Unlike the last time he came to Kabas Town—when he had relied on the Goddess to "substitute fight" in order to enter the deepest layer of the dream in a thrilling and dangerous manner—Ebner's return to this familiar place went extremely smoothly. He soon arrived before the Gothic-style spired church.
However, Ebner did not choose to enter the church. Instead, he circled around the magnificent building, came to the artificial lake at its side, and with a single step walked into the faintly visible "Trial Temple" within the lake.
This temple had originally belonged to the "God of Luck." It had long been hidden in the Sonia Sea until last year, when Yarolan found it and used the spell "Mystical Reappearance—The Vanished Nation of Evernight" to drag it into the depths of this dream.
Ebner had once entered the "projection" of this temple on the fifth floor of the "Dream Labyrinth Tower," so he easily found the entrance passage.
As he had expected, the silver-haired, red-eyed Madam Yarolan was standing at the entrance, waiting for him.
With a smile at the corner of her lips, Yarolan spoke first, "You've finally come here again."
Ebner sized her up a few times. Although he had already learned from her "avatar" that the previous incident in which the Hidden Sage seized the "Knowledge Emperor" had not harmed her, he still asked with concern after a brief exchange of pleasantries:
"After losing the 'Knowledge Emperor,' you didn't run into any problems, did you?"
Hearing this, Yarolan generously displayed herself, allowing Ebner to "Insight" her before replying, "In fact, the situation has improved. Without the 'Knowledge Emperor,' the Hidden Sage no longer stares at me as constantly as before… As long as the issue with 'Cohinem' is resolved and my spirit is completely stabilized, there will be no need for my main body to remain here all the time."
"That's good." Ebner nodded. Since he had long guessed what she wanted to do here, he took the initiative to invite her, "Come in with me. I think Cohinem may already be getting impatient."
"She may not be 'waiting' impatiently…" Yarolan snickered, then stepped forward and hooked her arm through Ebner's, continuing, "I've always wanted to take a look inside your temple, but Roselle bound it together with Cohinem…
"Last time, I entrusted Leticia to undergo the 'trial' because I wanted to reclaim its authority… Unfortunately, Cohinem privately altered the 'password'!"
Her words also stirred up Ebner's memories. After all, during that elven trial, he had almost made a fool of himself because Klein's "response" had been delayed…
The two talked as they entered the temple together and soon arrived at the corridor Ebner was familiar with—deep and seemingly endless.
On one side of the corridor wall were many luminous crystals embedded like small suns, illuminating the entire passage as bright as day. On the other side were vivid, brightly colored murals, connected seamlessly like consecutive film strips, telling ancient stories.
Just as in his experience within the "Dream Labyrinth Tower," the murals in this first corridor recorded the past of the "God of Luck."
From the moment He gained consciousness, He had been a mythical creature. Relying on the favor of "Fate," He continuously avoided powerful monsters across the desolate land, while also hunting creatures whose abilities seemed similar to His own to strengthen Himself.
During that time, even with sufficient "luck," He could not avoid repeatedly falling into madness and had nearly stepped into an enemy's trap because of it.
This situation continued until He encountered the "Elf King" Soniathrym and learned from him the importance of "faith," which finally alleviated His condition.
After that, He was moved by Soniathrym and became His subordinate god…
When Ebner had first seen these scenes, he had found them epic. Now, however, he felt that the "God of Luck" might not have been moved by the "Elf King," but had joined the elves because of the "Elf Queen."
After mocking inwardly for a while, Ebner thought for a moment and asked Yarolan beside him, "Is what's recorded here true?"
"It's true, but not entirely true." Yarolan spoke in a riddle before smiling and adding, "Every elf who participates in the trial can see these murals. Naturally, not everything would be painted here. It must be the side of Him that could be known."
As she spoke, they had already passed through the first corridor. Since there was no need for a trial, they directly entered the second-level corridor.
The murals here depicted the "God of Luck" and the "Queen of Calamity" fleeing in hardship after leaving, as well as their cooperation in separating excess characteristics. The descriptions were vague and generalized—nothing particularly worth noting.
In the final third-level corridor, the murals focused on the process by which the "God of Luck" opened the "God's Box" and was "corrupted" by the aura within.
Of course, the last time he had viewed these murals, Ebner had not known that it was the "God's Box." Moreover, the "God of Luck" had not truly been corrupted. Rather, the backup left behind by "God" had stimulated His "self," allowing Him to initially break free from the control of the "Unknown." Only then had there been the many lifetimes of "Liu Bo" laying out plans.
He hadn't felt much at the time, but looking at these again now, Ebner couldn't help but sigh.
At the same time, he thought inwardly, Perhaps when the Primordial One initially revived within the 'Eternal Blazing Sun,' the reason He desperately hunted down Rhine and then, like a moth to a flame, entered the 'Land of the Unknown,' leaving behind that illusory 'sun' for me, was also a backup arranged by 'God'!
It wasn't impossible. Although the "Unknown" conceptually restrained the "Omniscient and Omnipotent," the latter was still a "Pillar." No matter how highly one estimated Him, it wouldn't be excessive…
Moreover, in this matter, the "Celestial Worthy" might not have refrained from lending "God" a hand.
Once the "Unknown" made a "mistake," it might not escape the sight of "Omniscience."
As his thoughts turned, Ebner and Yarolan passed through all three corridors and arrived at the main hall of the temple.
The arrangement here was identical to the elven palace layout Ebner had seen a few days ago in the ancient dragon's dream. However, the two seats were not arranged one high and one low. Instead, they stood side by side, without distinction of rank.
Upon seeing the two of them enter, Cohinem slowly rose. She scrutinized Yarolan for a few seconds before speaking to Ebner:
"Why did you bring her as well?"
Yarolan rolled her eyes at her and replied with a smile that didn't reach her eyes, "You should understand that the greatest culprit behind my unstable condition is you.
"It is precisely because you have refused to abandon the identity of 'Elf Queen Cohinem' that I, who separated from you, have been unable to achieve true independence…
"Previously, when you asked Roselle to sever your connection with the 'Book of Calamity,' I thought you had made up your mind.
"But after so long, you are still hesitating… Therefore, I believe it is necessary for me to understand your true intentions…
"This concerns whether we will be friends or enemies in the future!"
(End of Chapter)