Chapter 477: A Luo De Si

In the Sunia Sea, east of Ao La Wei Island, amid rolling waves, a passenger ship came along the safe channel from the direction of the Luo Si De Qun Islands, with rows of cannons installed on both sides of the vessel.

At one of the glass windows on the left side of the passenger ship, Ke Lai En, maintaining the demeanor of Germaine Sparro, stands quietly by the window, silently gazing at the ever‑changing sea outside.

"Just a bit further ahead lies waters controlled by the Fu Sa Ke Di Guo; I guess this finally counts as going abroad for me."

Ke Lai En sighed softly, then reached out to pull the roller‑type curtain shut, and turned toward the simply arranged single berth on the other side.

He had just lain down on the bed when inspiration suddenly struck, and he turned his head toward the window.

Tiny specks of azure flickered in through the curtain's gaps, gathering in mid‑air into solid‑looking starlight, and quickly reformed into the figure of Lei Ke Dun.

When the figure solidified, Lei Ke Dun stepped forward while greeting:

"Good evening, Mr. Adventurer~"

Ke Lai En rose from the bed with a hint of helplessness, watching Lei Ke Dun, already comfortably seated in an armchair, his mouth twitching slightly as he said:

"Why are you here? I'm not even an adventurer yet, but you—now not only the Storm Church is offering a bounty on you, the Rune and Intis officials have also raised a reward, and the bounty isn't low either."

"I also need to go to the Divine War ruins; I originally planned to wait for you on the 'Future', but since you haven't asked A Luo De Si my question yet, I changed my mind and came here to find you first."

Lei Ke Dun lounged half‑reclined in the armchair, speaking in a leisurely tone.

Ke Lai En was momentarily stunned, because the other party hadn't pressed for the result, so he had forgotten the matter; recalling it now, he cleared his throat awkwardly twice and said:

"Um, do we need to find A Luo De Si right now? That radio receiver has been placed above the Gray Mist for a while, enough time for it to locate us."

Fortunately I'm still keeping Germaine Sparro's persona; otherwise this awkward scene would really make my toes curl.

"Sure, should I step aside?" Lei Ke Dun nodded lightly and murmured.

"No need." Ke Lai En shook his head gently.

He then got out of bed cleanly, fetched the materials required for the supplication ritual, swiftly set up the ceremony, and immediately began praying to the "Fool".

He then, by responding to himself, projected the radio receiver through the gateway formed by the supplication ritual.

Just as the radio receiver was placed on the side table, before Ke Lai En could tidy up the lingering remnants of the ceremony, a faint, ethereal "da‑da‑da" sound rang in his ears.

A somewhat illusory sheet of white paper was expelled, bearing silver‑white Rune words:

"My respected, great, supreme master, I feel your summons; may I ask, have I arrived in time?"

Ke Lai En, using the faceless one's ability to control his expression, nodded lightly and replied:

". In time."

Da‑da‑da again, another illusory sheet of white paper was expelled, the silver‑white Rune words followed by a smiling emoticon:

"Very well, my respected master, according to the principle of equivalent exchange, you may ask me one question."

Ke Lai En glanced back at Lei Ke Dun still half‑reclined in the armchair; after the other nodded lightly, he turned his gaze to the radio receiver and said:

"I want to know the first sequence of the Seeker's Path, where are the Knowledge Emperor's traits located?"

Da‑da‑da~~

The illusory white paper on the radio kept spewing out, some words appeared stiff and mechanical, as if A Luo De Si had copied and pasted the answer directly from the spirit realm:

"Respected master, each first‑sequence path has exactly three extraordinary traits; the Knowledge Emperor's three traits are respectively in the Morse Ascetic Order, in the God of Steam and Machinery Church's Trill Parish, and one whereabouts unknown."

"The trait held by the Steam Church Headquarters originates from Luo Sai Er's legacy; it is a sealed item, catalogued 0‑45, also called the Knowledge Throne, shaped as an exotic, lavish throne forged of gold."

"Any being who sits upon it gains endless knowledge, mastering information of all things in this world, and gains a certain ability to alter them, becoming almost omniscient and omnipotent."

"Experiment 1: The overwhelming knowledge will directly burst the brain of any creature lacking divinity;"

"Experiment 2: Ordinary saints will lose the ability to think under the massive influx of knowledge; saints of the Seeker, Reader, Generalist, and Spectator paths, who rely on wisdom, can briefly retain some sanity;"

"Experiment 3: It will make a person become cold and indifferent, gradually losing humanity and reason, becoming part of the knowledge;"

"Experiment 4: It is ominous (erased)."

"Sealing method: Place it in a magnificent palace, with sealed item 1‑113 continuously recording beside it and scrambling the transcribed knowledge it disperses; the surroundings must have intelligent beings circulating nonstop for twenty‑four hours, they must be good‑looking, must be female, and every two hours a full‑scale praise must be given to it (Note: any pregnant being may not approach it, nor may there be overly intimate sexual activity nearby)."

"Warning: 0‑55 carries hidden and terrifying contamination; any creature that contacts it may change in ways unrecognizable, difficult to detect or identify."

"Confidentiality level: Pope, first‑group researchers, only messengers of the divine may use it in limited capacity."

"I can see very little information about the Morse Ascetic Order's Knowledge Emperor trait; only some records left by Luo Sai Er: it was probably absorbed by the entity worshipped by the Morse Ascetic Order."

"I found no records in the spirit realm for the third Knowledge Emperor trait; it may never have appeared, or may have been deliberately hidden; Luo Sai Er once speculated this is also why the God of Steam and Machinery's belief involves a path‑jumping entity."

"Respected master, are you satisfied with this answer?"

Ke Lai En, still maintaining Germaine Sparro's persona, nodded slightly and replied: "Satisfied."

"The things left by Emperor Luo Sai Er are so elaborate even the sealing method requires attractive ladies to lavishly praise it; isn't that a bit absurd? Even if it's a sealed item, it's just a seat! Even a beauty standing before it can't do much."

"Did the God of Steam and Machinery once traverse the Seeker's Path as an extraordinary being?"

"That's possible; the diary submitted by Lady Recluse previously mentioned that the former Craftsman God, now the God of Steam and Machinery, has close ties with the Morse Ascetic Order in his divinity."

After thinking for a moment, Ke Lai En turned to Lei Ke Dun seated behind him in the armchair and asked:

"What do you think?"

Lei Ke Dun, leaning against the armchair's back, rubbed his chin with his right thumb, and said pensively:

"There are no records at all. It's unlikely it never appeared; after all, from the First Era to now enough time has passed, the extraordinary traits should have merged, either activated or turned into a demonic elixir consumed by people."

"It was probably hidden; its information‑manipulation ability lets it easily erase its own traces, which reflects the Seeker's Path's secret authority."

"Achieving secrecy by modifying and hiding information? I always thought authority was something abstract."

Talking about authority made Ke Lai En curiously ask another question, forgetting even to keep Germaine Sparro's image.

The da‑da sounds kept echoing, and another strip of illusory white paper emerged from the radio receiver on the small round table in the cabin:

"Respected master, I know the answer to this question; would you like me to help you recall it?"

Recalling the phrasing, 'help me recall', how a waste of talent not becoming a civil servant, Ke Lai En thought silently and then lightly nodded, saying:

"Speak."

The clacking of typing continued, and soon new illusory white paper spewed out:

"Very well, respected master."

Authority is the exclusive domain of divine beings, closer to a concept, the supreme manifestation of divine power; its very existence transcends the world's rules and natural order.

Authority itself is reasonable; its abstractness is merely due to insufficient understanding of the relevant knowledge and information.

Just like the concept of 'death,' most people and extraordinary individuals feel it objectively exists, yet it is difficult to comprehend deeply; but for corpse collectors and the sleepless, it is not merely that.

In the Magic Potion Pathway, starting from Sequence 2, one comes into contact with Authority; however, even those at the Angel Rank only grasp part of this pathway's Authority, and only by reaching the status of Sequence 0 can one truly master all the Authority encompassed by this pathway.

It's abstract because of insufficient understanding; why does this mirror's speech carry such a reader's vibe?

Klein glanced skeptically at the telegraph machine that no longer produced new illusory white paper, and he gave a slight nod in response.

Not bad.

This is my honor, O Great and Supreme Master.

Great Master, I have a presumptuous question; I don't know if I may ask it.

The clacking sounds continued; this time, the final line of Ruen script was followed by an aggrieved poking-finger emoticon.

It's evolving so fast, its emoticons are about to become emoji packs. Klein sighed inwardly; although he wanted to say that if he felt presumptuous he should just not ask, considering the attitude displayed by this sycophant mirror—uh, magic mirror—he still lightly nodded.

Yes.

The clacking of the typing sounded much lighter; soon, another strip of illusory white paper popped out.

Great and Merciful Master, I don't know if I am worthy to follow in your footsteps and become your most loyal servant.

Klein fell silent for a moment, speechless; relying on the Faceless Person's control over facial muscles, he prevented his mouth from twitching.

Isn't this a bit too servile? It should be able to see some traces left by my... source fortress, but just a trace or a scent is enough to make this magic mirror comparable to a Grade 1 Sealed Object—Arodes—kneel in submission.

Although somewhat speechless, Klein maintained his current persona and gave an ambiguous answer.

Depending on your performance.

The clacking sounded without the slightest hesitation; a new 'white paper' sprang from the telegraph machine, and at the end there was a simple stick-figure in a swearing pose.

Thank you for your generosity, Great Master; I will surely keep pace with your steps, forever follow by your side, and be your most loyal servant.

I seem to have been ignored by those two. Leighton gazed at the master and servant immersed in their exchange, momentarily unsure whether to speak up to prove that a third person was still present here.

While Leighton hesitated about whether to speak, the telegraph machine again sounded with clacking, and another strip of illusory white paper emerged.

Great Master, the Steam Church people have lifted the restrictions on my true form; they likely have more questions to ask me.

Klein gave a slight nod and said, 'You may leave first.'

Great Master, I wish you a pleasant journey and a swift return to your supreme throne; your faithful servant Arodes bids farewell.

At the bottom of the words there is also a little figure waving a hand with tears.

The illusory white paper only lasted a moment before abruptly disappearing; the light in the cabin suddenly brightened somewhat, and the wireless telegraph receiver sat quietly on the table, its eerie, cold feeling completely gone.

(End of Chapter)