Luke couldn't believe what he was hearing — Twenty Two Pathways. Ten Sequences. Demigods. Angels. Gods.
The more he learned, the more he felt how ridiculous the power Mr. Fool had blessed him with.
It became even more clear when Miss Justice told him there was a concept of Neighboring Pathways, and a Beyonder could only switch between them only one Sequence at a time.
In his case, the Seer, Marauder, and Apprentice were the neighboring Pathways, and the one in complete control of Mr. Fool.
If he were a normal Beyonder in Mr. Fool's world, then he could have switched between Sequence 9 of the Apprentice Pathway to Sequence 8 Seer Pathway, i.e., Clown.
However, that would have raised its problem as some Pathways were specials, allowing such a switch much later, above Sequence 4 or 5.
— The Demigod level!
As if that wasn't enough, Luke learned how hard it became to keep one's sanity intact as one advanced on the Path of the Divine.
There were always chances of losing control; chances that kept becoming larger as one neared the Demigod level.
For Luke to hold onto Sequences of three different Pathways at a time, even if they were neighboring Pathways, just proved how potent Mr. Fool's Blessing was.
In the end, Luke confirmed a feeling he had been having about these Beyonder powers.
A Beyonder wasn't much unlike a Nomu, Luke felt. Just like a Nomu was stuffed with different kinds of Quirks, the same was true for a Beyonder as well.
However, in the case of Beyonder, it was the Potions that filled them with Quirks.
Despite the immense difference in these two methods, there was one chilling similarity.
No matter if it was Nomu or Beyonder, the more the Quirks/Potions they had, the more they tended to lose their reasoning.
And that's exactly what Quirk Singularity stated.
Only Dr. Kyudai had achieved the singular feat of giving intelligence to High-End Nomus, having multiple Quirks.
In that way, those High-End Nomus were similar to Demigods, Luke theorized.
But there was one thing more… Luke had an idea why multiple Quirks resulted in loss of reasoning capabilities, as he had researched it in his previous life.
Combined with Mr. Fool's Spirit Particle Theory, he was almost sure that it was because of one's natural rejection of foreign spirit particles.
If it wasn't for One For All's nature, then passing Quirks like that to Quirk users would have turned One For All users into simpletons as well.
With that in mind, Luke couldn't help but focus on the matter of losing control in the case of Beyonders.
When the Tarot Club members finished giving a brief overview of the Pathways and Sequences, Luke asked, "Why?"
As all of them looked at Luke in silence, he repeated, explaining what he was thinking.
Sitting opposite him, Miss Hermit nudged her glasses. "You thought of all this while listening to us?"
Luke nodded, feeling confused.
When else was he supposed to analyze the matter?
Spending a lifetime among scientists of the Blue Site, where each one was better than the other, Luke seemed to have gained a very underestimated opinion of himself.
It didn't even cross his mind that such cold reasoning, while hearing shocking things like Sequences, Pathways, and the dangers stemming from them, wasn't natural.
"It's the Corruption," Mr. Star suddenly said, sighing.
That rang alarm bells in Luke's mind. "Corruption?"
"For that, you must learn the Myth of Creation first," Miss Justice said. "Let me explain."
Then, the noble lady told Luke how the Creator awoke from Chaos and shattered the darkness, creating the first ray of light, and how everything in existence came from Him.
When Miss Justice finished her part, Miss Hermit said, "So, these ingredients that we use to brew Potion, they are nothing but corrupted extraordinary materials. With each Sequence, Beyonders become closer to the Creator, accumulating more Corruption.
"That's why, as you rise in Sequences, the more the chances of a Beyonder losing control, if they don't balance it out with external means…"
Luke's face had paled under the gray fog.
The ingredients… are… Corrupted… The words rang in his mind, jolting his Spirit Body. I have been… getting Momo to create…
"I don't think the ingredients you use to brew Potion are Corrupted, Mr. Devil," Miss Justice said. "If it had been the case, I am sure Mr. Fool would have told you about it."
Luke found himself lacking words.
It was true, in a sense. Mr. Fool had warned him about lots of things, but He had never mentioned the matter of Corruption.
"I don't understand…" Luke said, looking at others. "Isn't the Beyonder powers stem from this Corruption? If they do, and if the ingredients I create aren't Corrupted, then how am I getting the same powers?"
Everyone looked at each other.
"I have a theory…" The Hanged Man suddenly said, making everyone look at him. "This System that Mr. Fool Blessed you with… I think that's the source of Corruption inside you. It interacts with the potion you consume without corrupting you.
"Also, it will explain why you would need your blood for bestowing Potions upon others. The System would be corrupting the said blood drop, infusing the brewed Potion with Corruption."
"That's…" Luke gaped at the man. "… Brilliant!"
I misread Mr. Hanged Man, Luke contemplated. I thought he was trying to hoodwink me. But, in truth, he must be the wisest member of this club…
The Hanged brushed off Luke's remark. "It's nothing compared to Mr. Fool's powers," he said reverently. "Praise be to Mr. Fool."
The Tarot Club members together nodded, repeating the same words.
"Now that we are already theorizing," The Hanged Man hurriedly added before anyone could speak up, "I have something to say about… Conformity and Singularity as well. Of course, I would like some extra payment for this, as this could open up more paths to explore for you."
Already impressed with The Hanged Man's nature and reasoning, Luke nodded. "Of course."
But Luke had a distinct feeling that the rest of the Tarot Club's members' mouths were twitching…
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