884: The Examination for a Throne-Level Potion Master and the Ultimate Secret of the Divine Eye
Golden Crown Mountain, ancient tree fruit clone.
In the underground research institute on the Dune Plane, Locke had Douglas organize an article about using Ancestral Evolution to revert Sea Gold Sand Fern back into the [mountain-crossing dragon naked fern]. He personally supplemented key experimental data and obtained relevant data on the wild surge energy from the Talking Tree via Albert at the Mist's Power Research Center in Lilith's Cottage.
With himself acting as the medium, this problem was easily resolved.
In this way, Locke had Douglas help him complete a Second Ring Level article.
After Locke finished proofreading the final paragraph, he looked up at Douglas and said, "Not bad, you've done a good job. It's excellent that you could understand the meaning of the outline I gave you before."
"This article is well-expanded."
Douglas scratched his head, feeling quite honored.
"Lord Augustine, there was a section of content for which I searched through materials for a long time before I dared to confirm your meaning. I truly stayed up all night at the library checking references before I dared to write it for you."
Locke asked, "Is that fellow Brandy no longer coming to find you?"
Douglas bowed to Locke and said, "Lord Augustine, ever since you had me help you publish that article in the [Myriad Phenomena Boundary] last time, he hasn't appeared before me again."
"Perhaps he has been busy with many things."
Locke said, "Hmm... from that perspective, he can be considered a sensible person."
Lagemen Witch King, inside Douglas's sea of consciousness, let out a light chuckle.
"That little fellow Brandy indeed doesn't dare to provoke Locke Augustine. Locke Augustine is a man of his word. Anyone who provokes him likely won't end up well. If it were in my era, I might have recruited him to serve as an official in my court."
Locke handed him the article along with five thousand magic stones.
"Help me submit this article to [Cloud Marsh]."
Locke wrote Witch Catherine's name as the corresponding author, while he was the first author. Douglas's identity was sensitive, and he was only a Crystallized Wizard, so he didn't need a Second Ring journal; thus, Locke had no intention of including his name.
After all, strictly speaking, Douglas was still in a state where he could be sent to the Wizard Prison at any time.
The Myriad Phenomena Boundary he submitted to previously belonged to the Hui Ming Borderland, and journals there only accepted a single author. However, journals in the Yunze Wetland required a corresponding author.
According to the unspoken rules of the Yunze Wetland, it was impossible for him to be the corresponding author, especially for a top-tier Second Ring first district journal.
While not impossible, the corresponding author was usually a mentor from the True Knowledge Institute or a High-Ring Wizard within the team.
This way, it was easier to get approved.
It didn't matter; anyway, generally even the Star Domain Sea recognized the first author of a top journal in the Yunze Wetland.
When he had just entered the True Knowledge Institute, he had directly submitted to Cloud Marsh because he didn't know this unspoken rule, and as a result, he was quickly rejected.
Of course, the reason for rejection wasn't just that.
That was only the smallest reason.
"This is my second time submitting to Cloud Marsh."
Locke only now realized how much of a 'newborn calf unafraid of tigers' he had been back then, directly submitting to "Cloud Marsh" instead of "Green Grass Cloud Marsh."
Locke pondered, "I wonder if I can pass 'Cloud Marsh' this time?"
Douglas took the article and the five thousand magic stones Locke gave him and turned to leave; he would return to the material world through the plane passage.
After he left, Locke picked up the Ganoderma Magic Plant and saw that two people had contacted him.
One was Wizard Brandy, who had sent him a message.
"Locke, good news! I have some particularly good news to tell you, and I'm not telling anyone else."
"I have an invitation slot for an academic conference held by a Botany Sun Ring Wizard from the Rose Council. I only told you and no one else. If you need it, let me know, and I'll give you the address. Finding ideas in such a place is extremely efficient."
Locke glanced at the message and immediately swiped past it, muting it.
Next, Locke looked at another message—it was from Madam Tataroni.
Madam Tataroni had sent him a message.
"Lord Augustine, I have already invited a Third Ring Throne Wizard Potion Master to be your Potionology mentor. This master-level Potion Master is also an honored guest of our Feathered Serpent Ancient Pavilion."
"This master-level Potion Master from the Fragrant Coral Islands happens to be a guest at the Yunze Wetland branch of the Root Crown Court recently. She has agreed to our request, but the situation is somewhat complicated and requires you to come to our Feathered Serpent Ancient Pavilion to discuss it in person."
Locke's pupils suddenly constricted.
He hadn't expected the Feathered Serpent Ancient Pavilion to actually find a Throne-level Potion Master for him.
A Throne-level Potion Master—a Potion Master of this level could be said to dominate an area within the Endless Void, truly deserving the title of a Potion Master.
Madam Tataroni sent another message.
'Lord Augustine, I apologize for rushing you. However, since it involves a Throne Wizard, I must ask you to come as soon as possible.'
Locke replied: 'Alright.'
Locke glanced at the message Wizard Brandy sent again and felt quite speechless; he shouldn't have agreed before to let the man come to him whenever there was something good.
What kind of 'good thing' could Brandy possibly find for him?
Forget it, head to the Feathered Serpent Ancient Pavilion first.
After all, he was currently handling two things at once, and his energy was being heavily consumed.
Locke's body swayed slightly as he walked out of the office.
"The main body is currently comprehending the [Secret of Creating Humans], which has taken away most of my Spiritual Cognition and my resonance with nature."
"Madam Tataroni suddenly coming to invite me at this time... it's really not the best timing."
"But it happens to involve a Throne Wizard."
"Forget it, I'll take it one step at a time."
"Right, since Demon Wolf Hell has already been conquered, there's no need for the golden dragon claw air pineapple Wizard Shoes. I can have the main body send that Air Pineapple over through the Forest Sanctuary and the Ecological Corridor, then I need to give it to Scarlett for testing."
...At the Feathered Serpent Ancient Pavilion, the tall Madam Tataroni swayed her tail and said elegantly to Locke, "This is the family wizard of that master-level Potion Master."
Standing before Locke was a witch whose face was veiled in blue gauze.
She was a Second Ring Wizard.
Madam Tataroni said to Locke, "Lord Augustine, that respected master-level Potion Master has agreed to the invitation of our Feathered Serpent Ancient Pavilion and will serve as your Potion Master mentor within our system."
"However, there is a prerequisite."
"I will let this master's family wizard speak with you about it."
This witch was quite surprised that Madam Tataroni addressed Locke as 'Lord'. A complex look appeared in her eyes as she began to speculate about Locke's background, her eyes falling on the badge on his chest representing his status as a Golden Crown Mountain senior researcher, while also glancing over the array of competition champion badges on his chest.
The look in this Second Ring witch's eyes became even more complex.
Her impression of Locke quickly transformed into a Second Ring Wizard who was [well-connected, well-qualified, and powerful].
The Second Ring witch said coldly to Locke, "We are not familiar with the Eastern Border Region, so Lord Winchester had me come to ask you a question and give you three chances to answer."
Locke nodded slightly.
"What is the question?"
This was a Throne-level Potion Master, so naturally, it wouldn't be easy to form a connection. This was clearly some kind of test; if he didn't pass, the other party wouldn't agree to the Feathered Serpent Ancient Pavilion's invitation.
And once the other party refused, it was unknown whether the Feathered Serpent Ancient Pavilion would find him a second Potionology mentor after he had already used up his one-time privilege to invite a Potion Master mentor.
Clearly, this was the necessary price to pay for seeking a Throne-level Potion Master as a teacher.
The witch spoke: "These are the exact words of Lady Winchester—What is a potion?"
Locke's pupils suddenly constricted because this question was too tricky.
It wasn't asking what Potionology was, but what a potion was.
It wasn't asking what Potionology researched, but simply asking him for the definition of what kind of thing a [potion] was.
Locke fell into deep thought. This was clearly a tricky question; his answer could demonstrate both his level of Potionology and his talent in the field.
The key was that most of his Spiritual Cognition was currently being consumed by his main body, so facing this question now, Locke even felt a bit dazed and found it difficult to answer immediately.
The family witch spoke: "Lady Winchester specifically instructed that you need to give your first answer on the spot, and then you may provide two more answers through Madam Tataroni. If none of your three answers satisfy Lady Winchester..."
"...then she can only refuse the invitation from the Feathered Serpent Ancient Pavilion. Among Lord Winchester's students, there is not one who is not a genius."
Locke frowned, and after about ten minutes of contemplation, he spoke: "A potion is a rank formed by the intersection of the hidden true forms of all things."
"It is the proof of self-consciousness."
A look of surprise appeared in the family witch's eyes.
"Hmm? You clearly have the level of a Second Ring Potion Master. Yet Madam Tataroni said you weren't a Second Ring Potion Master yet."
Locke nodded slightly to her and Madam Tataroni, saying, "Yes. I recently advanced to the level of a Second Ring Potion Master; it's normal that Madam Tataroni didn't know."
Madam Tataroni's eyes lit up.
"Lord Augustine, your Potionology level has improved very quickly. Wizard, I wonder if Lord Augustine has passed Master Winchester's test?"
The family witch shook her head slightly.
"This is a standard answer for a Second Ring Potion Master. But it is not the answer Lord Winchester requires."
"This Mr. Augustine's answer is divided into two parts. The first part is his understanding of potions, which is an answer at the normal level of a Second Ring Potion Master. It's not much different from my own level."
"At my level, I can only serve as a servant to Lord Winchester, not a student."
"As for the second answer, it is actually an answer from the perspective of an ordinary wizard. Indeed, a potion is an acknowledgment of self-consciousness; when one consumes a potion, their rank is altered by the rank of the potion."
"But even if the rank changes, the self-consciousness remains unchanged, proving that a person's self-consciousness is completely independent. Although this answer is sophisticated, I already understood this principle ten years ago."
There was a hint of anger in Madam Tataroni's eyes because Locke possessed the noble True Dragon bloodline; in her eyes, this person was merely calling Locke a servant of Witch Winchester.
Since her words subtly belittled Locke, Madam Tataroni said elegantly, "I wonder how old this wizard was ten years ago?"
The Second Ring witch said, "Ten years ago, I was still young, only a hundred years old. I know what you want to say, Madam Tataroni."
"But age is not the issue; level is the key."
Locke frowned and asked her, "Wizard, do you not need to relay my answer to Lady Winchester?"
The Second Ring Witch looked at Locke in surprise and said, "Mr. Augustine, you are very clever. You've caught the main point. Lord Winchester already gave me the only standard answer in advance. Therefore, when you gave those answers just now, even without consulting Lord Winchester, I knew you didn't pass."
This Second Ring Wizard turned and left the second floor of the Feathered Serpent Ancient Pavilion.
"In the Fragrant Coral Islands, there are also many Potion Masters who want to become disciples of the Sea Queen Throne."
"Among them are many who consider themselves Potion Master geniuses. But only by passing the Throne Lord's test can you truly enter her tutelage. This is true even if you take a shortcut like the Feathered Serpent Ancient Pavilion."
The witch quickly left the area.
After she left, Madam Tataroni's face looked troubled. She said apologetically to Locke, "Lord Augustine, please forgive me for taking the liberty of choosing such a powerful Potion Master as the Sea Queen Throne to be your Potionology mentor. I just didn't expect this to happen. The Sea Queen Throne's standards are indeed... exceptionally high."
"I had good intentions, but I've made a mess of things."
Locke comforted Madam Tataroni, saying, "Don't worry. I still have two more chances to answer."
"Every Throne Wizard has a distinct personality and high standards. Even if I switched to another Throne-level Potion Master, they might not give me an exam question, but they'd surely give me some other test. They might even ask for tuition upfront."
"It's just an exam question; it's nothing."
"It's very fair."
A smile appeared on Madam Tataroni's face. "Lord Augustine, thank you. I can provide you with all the materials regarding the Sea Queen Throne available for Second Ring Wizards to consult here at the Feathered Serpent Ancient Pavilion."
"Since a standard answer was given, it means we can find the Throne Lord's train of thought through her past records."
"The Sea Queen Throne's specialty potion is... the Name Potion..."
Madam Tataroni rang a bronze bell and summoned a Crystallized Wizard, a Red Dragon Half-Dragon. "Bring up all the materials on the Sea Queen Throne's potion brewing."
The Red Dragon Half-Dragon flicked his tail and hesitated, "This... this might not be in accordance with the regulations, Madam Tataroni."
Madam Tataroni said, "It's fine. Just do it; the higher-ups won't object. True Dragons have privileges in the Feathered Serpent Ancient Pavilion."
"This is the rule of the Feathered Serpent Ancestor."
The Red Dragon Half-Dragon flicked his tail and could only turn to carry out the task.
Seeing this, Locke immediately decided to have his clone finish reading these materials on the Sea Queen Throne as quickly as possible, aiming to pass the test next time and secure the chance to become her disciple.
However, he first had to resolve the situation in the Three Caves World; otherwise, he wouldn't be able to redirect his Spiritual Cognition from there.
Part of the reason he couldn't give a satisfactory answer the first time was that most of his Spiritual Cognition was shared with the [Secret of Creating Humans] in the Three Caves World... within the Three Caves World's Historical Reproduction spell.
Locke saw that the [Sky God King] had stabilized the originally crumbling Three Caves World after obtaining a Creation Lotus Leaf transformed from a world tree leaf.
But the creation flaws of the Three Caves World had not been completely resolved.
Because [Sky] needed to become a pillar, holding the earth and the Ring Mountain at all times, which, combined with the Creation Lotus Leaf, kept the Ring Mountain from sinking into the Great River of the Imaginary Sea.
For some reason, although the world tree leaf clearly had the power to completely solve the world's problems, Locke found that it only barely kept the world from sinking into the Great River of the Imaginary Sea.
It required the God King's full effort plus the Creation Lotus to keep the world from sinking into the Great River of the Imaginary Sea.
This meant that although the Sky God King was happy for a long time because the world was saved, a thousand years later, as he aged and his strength waned, he began to realize this state was unsustainable. It became increasingly difficult to maintain and extremely painful for him.
In his youth, he felt that holding the Ring Mountain for ten thousand years would be nothing.
But in his old age, he began to huff and puff. The Ring Mountain became a heavy burden for the sky; even with all his strength, the Ring Mountain still sank by one millimeter every year.
Although the God Race power path could provide these beings with a relatively long lifespan compared to others of the same level in the Endless Void, even so, without the Immortality Spark of Divinity, they would eventually die of old age.
They could not escape death.
Thus, after three thousand years, Sky was old and decrepit, his arms nearly crushed by the weight of the Ring Mountain.
However, by this time, the Ring Mountain world had fully taken shape.
The world did not want to return to primal chaos and vanish into nothingness along with all living beings, so the world's principle of the plane vibrated, seeking a way to solve the problem once more.
The Sky God King wept toward the heavens once again.
Especially at this time, the God of Wind had long since died of old age.
He was too lonely; he used his own blood to create eleven giants to accompany him, but after five hundred years, these giants had also died.
Fortunately, these giants branched out, reproducing generation after generation and playing out drama after drama of competing for the God Race's power.
These giants mistakenly believed the world would exist forever, so they fought each other for power, unaware that the Sky God King was struggling to hold everything up while the entire world remained on the brink of destruction.
Just then, the Sky God King's continuous calls toward the void caught someone's attention.
It was a Persepolis God Clan member who had been destroyed by the Cold Current Throne in battle.
In a region of the void filled with countless Evocation School ice spells, currents of cold air locked the space like heavenly chains, sealing the entire Wanderer Pantheon of that Persepolis God Clan.
The Sky-Lock Cold Current seemed to seal away an entire world.
The Persepolis God Clan member was drawn by the Sky God King's voice as he passed the Three Caves World. Thus, this Persepolis God Clan being, who had lost everything and was now just a name, was literally called over by the Sky God King's plea for help.
As a divine name, his original fate was to drift unnoticed through the Great Void. The Great Void was so vast that, under normal circumstances, it was unlikely he would ever drift into another world. Even if he did, if it were a lifeless plane, he would instead be sealed within it.
Even if it were a living plane, because he only had a divine name left and no divine office to identify his presence, he was equivalent to nothingness; Mortals simply could not perceive his existence.
After all, without a divine office, there was no way to point to him.
Mortals' Spiritual Cognition was insufficient; it was impossible for them to accurately point to an empty god's name without a divine office.
If a name is never called, it is as good as dead.
Furthermore, for a long time, this divine name didn't even possess the Immortality Spark of Divinity; if no one called it for a long period, it would vanish on its own.
But just then, the God King of the Three Caves World called out to him.
Moreover, the God King of the Three Caves World happened to have enough Spiritual Cognition to see him and correctly point to him even without a divine office.
One could say this Persepolis God Clan member was extremely lucky.
Because such a situation was actually very rare.
The rarity lay in the fact that having a Sky God King in the Endless Void was not a high-probability event to begin with.
What was even rarer was that if it were any other Second Ring Level lifeform, anyone with that level of Spiritual Cognition would have gained their power through hard cultivation. They would all be incredibly cunning; how could they be deceived by a mere divine name of the Persepolis God Clan?
At this moment, the three of them—Locke and the others—saw the divine name of the Persepolis God Clan appear before the [Sky God King].
Locke glanced at the Nicholass Memory in his hand and realized this Historical Reproduction was about to end. He knew this must be the main thing his other half, Nicholas, wanted to tell him.
The divine name appeared before the God King, hovering between illusion and reality.
A divine name is a very strange thing.
For a Mortal's name, if the subject dies and only the name remains, the hidden true form carried by that name will also perish. But the gods of the Persepolis God Clan possess a powerful immortality trait; even a divine name can remain immortal for a period of time.
This name was awakened by the Sky God King's call.
He looked in surprise at the Sky God King before him, who was like a King of Titans.
At first, the Persepolis God Clan's divine name felt very afraid.
"Bannaradja... what do you want to do? Are you going to use me as material for your ark?"
The Sky God King was already old and decrepit; he looked at the Persepolis God Clan's divine name with a face full of confusion.
"What? What are you talking about?"
The Persepolis God Clan's divine name immediately realized something. As a name, he saw a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity: the God King before him was clearly not a member of the Bannaradja God Clan, but merely a slightly more powerful titan created by them.
That changed everything.
Members of the Bannaradja God Clan are Third Ring level beings as soon as they reach adulthood, far higher in level than adult individuals of the Persepolis God Clan—it's just that the Bannaradja God Clan has mobility issues.
The titan god before him was likely just a relatively important world-essence god created by the Bannaradja God Clan.
But he was not a true member of the Bannaradja God Clan.
For he lacked the most important attributes of the Bannaradja God Clan: godhood, divine position, divine fire, divine law, divine blood, divine body, and divinity.
The divine name immediately began to beguile the titan before him, "Respected Lord God King, I have heard your worries. But you need not worry; as long as you place the World Principles into my name, you will find... the power of the World Principles will be greatly enhanced."
The divine name looked at the divine pillar hidden beneath the river's surface and the Creation Lotus of the Three Caves World.
That divine pillar was composed of various principles of the plane.
The divine pillar had become the World Pillar, transformed from Sky's arms, struggling to support the Three Caves World.
The Sky God King tried it, and indeed, from then on, the Three Caves World became as stable as Mount Tai. Although the Mortal realm of the Three Caves World still couldn't withstand heavy magic pressure, its stability increased at least tenfold.
The entire Three Caves World would also begin to prosper due to its newfound stability.
Both materials and other resources would increase along with the plane's stability.
The God King said to the divine name, "Indeed. Just as you said, as long as the World Principles is placed within your name, its power increases out of thin air."
"But I cannot leave the World Principles in your name forever!"
The Persepolis divine name said, "That's simple. You just need to place my name upon yourself. Once you obtain my name, it is equivalent to adding this name to the sky itself; your power will be reinforced like never before."
"You will no longer need to struggle to support it; you will regain your youth and vitality."
The Sky God King's eyes lit up. He decisively took the name and placed it within his body. Suddenly, this titan god, descended from the Bannaradja God Clan, actually obtained a divine name of the Persepolis God Clan.
The Sky God King said, "Thank you. You are truly the savior of this world."
The God King transformed from a senile old man back into a powerful young man.
Locke, Hussein, and Old Pirate Henry immediately glanced at each other.
The three of them finally understood why they couldn't find the God King.
It was because the Divine Eye and the God King were originally two sides of the same coin.
At this moment, Locke saw that the God King, who had just obtained the divine name, was initially high-spirited; he had regained his youth and attained eternity.
Under the guidance of the divine name, he even learned to condense divinity.
Unfortunately, he was not a true member of the Bannaradja God Clan, so he could not use divinity to ignite divine fire, create a godhood, and then obtain a divine office.
Moreover, the partial Sky Godhood he possessed from the Bannaradja God Clan—the World Entity God—conflicted with the divine name of the Persepolis God Clan.
But over a long period, that divine name gained more and more power, gradually starting to ignore the God King's wishes and take over.
Whenever it took over, the God King would turn into a Divine Eye.
So, on the Ring Mountain, only the throne could be seen, but not the king's shadow.
The God Above Gods and the God King—only one of the two could exist at a time.
As time passed, the presence of the Persepolis God Clan's divine name grew stronger, even overshadowing the existence of the Sky God King.
Although the Sky God King had an incomplete godhood of the Bannaradja God Clan, he didn't know how to use it.
So, in this struggle, he naturally lost.
While that divine name of the Persepolis God Clan manipulated everything in the Three-Cave Plane, the Sky God King, in a rare moment of clarity, immediately realized that the divine name was by no means the savior of this world.
The name he had summoned back then was no friend.
By this time, the God King could no longer remove this name from his body.
He was not a true Bannaradja, and without the power derived from their divine civilization, he could not expel that Persepolis name from himself.
At this time, the God King sought help from the Endless Void for the third time, sending a distress signal through the power of the world tree leaf lineage, hoping the world tree leaf would dispatch the ancient Natural Guardians to save this world.
When the Sky God King was conscious, he was horrified to discover that the divine name had uncovered the secret of the world tree leaf's existence in this world; it was actually excavating the power of the world tree leaf, forcing the World Principles of the Three-Cave Plane to manifest so that the giants created by the God King could establish a resonance with it.
The Historical Reproduction spell was about to end.
Locke, Hussein, and the others saw the final scene: the Sky God King speaking with someone who looked very much like Locke.
The Sky God King said to Nicholas, "Nicholas, my moments of clarity are becoming fewer and fewer. I believe I will be completely possessed by that name in the future. I know its purpose; it doesn't care about... this world at all. It only cares about itself!"
"It will destroy this world!"
"I know you come from the outside; please save us."
Nicholas looked at him with a calm gaze and suddenly asked, "God King, you say that evil eye doesn't care about this world and only cares about itself. Then let me ask you, do you care about the lives in this world?"
The Sky God King was stunned.
Nicholas asked, "No, you don't care either. When your giants rampaged through the Mortal realm, capturing Mortals as food, you just watched from the side and didn't stop them. God King, that eye only cares about itself, and you only care about this world."
"In this world, there has never been a god who cared about the people."
"Am I wrong?"
The Sky God King fell silent, then spoke, "Nicholas, you don't understand. Compared to this vast world, the problems of these Mortals are insignificant. I have larger issues to attend to and no energy for such minor matters."
Nicholas said, "But I happen to believe that the only way to solve this world's problems lies precisely among these Mortals."
The Sky God King said, "Nicholas, I don't want to discuss this further. Our perspectives are different. In fact, the power he and I have accumulated over the years is already enough. As long as I can find a way to dominate this body, I can permanently sustain this world and solve the flaw of creation."
"If the real you can help me regain control of this body, then this world tree leaf can truly belong to you. Now, while I am still conscious, I want you to imprint your power onto this world tree leaf."
"I know you need it. You've hinted at it in various ways before."
Nicholas looked at the God King in confusion.
"But this thing is also very precious to you."
The Sky God King shook his head.
"That evil name wants to seize this power. In fact, before you arrived, there had already been multiple mass extinctions of giants and Mortals in this world. That evil name wants to use my power to restore its body and resurrect itself."
"It has made many attempts, all of which failed. Now it still hopes to resurrect by obtaining the power of this leaf; it has tried this path at least three times."
"I don't want it to obtain the power of this leaf. Because other than proving it can never be resurrected, it serves no purpose. It is impossible for it to be resurrected again, so it can only go mad."
Nicholas pressed his palm against the world tree leaf, using it as a foundation to create the tree of prosperity.
'Crack~'
Nicholas's memory shattered.
The consciousnesses of Locke, Hussein, and Old Henry returned to their bodies.
Inside the Demon Wolf Hell, Locke had not yet sent the golden dragon claw air pineapple back to his clone, so he stood in the Demon Wolf Hell wearing a pair of golden dragon claw air pineapples, looking at the Divine Eye bound by eight Blood Curse chains.
The Earth-Binding Blood Curse sealed the Divine Eye.
The Divine Eye saw Locke's figure reappear in the Demon Wolf Hell as Nicholas's memory shattered.
Shadows shifted within the eye's pupil, and bursts of golden light erupted—these were the spirit macros.
"What did you see in that memory?"
"Tell me!"
"Ahahaha... you can't kill me. You can't kill me."
Locke looked at it calmly.
"I know all your plans. You fellow from Persepolis, you want me to attack the Pillar of Creation, which is vital to the Three Caves World, by killing you."
"Using my hand to kill the God King."
Through the Historical Reproduction spell, Locke saw that the Divine Eye and the God King were merged, maintaining the Pillar of Creation.
In other words, if Locke were to kill the Divine Eye, it would be equivalent to destroying the Pillar of Creation, and the entire Three-Cave Plane would collapse instantly.
But the Divine Eye didn't want mutual destruction.
Because as long as the Pillar of Creation didn't completely collapse, the Three Caves World would at most mostly sink into the Great River of the Imaginary Sea.
It wouldn't completely return to the primordial chaos.
In this process, Locke would be completely defined as an enemy by the principle of the plane of the Three-Cave Plane, and he would certainly lose control over the tree of prosperity—the principles of the Book of Deification.
This was a patch applied to this world by his other half, Nicholas.
And since the Divine Eye's divinity was actually the God King, the Divine Eye wouldn't die; only the God King would.
But originally, without the God King and divinity, the Divine Eye would just be a name unable to interfere with the physical world; however, the Divine Eye had actually cultivated a second body in the Three Caves World.
That was the void battleship of the Bannaradja God Clan—that Lava Behemoth.
The Lord of Monsters!
A legacy left here by the Bannaradja God Clan of the past.
It seems the Bannaradja God Clan automatically evolves such creatures, likely as a way for their descendants to travel through the void.
So, the true plan of this Persepolis god was to have Locke kill it, indirectly using Locke's hand to kill the God King. Then, because Locke killed the God King, he would be antagonized by this world, lose the tree of prosperity, and be rejected by this world.
It would then transfer to that mindless Lava Behemoth.
It could then be 'reborn' through the Lava Behemoth.
Although this wasn't the Persepolis god's true body, it was the next best choice because that divine beast was a battleship of the Bannaradja God Clan.
Therefore, it was actually more suitable as a vessel than the Sky God King.
With such a powerful body, it could naturally try to kill Locke and the others, destroy the exploration vanguard on the plane's barrier, and settle scores with all the wizards.
The Divine Eye's pupil suddenly constricted; it clearly hadn't expected Locke to know all this.
Damn Nicholas.
Had he already understood it to this extent?
For a moment, the Divine Eye fell into fear, but it quickly found a point of victory under the blood shackles and the seal of the four Great Green Leaf Dragon Finchs, letting out a blustering laugh.
"No, you don't dare kill me. Killing me is killing the God King. Killing me is helping me transfer to a new body. You have no way to deal with me."
"Even if you know, what can you do?"
"Wizard, I can wait you out. My lifespan is long anyway! I will find an opportunity..."
"Ah..."
The Divine Eye screamed.
Because Locke thrust his fingers into the interior of its pupil, and five magical flames of different attributes—wind, fire, water, earth, and wood—appeared on his fingers.
"You seem to have forgotten one thing: I am an expert Potion Master."
"And you are just a name. Since you are a name, you are just a hidden true form."
"It's the same even if you are a god's name. As long as I extract all the spirit macros from you, I can separate you from the Sky God King."
The core of the Sky God King should be that incomplete godhood of the Bannaradja God Clan.
Therefore, he could extract all the spirit macros from this Divine Eye regardless of the consequences; in the end, a godhood would surely remain.
As long as that one godhood remained, the Sky God King could return.
Moreover, Locke estimated that as long as he weakened this divine name to a certain extent, the Sky God King could turn the tables and take control of the body.
Locke focused all his attention.
A Second-Ring Apothecary must not only learn to manufacture Second Ring Potions but also be able to create true spirit macro imprints from all things and all names. He was now going to create his first spirit macro imprint!
A spirit macro imprint is condensed from spirit macros, just like the Crimson Bloodstone spirit macro that the Rose Witch lost to him before.
And obtaining a spirit macro imprint from a name was originally the simplest way to acquire one.
Locke thought, "With my current Spiritual Cognition, it should be enough."