Chapter 168

A silver lightning streaked across the dark sky, illuminating the entire Silver City; after it vanished, residual light lingered in the heavens before quickly fading, plunging the world back into blackness.

This is the Land Forsaken by the Gods, a continent abandoned by the divine, a ruin of war where no light exists.

Darik Berg returned from the Tarot Society, rolled out of bed, grabbed "Thunder God's Roar," and headed out the door toward the Twin Towers in the city's north.

His face beamed with a smile, his eyes brimming with uncontainable joy, eager to share his blueprint of a glorious future with the Chief, the Elders, and every resident of Silver City.

Along the way, many Silver City residents stepped out of their homes, smiling too; unlike him, they were happy because this period was the harvest season of Black Grass, the festival honoring the Ancient Sun God, when those struggling to survive in darkness felt a rare festive atmosphere and relaxed their perpetually tense nerves.

Occasionally he met familiar faces who greeted him and offered him their black grass talismans; Darik waved them off, signaling he had urgent business.

Watching their smiles, Darik grew even more determined to find the Chief and deliver the Fool's divine message—the news that the Fool would soon grant Silver City salvation.

'Wait a little longer.'

'Soon we shall see the true sun.'

Inside the round tower's top chamber of the Twin Towers.

Darik met the Chief of the Silver City Council—Corin Iliat.

This half-god of the Hunter Path stood as usual by the window, gazing down at Silver City; seeing Darik arrive, he turned to face him, and Darik bowed respectfully at that moment.

'Chief.'

Corin Iliat nodded and asked: 'How well have you mastered your "Light Priest" elixir?'

Darik answered honestly: 'Still a bit short.'

'Hmm, no rush—the rest of the exploration team aren't ready either,' Corin Iliat mentioned casually, noticing Darik's urgency, then asked:

'What's happened? You seem agitated.'

'Yes, Chief, I have good news to share with you!' Darik declared firmly.

'What?'

Darik suddenly remembered what the Fool had told him about the Ancient Sun God's demise, paused, then continued:

'It's not entirely good news. There are two things.'

'Hmm.' The tall, sturdy Corin Iliat showed no emotion, watching Darik, and said: 'Take your time. One at a time. Start with the bad news.'

Darik hesitated, then said: 'Chief, I discovered a relic of the Creator.'

Corin Iliat's gaze sharpened, his eyes shifting to express complex, indescribable emotions; the tall old man's voice grew slightly deeper as he asked: 'A relic?'

Darik nodded with difficulty: 'Yes. A relic.'

'The angels beneath the Lord betrayed Him.'

For an instant, Corin's pale blue eyes seemed to lose focus; after a long pause, he spoke calmly: 'I understand.'

'And the other thing?'

Darik could tell he had lost interest in the second matter; his voice carried weariness and resignation.

'The Fool's devotee is coming to Silver City,' Darik said without pause, rushing to deliver the news: 'He has promised to lead us to a world of light.'

A flicker of light passed through Corin Iliat's deep gaze; he was surprised yet puzzled, and asked Darik: 'Where does His devotee come from?'

'Outside,' Darik unconsciously straightened his posture. 'That world of light!'

Corin Iliat fell silent for a moment, then asked Darik: 'Then what is the price?'

'Or rather, what must we give up?'

Darik did not hide it—he directly stated the task the Fool had given him: 'The Fool has ordered me to strengthen my power and spread His radiance.'

'Do we need to change our faith?' Corin Iliat was not surprised, showed no particular emotion; if the Creator had perished, what use was clinging to faith?

Darik shook his head and said:

'The Fool says we must strengthen our power quickly and assist His devotee.'

'As for faith—that is a matter for later.'

Corin's gaze shifted away from Darik, and he walked slowly to the window, fixing his eyes on the altar near the training ground.

Many people had gathered there, surrounding the Creator's altar—some performing ancient dances to please the deity, others singing aloud in praise of the great being.

The residents' faces bore clear smiles, their eyes filled with longing and hope, as if, with just a few more years of endurance, the Creator from myth would return and all suffering would end.

This hope had been shattered again and again over the past two or three thousand years, yet it rose again and again, sustaining their spirits against despair and oppression.

'The millennia-old wish of Silver City.'

Corin Iliat stood by the window, watching intently, and said: 'If that day truly comes, my flesh, my soul, my will—'

'I offer them all to the Great Fool.'

——————————

The next morning, the Hermit, Gardelia, conveyed the words of the Mystic Queen, Bernadette, to Kleen:

'Between 1:00 and 1:30 p. m. today, at the Serenzo Restaurant, the Golden Theater.'

'Golden Theater' was the name of a private booth.

Su Lin's trio arrived at 1:08 p. m.; the waiters along the way ignored them entirely, allowing them to reach the target room without obstruction.

'I heard their ice cream is famous,' Su Lin said, eyeing the waiter's tray—the white ice cream drizzled with strawberry jam—slightly envious. 'Did your fake ice cream, used to deceive the Serpent of Fate, come from this place?'

'Respect the historical projection,' Kleen adjusted his hat. 'Ice cream is bad for infants' health. I did it for his sake.'

Zhongli surveyed the restaurant's décor; every lamp and oil painting bore unique character.

Outside the Golden Theater booth.

Kleen pulled out his gold-cased pocket watch, snapped it open with a click, glanced at the time—it was exactly 1:00 p. m. —then knocked on the oak double doors of the booth.

If this were a solo meeting, he would have deployed his puppet Qunasi and Enyuni at different locations across the city, swapping positions through historical fissures to prevent accurate judgment—that was basic etiquette for a Diviner.

But now, with two 'gods' beside him, doing so would be cowardly; so Kleen merely slipped into a historical fissure, leaving a historical projection outside, while his true self and Su Lin's true self played two-player poker within the historical void.

Too bad Zhongli didn't have this skill—if he did, they could play Landlord.

'Come in,' Bernadette's voice came from inside the booth.

Kleine turned the handle and pushed open the door.

The first thing that met his eyes was vast expanses of gold, like ripened wheat in autumn; the lines on the walls, combined with this gold to create a visual disparity effect, formed an ocean of undulating waves.

At the center, seated at the head of the dining table, was a chestnut-haired woman wearing an Intis-style white blouse, sitting quietly, her long chestnut hair falling naturally, her eyebrows arched just right—she bore the air of a career woman from Earth, one long accustomed to high position: the Mystical Queen, Bellnade.

Su Lin immediately recalled the fear of being dominated by his supervisor; the DNA of his office slave stirred unconsciously within him.

Su Lin glanced around; Rosel's taste in his daughter's aesthetics still held considerable influence—this style, so out of place with the medieval, left him momentarily disoriented.

Kleine removed his hat, pressed it to his chest, and gave a slight bow; then, with Su Lin and Zhongli, he casually pulled out chairs and sat down.

Bellnade's eyes, like the deep blue sea, swept over the three faces, and her voice, soft and calm, spoke:

"Why have you come to see me this time?"

"Are these two the High Priest and the Pope mentioned in Gardelia's letter?"

Before Kleine opened the door, Bellnade had sensed absolutely no other presence outside the room; only when this reckless adventurer pushed the door open did she perceive two additional beings arriving with him—his features matching exactly those Gardelia had described in yesterday's letter: the revived Ancient God.

She focused her attention, pondering the intent behind Gelmansparr's actions today.

If the two across from her were angels with malice, she would now have to deploy her trump card and find a way to escape. Two former Ancient Gods, plus the revived abilities of the Fortune Teller sequence from yesterday—this situation would be extremely perilous.

But out of prior trust, Bellnade had merely taken some precautionary measures, arranging countermeasures against negative possibilities within mere seconds.

"Hello," Su Lin greeted, then without ceremony picked up several white porcelain cups and poured three cups of black tea for himself, Zhongli, and Kleine. "Can I order some ice cream?"

Bellnade nodded, replying calmly and politely: "Please, help yourself."

Seeing this, Su Lin summoned a historical projection to step out and place the order, charging it to the owner of this private room.

Bellnade turned to Kleine, hoping he would offer some explanation.

Kleine paused briefly, then asked instead:

"Have you completed your task in Baeland?"

Bellnade looked at him, then slowly shook her head, sighing slightly as she said:

"No—but it is destined to fail."

She spoke at a steady pace: "The sequence potion for the Seeker Path is called Sage. To ascend to this rank, you must prevent a disaster involving higher-level forces."

"After learning the secret from Gardelia yesterday, I realized this ascension is doomed to fail."

"That one's script is beyond my capacity to stop."

Involving a True God, the Son of the Creator, the King of Angels—even the Hidden Sage himself stepping down would struggle to make a difference.

Kleine inwardly sighed—whoever said you'd run into Adam's script? Originally, this ascension wasn't particularly difficult, unless you'd spent thousands of years preparing in advance.

"Don't lose heart. For you, this conflict is also an opportunity. Higher-level disasters will only increase from now on—you can prepare ahead."

"You should have a Class-0 Anomaly. This kind of thing isn't hard for you."

Bellnade gave a slight nod and turned to Su Lin and Zhongli: "Does that one also intend to stop George III?"

Bellnade wanted to confirm again: the Class-0 Black Emperor could return countless times from oblivion—resurrection bound to the rules. The only way to prevent the Black Emperor's resurrection is for a new Black Emperor to appear.

Her father, Rosel Gustav, had not returned for reasons unknown; but if George III became the new Black Emperor, Rosel would never be revived again.

Su Lin nodded lightly and said: "Correct."

"." Bellnade wanted to ask why, but the actions of deities need no explanation from mortals—at least on this matter, they shared a common goal. Yet she also wondered: had her father truly chosen the Black Emperor Path? Or was it perhaps the Fool?

Kleine knew Bellnade's thoughts—but you're wrong. I'm your Uncle Zhou.

Su Lin's historical projection pushed open the door and entered, placing about a dozen ice creams of various flavors on the table.

"The proposal put forth by the World has been approved by our vote," Su Lin said, picking up a spoon and scooping ice cream into his mouth.

"Why?" Bellnade asked, her tone unchanged.

"Some ridiculous, insignificant reasons," Kleine smiled faintly. "On this matter, we can cooperate."

Bellnade's gaze lingered on Kleine for several seconds, then nodded: "On this matter, I will do my best to cooperate with you."

Ding-dong

"Then let's begin with the first matter," Su Lin said, gently tapping the glass cup of ice cream with an iron spoon. "Will you come with us to meet your father?"

Hearing Su Lin's words, Bellnade fell into brief silence. Her hidden Anomaly tightened unconsciously in her hand; she suppressed her doubts and the urge to flee, her gaze fixed firmly on Su Lin.

"You mean… my father?" Bellnade uttered the words, revealing her emotions. She began to wonder whether this was truly as she had once imagined.

"On an island, there lies Rosel's final mausoleum," Su Lin said, hearing Bellnade's voice, noticing the clear flicker in her eyes. "We will briefly awaken him. With you, his daughter, present, he might be pleased."

Bellnade remained expressionless for several seconds: "Why only briefly?"

"He is corrupted. But don't ask too much—otherwise, you'll be in danger," Su Lin said cheerfully, looking at Bellnade.

"Can you help Him?" Bellnade had suspected this, but confirmation brought an indescribable sorrow. "I am willing to pay any price."

"In time, we will," Su Lin said, glancing at Kleine, then smiling at Bellnade. "You don't need to pay anything—I'm from the same hometown as your father."

"Do you remember this word?"

"Hometown."

In Bellnade's startled gaze, Su Lin slowly said:

"You may call me Uncle."

End of chapter