Chapter 4:Shaman King Klarman

"The essence of an advancement ritual is to maintain sufficient sanity. But for me, that's irrelevant—I've already undergone fundamental changes due to my transmigration.

Even though I'm using characteristics from other pathways to undergo qualitative transformation and accommodate them, as long as I stay within the framework of uniqueness, I don't have to worry about initial contamination."

"These lower-sequence Beyonder characteristics align well with my symbols and authority. Mid-to-low sequences are manageable, but obtaining high-sequence characteristics is another matter entirely.

A Witch of Despair… Why would there be a Witch characteristic? Because of authority over the domain of mirrors?

If I accommodate this characteristic, I won't end up changing genders, right?"

At this thought, Ael felt an unsettling chill below his waist, as if he could see Chick waving at him from the depths of the astral world, grinning as he said:

'Ah, you've come too.'

"The Scholar of Antiquity characteristic—besides Zarathu, the Secret Order should have one. Finding a high-sequence Beyonder of the Diviner pathway won't be easy.

George III will soon hold the Black Emperor ritual. Perhaps I can take this opportunity to loot William I's Coin.

Speaking of which, 0-08… According to the current timeline, its holder, Ince Zangwill, is in Tingen City. Maybe I should settle for the writer characteristic instead of the Mercury Snake characteristic."

Ael's lips curled into a smile.

"If I can't loot your human side, can't I still loot your divine side?"

He had no concern for whatever chaos disrupting Adam's plans might bring. However, obtaining the writer characteristic wouldn't be easy—it wasn't just Adam involved; the Evernight Goddess was also orchestrating this event.

Unless he found enough allies—ones who could stall both the Evernight Goddess and Adam.

"The God of war would be a good choice. His conflict with Evernight is irreconcilable. I could also exploit the tension between the Eternal Blazing Sun and Adam.

But how would an Outer God-tainted individual like me convince them?"

"Hmm… Azik Eggers. He's connected to the whereabouts of the Death pathway's uniqueness. I can use that to my advantage.

As for the Eternal Blazing Sun, that guy barely showed up in the original story—might as well be dead. I can't pin my hopes on him to counter Adam. That writer characteristic is something he'd want too."

"Forget it. I'll take things one step at a time. The priority now is strengthening myself and securing enough anchors.

First, I'll gather the remaining members of the Abraham family, obtain their sealed artifacts, and have them spread my name and teachings in secret.

These Abrahams love taking in outsiders as students… Heh, that's a useful network."

With a soft chuckle, Ael left the illusory Mirror Realm and opened his eyes once more.

As he straightened his slightly wrinkled suit, preparing to initiate a Wander using his bloodline connection, his spiritual intuition made him turn toward the plantation road, obscured by curtains.

There, an old man in a hooded black robe was approaching. His face was pale and withered, his figure hunched like brittle straw about to snap in the wind—yet he stubbornly advanced toward the manor, step by step.

Narrowing his eyes, Ael's powerful spiritual intuition told him that this was a demigod. And within the old man… was a crimson full moon.

Realizing something, Ael sighed, then casually raised his right hand. A brilliant starlight flashed, illuminating the dim study.

Outside the manor, the old demigod suddenly froze in place, horror dawning on his face as he found his body completely out of his control. An overwhelming force had instantly suppressed all his Beyonder abilities.

Before he could react, a dizzying sensation overwhelmed him. The next moment, he found himself in a study, standing before Ael.

This was the power of a Planeswalker. As an angel, Ael had forcibly teleported the demigod to his presence.

"Shaman King Klarman?"

Looking at the old man before him, Ael spoke his name directly.

"Yes, Your Highness. It is an honor to meet you, great Child of God, Favored of the Primordial Moon."

Klarman showed no panic at having his identity exposed. Instead, he dropped to his knees and, to Ael's bewilderment, kissed the tip of his shoe.

'Damn it, I just bought these last month—Horachis wild bull leather, premium craftsmanship. That's 10 pounds per pair in Loen gold pounds. How am I supposed to wear them now?'

Disgusted, Ael withdrew his foot, coughed lightly, and asked in a calm tone:

"Did Mother send you? What are her instructions? Why not tell me directly?"

Hearing this trifecta of soul-piercing questions from the divine child he worshipped, Klarman remained kneeling and reverently replied:

"Your Highness, I received an oracle last night—uh…"

He hesitated briefly, glancing up at the young and handsome youth before continuing:

"You should be aware of my Lord's will—it concerns the Earth Mother Church and the Vampires."

"Hmm, I know. What else?"

"Uh, aside from that, my Lord's oracle warns that you must be wary of the entity worshipped by the Rose School of Thought—Mother Tree of Desire—and its current leader, the divine offspring, Sia."

"The Rose School?"

Ael raised an eyebrow.

"If I remember correctly, you're part of that organization as well. Do we have conflicts with them?"

"Yes, Your Highness. I am indeed a member of the Rose School, but unlike those aberrants and demons, we followers of the Primordial Moon are marginalized. In fact, in some aspects, we are at odds with them.

Within the Rose School, there are two factions: the Path of Indulgence and the Path of Restraint. Years ago, the leader of the Restraint faction went missing, and since then, the Indulgence faction has been systematically suppressing and eliminating our members.

Now, the true rulers of the Rose School are those lunatics under Sia, devoted to the Mother Tree of Desire."

"A struggle between the Fallen Mother Goddess and the Mother Tree of Desire… The latter seems to have obtained a Moon pathway Sequence 1 characteristic and can exert influence over Moon pathway Beyonders."

Ael nodded slightly and glanced at Klarman, who was still kneeling in a prayer-like posture.

"How much power do we have left? I mean, how many high-sequence Beyonders still follow the Primordial Moon and can be mobilized?"

He didn't particularly care about the conflict between the two goddesses—what mattered was how many cannon fodders he had at his disposal.

Hearing the divine child's question, Klarman answered with great respect:

"Apart from myself, there are two other demigods in the Southern Continent: one is a Classical Alchemist, and the other is a Pallbearer. They each oversee a regional cult.

Unless there's a major event or divine revelation, we only meet during full moon nights to reaffirm our devotion to our Lord.

As for the Northern Continent, our influence is limited. We have only one demigod in Intis—a Summoner and a Marquis of the Vampires.

Years ago, he was gravely wounded by an Archbishop of the Eternal Blazing Sun Church, shortening his lifespan significantly. To survive, he abandoned his faith in Lilith and converted to our Lord, receiving the same blessing as I did."