Chapter 894: That Name

Lu Mi turned his gaze toward his right shoulder.

Before this, he had anticipated many scenarios, but none had prepared him for the contract mark of the "Pus-Swollen Severed Hand" to react abnormally when he touched "Earth's Gift," bringing stinging pain and icy cold.

"Is this because the complete 'Pus-Swollen Severed Hand' carries contamination from the 'Great Mother,' or does the severed hand itself have some connection to the 'Goddess of Harvest,' Oumibela? The one who became the '0—01' puppet called out Oumibela when it met me…" Lu Mi slightly furrowed his brow, forming a rough hypothesis.

The fact that the original body of the "Pus-Swollen Severed Hand," as an angel, was forgotten by higher beings was itself a strange thing!

Combining earlier thoughts from reading about Oumibela, Lu Mi suspected whether the severed hand might also be an angel whose identity and fate had been stolen by enemies, then brutally dismembered and sealed in multiple places to prevent its resurrection.

Yet such suspicion couldn't explain one problem—given that after the full body of the "Pus-Swollen Severed Hand" reassembled, it evolved toward femininity, displaying traits linked to the "Goddess of Beauty" of the "Moon" Path, it must have either been deeply contaminated by the "Great Mother" or received a corresponding blessing—who would dare bear such a fate?

"Perhaps the severed hand satisfies both conditions: lacking necessary wisdom and having received a high-rank blessing from the 'Great Mother,' causing it to naturally react to matters of the Divine Child, while also having intricate ties to Oumibela… He must be an angel of the 'Moon' Path, adjacent to the 'Goddess of Harvest,' Oumibela…"

"I wonder how many high-ranking beings survived from the Second Era… But they Weibi know about this—like the Blood Clan's 'Full Moon Duke'…" Lu Mi suppressed his inner doubts and turned his gaze back to the "Earth's Gift," existing as a withered tree trunk.

After the first contact, he confirmed he wouldn't die on the spot, so he tried pressing his right palm again onto the gray-brown trunk, marked by protrusions and depressions.

The fragrance of flowers and the metallic stench of blood pierced his nostrils; before his eyes reappeared the hazy sky shrouded in dark mist, the colossal luminous shapes supporting heaven and earth, and the strange figures outlined by blurred lines.

This time, Lu Mi felt pain, horror, and a mad desire to return all things to the earth.

He sank into familiar darkness—utterly lightless, silent to the point of death.

As seconds and minutes passed, a piercing wail gradually rose in his ears, calling out for her child, Oumibela.

This slowly roused Lu Mi, and he immediately felt the stinging coldness on his right shoulder.

He endured the sensation, refusing to be expelled from the illusion.

The darkness shattered quickly; Lu Mi saw the dawn's light, saw faces filled with resolve, and felt anger, hatred, and hostility within his heart.

At that moment, he heard a voice—a soft yet pained female voice:

"Gidas…"

Lu Mi "awoke," his vision filled with the twisted face carved from the withered trunk's protrusions and depressions, and the two crimson giant flowers serving as its eyes.

His palm still rested on the trunk.

"What I saw and heard just now—were they Oumibela's final obsessions, her most vivid memories? Combined with the corresponding emotions, the world shrouded in dark mist corresponds to her first death? The colossal luminous shapes and one of the blurred figures are the high-ranking beings who stole her identity and fate?"

"What do the silent darkness and the piercing wail signify? I've heard similar cries in the depths of the Underworld—when I shared the senses of the creature inside the egg… The egg represents gestation… So the silent darkness corresponds to Oumibela's state before birth—or before rebirth? The cry searching for her child pulled Oumibela back from death's depths, granting her rebirth?"

"Would this rebirth reset her identity and fate, nullifying the theft?"

"The third scene's protagonists are dawn and human faces, the emotions anger and hatred—does this correspond to Oumibela's death at the hands of the Silver City?"

"Hmm, these do qualify as obsessions, profoundly shaping Oumibela's fate…"

"But who was that 'Gidas' calling out to?"

As thoughts flashed through his mind, Lu Mi turned his head toward the tall, steady Mr. Sun:

"Have you ever heard the name Gidas?"

"Use 'you'—in the Church, no one is nobler than another." "Sun" Darike Berg corrected him first, then shook his head. "I've never heard that name."

"When the 'Goddess of Harvest,' Oumibela, last visited the Silver City, was there no one among its high-ranking officials named Gidas?" Lu Mi pressed.

Mr. Sun answered with firm certainty:

"No."

Gidas wasn't the one who killed Oumibela… Then who was it? At this thought, Lu Mi suddenly had a flash of insight.

Could this be the severed hand's name?

Since the severed hand could call out Oumibela to me, and caused the contract mark to react when I touched "Earth's Gift," then Oumibela's lingering memory within "Earth's Gift" could theoretically detect the "Pus-Swollen Severed Hand" contract mark on me and call out His name!

Lu Mi withdrew his right hand, waited several dozen seconds, then pressed his palm against the withered trunk for the third time.

The previous illusions and hallucinations reappeared, but no new content emerged.

Lu Mi sighed inwardly, crouched slightly, adjusted his cloak, and placed his other hand on the surface of "Earth's Gift," gripping the firmest and most prominent protrusion.

Then he clenched his teeth, veins bulging in his neck, blue veins pulsing on his temples.

This made Mr. Sun blink—he hadn't expected a beautiful lady with a cold expression to show such a side.

Soon, the brownish soil began to loosen; Lu Mi forcibly pulled up the withered, massive trunk.

The entire New Silver City trembled slightly, swaying gently.

Lu Mi held the withered trunk—seven or eight meters tall—and tried swinging it.

"It's barely usable as a bludgeon, but it'll reduce agility to the lowest and significantly slow speed…" Lu Mi assessed whether he could use "Earth's Gift" in battle, then re-planted the massive trunk back into the brownish soil.

Almost instantly, he felt a force surge from his bloodline toward his abdomen, causing slight stinging—as if something were gestating.

Lu Mi raised his right hand and pressed the quiet, sinister black flame toward the corresponding spot on his belly.

For a moment, he felt maternal affection and pity—but this couldn't stop him from pouring the "Witch's" black flame into his abdomen via "Ignition."

Unutterable pain, loss, and sorrow flooded his heart; his face turned pale, his faint lips trembling involuntarily.

This made "Sun" Darike Berg speak up:

"Do you need help dispelling the negative effects, or should I find a specialist to treat you?"

Lu Mi shook his head, curled his lips, and whispered:

"A minor matter."

He then reminded Mr. Sun:

"Even a non-human with divinity may conceive upon touching 'Earth's Gift'—those with Oumibela's bloodline are more likely to experience this."

"We have no records of this. Historically, the Silver City rarely needed to use this sealed item, and every user died quickly." Mr. Sun nodded.

Lu Mi said nothing more, turned his body, and walked step by step toward the exit of the giant room, toward the weathered staircase leading upward to the round tower; Mr. Sun followed quietly behind.

…………

Inside the inn room.

Lu Mi wrote down all his findings and questions from studying Oumibela's records and touching "Earth's Gift" into a letter.

He then summoned the "Doll" messenger, handing it the letter and a mirror—this marked mirror would allow him to transmit messages directly through the Mirror World to the "Magician" lady.

The "Doll" messenger accepted the letter and mirror but didn't leave immediately; dressed in a pale gold dress, it leaned against the window frame, watching Lu Mi intently and attentively.

Lu Mi raised an eyebrow:

"What are you looking at?"

The "Doll" messenger leapt up, hovering midair, indignant:

"Don't you know how beautiful you look right now?

"So beautiful I can ignore you're still wearing men's clothes, so beautiful I can forgive you for not tidying yourself up better!"

Lu Mi was momentarily speechless.

The "Doll" messenger waved its hand, reluctantly:

"See you next time!"

"See you next time," Lu Mi replied politely.

Just fifteen minutes later, the "Doll" messenger emerged from the void, holding a swollen envelope, delighted:

"We meet again!"

"Yes," Lu Mi said, slightly exasperated.

He took the envelope, opened it, and found the letter itself was thin—mainly containing a single green gemstone.

The gemstone was deep and enchanting, its crystalline green impossibly dreamlike.

Lu Mi glanced at it once and felt his gaze and soul sinking into it.

He quickly forced himself to look away, unfolded the letter, and read:

"The theft of Oumibela's identity and fate never failed before the Fifth Era…"

"We will inquire among ancient beings who survived the Second Era about the name 'Gidas,' and seek revelation from higher beings."

"The origin of this name may unravel the mysteries surrounding Oumibela…"

"This green gem was crafted for you by 'Justice' Miss. Its purpose is to seal away knowledge related to the Great Beings. Though you still carry much contamination and sealing, as long as you don't recall that knowledge, there's no issue—but we cannot guarantee you won't encounter situations requiring recall. Until you possess a true or false angelic rank, this hypnotic effect will not be lifted."

Lu Mi understood the reason and looked again at the green gem, letting his spirit sink into it.

When he awoke, the green gem had become ordinary, and he had forgotten part of his knowledge.

"Still worth a fair amount of money," Lu Mi tucked the green gem away and said to the "Doll" messenger still lingering on the desk, "See you next time."

The "Doll" messenger waved back:

"See you next time!"

Leaving the room, Lu Mi told Fu Lan Ka, Jianna, and Ludewig and others:

"We're returning to Trill now."

(End of Chapter)