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Bugs Bunny felt a bit unnerved under the gaze, shifting uncomfortably as he mumbled, "Boss, what's wrong?"
After scrutinizing him for a while, Leyton slowly withdrew his gaze only after confirming there was nothing unusual about Bugs Bunny, then mused, "What did you encounter tonight?"
Feeling the gaze that seemed to peel him open bit by bit disappear, Bugs Bunny finally exhaled in relief, reaching up to straighten the black top hat on his head.
"I caught a lot of cultists with those two cats and hunted many mutated Monsters. Hmm, we harvested many materials and Beyonder characteristics, but they still need some processing, so we left them with the cats for now."
"Also, my staff merged with something strange and mutated, turning into a dark brown baton. Ms. Glenn sealed it to some extent, and it's usable now, but its Beyonder abilities have completely changed; it no longer has the ability to accelerate plant growth."
As he spoke, Bugs Bunny pointed to the small round table by the window. Leyton glanced over; indeed, there was a dark brown baton there, its spirituality very restrained, revealing nothing special from a mere glance.
He lightly tapped his fingers twice, summoning an invisible hand to grasp the baton from the table and bring it into his own hand.
After infusing a bit of spirituality into the baton, a faint circle of silvery-white symbols lit up on the dark brown baton. Leyton only felt his vision blur for a moment, then a vast, exaggerated net formed by countless silvery-white rivers appeared before his eyes, like some manifestation of fate.
"Fate, huh?" he murmured softly. Leyton used the ability of the Eyes of Mystery Prying to perform a simple divination on the mutated staff.
Soon, information about the dark brown baton surfaced in his mind:
Whoever holds it will gain the ability to perceive changes in fate. By expending a certain amount of spirituality, one can directly see or hear revelations of fate, which is no different from the divinations of Seers, except it requires no medium.
Through extensive preparation and sufficient time spent playing, it can cause changes in fate within a certain range. The more thorough the preparation and the more immersed the performance, the better the effect. Similarly, the more the listener resonates with the music, the greater the influence they experience.
Each interference with fate will cause changes in the user's own fate, which could be good or bad. As these changes accumulate, the user will eventually lose themselves and become a puppet of fate.
At the same time, whoever holds this baton will develop a desire to perform, constantly feeling an uncontrollable urge to show off and attract the attention of Spectators, becoming the focus on stage.
The characteristics originally belonging to a Biologist have been completely suppressed, showing no manifestation at all. It seems this power from the Fate pathway is of a higher Sequence.
However, the part about one's own fate changing with each use is a bit tricky. I wonder if this change can be reset by the Die of Probability? If so, then it would be a Mystical Item with virtually no negative effects.
As thoughts spun in his mind, Leyton set the baton aside and refocused his gaze on Bugs Bunny, asking in a low voice, "Have you used it? What about the Die of Probability?"
Bugs Bunny shook his head, quickly explaining, "No, Glenn said it's best not to use it, or I might gradually become a devout follower of that Goddess of Fate under the influence of fate."
Then he took the Die of Probability out of his pocket and carefully placed it on the sofa in front of him, seemingly very worried that his movements would make it roll.
Four pips facing up? Has Bugs Bunny's luck worsened? Or has something happened that I don't know about?
After a brief moment of contemplation, Leyton picked up the milky-white Die of Probability, brought it close to his eyes to examine it, then chuckled to himself, "Can you reset the changes in fate brought about by that baton?"
With that, he directly tossed the Die of Probability from his hand.
Clatter! The milky-white dice bounced a few times on the floor, then wobbled and slowly came to a stop, still with four pips facing up!
It seems there's no problem. As the Uniqueness of the Wheel of Fortune, the Die of Probability can easily suppress items from the Fate pathway that are of a lower Sequence.
Picking up the Die of Probability from the floor and putting it into the small iron box filled with slips of paper, Leyton pulled Bugs Bunny aside, then lay down on the single sofa himself, asking while rubbing Bugs Bunny's soft ears, "How did the potion on you digest?"
"Hmm, I'm not very sure either. Since the Moon became very bright, the potion on me gradually showed signs of digestion."
"Roughly when those plants mutated wildly and grew mouths to speak, the potion on me also rapidly digested, just as if all the plants I had planted before had yielded a bountiful harvest."
Bugs Bunny reached up and scratched his head, speaking somewhat confusedly about how he felt at the time.
Leyton furrowed his brows slightly, pondering for a moment. A flash of inspiration suddenly struck him, and he pulled Bugs Bunny closer, asking with some surprise, "Where did you plant plants before?"
"Only in Pulak's manor. Uh, I also had the crows help me throw away some unwanted seeds."
"Threw away some unwanted seeds…" Leyton's hand, which was stroking Bugs Bunny's fur, paused. His intuition had been touched, and then he followed his instinct to perform a divination.
As his eyes flickered, they became extremely deep, resembling the sea before a storm. In this state, he could glimpse the secrets of fate.
A series of extremely blurry images floated through his mind: a black crow casually tossing seeds around a river, some seeds taking root and sprouting on the spot; under the crimson moonlight, all plants began to grow wildly; distorted and bizarre plants quickly withered and died, then were Purified under a golden rain of light…
The images in Leyton's mind abruptly ceased. He looked with some shock at Bugs Bunny, who was sprawled on his lap, unsure where to begin complaining. He had just happened to stumble upon the ritual of the Primordial Moon's Blessed—what kind of outrageous luck was this?!
After a moment of hesitation, he said in a deep voice, "No problem. The characteristic in the staff I originally prepared for you can no longer be used. You can use your harvest to exchange for something with the Church of the Earth Mother later. It's just a Sequence 6 characteristic; the Church's resources won't be too strained."
"Okay." Bugs Bunny nodded, yawned while lying on Leyton's lap, then simply closed his eyes and rested.
Leyton, leaning back on the single sofa, raised his hand, summoned an invisible servant, and took the distorted Cosmos oil painting and the fist-sized crystal ball from its hand.
Supported by an invisible hand, the two items floated silently beside Leyton. He propped his head with his right hand, recalling his conversation with Mr. Hughes in the Library in the Spirit World Depths earlier. The more he thought, the deeper his brows furrowed.
Was it Mr. Hughes himself I was talking to then, or the God of Knowledge and Wisdom? Uh… that's not quite right either. They are very likely the same person; it's more about what identity he was using to talk to me. It was probably the God of Knowledge and Wisdom, but appearing as Mr. Hughes wouldn't put too much pressure on me.
Hunter and prey… He wants to expand his authority. With the five Pathways of omniscience and omnipotence already occupied, expanding into similar authorities is the best way to strengthen himself. An ordinary Sequence 0 is certainly no match for an Outer Deity, so he needs the emergence of the Demon of Knowledge. Having a common enemy makes for the most suitable ally.
The God of Knowledge and Wisdom's bet on the Demon of Knowledge seems to have been on me from the start. What does he know? Why would he think I am the one most likely to become the Demon of Knowledge? The True Creator might know something…
As his thoughts churned, the fist-sized crystal ball floating nearby shimmered with a dazzling starlight. Gravitational and electromagnetic disturbances appeared synchronously around it, and a semi-True, semi-false profound illusion suddenly unfolded.
A brilliant galaxy slowly appeared around him, with faint traces of civilization on it…
Whoosh!
A long, ineffable sound echoed around, and the brilliant galaxy began to twist and sway, forming an abstract oil painting. The image continuously collapsed downwards, falling from three dimensions to two…
The illusion, not yet fully manifested, instantly turned into a thin, depthless sheet of paper, finally shrinking into a scroll.
Leyton looked at the greatly distorted and abstract oil painting. The dark Cosmos in it seemed even deeper, even more True.
No wonder he gave me this painting. Not only is it bait, but it can also effectively counteract the occasional negative effects of this crystal ball.
It's not easy for a bit of power to be projected over, only for it to be rendered ineffective due to mutual interference. I wonder if these two in the Cosmos will be so angry they'll fight each other.
After letting his thoughts wander for a while, Leyton refocused his attention on these two Mystical Items. With the help of the Eyes of Mystery Prying and divination abilities, he figured out the effects of both items with almost no effort.
The distorted Cosmos oil painting will enhance the holder's inspiration, allowing them to see things normally invisible and communicate with the objects in the painting.
Inside the oil painting is an almost completely True world with eerie pollution. It can overlap a certain range of space with the world in the painting, creating an area with peculiar effects, and can also transfer some attacks or objects into the world in the painting.
Any marks left on the oil painting will materialize in the world within the painting, and corresponding effects can also be applied to the real world through spatial overlap.
The fist-sized transparent crystal possesses the ability to manipulate gravity, capable of easily stirring up tidal waves that destroy towns, and even crushing a small mountain with immense gravity.
The person holding the crystal ball will gain a certain depth of understanding of space and dimensions, able to find Concealment secret passages in the void, lock onto and correct navigation paths between the stars, and also use some peculiar magical abilities related to the stars, including "Gravity Anomaly," "Weakening Ray," "Electromagnetic Attraction," and "Cosmic Void."
As long as one holds this crystal ball, they will establish a wonderful and unique connection with the Cosmos, hearing the whispers of the stars and seeing the colors of the stars, making them very susceptible to pollution.
This crystal ball periodically constructs a semi-true, semi-false illusion. This illusion is extremely dangerous; the figure of a great existence will appear within it, and one may even establish a connection with that entity.
The cycle of cosmic illusion outbreaks is related to the movement of the stars and cannot be directly predicted, only through astrology or divinations that peek into fate.
What's the difference between an unpredictable pattern and no pattern at all? This crystal ball is truly a trap, and just holding it establishes a connection with the Cosmos, completely leaving no way out… Is this the difference between something that has been sealed and something that hasn't?
Leyton's gaze shifted between the oil painting and the crystal ball, and he sighed helplessly in his heart.
He reached out and pulled Bugs Bunny, who had fallen asleep on his lap, aside. Then he rummaged through the hotel room for ritual materials. He planned to use ritual magic to borrow the power of the Hidden Sage to seal the crystal ball to some extent.
He quickly set up the ritual, then stepped back and chanted softly in ancient hermes:
"Sage who perceives the world, Eye who peeks into truth, embodiment of endless knowledge and numerology."
"Your loyal follower implores you…"
As the prayer incantation was completed, an invisible force surged from an unknown place. The herbs and star crystals arranged in a specific order around him instantly shattered, transforming into specks of light that converged on the crystal ball in the center of the ritual.
Lasting less than ten seconds, all the light dissipated, and the originally clear and transparent crystal ball was tinged with a haze, no longer having the occasional star-like glimmers passing through its interior.
Leyton curled the corner of his lips, his gaze lingering between the oil painting and the hazy crystal ball for a moment, then he chuckled and said, "Phew~ The sealing is complete. As long as you don't use its related Beyonder abilities, it won't actively connect with the Cosmos. Only when used on a night with brilliant stars will that Cosmos illusion erupt as it did just now."
"Let's just call them 'Van Gogh's Starry Night' and 'The Out-of-Control Crystal Ball'."
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