It was Monday morning at the Church of Nature in Harvest Plain.
Leyton sat in the back of the prayer hall, organizing his thoughts while listening to the priest's sermon.
Bugs Bunny and Crow Anu were dozing on the seats beside him. They had been studying mushrooms almost all night until dawn, and had barely closed their eyes before Leyton dragged them to the Church of Nature.
The priest's sermon didn't last too long. As people gradually dispersed from the church, Martina approached with a smile.
Her gaze gently swept over Bugs Bunny, who had been dozing during the sermon. The latter scratched the back of his head, a little embarrassed, and lowered his head.
Martina merely chuckled, then turned her gaze to Leyton and said in a deep voice:
"I don't think you came specifically to listen to the sermon. Come with me, we'll talk somewhere else."
Seeing Leyton nod, she turned and led the way to the clergy lounge behind the church.
Bugs Bunny skillfully closed the large door behind him, then quickly flopped onto a blanket-covered chair, yawned, and began to catch up on sleep.
"He forgot to sleep last night studying mushrooms."
Leyton explained softly, then described to Martina the scene he had seen through his divination ability from the group of vagrants, emphasizing how someone was spreading the faith of the great Mother among the homeless.
As he narrated, Martina's expression gradually became solemn. After a long silence, she finally spoke:
"Regarding that mushroom, the Church has almost finished studying it. It has extremely high resistance to the power of the Sun and divine domains, but if you use the power of the Fallen and corrupt domains, it can be easily mutated and destroyed."
"As for the cultists' attempt to connect the Primordial Moon with a real river, She might want to use the concept of 'Mother' to pollute that river, making it some kind of incarnation of Hers in this world."
"The Primordial Moon also controls the authority over reproduction and life, so transforming a river into a tangible living entity is not impossible for Her."
It's not just rivers; even the attack methods of the gods can come alive under Her influence and turn against them. Leyton sighed inwardly, then heard Martina continue:
"The Church will send a Divine Grace and two Favored to Paz River Valley. We will retrieve the Mother cards from the hands of that evil god's cultist, and at the same time, clean up as many of the evil god's pawns as possible!"
"We? You're going too?" Leyton murmured softly.
Martina smiled gently and said in a calm tone:
"Yes, I will go with the Church deacons. Recently, the Followers of the Primordial Moon have been very active. If not handled well, it could lead to a serious incident no less severe than the arrival of an evil god."
Leyton nodded slightly, then made his promise:
"The Church of the God of Knowledge and Wisdom will provide some assistance in this matter. I imagine the local warlords certainly won't want a group of cultists appearing in their territory."
After a pause, he continued to inquire:
"Do you know where the Sanguine gather in the Southern Continent? Or, if I want to see them, how can I contact them?"
Martina did not seem surprised that Leyton would ask about the Sanguine. She slowly shook her head and said:
"I'm not sure. The Sanguine hide information about their own kind very well. Although there are those among them who believe in the Mother, we do not inquire about such matters from them. This is out of respect for them."
"I met a young Sanguine in Litpu, deep in East Balam, before. If you want to find them, you can try looking in the Hospital or private clinics there. However, you need to be careful of the Followers of the Primordial Moon. The Vampires you find might not necessarily be Sanguine; they could also be humans who have walked this Pathway."
"Sequence 5 of this Pathway is called 'Scarlet Scholar.' They always devoutly love, worship, and study the Moon, which leads to most of them eventually being tempted by the Primordial Moon and becoming pawns of the evil god!"
"I understand. Perhaps I need to consider starting with the Sanguine from other places." Leyton nodded slightly in response.
After continuing to converse with Martina, the Archbishop of the Church of the Earth Mother, for a while, he left the Church of Nature with Bugs Bunny and Crow Anu.
Inpace, inside the hotel Leyton rented.
He leaned back in his chair, resting with his eyes closed. The wall clock was set to Backlund time, which was now approaching three in the afternoon.
After sitting quietly for a moment, his spiritual perception was suddenly touched, and then his mind became slightly dazed. When he opened his eyes again, he had already arrived in that ancient palace that seemed to remain unchanged through the ages.
"Good afternoon, Mr. Fool~"
Audrey lightly bowed to the figure at the head of the mottled long table, then her gaze swept around the hall, noticing the empty seat to Leyton's left.
Mr. Death isn't participating in the Tarot Club today? Does he have something to deal with? A hint of curiosity flashed in Audrey's eyes, but she quickly reined in her emotions and greeted the other members of the Tarot Club one by one:
"Good afternoon, Hanged Man."
"Good afternoon, Sun."
"Good afternoon, Mr. Tower."
Following Audrey's lead, everyone, after bowing to The Fool sitting at the head of the mottled long table, nodded to each other in greeting before returning to their seats.
After the greetings, "Justice" Audrey eagerly requested "The Fool" Klein to materialize a page of Roselle diary she had collected.
"The Hermit" Cattleya still had three pages of the diary. It seemed that obtaining these diaries was not difficult for her, and she was not in a hurry to present all of them.
Klein beckoned for the diary to fall into his hand, leaned back in his chair, and began to read the diary in his hand. Hmm? It's a duplicate diary again.
After realizing that the first diary submitted by Miss "Justice" was one that Miss "Magician" had submitted before, Klein paused, then placed this diary at the bottom, his gaze falling on the diary submitted by "The Hermit" Cattleya.
To his surprise, this page of the diary was also one he had already seen. This was inevitable; as the number of diaries submitted by Tarot Club members increased, more and more duplicate diaries would be encountered in the future.
This page of the diary was also placed at the back, his gaze turning to the third page of the diary. Fortunately, this page of the diary was one he hadn't seen, otherwise he would have to doubt his luck.
There was nothing useful or shocking in these two pages of the diary. Klein quickly made the few pages of the diary he had materialized disappear. He tapped the table twice with his finger and said leisurely:
"You may begin."
Hanged Man Alger looked around and, seeing no one speak, he again brought up the request for the Ocean Songster potion formula.
He only received replies from Leyton, Emlyn, and Cattleya that they would keep an eye out for him. Although a bit disappointed, Alger didn't care too much about it. It would still take a considerable amount of time for me to fully digest the Wind-Blessed potion, so there's no need to rush too much. Besides, Sequence 5 formulas often have a premium, and my current financial situation doesn't guarantee I can buy it.
"Magician" Fors looked around at everyone, raised her hand, and said with some hesitation:
"Do you have any recommendations for Mystical Items? It doesn't need to be too strong, but it's best if it has unique and practical functions."
"Don't you already have that Leymano's Travels? Its functionality and practicality surpass most Mystical Items."
Moon Emlyn pouted, asking with a bewildered voice.
"Uh, it's not for myself." Fors explained.
She was asking for Xio. The reason for not needing a too powerful Mystical Item was that powerful Mystical Items usually came with significant side effects, which would be a considerable burden for Xio, who was still at a low Sequence. More importantly, they didn't have that much money.
Leyton leaned back in his chair, thought for a moment, and said:
"I have a Mystical Item I don't use. It's a black top hat, imbued with the characteristics of a Trickmaster, Clown, and Swindler. It has some spellcasting ability and can also be used as a weapon."
Imbued with so many characteristics? "Magician" Fors was surprised for a moment, then said:
"Could you elaborate a bit more?"
Leyton nodded slightly, leaning back against the chair, and said leisurely:
"Just by wearing it on your head, you can gain excellent physical coordination and balance, and control over your body. At the same time, your words will be more easily believed."
"It can use tricks including creating fog, flashes, burning, freezing, and wind spells, but each trick can only be used five times a day, and their intensity is not high."
"This hat itself can also be thrown as a flying dagger to attack enemies, and it also has some of the Apprentice's Door opening ability. You can place the hat on a wall or table, a place with an obstruction, and reach through the hat to touch something on the other side."
"As for its negative effects, the wearer will have a strong desire to perform. Every day, they must wear the top hat and perform magic and tricks in front of an audience. At the same time, it has certain living characteristics, but it will not constantly tempt the user. Every once in a while, different books need to be stuffed into the hat."
Many effects, but none too powerful, yet it excels in comprehensiveness, and the negative effects are also easy to resolve. However, imbued with three characteristics, this Mystical Item certainly won't be cheap.
Fors pondered for a while, then hesitantly raised her hand and said:
"Mr. Tower, how much does it cost?"
"1500 pounds. Although it's not very useful, it contains many characteristics."
Leyton said calmly.
Fors opened her mouth but couldn't speak. 'This is much more expensive than I expected, but considering the characteristics it contains, perhaps I'm just too poor.'
Sighing a few times inwardly, Fors maintained a smile on her face and nodded slightly:
"I understand. I will tell my friend. If she's interested, I'll contact you."
Xio wouldn't be interested. All her savings combined aren't even 400 pounds.
Leyton nodded noncommittally. A Mystical Item imbued with the characteristics of three Pathways, even if it doesn't sell, is still great to keep in his collection.
Although he was no longer a Reader, his hobby of collecting had remained.
Fors waited for a while, and seeing that no one else intended to sell Mystical Items, she again turned her gaze to Leyton and asked with some embarrassment:
"Mr. Tower, if I ask you to help craft a Mystical Item, what are your suggestions?"
Leyton rested his right elbow on the armrest and mused:
"Suggestions? The Apprentice Pathway makes the best Mystical Items, and Shepherd are also good. One of them can replace several Beyonders, and it's the same when they become Mystical Items."
"Spirit Medium and Spirit Warlock who can control Wraiths and Nature Spirits are also good. They only need to find some powerful and useful spirits, and they will become very versatile, possessing considerable power."
That's a very accurate summary. Miss "Magician," as a Beyonder of the Apprentice Pathway, is already showing fear and panic. From now on, she'll probably consider taking a detour when she sees you. Klein observed everyone through his Spirit Vision while muttering to himself inwardly.
"Sun" Derrick, who hadn't noticed the change in the atmosphere, asked curiously:
"Why is the Apprentice Pathway the best Mystical Item?"