Ashes Of Deep Sea
Chapter 457 - Chapter 457 Chapter 458 The Risk of Being Watched by the Gods

Chapter 457: Chapter 458: The Risk of Being Watched by the Gods Chapter 457: Chapter 458: The Risk of Being Watched by the Gods According to Morris, the criteria for the blessings bestowed by the God of Wisdom… seemed like a very subtle thing.

“In most people’s minds, the Believers of the God of Wisdom must be scholars of extensive knowledge or quirky geniuses with amazing talent in a certain field–this perception, of course, is not wrong, given that most Believers of the God of Wisdom do indeed need to meet the two conditions of ‘erudition’ and ‘intelligence’. However, nothing is absolute.”

Morris was sitting on a chair near the captain’s quarters, seriously explaining while ignoring the subtle expressions of Sherry beside him.

“Firstly, to be favored by the God of Wisdom does not necessarily require a high level of knowledge, like A-Dog–the dog is a quick learner, but compared to the ‘regular Believers’ who have truly passed the church’s three rounds of exams, its academic level is obviously insufficient, yet it still attracted the gaze of Rahm. In other City-States, there are also many Believers and even some saints who later became famous for receiving revelations before acquiring profound knowledge.

“The most notable example would be the saint ‘Korflod’ over two hundred years ago. This distinguished scholar received his revelation at the age of sixteen when he was a dockworker who couldn’t even read–at that point, after the revelation, he finally got the opportunity to delve into the knowledge in books.

“And there are examples that are completely the opposite; in Moco City-State, there was once a highly esteemed scholar who spent his entire life hoping to gain the favor of the God of Wisdom. He passed almost all the exams at the Academy of Truth but never saw the glory of Rahm before he passed away–afterward, the Academy posthumously conferred the title of saint upon the scholar, and similar cases… are not just one.”

Duncan rubbed his chin thoughtfully, “It sounds like… the ‘admission standards’ of the God of Wisdom are somewhat whimsical?”

“It’s not whimsical, after all, what I just mentioned are only ‘rare cases’,” Morris shook his head, “It can only be said that gods are so unfathomable, the same goes for the four true gods. They have their own standards for measuring the world, yet mortals have merely managed to glean a few patterns over thousands of years.”

Listening to Morris’s earnest explanation, Duncan did not speak, but sat there deep in thought, harboring his own opinions.

The beginning of the old man’s explanation and examples may have been without issues, but his final “conclusion”… still remains to be debated.

Are the behavioral patterns of the gods truly unfathomable? Those “exceptions” and even “outrageous” instances during the process of Rahm’s scrutiny… might there be other reasons behind them?

Unconsciously, his mind once again conjured that eerie dark space, and the exchange of information he had seen within the darkness.

The entity identified as the God of Wisdom Rahm, “LH-02”, had mentioned a few sentences at the end of their communication… which he found incredibly compelling.

If those messages were indeed occurring in real-time, if LH-02 was truly Rahm, if everything was as Duncan thought… then the so-called “gods” talked of by the mortal world truly deserved his profound contemplation.

Lost in thought, he couldn’t help but raise his eyelids, his gaze falling on A-Dog.

As Morris said, A-Dog had shown an amazing talent for learning, but its current “academic level” was far from matching those scholars long renowned in the Academy of Truth, yet this A-Dog, who had just recently emerged from illiteracy, had attracted the direct scrutiny of the God of Wisdom Rahm–this was an honor that thousands of Scholars of the Academy of Truth would not dare dream of in their lifetimes (although it seemed like this wasn’t exactly a good thing for A-Dog).

So, what exactly attracted Rahm? Was it A-Dog’s “talent”? Its eagerness for learning? Or…

Because it was a mutated individual belonging to the Abyssal “cluster”? An Abyssal Hound with a “heart” that happened to meet the recognition criteria of LH-02?

A-Dog involuntarily shrunk its body, feeling hair stand on end under Duncan’s silent gaze; after holding back for a while, it couldn’t help but speak up: “Captain, you…”

Duncan did not respond to A-Dog but turned his head to glance at Morris: “In your judgment, is it possible that Sherry might suddenly meet the ‘standards’ of the God of Wisdom at some point and be accepted by Rahm?”

Morris was immediately startled, then shaking his head: “Absolutely not!”

“Are you that certain?” Duncan asked with a serious attitude, “You just said that Rahm’s ‘judgment standards’ aren’t so absolute, sometimes even the illiterate might suddenly find favor.”

“The judgment standards of the God of Wisdom may have exceptions, but at least one thing has never been mistaken–those who’ve been rejected once will not get a second chance. Although there are very few examples in history where the God of Wisdom outright refused someone, but at least…”

Morris paused, his gaze sweeping over Sherry.

“At least when Ah Dog was about to be ‘taken away,’ Sherry managed to pull it back into the real world with her own skills,” Duncan said with a complex look in his eyes. “That has to be the clearest ‘rejection’ from the God of Wisdom to a mortal that I can imagine.”

Sherry, however, seemed a bit confused as she looked around. It took her a while before she blurted out, “So what?”

“So you still have to do your homework,” Duncan said without hesitation. “Don’t think about using ‘helping Ah Dog block a divine vision’ as an excuse to avoid studying.”

“Ah–” Sherry’s face immediately fell, her mind for once a bit quicker than usual, “But you all just said–I’m not cut out for studying. Even the God of Wisdom has made it clear he doesn’t want this brain of mine…”

“In this world, more than ninety percent of people will never have the opportunity to enter the Academy of Truth. Sixty percent just take the exams to get a diploma, and practically one hundred percent will never become saints of Rahm or receive His attention throughout their lives,” Duncan said sternly, gazing into Sherry’s eyes. “Do you think my goal in teaching you to read and write was to make you a great Scholar like Morris?”

Sherry was taken aback by Duncan’s seriousness; she opened her mouth a few times but couldn’t speak. After a moment, she lowered her eyelids, “I… I know… I’m sorry, I was being willful…”

“It’s okay, in my eyes you’re still a child–children can be willful,” Duncan shook his head gently. “Relax. I’m not scolding you, I’m just thinking… what’s to become of Ah Dog.”

“Me?” Ah Dog, who was lying quietly beside them, looked up puzzled, not quite catching up with Duncan’s thoughts. “What about my future?”

Duncan looked into its eyes, “Have you ever thought that you might attract Rahm’s attention for a third, or even fourth time?”

Ah Dog paused, then realized, visibly shivering at the thought.

“Does that mean… I can’t read books anymore?” Its voice was tinged with nervousness.

“The God of Wisdom isn’t attracted by books like a ‘shadow’–as a deity, He has already taken notice of you,” Morris responded from the side, shaking his head, his expression grave. “I cannot speculate on His will, but since He has shown interest in you once, there’s no guarantee He won’t seek you out again. That’s true even if you never read another book… even…”

The old Scholar paused, his face a strange mix of expressions, as if unsure whether to describe his god in such terms, but then he shook his head and added, “It’s more like this–as long as you’re ‘thinking,’ your mind will always be within the sight of the God of Wisdom, and it’s entirely up to Him when He decides to look your way again.”

The red glow in Ah Dog’s eyes noticeably trembled.

Upon hearing Morris’s words, Duncan couldn’t help but feel a strange emotion. To himself, he thought, this description of Rahm’s “blessing” almost sounded like the Curse of an Evil God.

But upon reflection, he supposed that from the perspective of a Profound Demon, the blessing of any righteous god might well seem indistinguishable from the curse of an Evil God…

Even Alice, who had been quiet the whole time, caught on and suddenly interjected, “Doesn’t that mean Ah Dog will be living in danger every day from now on?”

“There is danger, but as long as the connection between it and Sherry remains, that danger might not be fatal,” Duncan shook his head. “Based on Ah Dog’s description and my… well, my guess, Rahm means no harm. He might not even realize that the ‘mind’ that just appeared in His view belongs to a Profound Demon. With that assumption, He’s unlikely to use a more ‘forceful’ way to ‘take away’ Ah Dog.”

Listening to Duncan’s assessment, Ah Dog could only lower its head, its voice carrying a touch of sorrow, “Sigh… I suppose that’s all I can hope for.”

“Cheer up, you and Sherry still bear my mark, and even if the worst happens and Sherry can’t hold onto you, I should be able to sense it,” Duncan reassured the anxious hound. “I’ve never tried before, but I wouldn’t mind attempting to snatch… well, a dog from a ‘benevolent god’s’ hands.”

“And I will definitely hold onto you!” Sherry also declared immediately, thumping her chest and shaking the Symbiotic Chains in her hand, “Ah Dog, you can rest easy, this brain of mine has been clearly rejected by the God of Wisdom! It’s an absolutely reliable safe anchor for you!”

Ah Dog was about to be touched by Duncan’s words but was caught off guard by Sherry’s confident and proud attitude. It could only raise its head and look at her blankly, “That’s… not really something to be proud of, is it?”

Sherry didn’t answer and just kept grinning foolishly.

But her fingers gripping the chains tightened even more.