In the Forsaken Land of the Gods, in the almost completely collapsed temple, green vines hung down, then quickly became transparent, until they disappeared.
During this process, Leyton's figure quietly emerged.
He gently rubbed his fingers, and specks of brilliant golden starlight spread out, emitting pure and clear rays of light that illuminated every corner of the surroundings, dispelling the darkness that enveloped the area, leaving no shadow behind.
In the light, monsters with bat wings, bodies like human children, and short, dark-grey fur clinging to their skin were revealed, and quickly melted into drops of transparent liquid by the light.
After dealing with the monsters hidden in the darkness, he walked straight towards the half-collapsed altar ahead. Above the altar was a statue of a god Fallen on a cross.
As he approached, the statue seemed to come alive, emitting a very deep aura filled with Degeneration. On the surface of the statue, black, viscous liquid slowly secreted, as if covered by a layer of shadow.
In the pure and clear light, the sticky black liquid on the statue continuously spread outwards, like a dark, lightless curtain of shadow. Deep within the curtain, there was an eye staring at everything, filled with extreme madness.
A deep, faint purple glow appeared in Leyton's light blue eyes. His entire being radiated an exceptionally sacred and wise feeling, yet he also appeared quite cold and devoid of warmth.
He stood there, gazing silently into the eye in the depths of the shadow. After two seconds of silence, he suddenly spoke:
"It seems your condition has improved a bit."
From the depths of the shadow, the True Creator's indifferent and rational voice emerged:
"No wonder Herabergen would cooperate with you."
"The seals left by the Seven Gods are still in place. I cannot leave this Continent, so I cannot interfere with your recovery of the authority and characteristics from Steam."
Leyton nodded calmly, then said:
"I know. The help I want to ask you for is something else."
"I can help you recover the authority of 'Sun'. In exchange, I need at least one 'White Angel' characteristic."
"Go find Sasrir." The True Creator's answer was very straightforward.
As these words fell, the viscous black liquid flowing from inside the statue quickly retracted, disappearing into the light like an invisible shadow.
"He didn't ask me to retrieve the first blasphemy slate from the Giant King's Court. Is he guarding against me, worried that I might directly take or seal that blasphemy slate away?"
"The third 'Knowledge Emperor' characteristic might require me to inquire with the Evernight Goddess. I originally thought it was hidden by the Hidden Sage or lost in the Forsaken Land of the Gods, but I can't sense the existence of any 'Knowledge Emperor' characteristic here at all. It can only have been deliberately hidden by someone."
"Any concealment cannot hide from the Mother of Concealment, and only She might have clues."
While muttering to himself, he turned and walked towards the outside of the temple. During this process, his body gradually dematerialized, breaking down into complex knowledge that drilled into the Spirit World Depths, moving forward like a torrent.
He had originally planned to gather a group of believers from the remaining city-states in the Forsaken Land of the Gods, but now he could only abandon this plan for the time being and shift the focus of his faith to missionary work in the Southern Continent.
In the Spirit World, the torrent-like flow of light, composed of pure and complex information, suddenly stopped. Leyton reassembled his body from the complex and pure knowledge.
His gaze swept towards a place outside the Spirit World, a city with a completely different style from both the Northern and Southern continents, a magnificent city built of steel and concrete.
Although this city had become decayed and collapsed over the long years, its distinct features still allowed one to instantly recognize which era it belonged to.
Deep within the Spirit World, Leyton subconsciously stepped out of the Spirit World and entered this continuous stretch of gray and white city.
The air was filled with the smell of rust and dust, which was not pleasant, but he breathed deeply, as if something deep within his soul was stirring.
Chernobyl... The former Transmigrator did leave something behind, even though this wasn't his hometown, just a similar place once upon a time.
Speaking of which, what am I now? An ultimate Frankenstein's monster, an unknown Transmigrator, Leyton of Feynapotter, the 'God of Knowledge and Wisdom' who is a personality facet of 'Knowledge Moor' seems to be deliberately strengthening my cognition beyond the 'Knowledge Moor' personality facet.
If this identity of mine is recovered by 'Knowledge Moor', but it cannot digest, or is unwilling to digest, this superfluous identity cognition, will it peel off another identity again, and will I, in some sense, be resurrected?
As he pondered, his vision suddenly blurred, and an Amon wearing what looked like a white lab coat appeared before him.
Amon's eyes flashed with a hint of curiosity, but his tone was calm as he asked:
"What are you thinking? I can't even steal your thoughts anymore?"
Leyton, while curiously observing Amon's attire, said:
"A 'Sage' has already grasped a certain level of 'Concealment', although it's not comparable to 'Servant of Concealment', it's still enough to conceal one's thoughts."
Amon raised his hand and pinched the monocle over his right eye, a slight curve appearing on his lips as he said:
"As a qualified Marauder, I can not only steal other people's thoughts and ideas, I can also infer from the expression and demeanor on your face just now that you know this place, you know the past of this city. Were you reminiscing just now?"
"I'm very curious what there is to reminisce about here? It's just a very ordinary city, without any Mystical elements."
Leyton walked past Amon and continued walking down the streets of the city ruins, speaking as he went:
"You should ask your Creator that question."
After a two-second pause, he continued to add:
"Some things, you will only understand when you possess normal humanity."
Amon's expression remained unchanged. His figure flickered, reappearing in front of Leyton, and he said with a smile:
"Normal humanity? How do I feel that my humanity is more abundant than yours right now?"
Leyton glanced at him indifferently and said:
"You're a bit annoying right now. You really are a brat raised by Medici."
"Is that so... I suddenly feel like beating you up too." As he spoke, Amon raised his hand and took off the monocle from his right eye, holding it in his hand.
Immediately, streaks of pale white light emerged from the surrounding void, converging towards the monocle in his hand.
During this process, his aura continuously surged, reaching the Sequence 2 level in just a moment.
Leyton looked at Amon, whose aura was gradually stabilizing, with some surprise, and calmly said:
"It seems you were prepared. How did you know I would come here?"
Amon put the monocle back on, then, as if showcasing his masterpiece, he tilted his chin slightly and said:
"I didn't know you would come here, I was just betting on a possibility."
"This is where my Creator emerged from. I believe this place must hold an extraordinary significance for him, and for certain people similar to him."
"After you successfully avoided me by relying on the residual aura and divine power of the Evernight and Storm, I dispatched some of my avatars here."
Leyton chuckled and nodded, not overly worried about stepping into Amon's trap. With the change in Sequence and Beyonder characteristics, it was already difficult for Amon to steal important things from him, unless his true body came.
After a moment of contemplation, he suddenly asked:
"Do you know the whereabouts of the three 'Knowledge Emperor' characteristics?"
Amon raised an eyebrow, his tone alluring as he said:
"You're looking for the third 'Knowledge Emperor' characteristic? I can give you a hint, but what do you plan to exchange for it?"
"How do I know if you really know anything?"
A deep, faint purple appeared in Leyton's eyes as he met Amon's gaze, who was wearing the monocle.
Amon raised his hand, attempting to grasp forward, and calmly said:
"You can take a gamble. Perhaps, I won't deceive you on this matter."
Leyton frowned slightly. The next moment, he felt as if he had lost something, some knowledge.
He stole my Beyonder power so easily, his luck is too good... While sighing inwardly, his body instantly became illusory, breaking down into complex knowledge that darted through this dilapidated and collapsed city.
A moment later, his figure reappeared on a largely collapsed grey-white concrete high wall.
Amon followed closely, also appearing on the high wall. Behind him, pure white, illusory feathers emerged, spreading outwards to form a pair of pure white wings.
Beneath the pure white wings was an ancient, mottled clock with twelve segments, formed by Worm of Times, each with twelve patterned segments.
The surrounding city ruins instantly changed. Many illusory "Worm of Time" light and shadow, with twelve segments, rapidly moved and wandered, silently influencing the surrounding environment, creating an environment more favorable to "Worm of Time."
This was "Mystical Reenactment" that Amon had just stolen from Leyton, which allowed the user to exhibit the mythical creature form of "Ugly Duckling."
After becoming a "Sage," the "Mystical Reenactment" he controlled also changed. When exhibiting the mythical creature form, "Ugly Duckling" could make the surrounding environment more suitable for himself.
Leyton smiled at Amon, who was displaying his mythical creature form in front of him, and his light blue eyes were tinged with a deep, faint purple.
He stared intently at Amon's mythical creature form, analyzing and recording the corresponding knowledge.
As this process continued, his appearance, image, and temperament rapidly changed, becoming somewhat similar to Amon, as if he had become a true Trojan Horse of Destiny.