Eadro's descent occurred much faster than anticipated, and Anbaixiu was in no position to worry about Aeolus right now.
Aige reacted with equal speed, immediately sending a message to everyone in the Silent Night Pirates instructing them to search for the vanished Aeolus. Meanwhile, she accompanied Anbaixiu before the merfolk high priestess.
By this point, all the merfolk who had participated in the ritual had departed, leaving only the magnificent conch altar behind.
The high priestess, now possessed by Eadro, looked toward Anbaixiu and remarked with feeling, "Even in the ocean's depths, stories of you are already spreading. How should I address you, lich of many names?"
Anbaixiu said respectfully, "Any name will do. My mentor once said he gave everything to me. If it pleases you, you may call me Old Pete."
Old Pete had been the mortal name of the God of Alchemy. In truth, back then, he had gone by Blind Pete, and only after taking Anbaixiu as his student had people stopped bullying him.
Eadro seemed somewhat surprised by Anbaixiu's irreverence, but she could not help laughing. "I had already heard of your unique relationship with the God of Alchemy, but it appears rumors circulating through the conches have strayed far from the truth. So, what is it that you wish to discuss, requesting an audience with me?"
This goddess was refreshingly direct, offering no riddles whatsoever.
Anbaixiu hastily said, "My friend Aige is a ghost ship, and she is on the verge of stepping into the divine domain. I would like to ask for Your Grace's permission to borrow your believers' power of faith to help my friend become a true deity."
Eadro turned her gaze to Aige and sighed softly. "After so many years, you too have reached this stage."
Aige said in surprise, "You once watched over me, Goddess?"
Eadro nodded. "From the day of your birth, I was aware of your existence. Did you not know? Your father, that old shipwright, was my follower—and the most talented shipwright I have ever seen. Every vessel he crafted was unique in all the world. When he met with catastrophe, I sent dolphins to bring him word, hoping he would come to the Elemental Plane of Water and enter my divine realm."
Aige asked with sudden excitement, "My father is in your divine realm?!"
Eadro shook her head regretfully. "Alas, he refused. You were the final ship he ever built, the masterpiece into which he poured his life's blood, but your first sinking broke his heart completely. Perhaps it was precisely because of that that you came to be. It was he who nurtured the seed of your soul with everything he had, allowing you to be born into this world."
Disappointment washed over Aige, but she quickly regained her composure. Deep down, she had long known the answer.
Aige gave a self-deprecating laugh. "I never found any mention of this in his notes. It seems he was never very devout toward you, Goddess."
The old shipwright's nautical logs had been filled entirely with ships, with hardly any mention of divine beings.
"That does not matter. It was his talent I admired. There are countless casual believers in the world who pray for divine protection at every turn, but mortals who can hone a single talent to its absolute pinnacle, like your father did, remain exceedingly rare."
Eadro oversaw many divine portfolios, and creation was among them. Naturally, an old shipwright of his caliber had easily earned her admiration.
Anbaixiu chimed in at an opportune moment. "Then, judging by that, Your Grace would not mind lending a hand?"
With such a bond between them, wouldn't the deal be all the simpler? Anbaixiu felt as though the Goddess of Fate had been winking at him a bit too often lately; his luck seemed almost too good to be true.
Yet Eadro did not answer the question. Instead, she turned back to Aige. "Have you decided what kind of deity you wish to become?"
Aige nodded, and a faint point of light illuminated the space between her brows. Eadro studied it for a long while before speaking: "A divine portfolio related to seafaring... Indeed, it is almost there. Perhaps with a little more time, you would not even require external aid."
Aige shook her head. "No, I understand all too well. Relying solely on myself, I might not take that final step even after thousands of years. I have walked the path I chose as best I could, and I have arrived at the ultimate bottleneck."
There were several paths for a mortal to attain godhood, and Aige had chosen the most orthodox one. As a ghost ship, she had sailed to every corner of the ocean, traversing her chosen path to its very end.
At this stage, an exceptionally gifted mortal would comprehend and receive the baptism of the world's laws, and upon Ao's nod of approval, they would claim the corresponding divine portfolio.
Yet Aige lacked that final step: she lacked sufficient wisdom.
Even though she had accumulated enough power, throughout all these years she had merely brushed against the world's relevant laws without being able to comprehend them, much less integrate them into herself.
There was simply no helping it. It was like a wizard's Wish spell: either you could grasp it or you couldn't. Across all the ages, only a madman like Gary Watts had pulled off a grand scheme to cast Wish infinitely; other wizards spent their entire lives unable to understand it, and that was that.
Aige's talent in this regard was truly lacking. Perhaps it stemmed from her origin: having received no guidance, it had taken her a long time after her birth just to learn language and writing, leaving her deficient in wisdom ever since.
Back when Anbaixiu had been selling divine portfolios, Aige had been tempted, but she later realized that doing so would be meaningless.
The old shipwright had wished for Aige to become a legendary vessel that sailed every corner of the sea. If she could not ascend to godhood in the manner her father had envisioned, what right did she have to beg Ao to resurrect him?
Even if she attained godhood through such shortcuts, she would merely become a lesser deity incapable of further growth, one Ao would likely not even spare a second glance.
Therefore, when Anbaixiu proposed the plan to ascend through faith, Aige had agreed without hesitation. While it was still a shortcut of sorts, she would at least ascend as a deity of seafaring, retaining room for future growth. Perhaps one day, when a grand age of sail arose, she might become a greater power and capture Ao's attention.
Having heard Aige's explanation, Eadro understood her intentions. Yet the goddess neither agreed nor refused. Turning to Anbaixiu, she said, "I understand what you seek. If you can pass my trial, I will agree to use the power of faith to aid her ascension."
Anbaixiu quickly asked, "What manner of trial is it? Do you require our help in dealing with those ixitxachitl?"
The merfolk's greatest adversaries at present were the ixitxachitl, and with a grand expedition looming, it seemed natural that Goddess Eadro's trial would concern them.
Yet the unexpected occurred. Eadro shook her head. "It has nothing to do with such conflicts. Let us play a game. I shall grant you the opportunity to ask questions, and I will answer only with 'yes' or 'no.' If you arrive at the answer before ten questions are spent, I will grant your request."
Anbaixiu immediately felt a sense of foreboding. The Goddess of Fate hadn't been winking at him after all—she had been rolling her eyes.
"Questions? Are there any parameters? What answer must we reach to succeed?" Anbaixiu asked.
Eadro offered no further explanation, saying calmly, "It begins now. You may ask any question, but I will answer only 'yes' or 'no.'"
Aige immediately turned her gaze toward Anbaixiu. In a trial of intellect like this, she had no choice but to rely on the lich.
Anbaixiu did not speak at once. He sank into deep contemplation until Eadro prompted him: "The duration of my projected consciousness is limited. If you delay any longer, you fail."
Only then did Anbaixiu pose his first question: "Goddess, you are in fact willing to help, and this questioning game is merely meant to help us organize our thoughts and remind us of certain matters that must be heeded to attain godhood—am I correct?"
Eadro smiled. "Yes. But do not play petty tricks again. Bundling several questions into one will only be permitted once; do it a second time, and I will declare your failure."
Anbaixiu's question had in fact woven three questions together: the first probed Eadro's own willingness, the second asked whether the trial pertained to their mindset, and the third sought to confirm whether these conceptual matters were directly tied to ascending to godhood.
Eadro commended Anbaixiu's intellect by allowing him to get away with this slight advantage, but it would not be tolerated twice.
Anbaixiu clenched his fist, knowing his gamble had paid off.
Yet rather than asking Eadro another question, Anbaixiu turned to Aige. "The remaining nine questions are up to you."
Aige froze, protesting frantically, "I—I don't know what to ask! You can't just push this onto me!"
Anbaixiu replied, "No, this is your trial, Senior Aige. You can do this, so long as you hold fast to your own will."
Suddenly thrust to center stage, Aige fell into a momentary panic.
This involved the crucial matter of whether she could attain godhood. How could she not be nervous? She opened her mouth several times without managing to utter a single word.
With no hints provided for this trial, what was she supposed to ask, and what answer did she need to reach before Eadro would agree to help?
Anbaixiu obediently stepped aside, offering Aige no further cues. Eadro glanced at him, silently marveling that the God of Alchemy had truly found an extraordinary mortal as his student.
With just a single question, he had already discerned her intent.
Eadro was more than willing to help, but she wanted Aige to become the kind of deity she envisioned.
It was not a matter of divine portfolio, but of alignment and stance.
Eadro embodied true neutrality, whereas the undead generally belonged to the evil alignment. That was her greatest concern.
In this era, because of Anbaixiu's disruptions, the might of the undead had grown vast enough to disturb the world's balance.
Precisely for this reason, Anbaixiu had cleverly stepped aside, demonstrating through his actions that he would not attempt to influence Aige. No matter what kind of deity Aige became, he would not exploit that relationship without restraint.
That was his stance.
Eadro's foremost worry had been answered. What remained depended entirely on Aige herself—whether she could comprehend this point and make her own stance clear.
If Aige could accomplish this, Eadro would gladly assist in the birth of a new neutral deity. But if Aige failed to grasp the significance of alignment on her own, it would prove she was incapable of true neutrality, and no matter how deep their past ties ran, Eadro would not lift a finger.
Now, everything rested on Aige's performance.
Chapter 420