join p atreon.com/KeyofStars for advance chapters | Every 100 powerstones=1 extra chapter | Report issues @discord.com/GVBdncd9Wr | 16 novels being updated, I can't read all comments
The tapping sound of the telegram didn't stop because of Klein's thoughts, and Arrodes asked with some guilt:
"Great Master, do you have any other questions?"
Without further contemplation, as the time for contact via telegraph was limited and the next communication would be a long wait, Klein nodded and asked without hesitation:
"What exactly happened to Ince Zangwill?"
This former Archbishop, who wielded 0-08, was clearly a crucial part of the Great Smog conspiracy, yet after attacking St. Lofte Church, he didn't return to Backlund to continue manipulating Trissy's fate; instead, he immediately went on to attack Dilis, a coastal city in Intis.
This reckless, insane behavior was completely inconsistent with Ince Zangwill's ruthless and patient style of action back in Tingen. It could be said that the hasty uprising of the Great Smog was inextricably linked to Ince Zangwill's absence.
The tapping of the telegram fell silent for a few seconds, then text appeared:
"Ince Zangwill has been possessed by the evil spirit from the underground ruins beneath Williams Street, and he craves a High-Sequence Beyonder characteristic of the Hunter Pathway."
Possessed by an evil spirit… Klein inexplicably recalled a scene Arrodes had shown him in a dream when he was still in Backlund.
"Able to bypass 0-08 and directly possess Ince Zangwill, who is already a Demigod, and still craving a High-Sequence Beyonder characteristic of the Hunter Pathway, the identity of this evil spirit…"
"However, given 0-08's tendency to write its holders to death, it should also have played a part in this."
Klein frowned imperceptibly; 0-08 alone was already giving him a headache, and now there was an unfathomable evil spirit.
Sighing heavily, Klein lost the mood to ask further questions and waved his hand.
"Great Master, you have completed the answers, and I should leave now."
"Ruler above the Spirit World, your humble and loyal servant Arrodes looks forward to serving you again, and hopes to always follow in your footsteps. Goodbye."
As the last characters on the illusory white paper dissipated, in the quiet hotel room, the deep, dark wireless telegraph machine instantly returned to normal, and the surrounding light was no longer eerie.
Klein set up the ritual, re-sacrificed the telegraph machine to Sefirah Castle, and without further delay, left the simple rented room and walked towards the docks.
No matter what Ince Zangwill had become, for him, the most important thing now was to quickly act as Gehrman Sparrow, digest the Faceless potion, and find the mermaid.
-----------------
Deep within the palace shrouded in dark golden mist, Aaron leaned back on his throne, looking at a golden token floating before him, with illusory, complex symbols appearing on its surface.
By conveying his promise to Bornova through his Blessed, and with an Angel's ability to respond to prayers worldwide, Aaron quickly obtained the last piece of the Divine Kingdom fragment.
Unlike the Church of the Evernight, which merely treated it as a core for sealing, Roselle, being a Artisan, had crafted this Divine Kingdom fragment into a Mystical Item similar to a Blasphemy Slate.
It not only included divine-level anti-divination and anti-prophecy abilities but also incorporated part of the "Knowledge Emperor"'s authority to imbue abstract knowledge with tangible power.
A peculiar sensation arose in his heart. Relying on his fearlessness within the Nation of Disorder, Aaron extended his spirituality, seemingly seeing scenes through the illusory and complex symbols.
That seemed to be Bornova's life before Roselle's demise, Roselle's last gift to Bornova!
Withdrawing his spirituality, Aaron's face showed a hint of emotion, and he finally understood why Bornova could maintain such a degree of humanity right under the nose of the God of Steam and Machinery.
This was a special anchor; even though Roselle had fallen, the empowered memories could still maintain Bornova's humanity.
Having roughly understood the situation, Aaron was not in a hurry to destroy the token and extract the Divine Kingdom fragment that served as its core of power.
As a Sequence 2 Artisan, Aaron believed Bornova should be able to find a suitable item to replace it, or at least maintain the balance of humanity for a short period.
But since there was a better option, he didn't need to shatter someone else's memories.
Two Tarot cards, shimmering with light, flew out from the pile of sundries, sandwiching the golden token. They were enveloped by surging dark golden mist, forming a great tide that continuously washed over it under the guidance of the Black Emperor card and the Justiciar card.
The powerful Convergence effect of the Nation of Disorder on the high-level powers of these two Pathways became even stronger with the blessing of the two Cards of Blasphemy, quickly reaching a critical point.
An illusory, dark golden light sphere, seemingly composed of countless city phantoms, was suddenly extracted, and the entire magnificent palace trembled at that instant.
Placing the dimmed token, whose aura was extremely weak, aside, Aaron put away the two Cards of Blasphemy again. Feeling the craving spreading from deep within his Spirit Body, he suddenly clenched the dark golden light sphere in his hand.
Scenes, some clear and some blurry, flashed through his mind like slides, and streaks of complete or fragmented Order power emerged as if an epiphany.
In the endless dark golden world outside the magnificent palace, not only cities appeared, but mountains and oceans also faintly emerged amidst the tremors of the dark golden mist.
Although broken and illusory, it had a foundation, as often, the step from 0 to 1 is the most difficult.
After fusing all the remaining Divine Kingdom fragments of the Night Emperor, to some extent, Aaron had inherited this half-destroyed Divine Kingdom, gaining a true prototype of a world. All he needed to do next was to fill and solidify it with his own rules and Order.
Whether it was for advancing to Balancer, or even later to Hand of Order, this would bring considerable help.
A lingering sigh echoed slowly. Aaron suddenly opened his eyes, and it seemed as if two golden Suns rose within the magnificent palace.
After a moment, the light in his eyes gradually dimmed. Continuing to mobilize the power of the Nation of Disorder, Aaron felt his changes more clearly, and at the same time, wisps of faint light peeled off from his Spirit Body.
Even if the Divine Kingdom fragments did not contain specific Beyonder characteristics, as carriers that once bore the power of the peak of a Sequence, they possessed a common characteristic: spiritual assimilation.
Without erasing the peeled-off will of the Night Emperor, Aaron, who had regained his calm, had flickering eyes.
In the Fourth Epoch, he had no control over the Nation of Disorder. Most of the time, he passively slept and underwent transformation in a spiritual state within the Nation of Disorder, and he didn't know much about Trunsoest's fall.
He couldn't be sure how much pollution from the Nation of Disorder was contained within the "Trunsoest Brass Book," which was condensed from the Uniqueness of the Justiciar Pathway, as it had already been sealed in the headquarters of the God of Combat's Church.
At that level of sealing, even with the assistance of the Nation of Disorder, he couldn't sense it, but undoubtedly, the Trunsoest Brass Book must contain the mad will of the Night Emperor.
To Aaron, this seemed more like an alternative form of identity verification. Any existence wishing to accommodate this Uniqueness, besides enduring the inherent dangers of the Uniqueness itself, also had to contend with the Night Emperor's will invasion.
The wisp of will obtained from fusing the last two Divine Kingdom fragments might be a breakthrough… Thinking this, Aaron gathered that wisp of will, suppressed and sealed it, then placed it next to Aurmir's head in the pile of sundries.
After doing all this, Aaron's hand revealed "Rusco's Eye." This ancient god's eye was like a deep Abyss devouring souls; any creature that met its gaze would encounter misfortune.
But under the suppression of the Nation of Disorder, there was no overly intense reaction.
The gold coins piled at the edge, which were only used to summon Arrodes for transactions with Klein, lost their luster. The faint mystical aura they originally carried seemed to be extracted, finally forming a wisp of condensed, unscattered gray-white mist in Aaron's hand.
Without the slightest hesitation, Aaron threw this condensed wisp of Sefirah Castle aura into "Rusco's Eye." The aura of this eyeball, which originated from the Demonic Wolf Flegrea, suddenly changed.
After observing it for a long time with his True Sight, and confirming there were no issues, Aaron then threw "Rusco's Eye" towards the prayer light spot symbolizing Cavendish.
Along with the blood-stained eyeball, two black iron boxes engraved with strange patterns also disappeared into that deep, dark void.
-----------------
In the Forsaken Land of the Gods, within a mountain range that lightning could not illuminate, a dark peak stood tall, with a cave entrance at its base extending deep underground.
This place once harbored many humans who survived the Great Cataclysm, but later, the Dark Demonic Wolf Kotar turned them into his marionettes.
Cavendish looked at the mummified corpses fallen at the bottom of the cave, some still in suspended postures, his expression unchanged.
Through tracing back various clues during this period, Cavendish had found three places where the Dark Demonic Wolf had hidden in the past, except for the westernmost part of the Forsaken Land of the Gods where Moon City was located, and the easternmost part where the Giant King's City was located, which he had not explored.
But the results were all the same: little harvest, and all traces had been cleared.
Sighing, Cavendish withdrew his gaze and took out a hurricane lamp from the fog of history. Just as he was about to use the faint candlelight to continue exploring further into the Darkness, his expression suddenly changed slightly.
His figure dispersed into specks. In a valley not far from the mountain, Cavendish stepped out of the fog of history. Not only the hurricane lamp, but even the pathfinder he used was merely a historical projection.
Quickly setting up the ritual, he prayed in a respectful whisper. The flickering candlelight suddenly expanded, and in the deep void, a dark golden double door slowly opened.
Cavendish's heart pounded fiercely, and an indescribable sensation permeated him. He instinctively caught the three items that flew out of the Door of Sacrifice and Bestowal, and a flood of information appeared in his mind.
His expression changed repeatedly. After a few seconds, Cavendish quickly finished the ritual, stood up abruptly, and looked back at the dark mountain.
Deep within a continuous mountain range somewhere in the Mystical Land, inside an ancient castle.
Giants, elves, humans, and Vampires served as gardeners, cooks, servants, and guards, respectively. Their expressions varied, and they would exchange low whispers when they met, appearing very lively and spirited.
But when they returned to their rooms, they would immediately become sluggish, their eyes no longer moving, their bodies floating upwards, suspended from the ceiling.
Deep within the castle, in a hall that only lightning from outside the window could illuminate, a massive figure lay quietly in the Darkness.
"It" was like a small mountain, covered entirely in dark, short fur. Its pitch-black pupils occupied at least three-quarters of its eyes, and it had a tuft of gray-white fur on its forehead. Its head resembled an enlarged, distorted wild wolf.
This was precisely the "God of Wishes," the Dark Demonic Wolf Kotar.
Suddenly, this Demonic Wolf, even more exaggerated than an ordinary giant, raised its head. Every dark, short hair trembled, and all the servants in the castle simultaneously made similar movements with It.
Kotar then slightly moved Its eyes, tilting Its head, as if listening to something.
The next second, It opened Its mouth, letting out a silent roar, and summoned another version of Itself.
As soon as this Dark Demonic Wolf appeared, Kotar's main body leaped into the gray-white mist, rushing into a historical light spot from the Second Epoch.
This was a hidden piece of history It controlled.
In the real world, the Dark Demonic Wolf's historical projection made a wish in an obscure, convoluted language. Then, Its figure flickered, and It directly teleported to a stronghold It had once abandoned.
After making the necessary preparations, this "God of Wishes" allowed a dark, short hair to fall off, transforming into an illusory "Spirit Body," which then expanded into a corresponding prayer light spot.
Through this light spot, Kotar saw who was praying to It:
It was a young man in strange clothes, holding a hurricane lamp, softly chanting the honorific name of the "God of Wishes."
The Dark Demonic Wolf's huge, pitch-black pupils rotated, sweeping past the young man, who was clearly just a historical projection, and fixated on his right hand, which was not holding the hurricane lamp.
There was a layer of gray-white mist there, and within the mist, a blood-stained, massive eyeball could vaguely be seen.
As a Sequence 2 Angel of the Seer Pathway, Kotar could clearly sense that this mist was similar to the fog of history, and It could feel a strong attraction to the object within the mist.
The aura of Sefirah Castle? Kotar had heard some things from the Ancient God Flegrea, the King of Demonic Wolves, during the Second Epoch, and immediately had some conjectures.
It was certain that the object enveloped by the gray-white mist was real, not a historical projection.
While contemplating, the Dark Demonic Wolf's huge, pitch-black pupils suddenly contracted. The blood-stained, massive eyeball within the prayer light spot seemed to suddenly come alive at that instant. Its equally pitch-black pupil rotated slightly, seemingly looking at It, revealing madness and destruction.
A sense of fear, as if etched deep in Its soul, emerged from distant memories. Kotar interrupted the prayer scene almost without any hesitation.
Instead of immediately returning to Its true stronghold, the cautious Kotar continuously made wishes, leveraging Its thousands of years of migration experience in the Forsaken Land of the Gods, and after changing locations 5 times, It finally stopped in a ruined city.
join p atreon.com/KeyofStars for advance chapters | Every 100 powerstones=1 extra chapter | Report issues @discord.com/GVBdncd9Wr | 16 novels being updated, I can't read all comments