Reeve touched the ring on his right hand again, took out a "diamond" the size of an eye and some other mystical materials, then said to Furen:
"Furen, you are the son of Elder Martin. You should have inherited the Beyonder traits your father left behind, but the corruption of the Outer Gods has rendered them monstrously abnormal."
After recovering this characteristic, I discovered that some inanimate objects nearby had… given birth to children? Or something else. If I weren't in the habit of isolating mystical objects from each other, this time the loss would have been catastrophic."
"Eventually, I had to use the 'Staff of Ancestors' to completely destroy this trait. Thus, your beyonder trait of 'Astrologer' disappeared. But you are a member of the Abraham family who aspires to rise and restore glory to our name. Even though you are still weak, I believe you will become powerful. Take this beyonder trait, rise up, and try to restore the glory that belongs to our lineage!"
At this, the corpulent old man almost seems to roar, but he forces himself to contain his voice as he hands the "diamond" to Furen.
Then he turned away, his back to the three Abrahams present, his figure trembling slightly. He then used his ring to make a black staff adorned with jewels appear.
Gradually, his posture strengthened. He tapped his staff twice on the ground. In front of him, two large doors made of blurred lights appeared. Through them, a strange, unreal world could barely be seen.
Reeve turns to Furen and Cersei. "You two go first. Rest assured, I have already used the Staff of Ancestors to conceal your fate from divination. This effect will last for a maximum of one year. If I eliminate the witch posing as my personal servant, then you will probably have nothing to fear. But if I cannot, you will absolutely have to become true Astrologers."
The conditions are extremely harsh… but try to survive."
Furen, without hesitation, headed straight towards the misty, unreal door, as if detached from the world.
Cersei, for her part, seemed to want to say something; her lips moved slightly.
But Amadi, with his usual carelessness, intervened, laughing
"Cersei, don't think running away now is shameful. Saving your life to ensure the Abrahams never disappear is far better than staying here and waiting for the entire family to be wiped out. Even this young man, a mere 'apprentice' that he is, understands better than you. Come on, hurry up."
Cersei, a strong woman, looked at the two elders before her without saying a word. She simply nodded, then, with a determined look, walked towards the door intended for her, without pausing for a single second.
When Furen reached his own door, he turned to take one last look at the three "astrologers" behind him. Seeing that Cersei, finally convinced by the new, somewhat irreverent elder, was moving forward without hesitation, he looked away and stepped through the door of light formed by indescribable colors.
In an instant, Furen entered a world where the three primary colors seemed to have been intensified at times. Red, green, and blue no longer mixed to form other hues. Instead, red was simply red, and even when mixed with other colors, it remained a superposition of red and other colors. The same was true for green and blue.
The laws of the normal world no longer applied here; it was an entirely different universe.
In this space with no top or bottom, no front or back, Furen nevertheless noticed seven rays of light "above" him. His spiritual intuition told him that, even if he tried to reach them, he would never succeed, and yet, he instinctively knew that this was indeed the summit.
He felt an inexplicable certainty that she was there. This chaotic and forced perception made him nauseous, as if drunk and dizzy.
Furen shook his head, closed his eyes, and sought inner guidance. Then, following his intuition, after only three or four steps, he found himself on the roof of his house, a place he hadn't visited in the past two days.
Around him stretched a small pavilion covered with a glass roof, surrounded by easy-to-grow plants and flowers. Even without recent watering, they were still vibrant.
Under the glow of a blood-red moon, these flowers seemed to breathe a strange life. Furen looked up at the scarlet moon, the deep black sky, and the twinkling stars.
He entered the pavilion and sat on the sofa, lost in thought, gazing at the blood moon...
Although he had considered many possibilities, the events of that day had deeply shaken him. He needed to be alone to calm his mind.
Meanwhile, Mr. Reeve, his face grave, stood beside Amadi, whose whole person exuded a mocking nonchalance. The two of them watched Furen and Cersei take turns passing through the Traveler's Gates. When they saw the misty gates slowly dissolve after they passed through, a heavy silence fell between them.
But this silence did not last long: time did not allow them to linger. Reeve said to Amadi
"Come with me."
As they descended to the first floor, Reeve asked:
"Don't you want to know why I didn't let you go?"
Amadi gave a lazy smile:
"You're in a hurry, old man. You think I can't guess your intentions? You know as well as I do that the Witch Cult has surely sent a demigod. You're going to fight to the death, eh? And you want me to help you eliminate a few troublemakers, like this so-called servant. Maybe even take your place as guardian of the Staff of the Ancestors."
Reeve gives him an irritated look.
"You, truly... you are good at everything: your judgment, your talent, your appearance—a true favorite of fate. If only you could be a little more serious, you would have already digested your potion and become an elder long ago."
Amadi gave a nonchalant smile.
"I don't like responsibilities. If the situation weren't so urgent, if your life weren't in danger, even if we became 'astrologers,' I wouldn't have wanted to become an elder. For you, carrying this burden is a blessing. But for me and many others in the family, this title of elder is like a prison; everyone dreads it."
Reeve didn't answer, only stared at him briefly. His calm and serious manner always seemed to dissipate in Amadi's presence. Yet this time, both remained silent for a long time.
On the stairs, lit only by candlelight, their footsteps seemed to rustle, their figures swaying in the candlelight, but with such determination.
"Are you scared?" Reeve asked suddenly as he approached the ground floor.
"Yes... And you?" Amadi replied, his face now serious, in a tone so calm it was becoming disturbing.
"Me, no," Reeve replied.
The candlelight behind him cast its shadow across his face, plunging him completely into darkness; no one could guess his expression.
(End of chapter)