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Ink-green symbols appeared in his eyes as Colin scrutinized Derrick, then waved his hand a moment later, saying, "I understand."
Derrick waited for a while but heard nothing further. Although somewhat disappointed, his objective for this trip had been achieved. After bowing respectfully, he left the Round Tower under the guard's guidance.
While the True Creator was certainly an evil god to the City of Silver, Mr. Fool was, in another sense, also an evil god.
Derrick didn't need to, and couldn't be, too eager. It was enough to give the True Creator a bit of trouble while extending Mr. Fool's goodwill.
The chief would diligently handle the relationship between the two factions, and at the very least, ensure Derrick's safety as long as Mr. Fool didn't endanger the City of Silver.
After Derrick left, the room at the top of the Round Tower became exceptionally quiet. Lightning flashed across the sky outside the window, one after another, pushing Darkness away from this land.
Demon Hunter Colin put away the parchment in his hand, stood with his hands behind his back, looking out at the unchanging Dark world outside the Round Tower. A moment later, he suddenly spoke: "What do you think?"
As soon as his voice fell, in the corner of the room, blackness squirmed and stretched, forming a human shape!
The shadow rapidly climbed, casting a pitch-black projection onto the wall, twisting and swaying. His voice, like metal being scraped, was quite harsh: "Chief, Derrick Berg performed a ritual. According to my observation, it should have been a ritual of requesting a bestowal, very similar to the sacrificial rituals we usually perform. But the difference is, he received a response and was bestowed with a Beyonder potion."
"Therefore, I have reason to suspect that the previous Bard potion and those potion formulas were all obtained this way."
At this point, the shadow urgently pleaded: "Chief, this must have been instigated by that hidden existence. We must take action; we cannot let it continue! Otherwise, Derrick Berg will sooner or later summon an evil god or similar existence, destroying the entire City of Silver!"
There was no change in expression on Colin's deeply lined face. He listened quietly, then fell silent for a few seconds before asking, "Then, what about Lovia?"
Silence filled the surroundings, and only after a moment did an uncertain voice speak: "I cannot judge, but Evphre found no issues before."
Evphre was the most experienced "Psychological Analyst" in the City of Silver, but unfortunately, there were no potion formulas beyond Sequence 7 here.
"Hmm, continue to observe. As long as there is no substantial, sufficient malice displayed for now, our reaction cannot be too drastic."
"If they merely intend to destroy us, even with the protection of the Sealed Artifacts, we are nothing in the eyes of those existences."
"Moreover, do you remember that prophecy?"
"The time of disaster is approaching… The further we explore, the more bizarre ruins we find, and the more dangerous the things we acquire become."
"Wait a little longer. This might hold our hope, the hope of surviving when the Apocalypse disaster arrives!"
As soon as he finished speaking, a bolt of lightning flashed outside the window, illuminating the entire dark sky and the dim room.
Demon Hunter Colin turned around, his weathered eyes looking at the respectfully standing shadow, and added, "I will personally lead the next expedition to the abandoned temple. You go and inform Lovia to prepare; we depart in two days!"
"As you wish, chief." The black shadow slowly receded into the ground and disappeared.
-----------------
East Balam Shipyard Company, sewer pipes.
Blood-colored flesh squirmed wildly on Lanevus's neck, chest, wrists, and ankles, growing one disgusting flesh bud after another, clinging to the surrounding pipe walls like a spider web, binding him tightly, preventing him from moving.
An exceptionally fierce, tall man stared intently at Lanevus on the blood-colored "spider web," and said in a tyrannical tone, "You received the Lord's grace, and you thought you could still escape? Ridiculous!"
After speaking, he looked coldly at the few black-robed figures behind him, suppressing his anger as he said, "You useless lot, take him back and give him a profound lesson. If this happens again, I'll hand all of you over to Mr. A…"
The bodies of several Aurora Order members visibly trembled. They quickly dragged out the vagrant corpses they had prepared earlier, throwing them onto the blood-colored "spider web." After "feeding" him, Lanevus finally returned to normal, no longer distorted.
At this moment, there was not much disappointment on his pale face. He was supported by several Aurora Order members and walked towards the East Balam Shipyard Company, but his eyes looked towards the end of the sewer covered in Darkness, a slight smile playing on his lips.
After the people had completely disappeared, Klein emerged from the corner, looking at the somewhat messy pipes around him. After a moment of thought, he took out Azik's copper whistle from his storage and placed it among several mummified corpses.
Watching the withered Zombies, influenced by Azik's copper whistle, stiffly twisting their bodies into corpses, Klein calmly retrieved the copper whistle. After noting the location, he quickly left.
In a secluded but well-connected alley, Klein, having divined no danger, emerged from his hiding place and walked towards the man wearing a golden mask.
The man was still wearing a black tailcoat, and his light brown eyes swept over Klein as he said coldly, "Charlotte, I remember telling you, this is a place only for emergency contact!"
Sensing the implied displeasure in his words, Klein used his Clown ability to control his facial muscles, revealing an expression of both fear and excitement. He lowered his voice and said, "I saw the person from the portrait you gave me before in the sewers of the East Balam Shipyard Company in the port area."
"He, he was controlling several Zombies, feeding a Monster. I found you immediately after he left."
The man was silent for a moment, then pushed his golden mask. Golden light surged in the depths of his eyes as he used the Beyonder ability of an Interrogator:
"Tell me what you just said again, truthfully!"
Klein immediately felt currents of electricity coursing through his mind, an indescribable sensation filling his heart, as if all his secrets were about to spill out.
Gray-white mist, accompanied by familiar whispers, appeared before his eyes. Klein instantly broke free from this state, but he still pretended to be shaken, stuttering as he repeated what he had just said.
The golden light in his eyes dimmed, and the golden-masked man softened his tone as he said to Klein, "I already know about this matter. Go home and rest tonight; you don't need to worry about the rest."
Seeing that his objective was achieved, Klein nodded, asked no more questions, and walked directly home.
Only after Klein's figure disappeared at the alley entrance did the golden-masked man speak to the Dark place untouched by the crimson moonlight:
"Send two people to follow him. Don't let him discover them. Report any abnormalities to me immediately."
....
West Borough, Beloto Street, MI9.
The masked man had already removed his mask, revealing a slightly weathered middle-aged face. He recounted what Klein had reported, looking somewhat nervously at his current superior, Admiral Pantek, the Deputy Director of MI9, and asked cautiously:
"Our people have already surveyed that place once, and there are indeed residual 'Death' auras." He paused here, "Besides that, there also seems to be an Aurora Order aura. Do we need to…"
Admiral Pantek was a typical Loen old man, with a severely receding hairline. He picked up his white ceramic coffee cup, took a small sip, and interrupted him, "Semir, I don't care if you had any past entanglements with the Aurora Order, but one thing you need to understand: Qonas is dead."
"Since the higher-ups assigned Azik's matter to me, then I am investigating as required, understand?"
Semir felt the pressure, which was almost substantial, and sweat seeped from his forehead. He tightly gripped the golden mask in his hand and replied in a low voice, "Yes, as you wish, Admiral Pantek. I will immediately dispatch personnel."
Admiral Pantek slowly stood up, his golden pupils looking at the crimson moon outside the window, and said faintly, "If Azik is truly there, you won't be able to stop him on your own. I will go with you."
-----------------
Cherwood Borough, Minsk Street, No. 15.
As Klein turned to close the door, he casually glanced at the street. Although those tracking him were also Beyonders, his own Clown sense, far exceeding Sequence 8, had already detected them.
"When Lanevus dies, these watchers will be my best alibi."
With no tension on his face, Klein returned to his bedroom, preparing to patch up the last loopholes in his plan.
Walking four steps counter-clockwise, Klein returned to above the gray fog. Sitting in The Fool's position, he manipulated the "All-Black Eye" to condense "The World," and in a low voice, controlled his alternate account to speak:
"Great Mr. Fool, I wish to ask you to relay to Mr. Emperor that I desire a high-level charm from the Death domain. He may propose the exchange conditions."
He condensed the prayer scene into a ball of light and threw it into the crimson star symbolizing Mr. Emperor. Waving his hand to dismiss "The World," Klein sighed helplessly:
"If I weren't worried that directly contacting Mr. Azik would attract 0-08's attention, why would I bother so much? I hope Mr. Emperor doesn't make too outrageous a request."
......
On the desert soaked in dark blue blood, Aaron looked at Bayer Baile, who was mentally weak but couldn't hide his excitement, and said with a smile, "Congratulations on digesting the Demon Hunter potion. I will help you find the Silver Knight Beyonder characteristic as soon as possible."
Bayer Baile, who had used the incomplete mythical creature form multiple times in a short period, still had large patches of bluish-black skin. Placing the bone sword across his chest, he bowed his head and said firmly, "I wish to become the sharpest sword in the Duke's hand, to eliminate evildoers for you."
Aaron nodded in satisfaction, then took out the Stone of Life to alleviate the erosion of divinity on Bayer Baile's body. The Puppet infant reappeared on Aaron's shoulder, instantly possessing the body of the broken octopus Monster.
The precipitation of the Beyonder characteristic immediately accelerated. In less than a minute, the infant held a heart the size of a normal human head, enveloped in a cerulean liquid, with the sound of wind and thunder echoing for a long time.
Taking it, a tingling sensation immediately came from his palm. Feeling the tyrannical aura contained within the wind and thunder, a smile appeared on Aaron's face. The "Devil Oil Painting," which sealed many demigod creatures, was probably the Abraham family's greatest foundation besides Grade 0 Sealed Artifacts back then, but unfortunately, man proposes, God disposes.
Just as he put away the Cataclysmic Interrer Beyonder characteristic, the prayer scene of "The World" immediately appeared before his eyes. Aaron raised an eyebrow slightly, somewhat surprised that the Tarot Club had just ended, and Klein was so eager to trade charms with him.
Maintaining the isolation of the "Judgement Domain" from the outside world, Aaron instantly returned to the Nation of Disorder. From the pile of sundries, he took out a crystal skull stained with pale yellow grease and wrapped in a black thin tube, which was precisely the Beyonder characteristic left by the Undying who had been lost in the Forsaken Land of the Gods.
A drop of dark green blood flew out, and a strong aura of Death surged from the Beyonder characteristic, mixing with the blood and other spiritual materials to finally form the charm.
After sealing the Undying and the newly acquired Cataclysmic Interrer Beyonder characteristics, Aaron quickly returned to reality with the charm.
-----------------
"Respected Mr. Fool, please convey to 'The World' that I hope he can help me do something that does not violate his own will in the future."
Listening to Mr. Emperor's prayer, Klein held the dark green charm that had just flown out of the "Door of Sacrifice and Bestowal." Without divination, he could feel the strong aura of Death.
Taking a deep breath, Klein returned to his bedroom with the charm, rearranged the ritual, and after summoning and responding to himself, he transformed into a special Spirit Body.
After incorporating Azik's copper whistle and the dark green charm, the surface of the Spirit Body immediately glowed with a dark green hue, as if it had donned a layer of armor.
Based on previous experience, as long as he willed to dismiss the summoning, he could instantly return above the gray fog, regardless of any obstacles. And that high-level charm from the Death domain was the grand gift he was disguising as from Mr. Azik to Lanevus.
Feeling the abundant spirituality, Klein hesitated for a moment. To be safe, he still integrated the Wheel of Fortune card into the Spirit Body, then instantly submerged underground, quickly heading towards the port area along the sewers.
...
The flesh torn open in his chest and abdomen was slowly squirming, but it no longer outlined a hanging figure. Lanevus, his eyes stained crimson, spat out a mouthful of clotted blood, a genuine smile appearing on his face as he muttered mockingly, "I didn't expect it to be MI9. But the final outcome is the same. Without divinity, without the 'sapling,' I'm finally free from Him…"
Low, deranged laughter echoed in the filthy sewer. Lanevus was very familiar with this place. Even though it was pitch black all around, he could run, jump, and turn, quickly escaping deeper into the labyrinthine sewers.
Suddenly, he instinctively stopped and leaned back, using his inherent Dark vision to look ahead. Standing there was a dark green figure radiating an aura of Death.
The moment their gazes met, Lanevus heard a low, ancient Hermes: "Death!"
An irresistible, endless chill swept over him. Lanevus's eyes widened in disbelief, but his consciousness powerlessly detached from his body. In his empty mind, only one question remained: "Who is he?"
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