Chapter 535: Solar Cube

Ke Lai En's complexion wasn't great; after a moment of silence, he spoke in a low voice:

"How about I change my identity now and spend a night at the nearest Storm Church's chapel?"

The prophet's avatar glanced at Ke Lai En with some surprise, chuckling lightly, "You can try, but afterward they'll surely trace the identity of Ge Er Man·Si Pa Luo."

"And what about your secret companion? It can't be far from you, otherwise it will turn into a corpse that has long been dead. Moreover, since it is an extraordinary being of the Demon Path, appearing in a place like a church would easily raise suspicions."

Ke Lai En sighed helplessly; Ji Er Xi Ai Si is a Sequence Five 'Desire Apostle', also wielding a formidable magical item whose combat power surpasses his own, so it certainly can't be abandoned lightly.

Frowning as he thought for a moment, he spoke again:

"Perhaps I can go near the chapel; I only need to create some commotion when attacked, and the Storm Church's Punishers will notice quickly."

"And even that 'Divine Scion' can't just start a brawl in front of a righteous god's chapel, especially since not long ago A Meng stole the Storm Church's Wave Chapel."

"I recall that the Punisher squad here holds a seal of the Night Path; it can pull all living beings within a certain range into the same dream, which benefits me because I can stay conscious within the dream."

The prophet's avatar lightly nodded in agreement with Ke Lai En's idea, then said:

"Good idea, but you need to go to Above the Gray Mist first and transfer some magical items for me; they'll definitely come in handy later."

As he spoke, he rose from the wooden chair, pale blue light swirling in his eyes, sketching strange symbols that reflected in the room, forming a spirit wall with a concealment effect.

Seeing the surroundings sealed by the spirit wall, Ke Lai En no longer hesitated and immediately stepped back four steps into the space above the Gray Mist.

In the Land of the Abandoned Gods, Lei Ke Dun walked through the desolate, dark wasteland carrying a dim yellow lantern.

Under the dim yellow light, the metric of distance was warped; each step he took twisted his figure, instantly shifting forward dozens of meters.

This process repeated continuously, and in just a few breaths his figure advanced over a thousand meters.

Two minutes later, Lei Ke Dun halted, placing the dim yellow lantern on the ground; around it fell specks of brilliant golden light, emitting a clear warm glow that also carried the purifying power of the Sun Domain.

After the corrosion on his body was fully purified, he casually tossed a handful of black powder, spreading spirit energy that created a star‑studded night sky around him with a "soul‑soothing" effect, allowing him to rest while gradually smoothing out the negative desires and emotions stirred by the dim yellow lantern.

After resting a while, a dense gray mist surged before his eyes; at its highest point, the silhouette of the Fool sat calmly on a high‑backed chair, appearing towering and mysterious.

He was still pondering why Ke Lai En had sought him at this moment when, the next instant, the other's voice echoed beside his ear:

"I've been targeted by the Rose School, and your avatar is also here; he needs some magical items."

"I know the 'Mother Tree' wants to have a child with you, and of course, you might be the one to bear it." Lei Ke Dun said with a hint of a smile, making a callous remark.

Above the Gray Mist, Ke Lai En twitched the corner of his mouth. "Thanks, no need to remind me of that."

He darkened his expression and cut off the link with Lei Ke Dun, then rummaged through a pile of junk for a stack of cut‑out paper figures, preparing to take them out later as a backup.

About a minute later, he saw the deep‑red star representing Lei Ke Dun pulsate—expanding and contracting—sending out concentric deep‑red ripples, and heard Lei Ke Dun's prayer:

"O Fool who does not belong to this era, you are the mysterious ruler above the Gray Mist, you are the Yellow‑Black King who governs good fortune."

"Your faithful servant prays to you; we pray that you open the kingdom's great gate; we pray that you accept his offering."

Ke Lai En rose from the high‑backed chair, walked to the back of the grand hall, extended spirit energy to touch the illusory dark gate, and pushed it open with his spirit.

A wailing gale howled into shape, and the boundless gray mist began to surge; the illusory dark gate creaked as it was slowly pushed open.

A canvas smeared with mixed pigments, like a child's doodle, and a dim‑yellow lantern with a metallic sheen were thrown out from the other side of the gate.

As the sacrificial items were thrown out, the illusory gate vanished rapidly, becoming transparent as if it could continue no more.

Ke Lai En slightly lifted his hand, and the two magical items flew on their own to a weathered long table nearby.

Sitting back on the Fool's high‑backed chair, he curiously picked up the two magical items and, using divination, confirmed their magical effects and side effects.

After a while, prayers rose again above the Gray Mist; a new deep‑red star emerged from its depths, its crimson ripples spreading like water waves through the grand ancient palace, accompanied by voices both youthful and familiar.

"Tu Ba Ge's voice, the beings praying to the Fool are becoming more diverse; I wonder if someday cats, dogs, or even fish from the sea will pray to me."

He sighed softly, then repeated the earlier action, extending spirit energy to push open the illusory gate created by the sacrificial rite, bringing Tu Ba Ge through the offering to the Gray Mist. It was a golden‑yellow square box engraved with numerous symbolic sigils and magical markings, resembling a metal Rubik's Cube that could be twisted at will; no matter how the engraved symbols were arranged, they always linked together into a complete pattern.

Just holding it, Ke Lai En felt his mouth dry and tongue parched, with fine beads of sweat appearing on his forehead and back.

The spot where his right hand touched the golden cube burned bright red, with faint charred marks appearing.

"This negative effect is far worse than the Sun Brooch; if the Sun Brooch is like midsummer, this is like stepping straight into a high‑noon desert, and this scorching heat is real, not just a bodily illusion—holding it for long will truly turn you into a desiccated corpse."

"And this is still above the Gray Mist; once you leave this place, can this thing really still be used?"

Ke Lai En mused while attempting to divine its effects and side effects.

He wrote the divination script on the manifested paper, held it in his right hand and whispered it several times, then closed his eyes and, through meditation, swiftly entered a sleep state.

In the dream, his consciousness just regained clarity, but the bright, blinding sunlight irritated him so he couldn't open his eyes.

The next moment, the surrounding light suddenly dimmed, growing weaker as if something continuously devoured it.

Only then did Ke Lai En slowly open his eyes; the surrounding light was extremely faint, nearly vanished. In front of him, the golden cube engraved with numerous symbols hovered in mid‑air, emitting a weak, flickering glow like an old incandescent bulb with poor contact.

"Is it absorbing light? One of this cube's effects is to absorb and store light?" Ke Lai En whispered, puzzled.

As if answering his doubt, the engraved golden cube suddenly began to rotate on its own; when all six faces formed a sun pattern, specks of brilliant golden light streamed out from within the cube.

The light seemed to crack open the cube's metallic surface, spreading along the sun's veins and fully illuminating it.

In that instant, a fierce blaze of pure, flawless sunlight erupted, engulfing everything in a flash—like a radiance that purifies all—leaving no trace of evil or darkness. Even space itself became chaotic under this searing light; anything enveloped by it could not escape, and everything, even souls, would be burned and purified.

The intense shock jolted Ke Lai En awake from his slumber; he leaned half‑back on the high‑backed chair, gasping heavily.

Although it was a dream, for a moment he truly felt his body and soul melt in that scorching sunlight.

He gasped and sighed:

"Huh, this thing really isn't meant to be a mutual annihilation with a person? Even the user can't evade its damage; being too close might make them the first to be dissolved by the scorching sunlight."

"Aligning different faces of the cube into the same pattern activates it, but it likely has more than just the 'Sun' pattern we just saw. Never mind, I won't continue the divination; that feeling is too painful."

"Among first‑level seals, it ranks among those with strong destructive power; its crafting likely derives from the golden carriage in the Divine War ruins. The cube's shape has clearly been modified by a craftsman, capable of altering a first‑level seal—at least by a demigod‑level 'craftsman'."

After muttering to himself for a while, he quickly gathered his spirit, extended spirit energy to communicate with the deep‑red star representing the prophet's avatar, prompting it to prepare for the bestowal ceremony.

In a dockside inn, the prophet's avatar leaned half‑against the window frame, calmly watching the street under the dim yellow streetlights; fallen leaves drifted against the wind, curtains in distant houses suddenly swayed, and a pale figure flashed across a glass window.

"You came quickly; did you sense something and speed up?" he muttered softly, then raised his left hand and snapped his fingers lightly.

Snap! The crisp sound was masked by an audio blast that suddenly appeared in the air above his head, and the violently spreading airflow also carried bits of pale‑yellow shredded paper.

A terrifyingly powerful spirit almost swept in the next instant, bearing unabashed anger.

The sonic boom just now wasn't very intense, but the explosive sound was highly penetrating, easily reminding one of the earlier sound that had spread throughout the city.

Under the dim lighting, the street was unusually quiet, with only the wind, which had grown much fiercer, howling past.

In the sky, the raging wind lifted and carried Haiwang Ya'en·Koteman as he approached from afar.

His loose storm-cleric robes were stretched taut by his well-defined muscles, fluttering in the wind, while his deep blue eyes scanned back and forth over the streets and houses below.

Moments later, the howling wind in the air gradually weakened, leaving only a cold snort echoing with the night wind around the surroundings.

After confirming that Haiwang Ya'en·Koteman had already moved far away, the Prophet's clone suddenly pulled out a pale yellow paper figurine from his pocket, upon which many strange symbols were drawn with spirit-infused blood.

He shook his right hand in midair, and the paper figure was flung straight out the window, inflating and twisting in the air until it transformed into a silhouette of a figure cloaked in black.

The paper figure landed lightly, glanced around, then naturally blended into the surrounding shadows and ran toward the direction of the docks outside the city.

(End of chapter)