My esoteric uncle Jules

Chapter 107: Tide Ashes for Tea (6k)

Soon, the "holy water" in the copper bowl stopped churning and became calm.

The bottom of the bowl reflects a deep blue, like a reflection of the seabed.

For a moment, the entire church was filled with the sobbing of a few old believers.

The bishop slumped down on the pulpit, his golden crown askew and sweat dripping down his forehead.

He stared at Lolita, his lips trembling:

"No... Impossible... How could Father God..."

Before he could finish his words, he suddenly covered his chest, as if something was strangling his throat, and his eyes bulged out.

Jules stood beside Lolita and glanced at the crowd coldly.

He noticed the bishop's strange change, but he did not rush to intervene. Instead, he planned to wait and see.

Perhaps, through the changes in the bishop, he could get a glimpse of the process of the Red Cup eroding the Black Skeleton's authority.

The wind outside the church was blowing even harder, the iron door was banging, and the fishy smell mixed with the breath of the sea tide poured in, pungent and cold.

He lowered his head to look at the copper bowl, and the corners of his mouth rose slightly:
"It seems that the truth speaks for itself."

The old believer prostrated himself on the ground, his body trembling:

"Son of God... You are the incarnation of the Father..."

His voice was hoarse, tears mixed with snot flowed down his face, and his piety was almost crazy.

There was a commotion in the crowd. Some people knelt down in agreement, while others retreated to the wall, cursing under their breath:

"Don't be bewitched by this outsider. It must be witchcraft!"

"Get out! Get out of Innsmouth! You stinking outsider are begging for food!"

Although many people were cursing, no one dared to step forward.

It was not only because Lolita really exuded the aura of the Father God, but also because Jules beside her was giving her a cold look.

Even if they were just glanced at by Jules, they couldn't help but shudder.

Lolita huddled behind Ule, clutching the corner of his clothes with her small hands, and said in a weak voice:
"Uncle, why are they doing this? I'm scared..."

Yule rubbed her head and said calmly:

"Don't be afraid, they are just facing reality."

Suddenly, the bishop stood up suddenly, pointed at Jules and shouted:

"You're talking nonsense! Father God has protected us for many years, what the hell is this little girl!"

His voice had become much hoarser, but it didn't seem to be due to excitement, but rather to changes in the structure of his vocal cords.

Seeing this, Yule's eyes narrowed slightly.

Some mysterious changes are taking place in this bishop.

The bishop rushed down from the pulpit and tried to grab the copper bowl, but his hand froze in mid-air - the blue light in the bowl suddenly became dazzling and pierced his eyes like needles.

"Ah!" The bishop screamed, covered his eyes and staggered backward, knocking over the candlestick behind him.

The candle fell, the flame licked his robe, the flames leaped up, and he fell to the ground and rolled around, uttering incoherent curses.

"He attacked the bishop!" someone shouted.

As soon as he finished speaking, a group of people gathered around him. Some of them surrounded Yu Le with bad intentions, while others tried to put out the flames on the bishop anxiously.

"Get out of my way!" Faced with the help of other believers, the bishop just broke free from the crowd and stood up.

Even though the flames burned his skin black, he seemed unaware and just stared at Jules and Lolita fiercely.

New granulation tissue is constantly generated, but is quickly burned and atrophied.

"You said she is the true offspring of the Father God, but I don't believe it! No one here is qualified to judge whether she is the offspring of the Father God!"

He gritted his teeth and looked crazy:

"Only the Father can judge for himself!"

A strange gurgling sound came out of the bishop's throat, like the croaking of a frog, and it was so muffled that it seemed like a burst bubble.

The church was still noisy, but the bishop's voice echoed clearly in everyone's ears.

Flames leaped on his body, and black smoke mixed with a burnt smell filled the air.

His skin cracked, revealing the green flesh underneath, which squirmed like the tentacles of a sea creature and was swallowed by the flames in the blink of an eye.

Even the most devout believers were stunned when they saw this scene. They took a few steps back with horror in their eyes.

They never imagined that their bishop would become such a weird appearance!
Jules narrowed his eyes and pulled Lolita back a step.

The bishop changed more quickly than he expected.

Using the power of the Black Corpse as a medium, the Law of the Red Cup is distorting the flesh and blood of the bishop in front of him.

He whispered to Lolita:

"Be careful and try to stay close to me."

Lolita nodded, her face tense, and her hands gripping the corner of his clothes even tighter.

Her gaze fell on the bishop, and a hint of doubt flashed in her eyes.

And a hint of appetite.

"He seems to have suddenly become delicious..."

She licked her lips subconsciously.

Yule glanced at Lolita beside him and said helplessly:

"Let's see if I can leave you some edible parts later."

He knew without even looking that what aroused Lolita's appetite must be the Cup Principle attached to the Bishop.

At this moment, the bishop's burnt and tattered robe was dragging on the ground, his hands were twisted into claws, and webbed membranes were faintly growing between his fingers.

Without hesitation, he plunged his claws into the flesh and pulled out a piece of black bone.

Then, he suddenly raised his head, his eyes were cloudy, the corners of his mouth were cracked, revealing his sharp teeth, and he roared:

"Now, let Father God personally judge all this!"

The sound no longer sounded human, but more like a low roar coming from the deep sea.

The pitch-black arm bone began to flash with a dark light, and strange blood threads crawled out from between the bones, soon covering the entire arm bone that had just been removed.

Then the bishop placed his arm bone in front of him and kowtowed vigorously.

The forehead hit the ground with a dull sound.

The skull was broken, but what flowed out was not bright red blood, but some asphalt-like liquid.

The air in the church suddenly became much heavier. The asphalt liquid dripping from the bishop's forehead fell to the ground, making a sizzling sound, as if it was corroding the floor.

The pitch-black arm bone began to tremble, but Yule could see that it was not the arm bone itself that was moving, but the blood vessels crawling on it that were moving it!
The flames gradually died out on the bishop's body, leaving behind a patch of charred skin, but the granulations were still wriggling, moving in and out like a living thing.

At the same time, the same asphalt-like liquid began to seep out from the cracks in the church's stone dome, falling like raindrops.

A believer reached out to catch a few drops, his lips trembling:
“Holy water is falling from heaven…God the Father has appeared!”

But they soon discovered a horrifying fact - their skin, where the "holy water" had dripped, began to undergo some incomprehensible and horrific changes.

The once elastic skin begins to soften, become slippery, and even grow scales.

Jules simply stared at the bishop, who had undergone a terrible change, and nodded thoughtfully.

Although the bishop's previous way of praying seemed strange, it could indeed be directed at the Black Skeleton or the Wave.

But what was manifested was the result of being distorted by the power of both the cup and the black skeleton.

"It seems that the erosion of Black Skeleton's authority has subtly altered the direction of the ritual, thus distorting the faith."

After realizing this, Jules's eyes gradually became cold.

Now that the principle has been figured out, there is no need to save the monster in front of us.

Drops of "holy water" fell on Lolita's body, causing her to scream.

"It's burning me!"

At this moment, the bishop's face, which no longer resembled a human, laughed wildly:
"Haha...as expected! Father God has already denied your statement, outsider. Pay the price for your arrogance!"

Jules curled his lips and was about to kill the person in front of him when he suddenly felt Lolita tugging at the corner of his clothes again.

"Uncle, I want to eat that piece of bone." She whispered, pointing to the black bone covered with blood.

"Do you want to eat..." Yule turned his head and looked at the monstrous bishop. He pondered for a while and said:
"it is good."

After saying this, he suddenly jumped up and knocked the bishop to the ground at a speed that even the bishop could not react to. The blade made of blood nailed his palms to the ground.

Then, he said in a relaxed tone:

"Eat."

The bloodstains on the bones were caused by the ritual. He was not sure whether killing the bishop, the host of the ritual, would directly interrupt the ritual and cause the bloodstains to disappear.

To be on the safe side, it is better to control the bishop directly.

Since this ritual symbolizes the red cup and the black skeleton, Lolita, as the daughter of the waves, may have some other effect by eating this thing.

No believer dared to step forward. They all huddled in the corner, watching all this in fear.

The church was dead silent, with only the hissing sound of dripping asphalt liquid.

The bishop was nailed to the ground, and he struggled to raise his hands, but they were held down by Jules' bloody knife.

Green blood oozed from his palm, mixing with the black liquid on the ground, emitting a pungent stench.

His face was distorted beyond recognition, his eyes were bulging, and he let out a vague roar.

Lolita stood aside, carefully approaching the dark arm bone.

The blood vessels on the bones were still wriggling, entwined like living things, faintly emitting a dark red light.

She frowned, hesitated for a moment, then reached out and touched it gently.

Seeing that there was no abnormality, she felt relieved.

Then she picked up the arm bone, held it in her hand and looked at it, as if she was still hesitating about something.

Jules saw that Lolita's little face was tightly wrinkled, but she still opened her mouth and bit it.

The bone cracked with a crisp sound, and a thick black liquid oozed out, mixing with the blood inside to turn it black and red.

She chewed a few times, her brows gradually relaxed, revealing a satisfied expression:

"Hmm... a little sweet."

Yule stared at her, his mouth twitching, but he said nothing.

The black liquid in the church was still spreading, and the "holy water" dripping from the dome hit the ground, splashing water.

Soon, having tasted the sweetness, Lolita exerted her amazing biting strength and finished chewing the hard arm bone in just a few bites.

Every time she took a bite, the bishop, who was nailed to the ground, would struggle violently, but to no avail.

He watched Lolita chew the black bone till the end.

When Lolita completely gnawed off the arm bone, his body trembled violently, his skin quickly became shriveled, and the granulation tissue atrophied, as if all the water had been drained away, leaving only a charred shell.

And Jules also clearly felt that after Lolita had gnawed the arm bone clean, a sense of anger seemed to be coming from the basement.

He raised his eyebrows, remembering that there seemed to be another part there.

Maybe, I can give it to Lolita?

"Uncle, is he dead?"

At this moment, Lolita was still chewing a piece of bone in her mouth and asked him vaguely.

"Dead," Jules answered briefly, turned around and pulled her up, "Let's go, let's go downstairs and take a look." Amidst everyone's respectful and fearful gazes, he easily found the basement hidden by the ritual and entered it.

Soon, the familiar altar appeared before his eyes, on which was enshrined a piece of bones that Jules was familiar with.

In addition, there were several deep divers squatting in the corner and muttering something.

Before they could react, they were killed by Jules, and blood was all over the ground.

"Come, Lolita, look at this bone." He took Lolita to the altar.

He almost forgot the information about this bone. He only remembered that it could be used as a ritual medium to communicate with the "Black Skeleton".

At this moment, the real object reappeared before his eyes, and he finally saw its information again.

【Broken Black Skeleton】

[Quality: Fifth-level rare item]

[Effect: The residue left after the deterioration of the tide can be used as a medium to communicate with the "Black Skeleton" of the Sichen during rituals.]

[Introduction: Scholars believe that the Red Cup once drank the Hour of the Waves and gave its remains to the sea. One day, that Hour will return to the world—but not in the form it desired, and the Insatiable will be pleased to see this happen.]

The air in the basement was damp and cold.

On the altar, the dark skeleton had a dark luster on its surface, which seemed to arouse fear in people's hearts.

But Lolita seemed unaffected, she just tilted her head and said:

"It looks like it's edible... Is it for me?"

Jules smiled:

"Eat."

He brought Lolita down just to try to see if he could chew this "hard bone".

If she could chew it, it would definitely be of great benefit to Lolita. After all, it was a power of almost the same origin, and it was not impossible to bring her directly to the second or even third level.

Moreover, perhaps this could weaken the Black Skeleton's influence on the outside world.

Lolita stared at the broken black corpse, her hands clenched, and a hint of anticipation flashed in her eyes.

She leaned forward, grabbed the bone, and without hesitation, opened her mouth and bit it.

"Crack!" The teeth hit the bones, making a crisp sound.

Her little face suddenly wrinkled into a ball, she took a step back, covered her mouth and muttered:
"It's so hard, it hurts my teeth."

Yule stood aside, watching with raised eyebrows, without saying a word, just lost in thought.

Perhaps it was because the power level was too high? After all, Lolita was only at the first level at the moment, and she was facing a fifth-level wonder.

Lolita didn't give up and tried a few more times. Each time she bit her teeth until they ached, but not even a tooth mark was left on the bone.

She glared at the black bone angrily and patted it with her little hands, as if venting her dissatisfaction.

Suddenly, her eyes lit up, she squatted down, picked up a piece of gravel from the ground, held it in her hand, and smashed it hard on the bone.

"Boom-"

What stunned Lolita was that the bones didn't move at all, but the stone cracked.

She was stunned for a moment, then simply changed her method. She picked up the bone and rubbed the edge of the bone hard on the altar.

After grinding for a long time, some fine bone powder fell and scattered on the steps of the altar.

"Uncle, I got it!"

She cried out in excitement, carefully dipped her finger into the bone meal, and brought it to her nose to smell it.

"Even though I can't smell it, it should taste delicious when soaked in water!"

Seeing this, Jules scratched his head.

Making tea from ashes? It seems that it's not impossible... Anyway, any way to get rid of this bone is a good way.

"Then let's go first and take this bone with you." He said lightly.

……

Jules was not interested in recruiting these believers in the Sixth History Fragment, so he just said a few words to send them away and went straight back to the Steam Church.

After returning to the Steam Church, the strong smell of blood on him and Lolita startled Allen's father who had just returned:
"What have you been doing?!"

Jules glanced at him, a smile on his face:
"From now on, there will probably be no more Dagon cults—or at least not like there are now."

After saying that, he took Lolita back to the room, leaving Allen's father alone.

"Dad, you're not leaving, are you? Mom said you were going back to pack your bags..." Suddenly, the boy's slightly immature voice sounded behind him.

Allen's father was stunned for a moment, turned around, frowned and scolded:
"What nonsense is your mother talking to you about again! The church is short-staffed, and I have to go back to help. I won't leave, don't worry."

"Oh..." Alan's expression didn't change after being scolded by his father. He just asked:

"Dad, I can come to the church and help out. I'm old enough to work."

Hearing this, Allen's father hesitated to speak.

In the end, I just sighed.

"Good boy, remember, if the Steam Church is still there, this place will still be a safe place."

"If you have nowhere to go in the future, go to the Steam Church. The priest there will take you in."

Allen nodded somewhat confusedly, and then asked:

"So how can I help now?"

"...Come with me, I'll introduce you to some people."

……

At this time in the church, Jules and Lolita were thinking about making tea with Langlang's ashes.

Discovering that the church's fresh water reserves were running low, he simply poured the seawater he had recently pumped into the steam church's machine and began distilling.

I have to say that there are still many commendable aspects of this world's industry.

If it weren't for the power of the Casting Principle, it would be hard to imagine that this head-sized machine could complete operations such as distillation and purification, causing the sea water to undergo seemingly ordinary but actually great changes.

The only drawback is that this thing seems to be very expensive! Ordinary people can't afford it at all, and even nobles have to think twice before using it.

Fortunately, this was a steam-powered church that hadn't been abandoned yet, allowing him to feel a touch of industrial warmth...

Seeing the machine in front of him gradually stop running, he smiled and shook his head, took out the distilled water and poured it into the cup.

"Lolita, the fresh water is ready... Also, stop sharpening, you're almost wearing out the grindstone."

Hearing this, Lolita, who was concentrating on grinding bone powder not far away, smiled awkwardly and stopped what she was doing.

"If you want to soak it in water, you have to get more!"

At this moment, the small cup next to her was filled with a layer of ashes as thick as a fingernail, which was black and looked like coal ash.

She excitedly poured the ashes into the cup little by little.

The ashes dissolved immediately when put into water, and soon, a light black mist gradually appeared on the surface of the fresh water, like spreading ink.

She raised her head and took a sip, smacked her lips, and frowned.
"It's a little bitter, a little astringent, but also kind of delicious, a weird feeling."

"Are you feeling well?" This is what Jules was most concerned about.

"No, after drinking it, I feel a little stronger!" Lolita's eyes brightened.

"That's a good thing, so drink more."

Lolita nodded her head like a chick pecking at rice.

Then, he picked up the almost worn-out whetstone from the corner and began to rub the bone meal on it with a grunt.

Jules looked at this scene and felt a little amused and helpless.

How could the process of the Son of the Wave regaining power be so funny?
Suddenly, there were footsteps outside, followed by a knock on the door.

"Are you in there, sir?"

"I'm here. What can I do for you?" Jules could tell it was the voice of Allen's father.

But he also heard another wave of blood beside Alan's father.

"My child wants to come to the church to help, and I'd like to introduce him to you."

Hearing this, Yule was slightly stunned.

So the second person to come was Alan?

He opened the door and glanced around.

Sure enough, it was Alan!
But Alan at this moment was quite different from the slick and weathered look in his memory. His immaturity could be seen just from his face.

"God, hello, Father." Allen stood behind his father a little uncomfortably, looking up and glancing at Jules from time to time.

Jules nodded, with a slight smile on his face.

"come in."

After the two entered the room, Allen's father glanced inside the room and frowned.

"This smell... Can I ask what you are doing?"

"Making tea." Jules answered casually and motioned Lolita to stop.

She put down the bone, wiped the sweat from her forehead, and looked at the two of them.

When she saw Allen, she uttered a soft exclamation:
"Huh? Are you the big brother? Why are you here too?"

Allen was puzzled by the question and was stunned for a moment before saying:
"Have we... met before?"

Jules quickly tried to smooth things over, laughing and saying:

"My daughter, who just arrived not long ago, is quite face-blind and often mistakes people for her. Please be understanding."

As he spoke, he gave Lolita a look, signaling her not to talk too much, and the latter immediately understood.

"Tea?" Alan's father looked at the dark glass of water on the table with some suspicion.

“Is this really drinkable?”

He obviously sensed the scent emitted by the bone powder.

However, what is honey to me may be poison to others. Lolita obviously didn't care about it at all. She gulped down another cup and smacked her lips at the same time:
“It’s still a bit bitter.”

After she finished speaking, her face showed a bitter expression and her whole body trembled a few times.

However, the aura faintly emanating from her became stronger.

Alan's father was stunned and moved his lips but didn't ask.

Allen widened his eyes and muttered softly:
"Amazing……"

He could feel that at that moment, the little girl in front of him, who was younger than him, exuded an aura more powerful than her father.

Jules glanced at him and dismissed him casually:
"If you want to help, start by cleaning. There's a lot of dust in the church, get moving."

Alan nodded quickly, as if relieved.

Alan's father patted him on the shoulder and whispered:

"Work hard, don't be lazy."

After the two men left, Jules slowly stood up, walked to the window and looked in the direction of Devil's Reef.

"Lolita, stop drinking. We still have things to do."

"doing what?"

"Go to Devil's Reef and see a city under the sea."

(End of this chapter)