During the tarot reading, Odis discussed the fees that everyone needed to pay.
Currently, among the members of the Tarot Club, apart from Odis and the "Priestess" Cattleya, Klein is an angel, and the other members are demigods.
The reason for excluding Cattleya is that she is currently fighting for Lenburg, so there is no need to pay her in this way, or rather, Odis did not intend to ask for her payment.
Besides Cattleya, an angel and seven demigods constitute a formidable force in any extraordinary battle.
Moreover, Odis remembered that Klein was supposed to be promoted to Sequence 1 by the end of this year.
From then on, his rise to power was like a rocket! He soon became the "Fool," but soon after that, he fell into a deep sleep.
If the timing is right, such as during Klein's Angel King stage, you can try to get help from the "Fool," who is roughly at the level of a true god and is blessed by the "Source Castle."
As Odis was lost in thought, she realized that no one had responded to the payment she demanded: "What? Does anyone have any objections to the payment I'm offering?"
He requires the "world" to fight for Lenburg once, and other demigod-level members to fight for Lenburg three times, in exchange for payment regarding the source of extraordinary properties.
"No," said "The Fool" Klein, manipulating "the world" first. "I have no objection."
The other members also expressed no objection.
Then "Justice" Audrey asked, "Mr. 'The Hermit,' you just said that another war is going to break out?"
Other members also learned from the newspapers that the Rembrandt Navy and the Intis Navy had a standoff in Caesars Harbor last week, which ended when Intis sought to resolve the issue through diplomatic means.
Everyone is very concerned about what the "hermit" suddenly said today.
Odis said, "It's obvious. Intis has developed the 'Extraordinary Puppet,' and their next step is to challenge Remenberg's position in extraordinary technology."
"Therefore, this war is inevitable, and the sooner it is fought, the better. The earlier it is fought, the fewer casualties and the less damage will be."
"In a few years, once Intis has become militarily extraordinary, it may turn into a protracted war, and everyone will suffer even greater losses then."
Alger the Hanged Man and the others could tell that the Hermits were inclined to start the war as soon as possible, and it seemed that they were already preparing for it.
None of them expected that a new war would break out so soon after the end of the World War.
Audrey pondered for a moment and said, "'The Hermit,' isn't your goal to make 'extraordinary technology' the mainstream in the world? Why would you oppose Intis's research and application of extraordinary technologies?"
Odis said, "Because no one can guarantee that Intis will not attack Lenburg after it develops."
He shrugged and said, "I'm confident I can guarantee that Remenberg will maintain its leading position in 'extraordinary technology'."
However, once other countries followed suit and developed using 'extraordinary technology,' the situation became difficult to control.
"Just like now, Intis has already isolated Remnburg and shared the technology of the 'Extraordinary Puppet' with countries such as Ruhnn."
"If we wait a few more years, they might feel they have the strength to fight Rembrandt. At that time, they will be the ones to start the war."
Even if we maintain our leading position in 'extraordinary technology,' we will still have to pay a huge price to achieve victory by then.
"To avoid such a thing from happening, the sooner this war begins, the better."
At this point, he took a deep breath, but once the war started, it would definitely be another world war, and Odis was not entirely confident at the moment.
Specifically, a fight is inevitable, but Odis has not yet decided when to fight.
After hearing Odis's reply, Audrey took a deep breath and said, "If necessary, I will provide you with some information about Rune."
The other members were all taken aback and looked at "Miss Justice".
Miss Justice has always been an anti-war activist, so why would she suddenly be willing to help Remburg provide intelligence?
Seeing everyone looking at her, Audrey smiled slightly and said, "Perhaps, as Mr. Hermit said, only when the Northern Continent is reunified can the world truly enter an era of peace."
"Moreover, I sent people to investigate, and Rembrandt is currently the only country that advocates work relief to solve the problem of homelessness. The key is that they are doing it very well, and you can hardly see homeless people on the streets."
"The products of extraordinary technology have been made as accessible as possible to the general public."
"To be honest, this is what I imagine a country should look like."
She took a deep breath: "The previous attack by Fursac and Intis on Rune was an invasion."
"But if it's Remenberg attacking Loen, I hope their offensive can be faster, so that the people of Backlund can regain the dignity they deserve as human beings as soon as possible."
Everyone was taken aback upon hearing these words.
In particular, "The Fool" Klein suddenly felt the "will of the people".
In fact, this era is not lacking in people of virtue and ambition; it's just that they are not the ones in control of this era.
Odis smiled and remarked, "You're increasingly showing the talent of an orator."
Audrey smiled and said, "That's what I really think."
Odis said earnestly, "Not everyone can realize that most of what I'm doing now is for the sake of a better living environment for the underprivileged."
At this point, he reaffirmed his determination to start the war as soon as possible and finally decided to build a missile launch center in the province of Olay in the near future, ready to provoke war and bomb Intis's military facilities at any time.
Let's leave this topic for now, and then "Star" Leonard spoke up: "I have something to share."
He shared stories about the wandering magician Merlin Hermes, such as the overnight reconstruction of Constance and the fully automated wish-granting machine.
As he spoke, Leonard made no attempt to hide his wariness of "the world."
Klein told "The World"'s Gehrman Sparrow, "I will be leaving the East Coast of the Intersea soon."
Hugh, the "Trial," and Alger, the "Hanged Man," had also heard about the wandering magician, while the other members were just listening to the story. At this moment, they suddenly realized that it was all Mr. World's doing.
Audrey thought to herself: No wonder she's an angel, this is simply a miracle.
Hugh then asked, "Mr. World, did you also make a law professor lose all his knowledge overnight, and suddenly give a child in a mountain village the knowledge of a craftsman such as a leatherworker, shoemaker, and blacksmith, and give an adult the practical knowledge that only workers possess?"
"The World" glanced at "The Hermit": "These things have nothing to do with me."
"That law professor lost all his knowledge because he used it to bankrupt many families," Odis said. "So I 'confiscated' all his legal knowledge."
What?
Can the knowledge in one's own mind be confiscated?
The consensus has always been that the knowledge you acquire and put into your own mind is your own wealth, and it is a wealth that no one can take away.
But what they find both strange and terrifying is that the "Hermit" has taken away other people's knowledge!
Odiston paused for a moment and then said, "As for the people in those mountain villages, they are eager for knowledge and long to leave the mountains."
"The villagers warmly treated me to lunch, and I gave them some useful knowledge in return."
That knowledge is the kind of practical knowledge that can enable young people to become apprentices in craftsmen, or that can be used by adults to apply for jobs in factories.
Hugh paused for a moment before asking, "Then what about the other extraordinary cases concerning 'knowledge' in Ruen in recent months?"
Is this also related to you?
Like the case of the wandering magician, none of the extraordinary cases that Hugh took on caused much harm, so they were not taken seriously by the authorities.
Odis nodded: "That should be the case."
Just as Hugh was about to ask why they were doing this, "Justice" Audrey preemptively asked, "Even at the level of an angel, is it necessary to play and digest potions?"
Odis nodded and smiled, "That's right."
Everyone took a deep breath. This was a bit terrifying. Some of these cases were actually committed by angels!
Moreover, these things that sound like miracles are simply angels digesting a magic potion.
In particular, Leonard, Hugh, and Alger, the three official Beyonders, are likely the very people they are hunting who are playing the role of angels.
After finishing this topic, "Sun" Derrick looked around before saying, "Silver City has already cultivated all the fields and planted crops such as wheat, but it will still be some time before the harvest."
"I'd like to know what we can do to earn gold pounds and buy supplies?"
In order to integrate into the real world as quickly as possible, Silver City and Moon City each sold off a batch of extraordinary attributes and monster leather, in exchange for a large amount of money, which could be used to purchase various resources.
However, the Roseside Isles are far from the Forsaken Lands, and the entrance to the Forsaken Lands could close at any time, making it impossible to effectively replenish Extraordinary Abilities and Monster Leather. Crucially, the people of both cities are unwilling to return to the dark and gloomy world to hunt.
Silver City and Moon City cannot abandon their military might and sell off large amounts of strategic resources. Once their existing gold pounds are exhausted, they will undoubtedly be in dire straits.
"Justice" Audrey thought for a moment and asked, "What are you best at?"
"Fight," Derrick replied immediately.
At this moment, Odis suddenly asked, "Are you interested in earning Sasenkin?"
He laughed and said, "That's Remnantburg's currency, which can also be exchanged for gold."
Derrick immediately replied, "Interested!"
"Then you can form one or two mercenary groups. Each mercenary group should have one demigod and three to five Sequence 5 members."
"You can decide on the other members' composition as you see fit," Odis said. "The Lenburg government will hire you to fight in the southern continent."
"Recently, the colonies of Remnantburg have been attacking the now defunct Byron Empire, a nation that is more like an extraordinary organization with a large number of 'corpse collectors'—extraordinary individuals on the adjacent pathway of 'warrior.'"
When Odis was preparing to resume the war, he planned to recall a portion of the extraordinary forces from the southern continent.
However, that would weaken the extraordinary forces of the Lunburg colony. In such a case, having one or two trustworthy extraordinary mercenary groups to support them would effectively alleviate the pressure on the southern continent.
Upon hearing Odis's words, Derrick replied happily, "Very well, Mr. 'Hermit,' I will inform the other members of the 'Council' immediately after the gathering."
Since finding a way out of the outside world, Derrick has become a member of the "Council".
Klein had no objection to Odis's idea. The Hermit was quite kind; instead of immediately sending the Silver City's forces to the front lines of the Northern Continent, he sent them to the Southern Continent to deal with the Spirit Cult.
At the same time, Klein believed it was necessary to give Danitz the Oracle, allowing the "Church of the Sea God" to increase the number of official extraordinary individuals within a certain range. As for the increased number, they could also recruit from Silver City and Moon City.
Then, the "Priestess" Cattleya suggested, "You should now have a large amount of liquid capital. You could try investing in the mines, spice farms, and plantations in the Rhodes Islands, as well as purchasing fertile land and productive forests."
They're all very cheap now.
During last year's war, under the impetus of the "Church of the Sea God" and the resistance, the Roside Islands gained autonomy. The administrative body changed from the former Governor's Office of Loen to the current Roside Autonomous Government, as well as a council composed of Loen people and a considerable number of local people.
The rights of the local people were protected to some extent, which was followed by the movement to abolish slavery, and the previously cheap labor force...
The fact that they have become employees is unacceptable to many Rune people, so they are selling off their properties and want to return home as soon as possible.
Derrick recalled that the messenger named Danitz had recently bought a spice plantation.
"Justice," Audrey added, "When you go to negotiate, it's best to hire a few professional lawyers, otherwise you can easily be scammed."
"Well, if you think it's unnecessary, you can bring along the 'psychoanalysts' in the city."
Other members also began to offer suggestions, such as the fact that the port built by Silver City was of medium size and could be used to develop a corresponding shipping industry.
For example, a paid course could be offered to outsiders at the general education school in New Silver City. After all, not every extraordinary person possesses sufficient extraordinary knowledge, and many wild extraordinary people are eager for a place to learn basic extraordinary knowledge.
Derrick quickly wrote down everything everyone said, and looking at the comprehensive plans in front of him, he seemed to see a bright future for Silver City.
After a lively discussion, Derrick considered the matter for a moment and then asked, "We have already built the temple and church for Mr. 'Fool' and want to spread our faith to various cities in the archipelago. What should we be careful about in this?"
Odis sat up straight abruptly. He wasn't trying to remind Derrick of anything, but he suddenly thought of the "Book of Fools," that ridiculous and misleading book about gods, and hoped that it didn't contain any description of the "Lord of Mysteries."
Alger, the "Hanged Man," frowned slightly and asked, "Have you compiled the holy text? Have you designed the Mass procedure and the details of the prayers?"
"Yes." Derrick nodded emphatically.
It was based on the miracles performed by Mr. Fool and Derrick's own understanding, combined with the religious texts left behind by the previous creator.
Moreover, Silver City had prayed to the "Fool," explaining the matter and indicating tacit approval.
Alger then asked, "Has the church's internal system been established?"
"Little Sun" answered honestly: "Currently, we are imitating the internal system of other churches, with our chief bishop concurrently serving as the archbishop, and appointing a group of residents with missionary enthusiasm as bishops and pastors."
As for an internal church body to handle extraordinary events, Silver City did not establish one, because most of its members were extraordinary individuals.
Seeing that Mr. Fool did not object, Alger the Hanged Man said, "We can try doing that."
"However, we must pay attention to two points: first, do not spread negative opinions about other churches, so as to avoid causing conflict."
"Secondly, we must respect the current messengers of God. Since Mr. 'The Fool' has not appointed any church leaders, the messengers of God are His agents."
Klein thought to himself: Danitz really needs to get some professional training. Otherwise, perhaps one day, Will Onsett will see the "Fool's" scriptures and be surprised to find: When did I become an angel seated by the "Fool"?
Then, the old man inside Leonard's body, the awakened Mr. Azik, and the messenger girl who is trying to regain her strength will also find out: What? Me too?
He refrained from commenting on the holy text compiled by the Silver City because the matter was somewhat awkward, whether he acknowledged it or not.
Both of these actions would damage the image of the "fool," so he has not yet commented on them.
That was the end of the discussion. At the end of the gathering, "The World" suddenly said to Odis, "I have something I need to discuss with you privately."
Odis was clearly taken aback before replying, "Alright."
It was clearly nothing important, otherwise I wouldn't have waited until now to talk to him.
After establishing a private conversation, Klein asked, "Do you know how the 'Hidden Sage' suddenly came back to life?"
Odis paused, not answering immediately, but looking at "the world".
Klein, manipulating the "world," laughed and said, "I've recently obtained some more information about the 'Hidden Sage,' and I'm curious how the unique suddenly came to life? Is it possible for all unique beings to come to life?"
To be precise, he was very interested in the concept of uniqueness.
When he first received the "Black Emperor" card, Klein thought that uniqueness was an illusory authority belonging to the gods, and did not actually exist.
But as he rose through the ranks and acquired more and more knowledge of the mystical, he gradually came to know that uniqueness was something that truly existed in the real world and was the embodiment of divine authority.
Therefore, he became even more interested in uniqueness.
"Under normal circumstances, Uniqueness would be a powerful and extremely strange Level 0 sealed artifact," Odis explained after Klein explained his purpose. "But the state of the 'Hidden Sage' is rather special."
"At the end of the Fourth Age, a strong spiritual remnant remained within the uniqueness of the 'Hermit' path. Later, stimulated by the 'Fallen Mother Goddess,' this uniqueness was reborn, absorbing a characteristic of the 'Knowledge Emperor,' thus forming the current 'Hidden Sage.'"
Klein nodded, then asked, "The spiritual remnants within uniqueness belong to the 'Sage'?"
"It belongs to the 'Sage'." Odis intended to take this opportunity to clarify the matter: "At that time, the consciousness of the 'Sage' split in two, one part became the 'Hidden Sage', and the other part is the current 'Lord of Mysteries'."
He said, half-jokingly, "Actually, I'd also like to talk to you about this, because I recently learned some very important information: we should start preparing ourselves mentally from the time we're angels."
Klein was taken aback, then pricked up his ears and listened intently.
Odis said, "Since the ascension of the angels, my relationship with the 'Lord of Mysteries' has changed considerably. It was only then that I learned that the 'Lord of Mysteries' had been supporting me in the hope that I would defeat the 'Hidden Sage' and become a 'Hidden One' before merging with him."
He was telling the truth, but it was a carefully chosen truth.
"Harmony with the Dao?" Klein was surprised to suddenly encounter a "Chinese" concept.
"That's right," Odis said. "Based on the information I found in the 'Wilderness of Knowledge' of the Source Matter, and the explanation from the 'Lord of Mysteries,' I learned a method to maintain a relatively stable state even after becoming an Outer One."
He paused for a moment, then continued, "To put it simply, after becoming an angel, one must consider their own unique 'path'."
Or rather, you need to understand the most unique part of yourself, as that will help you anchor yourself.
"As for the concept of 'Tao,' I think I don't need to explain it to you. Moreover, everyone's understanding of 'Tao' may be different. There doesn't seem to be a unified standard answer regarding the extraordinary 'Tao.' You can think about it for yourself."
Klein nodded slowly: "I understand, thank you for reminding me."
Odis smiled and said, "Let's go back to the 'Lord of Mysteries.' When this god chose to support me, it was because my 'path' was similar to his 'path,' so that it would be easier for us to 'merge' in the future."
"Based on my thinking, I can take control of my main consciousness during this process."
Klein frowned: "Is that still you?"
"It's still me, and it's not me either," Odis said with a smile, engaging in a cryptic exchange.
Then he shrugged and said, "I just think it's a pretty good choice. I'll lose some of my own identity, but I can get a smooth path to advancement."
"Relatively speaking, I still think it's a good deal, because from what I understand, when intelligent beings were ascending to the Old Ones..."
Consciousness will inevitably be corrupted by divinity, and even some ancient beings will awaken within our consciousness.
Odis said earnestly, "And 'harmony with the Way' is currently the only way to solve this problem."
He sighed and said, "What's most frustrating is that before this, no intelligent being had actually succeeded in becoming the Old One."
"Even the 'Ancient Sun God' failed to achieve this, because he never dared to take the final step, and can only be considered a quasi-Ancient One."
Klein found this somewhat strange, but upon closer examination, it seemed to be true. According to the information he had gathered, it appeared that two Ancients had appeared around the time of the First Era.
However, those two Old Ones seem to be the "original" two consciousnesses, that is, they belong to the "primitive Old Ones".
At this moment, Odis smiled and said, "There was originally no road on the ground, but as more people walked on it, it became a road."
The two looked at each other and smiled, their earlier sadness instantly vanishing. They were about to become the ones who "blazed a trail."
Then Odis said, "I need a worthy opponent to hone my skills."
"After thinking it over, I've decided to help you kill Zarathustra."
If war breaks out, the Zarathustra family will definitely support Intis, so it's best to eliminate this potential enemy before the war even begins.
Klein was taken aback, not expecting such a windfall. He then immediately said, "I can be the bait."
So the two of them discussed it briefly and quickly came up with a feasible plan.
After the individual sessions ended, everyone chatted casually for a few more minutes before Klein announced the end of the tarot session.
Odis returned to the real world and, as usual, stared blankly at the ceiling for a while.
Then he suddenly stood up and started pacing around the room.
He continued to provoke, and his determination to start a war in the near future was evident. However, the war was still much earlier than he had anticipated, and starting the war ahead of schedule would bring a great deal of trouble.
After thinking for a while, Odis suddenly laughed, because war is something that can't wait until all the preparations are done before it begins.
It would be quite good to be able to seize strategic opportunities. For example, now that there is no significant difference in strength, starting a war now would definitely make things very difficult for the other side.
At least the other person will feel worse than you!
The key is that, barring any major errors in decision-making or strategy, this war will certainly be able to disrupt Intis's development momentum.
Although Intis's "extraordinary industries" would develop rapidly during wartime, and their weapons would be updated and iterated at a fast pace, it would only benefit Remenberg.
With this in mind, Odis immediately convened a meeting of Remnburg's top officials.
The meeting lasted until late at night, and Odis reached a consensus among the high-ranking officials that "the sooner this war comes, the better," and then made a series of deployments.
Even before the next day, just a few hours later in the early morning, the entire city of Remburg suddenly entered a state of war.
This change caught the surrounding countries off guard, and the international situation became very tense again.
The day after the preparatory meeting, Odis, in his capacity as president, went to the church of the "god of knowledge and wisdom" to pray, which attracted a lot of attention and was even published in the evening paper that day.
Domestic readers believed that this was just a routine prayer by the president, a sign of his respect for the divine.
Intis and Rune, however, felt that Odis was demonstrating her close relationship with the church, a kind of protest.
Actually, none of that is true. What Odis was whispering in prayer was actually telling the "god of knowledge and wisdom" his plans. Although his prayer attracted a lot of attention, at his request, there was no one else in the chapel when he formally prayed.
Odis had a frank conversation with the "god of knowledge," and they quickly united on the same side.
The "god of knowledge" declared that he would fully support the war initiated by Odis.
Odis stated that he would do his utmost to strike at the Church of the Eternal Sun and the Church of the Storm.
After this exchange, all of Rembrandt's armed forces entered the pre-war deployment phase and did not continue to provoke Intis and Ruhnn.
However, a few days later, the Church of Knowledge suddenly modified its scriptures, changing "Eternal Sun" and "Lord of Storms" into evil gods.
This caused a huge uproar. During the Fourth Age, the scriptures of various churches described the gods of opposing churches as evil gods. For example, the Church of Knowledge, the Church of the Eternal Sun, and the Church of the Storms proclaimed the other two gods as evil gods to each other.
By the end of the Fourth Age, the seven major churches had essentially established the status of the seven orthodox deities through negotiations and battles.
In the Fifth Age, everyone had a common understanding that the seven orthodox gods were righteous and holy, while the gods outside of these seven were evil gods.
Even the "Battle of Oaths" hundreds of years ago was just verbal accusations between the Church of Knowledge and the Church of Mother Earth, rarely involving each other's deities, and without any modification to the sacred texts.
At this point, the Church of Knowledge suddenly revised the scriptures, which was tantamount to declaring war again.
The following day, the Remnburg government issued a statement expressing its support for the church's decision and advising believers of the "Eternal Sun" and the "Lord of the Storms" in the country to stop believing in evil gods.
The most troubled by this incident are President Intis and Prime Minister Ruhnn.
They knew very well that this was a provocative act orchestrated by the Remnburg government and the Church of Knowledge, and that they had to remain calm and not fall into their trap.
But they knew it was useless, because the Church of the Eternal Sun and the Church of the Storm, especially the latter, had completely lost their composure. They had begun to mobilize extraordinary forces to the border, ready to attack the extraordinary forces of the Church of Knowledge at any moment.
This left both governments somewhat helpless, forcing them to begin preparing for the worst.
It must be admitted that this was a very successful challenge, a hundred times more successful than the previous challenge to Caesar Port!
The government will consider whether the country's current situation is suitable for war, but the church will not.
The Hornach Mountains, the ruins of the Night Kingdom.
At night, Klein stared blankly at the ruins before him.
There once lived a country where a person and a secret partner lived together.
Even though Klein was a high-level extraordinary being who had "occupied" the land, he found the country very strange.
And next, he's going to build one of these eerie towns.
However, before that, we need to deal with the threat of Zarathustra to prevent him from joining forces with Amon.
After a moment of blankness, Klein cautiously entered the ruins, searching for clues about Antigonus.
Of course, he wouldn't use his physical body to search for it, but rather his "historical projection."
Moreover, they searched very carefully, as if afraid of waking the evil dragon sleeping in the ruins.
After searching several streets, Klein's historical projection revealed a church with an asymmetrical style reminiscent of the Quaternary period.
His spirit seemed to sense that the church was very special, as if something was attracting him.
So he approached quietly and saw through the dilapidated windows that bodies were hanging in the church, swaying gently in the wind.
Klein paused for less than a second before immediately stopping the maintenance of this historical projection.
It wasn't that he was afraid of the terrifying atmosphere created by those figures, but rather that the way the figures were hanging meant that this church belonged to a high-sequence extraordinary being who had "occupied" the church, and that those figures were all mystical puppets.
But the moment the historical projection disappeared, Klein, who had been hiding in the "historical fog," suddenly appeared at the location of the historical projection.
This is a "miracle"—Klein's original body and the historical projection have swapped positions.
At that moment, the people in the church suddenly turned their heads and looked at Klein.