The trading session during a Tarot reading.
[Remember this website's domain: Taiwan Novel Network → 𝐭𝐰𝐤𝐚𝐧.𝐜𝐨𝐦]
As for Odis, he already has a wealth of experience in creating magical items. When using the "Alchemy Glasses" to create a Sequence 5 sealed item, in order to ensure that the negative effects are minimal, he can only prioritize ensuring the two extraordinary abilities within it.
"The Fool" Klein thought for a moment, then manipulated "the World" and said, "'Lightning Strike' and 'Wind Blade'."
In fact, the most distinctive ability of the "Ocean Singer" is to influence its target through its singing.
But after witnessing the power of the "singing" during his previous mission with the "Hanged Man," he felt that such singing was best left alone.
So he chose these two abilities; the former not only had strong attack power but also a "paralyzing" effect.
The latter can use "Wind Blade" and "Wind Control Technique" at the same time, and will be able to fly in the future.
After using the "flight scroll" provided by the "Hermit," Klein realized that as long as he could fly, his combat radius seemed to have increased significantly.
Odis said, "Okay."
He paused for a moment and then said, "As for the reward, it's 600 pounds."
Because he wanted those extraordinary characteristics, he didn't dare ask for too much.
Klein thought to himself: This is so cheap!
He hadn't expected that asking a demigod for help would only cost this much.
The other members also felt that the offer was completely unexpected. If it was a promise to create a Sequence 5 magical item with not too many negative effects, a price of two or three thousand pounds didn't seem like much.
After the deal was finalized, "The World" then added, "I have another one here, the extraordinary trait of 'Chaos Mentor' from the 'Black Emperor' pathway, Sequence 5. Anyone interested?"
"Justice" Audrey was slightly taken aback: Another one? Another Sequence 5? Mr. World and Mr. Hanged Man's exploration last week yielded such a rich haul?
"The Magician" Fors and "The Moon" Emlyn both thought to themselves: I wonder which Sequence 5 has been killed this time.
Odis asked, "How many gold pounds do you want to sell it for?"
Although First Mate Balzer already possesses the promotion trait, since Odis intends to cultivate his own extraordinary power, he will need many extraordinary traits in the future.
Moreover, Cruz Island's income is currently stable, and although Vaudetia is still spending money, Oddes can now access tens of thousands of pounds at any time.
Therefore, he plans to buy any product with extraordinary features as long as the price isn't too outrageous.
Klein had already prepared his offer, and he manipulated "The World" to say, "8,000 pounds."
Odis immediately said, "I want it."
The other members were stunned for a moment, and the deal ended cleanly and efficiently.
"The Magician" Fors thought to himself: I haven't even had a chance to find out the name of the potion that corresponds to this property.
"Justice" Audrey also sighed: I originally wanted to ask what the specific abilities of this characteristic were, to see if I should buy it and then entrust the "Hermit" to make it into a magical item.
Just then, all the members heard "The World" Gehrman Sparrow say again: "There is also a Sequence 5 trait of the 'Cultivator' pathway."
For a moment, the entire giant palace fell into an eerie silence. Even Audrey still doubted her own guess: Could these extraordinary properties not have come from the exploration of the island? Or from the three extraordinary individuals who had actively challenged "the World"? Or had "the World" found some extraordinary treasure?
Fors had already imagined a series of stories in his mind.
After a couple of seconds, the priestess Cattleya finally spoke: "Name your price."
The reason why Cattleya did not speak immediately was because she was conflicted. She bought this extraordinary item simply to help her first mate, Frank Lee, get promoted.
However, as the captain of the "Future," Cattleya was more aware than anyone else of the danger she posed to Frank.
But then she remembered that most of the traits of the "Cultivator" pathway were in the hands of the Church of the Earth Mother, and Frank had been with her for so many years, yet he had never seen any Sequence 5 traits on the market.
If we miss this opportunity, who knows when we'll get another chance?
After thinking about it for a moment, she realized that she could buy this trait first, and then help Frank advance after she became a demigod.
That way, even if the first mate had any wild ideas, she could stop him in time, which is why Cattleya asked about the price.
"It's also 8,000 pounds," Klein replied, manipulating "The World." "A discount can be obtained if a large amount of gold coins are used instead."
He knew that the "Star General" had some gold coins, so he specifically offered a discount.
Although he had already paid off the messenger's debt, Klein still felt he should take the opportunity to accumulate some gold coins, which might come in handy later.
Caldelia hummed in agreement and said, "Deal. Give me a week to raise the funds."
She bought too many things at the pirate convention and hasn't had a chance to sell them yet, so she doesn't have much cash on hand right now.
After completing the transaction, Klein couldn't help but sigh: This trip to the primitive island, if it hadn't attracted the attention of that being deep within the church, would have been perfect. In less than half a night, he had acquired a "blasphemous card" that couldn't be measured in gold pounds, a magical item of Sequence 5, and a potential 16,000 pounds, all tax-free—even robbing a bank wouldn't have been this fast.
It's a pity that the original island is gone; otherwise, I could have gone there for a visit when I was short of money.
At this point, Audrey, the "Justice," asked the "Hanged Man" with some uncertainty, "Do you have the 'fruit of the psychedelic bell tree' yet?"
She had initially thought that if "The World" and "The Hanged Man" had explored a mysterious island together, then the extraordinary materials she needed should have been obtained by "The Hanged Man."
But then "The World" made three consecutive moves with three Sequence 5 extraordinary attributes, making her a little unsure whether they had explored together the previous week.
Alger the Hanged Man chuckled and said, "I was just about to tell you that I have obtained the fruit."
Audrey couldn't help but smile. The "psychologist's" potion had been completely digested, and now that all the materials were gathered, she could try to advance.
She asked, "What do you want to exchange it for?"
When Alger was promoted to Sequence 5, he was in a state of financial strain, and what he lacks most now is gold pounds: "2200 pounds".
"Deal!" Audrey immediately agreed to the offer, which included a slight premium.
As the transaction between the two concluded, a brief silence fell over the venue. Klein manipulated "The World" to first look at "The Priestess," then at "The Hermit," before saying, "I wish to see the 'Mysterious Queen.'"
Cattleya was slightly taken aback, and was about to ask what business she had with the "Queen"?
The hermit asked first, "What do you want with her?"
Audrey sat up abruptly, noticing that the word "her" was used instead of "queen."
Then she thought of some speculations about the identity of the "Mysterious Admiral" that she had seen in the Ross Daily. One of the reports said that there was a rumor circulating among the pirates that the "Mysterious Queen" had helped the "Mysterious Admiral" and there were even rumors that the two had a very ambiguous relationship.
At the time, Audrey didn't take it too seriously. After all, "Pirate General" was somewhat like a socialite and great artist from Backlund, so it was normal for him to have scandals.
But at that moment, Audrey suddenly realized that those rumors might not be unfounded.
Her expression remained normal, but she felt somewhat uncomfortable inside.
The other members, lacking the keen observation skills of the "audience," did not see anything wrong with the "hermit's" question.
Alger had heard long ago that "General of Mystery" seemed to be a subordinate of "Mysterious Queen," and other members had also heard about this in their exchanges at the Tarot Club, so when he heard "The Hermit's" answer, he didn't find anything wrong with it.
Upon hearing the Hermit's question, Klein manipulated the World to reply: "Don't worry, it's simple, but you'll need her help."
Odis thought for a moment: Klein was preparing to enter "Misty Town"... no, to enter St. Samuel's Church. He said, "I will report this matter and give you an answer in a few days."
Before leaving Wotai, he had discussed with Bernadette that he would go to Backlund first, and then Bernadette would go to the capital of the Kingdom of Rune for a couple of days.
However, she still needed Bernadette's help to look after things in Vaudé, so after staying in Backlund for two days, she returned to Vaudé.
Klein then asked, "What kind of compensation do you need?"
Odis thought for a moment before saying, "Let's see if she... cough, let's see if the 'Queen' agrees to the meeting first."
Klein also noticed that although the "Hermit" had changed his words, he had used "she" twice in a row to refer to the "mysterious queen".
He suddenly recalled the scene when he was exploring the "Ruins of the Gods" on the ship "Admiral of the Stars": At that time, I noticed that the way "Hermit" and "Mysterious Queen" interacted was a bit strange.
Then he chuckled to himself: "Your Majesty, it seems your fine cabbage has really been eaten by a pig!"
Unaware that anything was amiss, Fors, the "magician," said after the two finished talking, "I need an ancient cursed object from a vengeful spirit, along with its remaining spiritual essence."
She is also preparing to attempt Sequence 6. Her teacher, Dorian, can provide one of the main materials for Sequence 6, while she needs to collect the other one herself.
After all the members promised to keep an eye out for Miss "Magician", "Moon" Emlyn cleared his throat and said to "Hermit" "'Hermit', after careful consideration, I intend to buy the item that matches the characteristics of 'Vampire Viscount'".
The two had already discussed the transaction several times before the Tarot sessions, and after more than a month of fundraising, he finally raised the money.
Moreover, the vampire high command has already agreed to help him prepare the ritual and supporting materials.
Odis nodded: "No problem, I quoted a price before, 7,500 pounds."
Emlyn raised his chin: "Deal."
This was a large transaction, so of course he wanted to be proud.
At this moment, Alger realized that the transaction volume of this Tarot meeting was already very large. There were as many as four extraordinary characteristics of the Sequence 5 level alone!
He suddenly recalled when he first joined the Tarot Club. The first meeting was just about trading some basic knowledge of mysticism and the recipes for Sequence 9 potions.
As things have progressed step by step, most members are now striving to become Sequence 5 or Sequence 6. He himself has even advanced from Sequence 8 to Sequence 5 and learned a great deal of information about the ancient world of the Extraordinary Realm.
Who could have imagined that the whole process hadn't even lasted a year?
Alger was momentarily dazed before realizing there were no new transactions. This brought him back to his senses, and he cleared his throat, looking at "The World" Gehrman Sparrow: "Could we share that mural with everyone?"
When he saw the mural, he was deeply shocked and made some bold guesses.
It wasn't until the exploration process was over that he thought he could share it with other members at the Tarot meeting.
Actually, it was mainly for the "hermit" to see and for him to interpret the content of the mural.
Klein had similar thoughts, so he had "The World" respond: "I have no objection."
After obtaining permission from Mr. Fool, Alger, the "Hanged Man," materialized the mural depicting the King of Angels devouring what appeared to be the creator of the Silver City.
The mural was dark in color, with blurry figures in the background and a long table as the main subject.
Lying on the long table is a figure bearing a glorious cross, surrounded by three people shrouded in shadow.
One of them was handsome and energetic, the other was dignified and heroic, and the other had a white beard and appeared very wise.
But those three pairs of eyes all exuded an indescribable eeriness, because their actions were respectively: one tore off the figure's arm, one held up the head, and one dug out the still-beating heart.
A long, wide gash opened in the chest and abdomen of that figure, revealing a sinister, dark-skinned infant sitting cross-legged inside.
The bloody, evil, horrifying, and dark scenes left the members of the Tarot Club stunned.
It took them a while to regain their senses, and from that radiant cross, they recognized that the victim lying on the table might, perhaps, be the creator of Silver City, the "ancient sun god" from mythology.
Most members felt extremely shocked and instinctively suspected that someone was distorting and slandering the image of the true god.
Once everyone had come to their senses, Cattleya asked, "The Kings of Angels?"
She recalled the statue of Liushen that she had seen during their previous conversation, and it seemed that she saw a corresponding image in those three relatively normal figures.
"Yes, at least the three around him are," Alger gave a definite answer, but he himself was unsure who the dark-skinned infant sitting on the chest and abdomen of the Silver City Creator represented.
As he spoke, Alger glanced at the "sun" and noticed that the boy's gaze was vacant, as if he were lost in thought.
At this moment, "The Sun" Derrick's mind was filled with pain and despair.
He recognized the being devoured as the creator worshipped by the Silver City, and also recognized the three around him as the "Eternal Sun," the "Lord of Storms," and the "God of Knowledge and Wisdom"!
Although the "Hermit" had warned him before that the "All-Knowing and All-Powerful Lord" had likely fallen, falling and being devoured are two completely different things.
Then, Derrick began to doubt the claim that "God abandoned the earth."
The various ancient texts of Silver City emphasize that God abandoned this land for certain reasons, turning the people of Silver City into a people of darkness. Therefore, as long as everyone sincerely repents and prays for forgiveness, one day God will truly return and let the sun shine on the whole world.
He thought to himself in despair: No matter how much I repent, no matter how much I beg for forgiveness, Silver City will never be redeemed...
"Because God died, was eaten, and will never return..."
At that moment, he seemed to see generation after generation of residents of Silver City struggling in the darkness, sincerely praying for the sun to shine again on the barren land.
Suddenly, an unprecedented sorrow filled Derrick's heart, making him feel suffocated.
Seeing that the Sun was completely stunned and unable to provide any useful information, Alger the Hanged Man asked the Hermit, "Mr. Hermit, who does the baby sitting in the middle represent?"
Odis did not answer immediately, but paused and stared at the mural for a second or two before saying, "Let's trade for the remaining half of the information about the Third Age. The reward is 10,000 pounds!"
The latest novel is first published here!
The other members were taken aback at first, then immediately became excited and began discussing how to distribute the rewards.
Recalling the first half of the intelligence they had previously acquired, it was truly astonishing; they had been eagerly awaiting the "Hermit" to trade for the second half.
Because they were very clear that the latter part of the intelligence contained the reason for the fall of the ancient sun god and the process of the "Great Cataclysm".
Even if the reward is £10,000, they feel it's well worth it.
When "The Sun" Derrick calmed down a bit, "Justice" had already decided to contribute £4,000 and "The Priestess" £2,000.
The remaining five members received only £800 each.
The deal began once Derrick had largely calmed down.
Odis said, "The information we are going to trade today is quite astonishing. After we complete the transaction, we need Miss 'Justice' to hypnotize everyone so that they don't think about that information when they are outside."
Their expressions grew increasingly serious, yet their hearts were filled with anticipation, for they knew they were about to hear one of the most closely guarded secrets of this extraordinary world.
"First, I need to give a general explanation of what 'above the gods' means," Odis said. "I can't explain the specific concept clearly, but based on my observations, those beings who have reached 'above the gods' all possess multiple pathways."
Klein, behind the gray fog, took a slight breath: Sure enough! Above the "True God," there is another level.
Alger sat bolt upright: This is £10,000 worth of intelligence! Such important information was released right from the start. "Above the gods!" Haha, at first I aimed for demigods, and after hearing the "Hermit" talk so much about gods, I aimed for angels... I never imagined there was a level "above the gods."
After frowning, Gadriya thought to herself: This must be information obtained from the "Lord of Mysteries".
She knew very well that the "mysterious queen" couldn't possibly know such high-level information.
The other members remained silent. Although they had briefly discussed information about "above the gods" before, they were still somewhat surprised after learning the general concept.
Fors thought to himself: How powerful must the plural "divine way" be?
Then she thought to herself: I'm just a mid-sequence extraordinary being striving to advance to sequence 6, why do I have to know such advanced things?
Emlyn, the "Moon," lowered his head slightly, because he sensed that the progenitor of the vampires did not seem to be at the level of "above the gods."
Odis gave everyone a few seconds before continuing, "According to the information I have so far, there are very few beings who have reached the level of 'above the gods'."
"The 'Emperor of the Underworld' of the Fourth Age is one of them. After becoming the 'God of Death,' He used some special methods to forcibly accommodate the uniqueness of the 'Hunter' path."
"Although these two pathways are close, they are not adjacent, so the 'Emperor of the Underworld' is in a very bad state."
"During the Third Age, or at the end of the Second Age, there were two beings who were at the level of 'above the gods'."
"One of them is the creator worshipped by Silver City, also known as the 'Ancient Sun God'."
To be precise, both of them are "quasi-former" rather than "former".
However, whether it is "quasi-old days," "old days," or "pillars," they can all be called "above the gods." This is a general term without a specific concept, let alone an accurate name.
Gadriya thought to herself: As expected, this information was obtained from the "Lord of Mysteries".
Then she was puzzled: Why would the "Lord of Mysteries" reveal such high-level information to his subordinates?
Alger thought to himself: Only the gods could know such high-level and secretive information.
Klein suddenly wondered: Did the "Lord of Mysteries" also have authority over "secrets"? Otherwise, how would he know so much about the hidden history of ancient times?
Just as Odis was about to continue her description, "Justice" Audrey asked, "'Hermit', why did you say that the 'Death' path and the 'Hunter' path are 'similar paths'? Is there some extraordinary concept involved?"
"These two paths are rather special," Odis further explained. "To be precise, out of the 22 paths, 5 are rather special."
"We all know that the so-called 'adjacent paths' can generally be interchanged after becoming a demigod."
"For example, there are two paths: 'Hunter' and 'Witch,' as well as three paths: 'Sleepless,' 'Corpse Collector,' and 'Warrior.'"
"But I also learned something rather strange: all five of these paths can be interchanged in a certain sequence!"
Everyone was stunned. At the head of the bronze table, Klein, behind the gray fog, first thought: The poet classmate could actually switch to the "witch" pathway.
Audrey pressed further, "Why is that?"
"I don't know either," Odis said with a shrug and a smile. "I only know that such things happen."
He roughly knew the answer to this question. Odis believed it should be related to the "Fourth Pillar," but such a question was not suitable for discussion at this time.
Then Cattleya asked, "At the end of the Second Age, two beings 'above the gods' appeared. Who was the other one?"
Odis said, "It is the 'wise one'."
A sage?
Most of the members were taken aback. They had heard of this deity at a previous tarot gathering, but they did not expect him to be of such a high level.
Odis did not provide a specific explanation, but continued: "'Ancient Sun God' corresponds to 'Mystic,' 'Audience,' 'Sailor,' 'Singer,' and 'Reader,' five paths above the gods."
"It is said that He also once mastered the uniqueness of the 'thief's' path."
Six ways!
The other members were stunned again, as if they suddenly felt the power of the "Ancient Sun God".
Just as Klein was about to manipulate the "world" to inquire about why he had given up the uniqueness of the 'Thief' path, Odis continued, "So many advanced characteristics and uniquenesses concentrated in one person... in one god, His pressure is also immense."
"In order to maintain his state, the 'Ancient Sun God' had two children with an archangel, namely Adam and Amun."
"At the time of their birth, they each possessed the uniqueness of the 'spectator' pathway and the 'thief' pathway respectively."
Having largely emerged from his grief, Derrick, the "Sun," slowly nodded: It turns out that Adam and Amon were born because the "Lord" wanted to maintain a certain state.
Klein thought to himself: Why do I feel like I got this as a "free gift with a phone top-up"?
At this point, Fors asked curiously, "'The Hermit,' who was the archangel who was the mother of Adam and Amon?"
The other members were also very interested in this question. They had heard a lot about Adam and Amon, and for some reason, they found it strange that these two "Kings of Angels" had a mother.
Odis pondered for a moment before answering, "His name is Elbera Steiano."
Stiano?
Isn't that the surname of the family of the "Gods of Steam and Machinery"?
Meanwhile, Cattleya, who had once explored the Stiano family's secret realm with Odis, had already asked, "Could it be... the sister of the 'God of Steam and Machinery'?"
Odis nodded and said, "Yes."
Cattleya remembered that the sister of the "Goddess of Steam and Machinery" was the messenger of the "Hermit"!
At that moment, she suddenly didn't know what expression to use to express her inner emotions.
To be honest, Gadriya had already guessed that the messenger's identity was not simple, so she wasn't that shocked when she heard the news.
She wouldn't say she was envious. Gadria knew very well that even if such a messenger were given to her, she wouldn't dare to accept it because her level was too low. Such a messenger was more like a time bomb that could kill her at any moment.
She believed that the "Hermit" must have had the help of the "Lord of Mysteries" to successfully sign a contract with such a messenger and was not afraid of the messenger's backlash.
No one noticed the priestess's complicated expression at that moment, because they were all quite surprised.
Klein was already wondering: Could it be that the Stiano family rose to prominence because they served the "ancient sun god"?
Odis still didn't offer further explanation, but continued, "According to the information I obtained from the great 'Lord of Mysteries,' even though the 'Ancient Sun God' established two unique identities, by the end of the Third Age, His condition was still gradually deteriorating, and so..."
At this moment, "The Sun" Derrick couldn't help but interrupt, "'The Hermit', why is 'The Lord's' condition getting worse and worse?"
The other members, including the "Fool" behind the gray fog, also kept their eyes fixed on the "Hermit," awaiting his answer.
After a moment's thought, Odis picked out some information he could share: "It's said to be due to 'residual mental energy'."
Previously, when "The World" was searching for a way to eliminate the mental residue of extraordinary characteristics, the other members probably understood what mental residue meant.
However, apart from Odis, only Klein, Alger, and Cattleya could understand the specific concept of spiritual remnants.
Klein was taken aback: Was this a coincidence? In the diary he received today, Russell was discussing the issue of "mental remnants".
But then another question came to his mind: Where did the spiritual remnants of the "ancient sun god" come from?
After pondering for a moment, Klein raised his question: "Is the spiritual remnant within the 'Ancient Sun God' derived from the 'Elf King' and the 'Imaginary Dragon'?"
The reason he asked this question was because he further considered that two of the advanced characteristics and uniqueness within the "Ancient Sun God" were obtained after defeating the ancient god.
And today he just learned from Russell's diary that once someone becomes a god, their spirit is immortal.
When the "Ancient Sun God" possesses the uniqueness of six pathways within his body, at least two ancient gods already reside in his spiritual world.
"That should be a factor," Odis replied. "I can't give you a definitive answer right now."
"Well, I'll share my guess in a bit."
Klein immediately understood what the "Hermit" meant: there was more to this story than the "Hermit" had not yet obtained accurate information, which was why he said that.
Then a question came to his mind: if it wasn't the remnants of the ancient gods' spirits, then whose spirits were they?
Cattleya and Alger understood Odis's meaning one after the other, and then fell into deep thought.
Emlyn, the "Moon," then asked, "'The Hermit,' what exactly do you mean by 'spiritual remnants'? Are they difficult to remove?"
"As you may have heard, some magical items that are comparable to the 'middle sequence' have negative effects that can affect the holder's emotions or give them strange quirks," Odis explained. "This is a manifestation of mental residue."
"When you reach the demigod level, if the extraordinary characteristics used for advancement are not properly processed, they will retain the spirit of the original owner, and may even make the person advancing more and more like the previous owner of the extraordinary characteristics."
"At the level of gods, spiritual residue cannot be removed, because the spirit of gods is eternal."
Just as Emlyn and the other members of "The Moon" were surprised, Odis continued, "The 'Ancient Sun God' came up with a solution to his predicament: kill himself!"