Chapter 3550: Medusa (16)
Chapter 3550: Medusa (16)
Ning Shu was spouting nonsense with a straight face. She didn’t really expect to fool Poseidon. If he believed her, fine. If not, so be it.
They said Poseidon was brawny but simple-minded, though she didn’t know just how simple he could be.
Having lived this long, he couldn’t be that much of a fool.
Poseidon, half-believing her, raised his trident and waved it toward the sea. The entire ocean roared, sending up terrifying hurricanes and waves.
Ning Shu spread her hands. “See? Can’t you control the ocean now? My previous display was just a parlor trick.”
Poseidon: …
He felt like something was off.
He calmed down, and the tsunami and hurricane slowly subsided.
Then he waved the trident again. The waves surged once more, each higher than the last.
Poseidon tested it back and forth, playing with the sea until it was practically broken.
The sirens felt like they were going to puke.
While testing, he kept his eye on Ning Shu. She smiled and said, “See? You’re still the sea god. Mine was just a temporary trick—a three-second act to look cool.”
Poseidon narrowed his eyes. “Three seconds isn’t bad. That’s enough time to turn the tide of a battle.
“I want that trick,” Poseidon said.
Ning Shu: …
Tsk, and they called him stupid.
“Tell me the technique for divine punishment first,” Ning Shu said. “Then I’ll show you how to write the talisman.”
“Give me back my heart first,” Poseidon countered.
“I have to give you your heart and teach you the talisman? I’m already at a disadvantage. What if you take the heart and run?” Ning Shu wanted to know the difference between Eastern and Western curses.
She knew how to draw curse talismans, but not the divine punishment technique. Only by knowing the principles could she find a way to neutralize them.
“Teach me the trick first, then I’ll teach you divine punishment,” Poseidon said.
Ning Shu rolled her eyes. Using the golden blood on her fingers, she drew a talisman in the air and commanded it to activate.
The talisman drifted toward the sea. Countless droplets of water rose up, coalescing into human forms that began to sing and dance.
“See? I told you it was a trick and you didn’t believe me,” Ning Shu said with a shrug.
“In the far-off East, there are not only gods but also humans who can cultivate. These things were invented by humans,” she blathered.
Poseidon’s expression grew solemn. “Humans can also obtain such power?”
This was not good news for the gods.
“You saw it yourself. These effects come from the power of the talisman; it’s just an illusion. Now you should teach me the divine punishment technique, or I’ll run off with your heart,” Ning Shu threatened, baring her teeth.
“Divine punishment consumes a god’s divine power,” Poseidon said with a dark face.
“Divine power is too broad a term,” Ning Shu said. “What specific kind of power is it?”
Poseidon glanced at her. “It consumes one’s own divine blood and uses faith power to issue the curse.”
“How does it work exactly?”
“Burn a drop of your essence blood and think of the person you want to curse. Divine punishment can only be used on those weaker than yourself. If the target is too powerful, the curse will backfire.”
Ning Shu thought about it. This must be a law of Heaven and earth—an exchange of values.
Divine blood was the source of a god’s power. Consuming a drop to curse someone was a heavy price.
It was an irreversible process unless one’s power far exceeded the target’s.
“Can only divine blood be used to issue a curse?” she asked.
“I told you, only gods can master divine punishment. A human has no right to know such things, let alone punish others. Only gods can do that,” Poseidon said with disdain.
“Interesting.” Ning Shu looked at her blood-stained hands. Seeing a bird fly by in the distance, she suddenly said, “In my name, Medusa, I grant that bird the form of a firebird and bestow it with great power.”
“What are you doing?” Poseidon roared in fury. He watched as blood gushed from his heart and was incinerated. She was using his divine blood to grant power to a common bird!
Divine punishment wasn’t just for punishing. It could also be used for blessings. It was simply a trade.
The unsuspecting bird suddenly felt an immense pain as if its body were being torn apart. It let out piteous cries before transforming into a massive bird engulfed in flames.
The bird: …
What just happened? I’m terrified!
Ning Shu understood what divine punishment was. Whether it was a blessing or a curse, a price had to be paid.
Likewise, to counter a curse, one had to expend more power than the curse itself.
It was a product of equivalent exchange. The price could be one’s lifespan, beauty, or Faith Power. In short, a sacrifice was required.
It wasn’t as good as curse talismans. Talismans were hard to draw and required a lot of effort, but the concept was similar.
Equivalent exchange.
“Now give me back my heart,” Poseidon said. His face looked hideous.
Ning Shu really wanted to find a bottle and squeeze out a whole container of blood to keep for later.
But she didn’t have anything to hold it. After a moment, she used water to form a bottle and squeezed the blood into it.
The golden blood sparkled like literal gold.
After filling a bottle, Ning Shu tossed the heart back to Poseidon.
The heart flew into his chest, and the gaping hole healed instantly.
Poseidon: Arrgh…
He was going to destroy this woman.
Ning Shu flickered away on the dragon’s head and vanished. “Don’t be sad, I’ll come back for you!”
She waved at him. “Sayonara…”
She knew it would be difficult to face the entire pantheon right now. Poseidon had only suffered because he had been careless and looked down on her. The next time they met, he would surely go all out.
Not to mention Zeus, Hades, and all the other gods.
As she flew off, Poseidon was so angry his heart felt like it would explode. Having nothing else to vent his rage on, he reached out to crush the confused firebird circling in the air.
The firebird was scared out of its wits by his divine majesty. It struggled to fly away, its feathers falling to the ground as clumps of flame.
It flew toward Ning Shu, letting out heart-wrenching cries. Perhaps because she had blessed it, Ning Shu could hear its desperate pleas for help even from a great distance.
She stopped, a look of confusion on her face, before turning around and flying back.
The sound was just too piteous, and it kept ringing in her ears.
She had to return. From a distance, she saw the panicked firebird flapping its wings wildly, fleeing in any direction it could.
With Poseidon’s powerful divine majesty behind it, the bird was terrified.
Ning Shu pointed a finger and wrapped the bird in a barrier to shield it from Poseidon’s aura.