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Lanevus looked at the documents on the table, a cold glint in his eyes behind the round spectacles, his lips slightly curved upwards, as if mocking everyone.
Looking at the fabric merchant who called himself Sirius Arapis, he collected and organized the documents, then casually asked, "Well done. Have things been settled in Sivellaus County?"
Sirius Arapis, whose face was morbidly pale and who was somewhat sensitive to light, sat in the shadows, responding in a hoarse voice, "Of course, that cost me a lot of pounds. I hope you keep your promise."
Leaning back on the sofa, Lanevus looked out at the Tussock River, saying casually, "These are all necessary expenditures. The more perfect the deception, the more we will gain."
"You yourself know how many pounds it takes for the ritual to pray for the True Creator to bestow an offspring. This method is the quickest."
Looking at the mocking smile on Lanevus's face, a cold light flickered in Sirius Arapis's eyes, but he still lowered his head.
If it weren't for the fact that the other party had the same goal as him, and he had truly felt the aura of the great Lord from him, he would have torn him to shreds for daring to stare at him with such an expression.
"Speaking of Tingen, I do know a powerful individual. As long as we offer him something he finds satisfactory, perhaps our plan will proceed more smoothly."
Looking at this fool brainwashed by the True Creator, Lanevus, who only wanted to quickly get rid of the seed within him, composed his expression and listened with interest for him to continue.
"His name is Hood Eugen. Before we last parted, he was a Spectator Pathway Sequence 8 Telepathist and a member of the secret organization Psychology Alchemists. It's highly likely he has already advanced to Sequence 7 now."
Glancing at the interested Lanevus, Sirius Arapis let out a soft hmph in his heart, then added, "He is an eccentric person, currently at Greenhall Asylum in Tingen. I can introduce you to facilitate cooperation."
Lanevus gently stroked his chest, feeling the growing anomaly in his chest, his expression somewhat gloomy. Finally, he slowly nodded.
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The Church of the Evernight Goddess's prayer hall was as dim as ever, with only faint light seeping through the holes in the walls, like stars at night.
Aaron, after changing his appearance, sat alone in an inconspicuous corner, took off his tall top hat, and began to pray like a devout believer.
He first expressed gratitude for the Evernight Goddess's protection last time, briefly mentioned the Abyss, and simply recounted what the "Orange Light" Hillarion had seen when he entered it.
Towards the end of his prayer, Aaron expressed his concern about gaining the attention of the Earth Mother, which was the appropriate behavior for a normal person unaware of the cooperation between the two deities.
At the same time, he also expressed that he might head to the Church of the Earth Mother next, hoping for guidance from the Goddess, as his primary identity was still a Blessed of Evernight.
This was not only for Aaron's disguise, to show his understanding of some secret knowledge to demonstrate his value, but he also had to feign ignorance regarding secrets he absolutely should not know at this time.
Moreover, compared to most of the twenty-two Pathways, high-Sequence Beyonders of the Planter and Moon Pathways have a significant advantage.
That is, they do not need to worry about the Primordial One awakening within them, nor are they afraid of experiencing "personality splits" when nearing the pollution from the Chaos Sea underground.
The main reason for this is that their Beyonder characteristics do not directly originate from the Primordial One, and there are no corresponding spiritual imprints.
Of course, this does not mean there are no issues. If one directly enters the underground, into the Chaos Sea, anyone will encounter pollution, but the degree and manifestation will differ.
This is also why Lilith, the Sanguine ancestor, was more special than other ancient gods during the second epoch, the dark era when ancient gods ran rampant.
Compared to Ankewelt, who is only a Discerner, or that unfortunate Devil Monarch Farbauti, Lilith is indeed the best-preserved among the ancient gods remaining from the second epoch.
After all, she doesn't need to expend a large portion of her energy to resist the awakening will of the Primordial One, and at that time, the invisible barrier protecting this world was still strong enough to effectively block the Mother Goddess of Depravity and other Outer Deities of the Cosmos, making it difficult for them to exert much influence on the situation inside.
The Sanguine, unhindered by pollution, were also one of the ancient races from the second epoch that remained powerful even without a true god overseeing them, continuing to this day.
However, as time passed, this advantage gradually became a problem.
While the underground pollution became increasingly weak, the invisible barrier also grew more fragile, developing some cracks.
In this situation, the Earth Mother Lilith's predicament became increasingly difficult, as she directly faced the ever-stronger and more terrifying erosion from the Mother Goddess of Depravity.
In terms of system and spiritual erosion alone, the Original Creator, who had split and fallen, certainly could not compare to the still-living Mother Goddess of Depravity.
Aaron speculated that this might be one of the reasons why "Blood Moon Queen" Auernia, the strongest Sanguine at the time, formed a political marriage with Night Emperor Trunsoest in the Fourth Epoch.
After all, the higher the Sequence, the stronger the erosion faced. As a Sequence 1 Beauty Goddess of the Moon Pathway, Auernia faced unimaginable erosion, to the point where she had to seek the protection of a true god.
Considering the influence of Outer Deities beyond Sequence on their respective Pathways, Aaron believed that he absolutely could not be negligent in related matters.
After finishing his prayer, he waited for nearly five minutes, and only after confirming there was no response did he stand up and walk out of the Church of the Evernight Goddess at a steady pace.
For him, this was primarily to fulfill his duty of notification. As for what the Evernight Goddess intended to do, or whether she would remind him of certain things, he had no control whatsoever.
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Northern Continent, Feynapotter Kingdom, Feynapotter City.
Unlike the multi-faith Loen Kingdom, the Feynapotter Kingdom has solely revered the Earth Mother since the Battle of the Violated Oath in the Fifth Epoch.
Under a millennium of faith, most of Feynapotter's populace adheres to the same philosophy:
"Every life is a 'plant,' drawing nourishment from the earth, slowly growing, flourishing, and decaying."
"When they wither, these lives will fall into the earth, returning to Mother's embrace, and in the coming year, they will grow anew, flowers blooming and falling, year after year, and so too is life, generation after generation."
This is also recorded on the first page of the Church of the Earth Mother's holy book, the "Bible of Life."
And due to the division of Lenberg, Masin, and Segar, the Feynapotter Kingdom harbors deep-seated hatred for Loen and Intis. Without external interference, the will of the monarchy and theocracy is highly likely to be unified.
The royal family of the Feynapotter Kingdom is the Castiya Family, who also control the Justiciar Pathway. Aaron, who had not yet become a demigod and could not completely conceal his unique characteristics, could only rely on the concealment provided by the Darkness Mark to prevent the Hand of Order of the Castiya Family from detecting any anomaly. This was another reason why Aaron had prayed to the Evernight Goddess in advance.
Following the guidance of the life mark on his wrist, Aaron stepped out of the Traveler's Door, and his eyes were met with a brilliant golden hue, making Aaron wonder if he had come to the wrong place.
Aaron looked at the continuous expanse of golden churches. If it weren't for the life holy emblem engraved on the outer walls, surrounded by symbols like wheat ears, flowers, and springs, he would have almost thought he had arrived at the Eternal Blazing Sun Church.
Towering trees grew everywhere within the sprawling palace complex, their emerald leaves exuding an endless aura of life, as if a separate inner city had been established within Feynapotter City.
Just as Aaron was observing the Church of the Earth Mother's headquarters, the "Church of Life," pieces of red scales appeared before Aaron without warning, quickly reorganizing into a handsome man wearing the Church of the Earth Mother's archbishop's robe.
Controlling his impulse to attack, Aaron's face twitched slightly after clearly seeing the other party's vivid blood-red eyes and familiar entrance method.
Although he had long known that the Church of the Earth Mother had recruited some Sanguine to serve as missionaries, he truly hadn't expected one of them to be a Sanguine Earl.
Leading Aaron into the sanctuary, the Sanguine Earl sensed Aaron's surprise and chuckled softly, saying gently, "You may call me Archbishop Segura. I was saved by the Church during the great war at the end of the Fourth Epoch. At that time, I was merely a Sanguine Viscount."
"Initially, I only joined the Church of the Earth Mother as a missionary because the Sanguine suffered heavy losses and I sought temporary refuge."
At this point, his voice paused, and a devout, even infatuated, expression appeared on his handsome face:
"Later, I gradually came to appreciate the preciousness of life and the joy of harvest, understood the charm of all things growing, and obtained a pure joy derived from life itself."
"After the Battle of the Violated Oath, I swore an oath before Mother's holy emblem to become her most loyal follower, and thus I achieved the title of Shaman King."
Listening to that peaceful yet emotional voice, Aaron couldn't help but feel a chill. Truly a qualified missionary; to brainwash others, one must first brainwash oneself...
However, this isn't a bad thing; it's a happy accident that he found the main base. In any case, they both believe in the same existence.
Passing through a hall adorned with magnificent murals, various creatures unknown to the outside world frolicked in the life-filled forest. The two finally arrived before an emerald green doorway etched with a giant life holy emblem.
Archbishop Segura smiled and turned to look at Aaron, a drop of crimson blood oozing from his fingertip and flying towards the life holy emblem:
"Blessed, this is the most central part of the entire sanctuary, and also the Church's Pope, where Matriarch Roland holds divine meetings. It requires a drop of your fresh blood to safely bring you in, after all..."
Before he could finish his sentence, the life mark on Aaron's wrist emitted a verdant light, merging into the giant life holy emblem. The ethereal infant hidden within the holy emblem actually materialized and detached from the doorway.
Looking at the slowly opening doorway and the somewhat peculiar-looking infant, Aaron couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. After all, a single drop of blood could do too much in the Beyonder world, and he wouldn't dare to hand over his blood like that, especially when facing the Church of the Earth Mother, who mastered the art of life alchemy.
Archbishop Segura, whose words were interrupted, looked deeply at Aaron twice, then pointed to the strange infant and explained, "That is a creation refined by Matriarch Roland, the Pope, using the Stone of Life and a Puppet demigod from the Rose School of Thought."
"It can both guard the door and serve as a medium for the Pope's power. It will follow us constantly, and as long as you don't do anything strange, there will be no problem."
Aaron nodded, understanding the source of the familiar feeling on the strange infant. He couldn't help but click his tongue slightly. Is this the authority of the Desolate Matriarch?
By the way, the Planter Pathway turns female after Sequence 2 Desolate Matriarch. What was the Church's Pope, Matriarch Roland, before that…
Realizing his thoughts had strayed, Aaron glanced uneasily at Archbishop Segura, who was walking ahead. Seeing that the other party hadn't noticed his abnormality, he couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief, no longer letting his thoughts wander, and began to listen attentively.
"In this world, there are many evil existences. They impersonate deities, deceive clergy, and mislead believers."
"Because our Church of the Earth Mother's two main Pathways are both related to life, we are more severely affected than other churches. From time to time, people go astray, attempt forbidden life experiments, and gradually fall."
Forbidden life experiments?
Aaron, who had just snapped back to attention, couldn't help but think of Frank, whom he had left to his own devices. It seemed that during the last Chaos Council, he had already gathered the main ingredients for Sequence 6 Biologist, moving another step closer to being an "Outer Deity's Son"...
"To curb this trend, we, guided by Mother's will, reorganized the Church very early on and established two major systems: the Favored and the Blesseds."
Archbishop Segura turned to look at Aaron, assuming the strange expression on his face was due to learning such a secret, and nodded with satisfaction, continuing, "Favored refers to clergy within the 'Earth' and 'Moon' Pathways who have received Mother's grace. Blesseds refers to Mother's Blesseds from outside, from other Pathways."
"Even edicts issued by the Pope must be countersigned by at least one Blessed; otherwise, they can be considered invalid."
Saying this, he pointed at Aaron and himself, speaking with a somewhat complex tone, "And you, are a Blessed!"
To avoid an awkward atmosphere, Aaron cooperatively put on an excited and invigorated expression, but muttered in his heart, "If I were to reveal the Darkness Mark on my left wrist, you'd probably be dumbfounded on the spot."
Satisfied, Archbishop Segura withdrew his gaze and stopped, pointing to the strange infant that had been following them, and said with a smile, "The Pope wishes to see you alone. The rest of the way will be guided by it. I will wait for you outside the grand hall."
Before Aaron could react, a pair of cold small hands rested on his shoulders. He instinctively turned his head and met a pair of emerald green, pupil-less eyes.
In his last moment of consciousness, Aaron saw a world that seemed to be filled with blooming flowers, and an indescribable phantom standing in the center of the sea of flowers.
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