Ashes Of Deep Sea-Chapter 271 - 275 Storm Cathedral

Chapter 271: Chapter 275 Storm Cathedral

In Duncan’s perception, an entity exuding a massive presence was gradually approaching the Plunder City-State.

His senses weren’t quite capable of extending beyond the physical confines of Plunder and reaching outwards, but as the significant presence drew ever closer, he could still indirectly sense a kind of… “illumination,” like a heat source, a bright, shining thing that was becoming clearer bit by bit over the Endless Sea.

A mere large vessel could not evoke such a feeling, nor could a group of powerful priests.

Duncan squinted slightly, and in the “darkness” beyond the City-State of Plunder, the bright, glowing, and warm entity was beginning to take shape.

Was it emanating the so-called “divine power”?

Moments later, from a second-story window of an antique shop, a green flame unexpectedly surged, and then, a plump white dove flew out of the window, swiftly crossing the sky.

…

The port in the southeast of Plunder was now gathered with a massive crowd.

For any Believer who follows the Storm Goddess Gomona, the Storm Cathedral’s impending dock at the City-State was a once-in-a-lifetime spectacle. Whether to demonstrate their piety or merely to behold the majestic visage of the Storm Cathedral, the citizens of Plunder did not want to miss out on today’s grand occasion—soon after the sun had risen and the curfew had just lifted, the residents nearby the port began to gather, and by around noon, virtually every spot around the harbor suitable for “attending the ceremony” was filled.

After that, traffic control was enforced in the vicinity of the port, and the City Hall, in coordination with the Church, no longer allowed more onlookers to approach the harbor and dispersed the crowd to various sanctuaries. As the Storm Cathedral docked, mass would be conducted simultaneously in various churches as part of the ceremony, which was meant to welcome the “glory of the Goddess” and also to alleviate the pressure on the port area by redistributing the Believers.

Beyond the sea of people, inside the port area, was the “ceremonial area” temporarily cordoned off by the Church’s Guardians and City-State security officers, where the local Church hierarchy and the senior officials of the City-State gathered, ready to welcome the Storm Cathedral.

Hastening along, Fenna finally arrived at the port in time.

“You almost missed it,” Governor Dante looked at his niece, who was hurrying over, with resignation in his one good eye, “On such an important day, you, as a Judge, are the last to arrive.”

“There was a little mishap,” even in front of her uncle, a Judge could experience a moment of inadequate authority, Fenna’s face carried a tinge of embarrassment, “I had planned my time well and was going to arrive at least half an hour early…”

“The Goddess will forgive,” Archbishop Valentin’s voice came from the side, the old man was fully robed in ceremonial garb, clutching the staff symbolizing the City-State Bishop, a faint smile on his face, “There’s still some time before the scheduled moment.”

Fenna nodded, let out a quiet sigh of relief, and then looked around.

The area around the pier offered a clear view, with the Guardians and security officers forming a rather spacious “ceremonial area”, but beyond this open area, one could see countless onlookers in the distance, a throng of people.

Nearly three-quarters of Plunder’s population were baptized Believers of the Deep Sea Church, and even the remaining quarter who weren’t baptized maintained a shallow faith in the Storm Goddess Gomona under the influence of the City’s atmosphere—this City-State is the largest gathering place for the Deep Sea Believers on the Endless Sea, and the grand spectacle of this moment powerfully showcased this fact.

“The arrival of the Storm Cathedral could actually help us solve a lot of problems,” Dante’s voice reached Fenna’s ears, “With this grand event, the unsettled atmosphere in the City-State can be quickly smoothed out, and the news about the ‘dimensional appearances’ can be released more steadily, to be honest… I really breathed a sigh of relief.”

“For the Believers, ‘under the watchful eyes of the divine’ is more consoling than anything else,” Bishop Valentin responded, “With the Goddess’s protection and witness, we can demonstrate our unity and resilience to the fullest, and we can openly accept even extreme scenarios, including ‘City-State transformed into a dimensional appearance’.”

“Perhaps the arrival of the Storm Cathedral is meant to help us through this difficult time,” Dante said, “although the Pope has not expressly stated this.”

“The Pope has her own dignity—and besides, the messages she conveys to the outside world must be guided by the divine…”

As his uncle and the old Bishop conversed beside him, Fenna’s attention gradually drifted away from them, gazing into the endless expanse of sea, waiting for the towering cathedral to come into view.

The appointed time was nearly upon her, yet there was no sign of the colossal vessel on the calm sea.

But in the next second, Fenna’s peripheral vision suddenly caught a twisted anomaly on the surface of the water.

The sea was curling, the sky trembled, and the shimmer of sunlight on the water’s surface suddenly rippled, transforming into a layered, cloud-like curtain—a gargantuan feat of engineering that seemed almost as large as the entire port area, abruptly materializing on the sea, appearing as though it had traversed dimensions, emerging into Fenna’s line of sight!

It had not fully revealed itself yet, still displaying a slightly ethereal texture at the moment, yet the overwhelming majesty was already moving forward, awe-inspiring.

Despite being the Judge of the City-State, this was Fenna’s first time witnessing the ark ship with her own eyes.

At that moment, feelings of excitement, agitation, and admiration spontaneously arose.

She unconsciously held her breath and then glanced to her side.

The senior officials from the city hall were eagerly anticipating, while Bishop Valentin and her uncle were staring wide-eyed into the distance.

Was it the immense astonishment and shock that momentarily made them forget to make a sound?

After two or three seconds, the light in Bishop Valentin’s eyes brightened, and he raised his staff high, then brought it down forcefully. The sound of the staff’s end hitting the ground boomed like thunder throughout the entire dock plaza.

“Praise the name of the Storm!”

The high-ranking clergy gathered near the pier responded in unison, “Praise the name of the Storm!”

The salute cannons fired, followed by the grand and magnificent sound of music. Inside and outside the harbor, cheers erupted like thunder, creating a boiling frenzy to the ears!

Fenna looked out to the sea beyond the harbor and saw the previously swirling water and shimmering light spectacle had calmed down; the majestic Storm Cathedral had removed all its disguises and was slowly approaching the coast of Plunder.

The gathered crowd was in a state of fervor.

Everywhere were loud prayers, cheers, and even the clueless children in the crowd caught the excitement. Along with the sound of salute cannons and music, the noise was deafening.

From the rooftop of a tower near the dock area, Duncan quietly observed this boisterous and festive scene, as well as the enormous Church Ark nearby that defied the normal concept of a ‘ship’, inexplicable as to how it could manage to operate.

Nina and Sherry were extremely excited, chattering noisily about the structure of the Church Ark— the former drawing from her mechanical knowledge learned at school, the latter freely employing her imagination and confidence in making wild guesses.

Alice seemed a little nervous, having never seen such a huge object moving on the sea before. When the steam pipes on the side of the Church Ark suddenly vented and the loud sound of the steam whistle blasted through the skies, she instinctively covered her head.

Duncan’s gaze slowly shifted between the crowd gathered on the dock and the towering triple spires of the Church Ark.

He closed his eyes, then opened them again.

He saw countless gray-white shadows spreading from the Storm Cathedral, resembling invisible tentacles or smoke-like ribbons floating in the air. These drifting shadows extended from every door, every window, and even every mechanical seam of the Church Ark, sweeping grandly and covering half of the Plunder sky like a dark cloud.

He saw these drifting shadows hanging low, sweeping over the assembled crowd and the bell towers.

The shadows brushed gently over the heads of the people, who were cheering and leaping with joy, yet the residents of Plunder seemed completely unaware of their presence.

It appeared that no one could see these shadows, not even the church clergy with their heightened “spiritual vision.”

Or could it be… precisely because they were clergy of the church that they could not see the shadows?!

What were these shadows? What were these intangible tentacles emanating from the Storm Cathedral?

A massive question coalesced in Duncan’s mind, and his gaze became especially serious. He subconsciously stretched out his hand towards the void outside the platform, as if trying to catch one of the phantoms.

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Simultaneously, a gray-white, smoke-like phantom drifted over, gradually approaching his palm.

The wisp of smoke thickened slightly, coiling around Duncan’s fingers— and in the next second, he actually felt a cool touch as if he had come into contact with some sort of entity!

Then, the gray-white “tentacle” quickly withdrew, leaving behind only a chilling, hollow sensation.