During the tarot session, the members' expressions gradually turned serious after hearing the answer from "The Hermit" Odis.
Taiwanese Novel Website → 𝗍𝗐𝗄𝖺𝗇.𝖼𝗈𝗆
"The Fool" Klein was keenly aware that the war of the gods that took place in the Second Age was extremely complex, with each side having its own objectives, which seemed difficult to discern on the surface.
The priestess, Cattleya, realized: Could this be the "progenitor of the vampires" choosing to commit suicide to avoid being completely corrupted?
Then she exclaimed, "The corruption of the 'Fallen Mother Goddess' is far too powerful; even the ancient gods cannot escape it."
Emlyn, the "Moon," was utterly stunned for a moment before immediately asking, "Did the 'Progenitor' decide to perish together with the other Ancient Gods on its own initiative, or was it forced to do so?"
"That might be the case," Odis replied with a smile. "You should know that I can't give you a precise answer to this kind of question; I can only tell you my guess."
Emlyn nodded repeatedly: "I'm willing to listen, I'm willing to listen."
The speculations about the "hermit" are generally quite logical, and even if the truth is not like that, they should be close enough.
Odis continued, "I believe that the 'Progenitor of the Vampires' could not have been unaware that he had been corrupted. When he realized that he could not resolve the corruption, he only had two paths before him: one was to completely accept the corruption, and the other was to perish and stop the spread of the corruption."
"If it is completely corrupted, the 'progenitor of vampires' may lose itself and perish. As a god, especially a god with abundant spirituality through the 'moon' pathway, there is a high chance that it can be resurrected."
"I think these two paths shouldn't be difficult to choose."
Emlyn breathed a slight sigh of relief: "So, the 'Progenitor' chose to perish together with the other ancient gods to end that corruption."
His eyes immediately welled up with tears: "'The Ancestor'... 'The Ancestor' is great!"
Odis thought to himself: I think He is more concerned with His own interests.
However, he did not voice these thoughts aloud, and continued, "In my opinion, the 'Ancestor of the Vampires' must have made this decision after the God War."
"Judging from the situation after the war, His decision lacked sufficient preparation; otherwise, He should have been able to fully resurrect shortly after the war of God."
Hearing this, Emlyn gave a wry smile: "But several eras have passed, and the 'Progenitor' has not yet been fully resurrected."
Odis said nothing, because he knew very well that Lilith had been fully resurrected in the late Second Age, but in a different identity.
He paused for a moment before saying, "That's all the information I have about that war of gods."
"Because it's been so long, many details are still unclear. I will continue to share new information with everyone as I get more information."
Odis does indeed know many inside stories, but she will reveal them after the war of the gods ends next year.
Emlyn felt a sense of loss. He had been looking forward to trading this intelligence, but now that it was traded, he felt as if he had lost something important.
The magnificent hall fell silent as everyone savored the intelligence they had just acquired in the transaction.
With the transaction concluded, the discussion moved into a free exchange phase.
"The Sun" Derrick spoke first: "I have become a 'notary'."
Klein felt an urge to cover his face again: This is something we don't need to tell you.
But Klein soon realized that the "little sun" had grown to a certain extent, and his sudden statement was probably to hear everyone's opinions on the "notary".
After all, he was the only extraordinary individual with the "Sun" pathway in Silver City, and if he wanted to digest the potion as quickly as possible, he didn't even have anyone to refer to.
Alger the Hanged Man had a similar idea, but he calmly replied, "'Notary' will greatly improve physical fitness, but is still more of a support role."
"The ability to make a notarization valid can be temporarily enhanced, while the ability to make a notarization invalid will be weakened or forcibly dispelled."
"At the same time, the 'notary' is also good at drafting contracts. Once he signs and approves them, even a Sequence 5 cannot violate them. Even a Sequence 4 demigod who wants to forcibly breach the contract will have to pay a considerable price."
As a member of the Church of Storms, I am familiar with many of the advantages and disadvantages of the "Sun" pathway.
"Little Sun" Derrick sincerely thanked him, saying, "Thank you, Mr. 'Hanged Man'."
Besides wanting to understand how people viewed "notaries" in order to find ideas for his role, he also wanted to become a Sequence 6 so that he could choose a sealed artifact from the Round Tower in Silver City to use.
Having gained a sufficient understanding of the "notary," he believed that he should prioritize selecting a sealing artifact that was good at controlling the target. If none was available, he should choose a sealing artifact with strong attack capabilities to make up for his weaknesses.
After a few more brief exchanges and no new topics to discuss, Klein announced the end of the tarot session.
...
Back in the real world, Odis saw the hotel ceiling and seemed to suddenly come to her senses, realizing that she was on her way to her new post.
He yawned, got up, prepared the altar, and completed the transaction at the Tarot meeting.
They received £4,600 in cash, as well as more than a dozen extraordinary items.
The cash was obtained through intelligence transactions, and the extraordinary materials were partly paid for by "Little Sun" as intelligence fees, and partly paid for by Odis in gold pounds last week for "Little Sun" to purchase the extraordinary materials.
The "Little Sun" was, of course, paid for with extraordinary materials of the "low sequence" in gold pounds.
After finishing all this, Odis drank a few sips of water and lay down on the bed for a proper afternoon nap.
Nothing much happened this afternoon. After Odis woke up naturally, she invited Bernadette to dinner, and afterwards they went for a walk.
However, after eight o'clock, the number of people on the street seemed to decrease suddenly.
Odis made a few inquiries and learned that the city of Solothu was not very safe at night.
The two of them didn't continue shopping, since they weren't police officers and had no need to maintain order in the area.
Moreover, once the pedestrians have left, the streets may only be left with thieves and robbers, and there's nothing worth strolling around.
That night, Odis and his companions rested early. The next morning, they boarded a carriage and first went to the station to load the large boxes onto two freight wagons. Then, the convoy of five carriages set off.
The hundred "extraordinary puppets" led the way, some clearing the path while others followed behind, forming a team that didn't appear too frail.
The road to Wotai City looked passable, but there weren't many carriages on it, because soon after leaving Solotu City, you would enter the mountains, where bandits roamed everywhere.
Although Governor Selt of Solothu State had defeated several large bandit groups, the fundamental problem remained unresolved. As the previous bandit groups were wiped out, new bandits emerged one after another.
Those who continue westward are usually caravans of bandits from Wotai Prefecture, or caravans of the two barons from Wotai Prefecture.
The former were not afraid of robbers; at worst, they would fight. The latter had already given enough benefits to the robbers along the way, so the bandits would not steal their things.
After walking all morning, Odis and his party did not encounter any robbers.
Because they belong to the third category: those who are numerous and powerful.
The "extraordinary puppets" were still dressed in military uniforms and carried weapons, so small groups of robbers dared not rob such a group.
At noon, Odis and the others rested under the shade of a tree at the entrance of a village. Although this was a mountainous area, there were quite a few villages.
According to Odis's "experience," most robbers come from villages like this, where they farm in their spare time and rob when they have the chance.
If you want to find the bandits' informants in a village like this, you won't find them at all, because they are all the bandits' informants.
This is why bandits in and around cities are easy to wipe out, but bandits in mountainous areas are difficult to eliminate.
Normally, most of them are not bandits, and once they are defeated, they will break up and hide in the deep mountains, returning home to continue farming after the state guards withdraw.
After a while, someone will rally them and organize them again, forming a new bandit army.
But these bandit armies are not the most difficult to deal with. The most difficult bandit armies are in Wotai and Shattar regions, where they are supported by foreign forces and are better equipped than the state guards.
We continued our journey in the afternoon, and around 3 p.m., we entered the territory of Wotai Prefecture.
The weather has been great these past two days. If it doesn't rain, we should be able to reach Votay State the day after tomorrow.
Actually, it wouldn't matter much if it rained, since the "Extraordinary Puppets" aren't afraid of getting wet. It just would make the roads more difficult to travel, affecting their journey.
After walking for more than an hour, when they passed a village by the roadside, Odis saw an old woman with a cane standing at the entrance of the village, looking indifferently at the procession in front of her.
Odis glanced at the other woman's expression and then ordered the car to stop. He rolled down the window and asked, "Madam, do you need any help?"
Bernadette, who was riding in the same car as Odice, was a little confused. She wondered why Odice would suddenly help a stranger.
This is because Odis saw that the other person's eyes were lifeless, indicating that he must have encountered great difficulties.
This area is now within the territory of Wotai State, which falls under the jurisdiction of Odis. If it can be of help, Odis will lend a hand.
The old woman glanced at Odis indifferently: "Help? Can you resurrect my son and daughter-in-law, and my seven-year-old granddaughter?"
Odis was taken aback, and immediately understood that the old woman was looking for a place to commit suicide, which was why her eyes were so lifeless.
He opened the car door and got out: "I'm the newly appointed governor of Votert State. Tell me, who killed them?"
"Governor?" The old woman sneered, "Heh!"
"Where was the governor when my son was stabbed in the gut and struggled in agony for a long time before he died?"
"Where was the governor when his wife was raped? Where was the governor when my granddaughter was kicked and hit her head on a rock, splitting her skull in two?"
At this moment, Long Ze'er, who had also alighted from the carriage, coldly said, "Watch your tone!"
Odis waved to Longzel and then said to the old woman, "I sympathize with your plight, but I feel no guilt, because that is the responsibility of the former governors, not mine."
"Tell me what happened. If the murderer is caught, I will shoot them at your family's grave."
The old woman glanced at Odis and said coldly, "It's no use, it's no use... They're all dead..."
As she spoke, she walked slowly forward, crossed the road, and headed towards the woods on the mountain.
Long Ze'er was about to go and bring her back to prevent her from committing suicide, but Odis stopped him again: "Let her go, she has no will to live."
Sometimes, for some people, simply living is torture.
Odis then said to Longzel, "Go to the village and ask what happened. Also, find out where the old woman's family is buried."
Long Ze'er nodded: "Yes."
Odis then returned to the car and said to Bernadette, "Wait a moment."
Bernadette hummed in agreement, having no objections. After all, she was accompanying Odis to his new post, and naturally, she would prioritize Odis's ideas when things came up.
Odis would only offer advice if there was a problem that she couldn't solve.
Bernadette did not ask Odis for his intentions at this moment, but simply observed quietly.
Soon, Long Ze'er learned about the old woman's ordeal. Yesterday, a band of bandits passed through the village and brutally murdered the old woman and her family.
The bandit army used a flag that depicted a flying eagle; it was the flag of their leader, Krett.
Odis quickly recalled the intelligence he had received earlier: Kret was a bandit army supported by the Republic of Intis.
This kind of bandit army is not quite the same as small groups of robbers. Many of them have financial support and have even received some professional training. They are more like mercenaries than small groups of robbers who are half civilian and half military.
"I understand." Odis nodded, then said to Longzel, "Take a few people and go find that old woman. If she's not dead, then leave her alone. If she committed suicide, then bury her with her family."
Long Ze'er hummed in agreement.
The caravan continued onward, and around dusk, Longzel caught up and reported to Odis, "The old woman jumped off a cliff and committed suicide."
Odis simply said, "I understand. Continue on your way."
Bernadette, sitting opposite Odis, suddenly said, "The lower class of this world is inherently miserable."
"Of course I know," Odis smiled and added, "So now I hope to popularize my inventions more quickly and use them to reshape the world."
Bernadette wanted to say something more, but in the end she only opened her mouth and said nothing.
In her memory, her father had also had the idea of changing the world, but in the end, he was defeated by the world.
Although Russell left the world with a great political legacy, it seems he is still some distance from changing the world.
Bernadette's lifespan of over a century had already made her lose hope, but she wouldn't let her own opinions dampen Odis's enthusiasm.
After dark, Odis arrived at the town where they were to stay, but there were no lights in the town, which made Odis and his companions feel a little strange.
This is a small town built along the road, with some shops on both sides of the road and some residential houses behind the shops.
The town isn't very big; you can see the other side at a glance.
After leaving Solothu, we arrived here at night, which is why this small town exists.
After entering the town, there was no one on the not-so-long main road.
Odis, sitting in the carriage, looked at Bernadette, but Bernadette shook her head, indicating that her spirit did not sense any danger.
After thinking for a moment, Odis said, "Let's go to the inn here and stay first."
After entering the hotel, Long Ze'er instructed the "Extraordinary Puppet" to prepare dinner. Then, he led several puppets around the hotel and discovered that some guest rooms still contained luggage and personal belongings.
The guests staying at the hotel vanished without a trace, as if they had evaporated.
After hearing Longzel's report, Odis didn't seem to care much: "Go and prepare a few rooms, let's settle in first."
Not a single mistake, not a single poem, not a single post, not a single piece of content, not a single look!
Long Ze'er paused for a moment, then reminded him, "Mr. Governor, something's strange here."
Odis smiled and said, "I've seen many strange things, don't take it too seriously."
Long Ze'er's eyes seemed to ask: Are you really going to live here without any worries?
Odis's response was not without reason; it's unclear what exactly happened here, or if this was a setup specifically targeting him.
If none of this is a setup specifically for him, there's no point in worrying unnecessarily.
If this was a setup targeting him, then the other party's actions were likely intended to force Odis and the others to leave the town.
Even if we leave this town, we will still encounter the ambush we are bound to face, so we might as well stay here and catch the other side off guard.
With the two newly recruited clerks present, Odis certainly wouldn't explain this matter too clearly.
After dinner, Odis and the others returned to their rooms.
Bernadette quickly passed through the wall again and appeared in Odis's room: "I just made a 'prophecy' that this town has suddenly become like this because of your arrival."
Odis smiled and said, "I'm not a robber, why are they running?"
In truth, he knew that someone didn't want him to live in this town. He didn't know who it was, but it was probably the bandits and nobles of Wotai City who were planning to "welcome" the new governor.
It could also be enemies he offended at sea before. After all, he relied on the "protection of the night" to provoke some extraordinary organizations. Now that he has suddenly emerged from the darkness into the light, many people will surely come to seek revenge.
However, with the "mysterious queen" backing her up, Odis wasn't too worried.
Odis pondered for a moment and said, "I guess I'll have to work again tonight."
Bernadette smiled; then she knew she was in for a good show.
Actually, she found it quite interesting to watch Odis fight the enemy. When she secretly observed Odis assassinating Duke Negan before, she realized that Odis as an "astrologer" was more powerful than when she was an "astrologer".
So when you see Odis in battle, it's like seeing an enhanced version of yourself fighting.
That night, Odis made thorough preparations, keeping the sealing artifacts and scrolls within easy reach.
But after waiting all night, nothing happened.
This made Odis realize even more that the enemy had driven everyone away yesterday in the hopes that Odis would think something was wrong here, so he continued forward overnight.
However, what they didn't expect was that Odis would not follow their script at all.
At breakfast, Odis reminded Longzel to be on high alert today and distributed heavy weapons to the "Extraordinary Puppet".
He estimated that there was an enemy encirclement ahead, and a battle was inevitable.
The "Extraordinary Puppet" usually only carries cold weapons such as swords and knives, as well as a modified "Flaming Arrow" shaped like a revolver.
The so-called distribution of heavy weapons refers to equipping them with two "portable spirit wave cannons" and twenty "extraordinary machine guns," while other "extraordinary puppets" are equipped with semi-automatic rifles designed by Odis.
It is no exaggeration to say that such a configuration is enough for them to relatively easily defeat two full regiments, and even defeat them head-on.
Just as they were about to continue their journey, Long Ze'er caught several suspicious-looking people.
After some questioning, we learned that they were residents of this small town. Yesterday afternoon, someone suddenly shouted that Krett's main force was going to stay in this town for one night.
They said they would stay for one night, but in reality, the townspeople provided them with food and lodging, and also indulged in their debauchery. When they left, they would steal all the valuables they could carry with them, as well as most of the food.
Such things happen frequently in Wotai Prefecture, and the residents of the small town are used to it. Once they encounter a large band of bandits, they run away as fast as they can. If they can't escape, they can only accept their bad luck and stay to serve the bandits.
Most of the time, the bandit army would not carry out massacres indiscriminately. They also knew that the population in these mountainous areas was limited, and if they killed too many people, there would be nowhere left to rob.
Odis told Longzel to release the man, and the group continued on their way.
After walking for more than half an hour, Odis finally understood why the other party wanted him to travel overnight: the road ahead was carved out of the cliff and was only wide enough for one carriage to pass at a time.
Every so often there is a small open space, which is where cars pass each other.
Odis looked out the car window. Below the cliff was a rushing river and jagged rocks. An ordinary person falling from here would surely die.
As Odis put on the sealing artifact, he ordered the caravan to continue, certain that the enemy would attack the convoy here.
Because if it were him, he would definitely attack here too.
Bernadette, sitting opposite Odis, remained relaxed; for a demigod, such a perilous environment had no effect on her.
Suddenly, she turned her head to look at the rock wall, then cleared her throat.
The tacit understanding that had developed between the two during this time made Oddi realize immediately that they had now stepped into the enemy's ambush.
He examined the rock face carefully but couldn't see anything unusual. However, Bernadette's warning was probably correct.
So Odis immediately used the "Flight Scroll" and the "Scale Armor Scroll" to prepare for battle.
Suddenly, the horse pulling Odis seemed startled, and with a sudden leap, it plunged into the steep canyon.
Odis suddenly rushed out of the carriage and used a "levitation scroll" on the carriage, which stopped falling and floated in mid-air.
Odis carefully observed his surroundings, but still could not find any trace of the enemy.
After a moment's thought, Odysseus immediately understood and threw a "Spirit Explosion Scroll" towards the location of the carriage.
The surrounding "extraordinary puppets" were not greatly affected, because they did not have any spirit bodies. The scroll only caused a short-term disturbance to the spirituality within them, but they could quickly return to normal.
But the "vengeful spirit" hiding in the crevice of the rock wall had to flee its original location. Odis grinned; his guess was right. This time, the one who ambushed him must be the "Rose School"!
The "vengeful spirit" was very good at hiding, and Odis's spirituality did not sense its presence at all.
While flying in mid-air, Odis took out the "Disaster Scepter". There was no one around for more than ten kilometers, which was a good opportunity to use this level 1 sealed artifact.
In an instant, dark clouds filled the sky, and streaks of pale lightning exploded before the black, phantom-like "vengeful spirit."
Meanwhile, Longzel commanded his team, mainly composed of "extraordinary puppets," to advance rapidly, hoping to escape the battlefield as soon as possible.
After all, given the power of the sealed artifact in the hands of "Mr. Governor," these "extraordinary puppets" couldn't be of much help.
Odis, who was flying in mid-air, soon noticed that none of the thick bolts of lightning seemed to have struck the "vengeful spirit".
He then looked up at the mountaintop, where a woman dressed in Lenburg attire stood with a sinister expression. She held a dagger in the style of the Southern Continent tightly in her hand and was coldly staring at the location of the "vengeful spirit."
Odis's spirituality immediately sensed that it was a Level 1 sealed artifact, which should also be equivalent to Sequence 4.
The reason why those lightning bolts didn't harm the "vengeful spirit" was because this sealing artifact blocked those attacks for him.
Odis guessed that it was the demigod who had appeared in Bayam who had noticed that Odis Gar had a level 1 sealed artifact.
That's why their assassinations involve carrying level 1 sealed artifacts.
Immediately afterwards, two more people appeared beside the woman holding the Level 1 sealed artifact. They stared coldly at the rapidly advancing "Extraordinary Puppets".
Then, behind them appeared a group of people with the same indifferent expressions.
Odis estimated that there were two "living corpses" behind them, and the corpses he controlled were behind them.
Two "living corpses" suddenly bent over and ran towards the group of "extraordinary puppets" commanded by Long Ze'er, and the corpses behind them immediately followed.
Then they leaped down, preparing to jump into the middle of the "extraordinary puppets".
However, Long Ze'er spotted them in advance and immediately shouted, "Machine gunners! Attack those corpses that jumped down!"
Da da da da da~
Almost the instant Long Ze'er gave the order, a barrage of extraordinary bullets, like fiery snakes, rained down, forming a despair-inducing network of fire.
The ordinary corpses were torn to pieces like rags after being hit by machine gun bullets. Even the two "living corpses" could not withstand such dense bullet fire. They dodged very nimbly in mid-air and did not appear in the "extraordinary puppet" when they finally landed.
Some of the undead they manipulated did manage to land among the "extraordinary puppets," but two-thirds of them were smashed to pieces during the fall and were no longer capable of fighting.
As the remaining third were about to seize the machine guns from the "extraordinary puppets," those "extraordinary puppets" who were not carrying machine guns had already drawn their melee weapons and engaged in hand-to-hand combat with the undead.
Meanwhile, the "puppets" wielding the "extraordinary machine guns" quickly retreated. At such close range, the probability of accidentally injuring their own people was greater than the probability of killing the enemy.
The two Sequence 6 "zombies" were about to rush up to help when Long Ze'er quickly stepped forward and blocked their attack.
Early yesterday morning, after Odis obtained the extraordinary properties of the "Punishment Knight," he made a magical item for Longzel that was equivalent to a Sequence 5 item.
This allowed him to return to a true Sequence 5 level, at which point he could relatively easily block the attacks of the two "zombies".
The power of the weapon in the hands of the "extraordinary puppet" surprised the "vengeful spirit" and the woman holding the level 1 sealed artifact. Just now, they had also realized that these people in military uniforms were actually puppets, but they did not expect that these puppets would be so powerful!
The woman was a Sequence 5 "winner" from the "Monster" pathway, and it was because of some of her own abilities that she was able to wield this Level 1 sealed artifact.
This sealed artifact corresponds to Sequence 4 "Puppet" of the "Prisoner" pathway, which theoretically allows her to manipulate those puppets.
However, there are still significant differences between the sealed artifact and the real Sequence 4. This "winner" can only fight Odis with the sealed artifact at this time and has no time to pay attention to the battlefield on the other side.
While the undead fought the "extraordinary puppets," Odis immediately waved his scepter, and a tornado flew towards the mountaintop, carrying along rubble and weeds that were also lifted into the air.
The tornado was so strong that it carved a shallow line into the rock face.
The "winner" immediately turned into a phantom and used the sealing artifact to hide in the spirit world.
Taking advantage of the opportunity, Odis threw an aphrodisiac scroll at the "vengeful spirit," intending to use this moment to severely injure it.
Just as Odis had predicted, the "vengeful spirit" who had been forced to hide in the crevices of the rock by the "Scepter of Disaster" suddenly had its lust ignited by the "Aphrodisiac Scroll," and pounced on a rock that jutted out from the mountain not far away, hoping to have an affair with that rock that went beyond friendship.
In fact, the "Aphrodisiac Scroll" doesn't have that much of an effect on Sequence 5, except for the "Indulgence" faction of the "Rose School".
Just as Odis was about to continue his attack, a phantom male figure with a full beard suddenly appeared in his pupils.
Odis's eyes widened: Oh no, there's another "vengeful spirit"!
This time, the "Rose School" actually dispatched three Sequence 5s, carrying a Level 1 sealed artifact, to carry out the assassination!
Fortunately, the "Scale Armor Scroll" could also block some extraordinary attacks, otherwise Odis would have been completely "possessed" by this "vengeful spirit"!
At that moment, the "tornado" on the mountaintop disappeared, and the "winner" reappeared, holding a level 1 sealed artifact. Looking at Odis, who had already been partially possessed, he revealed a cold smile.
Even if the possession wasn't complete, Odis was still a lamb to the slaughter in her eyes at this moment.
"fire!"
Long Ze'er's icy voice made the "winner," who was preparing to attack Odis, suddenly tremble.
A "portable spirit wave cannon" has been assembled and fired a shell at the "winner".