Don left behind an ample quantity of Worms of Spirit for his marionette and planned to find time and opportunity later to concoct a 'Marionette' potion.
The Sequence 5 Wraith wasn't enough; he needed higher-positioned marionettes.
A Sequence 4 from a different pathway - such a marionette equipped with a 'Bionic Marionette' module could obviously accomplish much more.
With higher positioning came more adequate protection, which would be safer for the early stage when he would completely lose his memory and could only rely step by step on the father arranged by his past self.
"As long as I have the Beyonder characteristic of a Marionette, or the potion materials for a Marionette, I can use the newly unlocked 'Repair Cultural Dish' to let the marionette directly become a Sequence 4 demigod, without needing to actively search for marionettes of equivalent level."
"Of course, by equipping corresponding mystical items, marionettes can also exert power at the demigod level."
"Making Beyonder characteristics into mystical items is more convenient, but the existence of the 'Repair Cultural Dish' allows me to possess demigod-level marionettes with self-awareness. Both have their advantages."
After advancing to Sequence 4, the marionettes Don could control, besides the Sequence 3 War Bishop under the Theater With Curtains That Never Draw's core, also included a Sequence 4 Demon.
"Two demigod-level marionettes. Hmm, if it's to deal with ordinary dangers, even adding one more demigod marionette would be an enhancement to the essential power of a Bizarro Sorcerer. Two demigod-level marionettes could hardly be considered shabby for a Bizarro Sorcerer."
However, if what he had to face was a Sequence 1 Worm of Time, this configuration would be somewhat inadequate.
"As for father's side, I could directly make a Marionettist marionette... Go to the Southern Continent and find demigod powerhouses of the Rose School of Thought?"
This wasn't impossible either, but he had to be careful of the Chained God and the Mother Tree of Desire. The Rose School of Thought's temperance would be beneficial to him, and he could also utilize the Balam Empire and the influence of the Church of Death in the Southern Continent to attempt early contact with Reinette Tinekerr, the leader of the Rose School of Thought and Sequence 2 Ancient Evil.
And the Southern Continent was his homeland. Returning home once to find people from what was formerly the Church of Death, now the Numinous Episcopate, and borrowing father's influence to happily acquire a few Sequence 3 Ferryman as marionettes might also be feasible.
The current leader of the Numinous Episcopate should be the High Priest of the Church of Death, Haiter. He had received divine grace and become an Angel, also a Sequence 2 Death Consul, a powerhouse on the same level as father, and in much better condition than father.
Then, belonging to the same Death God faction, after Salinger's fall, He and father should still have some connection, though father could obviously rank above this High Priest in terms of status.
After all, High Priests could be replaced, but direct bloodlines of the Death God were definitely not numerous.
"Father returned to the Southern Continent before; it should be related to this Grand Archbishop. Hmm, I can try looking into it when I go to the Southern Continent later. Owen's Sequence 3 potion for the Death Pathway could also be attempted from there."
After roughly examining father's current environment, Don exchanged positions with the insect marionette in the theater and returned to the Theater With Curtains That Never Draw.
When he left, another star had appeared in the astrolabe in his hand.
It was a massive star that was fragmented, desolate and silent, as if completely shattered by some terrifying force, with only half remaining.
Surrounding the central crystal planet like a sun, several stars had intricate connections with each other.
Don exhaled. Now, he needed to wait for the task to be completed and obtain the Necronomicon.
"The Uniqueness of the Death Pathway and the issues with Father's spirit body can't be rushed. My Sequence level is insufficient; I need to reach at least Sequence 1 to attempt anything."
And with the upcoming confrontation against Amon, before that, he needed to search for high-positioned, high-sequence marionettes to expand the number of Bizarro Sorcerer marionettes; he needed to split Worms of Spirit, create Yesterday Once More charms, forge 'Bionic Marionette' modules, and deploy marionettes worldwide to ensure his own safety.
Don wrote down the things he needed to do in the near future one by one on paper.
"Simultaneously, I need to talk with my future self. Euclidean Space is clearly the key in my hand against Amon. Given that the Great Existence Above the Spirit World behind me cannot point to The Fool, Sequence 0, or The Celestial Worthy of Heaven and Earth for Blessings, the Knowledge Moor and my future self are the biggest trump cards."
"Merely a portion of the laws from the 'Trunsoest Brass Book', a derivative of a Uniqueness, probably can't completely restrict Amon's stealing behavior."
He took out a piece of parchment he had previously borrowed from the future. The text on the parchment flowed like mercury.
It wasn't enough. Previously, he had tried using this Uniqueness derivative to restrict the actions of a divine descender from the Dark Side of the Universe, but a single legal existence still had great limitations and could very likely be manipulated by Amon in reverse, using the laws to restrict his actions in some incomprehensible way.
After all, derivatives of Uniqueness couldn't compare to Uniqueness itself. With Amon holding the Marauder pathway's Uniqueness plus two portions of Sequence 1 Worm of Time potions, He could probably steal the legal characters on the parchment and transform the restriction into another situation favorable to Him.
Just this one piece of paper could work against Amon's avatar, but if facing Amon's true body, this would be far from enough.
So he needed to get some other things.
Don exhaled, then looked at his system.
"System, pulverize those Beyonder characteristics. Use the 'Artisan' module to make Sealed Artifacts," Don said.
[Roger that.]
Don still had some demigod-level Beyonder characteristics here, including the previously obtained Sequence 4 Iron-blooded Knight potion, and Beyonder characteristics harvested after smashing that chimera in the Theater With Curtains That Never Draw.
Don could produce 11 portions of demigod-level Beyonder characteristics at once.
Even in Orthodox Churches, counting those "1" level Sealed Artifacts, "0" level Sealed Artifacts, plus the demigods hidden behind the scenes, the demigods of orthodox churches weren't that numerous.
Sequence 4s were already considered high-end combat power in the Beyonder world, rare and powerful, representing absolute military deterrence.
And Don's current private reserves could compete with certain secret organizations that had emerged in the early Fourth Epoch.
"Turn all these Beyonder characteristics into Sealed Artifacts to boost strength once more. Make the beyonder items as 'alive' as possible, then intimidate each one to reduce negative effects."
Facing what might be Amon's true body, Don didn't dare to be careless at all.
As if remembering something, Don suddenly recalled that extremely distant gaze that had been transmitted before.
"If Amon's true body and that paranoid fanatic come together, what I might face is likely two Kings of Angels." This was the worst possible scenario.
Thinking of this, Don asked the system, "How's the marionette's search for people going?"
[41 children confirmed to be abandoned or whose relatives have died, including 17 boys and 24 girls, oldest 14 years old, youngest 4 years old. Through identification, their identities have been confirmed, with no Beyonder power influence, they are 'normal' and possess certain learning abilities, having not received systematic mysticism education.]
Most of these orphans were children adopted by priests in small towns. It wasn't difficult for the marionettes to take over.
As long as they had been affected by mysticism, as long as the system's identification showed distortion and couldn't be completely identified, they would be excluded immediately.
Don wasn't just guarding against Amon; he was also guarding against the old man, preventing the old man from secretly inserting a few Worms of Time.
"But having reached preliminary cooperation, the old man probably wouldn't bother with what the marionettes were doing."
"Keep searching. Expand upwards from children: the ambitious, the elderly, women, even criminals. Anyone willing to try can be secretly contacted. In short, prioritize completing the task to get the Necronomicon out first, before considering other things."
His current task wasn't at Miskatonic University; he needed to resolve external threats first before steady development.
And the Necronomicon was currently the most achievable item among the ways Don could obtain help.
This black magic book from Cthulhu mythology, if all the content recorded within was real, would be extremely terrifying forbidden knowledge when placed in this world.
Stuffing the paper filled with text into a drawer, Don exhaled, then entered the Euclidean Space and picked up a Yesterday Once More charm.
With the recitation of ancient Hermes, the charm activated, and Historical Fog spread again, seemingly endless and without limit.
This time Don wasn't borrowing spirituality, so the Historical Fog spread exceptionally far.
"The Yesterday Once More charm embodies the Beyonder power of a Sequence 3 Scholar of Yore. However, for most Beyonders, this charm can only serve as assistance. Only those who have suffered trauma and are still in a weakened state among high-positioned beings can fully activate the charm's power."
Past selves were inevitably weaker than current selves, and he could scheme to obtain what he needed from his future self.
Still the gloomy mausoleum, still the serpent as massive as an island, the illusory river flowing peacefully on the ground, Spirit Body Threads deadening then awakening again, layer upon layer in ancient tranquility.
Death and eeriness were the eternal themes of this mausoleum.
Don elevated his observation position and didn't let the Historical Fog carry him around in circles to see what good things his future self might have.
His purpose in using Yesterday Once More this time wasn't to borrow, but to rely on the Euclidean Space and the Yesterday Once More charm to understand the current limits of what he could borrow.
This was crucial; it determined whether he had the capability to simultaneously deal with the possible joint assault by Amon's true body and Adam, two Kings of Angels, while eliminating Amon avatars.
"One kleptomaniac, one paranoid. These brothers—no, this father and son are really hard to deal with."
But he also had something to rely on.
His future self opened his eyes. This one had obviously become a high-positioned being of the Seer pathway, definitely Sequence 1, an Attendant of Mysteries skilled in Grafting Fate. His future self extended his hand, seemingly having anticipated this.
A gold coin appeared in the high-positioned self's hand. Seeing that gold coin and what was wrapped around it, Don's pupils slightly shook, instantly recognizing what that gold coin was.
"Huh?"
That was a Gold Coin with the aura of Gray Fog!
His spiritual intuition was triggered, and Don instantly recalled content related to this type of coin from the original work.
"A Gold Coin left behind by Klein Moretti after advancing to Lord of Mysteries, capable of entering The Fool's dream and awakening his humanity?"
During this period when he was borrowing spirituality, Klein Moretti had already become The Fool?
The Evernight Goddess actually didn't make a move on the Death God's Uniqueness? Instead, he completed this step?
"If Klein became The Fool, then after becoming Lord of Mysteries, He would expel one Sequence 1 Beyonder characteristic... That way, my rank would still be Sequence 1... But there's another possibility: is this my future self borrowing something from an even more distant future me?"
For example, prepayment provided by The Fool, compensation for providing Sequence 1 Beyonder characteristics?
Don's initial ideal state when choosing the Seer pathway was to obtain a portion of Sequence 1 potion after advancing to Sequence 2. When Klein became the Fool and subsequently influenced the current pathway and the adjacent Apprentice and Marauder pathways, when Zaratul was gone, Amon dropped to Sequence 2, and Mr. Door was also gone, he, as a Sequence 2, could rely on Klein's Lord of Mysteries position to advance to Sequence 1.
By then, backed by the Lord of Mysteries and the Knowledge Moor, as long as he didn't court death, he could definitely live very well.
He didn't plan to advance to Sequence 0 of this pathway, nor did he want to taste what The Celestial Worthy of Heaven and Earth for Blessing's will was like. With Klein holding the front, he could eat and drink as he pleased, which was much more comfortable than hanging in the Gray Fog sleeping.
His subsequent changed plan was to advance to Sequence 1, become an Attendant of Mysteries to handle the Death pathway's Uniqueness, and resolve Salinger's remaining contingencies before the Goddess took control of the Death God's Uniqueness.
After Klein ascended to divinity, 'the gifts bestowed by fate all have prices marked' would cause this new Lord of Mysteries to re-precipitate a Sequence 1 Attendant of Mysteries. Like Pallez Zoroast, who changed from a Sequence 1 Worm of Time to a Sequence 2 Trojan Horse of Destiny, he would return to being a Miracle Invoker, remain at Sequence 2 level, then advance to Sequence 1 again. This was quite safe and closest to true god position, with similarly huge influence.
The difference between these two approaches was whether he needed to advance to become a Sequence 1 Attendant of Mysteries.
And handling the Death pathway's Uniqueness obviously required Sequence 1 power.
But... during this stage of his self, was it before Klein's apotheosis, or after?
The Coin with Gray Fog power, his Sequence 1 self – was this real history, or something borrowed from himself at a certain point in time?
Seeing this gold coin instantly, Don's mind was filled with chaotic thoughts, feeling like his own timeline was completely disrupted.
There were more things worth thinking about here. The contradiction within himself made his brain confused, with a momentary sense of losing control, as if he might collapse into individual Worms of Spirit and become a lost traveler in ancient mist.
His future self also spoke. His voice was distorted and ethereal, as if traversing dimensions of space-time, reminding his past self, causing his spirituality to instantly calm and stop the fracturing thoughts, stop the tilt toward the abyss of losing control.
His future self manipulated the gold coin in his hand like a magician, pointed at the brass book beside him, then pointed at Don and himself, speaking concisely: "Eliminate Amon. Five minutes."
"Don't think about it anymore."
The next moment, the Historical Fog suddenly dissipated, and Don returned to the Euclidean Space.
Fine sweat appeared on his forehead.
[Host, what happened to you?!]
The system's alarmed voice brought Don back to his senses.
"I'm fine," Don swallowed, emptying his mind. "Let me be quiet."
"I can't think about it anymore. The space-time disruption of the Euclidean Space is extremely easy to bring me loss of control. What is this? An official ban warning after using cheats?"
(End of Chapter)