Chapter 1591: The Thirteen-Ring Diviner

Although nearly all derivatives of "Earth Power" can purify the Mad Earth, Earth Power was never created solely for the purpose of purifying the Mad Earth.

Hiris's Earth Power · Soil Memory can purify the land by extracting impure memories from the Mad Earth, but fundamentally this is a power that perceives the land's memories; Luvia's Earth Power · Fertile Domain can protect those within its area and suppress the Mad Earth's influence, yet the Fertile Domain is in truth a power that promotes plant growth.

As for Xia De's "Earth Power · Healing Qi," this power was born specifically to purify contaminated soil; thus, even if the Earth Chosen's story has temporarily ended and the land has been momentarily calmed, this spell still functions.

In the mist, a faint golden glow appeared in Xia De's hands. Then, that golden speck, like a seed, fell into the sandy soil.

Turbid yellow Qi surged from beneath the ground like a spring, spreading outward, while Xia De's body and the Life Ring behind him grew increasingly bright.

The mist showed no change at all, save for the occasional faint "crack" sounds, indicating Xia De's spell was indeed working.

Long after, the exhausted Xia De lowered his hands and gazed at the sandy ground, now radiating golden light. A small golden metal chalice rose before him; he grasped it, and the ancient runes on its surface read "Mist."

This chalice was far smaller than the "Youth" Chalice that Miss Jia Lin Na had used as a love token; even now, with Xia De nearly drained of his Qi, he had still failed to purify the entire island.

The land's contamination came from this mist; the mist's power continuously polluted the area. Unless the source of this thick fog was eradicated at its root, complete purification was impossible.

His efforts had merely temporarily restored normalcy to the area around the dock; for one or two months, this region would not experience "loss of direction," but nothing more.

"This chalice..."

He attempted to infuse his own Qi into the chalice, no larger than a wine cup, and indeed saw mist gush out from within it.

He smiled, then looked again at the mist that blanketed the entire island:

"Since I couldn't purify this place, could I..."

【For the same type of contamination at the same location, you may obtain only one Earth Chalice; you cannot continuously acquire more. But when you next cast a purification spell here, you may use this chalice to enhance your spell's power.】

"She" smiled and halted Xia De's fanciful thought; Xia De then shoved the chalice into his pocket and pulled out a pink perfume vial, gulping down a large mouthful to restore his nearly depleted Qi to normal levels:

"The secrets of this island are more numerous than I thought."

He tucked away the vial and retrieved Princess Lei Lei Qianya's crystal slipper. The shoe, like a work of art, descended toward the sand—but before touching it, vanished along with Xia De.

For Xia De, this long-distance spatial movement, derived from the Mist Lock, caused no strange dizziness. He saw the scenery before him blur as if water had been spilled on a painting, then the strange colors reassembled into the familiar shape of his home.

"This time I returned directly to the parlor."

"Meow~"

The cat on the windowsill sprang up and darted toward Xia De. After he embraced it, he did not notice the orange-and-white cat suspiciously sniffing around, as if searching for something.

Luvia heard the sound and stepped out from her study:

"I was just wondering why you came home so late tonight."

She walked forward and helped Xia De take off his coat:

"You're soaked through."

Suddenly she froze, her eyes filled with concern—she saw the tear on the back of his coat.

"I spent the entire afternoon and evening on the central island of Green Lake. You won't believe what I encountered."

While changing into home clothes and washing his hands and face, Xia De recounted the night's events. He told her everything he could about the Alchemist Miss, but focused especially on the "Mirror Man" and the two eight-ring sorcerers suspected to be descendants of Edwardes.

"You encountered a thirteen-ring sorcerer?"

Luvia spoke with concern, checked his body, then discussed the matters he mentioned:

"Those two eight-ring sorcerers, each missing one eye—they're Doctor Zhou?"

"Most likely. And the Alchemist Miss said they're Edwardes descendants. Even the Mirror Man couldn't directly seize her on that island, yet together they could. The Edwardes family holds a unique status over that island."

He sat on the sofa with Mia and pulled out one of the special coins he'd bought that morning in Mikela Furnace City—【Lute's Sorrow】—and handed it to Luvia:

"Cast a divination for me: Who was the origin of the Edwardes family? Who was the thirteen-ring sorcerer Klein Edwardes? I feel this question is critically important."

Luvia nodded, but the coin she tossed showed no change as it fell.

Although some matters even Luvia cannot divine, those always involve gods or the Chosen. A thirteen-ring sorcerer, no matter how powerful, is still human.

"Is Klein Edwardes the Chosen of Space? Is he still alive?"

Xia De asked skeptically. Luvia opened her eyes, toyed with the coin, thought for a moment, then shook her head:

"It's not that it can't be divined—it's that one coin isn't enough. Two would certainly suffice. But is it truly worth spending two coins for this?"

"Of course it is. But one coin shouldn't be insufficient—a thirteen-ring sorcerer is still human. What power is resisting the divination?"

Xia De handed her the second coin; now they had lost all their special coins. The purple-eyed girl closed her eyes again. This time, the two coins, flung upward, bore rust marks at their peak and turned to ash as they fell.

Luvia snapped open her eyes, her gaze filled with profound disbelief.

"What? Did you discover Klein Edwardes is still alive? Did he disguise himself as his own descendant? Or—is the island itself Klein Edwardes's corpse?"

"Xia De, perhaps you're even more suited than Dorothy to write novels."

The purple-eyed girl laughed at him, and though his guesses eased her earlier shock:

"Now I understand why divining about a non-Chosen sorcerer required two coins. Klein Edwardes's true name is Laplace Klein Howard."

Xia De blinked:

"From your reaction, I'm supposed to recognize this name and look shocked. Maybe this is a stupid question—but who is he? Was there a thirteen-ring sorcerer by this name over two hundred years ago?"

Luvia shook her head seriously:

"It's normal you've never heard of him—he was a traitor to the Diviner's Guild."

"What?"

"Around 260 years ago, roughly 1593 of the Sixth Era Common Calendar, the twelve-ring diviner Laplace Klein Howard defected from the Guild. This caused severe turmoil within the Guild, even drawing the attention of the Wushen Sect. You know what it means to be a high-ring diviner recognized by the Guild."

She looked agitated:

"That high-ring diviner was once a candidate to become the next Guild Master. He was a true genius, a diviner who could actually read fate. After awakening as a ring sorcerer, his eyes transformed into natural magical eyes—those eyes could see the future more clearly... Though we've had many terrible foes before, none were so adept at divination... I never imagined he'd end up in Green Lake... Has he reached thirteen rings? That's even more terrifying—a thirteen-ring diviner—he..."

"Luvia!"

Xia De's voice cut through the purple-eyed girl's agitated muttering; only then did she realize her palms were sweating.

"We still can't confirm whether he's alive now, or whether he's connected to the Chosen of Space, or what that connection might be. Don't worry too much. Your divination result only proves that the Edwardes secret is even greater than we thought."

He considered:

"Luvia, investigate in the Guild about this diviner—his writings, articles, and divination records—try to gather everything. Also, if a thirteen-ring diviner were truly that powerful, he wouldn't have remained hidden for so long; there are other thirteen-ring sorcerers in the material world... Tomorrow, Wednesday, after I've used the Time Key, I'll go see Yi Lu Na."

Luvia looked at him:

"Let the Church know about this?"

"Yes. At such a sensitive time, once the Church discovers an unrecorded Thirteen-Ring appearing at Green Lake, they will inevitably pay greater attention to that region. That Klein Edwards isn't fond of speaking riddles to his descendants, is he? Then let the Church intervene. I'd like to see if his arrangements still hold."

Moreover, this did not constitute betrayal of Megan; she only wished to protect herself and held little interest in the family's secrets anyway.

"Additionally, I will go see Miss Jia Lin Na again, have her inform Audrey Edwards of this matter within the Council, or even tell the entire Council directly. Since that Thirteen-Ring Diviner wishes to hide, I will make everyone know him. Oh, and Miss Daniste; the Academy must not be let off either."

Luvia also understood Xia De's plan:

"You are right. Then, before the Church and the Association react, I will do my utmost to secretly gather his information."

Xia De nodded, turning his gaze toward the night outside the window. Compared to the gradually chaotic Green Lake region, the night in Tobesk, the Northern Pearl, remained so peaceful and tranquil. He did not know how long such a tranquil night could last in the material world, but all the efforts of the Outsider had always been to ensure that every time the sun set, such a night would arrive.

In such a long and profound night, it was unknown whether the agents conducting secret operations at the alley entrance would receive intelligence, nor whether the Ring Mages prowling in the shadows would be able to hunt down their desired prey, let alone whether those hidden and treacherous existences were plotting new conspiracies.

The appearance of the Thirteen-Ring Diviner was indeed a troublesome headache. But for Xia De, this was merely another challenge on his path forward.