Shrouded Seascape

"Is this true? Have you been sacrificing the humans in the Eastern Seas to gain power? I heard that two million people died just last night!"

Anna showed a hint of dissatisfaction on her face as she retorted, "Charles, aren't you going a bit too far? You're actually monitoring me?"

"Answer my question!" Charles roared.

"Yes, that's right," Anna openly admitted it, saying, "Yes, that's right. I did perform some sacrifices. You won't let me sacrifice the people of Hope Island, and you aren't going to let me sacrifice the people on other islands, either? And have you already forgotten that they're all Fhtagn cultists?"

Charles stood up without realizing it, and his voice rose an octave as he said, "Those under Fhtagn's influence in the Subterranean Sea are always a minority, and the majority of those people whom you sacrificed were deceived and coerced into becoming cultists—they were coerced by the Fhtagn Covenant!

"They were just ordinary people!"

"Goodness, how come you're being such a hypocrite? Since when did you care about other people, Charles? You're unwilling to help me, so I decided to acquire what I want in my own way," Anna retorted.

Noticing that the air had gotten quite tense, Charles took a few deep breaths, and his voice softened as he asked, "You still want to become a god? Has becoming a god become more important to you than anything?"

"That's right. In the Subterranean Sea, power is everything. If you don't sacrifice others first, they'll eventually sacrifice you when the time comes."

"You're wrong," Charles said, shaking his head firmly. "Becoming a god in the Subterranean Sea will not guarantee your safety. In fact, stepping into that realm might expose you to more danger.

"We can obtain power and knowledge from 005, but becoming a god might be a fate worse than death. The risk is too high."

"I'm not wrong. You're the one who's wrong. In fact, I've already touched upon a part of that threshold," Anna retorted. She lifted the photo in her hand, and it contracted, transforming into a deformed, writhing monster.

Anna had become capable of giving life to inanimate objects; an ability to bestow upon life, which was an ability exclusive only to gods, seemed to have become a part of Anna's repertoire.

Charles grabbed the deformed, writhing monster and crushed it with one hand. He gnashed his teeth and stared into the eyes of the woman before him. "Anna, you have to stop. I'm begging you.

"It's only a matter of time until something goes wrong; think about the fate of the first-generation Foundation!"

"I'm not going to stop. We can talk about other things, but I'm not going to compromise when it comes to something like this. I don't want to stay as an ant that others can trample on whenever they wish!" Anna remained adamant.

Charles sat down dejectedly and muttered, "Anna, I never wanted to go this far."

"Pfft!" Anna burst out laughing. She propped herself up on the table with both hands and looked at the man in front of her. "What? Are you going to make a move against me? Sorry, but I'm just a bit stronger than you."

"I'm suspending every single research work throughout Hope Island and Newbound City. I'm revoking your authority as the Governor of Hope Island as well as your authority to command the Hope Island Navy.

"I will take over your role in the ongoing affairs in the Eastern Seas. I'm not going to allow you to sacrifice even a single person anymore."

"Oh my, I'm so scared~ Too bad you don't call the shots anymore. I've inserted my people in the key political units on Hope Island. It's not going to be that easy for you to clean up things," Anna said, and a hint of complacency suffused her face.

Charles raised his hand and snapped his fingers. The curtains on the side opened, revealing a camera. "What you just said has been broadcast to the entire island, and my people have already done a sweep of Hope Island's political units."

The next moment, three figures made out of sand walked out from the adjacent room—Julio, Jenny, and Jax.

"Charles, haven't I told you long ago to resolve this issue as soon as possible? You refused to listen to me, and look what happened now," Julio said in a low voice.

Julio, Jenny, and Jax cast vigilant gazes at Anna. With the three of them serving as witnesses, it wouldn't be that easy for Anna to take over Hope Island.

"You were actually suspicious of me?" Anna asked with a quiver in her voice as she retreated half a step in disbelief.

"Anna, I've been deceived so many times, and I don't want to be deceived again. I gave you many opportunities as well, but you kept walking further and further down that path. As I said, I never wanted to go this far," Charles explained, looking a bit agonized.

"I noticed upon our meeting on that island that your desire for power is incredibly strong. I sometimes wonder if that desire is born from your ambitious personality or if it is born from the instinct of that body of yours," Charles added.

"You bastard! Who do you think I have been doing that for?! Do you really think I've been doing all that for myself?!" Anna's gorgeous figure cracked open, and a colossal tentacled monster pervaded the entire room.

Charles kicked the carpet under his feet, revealing a human-shaped magic array.

The cannons in the distant harbor turned and aimed at the Governor's Mansion in the middle of the island.

Just as it seemed like a fierce battle was going to unfold, Sparkle appeared between the two sides. Tears slid down her face as she bit her lower lip, glancing at the two people on her flanks.

"What exactly are you doing… must you really do this?"

The atmosphere had gotten so tense that it seemed like it was about to erupt anytime, but it had frozen over instantly upon Sparkle's arrival. This was Charles' first time seeing his daughter cry.

Anna's swollen figure covered in green flames shrank slowly into her gorgeous, petite form. Charles' brows were furrowed tightly as he walked up to Sparkle and hugged her gently. He patted her back with one hand to comfort her.

Anna walked over and looked at Charles with a cold gaze. "Hehehe... Fine, it's great that you've decided to make things clear. Since you don't want me to stay here, then I'm not going to stay."

"We're monsters, and there's not even a trace of humanity inside of us. Stay here and go do your own thing, then. Sparkle, let's go. Do you really think that I care about this tiny island of yours?"

Anna turned around to leave. Sparkle wanted to break free, but Charles was holding her in a tight embrace.

"What? You want to stay with him? Do you really think that wastrel cares about you? There was even a time when he wanted to exchange you for some benefits from the Foundation!"

Sparkle's figure vanished from Charles' arms, and she reappeared between the two. Sparkle's expression was pained as she stared alternatingly between her mother and her father. In the end, she came to Anna's side.

"Good… you really are my good daughter," Anna said. Then, she reached into her own abdomen and pulled out a wriggling tentacle.

"Gao Zhiming, do you see this?!" Anna exclaimed, waving the wriggling tentacle before Charles. She then hurled it at the ground and stomped it with her foot, staining the carpet crimson. "Those were the fabricated memories between us!"

"I must've been out of my mind. Why was I bothering myself with a lunatic for so many years? How come I've been so accommodating to you? Even transforming into a human just to accommodate you?"

Anna's figure split open once again, and her swollen, deformed figure soon pervaded the Governor's Mansion. Tentacles covered in black scales stretched out through the windows, and Anna's tentacles swept across the mansion, destroying it completely.

Having revealed her true form, Anna glanced at her daughter beside her and said, "We don't need to hide. We are monsters."

Sparkle's figure split open, and her figure transformed into a floating fortress of tentacles. Anna wrapped her tentacles around her daughter and rushed out of Hope Island in broad daylight.

Everyone was horrified to see grotesque and terrifying monsters streaking across the air above Hope Island.

Charles watched blankly as the two distant monsters disappeared into the dark horizon over the pitch-black sea.

A few minutes later, the crew members of the Narwhale rushed forward. Among them, James seemed particularly excited as he exclaimed, "Captain! We did it! The biggest threat to Hope Island is gone!"

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