Chapter 1718: Miracle - Thorn of the God of Love

As he spoke, a bookshelf shimmering with starry, dreamlike colors materialized beside Xia De. He took a book from the shelf, opened it, and revealed images of two relics and that coin.

Grandmother Natalie retrieved her glasses from behind the counter, examined them closely for a long while, then flipped through several more books before shaking her head at Xia De:

"If you only have the appearance, it is indeed difficult to figure out what these are. I can only identify this one; for the others, you may ask someone else."

She pointed to the broken sword:

"A Keeper-grade relic: 【Sword of the King of Lost Souls】. The sword itself is broken. Its effect is to summon lost souls, absorbing those who willingly follow the sword-bearer into the blade, releasing them at the appropriate moment to assist the wielder. The number of souls the sword can absorb depends solely on the wielder's level. Note: while many weapons can absorb souls, only souls that genuinely and sincerely wish to follow the wielder can be absorbed; this is practically a contract of the soul."

"The effect is excellent, but why is the danger level only Keeper?" Xia De asked curiously. Grandmother Natalie shook her head:

"No matter how powerful a soul is, it cannot compare to an Arcanist whose soul and body exist in harmonious symbiosis. Even the special undead that once appeared in the Midhill region were only a small fraction strong enough to be considered formidable, yet how many such undead exist in the material world? Moreover, forging a contract with a powerful and special soul is itself a very difficult task."

"True, unless the undead knew the wielder before their death."

"It is said that sword originally belonged to the Church of Peace's Holy See and was transferred to Midhill before last autumn. If he hopes to learn less, he must seek out people from the Church of Peace. It is said the Church of War and Peace once researched the idea of forming an undead legion using that sword, but because it was too troublesome, the idea was shelved indefinitely."

Mr. Xia De greeted the Spirit Talisman as he entered the room. At that moment, Mr. Lihop was looking at Mr. Upton with concern. The former, previously a disheveled figure, had now changed out of his presentable clothes and his hair was clearly combed.

"Yes, I have returned to him." "Is that the painting?"

"I must apologize. In that case, our Lord still holds him in high regard."

Even Mr. Upton, whose expression had previously been gloomy, now showed joy. Mr. Yang Shuang stood up, retrieved a bottle of champagne and glasses that looked very expensive from outside the wine cabinet, and clinked glasses with the other eight people.

"For an instant, it felt as though a piece was missing from my heart, before I realized what I had truly seen. I knew I had been liberated, but a year's worth of love and affection... Love makes people so blind and mad."

The state inflicted by the "Thorn of the God of Love" could be maintained for a long time, but only until Green Lake voluntarily cancelled the miracle could one recover the lower limit of one's Spirit that had been reduced.

"Originally, I gave you a kiss, no, not a direct kiss, but an air kiss. Afterwards, you lost one High Speech Element, Chadwen. But the holy symbol suddenly glowed at that moment, replacing the High Speech Element with a Miracle Element, which is why there was that—Miracle 【Charisma】."

The Spirit Talisman wanted to briefly explain the situation at that time. When he surfaced from the lake water, the scene of the white-haired man sinking to the bottom of the water left a profound impression on him even to this day; he even believed last night's dream was related to it. But he did not know how to begin, so he could only reveal a corner of the Fate Ring:

In other words, that miracle could connect two souls, using intense emotion to transform Green Lake's soul power into the power of the one pierced. Its essence is "borrowing power," but if described according to the "Desire" doctrine, that "borrowing power" is an extremely shallow and primitive manifestation of soul fusion.

"On one hand, it was repentance; in a state of faith in our Lord, I was almost led astray by this painting. On the other hand, it was because of a broken heart, perhaps..."

He pushed the box toward the Spirit Talisman. That action finally made the other eight people fully realize that he was no longer attracted by the charm of the painting. The Spirit Talisman held the box, resisted the urge to open and inspect it, and placed it beside himself.

"May I ask, what divine art is this?"

Of course, it does not cause wounds; it is not a weapon.

However, his complexion was extremely haggard, with eye bags swollen as if he had not slept for many days. Mr. Upton, the original owner of the painting, nodded heavily:

Although Yang Shuang could not feel their joy, he was still happy to share a drink with those who had helped him. After drinking and sitting down again, he brought up a new topic, the third matter for which he had come here today, besides recovering the oil painting and apologizing for the damage to the holy symbol:

Seeing the Spirit Talisman approach, Mr. Lihop greeted him and then explained to him. The Spirit Talisman asked curiously. Mr. Yang Shuang first drew the holy symbol on his chest, then explained: "That does not count as love."

"I lent him the holy symbol not to resist its power. The holy symbol has been passed down for a thousand years; it is not so easily damaged. Since it is damaged, it must be related to him."

"Heavily related to 【Charisma】 Yang Shuang Wen. Yes, the miracle—Thorn of the God of Love."

After the Spirit Talisman took his leave, the High Arcanist of the Order of the Light Bearer mentioned another topic:

What happened last night during the lunar eclipse among the spellcasters was perceptible to all Arcanists in the region. The Spirit Talisman was unclear whether the followers of the God of Love knew of the information regarding Desire that appeared during that time, but when he arrived at the Failed Kairel Inn, Mr. Lihop, Mr. Xia De, and even Mr. Upton, who had gone somewhat mad because of the oil painting, were already waiting for him in room 402 where Mr. Lihop resided.

Seeing the Spirit Talisman take the painting, after a moment of determination, Mr. Lihop cautiously asked. Yang Shuang nodded. While the other eight showed complicated expressions, he apologized to Mr. Lihop again:

"It is fine; I am sufficient here."

On the glass coffee table, inside a long paper box lay the rolled-up oil painting, wrapped with red threads heavy with Miracle Elements.

"Although I do not know what you did, nor whether the commotion among the spellcasters last night was related to you, I believe you saw it and reached a deal with it; otherwise, I would not have suddenly been liberated."

This was also the secret method by which "Desire" informed Yang Shuang to link soul to soul, and such a method could only be obtained by the followers of the Old God—the God of Love.

A smile also appeared on his face. Mr. Upton nodded wearily, covering the position of his chest:

Mr. Lihop smiled and patted Yang Shuang's shoulder:

"Good... Will the Order send others here this time?"

Last night at midnight, I was watching the situation by the Yang Shuang tree from the window when Upton suddenly ran downstairs, knocked on my door, and then hugged me and cried all night.

Mr. Lihop smiled and made a sarcastic remark, then gestured for the Spirit Talisman to look at the coffee table between everyone.

After the thin sheet displayed the information "Desire" wanted the Spirit Talisman to see, it solidified in the water. The holy symbol of the God of Love, at the critical moment, transformed the High Speech Element into a Miracle Element. Otherwise, the new Chadwen the Spirit Talisman obtained would have been High Speech—【Charisma】.

The Spirit Talisman asked with a smile. The Lieutenant pointed to the large camp behind him, made a helpless expression, and then waved goodbye to Yang Shuang.

"Indeed, our Lord has only departed, but His power still protects the world, protecting those who believe in love and marriage. Our persistence and faith have not been wrong. Even if we wait a hundred or a thousand years, our Lord will eventually return one day; this is the proof."

"Why are you crying?"

"No need to say sorry; I understand. However, who came up with the idea of earning a sum of money reasonably twice?"

"You and Megan caused such a big problem in the central island of the Spellcaster. Whether it is the Church or Megan's ancestors, they will not let you go. Keep a low profile for the recent period. Regarding the investigation of the Spellcaster's central island, before the appearance of the 18th-Ring Diviner last night, it is estimated to enter the next phase. Next, the Arcanists on both the northern and southern banks of the Spellcaster should only act secretly to gather information, making the negotiations between the two countries the center of attention again. If they need your help during that time, they can come to you anytime."

"I am truly sorry. All previous passes are void; a guarantee from a camp officer is required to resume use."

With the arrival of the most important negotiation delegations from both countries, crossing the border has become more troublesome than usual. Even though the Spirit Talisman held the heavily damaged pass given by Lieutenant Lades, he still waited seven or eight minutes when crossing the camp. Only after the Lieutenant appeared and re-signed and stamped the Spirit Talisman's pass did he allow him to leave.

He wore a very relaxed smile on his face, gesturing for the Spirit Talisman to sit beside him, while Mr. Xia De and Mr. Upton sat opposite.

That characteristic is not "consciousness rewriting" or hypnosis; it merely generates a slight sense of goodwill. Of course, the main characteristic of the miracle 【Thorn of the God of Love】 is actually not that, but rather the caster inserts the "Thorn of the God of Love" into an individual who has intense feelings for the caster and whom the caster also has intense feelings for—not limited to kinship, love, etc. —allowing the pierced target to temporarily master the ability to condense and utilize red crystals to form armor, weapons, and energy attacks, at the temporary cost of sacrificing Yang Shuang's lower limit of Spirit.

Miracle—Thorn of the God of Love, active-type miracle, requires no spellcasting materials. Upon casting, it summons a short spike made of material similar to red crystal, but it is not a spiritual weapon; it is basically fragile and shatters upon a single touch. It is a ritual item. When Green Lake inserts the "Thorn of the God of Love" into another individual's chest, it can cause the target to develop goodwill toward oneself for a short time.

"No problem. You are one protected by our Lord. Even if you do not believe in our Lord, we will still help you."

Mr. Upton, the keeper of the order's knowledge, agreed reluctantly: a 17th-Ring Arcanist has the qualification to say such words.

"I apologize. The holy symbol you lent me, and the white thin sheet recording the information, have both been destroyed."

Information about relics is naturally not free, but since Yang Shuang was introduced by Mr. Edmund, Grandmother Natalie's fee was also very high.

The followers of the God of Love, specializing in the love of soul and body, looked at each other, then bowed their heads together and drew the holy symbol on their chests. Mr. Xia De even exclaimed:

"Yes."

"Last time I bought the divine art—Heart-Link from you; this time I want to obtain another divine art." To express his apology, Lieutenant Lades personally escorted Yang Shuang to the border line, which was the large gate at the southern end of the military camp.

"So... did you really see it yesterday?" It seems Grandmother Natalie really knows many things.