Chapter 15: Uses |
In this era, any precious material was either related to the Great Earth, which was incredibly difficult to return to, or to the Floating Whales.
The vast majority of a Floating Whale''s exterior was encased in a thick layer of soil and rock, forming the "surface."
Very little of its actual body was exposed.
Floating Whales were a divine blessing from the Gods. Coupled with the fact that everyone had to live on their backs, any act of harming a Floating Whale was a strict taboo.
This applied to most materials related to the Floating Whales, such as whale oil, whale blood, whale bone, and whalehide.
Among these, although whalehide was called "hide," it was actually a somewhat renewable mineral.
After digging through the surface, one could find the highly active skin of the whale.
This skin possessed immense toughness; it required a long period of excavation just to carve out a small piece.
Moreover, because it was skin, it only needed some time to regenerate.
Whalehide ore held tremendous value. A single piece the size of a fist was enough to drive people into a frenzy.
When Nels was in Sky Spring City, he had seen a destitute noble auction off a legally obtained piece of whalehide ore slightly larger than a fist. The massive wealth he acquired from it was enough to sustain his noble family''s lavish expenses for several months.
Of course, the main reason that piece of whalehide ore was so expensive was its legality.
It could be traded openly in the light of day.
"Opper''s privately mined whalehide ore probably isn''t worth quite as much, but it definitely wouldn''t be cheap either," Nemus estimated, forming a fairly concrete understanding of Opper''s financial power.
The key point was that if Opper possessed whalehide ore, it was highly likely he also owned quite a few items crafted from it.
Whalehide ore could be melted down and used as an auxiliary material in many items. It was widely utilized in supernatural practices like alchemy and medicine refining.
Drawing the melted whalehide ore into threads and weaving them into cloth armor created the most highly sought-after defensive gear for Transcendents who practiced Meditation Techniques.
Whalehide cloth armor boasted incredible toughness, offering extremely high resistance against slashing attacks from swords and blades.
At the same time, it served as an excellent spellcasting medium with exceptional malleability.
''Opper''s robe...'' Nemus recalled the long robe Opper constantly wore, which was entirely unsuited for the village environment. ''Could it be that Opper is also a spellcaster?''
Aside from that, melted whalehide ore could also be used for papermaking.
Whalehide paper was a top-tier medium for spell scrolls, making it incredibly valuable.
''Opper is not a simple man!'' Nemus could only make a rough judgment.
Physical reality was not a game; it did not possess clear leveling systems or explicit level characteristics.
If it were physical professions like warriors or knights practicing Breathing Techniques, it would be relatively easy to tell. The vitality brought by a strong physical body was quite easy to sense and identify.
But for spellcasting professions like mages or priests cultivating Meditation Techniques, unless they actively cast spells or one threw an investigative spell at them, it was very difficult to ascertain their true rank.
Just like the old pastor—before he revealed his power, no one knew he was an Iron Rank.
The same applied to Opper. Beneath that seemingly obese physique of his, no one could directly confirm whether his spiritual power had already surpassed the Black Iron Rank.
''There are pros and cons. The stronger Opper is, the more limited the information the Church investigators will obtain, reducing the chances of me being implicated.''
''But at the same time, if I want to intervene and clear my own name, it will become increasingly troublesome.''
Nemus had not forgotten that Nels still had some unresolved causality attached to him.
The Dartmenerly family banishing him to this place did not mean they had completely ignored him; rather, they simply had not found an opportunity to deal a lethal blow. Nels had used his own strength to single-handedly turn the Dartmenerly family into the laughingstock of Sky Spring City. If not for his status as a Holy Knight of the Church, he would have been executed under family law long ago.
Pushing him out to a small village was just a way to keep him out of sight and out of mind. The moment Nels made a mistake and was caught, the Dartmenerly family would absolutely use it as an excuse to strike.
"Let us sign a contract, Watchman!" Nemus shifted his thoughts and looked at the Watchman, narrowing his eyes as he presented his solution.
The Watchman braced himself, knowing the moment that would decide his and his daughter''s fate had arrived.
"I only need my daughter''s safety guaranteed!" the Watchman declared straightforwardly, drawing his bottom line.
He was well aware of the greedy nature of demons. Nemus appeared to be a Holy Knight, but there was a high probability he was closely tied to a demon.
And a Demonic Contract was never a tool meant to protect those who traded with them; it was merely a sharp weapon used by demons to squeeze even more benefits out of their targets.
Just like right now.
Given their relationship, they were basically mortal enemies.
If let go, the Watchman would absolutely spread information about Nemus, thereby destroying the foundation of Nemus''s interests.
Therefore, without a Demonic Contract, the only thing Nemus could do was kill him.
But doing so would feel like a waste to Nemus.
Despite the Watchman being so easily dealt with by Nemus, in terms of sheer combat power, he was considered strong among the Black Iron Rank.
Furthermore, the information he provided regarding controllable Whale Transformation might not be entirely reliable. Nemus would likely need to keep him around to repeatedly verify it later.
Hence, letting him live and controlling him with a Demonic Contract was the optimal solution to maximize his gains.
The Watchman roughly understood this point, so he intended to use his own value to do everything he could to protect his daughter.
Ever since his theft of the whalehide ore led to the destruction of their family and triggered his daughter''s Whale Transformation Sickness, this was what he owed her!
"Of course!" Nemus agreed without hesitation.
With the snap of his fingers, a Demonic Contract materialized in front of the Watchman.
[Contracting Parties: Party A — Nels Dartmenerly; Party B — Watchman (Blood Designation)]
[Clause One: Party A, Nels Dartmenerly, promises to protect the life and safety of Leah (target explicitly designated as a Whale Person), will provide her with resources such as food and water, and will make every effort to ensure Leah''s Whale Transformation.]
[Clause Two: Party B, the Watchman, must unconditionally execute all orders issued by Party A, including combat, reconnaissance, silence, and self-destruction.]
[Clause Three: Party A permits Party B to visit Leah once a month and participate in the research of the Whale Transformation Sickness. The research process may inflict non-permanent damage on Leah.]
[Clause Four: Party B shall not reveal any intelligence or information related to Nels through language, writing, actions, hints, or any other methods.]
[Clause Five: This contract shall be terminated in the event of force majeure (such as Leah dying from the Whale Transformation Sickness, or being accidentally discovered and killed by the Church, etc.).]
This was a standard Demonic Contract. It addressed the demands of both Party A and Party B, with the final clause pertaining to the contract itself.
Because only a contract that roughly adhered to the equivalence of rights and responsibilities could maintain its efficacy to the greatest extent.
"Sign it. You have no choice!" Nemus declared, staring down the Watchman.
His killing intent became palpable at that moment. There was no room for bargaining; if the Watchman refused, Nemus would kill him on the spot.