At this moment, standing at the bow of the Flame Rose, Byron, who was staring intently at a large dark shadow under the sea, felt none of the despair and helplessness he had experienced last time.
When it exerted its pull, his mind only felt a slight dizziness before immediately regaining consciousness.
The thought of being controlled by the ’Calamity’s’ dream-launched attack to commit suicide or suffer a severe mental blow was far from his mind.
Instead, he felt a profound sense of security deep within his heart.
It was as if he had already anchored his ship in a Sheltered Harbor before the storm arrived, having something to rely on.
Turning to look at the other ordinary pirates beside him, he found that the worst among them merely had their heads droop for a moment, as if they had accidentally dozed off. In just a few short breaths, they had all come back to their senses.
Although he couldn’t see the Bayfolk residential area far away, the rapid calming of the commotion suggested that the civilians were probably fine as well.
It really blocked it!
Even though Byron was quite confident, it was not until he confirmed the results before him that he finally let out a long sigh of relief.
Now that the first protective charm had taken effect, there was no need to bother with the second charm, Red Beard, who was close to death’s door, nor the third: using the entry ’Historical Reviser’ to extract Sacred Relics.
At that moment, he suddenly thought of something.
He quickly sank into a deep meditative state, returning to his own lighthouse in the Spiritual World.
The huge lighthouse nearby, which had been dragged down into the black sea last time, now only had a solitary base left, proving that the Child Guardian had once existed.
Behind Byron lay the vast archipelago and continent composed of countless islands, still enveloped by the Silver Law. It embraced a vast expanse of clear water, much like the Mediterranean.
In the water, countless dense points of light represented the multitude of ordinary individuals within the entire human race who had not achieved spiritual sublimation.
A month ago, Byron had transcended the mundane from there.
On the coastlines to his left and right were lighthouses scattered like stars. Their beams illuminated the nearby dark seas.
Byron clearly saw from here that shadows resembling patches of seaweed suddenly surged from the depths, tightly ensnaring countless lighthouses, towers, and even islands, including his own lighthouse.
These belonged to the Bay Citizens Pirates, civilians, all pirate groups in the North Sea, Bounty Hunters, slaves from all over, black market merchants large and small, legal and illicit trading companies, all kinds of organizations, spies from multiple nations, Black Gloves...
And most importantly, the Valhalla Hall of Valor, which held the origins and ultimate destination of the Bayfolk, as well as perhaps the thickest ’Anchor’ in the world!
It seemed to be just a small Iron Anchor Bay. But this place was the center of the Old Continent’s black market trade, home to a plethora of diverse groups, more than enough in number and variety.
Even saying it represented the entire gray area of the North Sea region wouldn’t be an exaggeration.
When everyone is marked, it is as if no one is marked.
The ’Calamity,’ not knowing what to do, dared to try and swallow the entire island anchoring Valhalla, but inadvertently bit off more than it could chew.
Now Byron was no longer alone.
Before him, the dark shadow made another charging pull.
A second pull! It didn’t budge.
Another pull! Still, it didn’t move.
It couldn’t be moved, not at all.
The ’Calamity’ entirely lacked the effortless, unstoppable force it had displayed when annihilating the Lancaster Family and killing Dennis, the Child Guardian.
At this point, Byron truly let the anxiety in his heart settle.
The scene before him also confirmed one of his speculations.
From my perspective, the fundamental foundation of the Silver Law is essentially the ’collective subconscious’ of the entire human race. This world is permeated everywhere by wild, chaotic Source Tides (Chapter 17) filled with all sorts of unknown dangers, pouring in from the Spiritual World. Beyond the known world, who knows how many dark creatures, Fallen Ones, Evil Spirits, and utterly strange Bizarre entities are hidden. It is unknown whether the Silver Law was created by the Creator. Regardless, it connects the Spirituality of all humanity throughout the ages, forming a mental bulwark protecting the psyche of the entire human race.
Furthermore, every collective within humanity—religions, states, nations, guilds, clubs—automatically coalesces to form a ’local area network.’ In the Spiritual World, they form an archipelago or a landmass. Then, larger networks encompass smaller ones, striving to stabilize every individual in this dangerous world.
Lancaster might already be powerful enough. However, not only are they bound by the principle that ’the king is under the law,’ preventing them from forcibly uniting the citizens of Hightins, but the York Family has also divided some of the power. Add to that my uncle’s worrying mental state and his tenuous connection to the Magna Carta; when afflicted, his power was at most equivalent to that of a top-tier Great Noble family. Compared to the entirety of Iron Anchor Bay, it’s simply no match.
Having witnessed the ’Calamity’s’ modus operandi in the Spiritual World, Byron also gained a brand-new understanding of that bizarre church decree.
——All believers could only select a name for their children from the 65 male and 48 female names in the Book of Creation, and were strictly forbidden to choose any others.
Every seemingly absurd regulation must have an even more absurd reason behind it.
This indicated that the church’s higher echelons had been aware of this issue for a long time, and the whole society was seeking ways to reinforce this collective concept.
After all, all those who share the same name form another kind of collective.
If an evil spirit only possessed a single name, it couldn’t successfully curse any individual. It’s like how the deadliest poison, if dripped into the ocean, wouldn’t kill a single tiny shrimp.
Perhaps that entity, existing beyond normal parameters, was still invincible, and individual humans remained remarkably insignificant before it. Yet, by finding a method to counter it from past experiences, Byron saw the potential to conquer the unknown and was no longer filled with trepidation.
Soon, his consciousness returned to the real world.
He found that the unknown existence had not backed down, refusing to let go even when it had bitten off more than it could chew. It seemed to completely lack the self-awareness and normal consciousness of a living being, acting solely on instinct.
"Your Highness, gentlemen, I believe you should take a look at this."
The Third Order Navigator spoke up again, lifting the Whale Oil Lantern in his hand and casting a warm light in front of everyone.
The light revealed what lay beyond the Maze Lock.
"Is that... the Strait Fleet?"
Amidst the towering waves, they saw a huge Second-class Battleship leading the charge. It headed towards Iron Anchor Bay in an involuntary posture, with dozens of large and small Warships trailing behind.
If they activated Spirit Vision, they would see that the entire fleet seemed to have activated Iron Chain Binding, linked by the Power of Law into one entity.
Forces always act upon each other.
The entity they had brought with them, while wrestling with Iron Anchor Bay, ended up being caught itself. Instead of dragging the Bayfolk collectively into a dream to be manipulated at will, this very fleet was forcefully dragged over.
As time gradually progressed, the fleet even came into range of... the coastal defense Fortress Cannons!
Violet’s sapphire-like eyes suddenly ignited with flames, and she raised her right hand bearing the Seal Ring of Whale Bone.
Her command resounded through the harbor, clear yet tinged with a boundless scent of blood,
"In my capacity as acting Military Governor, I order: Iron Anchor Bay is now in a state of wartime readiness, under temporary control! No one is permitted to leave their homes. Non-combatant pirates are not allowed to disembark, nor leave their moorings. All Iron Anchor Bay combat personnel, take to your respective posts! All Fortress Cannon crews are granted Level Three clearance to see through the mists and assess the enemy situation. Our guests have arrived—greet them well!"
With the Maze Lock now connected to the Pirate Code, and its permissions not having been stolen by a traitor, they had nothing to fear from a direct naval attack.
Soon, the hundreds of Fortress Cannons arranged outside the harbor were adjusted to the proper angles, aiming at the Strait Fleet outside the harbor.
"Fire! Flatten them for me!"
Finally able to vent her frustration, Violet shot her hand down with force.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Countless trails of fire, like angry dragons, wove into a tight web of flames, completely enveloping the closely massed Strait Fleet, which hadn’t even had time to form a line of battle.
The advantages of coastal defense Fortress Cannons over naval guns and Warships were far too great.
Even the most confined land offered far more operational space than a Warship, allowing for the confident use of Blazing Bombs without fear of accidental sympathetic detonations.
Coastal gun emplacements presented targets only one-thousandth the size of a Warship, making them extremely difficult for even an Artillery Expert to hit.
The stable ground, free from the sea’s undulations, greatly enhanced the accuracy of the Fortress Cannons.
Most importantly, while the main guns of a Second-class Battleship were merely 32-pounders, Iron Anchor Bay’s largest Fortress Cannons were an astounding 68-pounders.
That thing could truly be deadly!