138 COI
The moment the Post-Apocalyptic Scripture was withdrawn, it began to turn pages on its own, arriving at one of the pages.
On it was a "prophecy" written by Lumian's thoughts: "Lumian Lee will ultimately emerge victorious in this battle, thanks to his exceptional good fortune."
As the mercury-colored text shimmered, the purple- flamed giant bird up in the sky began circling, trailing its long feathers.
It had not yet revealed its complete Mythical Creature form, for if it did, Lumian would not continue "playing" with it, and would immediately summon assistance.
Dark clouds amassed rapidly, looming low over the ground.
In the blink of an eye, a torrential downpour plummeted, as if the sky had split open like a lake.
The deluge quickly formed into a massive water column poured down towards Lumian, but he did not move an inch, simply drawing upon the War Bishop boon's power to become both male and female, with a more androgynous beauty, his chest still pronounced.
The descending downpour slowed down more and more, soon freezing in midair, reflecting the sunlight to reveal a crystalline, translucent appearance.
The layer of ice continued growing upwards from above Lumian, drawing in the abundant rain into its frigid domain, creating an illusion of a rainbow arching across.
With a clattering sound, the subsequent rainfall was blocked by the solid ice sheet, sliding off towards the other areas of Bansy Harbor, combining with the earlier deluge and the already damaged drainage system, rapidly flooding the ruins.
Sheltered by the layers of ice, Lumian calmly surveyed his surroundings, puzzled by the current manifestation of the purple-flamed giant bird's abilities.
This truly has the might of the heavens and earth, if it keeps raining for another two to three hours, combined with the seawater rushing in, the entire Bansy Harbor will be submerged.
But in the realm of angelic combat, this is utterly useless. What Angel would drown in this? And there's ample time to escape the scene…
Unless it keeps raining until the mountainsides collapse, there may be a chance to pose a threat to Angels...
However, this is excellent for slaughtering ordinary people and Low-Sequence Beyonders. Truly befitting the path of war and calamity...
Just as Lumian was pondering this, the purple-flamed giant bird pierced through the thick clouds, extending His head.
Amid the dark clouds, silver-white lightning snakes flashed, converging into a long, lashing bolt.
The lightning struck the crystalline ice, unable to conduct through, shattering and spraying outwards.
Boom!
The thunderous sound reverberated as countless electric snakes plunged into the pooled water of Bansy Harbor, rapidly darting to form a vast silver web covering the entire ruined area.
Crackling sounds rang out endlessly, and Lumian finally understood the purpose of the earlier downpour.
To make the subsequent lightning strikes more destructive and far-reaching!
But Lumian himself stood on dry soil, surrounded by the near-insulating layers of ice, largely unaffected.
In the next moment, new lightning formed, more magnificent and colossal, like a silver-white divine tree connecting the sky and earth.
It struck the thick ice sheet, shattering the barrier as if carrying horrific kinetic energy or releasing stored power, causing an impact.
Rumbling, the thunder waves spread as the terrifying lightning cracked through the layers of frost, reaching the top of Lumian's head.
Lumian's body cracked and shattered, like all fragile mirrors.
Yet his silhouette remained within the area once protected by the ice, still discernible among the collapsed ruins.
Plummeting from the sky, the purple-flamed giant bird spread His burning wings like a meteor, crashing towards Lumian's location.
The nearby rainwater suddenly vaporized, diffusing as mist to welcome the giant bird's descent.
The ground was set ablaze, the remaining walls ignited, and Lumian's body was set on fire.
Boom!
The giant bird struck the ground, kicking up a mushroom cloud of dust.
Lumian's body shattered once more, the original ruins either reduced to ashes or blown away.
At the bottom of the crater formed by the explosion and melting, two bloodstained silhouettes resembling human pulp appeared, slightly dimmer.
Lumian's androgynous figure manifested in the air opposite, his pale blue eyes reflecting the image of the purple-flamed giant bird as he prepared to unleash the Demoness's curse.
The surrounding mist instantly thickened. transforming from scalding steam into true fog of war.
Lumian lost his lock-on, unable to effectively apply the curse.
Immediately after, a tremendous, piercing howl arose, and a horrifying hurricane formed over the sea, sweeping in towering azure waves over 10 meters high towards Bansy Harbor.
A tsunami driven by the hurricane!
Lumian's body was slammed to the ground, shattering.
The remaining building ruins in Bansy Harbor that had managed to retain some height were all flattened, and the purple-flamed giant bird took to the skies, seemingly circling to search for the vanished target.
At that moment, Lumian's silhouette emerged at the bottom of the crater with the two bloodstained human-like imprints, the ashen-white rushing upwards towards the hovering purple-flamed giant bird.
Stones of solidified air fell one by one.
The purple-flamed giant bird suddenly let out a shrill cry.
Lumian's body and mind trembled, as if hearing the incessant drumbeats of an ancient battlefield.
Purple-blue fireballs rapidly materialized in the air, densely packed to block out the sunlight in this area.
They plummeted with a roar, crashing into the advancing ashen-white.
Thunderous explosions rang out ceaselessly, the shattered ashen-white flame statues flung in all directions.
Lumian's created ashen-white kept breaking and retreating, until it finally disintegrated, leaving the remaining purple-blue fireballs to pummel Lumian's body.
This time, the shattered mirror fragments quickly dissolved into liquid.
At this stage of the battle, the good fortune Lumian had gained from the Post-Apocalyptic Scripture had not manifested-neither his attacks on the purple- flamed giant bird, nor the giant bird's strikes on him developed into any unexpected success or failure.
Lumian's silhouette reappeared in an even deeper, larger crater.
The purple-flamed giant bird did not relent, continuing to assault with various Beyonder abilities.
Lumian struggled to endure, relying on his Mirror Substitutions to repeatedly evade fatal blows.
As the entire elevation of Bansy Harbor lowered by several meters, about to be completely subsumed by the azure seawater, Lumian's Mirror Substitution reached its limit.
From then on, he could only afford the death of his real and mirror self.
Circling high above, blocking the sky, the purple- flamed giant bird let out a soul-shaking, chilling cry once more.
He locked onto Lumian's figure, about to plummet like a meteor, carrying His violently burning purple-blue flames.
Almost simultaneously, His body strangely stiffened.
The purple flames on His surface dispersed outwards, the jet-black metal forming His neck stretched impossibly long, as if about to be torn apart by an invisible force.
The purple-flamed giant bird writhed in agony mid-air, the flames continually showering down, adding new blazes to the already raging inferno of Bansy Harbor.
This change was so sudden and bizarre, not caused by any of Lumian's attacks.
Lumian had been on the defensive the entire time, unable to find an opportunity to curse the opponent, and the mystical pathogens he had secretly spread were also succumbing to the indiscriminate purple flames and terrifying heat, unable to propagate and spread.
However, Lumian was not at all surprised by the giant bird's predicament, a distinct smile appearing on his lips.
He watched until the purple-flamed giant bird, driven to madness by the agony, manifested His complete Mythical Creature form.
Lumian averted his gaze.
The fiery giant up above, bearing avian features, seemed to harbor deep, unfathomable knowledge-it materialized phenomena like lightning, hail, and hurricanes, causing the weather in this area to undergo violent changes.
Soon, the fiery giant receded back into the giant purple bird, plummeting earthwards.
Lifting his head, Lumian looked at the giant bird's eyes, fixed with pain and bewilderment, and said with a smile, "Do you know what place you've been attacking this whole time?
"It's the Bansy Harbor telegraph office!"
Pausing for a moment, Lumian took out the fully-burned corpse wax candle from the Traveler's Bag, his smile growing brighter as he said.
"And you are an Angel of the Hunter pathway.
"While I am a bestowed of the two apex powers of Calamity!"
This was why Lumian chose to face the purple-flamed giant bird directly, not seeking assistance from Madam Magician or other Major Arcana card holders, and remained within the fixed area, never fleeing far away.
The Bansy Harbor telegraph office should be a leakage point, connected to a metropolis in the Western Continent, linked to the "malevolent dragon" locked within the ancient well but still able to influence the entire city. Using the corpse wax candle here could grant him a different, more advanced secret deed experience.
In this context, attacking the Bansy Harbor telegraph ruins, assaulting the Lumian who had already extracted the War Bishop boon's power, and being an Angel of the Hunter pathway, then personally crashing into the leakage point, had a significant probability of triggering anomalies and being subjected to unseen influences!
Of course, the anomaly was not a 100% certainty, and the purple-flamed giant bird did not necessarily have to enter the telegraph ruins directly, bombarding it as a flaming meteor. That's why Lumian had used the Post-Apocalyptic Scripture to add sufficient good fortune.
Now, the prophesied outcome had arrived!
Boom!
The purple-flamed giant bird landed nearby, kicking up more dust and flames.
His blazing purple wings folded in, His body gradually shrinking, as if coalescing into a physical form.
Then His final words reached Lumian's ear: "I acknowledge you are qualified. This has nothing to do with Tudor's arrangement."
The purple-flamed giant bird grew smaller and smaller, until only points of light remained. Ultimately, the main body transformed into a palm-sized, crystalline and porous pillar.
The various holes in the pillar contained mists, hall, rainwater, lightning, and other meteorological phenomena, sometimes diffusing outwards. sometimes receding back inside.
The scattered purple feathers and iron bone crystals littered the ground around it.
-x-X-x-
Within the raging inferno of Bansy Harbor, Lumian's smile gradually faded.
A blood-red bulge suddenly rose on his brow, the androgynous hues of his features rapidly fading.
The bulge then retracted, crawling and slithering across his forehead and face, finally descending slowly down his neck, shoulders, and arms, merging with the altered remnants of the Blood Emperor and the War Bishop boon powers through the black pinhole, still covered by the pallid skin from the Underworld Daoist's sealing.
The pinhole expanded slightly, the abysmal, lifeless darkness within seemingly brewing some kind of violent force.
Lumian exhaled slowly, then collected the purple-blue, porous crystal pillar, along with the purple feathers and iron bone crystals, and placed them in a mirror Inside the Traveler's Bag-a temporary sealing measure.
Plop. A raindrop fell on Lumian's hand, leaving a damp feeling.
One drop, two drops, three drops... the raindrops grew more and more numerous, rapidly turning into a downpour.
Influenced by the widespread burning and the residual powers of the Weather Warlock, the sky over Bansy Harbor and the surrounding sea had darkened, producing vast, gloomy clouds, the rain pouring down.
Lumian did not seek shelter or obstruct the rain, allowing it to soak his hood, his hair, his face, his clothes.
As it fell, the rain grew colder, congealing into ice crystals and snowflakes.
Thick, heavy snowflakes drifted over Bansy Harbor, blanketing the scorched earth, collapsed bricks, and other signs of destruction in a pristine white.
Lumian's body was covered in frost and icicles.
He finally composed himself-the help of the higher beings was not easily obtained, even if this was not something he had actively provoked, but brought about by the purple giant bird.
The ice fell away, Lumian's hood and black robe drying rapidly.
He pressed a hand to his chest, thanking Mr. Fool for his gaze, then turned his gaze to the sky.
Beyond the swirling snowflakes, Lumian saw the ever-ready-to-assist Madam Magician.
The renowned author's expression was rather complex, as if seeing her past self, forced to rapidly advance with the abundance of high-level ingredients.
However, she could pause and take an extended rest, later considering whether to ascend to Sequence 1, while Lumian could not-neither he nor the forces driving him here would allow him to stop.
Lumian nodded in greeting, then Teleported back to the luxurious villa in Trier.
Franca and Jenna were pacing in the living room, while Ludwig was enjoying a double-layer cream cake.
"Done?" Franca looked at Lumian, asking excitedly.
"An 'item' that can't reveal its complete Mythical Creature form is nothing to be afraid of. If it really uses its full power, I'll just call for help." Lumian said with a smile.
"Why didn't you just call for help in the first place?" Jenna couldn't understand.
Lumian thought for a moment and explained, "The higher the Sequence in the Hunter pathway, the more courage and boldness one needs. I skipped the Iron-blooded Knight and War Bishop Sequences, without the corresponding Beyonder characteristics to provide a boost. I can no longer retreat, and must face the difficulties, challenge myself.
"This may be the implicit, hidden ritual condition for me to advance to Weather Warlock, or an additional ritual."
Jenna suddenly understood. "For a normal advancement, it is unnecessary for a Beyonder progressing step-by-step along the Hunter pathway to Sequence 3-the previous Sequences have already provided the corresponding enhancements. But a Sequence 3 Demoness wanting to make the jump must not shy away, and be filled with courage?"
"It seems that to switch pathways at the higher Sequences, there are hidden conditions to some degree, stemming from the lack of previous Sequence elements..." Franca also realized.
Then, she asked Lumian with a smile, "Did you rely on the special qualities of the Bansy Harbor telegraph office to defeat that purple phoenix, or rather, the purple giant bird?"
"You figured it out?" Lumian raised an eyebrow at Franca.
Franca chuckled and explained, "What other abilities and items of yours do we not know about?
"A simple analysis can lead to one conclusion: Relying on the Post-Apocalyptic Scripture and the Demoness's traits can only delay things, hoping the purple giant bird would acknowledge your strength, but victory is unlikely. Yet the way you acted clearly showed you achieved the final win.
"Unable to do it alone, yet you didn't call for help, so you must have utilized the environmental conditions."
"You do have some talent when it comes to combat." Lumian smiled, praising her.
He summarized the key points of the battle, the core idea being to, with the target unable to reveal its complete Mythical Creature form, leverage the Demoness pathway's self-preservation abilities to guide the opponent to attack the Bansy Harbor telegraph office as much as possible, while delaying until the anomaly was triggered.
Jenna listened quietly, then asked, "So the core supplementary ingredients are in place-are you planning to advance soon?"
Lumian's Unaging potion had been completely digested in just a short time, thanks to Aurore's special trait.
"Why not?" Lumian understood Jenna's and Franca's concerns, smiling as he said, "Setting aside the matter of reviving Aurore, do you think if I hold back and don't ascend, Alista Tudor's preparations won't erupt? With the apocalypse looming and the situation becoming chaotic, when Mr. Fool and the other true gods are preoccupied, they may seize the opportunity to forcibly help me ascend.
"I have no choice but to advance!"
Lumian's gaze swept over Franca and Jenna, pausing as he continued, "Since that's the case, it's better to take advantage of the relatively stable situation now, while Mr. Fool's awakening has deepened a bit, and advance without external interference.
"With the status and power of an Angel, even if I encounter Alista Tudor's arrangements in the future. I'll at least be able to struggle a bit, buying more time, and perhaps help will arrive."
Franca and Jenna were only expressing their own concerns, not trying to prevent Lumian from becoming an Angel.
Seeing that Lumian had thought it through thoroughly, his analysis of the pros and cons sound, they both nodded, urging Lumian to prepare the ritual and pray to Mr. Fool, asking this great being to help shatter the Beyonder characteristic and remove Alista Tudor's imprint.
Although this might not have much impact on the subsequent arrangements of the Blood Emperor, it would at least reduce a hidden danger.
Lumian did not delay, busying himself in the specially prepared room for the ritual and prayer to Mr. Fool.
After dripping the oil and offering the appeasing sacrament, the purple crystal pillar placed on the altar was suddenly enveloped by the murky darkness emerging from the candle flame, rapidly disintegrating into points of light in various colors-purple, blue, white, red.
These light points, as they settled and coalesced, released threads of frenzied aura, occasionally condensing into distorted faces or emitting terrifying roars, until finally dissipating.
The reconstituted purple crystal pillar appeared purer.
"Praise be to you, Mr. Fool!" Lumian pressed a hand to his chest, bowing.
After putting away the Weather Warlock Beyonder characteristic and dispelling the wall of spirituality, Franca asked concernedly.
"How do you plan to complete the ritual?"
"I have a clever plan," Lumian replied with a smile.
Jenna then asked curiously, "Based on the books you've been reading these past few months?"
Lumian scratched his face, chuckling self- deprecatingly, "That was my original plan, and I had corresponding arrangements. But after factoring in my own Beyonder abilities, I found that a Demoness of Unaging, who was once a Reaper, has a simpler and more effective handling method.
"Perhaps the truth of the Calamity pathways is that one must transfer back and forth, to get closer to the apex existences. So those who keep switching can take shortcuts when it comes to the ritual."
"What method?" Franca asked curiously.
Lumian chuckled. "I'll tell you after I succeed. If I say it now and then fail, won't you mock me forever?"
"Do you think you won't be mocked even like this?" Franca and Jenna chorused.
On this topic, the three exchanged playful banter for a while.
As the laughter faded, Jenna asked, "When will you perform the ritual?"
Lumian responded with a smile, "First, I need to gather the remaining ingredients. Then, I'll wait for a typhoon or hurricane."
The countries of the Northern Continent typically referred to such extreme weather as hurricanes, while the Intisians, influenced by Emperor Roselle, often called them typhoons.
…
In a thunderstorm.
The residents staying indoors watched as a silver-white lightning bolt struck the treetops, knocking down the people taking shelter under the trees.
Boom, boom, boom. One lightning strike after another rampaged, even those in safe places shivering.
After a while, some residents saw a figure next to the charred, smoking trees.
The figure was cloaked in black, hooded, like the legendary witch.
She took a blackened tree branch, causing dark red drops of blood to fly out from the fallen corpses.
A witch indeed! The witnessing residents frightened, retreating from the window area.
…
In the southern part of the Haagenti Kingdom.
The first snowfall of the year came in an exaggerated fashion, killing many livestock and piling up snow in front of people's homes, blocking the doors.
The people inside, struggling against the bitter cold, suddenly saw a hooded figure in black robes, seemingly a witch, walking on the snow-blanketed ground, heading towards the bridge underpass.
There were several frozen-to-death vagrants there.
…
The heat-induced drought had left many humans dehydrated, some unfortunately dying, their bodies dragged to the street.
A tall, hooded woman dressed as a sorceress approached, stopping in front of a freshly deceased corpse.
The surrounding people fled in fear.
…
The Feynapotter Kingdom, on the Berserk Sea coast.
Many experienced fishermen and captains began returning their ships to the harbor.
The sky in the distance had somehow turned gloomy, the waves surging in.
The wind had picked up.
-x-X-x-
Ooo!
The howling winds rampaged, slamming the windows and doors, the trees trembling and their branches bending to one side.
The residents along the Berserk Sea coast had rich experience dealing with hurricane weather—they had all tightly shut their doors and windows, crossed tape over them, and taken shelter away from the balconies and doors.
Yet, despite this, as they heard the roaring, shrill winds outside and felt their houses shuddering, they couldn't help but feel anxious and afraid. The vagrants had taken refuge in the cathedrals or poorhouses.
Amid the towering, crashing waves that sometimes reached the sky, the hooded, black-robed figure of Lumian could be seen.
His clothes were flapping loudly, his hood nearly blowing off.
Without the ability to fly or levitate, he surveyed the layered cloud walls surrounding the typhoon's eye, unable to find the final coordinates of the spiritual realm in the chaotic environment—he could only go where his eyes led.
Then, he activated the black mark on his right shoulder and Teleported into the heart of the typhoon.
Simultaneously, the water droplets violently swirling in the area he had just left rapidly condensed into ice, the temperature plummeting.
In the typhoon's core, Lumian's figure barely materialized before the gale-driven waves, roaring like a speeding steam train, crashed into him ferociously.
Lumian was blown away, but he Teleported deeper into the typhoon, again relying on the "see and take" method in this gloomy, apocalyptic environment.
Wherever he went, the rain froze into a thick layer of ice.
After a few such jumps, he finally reached his destination—the typhoon's eye!
The howling winds seemed to vanish, and the high altitude even revealed a clear, azure sky.
Lumian didn't have time to admire this special place. His pale blue eyes suddenly turned a deep, iron black.
As he plummeted, he quickly observed the surrounding cloud walls and the core structure of the typhoon.
Weakness Investigation!
A typhoon had weaknesses too!
In just a few seconds, the falling Lumian spotted several large, pallid areas.
The typhoon's weak points weren't just one.
Lumian Teleported again, arriving near the largest pallid spot, looking down on it from above.
At this point, if he were a pure Sequence 3 Hunter, completing the next steps would be quite difficult, even if he could skillfully use explosives and Cull—by targeting the weak points and disrupting the core structure, the typhoon might not necessarily dissipate, but could instead reorganize and strengthen, and the weather wouldn't change in the short term.
But for a Demoness of Unaging, why use such a brutal method? Besides, the effect might not even be good.
As Lumian continued falling, he took out a mirror, reflecting the pallid area above the cloud walls and hurricane.
This wasn't to curse the weak point and complete the Cull, of course—a Demoness's curses couldn't target soulless objects.
What Lumian wanted to do was forcibly transfer the typhoon's weak points and structural flaws into the mirror world.
This was also a form of destruction, and it could be repeated multiple times quickly.
Lumian raised his right hand, rapidly brushing across the mirror's surface as he fell.
A crack sounded—the makeup mirror seemed to be unable to withstand the strain, about to shatter.
Lumian unhesitatingly poured in a large amount of spirituality, forcibly dragging that cloud wall and hurricane area into the mirror world.
With that section suddenly gone, cracks spread across the mirror in Lumian's hand.
Simultaneously, the typhoon's core structure began to disintegrate, the cloud walls dissipating piece by piece.
Lumian used Teleportation and the ability to drag things into the mirror world to continue destroying other structural weak points, not giving the typhoon a chance to reorganize.
In the end, more and more of the cloud walls and the hurricane were pulled into the mirror world.
On the coastline nearest to the typhoon, some people observing the sea from their rooms suddenly noticed the winds dying down and the waves subsiding.
In the distance, the surrounding clouds and fierce winds were pouring into a funnel, an impressive sight.
As the onlookers blinked, they found that another section of the hurricane-swept clouds had mysteriously vanished.
Piece by piece, they disappeared.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Some mirrors in their room abruptly shattered, with a gust of wind blowing out, but not particularly strong.
These were the random remnant winds that had escaped the mirror world after a long journey.
After another dozen seconds or so, the sky in the affected area gradually cleared.
Gazing at the cloudless, azure sky, Lumian plummeted rapidly toward the sea surface.
With a Teleport, he appeared directly over the sapphire waters, a thick sheet of ice forming beneath his feet.
Under the deft pull of invisible spider silk, the violet-blue crystal pillar, violet feathers, iron bone crystals, blood of varying shades, charred tree branches, and seemingly unremarkable clear water all flew out of the Traveler's Bag, leaving their original containers to converge in a glass cup.
Silently, the slightly violet liquid that formed ignited, melting the glass and dripping downward.
Cupping the burning liquid, Lumian brought it to his lips and drank.
His entire being, including his mirror self, was instantly set ablaze.
Rumble!
Dense, dark clouds gathered in the sky, real lightning and hail coalescing and drawn to Lumian's state, striking him.
At this moment, the spirit world's information of this area had not yet fully changed, still partially corresponding to the typhoon. There was a rapid influx of information of Lumian relying on his own abilities to change the weather, creating an extremely strong connection between him, this area, and the corresponding spirit world.
Rumble!
Lightning struck, sharp hail pelted down—various extreme weather phenomena assaulted the still-burning Lumian in small bursts, tearing and ravaging him.
Lumian felt excruciating pain in body, mind, and spirit, his thoughts growing increasingly hazy, as if about to dissipate into this area, this spirit world.
This area, this spirit world, resisted the fusion of Lumian's spirit and consciousness, because he was the destroyer, the changer—he would inevitably be rejected in the short term.
At this moment, Lumian's blurred mind heard voices—Aurore's, Franca's, Jenna's, and countless other anchors.
His body tore apart, shattered, turning to ash, including his mirror self and the him slumbering within the mirror.
The next moment, a wavering, violet-tinged blue flame ignited amidst the remnant ashes.
This flame rapidly expanded and intensified, forging within it black iron bones, an indescribable tangle of complex symbols and patterns.
They gradually formed a towering, five-to-six-meter figure, like the legendary fire giant come to life.
Immediately, Lumian's face coalesced, its iron-black hue gleaming with a metallic luster, yet still clearly handsome and masculine in appearance.
Blood-red hair also sprouted, each strand as thick as a python, some rotating black-and-white eyeballs at the top, others opening jaws with venomous fangs.
A complete Mythical Creature form!
A Mythical Creature form blended with Demoness traits!
In this moment, Lumian dimly sensed the banner-like 0-01 and the massive, shrouded black shadow lurking in the ancient well—existences closely connected to him, at the pinnacles of the pathways, the former relatively clearer, the latter extremely hazy, as if cloaked in layers of gray fog.
Additionally, three more gazes were cast upon him from afar, but he couldn't discern who they belonged to or where they came from.
This hallucination-like sensing vanished in an instant, and Lumian's body rapidly shrank, the violet-tinged blue flames on its surface dissipating.
A second later, he returned to a human male form, exuding a powerful, masculine aura.
Over two meters tall, bronze-skinned, his muscles were not only vivid and full of explosive strength, but also flowing in graceful lines, like the finest sculptural masterpiece.
His features had become even more handsome and sharp, his pale blue eyes deepening slightly, the refined details softening some of the aggressive edge.
Lumian turned his gaze forward—the sea had already frozen into a thick, crystalline sheet, the azure currents visible raging beneath.
The Traveler's Bag was in the distance, beyond the ice layer, or else even the one specially made by Mr. Fool would have been damaged in the previous blazing inferno and calamitous weather.
With an invisible spider silk tug, the Traveler's Bag flew back into Lumian's hand. He took out a change of clothes, awkwardly putting them on, as if an adult trying to squeeze into a child's garments.
His figure then vanished, leaving only scattered broken ice floes.
…
In a drought-stricken hot area, the onlookers, fearful yet curious, watched from a distance as the witch took the dead's blood, some believers even going to find a priest.
Suddenly, a dull thunder rumbled.
They instinctively looked up, finding the sky had somehow become heavily overcast.
Plop!
A raindrop splashed on the cracked lips of one of the observers.
He exclaimed joyfully, raising his hands, "It's raining, it's going to rain!"
…
In the southern Haagenti Kingdom, the residents worried about the snowstorm continuing to the point of collapsing their roofs considered braving the risks to clear some of it.
Just then, they saw rays of clear sunlight shining through the windows, into the house.
Wh— The residents rushed to the window, looking outside.
The lead-gray clouds dominating the sky had all dissipated, the not-so-warm sun shining upon the land once more.
The thick, fluffy snowflakes falling from mid-air gradually grew smaller, until they disappeared.
…
Rumble!
In a thunderstorm, few dared to go out, the children huddling fearfully beside their parents, unable to sleep.
Their parents worried about subsequent heavy rain and flooding.
Amid these emotions, they suddenly realized the lightning had stopped flashing across the sky for some time, the rumbling thunder vanished.
…
Trier, inside the luxurious villa, a swirl of violet-tinged blue flames coalesced before Franca, Jenna, Anthony, and Ludwig, forming the tall, handsome Lumian.
"You've grown taller again…" Franca looked up, studying him for a few seconds.
-x-X-x-
Lumian shrugged his shoulders. "This is the result of my best efforts to compress it."
Of course, if he didn't consider body balance, he could shrink down to 1.9 meters, as he was essentially a Mythical Creature now.
Jenna said with a suppressed smile, "Let's get you changed into some proper clothes first."
The way he looked now was really awkward, giving the impression of intentionally wearing undersized clothing to perform as a clown.
After Franca used the mirror world to go to the New City of Silver and buy clothes suitable for Lumian's current stature, and had him change into them, the group took their seats.
Franca looked at Lumian's face and muttered, "Oh no, he's too handsome… I'm starting to feel a bit… flustered."
Jenna did not speak, but her gaze seemed to echo Franca's words. The experienced Anthony didn't show any obvious reaction.
Lumian leaned back on the sofa. "This change is the result of the Demoness of Unaging and the Weather Warlock's charms merging.
"A normal Sequence 2 Beyonder in the Hunter path mainly possess a charisma that makes people want to follow and be loyal to them, and may cause women to develop feelings of admiration, but there is no active Charm. Now, it's not just admiration, and not just towards the opposite sex.
"Hmm, as long as I don't use Charm, it's still somewhat controllable."
"Ooh." Franca looked curious. "What abilities and traits does the Weather Warlock have?"
Lumian considered carefully before saying, "This Beyonder characteristic contains Sequence 9 to Sequence 2. The abilities I was missing before, like the Iron-blooded Knight and the War Bishop, have now been filled.
"I'm always full of courage and won't be significantly affected by emotions like fear and terror, but I'm not reckless or blind because of it. In fact, I still feel fear and terror, it's just that my courage overcomes them."
"The Sword of Courage is the extreme version." Franca nodded in understanding.
Lumian took out the iron-black longsword from the Traveler's Bag and tossed it to Franca.
"It's no longer of much use to me. Between you and Jenna, use it if need be."
Franca caught it and gave a simple "Mm".
Then, as she was putting the Sword of Courage back into the Traveler's Bag, she stood up and walked towards Lumian and Jenna.
After stowing the Sword of Courage, she suddenly found herself awkwardly standing in the middle of the living room.
After a brief silence, she chuckled nervously at Lumian. "This sword has given me the courage to beat you up."
Lumian scoffed, dividing the bundle of longswords used to seal the Sword of Courage into two parts, and using invisible spider silk to pass one part to Jenna and one to Franca.
He continued thoughtfully, "I can also galvanize and flame my body.
"At the Sequence 2 level, the former is no longer just ordinary steel, but closer to the symbolism of 'steel', able to withstand attacks that would normally destroy or melt real steel. The latter allows me to disperse into multiple flames, each of which I can control precisely, then coalesce back into my body. Even if most of the dispersed flames are extinguished by the enemy, it doesn't affect the integrity of my physical form, it just weakens my vitality and spirituality proportionally.
"The Angelic-level flame transformation can also turn me into a stream of flame, a huge flaming spear, and a terrifying flaming meteor to attack enemies or travel quickly. Combined with hurricane-like winds, I can reach speeds over 4,000-5,000 kilometers per hour. And once the magic potion is fully digested, I can enhance it further.
"The most powerful flames controlled by the Iron-blooded Knight and the War Bishop are azure, but the Iron-blooded Knight is not pure in this regard, having a tinge of dazzling white. At the angelic level, the flames become violet, the Weather Warlock's are a violet-tinged azure to an azure-tinged violet, the specific hue depending on the digestion of the potion. In the subsequent Sequence 1, the flames should be a pure violet.
"Hmm, if I borrow the power of 0-01, the violet will become paler and more transparent. If I draw on the force from the depths of the ancient well, the violet will be tinged with a deep red, not the scarlet of a Pyromaniac, but a blood-red hue.
"My control over the flames has also greatly improved. Compared to before, I can now cover a battlefield of tens of kilometers, directly raining down Meteor Shower, or summoning flocks of Fire Ravens.
"The explosive power of compressed fireballs now far surpasses that of a fleet's main guns… by quite a margin.
"The Iron-blooded Knight can establish a mystical connection with their team, concentrating the entire group's strength on themselves, and sharing their teammates' vision, distributing the damage they receive. However, this concentration only applies to power and spirituality, not the Beyonder powers of the members.
"At the War Bishop stage, not only can they use the Beyonder powers of team members within a 3km range, but they can also share their own abilities and power with them.
"In this regard, a Weather Warlock's range is 10km, and there is no longer a restriction on sharing abilities. Simply put, while a War Bishop can only let one member use their ability at a time after sharing it, a Weather Warlock can allow every team member to use it simultaneously, lending them the corresponding spirituality. Of course, the team's overall spirituality doesn't increase.
"From the War Bishop stage onwards, the team's mental resonance becomes direct telepathy, and the War Bishop can selectively shield and modify certain information in the communication.
"A War Bishop can also create Fog of War, significantly reducing the visual range, hearing, and smell of all living beings within, and enveloping the corresponding spirit world as well, suppressing the interaction between spirit entities and the spirit world, dulling spiritual warnings and intuitions.
"At the Weather Warlock level, the Fog of War range initially expands to 20km, continuing to increase as the potion is digested. Additionally, the Fog of War will also have the ability to interfere with outside divination and prophecy.
"At even higher levels, it may affect the astral world.
"Within the Fog of War, I am unaffected by anything. This trait can be shared with team members after becoming a Weather Warlock.
"A War Bishop also has abilities like War Cry and War Song that can be used to boost the team's morale, temporarily enhance strength, influence the enemy's mentality, and suppress the target's performance.
"After offering sufficient sacrifices, each War Bishop can petition the essence of war or the symbolic 'war' for assistance once per battle, while a Weather Warlock can do so every seven days."
Hearing this, Franca clicked her tongue. "It's practically a war machine, a scythe reaping lives."
"That's why the true god of this path is titled things like God of War and 'War Overlord'," Lumian replied with a smile.
He then said, "A Weather Warlock has the partial authority to change regional weather and create extreme weather conditions, such as thunderstorms, hurricanes, heavy rain, hail, blizzards, and dense fog. I call this Weather Manipulation."
"In the Western Continent, it might be called 'to call the wind and summon the rain'—being completely influential! No, that doesn't cover it comprehensively enough," Franca said excitedly.
Lumian gave a sound of agreement.
"A Weather Warlock mainly controls the weather, while things like meteors, tsunamis, and earthquakes are not under our purview, though some can be indirectly induced, like using a hurricane to trigger a tsunami.
"My Weakness Investigation has also been enhanced. The targets I see will be in the overall sense, including substitutes, avatars, and manifestations. Then I can find the weak points in this whole. If combined with Cull and Mighty Blow, and the target doesn't have enough substitutes or avatars, I can wipe them all out at once. Even Demonesses can't withstand a few such Culls."
"Sounds like it's aimed at Demonesses…" Franca muttered.
"Is that how the neighboring paths are?" Jenna said thoughtfully.
With a nod, Lumian said, "My weapons will be extensions of my body. Ordinary objects can serve this role, they'll just be destroyed afterward.
"There are corresponding qualitative changes in strength, stamina, spirituality, intuition, tracking, and target pursuit. I can also fly by the wind and levitate in the air."
At this, Lumian smiled. "And the last thing is that I've reverted to a male."
Jenna's eyes moved slightly, and she muttered, "What about the fusion of Hunter and Demoness abilities?"
Sitting in the armchair, Lumian raised his right hand, a black flame of madness and destruction igniting in his palm.
Immediately, he stretched the black flame into a deep, oppressive flaming greatsword.
Seeing this black flaming greatsword, Franca, Jenna, and Anthony all had their hair stand on end, their bodies growing cold, as if the apocalypse had arrived prematurely.
The eating Ludwig instinctively scooted two spaces further into the other end of the sofa. "If I ever encounter a spatial seal again, I can directly cleave a fissure in the barrier with the Sword of Destruction, without needing to do any further attacks," Lumian flicked his wrist, causing the quietly burning black flaming greatsword to dissipate.
He continued, "I can also 'insert' extreme weather or lethal attacks into mirrors, guiding them through the mirror world to precisely target locations, attacking people and environments outside the mirrors.
"Oh, and as long as the title conditions are met, I can respond to prayers worldwide.
"Hmm, I can also hide Petrification powers within fireballs. After they explode, the effect is released, affecting the surroundings, without needing to spread it inch by inch.
"My mystical pathogens are more heat-resistant now and can spread through rain, gales, and snowflakes, influencing a large area in the shortest time, breaking the limitations of my own abilities.
"My Mythical Creature form, aside from igniting those who witness or approach me and creating various weather phenomena, can also petrify them, induce extreme euphoria, immediately sicken them, curse them, or make them deeply infatuated with me…"
After describing his abilities, Lumian concluded, "If I don't suppress and restrain my psyche, the weather in the areas I'm in will gradually become more volatile and extreme, and the likelihood of war or massacre events occurring will continually increase."
Listening to Lumian's account, the word that flashed through the minds of Franca and the others was: "Calamity."
Disasters of all kinds, both natural and man-made.
-x-X-x-
After a while, Jenna recalled Lumian's previous introduction. "At the angelic level, do you still have to fly to get around?"
"Each pathway is different. At least the Hunter pathway doesn't have those more mystical methods. By Sequence 1, maybe my speed will let me fly out of the current planet, or even faster." Lumian thought for a bit. "Actually, I can already use the explosive force of flames to continually accelerate, reaching a terrifying speed, but my body would be unable to withstand it long before then."
"A human rocket, huh…" Franca joked.
Lumian continued, "I can also directly descend through the prayers of believers, and enter the spirit world without relying on other abilities, but I can't discern directions or complete the pinpointing, I can only go to the markers I've already set up in the real world."
"I see… So the higher-level Hunters rely on their team members to gain diverse capabilities." Franca was quite satisfied with acquiring this knowledge.
Lumian nodded slightly with a smile. "Yes."
As he spoke, his azure eyes vertically slit, tinged with gold.
Seeing this, Anthony sat up a little straighter unconsciously.
Lumian then explained, "Now, you are all my team members, within a 10km range.
"I can use your Beyonder powers without your consent, but you need my permission to use mine."
"Just like that, we're team members?" Franca blurted out in surprise, "No ritual needed?"
"With mental resonance, and no subconscious resistance within the range, you can be integrated into my team," Lumian's voice sounded in the minds of Franca, Jenna, Anthony, and Ludwig, without his mouth moving.
"Then can't I also get a taste of being an Angel? Borrowing your Beyonder abilities and traits…" Franca's excited remark was suddenly cut off.
She realized something.
The fact that Sequence 2 Hunters must be male was also considered a trait.
Lumian saw through her thoughts and chuckled. "The self-modification during advancement cannot be shared, just like you can't use my Mythical Creature form."
"Alright…" Franca felt a bit disappointed.
She then inquired, "You mentioned before that when you transfer back to the Hunter pathway, being closer to the subject of the secret deed ritual, you should be able to complete the secret deed without needing the corpse wax candle, performing a ritual, or being in a special environment. Is that the case now?"
"Yes," Lumian nodded. "This is combined with the ability to petition the essence of war or the 'war' symbolism, and has been further refined:
"Ordinary Weather Warlocks can do this once a week, I can do it once a day. The real limit is my body and mind, not the frequency.
"Also, ordinary Weather Warlocks only get corresponding, somewhat distorted assistance when they petition, but I can also gain secret deed experiences. How deep the secret deed can be depends on whether I'm petitioning 0-01 or the dark presence in the ancient well, and what I'm petitioning for, as well as the state of the secret deed subject.
"Mm, other Weather Warlocks need to prepare sacrifices and perform rituals to petition, I don't. Of course, having sacrifices would yield better results, and always skipping them might anger the secret deed subject."
"So powerful… Is this the true value of a War Proxy, a Son of Calamity?" Franca hissed in awe.
"All prices have already been exacted for what fate bestowed. I just haven't reached the point where I must pay yet," Lumian responded calmly.
At that moment, a voice suddenly sounded in everyone's minds: "I'm so hungry!"
Instantly, Lumian and the others turned their gaze towards Ludwig.
"I'll take him to the sea." Lumian stood up.
Franca pondered for a moment and asked, "While you're at it, bring some food for the Face of the Arcane."
Lowering her voice so Ludwig couldn't hear, she continued, "Can you block Ludwig out of the mental channel, only lifting it if there's an emergency? Otherwise, we'll never get a good night's sleep, hearing 'I'm so hungry, I'm really hungry' every little while."
"Okay," Lumian also felt this was a problem.
When Lumian returned with a well-fed Ludwig from the sea, Jenna was the only one left in the living room.
"Where are the others?" Lumian asked casually.
Sitting on the sofa, Jenna smiled and said, "Franca is continuing to work on the kind of robot she wants, and you know how Anthony has been busy lately, digesting the Manipulator potion and searching for clues about the hidden cults.
"I was also planning to contact the bishops, have some of them go to other provinces, other regions, even other countries, to preach in remote villages where the Churches' presence is weak. Now that you can respond to prayers worldwide as an Angel, we need more believers, it's time to expand our evangelism, but…"
"But what?" Lumian asked.
Jenna stood up. "You haven't designed a qualifying title yet.
"Additionally…"
Jenna eyed Lumian's face with her shimmering blue eyes.
"I feel like you're not very happy after your advancement, your mood has been low."
Smiling, Lumian replied, "Actually, I'm very happy. Becoming an Angel means I'm substantially closer to reviving Aurore, and I have stronger power to protect those I want to protect. And the latent problems will most likely erupt before the apocalypse, without needing to worry about interference from most evil gods.
Pausing momentarily, he added, "It's mainly that just after the advancement, with my godhood enhanced, my condition is unstable, and I have to devote a large part of my energy to maintaining and suppressing it, so my everyday demeanor will naturally be more muted.
"After some time, when I've adapted and begun to digest it, I'll be a lot more normal."
Jenna pursed her lips and nodded slightly. "I see."
She was silent for two seconds, then suddenly walked up to Lumian.
She stopped in front of him, spreading her arms and her face blooming with a clear smile.
Then, she proactively hugged Lumian, her voice coming from the embrace.
"Long time no see, Lumian Lee."
Lumian slowly raised his hands and hugged Jenna back.
His expression gradually softened, and his body seemed to relax a bit as well.
After hugging for a while, Jenna and Lumian suddenly felt something was off.
They straightened up and turned their gaze to the side.
Ludwig was eating a lollipop, looking slightly puzzled at them.
"I'll go contact the bishops and have them prepare to preach in other regions." Jenna gestured towards a room on the first floor.
That was the exclusive papal office, which the two "deities" did not have.
"I also need to pray to Mr. Fool. He gave me a revelation just as I completed my advancement, telling me to go above the gray fog after stabilizing my condition." Lumian nodded in response. "There should be something I can understand at the angelic level."
Separating from Jenna and heading upstairs, Lumian heard clanging sounds coming from the end of the second-floor hallway.
He went over and found Franca's workshop door slightly ajar, making quite a commotion.
Pushing open the door, Lumian saw Franca with the left side of her face covered by a mask made of rivets, springs, gears, and various mechanical parts, trying to assemble a mechanical arm.
She had already invented her fully automatic healing machine, and in the process, she had also created her own unique mystical pathogen.
Now, the machine she had infused with soul fragments and brought to life using the Face of the Arcane had been moved to the mirror world, staying with her mirrored self, fully automatically responding—this required no further operation from the her mirrored self, just categorizing the requests, as it was a truly autonomous machine with living properties and basic intelligence.
Franca stood up, removing the Face of the Arcane, and came to the door, jokingly handing it to Lumian, "It's Master Arcane's mealtime."
Lumian took out a mirror and put the Face of the Arcane into it.
Behind the mirror, there was seawater and a large number of marine creatures.
Franca looked down the hallway and asked, "Where's Jenna?"
"She went to assign the bishops to preach in other regions," Lumian briefly answered.
"Oh, it's time to preach in other regions," Franca replied and then fell silent.
Looking at her, Lumian suddenly smiled and said, "You said before that you occasionally still want to see Lumian Lee, to hug Lumian Lee, right?
"Now you can hug him."
"…" Franca was suddenly dumbfounded.
Me saying it is fine; but you saying it?
Shameless!
She snorted a couple of times, but still stepped forward and hugged Lumian, muttering,
"I'm starting to miss Lumina and Aurore…"
Pausing for a moment, she then said in a muffled voice,
"Welcome back, Lumian Lee."
Lumian returned Franca's hug, embracing her in silence.
After a while, Lumian released his arms. "I need to go above the gray fog."
He took the well-fed Face of the Arcane out from behind the mirror.
"Mm-hmm, I'll keep going, I'm sure I can make it!" Franca excitedly took back the Face of the Arcane.
…
Above the gray fog, within the majestic palace.
Lumian's figure appeared by the bronze long table, seeing only Mr. Fool and Madam Magician present.
As expected, the upcoming topic is something only Angels can engage with… Lumian stood up and greeted Mr. Fool.
Ma'am Hermit and Madam Judgment were still unable to become Angels due to the level of their potion digestion and the required rituals.
Sitting at the head of the bronze long table, Mr. Fool looked at Lumian and asked in a gentle voice, "How are you feeling now?"
Lumian didn't hold back any information.
"I'm full of the urge to kill and destroy, and also have a strong desire for copulation, especially towards the Demonesses, wanting to merge with them body and mind, until I devour and swallow them, truly becoming one. Additionally, I also want to conquer everything around me."
Mr. Fool nodded slightly and said, "This is the manifestation of godhood."
Madam Magician sitting diagonally opposite Lumian quickly asked, "Mr. Fool, can you explain the difference between godhood and humanity in more detail? I'm not too clear on it myself."
She didn't have this dilemma before, and Mr. Fool hadn't specifically discussed it. By the time she became an Angel, Mr. Fool had already entered his slumber, unable to answer her questions.
Enveloped by the gray fog, Mr. Fool glanced at The Chariot Lumian and The Magician Fors and said, "Okay."
-x-X-x-
Mr. Fool tapped the edge of the bronze table a few times with his finger.
"To understand the difference between godhood and humanity, we must first understand what godhood is and what humanity is.
"What is godhood?"
Hearing Mr. Fool's question, Madam Magician contemplatively answered, "The godhood of 'all things possess godhood'?"
"A crazed, chaotic spirit filled with destructive desires?" Lumian also tried to answer, based on his own situation.
Mr. Fool let out a chuckle. "This can be divided into true godhood, apparent godhood, and the vague conception of godhood that many people have.
"True godhood naturally comes from true deities. In a narrow sense, only the Oldest One-the original Creator, the different personas split from Him. His direct offspring, and the first beings nurtured by the Great Mother can be called gods.
"The indestructible spirit left in their sefirot and corresponding Beyonder characteristics is the godhood that every later arrival must contend with- the essential godhood."
Sefirot... Split-off different personas... Lumian had too many questions he wanted to ask, but ultimately chose the most important one at that moment.
"The godhood that we who have consumed potions and advanced on the path of the divine must contend with is the indestructible, indelible spirit left in the Beyonder characteristics by the original Creator?"
For most 'paths of the divine', that is the case, at least for you, for her, and for me too." Mr. Fool glanced at Madam Magician, his words tinged with a touch of amusement, "But not entirely."
Without giving The Chariot Lumian and The Magician Fors a chance to ask further questions, the Mr. Fool enveloped in gray fog said with a touch of sentiment, "The original Creator is the collective of all. He is crazy, but also rational; He is confused, but also lucid. He created everything, and He destroyed everything. He loves all things, and He also hates all things. He has the most intense of all desires, yet He is indifferent and unaffected by anything. All His actions are random, even He Himself cannot predict them.
"He created the entire world, created all things, and finally split into six sefirot, sixteen Uniquenesses, and countless Beyonder characteristics. From this perspective, all things possess godhood.
"The extreme loss of control for most Beyonders is when godhood gains absolute dominance, transforming them into the state I just described, completely losing their sense of self.
"But this is not the full extent of the godhood we must contend with."
Recalling his conversation with Mr. Fool in the dream city, Lumian had a rough understanding of what else they had to contend with.
"The different personas split off from the original Creator, who are also true deities, have left their psyche in the corresponding Beyonder characteristics. Uniquenesses, um, sefirot, and that is also the godhood we need to contend with, such as, that of the Celestial Worthy?"
Mr. Fool nodded slightly and said, "Yes, after the original Creator awakened, He naturally disintegrated, and before that, His mind and consciousness had already completely split, with different spirits controlling different sefirot, Uniquenesses, and Beyonder characteristics.
"Among Them, the Seer, Apprentice, and Marauder pathways belong to the Celestial Worthy, the Spectator, Sailor, Reader, Secrets Suppliant, and Bard pathways belong to the primordial God Almighty-They are all personas of the original Creator. As for the great existences corresponding to the other personas, I do not know Their names.
"I can only tell you that the Celestial Worthy is the embodiment of Sefirah Castle, the primordial God Almighty is the symbol of the Chaos Sea, and the other sefirot include the City of Calamity of the Hunter and Demoness pathways, the River of Eternal Darkness of the Sleepless, Warrior, and Corpse Collector pathways, the Knowledge Moor of the Mystery Pryer and Savant pathways, and the Key of Light of the Fate pathway-all of these originate from the original Creator.
"In other words, the godhood that Beyonders on the Seer pathway must contend with is a combination of the primordial Creator's residual psyche and the Celestial Worthy's residual psyche and spirit.
"Similarly, the godhood that Beyonders belonging to different sefirot must contend with varies, with different focuses, reflecting the characteristics of their own pathways and corresponding sefirah."
The City of Calamity... why is it an ancient well and a malevolent dragon? And Mr. Fool only mentioned six sefirot and sixteen pathways... Hearing this, Lumian suppressed his doubts and asked to confirm, "The godhood I need to contend with has crazed, chaotic overtones, leaning towards destruction, conquest, and yin-yang coupling? The Beyonders under the Great Mother may need to contend with the crazed aspects of fertility?"
"I see…" Madam Magician also largely grasped her own situation.
Mr. Fool nodded and answered Lumian's question,
"Yes.
"This is the general outline, but there are still some details to be addressed.
"For example, the Beyonders of the River of Eternal Darkness pathways actually need to contend with a mixture of the Celestial Worthy's mental imprint, because in the ancient era, in the First Epoch, the Celestial Worthy had accommodated both the River of Eternal Darkness and the Nation of Disorder."
"Can one accommodate multiple sefirot?" The newly advanced Lumian, weaker in emotional self-control, blurted out in surprise.
"For the Celestial Worthy, obviously not." Mr. Fool seemed to have thought of something amusing. "I'll explain that knowledge later."
"Yes, Mr. Fool." Lumian restrained himself.
"I can't see who else has accommodated the other sefirot, but I can speculate that the City of Calamity was once accommodated by the primordial God Almighty." Mr. Fool continued, "The godhood you need to contend with will also include a portion of His psyche."
The City of Calamity was once accommodated by the primordial God Almighty? Lumian suddenly recalled the images of Grisha and Peng Deng in the dream city, the arrangement he saw through the magic mirror Arrodes, the fact that the Blood Emperor and the Primordial Demoness were created through the guidance of the Angel of Imagination Adam, and that he himself was also arranged by Adam, whose current godhood was obviously dominated by the primordial God Almighty's residual consciousness and psyche!
Thinking about this, Lumian suddenly felt a chill run down his spine.
This feeling was quickly suppressed by the courage of a Weather Warlock.
Mr. Fool's voice returned to a gentle tone, "What I just talked about was true godhood.
"When we have to use the vast majority of our energy, emotions, and feelings to contend with and suppress true godhood, the external manifestation will be different:
"Some are indifferent, some are gentle, some steadfastly execute a single intent and eliminate any obstacles. Of course, there are other manifestations as well.
"This is what I call apparent godhood."
Apparent godhood... Lumian suddenly felt a sense of emptiness in his heart, like a fist that had been cocked and was waiting to be thrown out, very likely to land on empty space.
"Then what is the vague conception of godhood in the general public?" Madam Magician asked curiously.
She seemed quite accustomed to this kind of conversation and exchange with Mr. Fool.
Mr. Fool sighed and said, "Let me first explain what humanity is."
This has something to do with the vague conception of godhood? The Chariot Lumian guessed silently.
Mr. Fool continued, "In my understanding, humanity has two layers.
"The first layer is the most basic-the self-awareness of a living being's core and various instincts: selfishness, greed, survival, indifference, only caring about oneself, only doing things beneficial to oneself, not influenced or constrained by group morals, group interactions, or group perceptions.
"This layer, in fact, the great existences like the Celestial Worthy also possess, but since we've defined Them as true deities, we don't need to include Them here.
"Innate Mythical Creatures like Amon, the Hidden Sage, and Red Angel Medici also possess humanity, which is the first layer of humanity. If They didn't even have self-awareness, how could They contend with true godhood? They would have long ago become confused, crazed, and extreme, Their bodies hotbeds for the revival of great existences like the Celestial Worthy, allowing them to be completely occupied.
"The vague conception of godhood that many people have is just this first layer of humanity: indifferent, selfish, utilitarian, with the main goal of one's own continuation and empowerment. When true deities have resided at Sequence 0 for long enough, weathered by the passage of time, seeing the anchors of Their past strong emotions and important experiences gradually disappear, Their humanity will also gradually degrade to this layer.
"In a sense, this is also the 'godhood' we need to contend with.
"And high-level beings with only this layer of humanity will likely become passive in contending with true godhood, until they are defeated-this is an inevitable outcome in the long run.
"In this regard, innate Mythical Creatures like Amon and Red Angel Medici, due to Their mode of birth, growth experience, strong relational interactions, and the team requirements and conquest desires brought by Their own Beyonder characteristics, may have some aspects that go beyond the first layer of humanity, such as the Red Angel's pride and unyielding side.
"In contrast, the Hidden Sage suddenly came to life, and His interactions with other beings were just about imparting knowledge and accepting supplications, so He has mostly remained at the first layer of humanity. He didn't feel that begging for mercy is shameful, He didn't even have the concept of dignity and pride, which is something that human or human-like groups and societies have-He only had the instinct of survival and continuation.
"Because we often battle and contend with innate Mythical Creatures and high-level beings who have degraded to the first layer of humanity, we will vaguely perceive this as godhood."
The Chariot Lumian and The Magician Fors both understood and agreed with what Mr. Fool had just said.
Mr. Fool let out another laugh, his tone seeming a bit lighter. "The second layer of humanity is the widely recognized humanity-the love, benevolence, courage, sacrifice, compassion, justice, and concern for others that we learned in our brief lifetimes.
"Of course, there are also negative aspects of humanity at this layer."
"I understand, Mr. Fool," Madam Magician and The Chariot Lumian responded in unison.
Mr. Fool leaned back in his chair and then turned to The Chariot Lumian. "Are you still wanting to ask what sefirot are, and why I only mentioned sixteen paths of the divine just now?"
"Yes, Mr. Fool, please enlighten me." Lumian intuitively felt that what was about to be discussed was the purpose for which Mr. Fool had summoned him above the gray fog.
-x-X-x-
Mr. Fool directed his gaze toward Madam Magician Fors.
She habitually cleared her throat and said to The Chariot Lumian, 'You must have already guessed that there's another level above Sequence 0, right?'
'Those great existences?' Lumian asked without any surprise.
'Yes, the great existences above the Sequences.' Madam Magician nodded. 'They have accommodated a sefirah and all corresponding Uniquenesses, plus one Sequence 1 Beyonder characteristic from each corresponding pathway. They are also known as Great Old Dominators and Outer Deities, with indestructible psyches.'
Great Old Dominators… Outer Deities… Lumian mulled over these terms.
Madam Magician said with a smile, 'This is how I understand it: all current great existences above the Sequences are true deities as defined by Mr. Fool. They are either personas split from the original Creator, His direct offspring, or the first beings born from the Great Mother. They had essentially appeared in this universe before the original Creator awakened and completely self-destructed, Their status originating from the old era.
'These are conditions that subsequent advancers can never achieve. Even if they truly become great existences, they would only be newly born Above the Sequences…'
As she spoke, Madam Magician felt like she was discussing Mr. Fool right in front of him, and her voice gradually became quieter.
She paused before continuing, 'Therefore, those great existences like to call themselves Great Old Dominators, and some true gods refer to Them as the Great Old Ones.
'And the currently living Great Old Dominators are all outside the barrier. Some want to invade our world, thus they are also called Outer Deities.'
'I see… Uniquenesses correspond to Sequence 0 true gods, sefirot correspond to those above the Sequences…' Lumian summarized in his own way.
Madam Magician quickly glanced at Mr. Fool, and seeing no particular reaction from this great existence, she continued, 'Sefirot are collections of symbols, sources of authority, and origins of power.
'Back then, when the original Creator awakened, causing the destruction of the old era, He split into six sefirot, sixteen Uniquenesses, and all the Beyonder characteristics of sixteen paths of the divine.'
The destruction of the old era? Did Mr. Fool, Aurore, Franca, and other transmigrators come from the old era that was destroyed when the original Creator awakened? Lumian nodded imperceptibly.
Madam Magician Fors carefully said, 'But currently, there are not just six sefirot in our world, but nine.'
Nine? Lumian asked in surprise, 'Did they originally exist?'
Besides Sefirah Castle, Chaos Sea, City of Calamity, River of Eternal Darkness, Knowledge Moor, and Key of Light, there were three more sefirot?
Madam Magician shook her head. 'No, they are extraterrestrial in nature.
'The awakening and self-destruction of the original Creator was a catastrophe for the entire universe. During this process, His three direct offspring—the Mother Goddess of Depravity, um, that is, the Great Mother, along with the Mother Tree of Desire and Child of Chaos—were most affected. Their sefirot were each torn in half, with one half being drawn to the site of the original Creator's self-destruction along with Their corresponding Uniquenesses and Beyonder characteristics—that is, to our world, or rather, our planet.
'Since then, there have been nine sefirot, twenty-two Uniquenesses, and twenty-two divine pathways within the barrier.
'Why specifically nine and twenty-two? Perhaps it can be explained by the Moses Ascetic Order's theory that all things are numbers and numbers have spirituality—nine and twenty-two have special mystical significance.'
When Madam Magician mentioned terms like Mother Goddess of Depravity, Lumian suddenly felt as if numerous gazes were directed at him, though they couldn't penetrate the grayish-white fog.
At this point, Mr. Fool lightly tapped the edge of the bronze long table and added, 'Normally, like Uniquenesses, sefirot cannot be divided, copied, or destroyed. Only one situation can cause them to be torn apart—encountering the original Creator.
'He is the 'Exception', the 'Inconceivable', the 'Incomprehensible', the 'Indescribable'. All things that shouldn't happen might happen when encountering Him—unknowable, undiscussable, unnameable.
'And it was this single instance of sefirot being torn apart that led the Great Old Dominators to discover that torn sefirot could self-complete.
'The sefirot of the Mother Goddess of Depravity that was torn into our planet self-completed into the Brood Hive. The Mother Tree of Desire lost titles such as 'Father of Devils' and 'Source of Curses', and they perfected themselves into the Tenebrous World.
'Among them, the Child of Chaos had a somewhat different experience. Whether His main consciousness was on the torn sefirot and followed it inside the barrier, or He later used His special symbolism to project His main consciousness inside to try to reclaim the torn sefirot, ultimately, His main consciousness was either defeated or deceived by the Celestial Worthy and sealed within a magic lamp formed from a Miracle Invoker Beyonder characteristic—this is the origin of the Grade 0 sealed artifact 0-05.
'The main consciousness of the Child of Chaos became Genie, the sefirot torn inside the barrier self-completed into the Nation of Disorder, while what remained outside the barrier was called the Uncertain Mist—that is, the one worshiped by the Brokers, and the Uncertain Mist has some consciousness.'
After hearing Mr. Fool's account of the Child of Chaos's experience, Lumian suddenly found the School of Truth's Brokers' search for Sealed Artifact 0-05 somewhat amusing.
It was like saying 'our god's brain is lost, please help us find it.'
Beyond the humor, Lumian was more concerned about another matter.
'The Brood Hive… it's in the Western Continent?
'What you didn't explicitly say before, Mr. Fool, is that it was possibly the Brood Hive that brought the Hidden Sage to life?'
'Yes, these matters are dangerous and corruptive for those without an Angel's status—difficult to bear.' Mr. Fool nodded slightly and said, 'In the middle to late period of the First Epoch, before the Celestial Worthy's fall, He sealed seven sefirot—the Brood Hive, Nation of Disorder, Tenebrous World, City of Calamity, River of Eternal Darkness, Knowledge Moor, and Key of Light—in the Western Continent, to be guarded by Penglai.
'As a result, faced with the approaching apocalypse, all true gods who wanted to exceed the Sequence limitations to deal with the Outer Deities' invasion had only one choice—to support the emergence of a Lord of Mysteries to lift the seal, and the Celestial Worthy could then be revived within the body of the new Lord of Mysteries.'
So Mr. Fool and I had similar experiences… he was nurtured by the gods who were 'forced' by the Celestial Worthy to ensure His revival, while I was forcibly created by the Blood Emperor' revival efforts and to achieve some goal for the Aurora Order's deity… Lumian felt somewhat emotional and reflective.
Mr. Fool continued, 'The Celestial Worthy's fall came from that primordial God Almighty who had also accommodated multiple sefirot. They nearly perished together.
'Some of the Celestial Worthy's arrangements were for His own revival, while others were meant to interfere with the primordial God Almighty's revival, and vice versa.
'In short, there are many reasons why I was able to suppress the Celestial Worthy this time: first, the help of the primordial God Almighty; second, the Mother Goddess of Depravity had other plans and didn't exert Her power; and third, the Celestial Worthy's arrangement of sealing most sefirot in the Western Continent developed in ways He hadn't prophesied.
'The Beyonders of the Western Continent, through generations of sacrifice, managed to carve out a new path and grow stronger without a potion system and with few Beyonder characteristics. For example, the Celestial Master and the Underworld Daoist—They all have status and power approaching that of deities, and could be even stronger if they fought without regard for themselves. Penglai thus remained hidden.
'How could such high-level beings stand by and watch the Celestial Worthy's revival and allow Penglai to play its role?'
I see, the Celestial Worthy's backup plan was held back by the Celestial Master and others? His arrangement to force everyone to cultivate a Lord of Mysteries actually hindered His revival? Fate is truly wonderful… Indeed, everyone only wants a Lord of Mysteries, whether the Lord of Mysteries is The Celestial Worthy of Heaven and Earth for Blessings doesn't matter… Lumian looked at the bronze long table in front of Mr. Fool, knowing this great existence hadn't finished speaking.
Mr. Fool looked at him and Madam Magician and said, 'After my initial awakening, although I still can't lift the Western Continent's seal, I can communicate somewhat with the Celestial Master through it.
'The Celestial Master told me that their sect's ancestral court had once been breached and occupied by the Luo Sect, and many historical Celestial Masters had romantic entanglements with Luo Sect holy maidens and had children with them.'
'Luo Sect…' Both The Chariot Lumian and Madam Magician Fors were somewhat confused.
Mr. Fool smiled. 'The Luo Sect has a saying: 'Unborn Ancient Mother, True Void Homeland'.'
'Unborn Ancient Mother, True Void Homeland'… True Void Homeland… Paramita? Lumian suddenly understood. 'This is a sect that worships the Brood Hive? 'Unborn Ancient Mother' is a title for the Brood Hive?'
Mr. Fool nodded. 'Combined with the events described by the Celestial Master, there's reason to believe the Knowledge Moor was once corrupted and influenced by the Brood Hive at some point in the past.
'This might be why the Hidden Sage came to life.'
I see… The Chariot Lumian finally connected all the pieces.
He raised another question. 'Do the Mother Goddess of Depravity, Mother Tree of Desire, and Uncertain Mist want to invade our world to reclaim their torn sefirot?
'What other Great Old Dominators are outside the barrier? What are Their goals?'
Madam Magician said with a slight headache, 'Besides those three, others wanting to invade our world include the Monarch of Decay—originally worshiped by the Sick Church—the Primordial Hunger that Ludwig once served, the Inextinguishable Ravings worshipped by the First Philosophy, Supernova Dominator who was the original owner of that space ship from the sea prayer ritual, the Circle of Inevitability that you're most familiar with, the High-Dimensional Overseer of the Painter pathway, and the Goddess of Fate worshiped by General Philip.'
Wh— Isn't that a little too many? They even outnumber the true gods within the barrier, and They're a level higher, having transcended the Sequences Themselves… Lumian was somewhat shocked, fear briefly surfacing before being suppressed by courage.
-x-X-x-
Madam Magician seemed to understand The Chariot Lumian's current feelings and chuckled, "When the original Creator split Himself, He also wanted to reunite and complete His revival. For this purpose, He left behind a barrier to protect the planet we live on.
"Without this barrier, those Great Old Dominators would have destroyed us along with the entire world long ago. By the way, try not to mention the cosmos to people without an Angel's status, or rather, don't let them understand the true situation of the cosmos- the Outer Deities come from there.
"Well, the original Creator's will is gradually fading with time, and power and psyche without will become chaotic and problematic. The barrier formed from this will end up increasingly unable to resist the great existences, until it reaches a critical point and completely shatters under the horrifying pressure.
"According to different prophecies and previous patterns, this critical point will arrive in 1368-this is the essence of the apocalypse.
"However, from the current situation, the apocalypse may not wait until the critical point appears. Problems within the barrier might cause the passageways to open prematurely."
The Chariot Lumian nodded slightly, finally understanding completely why there would be an apocalypse and what the main dangers would be when it arrived.
When the barrier shatters, even if Mr. Fool fully awakens and replaces The Celestial Worthy of Heaven and Earth for Blessings to become a great existence, their planet would only have one Above the Sequences being who could fight against the Great Old Ones, while there were a full ten Outer Deities in outer space!
"In the Vortex incident, the deity worshiped by the Aurora Order, with the help of Amon consuming Termiboros and the Genie's special nature and other arrangements, severely wounded the Uncertain Mist and killed all the Brokers. This is a good thing." Madam Magician suddenly smiled. "The Great Old Ones waiting to invade from different planets in the solar system have lost one of Their number, and the remaining ones can no longer be effectively united. The bad news is that after such careful planning and great effort, there are still nine Outer Deities left."
Lumian already had some understanding of the final outcome and general development of the Vortex incident, but it wasn't entirely clear.
Now, he finally understood what all those arrangements were for.
He remained silent for a few seconds before repeating one of his previous questions, "Besides the Mother Goddess of Depravity and Mother Tree of Desire, what are the other seven Great Old Ones trying to achieve?"
Mr. Fool had mentioned earlier that accommodating multiple sefirot was impossible for the Celestial Worthy, although He had indeed done so. From the subsequent narrative, it seemed that the Celestial Worthy's ultimate fall was somehow related to this.
Madam Magician glanced at the bronze long table in front of Mr. Fool, and seeing no objection from this great existence, she carefully said, "There are actually different levels for Above the Sequences.
"The Mother Tree of Desire, Monarch of Decay, and other Great Old Dominators are at the first level. Besides Them, there are some other Outer Deities in the depths of cosmos, but They are either weaker in strength or have no desire for the symbolic meanings of the sefirot within the barrier, so They aren't involved in this matter.
"The original Creator is at the third level, representing the ultimate, representing chaos, beginning and end, representing the unknowable and undiscussable. No existence can surpass this level, and this level can only have one being, and it's very unstable because both aggregation and division are His instincts.
"Between the first and third levels, there's another level-the second level.
"The great existences at the second level aren't much more powerful than the strongest first-level Great Old Ones like the Mother Tree of Desire, Child of Chaos, and Monarch of Decay, but They possess special symbolism. They are the foundation for the universe's maintenance and development, each supporting a realm, and are known as 'Pillars'."
"Pillars..." Lumian thought of the "Ten Pillars" of the Moses Ascetic Order.
Madam Magician Fors said with undisguised amusement, "This is a case of knowing the term 'Pillars' but not understanding its true symbolic meaning. They thought it sounded sophisticated and misused it. In the eyes of those who truly understand the weight of 'Pillars,' it's simply foolish."
"It was the Brood Hive that brought the Hidden Sage to life and secretly corrupted Him.
"If I'm not mistaken, the Mother Goddess of Depravity, who split off the Brood Hive, is one of the true Pillars, right?"
"Ah, yes..." Madam Magician Fors was stunned again.
"Fate is truly wonderful..."
The Chariot Lumian glanced at the head of the bronze long table, then withdrew his gaze and asked Madam Magician, "Are there only three Pillars?"
Madam Magician Fors nodded. "From a realistic perspective, there are countless planets in the universe, each planet equivalent to a world, and simultaneously, there exist numerous alternate dimensions, too many to count.
"But in mysticism, there are only three layers of worlds: the physical world, the spirit world, and the astral world.
"Many schools of mysticism might have different interpretations of this, but the final division of worlds still comes down to just three layers.
"Returning to conventional concepts, the primordial God Almighty is the dominator of the astral world, Mr. Fool is the lord of the spirit world, and the Mother Goddess of Depravity is the sovereign of the physical world. Well, although She had part of Her sefirot torn away. She still possesses the symbolism and status of a Pillar.
"You should know that besides the Mother Goddess of Depravity Herself, the Mother Tree of Desire, and the Child of Chaos being directly born from the original Creator, the remaining Great Old Ones were all born from the union of the Mother Goddess of Depravity and the original Creator. They are the first batch of beings She created. She is literally the mother of the Monarch of Decay, Supernova Dominator, and other Great Old Ones-the true Mother of All Things.
"Each controls a realm, but not completely. Their authorities overlap with each other-that's what Pillars are.
"Complete Pillars are at the second level of Above the Sequences, with a status higher than other Great Old Ones and slightly stronger in power, but not fundamentally different. A complete Pillar can defeat a Great Old One but cannot truly kill Them, and at most can simultaneously fight against two Great Old Ones, probably..."
Mr. Fool, shrouded in grayish-white fog, neither confirmed nor denied her statement.
Madam Magician withdrew her gaze and said to Lumian, "If a complete Pillar accommodates one more sefirot, They will lose control over Their aggregation instinct and will actively consume more sefirot until They aggregate into the original Creator, causing His revival.
"Once this process begins, it can only be interrupted by Their complete fall and division.
"As for the first-level Above the Sequences Great Old Dominators, They can still accommodate another sefirot that has similar, close, or adjacent symbolism to Their own. This would make Them equal in power to the Pillars, though They still wouldn't possess the symbolism of Pillars.
It seems the apocalypse is inevitable and unavoidable because the contradictions cannot be reconciled!
Madam Magician reminded him, "Don't think that sending away the sefirot would prevent the apocalypse.
"Let's not even discuss whether the current owners of the sefirot are willing, but those Outer Deities would need all the Uniquenesses of the corresponding pathways and one Sequence 1 Beyonder characteristic from each pathway while accommodating the corresponding sefirot. Should we have those true gods and Archangels commit suicide or find ways to lower Their status?"
Sequence 1 was often referred to as Archangels.
Hearing Madam Magician's words, Lumian suddenly had some thoughts.
Madam Magician continued, "Even if we overcome all difficulties and reach an agreement on similar matters, and this world doesn't destroy itself through internal strife, the apocalypse would still come.
"You should know that godhood's tone is fundamentally madness, chaos, filled with desires for destruction and creation. Those Outer Deities have waited for thousands or tens of thousands of years - They won't spare our planet.
"Once the barrier is damaged, even if Their attention is focused on the sefirot, Uniquenesses, and Sequence 1 Beyonder characteristics, it would still be unbearable for other Beyonders, ordinary people, and our planet. They are the manifestation of such symbolism.
"For example, the Monarch of Decay would naturally cause the entire planet and all living beings to start decaying, eventually either rotting to death or becoming disgusting creatures loyal to Him, and without necessary resistance, the mere approach of the Supernova Dominator would tear the planet apart.
"At that time, those above Sequence 2 will be watched, and below Sequence 2, not many Beyonders have the ability to survive in space. Sequence 2 is probably the Sequence most likely to survive the apocalypse, but for most Sequence 2 Angels, it would be extremely difficult to cross space, resist various dangers, and find a suitable planet for subsequent survival."
Madam Magician was telling Lumian that once a house collapsed, most people inside will die-escape couldn't solve the problem.
The Chariot Lumian thoughtfully said, "Is it possible to find common desires among multiple Outer Deities, throw out the sefirah that would satisfy the most Outer Deities' needs outside the barrier, incite internal strife among that portion of Outer Deities, let Them severely wound each other first, make the wounded ones retreat to deep space, and thus reduce the number of invading Outer Deities when the apocalypse comes?"
As he spoke, Lumian furrowed his brow.
"But the victorious Outer Deity would become more powerful-it's impossible to assess whether this would be equivalent to the Outer Deities who were driven away...
As he was muttering to himself. Mr. Fool, who had been silent for a long time, suddenly spoke, "Actually, there is a hidden fourth Pillar."