"So you’re saying you found what looked like an ancient sarcophagus from the Land Era at sea. You thought it was treasure, but when you opened it, you found a perfectly preserved mummy inside?

"You wanted to sell it... no, donate it to one of the Twelve Stars’ research institutes, but you ended up afflicted by its ’curse’?"

Shi Ming frowned.

He hadn’t wanted to get involved, but the location where the *Ganges* found the mummy was, as luck would have it, right near his destination: the sunken Pyramid.

’This is too strange. I should probably get to the bottom of this.’

’Besides, I might be able to get some good intel out of it.’

Eliza’s face was etched with worry.

She hadn’t been afflicted by the "curse," but their ship’s pillar of strength, the captain of the *Ganges*, had become one of the victims.

"That’s right, Mr. Stone. That’s why we’re asking for your help. You’re a powerful Awakened, and we were hoping you could lend the *Ganges* a hand. We’re willing to offer generous compensation."

"I’m just an ordinary A-rank Awakened, not a doctor. I have no way of breaking a curse like this."

Faced with Eliza’s plea, Shi Ming could only say he was powerless to help.

’Out on the Endless Ocean, things like curses and unknown, bizarre powers... even if they aren’t truly mythological forces, they could be tied to some conspiracy, virus, special ability, or S-rank skill...’

’I can’t underestimate these powers.’

"No, Mr. Stone," Eliza said. "We just want to trade for some Dome Crystals."

"Dome Crystals?"

Shi Ming was confused.

"Dome Crystals can cure illnesses?"

"They can."

Shi Ming was taken aback for a moment. ’Mummies are ancient artifacts. Why would Dome Crystals from the Wandering Era be used to treat an ailment caused by one?’

Eliza continued to explain.

"After it happened, we had no choice but to call the *Pharaoh* for help. The *Pharaoh*’s current captain, Ptolemy, said it’s a curse from Horus, the God of Vengeance. He hates being disturbed from his slumber and casts this curse upon transgressors. As a result, a set of scales appears on the body of the cursed person."

"Scales?"

It seemed to jog a memory for Shi Ming.

"On the left side of the scales, over the heart, is a gloomy-looking feather. On the right side is a mark shaped like a scale weight. Only the power of a Dome Crystal can suppress the dark energy over the heart. At first, just soaking in seawater was enough to relieve it, but now, it consumes one Dome Crystal every hour. If it’s not suppressed in time, the cursed person will die."

Beside her, Singer, the captain of the *Ganges*, lifted his shirt.

Shi Ming was surprised to see that on Singer’s left and right chest, there was indeed a set of "scales" formed from dark energy.

The black energy on the left looked very much like a feather.

The black energy on the right resembled a scale weight.

With a pained expression, Singer took the last Dome Crystal they had on the *Ganges* and brought it to the right side of the scales. The crystal slowly melted, actually merging into the mark. The black energy over his heart on the left side diminished significantly.

This couldn’t help but remind Shi Ming of a legend from the Land of the Pharaohs.

After a person dies, their soul is led by Anubis to the Netherworld. There, the Nether God places the person’s heart on a set of scales. If the heart weighs more than the feather on the left side, it means the person committed many evil deeds, and their soul will be devoured by a demon of the Netherworld, never to be reincarnated.

’So legends are becoming reality now, are they?’

"What about the mummy?"

"We were afraid we had disturbed a god, so we returned it to the sea."

Shi Ming was completely floored. ’You just threw it back in before you even figured out what was going on?’

He frowned, looking at the black energy on Captain Singer’s body, and blinked.

’The curse of Horus, the God of Vengeance?’

’I don’t buy it.’

’The Twelve Titans have all fallen. This is an age without gods. I refuse to believe a mythical god from the Land of the Pharaohs like Horus could survive for so long and still be causing trouble. Someone has to be pulling the strings.’

’Eye of Intelligence, acquire intel.’

[BEEP... BEEP...]

[Compiling intelligence...]

[Searching... Confirming host’s detailed coordinates... Search successful. Summarizing intelligence... Report generated.]

[S-rank Skill: Nether Snake Feather]

[Ranked #97 on the S-rank Skill Leaderboard.]

’Just as I thought. A god’s curse?’

’It’s just an S-rank skill! And one ranked as low as 97th, at that.’

[Curse-type Skill: The power of the Nether Snake Feather can be attached to an external object. Anyone who touches it will be infected with the Mark of the Netherworld Serpent. When the mark’s power is triggered, the infected will suffer immense pain as dark energy appears on their body. Only the power of Dome Crystals or Pure Dome Crystals can alleviate the pain. However, this relief is merely drinking poison to quench thirst, as the infected’s heart will gradually begin to crystallize.]

[After the infected survives for 7 days, their heart will transform into a "Nether Serpent’s Heart."]

[The user of the Nether Snake Feather skill can consume a Nether Serpent’s Heart to increase the skill’s power, evolving and upgrading it. The greater the physical strength of the host, the higher the quality of the resulting Nether Serpent’s Heart.]

[...]

[Methods to dispel the Nether Snake Feather:]

[1. Slowly eliminate the corrosion with power of an equivalent rank.]

[2. Kill the skill user, and the Nether Snake Feather will naturally dissipate.]

...

’So it’s an Awakened causing trouble after all.’

S-rank skills came in all sorts of strange and varied types. There were defensive skills, offensive skills, and also some insidious curse-type skills.

Clearly, the Nether Snake Feather was such a skill. It was similar to the "Gu-cultivation" Shi Ming had read about in literature from his past life: using a human body as a vessel to cultivate something for a master, who would then consume the final product to gain power.

’I wonder which faction the Awakened behind this belongs to.’

"Yes, I can trade you some Dome Crystals, but this method of suppression clearly only treats the symptoms, not the root cause."

"It’s like drinking poison to quench your thirst. You have to find the source of the problem and solve it there."

Shi Ming felt it was necessary to give his clients a warning. After all, they had just traded quite a few good items to get thirty Dome Crystals from him.

"We’ve been invited by Ptolemy to head to the *Pharaoh* to seek aid. Apparently, he has a powerful S-rank Awakened under his command who can help us dispel the curse within 7 days."

???

’7 days?’

’I wonder if that Awakened’s skill happens to be called Nether Snake Feather?’

’In 7 days, I’m afraid the curse won’t be dispelled, but the Nether Serpent’s Heart will be fully cultivated.’

’Your captain will have become someone else’s food!’

"Every gift in the Wandering Era comes with a price tag. And some prices aren’t displayed on the board."

Shi Ming didn’t say more, only offering a cryptic warning. It was just a guess on his part. Pointing out a problem without being able to solve it would only escalate the conflict and cause unnecessary disputes. Therefore, he could only subtly hint for the people of the *Ganges* to be on their guard.

’Besides, maybe I’m just overthinking it. What if the S-rank Awakened on the *Pharaoh* really can help them dispel the curse?’

"Where is the *Pharaoh* located now?"

"30 degrees east longitude, 30 degrees north latitude."

The Land of the Pharaohs wasn’t large. It was right on his way, a place he had to pass through to explore the sunken Pyramid.

’But there’s no need to stir up trouble.’

"Brother Stone, would you be willing to go with us?"

"Ptolemy is also holding a seven-day Sea Beast Feast. He’s going to be selling off the blood and remains of an S-rank sea beast that has no awakening power. It can no longer be used to Awaken someone, but it has all sorts of other major uses."

Oh?

Shi Ming’s interest was piqued.

Upgrading a General-class Drifting Ship required the blood of different S-rank sea beasts. At the beginning, only one type was needed, but later on, more and more would surely be required.

’I should stock up on some, just in case I find myself in a tight spot later when I need it.’