Leyton looked down at the pad of his left middle finger. The original wound had disappeared, replaced by a strange, transparent, amber-like crystal in his palm. Inside the crystal was a drop of dark red blood with countless intricate symbols floating within it.
He placed the transparent amber, which contained his blood, into a pre-prepared square ring box. Then, he set up a ritual to summon a Knowledge Rabbit wearing a grey-blue vest. After giving it two gold coins, the Knowledge Rabbit took the square ring box and burrowed back into the Spirit World, wandering towards the location of the Future.
In the central Sonia Sea, the "Blue Avenger" sailed quietly on the surface. Alger stood by the bay window of the captain's cabin, gazing at the distant sea.
Through a series of hints and guidance, I finally managed to get the crew to suggest heading north of Sonia Island. At that point, all I'll need is some time bought by the Sanguine's anesthetic gas, and I can rush to the sea where the Obninsk is active to complete my advancement.
It was indeed the correct decision to go to that Primitive Island with The World in advance to explore. Although this will increase the risks I bear, the "Ocean Songster" characteristic alone is worth the risk, not to mention that Tyrant card!
Once I become a Sequence 5 Ocean Songster, I'll be considered to have caught up to the second tier of strength in the Tarot Club.
Thump! Thump! Thump!
A sudden knocking sound interrupted Alger's thoughts. He turned his head towards the captain's cabin door and said in a calm voice:
"What is it?"
From outside the door came the voice of the ship's Boatswain:
"Captain, we're approaching Sonia Island. Do we need to find a private port to anchor and resupply?"
"Yes," Alger replied calmly, turning to walk towards the nautical chart spread out on the desk.
At the junction of the Fog Sea and the Berserk Sea, the Future broke through the waves at an extremely fast speed, heading northeast into the Fog Sea.
Inside the captain's cabin, Cattleya was quickly flipping through the intelligence from the Moses Ascetic Order:
"The Moses Ascetic Order has shifted its focus to the Southern Continent Paz River Valley. Even without the Tower's request, I would still travel between the Northern and Southern continents due to internal organizational tasks."
She sighed softly, and her spiritual intuition was suddenly touched. As she looked up, a translucent, rabbit-shaped Spirit Body wearing a grey-blue waistcoat darted out of the Spirit World and landed on the desk in front of her.
"...A Knowledge Rabbit?" Cattleya whispered in confusion.
Although the Mystery Pryer pathway does not have a Sequence called "Polymath," as long as one embarks on this pathway, one is destined to be knowledgeable. Even without actively studying, knowledge will automatically enter one's mind.
She recognized this Spirit World creature at a glance, but the small waistcoat it was wearing made her momentarily bewildered.
The Knowledge Rabbit stared blankly at Cattleya, scrutinizing her from head to toe. Then, it reached into its translucent body and pulled out a small square iron box, placing it on the desk in front of Cattleya.
Then, it said in a relatively childish voice, "Your delivery, please sign for it."
Having done all this, the Knowledge Rabbit quickly burrowed back into the Spirit World, disappearing from Cattleya's sight in the blink of an eye.
In the Spirit World Depths, Leyton, who had been moving rapidly in the form of an information torrent, suddenly stopped and reassembled his body from complex and pure knowledge.
His eyes, deep and profound, looked towards his front-side, as if his gaze could penetrate the barriers between the Spirit World and reality, seeing the scene on the distant sea.
He felt his own aura erupt, and someone had established a deeper level of mystical connection with him.
"She used my blood so quickly. It seems she had already prepared everything needed for advancement, only lacking a drop of a mythical creature's blood."
He sighed softly, then reached out and pinched the void, severing the connection between himself and Cattleya. Otherwise, the influence from the Hidden Sage and Knowledge Moor would cause her to lose herself during advancement and become a puppet.
Having done all this, his body once again decomposed into torrents of complex knowledge, surging forward like a flood.
Soon, Leyton, in the state of an information torrent, left the Spirit World and appeared near Backlund's Saint Samuel Cathedral, reassembling his body from complex and pure knowledge.
Leyton slowly walked out from the shadows beneath a house. During this process, his appearance, image, and demeanor rapidly changed, finally settling on that of an ordinary-looking and ordinary-tempered Polymath.
Without any delay, he directly followed the scattered crowds into the Saint Samuel Cathedral.
On both sides of the aisle, narrow, tall windows embedded with tiny blue and red patterns let in streaks of colored light, blue almost black, red like the moon, making the surroundings exceptionally dim and quiet, like a peaceful and tranquil night.
Leyton slowly walked to a front-row seat and sat down. In front of the Night Holy Emblem, which was deep black with brilliant embellishments, embracing exactly half of the crimson moon, he clasped his hands together, closed his eyes, and prayed in a low voice.
Gradually, he felt his surroundings become exceptionally quiet. The footsteps and hushed conversations he had heard earlier all disappeared.
The scent of night-scented stock lingered in his nostrils with a gentle evening breeze, and Leyton immediately opened his eyes.
He casually glanced around; his surroundings were an endless garden of night-scented stock, and above him was a tranquil night sky dotted with only a few dim stars.
About five or six meters in front of him, a somewhat illusory and hazy figure had appeared at some unknown time.
She wore layers of black classical robes, with specks of starlight embedded in the hem, like the deep night sky. Her face seemed to be veiled by layers of thin gauze, giving a hazy impression, yet one would instinctively think that face was exceptionally beautiful.
Leyton merely glanced briefly before retracting his gaze, placing his right hand on his chest, and bowing, he said:
"Good afternoon, Ms. Amanises."
Through a layer of illusory veil, Leyton felt as if Evernight Goddess gave him an emotionless smile. Then, an ethereal, illusory female voice echoed in his ears:
"Good afternoon, Your Excellency Knowledge Moor."
"Your disguise is very good. At first, I truly thought you were also a remnant of the Outer Deities. If you hadn't voluntarily appeared before me, I would still be unable to accurately determine your identity."
Leyton chuckled, following her words: "This is a gift from fate. Besides the "Circle of Inevitability" and "Goddess of Fate" in the cosmos, there isn't an existence on Earth yet that can easily see through and unveil this layer of concealment."
"It seems that the two Snake of Fates' inability to determine a victor for so long is not as simple as it appears on the surface."
Evernight Goddess sighed almost imperceptibly, then continued:
"I'm still curious, why did you choose to disguise yourself as a remnant of the Outer Deities?"
Leyton spread his hands and said, "Because it's very simple for me. Likewise, this is the only bit of humanity I have left."
"I understand." Evernight Goddess nodded quietly, then continued to ask: "What do you plan to exchange with me for the information about the missing part of the Knowledge Emperor characteristic?"
"News of the River of Eternal Darkness," Leyton said calmly, then paused and added:
"There is no conflict between us. It's the same to you who becomes the Demon of Knowledge, and I am the one most likely to succeed, no matter which 'I' it is."
"Understood." Evernight Goddess nodded gently, then she began to speak of the third portion of the Knowledge Emperor characteristic's information:
"It is with Omebella."
"In the twin eras when Giants and Dragons were relatively strong, the most sagacious subordinate deity under the Dragon King, besides the Dragon of Wisdom, was also a Dragon of Wisdom. It fell in a conflict that erupted between Dragons and Giants, and the corresponding characteristic condensed into a Sealed Artifact called 'False Paradise,' which was managed by the Harvest Goddess Omebella at that time."
"The effect of this Sealed Artifact is quite special. It can create an information world that is between true and illusory. There, the Mother Goddess of Depravity's influence on the 'Mother' and 'Moon' pathways is reduced to the lowest level."
"This is also why Earth Mother is closer to Outer Deities than Chained God and the Dark Side of the Universe, yet is affected the least."
"This is a hidden cooperation between me and Earth Mother. I will give all information about that Sealed Artifact, including the 'Concealment' information world that is between true and illusory, which can help Her resist the influence from the Mother Goddess of Depravity."
After quietly listening to Evernight Goddess's narration, Leyton let out a long breath and bowed towards her, saying:
"I understand. Thank you for your answer."
It seems there's no way to get this characteristic from Lilith for now, unless I can find a way to replace that Sealed Artifact. I can't stay there myself; using corruption to fight corruption might work, but She certainly wouldn't be willing.
After sighing for a moment in his heart, Leyton quickly adjusted his emotions and began to describe the situation of the River of Eternal Darkness to Evernight Goddess.
Evernight Goddess listened quietly, not interrupting until Leyton finished his narration. Then, she said with a slight sigh:
"Unlike the potion's anointing system, is this related to the Spirit World Sorcerer system you and Herabergen developed?"
Leyton clasped his hands and pondered:
"In essence, they are similar. The Spirit World Sorcerer system was only able to take shape by leveraging some of my own authority and that of Sefirah Castle."
"Although embarking on this system will inevitably bring them closer to us, under undisturbed circumstances, this situation will not be too severe, only some changes in personality and habits."