Chapter 265: Deep Dive Trip

"[Deep Sea Secret Poison]?"

Shane's eyes glanced over the first two options and landed on the third talent.

【Deep Sea Secret Poison】

[Quality: precious]

[Type: Talent]

[Description: According to legend, the deep sea is the origin of life. 】

[Endless mysteries and secrets are buried under the deep sea. 】

[And that is also the resting place of the "Lord of the Deep". 】

[In this environment, living things will evolve various incredible abilities to continue life. 】

[The toxin of "Secret Poison Stickleback" is one of them. 】

[This toxin can corrode the secret power and reduce the combat power of the secret pather. The degree of weakening increases with the poisoning time. 】

[Can be superimposed with the effect of "Great Dark Sky" absorbing secret power. 】

"Not bad, not bad!"

Shane's eyes brightened slightly.

Judging from the description, this talent is not particularly surprising, but it is more practical!

[Big Dark Sky] has the ability to weaken the enemy and strengthen itself. Coupled with this weird poison, it will definitely be able to exert the effect of one plus one greater than two.

More importantly.

It wasn't until this [Deep Sea Hunting] that Xia En truly realized the power of the [Deep Sea Devourer] profession.

It is not just as simple as enhancing the overall quality, but while devouring sea monsters, it constantly plunders their abilities and makes up for its own shortcomings.

It's like...

An evolution towards perfection!

The last time he swallowed the [Macrophagic Sandworm], Xia En's feeling was not so intuitive.

But this time, when he made his choice, he truly felt that some invisible defect in his body had been filled.

"Swallow, then evolve..."

"Abandon the past, transcend yourself, and continue to transform."

Xia En murmured to himself: "Is this what happened?"

Somehow, he seemed to vaguely understand the core of [Deep Sea Devourer] in this profession.

Immediately, a line of prompts appeared on the panel.

[Career compatibility +10%! 】

Any behavior or philosophy that fits this secret profession is likely to increase career fit.

However, Xia En inevitably had some strange worries.

"If this trend continues, I won't stop being a human being, right?"

But then I thought about it, it seemed like he was not a pure-blooded human in the first place?

Moreover, it is impossible for Xia En to give up and continue on the secret path.

When the [Projection Body] is about to dissipate.

He glanced at the deep-sea monster fish that had been wiped clean by eating, and there was a hint of expectation in his eyes, and he couldn't help but lick his lips.

"I wonder what kind of prey we will encounter next time?"

…

…

One month later.

A sea area blocked by several hunting boats.

The federal scientific research vessel [Alice] dropped its anchor.

On the deck, many crew members who looked like researchers were looking excitedly at the spherical instruments being lowered into the seawater.

Clergymen wearing robes and carrying incense burners were walking near the cables, gently shaking the incense in their hands while praying for the spherical instrument.

This device is called [Qianyuan], and it is the latest manned submersible developed by the Federation.

It is made of various special and precious materials, and is supplemented by cutting-edge magic pattern technology, which greatly increases its pressure resistance.

It is said that it is one of only five submersibles capable of exploring waters below 10,000 meters.

Today, what the [Qianyuan] wants to do is to conduct an in-depth investigation in this sea area.

Wow!

Surrounded by the waves, the [Qianyuan] slowly submerged into the sea and gradually moved towards a deeper area.

Inside the "Qianyuan", the three explorers looked out at the seawater through the one-meter-thick special glass, feeling a little uneasy.

This time, the target of the "Qianyuan" is the sea area with a depth of about 10,000 meters.

At that depth, even a slight malfunction may lead to their death without burial.

Rescue is something that does not exist at all.

After all, they would be dead before help arrived.

It can be said that the level of danger is frighteningly high when performing such a deep-diving mission.

In those periods when the technology was not yet mature, the mortality rate was even more outrageous, which once attracted protests and opposition from some people.

Only people who regard some things as more important than life will participate in such a plan without hesitation.

The three explorers in the [Qianyuan] at this time are such people.

As the depth of the water increases, the submersible gradually becomes quiet.

In such a closed environment, the silence is undeniably unsettling.

So, the man in military uniform among the three was the first to say with a wry smile: "Dr. Huo Xing, Priest William, shall we say something?"

"If I stay silent like this, I might be driven crazy."

The person known as "Dr. Huo Xing" is a bald, middle-aged scientific researcher.

Hearing the words of the man in military uniform, Huo Xing smiled: "Major Renault, with a normal heart, just treat it as an ordinary field mission. Don't be so nervous."

On the side, the clergyman in robes shook his head and said: "Huo Xing, what you said is wrong."

"Major Renault is not like you, who has participated in deep dive programs several times."

“It’s normal to feel nervous when you experience the deep sea under 10,000 meters for the first time.”

This clergyman is named William. His robe with a black background, silver edges and blue patterns is the standard of the Deep Sea Church.

Those wavy sea wave patterns are a kind of alternative divine patterns, and are also an extension of the power of the Storm Goddess.

As most of the land in the world is submerged by the sea, the power of the Storm Goddess has been greatly enhanced, making the influence of the Deep Sea Church almost cover the seven seas.

The priests of the Storm Goddess have also become an indispensable group of people in navigation.

Whether it is to avoid terrible storms or to fight against invisible pollution on the sea, storm priests have played an extremely important role.

Back then, even the Duke of Nova who followed the [Scarlet Lord] had many storm priests on board.

It is not difficult to see their importance.

On the other hand.

Storm priests are also human beings.

After enduring invisible pollution and mental pressure again and again, they will inevitably be assimilated and influenced.

Under normal circumstances.

The priests who travel with the ship must return to the shore after a period of time and undergo a period of purification and baptism in the Storm Church.

Afterwards, most of them can recover and continue to serve as ship priests on other ships.

Some of them who have left behind mental problems can only stay away from the sea and continue to serve the Deep Sea Church as priests on land for the rest of their lives.

It can be said that these priests... are actually consumables in navigation.

It is precisely because of this that the status of storm priests has always been extremely high at sea.

If it weren't for Priest William's initiative, the Seven Seas Federation would not have been willing to send him to escort the [Abyss].

However, Dr. Huo Xin obviously did not have a very harmonious relationship with this priest.

"Hehe..."

He quickly sneered and retorted: "Whether it is the first time or the nth time, since you are already sitting in this submersible, keeping a normal mind is the most correct choice."

"When it really comes to the worst moment, fear and panic are meaningless."

William frowned: "Humph, you guys, always treat people as mechanical existence."

"How can humans always control their emotions?"

Huo Xin said lightly: "I can."

"... You!"

Seeing that the two companions were about to quarrel, Major Renault hurriedly advised.

"You two, calm down! Calm down!"

"We are still on a deep dive mission!"

Hearing this, William and Huo Xin glared at each other, turned their heads away, and stopped talking.

Seeing the two of them calm down, Renault breathed a sigh of relief and quietly wiped his cold sweat.

To be honest.

Renault can become a major of the Federation, and his own strength and talent are quite good.

The fifth-level rank, the blood of the sea clan.

Although he will still be crushed into meat paste in the deep sea of ​​10,000 meters, he can at least hold on for half a second longer.

This is also one of the reasons why the Federation chose him as an explorer.

However, in front of William and Huo Xin, Renault can only behave submissively.

The reason is very simple.

William and Huo Xin are both sixth-level secret pathers!

The former is a high-ranking storm priest, and even Renault's boss has to treat him with courtesy.

The latter is one of the developers of the [Abyss] and a well-known deep-sea scholar in the Federation. He has done in-depth research on the ecology and secrets of the deep sea.

Compared with the two of them, isn't Renault just a small shrimp?

Moreover, what makes Renault sweat the most is...

Priest William and Dr. Huo Xin have always been at odds. They have repeatedly expressed different opinions in public and even had the experience of "sparring".

Renault really couldn't understand why his superiors let them participate in this deep dive operation when they knew this?

Two sixth-level strongmen, even if they are not good at combat, can destroy this submersible with a casual confrontation, right?

Or does the boss have other intentions for doing this?

When people are nervous, they tend to think wildly.

Especially for Renault, who dived into the deep sea for the first time, he couldn't stop his chaotic thoughts.

"Beep... Beep..."

The prompt sound emitted by the instrument kept echoing in the submersible.

Renault glanced at the instrument and found that the number on it had jumped to "950."

For ordinary submersibles, this depth is already very impressive.

Or, it has reached their limit.

But for the [Abyss], this is just the beginning of a deep dive.

However, looking out through the transparent glass, the sea water has become pitch black.

Only the high-power light of the [Abyss] emits a faint light in the sea water.

But at this time, Huo Xin said: "Major Renault, turn off the external lighting system."

Renault was stunned: "Huh?"

This time, William rarely refuted Huo Xin's opinion, but took the initiative to explain.

"At this depth, the light will attract the attention of some sea beasts, and it may cause damage to the [Abyss]."

Hearing this, Renault immediately turned off the external lighting system.

But in this way, the underwater world outside the glass window was left with only a piece of indissoluble darkness.

It was like being in a black fog where you couldn't see your hand in front of you.

It was like being in a starless universe.

Looking at this scene, Renault felt an indescribable fear.

If I had to say it, it was the fear of gradually moving away from the civilized world and the insignificance of human beings themselves.

"Major Renault."

Priest William's calm voice sounded in his ears.

This voice carried the sound of the waves and the secret power to calm people's hearts.

Treatment through conversation.

This kind of "talk therapy" magic is widely used in the Deep Sea Church and can quickly restore the sanity of polluted people.

"I suggest that you should not stare at the deep sea all the time."

William persuaded: "While you are looking directly at the deep sea, the deep sea is also looking at you."

Renault suddenly came back to his senses and replied with lingering fear: "Yes, I understand..."

As a priest, William has the responsibility to maintain the mental health of his companions, so he spoke.

"How about this, let's chat?"

"Major Renault, why did you join this deep-diving trip?"

Renault thought for a moment and said, "Because... I'm a soldier."

"My boss asked me to come, so I came."

"It's my duty to obey orders."

Hearing this, Huo Xin sneered, "Boring reasons."

"You can't even carry out your own will. Even if you are promoted to a higher rank, you are just a weakling."

Being stabbed by Huo Xin, Renault felt a little unhappy and asked back.

"Then why did you participate in this operation, Doctor?"

Huo Xin looked at the deep sea outside the window and said fanatically, "Of course it's for... truth!"

"I have been exploring the mysteries of the sea, and how could I miss this opportunity to peek into the deep sea?"

"For the truth of the world, I can give everything!"

Renault frowned. Huo Xin's words sounded like what a mad scientist would say.

But the word "truth" made him have some other associations.

Compared to Huo Xin, Renault had a better impression of William, so he turned around and asked, "Mr. William, what is your reason?"

William touched his chin and smiled gently, "Maybe, I just want to see some existence, that's all."

"Even if I only look at it for a second, I will die without regrets."

Listening to William's words, Renault felt a little uneasy for no reason, and felt that the smile on his face was particularly strange.

What would be the things that can only be seen in the deep sea?

After a short conversation, the three of them returned to their initial silence.

This silence lasted for an unknown period of time.

Until the number on the instrument jumped to "8500!"

Renault vaguely realized that the [Abyss] seemed to have sunk into a trench and was heading towards deeper waters.

Suddenly at this time.

Beep!

The instrument issued a sharp and short prompt sound, like an alarm.

Renault couldn't help but look solemn and exclaimed: "Something is approaching the [Abyss]! Very fast!"

William and Huo Xin's faces also changed slightly, and they turned their heads to look outside the thick glass almost at the same time.

In the deep sea, there was a huge monster swimming!