On the second day after Diogo Con's death, the Portuguese exploration fleet suspended its voyage. Three sailing ships docked on the nearest coast, and it took two days to erect the last padrão, the explorer's pillar. Next to the stone pillar
, is a shallow mound with a brand new cross erected on it.
Bruno stood in front of the stone pillar and silently read the Portuguese inscription engraved on it.
"...in the 6684th year from the creation of the world, and in the 1485th year since the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ, the most noble, excellent and powerful monarch, King Joao II of Portugal, sent his royal knight Diogo Con, to discover
This land and erect this pillar... We dedicate this rich land to the great Kingdom of Portugal and to the great João II... Please pray for us!”
After finishing reading, Bruno lowered his head and prayed devoutly.
"Dear Captain Diogo, may the Lord bless your soul! ... And may the Virgin bless us!"
Then, with a respectful look, Bruno approached the new leader of the fleet, the middle-aged noble knight, Pero da Costa.
"Praise the Lord! Honored noble knight, Pero da Costa."
"Praise the Lord! Bruno, the new captain."
"Excuse me, how should we arrange tomorrow's voyage?"
Hearing this, the middle-aged aristocrat Old Perot glanced at Bruno lightly and said in a deep voice.
"Witness the Lord! Our fleet is severely damaged, lacks sailors, and lacks supplies. Early tomorrow morning, the fleet must set off and return!"
"yes!"
Bruno suppressed the joy in his heart and bowed his head.
"Dear Knight Perrault, may I ask how this place should be named on the chart?"
Old Perrault was silent. He looked at the tomb next to the stone pillar and the cross erected on it. After a long time, he whispered.
"Phew, this is the cross where the living are buried... let's call it Cross Point!"
Bruno nodded. Cross Point is Cross Point and is also the southernmost point of this exploration.
At this time, only one person in the world knows that the endless Namibian desert will extend southward for more than three thousand miles. The further south you sail, the higher the latitude, and the colder the climate will be. At the southernmost end of the desert, the Atlantic Ocean blows in
The moisture passes through the cold sea surface, creating continuous thick fog, which often triggers storms, making navigation dangerous and difficult. Once you pass through the hundreds of miles of thick fog and storm area, you will reach the boundary of the southern continent, east
The turning point of the sea route, the Cape of Good Hope that brings hope!
The setting sun faded, the rising sun emerged, and another day passed in the blink of an eye. Under the golden sunshine, the sailors cheered, drank the last wine, and feasted on fresh seal meat. They excitedly celebrated the arrival of the New Year, and even more celebrated the ship.
The team’s return trip!
The exploration of death is finally over! After one year and three months of long exploration, nearly 70% of the sailors died, and even the captain Diogo Con was called by the Lord. The Portuguese fleet finally turned around and began to return north!
There were three sailboats in the entire fleet, with nearly a hundred sailors on and off the deck. Everyone was celebrating enthusiastically, except for one person whose face was pale.
In a certain cabin on the flagship, the aristocratic scholar Martin Beiheim looked horrified. He huddled up like a helpless lamb, clinging to the corner of the cabin, holding a gorgeous dagger in his hand. In front of him, was
Four strong men as fierce as wolves, each wearing leather armor and holding sharp weapons.
"...New captain Bruno, quartermaster Mattim, chef Haroldo, carpenter Ivo...you, what do you want to do!"
"Blessed Mother! Dear noble scholar, Martin."
Bruno had a smile on his face and a gentle tone.
"Please don't worry. We just want to leave a small mark on you. The Lord testifies! As long as you patiently cooperate with us, we will never hurt you."
"Ah! Mark? Cooperation? Bruno, you?!"
Martin's eyes first showed disbelief, then deep fear. Thinking of that terrible thing, he suddenly put the dagger across his neck and was about to kill himself. The cold dagger fell on his skin, bringing a stinging chill.
, like the call of death. The noble scholar trembled violently, but could not take action.
"What a cowardly noble!"
Mattim sneered and quickly took a step forward.
"boom!"
He lightly used the dagger in his hand to deflect Martin's dagger away. Then, with a quick knee strike, he knocked Martin to the ground.
Bruno's expression remained unchanged. He smiled and said to Mattim.
"What a skill! Mattim, take off his clothes!"
"Ah! Ah!..."
Martin let out a desperate cry like a slaughtered pig, and was picked clean by the skilled Martin in two strokes. Then, the carpenter Ivo took out a small brazier, and Haroldo took out a sharp and small dagger, placed it on the brazier and repeatedly
Grilled.
Within a moment, Mattim tied up Martin skillfully and turned around to ask.
"Boss Bruno, we are going to carve the devil's symbol on this kid, hold him accountable, and make him stop talking nonsense after he returns to China... But what exactly is the devil's symbol?"
"The devil's symbol..."
Bruno pondered for a while, and those horrific memories came to mind. Even after so long, they still made his heart tremble. He recalled the ancient sacrificial robes of the voodoo high priest, the strange temple with hanging lizards, and the terrifying altar with human heads...
His hands kept waving, trying to make evil symbols of Satan's apostles.
"I encountered an extremely powerful apostle of Satan in the devil's land! I mustered up the courage to fight with her tenaciously. With the blessing of the Lord, I destroyed her witchcraft, and then from hundreds of indigenous people
The warriors broke out... The symbol should be... like this, twisted... like this, gathered... like this, together, like a swarm of mosquitoes..."
After a while, Bruno finished speaking in confusion. He asked hesitantly.
"Do you understand?"
Everyone looked at each other and shook their heads, leaving the cabin speechless for a moment.
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! After a moment, the head chef Haroldo took a step forward and whispered.
"Boss Bruno, you have gone deep into the devil's land and have seen real devils. But if the church masters stay in wealthy towns and are served by groups of servants, how can they see any evil? These real devil symbols, we
If you carve it out, no one will recognize it!"
Bruno thought for a while and asked in a deep voice.
"It makes sense!...Haroldo, what do you think we should do?"
"The simplest thing is this..."
Low whispers echoed in the cabin. Martin lay in the corner and tried hard to listen, but he really couldn't understand the dialect of these sailors. After a while, everyone nodded in unison and looked at Martin with evil intentions. Martin gave a deep look.
I shuddered and shouted hysterically.
"Please! My father is a member of the Republic of Venice, and my family is a hereditary noble of Nuremberg...I can give you a large ransom! Uh...uh..."
Bruno took out a piece of cotton cloth and stuffed it into Martin's mouth. Then, without hesitation, everyone directly pushed Martin to the ground, with his belly facing up and his back close to the deck, like holding down a lamb waiting to be slaughtered.
Haroldo smiled strangely, held the handle of the red-hot knife, and slowly stepped forward.
Martin's face was pale and he was shaking like chaff. He struggled desperately at first, and then whined and begged uncontrollably. Martin reached out his hand impatiently, grabbed Martin's neck, and knocked him unconscious.
"Haroldo, do it!"
Bruno ordered in a deep voice.
"Okay! Boss Bruno!"
Chef Haroldo smiled easily while reaching out his hand and carving a deep tattoo on Martin's lower abdomen. In the hands of the chef, the sharp knife was so precise and stable. Even if the noble scholar woke up in pain midway, he did not feel any pain at all.
It affected his painting and carving. After he finished carving, he looked at his masterpiece, nodded with satisfaction, and then returned to his shrinking look.
"alright!"
"really not bad!"
"This is going downhill!"
"Praise be to Our Lady!"
Everyone looked at it and breathed a sigh of relief. The noble scholar fainted from the pain again. Bruno stretched out his hand, felt the other person's nose, and stood up easily.
"Blessed Mother! Let's go! Give him some time to accept."
"Blessed Mother! May we return to the kingdom safely!"
"Blessed Mother! He seems to be quite rich. After returning to China, you can get some sponsorship from him..."
"Blessed Mother! Don't be too troublesome. Hurry up and attend the celebration banquet!"
The four of them prayed for a while and then walked out of the scholar's cabin. Before leaving, the carpenter Ivo thoughtfully stayed for a while. He untied the unconscious Martin, took off the cotton gag, and put it on
The covering robe was covered with a thin blanket to keep out the cold.
The sun sets in the west, and the sky is filled with rays of rays. In the vast sky, countless colorful birds fly; in the vast ocean, there are only three sailing ships sailing. The setting sun dyes the waves of the sea red, reflecting the red desert, and another
Gorgeous.
The deck was full of light, and the cabin was a little dim. The sailors' cheers could be heard in the distance. At some point, someone sang loudly and sang a hometown song, and everyone sang in unison.
"Beautiful girl, you ask me, what is the sea? But I don't know...
I was sailing out, and one wave after another crashed into my body, leaving a moist light.
That is my mother, calling my young heart, the sea is caressing me!..."
Bruno was promoted to a distinguished captain, and all his worries were resolved. He suddenly felt a little relaxed. He laughed heartily, walked to the center of the sailors, and sang loudly.
"Beautiful girl, you ask me, what is the sea? But I don't know...
I was out sailing and saw a dead boy. He opened his lips to kiss the waves.
There is a light in his mouth, to fall in love with another light in your mouth, the sea is a kiss!..."
Hearing this, Mattim chuckled. He waved to Haroldo, but the other party waved his hand. He stretched out his hand and sang alone.
"Beautiful girl, the crescent moon doesn't want to sink into the sea, so it drags the night sky with it.
Your hair is loosened and floating with me in the water, like the breeze coming from my heart.
I smooth your waves with my own hands, and the sea falls into my palms. You bloom like an anemone at my fingertips!"
Then, everyone laughed and sang together in the sea breeze.
"Beautiful girl, you ask me what is the sea? But I don't know...
I was out sailing, standing barefoot on the beach, eagerly waiting for dawn.
It turns out that the sea is a white image, shining among the rocks.
May the Blessed Mother! We passed through it and returned to our hometown!..."
The cheerful singing continued all night long. Amidst the sailors' celebratory songs, Martin woke up in pain. He groaned lowly and rubbed his forehead vigorously. Then, he suddenly opened his eyes and stroked his body in front and back in horror.
, and then he breathed a heavy sigh of relief.
But soon, Martin felt a stinging pain in his lower abdomen. Under the light of dusk, he tremblingly opened his cloth robe, lowered his head to see the tattoo, and his face suddenly turned pale. After a while, the noble scholar trembled and murmured to himself,
That's a chapter of the Bible, the Apocalypse, the Book of Revelation.
"...Whoever has understanding, let him calculate the number of the beast. For it is a human number, and its number is six hundred and sixty-six..."
"..The devil transformed into a beast and carved evil symbols. This is the number of the beast's name, the code name of the devil, the incomplete and unforgivable '666' that is disgusted by perfection!...Ah! The real devil is here.
, among these voyagers!..."
There was a cry in Martin's voice. After all, he was just an aristocratic young man in his twenties who came from a privileged background and studied academics.
"What should I do? Merciful Lord! Please give me revelation and save me from the evil on board!"
In Martin's devout prayer, the sun turned westward and sank into the ocean, and its light turned westward and disappeared into the darkness. In the sailors' songs, the revelation had not come, or perhaps, it had already arrived.
This chapter has been completed!