Stoick looked at Hiccup with great excitement, his heart filled with endless questions, but he didn't know how to ask them.
So he stammered, "Why does Odin favor you? Why does the great Odin teach you to tame Dragons?"
"And why does he teach you to concoct magic potions? What other guidance does the great Odin have!? Is he dissatisfied with Berk Island's sacrifices!?"
"Odin has taught you so much, is it to lead the Vikings of Berk Island to flatten the Dragon Nest and protect the peace of Berk Island!"
Listening to the string of questions, Hiccup suddenly felt a bit dazed; there were many questions he didn't even remember, but one question he remembered particularly clearly.
That was the question of sacrifice.
The Vikings believed in Odin, so every nine years they would sacrifice nine Vikings to Odin to bless the peace and tranquility of the entire tribe.
The Vikings had always lived for death; everyone considered death an honor, viewing it as liberation, believing that after death they could enter the embrace of Odin.
Therefore, there were no special requirements for the nine sacrificed Vikings; they were not required to be unattached, nor to be virgins, nor to be sound or disabled.
The only requirement was that they must be willing to be sacrificed!
Hiccup, before transmigrating, naturally knew of this Viking custom, so he also planned to change this custom.
The reason he had not acted sooner was, firstly, because the time was not yet right; secondly, because he was only the son of the chieftain, not the chieftain himself; and thirdly, this was a world of swords and magic.
If Odin truly existed, wouldn't he be standing against Odin prematurely?
A person who couldn't even use magic, let alone face Odin, the God of War, couldn't even defeat his son, Thor, the God of Thunder! So he could only develop discreetly.
(In Old Norse, the God of Thunder is called Thor, in English it is Sol!)
However, a compromise must be found for the issue of sacrifice, otherwise, the already small population of Berk Island would be further reduced, and even Vikings on the verge of dying of old age shouldn't be directly sacrificed.
This was not only a disrespect for life but also a waste of labor.
So, Hiccup looked at Stoick and said with a very firm gaze, "Odin just told me that I absolutely cannot tell you the answers to these questions!"
"Otherwise, it will surely bring a great disaster to Berk Island! He might even personally descend to punish us!"
Then, Hiccup continued, "But Odin told me to tell you! For the next ninety years, you must not continue with the sacrifices!"
"Why is that!?" Stoick asked, completely bewildered.
Hiccup replied directly, "Odin won't let me tell you! Just do as he says!"
Stoick quickly clasped his right hand into a fist on his chest and prayed devoutly to the sky.
Taking advantage of this opportunity, Hiccup quickly left, because he didn't know how strong the Four-Headed Dragon venom's resistance was, and if she woke up, it would be troublesome.
"Roar!"
Night Fury brought Hiccup and the Sea Demon to the Dragon Jail. Night Fury directed the other Dragons to modify the jail door, while Hiccup used iron chains to tie the Sea Demon to a pillar.
Since the Sea Demon was consciously anesthetized, she could only watch Hiccup's fair neck sway before her eyes, yet she had no way to bite him directly.
Moreover, she let Hiccup do as he pleased, eventually being fixed to a pillar.
After Night Fury directed the Dragons to dig the deep pit, Hiccup placed the pillar with the tied Sea Demon into the center of the deep pit.
Then, he had these Dragons relay buckets back and forth until the deep pit was half-filled with seawater.
As long as the Sea Demon's lower body was in the seawater, her vitality could be maintained, and she would also reveal her fish tail.
Night Fury had tried several times to bite the Sea Demon to death when Hiccup wasn't paying attention. It was because this Sea Demon especially loved to eat Dragon meat, which made Night Fury very uncomfortable.
Fortunately, Hiccup made a hemispherical protective cover out of wire mesh and placed it over the deep pit, because he believed Night Fury would definitely obey his command not to kill the Sea Demon.
But the other Dragons might not.
After all this was handled, Hiccup also threw the Dragon corpse he brought back into the water pit. As for how much she ate each day, that was up to her.
Now the Sea Demon was completely in the deep pit, her upper body tightly bound to the pillar by iron chains, her lower body submerged in seawater, and then she watched Hiccup leave.
Although the main material for the magic potion could be obtained from this Sea Demon, other auxiliary materials were still needed for concoction.
Moreover, it would take some time to collect all the materials, so the strictest measures had to be taken.
To prevent the villagers' curiosity, Hiccup could only gather all the villagers once again at Valhalla. Since he really couldn't stand the smell inside.
So he could only tell Stoick in advance, "The Sea Demon is locked in the Dragon Jail! No one is allowed to go near her! You must tell the villagers about this!"
Stoick nodded, then walked into Valhalla. The noisy sounds inside instantly quieted down considerably with Stoick's appearance.
However, after Stoick finished giving the command, these villagers became even more excited and curious.
Although they had all seen Sea Demons, it was always on the vast ocean, and only outlines seen through thick fog; they had never observed them up close.
The villagers even discussed with some excitement, saying, "Hiccup is truly too brave! He actually captured a Sea Demon alive!"
"I heard that Sea Demons can use magic, and even on land, Sea Demons are agile warriors!"
"That's right, Sea Demons are not only powerful but also live in the Land of Death, and they can also use charm magic. Who knows how many Vikings have sailed into the thick fog of the Land of Death, only to leave behind lonely warships!"
These villagers were constantly discussing all the legends about Sea Demons, which also showed their great curiosity about them.
The legend of the Sea Demon was only one factor that aroused their curiosity; another factor was the common fairy tale that Sea Demons are very beautiful, and as long as you can make a Sea Demon fall in love with you.
Then she will turn her fish tail into human legs, live with you on shore, and bear you a pile of children.
"Clang~!"
The stone gate of Valhalla was rudely pushed open by a group of Vikings, each with a smile on their face, a smile that contained too much information.
And all these people were heading in one direction...