Chapter 368: 368

“Fall back to a safe distance and remain hidden,” Tide commanded, his voice filled with urgency. “If that thing takes control of Leviathan, none of you will stand a chance.”

The sharkman hesitated but ultimately nodded, signaling his comrades to retreat further into the ocean’s depths. Their movements were swift and silent, disappearing into the shadows of the sea.

On the island, Aska stirred again, his colossal body shifting as if resisting an unseen force. The dark figure knelt beside him, its clawed hand hovering just above the Leviathan’s scaled hide.

“You’ve been stubborn,” the creature mocked, its tone dripping with disdain. “But I am patient. You belong to the depths, to us. And now… you will return.”

It placed its hand on Aska’s side, and the Leviathan roared—a deep, resonating sound that shook the entire island. The robed figures staggered, but the dark entity remained unmoved, its claw digging into the Leviathan’s consciousness.

“If you’re going to act, now is the time,” Mahu said, breaking the tense silence.

Jaus shook his head, his expression grim. “Not yet. It hasn’t broken the rules—it hasn’t fully descended into our realm, nor is its goal to take over the Leviathan’s body.”

Crepuscular spoke, his tone calm but grave. “It’s eroding his consciousness, pushing him toward their side. If Aska falls, he’ll become one of those robed thralls. But that also gives Jaus an opening.”

Jaus raised a brow before laughing, he turned to his sibling as he said “I will be back.” He stepped into the space around him as his figure disappeared.

The shadow creature, whose hand rested on the leviathan, frowned as he sensed a heavy presence descending. The sky above the island darkened, and the ocean began churning and growing louder, as though it were welcoming someone.

Moments before, after Tide had ordered his people to stand down, he had a brief conversation with his sister about whether or not to inform their father of the situation.

Communication between the gods has achieved a breakthrough for some time, and as a result, the potential for divine and mortal interaction has expanded.

Tide, sensing that the presence on the island was stronger and more powerful than them, immediately decided to inform his father, who assured him that he was already aware of what was happening.

Tide received immediate information on everything and quickly acted. He summoned an artifact, which was sent through a small portal to his men near the island.

Powerful artifacts are one of the ways discovered for mortal creatures to be able to let a god descend through them, The artifact could act as a sacrificial vessel, absorbing and redistributing the god’s immense energy. Gods, especially one as powerful as Jaus, exert an immense amount of force when they descend into the mortal realm. If the soldier were to bear this alone, the transformation might be too much, tearing their body apart or shattering their mind. The artifact could act as a cushioning agent, absorbing the brunt of the divine power and allowing it to flow through the soldier without devastating them.

Depending on how long and how much power the god uses, the artifact tend to turn to dust after this usage but that at least spares the mortal from dying from the power.

Seeing the artifact has gotten to them, he then informed them of what was to come and who would be ready to give themselves up, allowing their god to take control.

The reason for this was that there was no priest of Jaus among the people guarding the island. One soldier, however, was ready and willing to surrender himself and be controlled by his god. Despite his devoutness, he subconsciously resisted the idea of being controlled.

Finally, one soldier stepped forward and offered himself up. He took hold of the artifact that Tide had sent through the portal and began to pray:

“O mighty Jaus, ruler of the tempest, keeper of the depths, I surrender my will to your boundless currents. Let my spirit be as a ship, unanchored, carried by your tides and shaped by your waves. Guide my soul through calm waters and raging storms alike, until I am no longer myself, but a vessel of your might.”

The artifact in the soldier’s hands glowed faintly, pulsating with a rhythm that mirrored the crashing waves of the turbulent ocean. As the soldier’s prayer resonated through the waters, the surrounding air grew dense, charged with divine energy. The artifact’s glow intensified, enveloping the soldier in a swirling vortex of water and light.

The other soldiers stepped back, reverent but cautious, as the transformation began. The man’s form became cloaked in the divine essence of Jaus. His eyes glowed a deep oceanic blue, and his veins illuminated like rivers of light beneath his skin. The voice of the ocean seemed to echo through him, a low, reverberating hum that spoke of ancient power.

The shadow creature on the island, still gripping the leviathan, turned sharply toward the shore. It scowled, its form flickering as if destabilized by the overwhelming divine presence now approaching.

“You dare meddle?” the shadow creature hissed, its voice reverberating with malice. “This is no domain for gods.”

The soldier, now a vessel for Jaus, stepped forward. His every movement was deliberate and powerful. The waves crashed violently behind him, as if in rhythm with his stride. His voice, layered with the commanding tone of Jaus, echoed across the island.

“Where my domain is touched, I am called. You have erred in your arrogance, shadow-born.”

The creature sneered, attempting to mask its growing unease. “You abide by rules. You cannot act against me directly. Or have you gods forgotten your bounds?”

Jaus, speaking through the soldier, gave a low, rumbling laugh that seemed to shake the very ground. “True, but it so happens the beast you attempt to erode falls under my rule. As a divine being, I am allowed to defend what is mine.”

“I am you, as much as you are me. And as I would say myself, I was invited, and I responded,” Jaus said, his voice calm yet resonant, as his piercing gaze locked onto the kneeling, robed figures before him.

The shadow creature, its form a mass of twisting, shifting darkness, twitched unnervingly. Its glowing, hollow eyes flared briefly before it collapsed into a liquid shadow, melting into the ground. In an instant, it reappeared before the humans, its form coalescing with unsettling grace. A wave of its hand conjured a shimmering shield of dark, viscous water that encased the humans, pulsating faintly like a living membrane.

Jaus shifted in the body he had possessed, his movements unnatural as he adjusted to his host. With deliberate steps, he moved forward, his presence commanding the environment. The surrounding seawater began to writhe and climb as if alive, tendrils of liquid snaking up from all directions. The island floor became submerged, and soon the water had risen to knee level, its once clear surface now dark and ominous.

His eyes flicked to the humans, shielded by the shadow creature’s barrier. A faint smirk tugged at his lips as he addressed his counterpart. “Your anchor?” he asked, his tone laced with mockery. The shadow creature offered no reply, but the deepening black hue of the water around it betrayed its emotions.

Aska, his consciousness momentarily freed from the haze gripping him, felt a surge of strength coursing through his body as the rising water resonated with his being. Slowly, he managed to open his eyes, but what he saw made him freeze. His vision was fractured. One eye showed the tangible world—an island sinking into a clash of elemental chaos. The other revealed something else entirely: a desolate, colorless void where nothing lived. Yet, he felt the oppressive sensation of countless unseen eyes staring back at him.

His normal eye took in the real world. The island was drowning in water of two distinct shades—one natural, the other an inky blackness. Two figures stood at its center. The shadow creature emanated a kinship he could not deny, its form shrouded in dark waters that stirred memories Aska had desperately buried.

The other figure, Jaus, was monstrous. A humanoid shark whose presence weighed heavier than even the shadow’s. His sheer existence felt like a challenge, an insult to Aska’s very being, and his blood roared in response, boiling with uncontainable energy.

Shaking his head to clear the disorientation, Aska turned his serpentine body to face them both. The sight solidified in his mind, and terror clashed with fury. Claws erupted from his scaled form as he reared up, unleashing a guttural roar that echoed across the island. Above him, a colossal magic circle materialized, glowing ominously like a halo of raw, unfiltered power.

Jaus and the shadow creature turned their attention to him. The shadow’s expression twisted with annoyance, its contempt visible even without a clear face. Jaus, on the other hand, wore a look of weary indifference tinged with a warning, as if Aska’s defiance was beneath him yet unwelcome.

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