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After the crimson light in front of him dissipated, Derrick Berg saw his room once again . He saw the pure crystal ball in his hands .
Crack!
The crystal ball shattered from the inside . Some of it turned into pieces of illusory beams of light that flew into the void around him, while the other crystalline fragments fell noisily to the ground .
Derrick looked on, dumbfounded . He could see the traces of blood on his face reflected in the bronze mirror . He noticed a crimson light spiraling on the back of his right palm, forming a circle with lines extending out from the edge .
The strange symbol bore into the back of his palm and vanished .
Derrick fell into a daze in the time it took several flashes of lightning to illuminate the sky before snapping to his senses .
He looked at the fragments of the crystal ball on the ground, then looked at the back of his right hand as his gaze turned deeper .
He walked out of his bedroom, returned to the living room, and opened the door to look up at the sky above the City of Silver .
An arc of lightning streaked across the sky, illuminating the city with a silver sheen . Right on the heels of that was rumbling thunder . The world belonged to the dark . Without any speck of light, the heavy darkness only left people in despair .
Derrick clenched his fists . There was no joy in his eyes for they were still filled with the remnant grief and pain .
But he was no longer lost .
…
Phew, looks like I've managed to trick another person into becoming a member . No, I've managed to recruit another member… Klein shook his head and mocked the present strength of his Tarot Club .
The leader, The Fool, was only a Sequence 9, one who had just fully digested the Seer potion!
And there were at least three High-Sequence Beyonders at Sequence 4 in the hopeless City of Silver that The Sun spoke of!
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"After mentioning the acting method one more time, I can start telling the Captain the specifics and hand in my special application . At the very least, I'll stop being in charge of support once I become a Clown . " Klein didn't stay in the world of fog . He extended his spirituality, wrapped it around himself, and initiated a descent .
Tearing through the gray fog and passing through the ravings, he returned to his room before dispelling the wall of spirituality .
Then, Klein picked up the key and headed out of the room . He first went to the two rooms booked by Dunn to take a look in order to confirm that the Captain and Frye hadn't returned yet . He then headed to the first level and handed the key back to the boss .
The boss looked at the wall clock to the side and gave a thumbs up .
"Well done!"
Hey, are you mistaken over why I booked an hourly room? Klein wanted to explain himself, but finally decided to leave the misunderstanding as it was .
Feeling wronged, he tried to console himself .
Yes, this way, he won't mention that I rented another room in front of the Captain!
After heading out and going through the motions, Klein did a quick divination and returned to the inn based on the results . He headed straight to the second floor to find Dunn and Frye discussing their investigations in one of the rooms, just as he expected .
"We can confirm that the wraith appeared within the last three months," Dunn summarized to Klein with a nod as he came through the door .
Klein immediately echoed, "My investigations also confirmed it…"
He highlighted the main points of his questioning and concluded, "Heh, there's a townsfolk named Scoundrel Gray who claimed that he had the portrait of the first Baron Lamud . He said that it was an antique oil painting more than a thousand years old . "
"Don't tell me you bought it?" Dunn's eyes shimmered as he was taken aback before he asked .
Captain, do you think that I'm so stupid to be fooled that easily? Klein gave a dry laugh .
"No, I didn't . Even though I'm a history student, I have attended some lessons on archeology and have some degree of experience in this area . I can more or less determine if something is fake . Heh, the person in the portrait looked a little like my history teacher, Mr . Azik . "
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He casually mentioned the most important piece of information .
And indeed, Dunn didn't pay too much attention to it . He massaged his temples and said, "This is a small town near a historical site . There will always be a myriad of 'antiques' here . I just saw a vendor selling the silver wine glasses of Baron Lamud . "
"Someone tried to sell me the insignia of the Lamud Family, claiming that it had been dug out of the castle," Frye added .
Klein subconsciously asked, "Did you guys buy them?"
Frye and Klein looked at each other, and didn't continue with the subject .
"The next mission is for you or Frye to take Sealed Artifact 3-0782 out of town to somewhere uninhabited . Otherwise, a good half of the people in this inn will become idiots blathering praises of the Sun . Are you going first, or Frye?" Dunn looked at Klein with his deep gray eyes .
"Me . " Klein raised his hand slightly and smiled . "It's still quite early, so I can come back and have a nice sleep later . We're doing two-hour shifts, right?"
"Yes . Frye, go over with Klein and confirm where you'll exchange the Sealed Artifact . " Dunn turned to look at Corpse Collector Frye . He had already found an opportunity to hand Sealed Artifact 3-0782 over to Frye when they split up to conduct their investigations . Otherwise, he would have been purified and started praising the Sun . Frye hadn't had enough time to recover, and could only hold the item for another three hours .
"Alright . " Frye took out the Mutated Sun Sacred Emblem from the inner pocket of his black windbreaker and handed it over to Klein .
Klein took the item with a fair bit of curiosity and interest . The metal was warm to the touch, as if hot water was flowing within it .
The warm, gentle glow was like a ripple, spreading outward in waves and bringing with it a pure smell . At the same time, Klein felt that the dark golden Sacred Emblem carved with the symbol of the Sun was cleansing his spirituality, removing the impurities and leaving it pure .
Of course, all Sealed Artifacts have their dangers . Death might occur if one isn't careful enough . It's even possible to have a fate worse than death… He muttered to himself as he placed the Sealed Artifact 3-0782 into his inner pocket .
After inspecting his revolver, charms, and cane, he walked out of the room and left the inn together with Frye . They headed straight for the outskirts of Lamud Town .
The two circled an area beside a sparse and deserted forest and confirmed that there was no one within dozens of meters of them .
"Chase away anyone who approaches you," Frye coldly reminded, "I'll come to take your place in two hours . "
"Sounds good," Klein replied with a smile .
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After seeing Frye enter the town, he found a tall boulder he had eyed previously . He picked up some leaves from the tree beside him and wiped the surface of the boulder .
He then touched the top of the stone with his finger and inspected the stone under the light of the crimson moon .
After confirming that it was clean, Klein put on his black windbreaker and sat down .
Why stand when you can sit! Klein thought to himself .
After a few minutes of silence, he looked at the dark, quiet, and rather scary forest . He couldn't help but stand up, taking out several metal bottles from his hidden pockets and scattering their contents—herb powder and essential oils—around the boulder .
Klein recited an incantation in Hermes . With the help of the materials, he created a barrier of spirituality, sealing the area he was in .
He did this simple ritual for two reasons . First, he didn't want to rely too much on his premonition for danger as a Seer to defend against corpses and spirits launching a sneak attack against him . The second reason was to—was to keep the bugs away…
This is a hundred times better than insect repellent! Klein sat back down, satisfied .
After sitting there for a few minutes, Klein took out Sealed Artifact 3-0782 out of curiosity . He began a detailed inspection of the Mutated Sun Sacred Emblem .
I wonder if I could use divination to find out its origins and how it became special… He took out the pen and paper he always had on him and wrote a statement: "The origin of the Mutated Sun Sacred Emblem in my hands . "
As a qualified and true Seer, Klein had made the preparations needed to divine anywhere .
After reciting the statement seven times, he closed his eyes and entered a state of Cogitation, using that as a launchpad to propel him into his dreams .
All he saw were fragmented pieces of light in his dreams . Other than that, he didn't learn anything else .
Yes, the Church must have gotten other Seers to attempt the same thing in the past . The fact that there is no mention of its origins must mean that there was no result from the divination, just like what happened just now… Klein sighed . He then thought, I wonder what would happen if I eliminate the interferences?
This thought immediately filled Klein's head, pushing his curiosity to a peak .
After more than ten minutes of hesitation, he stood up . He decided that it was fine since there was no one around, considering how he was in a secluded area of the forest . He took four steps counterclockwise inside his wall of spirituality before entering the world above the fog once again .
Klein sat at the seat of honor of the ancient table in the magnificent palace . He conjured a few sheets of yellowish-brown goatskin and a black fountain pen, as well as the Mutated Sun Sacred Emblem .
"It feels rather real…" He rubbed Sealed Artifact 3-0782 in his hands, finding the tactile feedback identical to the one he had felt in the outside world .
It instantiates itself based on what I felt? Klein mumbled to himself before writing down the statement he had come up with previously:
"The origin of the Mutated Sun Sacred Emblem in my hands . "
After reciting the statement seven times, he held the piece of goatskin and Sealed Artifact 3-0782 in his hands . He leaned back and entered his dream .
In the blurry dreamworld, Klein saw a drop of glowing gold liquid . It was warm and bright .
It was suspended above an altar, before a man dressed in a white classic robe .
The man only had his back facing Klein . He had lost all signs of life as he fell slowly towards the sacrificial altar .
At that moment, the Sun Sacred Emblem he was holding had come into contact with the golden liquid, the latter quickly seeping into the emblem .
The dream quickly dissipated after Klein saw this, waking him up .
So it was because of the golden liquid that this Sacred Emblem has been so effective and uncontrollable to this day . Hmm, decades have passed since the discovery of this emblem, but its cleansing powers haven't declined . I wonder what that golden liquid was? Some advanced Beyonder ingredient? Klein toyed with the Sealed Artifact 3-0782 in his hand and slipped into deep thought .
After deliberating over it for a few minutes, he tried to emulate the feeling he had in the dream . He wanted to separate the golden liquid from the Mutated Sun Sacred Emblem he had conjured .
He accomplished it almost immediately as the thought came to him . Klein looked in shock at the emblem which was no longer warm or pure . He watched as the drops of golden liquid silently suspended themselves in the air . He had even more praises for this mysterious space above the fog .
This is practically a miracle, even if the separation and instantiation here isn't real!
"The origins of this drop of golden liquid . " He penned down a new statement with great excitement .