reaction he should make to be considered a “normal sacrifice,” and he had no intention of cooperating with these people’s “performance.” This was a temporary body so Duncan naturally had very little to worry about.

“Where are you taking me?” he asks after a little observation.

Those in the hoods were obviously surprised to hear the calm opening of the “sacrifice.” Although they each wore a black mask that completely covered their faces, Duncan could still guess the surprise they felt over his question.

“You are not qualified to ask us questions. Take him away!” One of the hooded men viciously snaps.

A few of the black-robed immediately stepped forward and wanted to apprehend the guy. However, Duncan beat them to the punch by taking the initiative: “No need, I’ll follow you.”

The black hoods all exchanged looks between themselves – probably feeling the “sacrifice” in front of them was behaving too abnormal and calm. Nevertheless, the leading black robe waved a hand to signal their silence: “That’s for the best. You can’t run away anyways… Come with us and you might even be given glory and dignity.”

Several of the gang gathered around Duncan to seal off any chance of escape, leading him back and forth through the deeper channels of the sewer system.

The foul smell of the wastewater was disgusting the deeper they went, but these hooded people didn’t seem to take notice at all over the dirty and moldy walls. If Duncan wasn’t already a dead person in this shell, he might’ve freaked out already when he stepped on something slimy and goopy.

“This is the City-State of Pland?” Duncan eventually asks this like he’s part of their group.

“That’s obvious …” One of the black-robed replied subconsciously, but then reacted and stared at Duncan like he’s seeing a ghost, “You’re very calm, boy. Do you know what’s going to happen next?”

“I can take a probable guess.” Duncan nodded with a big smile, “The true sun god… right?”

Several of the black-robed halted at that moment, seemingly baffled by how casual the sacrifice mentioned their Lord.

“Wait, is he a believer of the Lord too?”

“No way, he’s obviously an escaped sacrifice…” the other black-robed whispered back, then glanced at Duncan, “you’re quite clever, but don’t think that this will save you from being a sacrifice… The Lord has decided your destiny, and you had better embrace it.”

Duncan did not argue. He knows they’re reacting this way due to his unexpected calm attitude. Perhaps they’re thinking he’s pretending as a way to wiggle his way out of being a sacrifice. Regardless, Duncan didn’t care what they thought because it’s not like he could move the facial muscles anyway. Necrosis had set in on this shell, so it’s a given he behaves this way!

“So you think the current ‘sun’ in the sky is a false sun? That it will one day fall out of the sky sooner or later?” Duncan begins his mission of gathering intelligence.

“Of course the false sun will fall!” This topic was obviously a provoking subject for these cultists so they were feverish in their reply. “Even the lackeys of the Church have to admit in the historical chronicles that the sun in the sky is a twisted and grotesque object that only appeared after the Great Calamity. What truly brings life and order to all things in this world is the Sun God, but that vile…. vile forgery has usurped our Lord! Sooner or later, that vile artifact will fall out of the sky!”

Immediately afterward, Duncan heard the surrounding cultists also join in support of their leader, “Sooner or later the false sun will fall, and the real Sun God will be revived through blood and fire! The excess seawater of the world will be banished back into the void by the might of our Lord, and the earth will return to the era of great fertility and stability!”

Listening to the chant of these cultists, Duncan’s mind began racing with his thoughts. He knew this kind of fanatical cultist could not be reasoned with, meaning the information he’s receiving was likely distorted and tampered with misinformation. Nevertheless, there are certain details he could use and assume true.

The “sun” hanging in the sky is a fake… and the real sun has been usurped….

They firmly believe that the real sun is a fallen deity, and that god will “recover from blood and fire”…

They also mentioned the excess sea water in the world will recede, that the era of abundance and stability will return… What exactly do they mean by that?

It didn’t take long for the cultists to regain their composure from reciting their religious mantra. After all, they still had a sacrifice to escort.

“Have you noticed this ‘sacrifice’ is a bit creepy?” One of the cultists asks the leader.

“He doesn’t seem quite right… I’m a little unsure.”

“Could it be that this sacrifice had been in the lightless underground for too long when he escaped before, and now his head is possessed by something…”

“Then that’s perfect, the Lord’s power will purify him.”

Duncan didn’t miss their whispering conversation, especially the part about the “lightless underground.” But just when he wanted to gather more information from them, the black-robed man at the head of the group stopped.

“Here we are.” The black-robed cultist said in a low, cold voice.

Duncan regretted he didn’t chase the topic faster, but the scene that came into view attracted him more.

Ahead was the nexus of the sewer system, a convergence that led into a spacious underground hall, and there were a lot of black-robed cultists here!