Chapter 2444: A Friend's Gift

"Let others deal with these annoying matters. We risked our lives to win a war; there's no reason we should have to do the cleanup work too."

Xia De looked at the ale in the glass before him:

"Although I can rest a little for now, I suspect it won't be long—a month or two at most—before I have to set off again."

Mr. Albert revealed a rare smile:

"This glass is a toast to you."

He raised his glass, and Xia De followed suit:

"Please allow me to express my respect to you as well. Without you, and without the others, this matter could not have been resolved by me alone."

The two clinked glasses and tasted the free rye ale. Only then did Xia De ask the most important question:

"What is your current state, really? Judging by how things have gone from bad to worse, the story of the eighth Chosen One will likely be even harder to handle. Both I and this world need your power."

The coroner, wearing his hooded robe, shook his head:

"Just as I said yesterday, I am currently in a sealed state. What you see before you is merely an 'Avatar of Light.' While it could be called my true self, the power I can draw upon is limited."

"Is it really impossible to temporarily break the seal? For instance, using some magical trinkets to turn you back into light, then having you pilot that hidden, powerful stone body to rush to the battlefield and help us? Even if there's a time limit, you can fly, after all."

Xia De asked eagerly, but the black-haired coroner shook his head regretfully:

"Even with the help of Death and the Earth to allow me to appear in avatar form, the price of the Ancient God's divine arts is not so easily bypassed."

Seeing Xia De frown in thought, he added:

"The version of me you see before you still possesses the power of a Chosen One, just nowhere near as strong. Furthermore, the seal of the Ancient God's divine arts is not permanent. Others cannot help; I must break the seal bit by bit myself.

Mr. Watson, this is a good thing for me. I have enacted justice, and now I must be reborn from the cocoon. By the day I return, I believe I will already be at the Thirteenth Tier."

"That's true. If everything went as wished, so many people wouldn't have sacrificed themselves this time. Mr. Albert, I will wait for your appearance on the day of the final battle."

Xia De said with a smile, and the coroner corrected him:

"I'm not leaving here. You can come to Spider Alley whenever you want to find me. I have no intention of dealing with the Church, and besides, in my current state, I wouldn't be of much help.

Having experienced so much, I have gained some new insights into my own thoughts. I plan to take advantage of the reconstruction period in Moon Bay to increase the development of the 【Eternal Light】. Although most of them are ordinary people, in order to face the very end, ordinary people are not entirely powerless."

"I agree with your view. If you need help, I can introduce you to a few friends."

Although the 【Light-Guiding Ascetic Society】 had given up on accepting them as their own due to some of the 【Eternal Light】's radical actions, the two could still cooperate.

"And that holy sword."

The coroner lowered his voice and continued:

"That sword is not sealed. Although its power will drop significantly once it leaves my hand, if you need it, you can borrow it from me when facing a powerful enemy."

Xia De then asked curiously:

"What kind of power does it have now? I mean, in the state where it has left your hand."

Although he had used the sword yesterday, that was clearly a special situation.

"According to the Church's danger classification, it could be categorized as an Angel-level Relic, and a very strong one at that. But when facing the Evil God—【Dragon-Eater】, it could fully be counted as an Unknowable-level Relic.

It has inherited all the characteristics of 【Blood Sorrow】 and gained new properties. I am not sure whether it or your 【Night Watcher】 is stronger, but at the very least, this sword is far superior to yours in terms of 'status'."

"It is, after all, a genuine divine artifact."

Xia De nodded in understanding, though he wasn't very interested in that sword. If necessary, he would borrow it, but usually, he preferred his own 【Night Watcher】.

"Speaking of which, Mr. Watson, did you bring that playing card?"

Mr. Albert asked again, so Xia De took 【Founding · Light】 out of his pocket and handed it to him:

"This one?"

"Yes, I would like to give you a gift."

He took the card with his right hand, closed his eyes, and pressed it against his left chest, right over his heart. As his right hand glowed slightly, the playing card was also stained with pure white light:

"Praise the 【Dragon of Radiance】; may your light always walk with me."

After waiting a moment, he returned the playing card to Xia De:

"I have placed a door inside this playing card. You only need to find a suitable location, and you can make that door manifest and fix it in place."

Xia De raised an eyebrow:

"【Holy White Auditorium】?"

Mr. Albert looked up, surprised, peering over the table at him:

"As expected, you know more about these matters related to the Ancient Gods than I thought. Yes, the 【Holy White Auditorium】. So, do you know how to enter that place?"

Xia De certainly knew; "A piece of true information - Holy White Auditorium" was one of the rewards he received for completing the "Gravel Gold Sand Sea" mission. He was just wondering why, when Iluna became a Chosen One, she hadn't gained the ability to directly grant a "Door" for the "Wondrous Change Cards."

The Door of Darkness came from killing a Chosen One; the Door of Death was born because of the "Edge of Life and Death" that already existed in his home; the Door of Knowledge came from the power of a sealed Chosen One; the Door of Earth was directly gifted by the Guardians; the Door of Space was the first anomaly Xia De discovered in his home:

"To enter this kind of space left behind by an Ancient God, besides finding the door, three necessary conditions are required: the corresponding Spirit Rune, the incantation, and the corresponding special artifact, which is the key. The Spirit Rune corresponding to the 【Holy White Auditorium】 requires a connection to light..."

Xia De had possessed 【Witch's Light】 since he was at the Second Tier.

"The incantation is: May the Eternal Light protect me, who walks with the light."

Mr. Albert provided the second answer, and Xia De knew the third one as well:

"As for the key, it seems to be the scales left behind by the Ancient God, symbolizing different dragon species."

This was something Miss Belinder had told Xia De a long time ago.

Mr. Albert nodded:

"Yes, every time the ancient Dragon God created a new dragon, he would give them one of his own dragon scales. Even I do not know the exact number of dragon scales. The seven dragon scales left behind by the descendants of the Ancient God's fourth child are part of them."

He took a small drawstring bag from his pocket and pushed it toward Xia De:

"Returning the property to its owner."

"Do you not need them anymore?"

Xia De asked curiously, touching the bag. Inside were indeed the seven dragon scales symbolizing the "Seven Families of Moon Bay," though their power had faded significantly.

"I do not need them anymore. Please rest assured, as long as the dragon clans represented by these scales still exist, their power will soon grow strong again. These dragon scales are almost indestructible; you can use them as you wish."

After saying this, the coroner did not forget to remind him:

"The legal right of the Seven Families to rule Moon Bay comes from the descendants of the Ancient God's fourth child. Now that the prophecy has ended, the last power of the descendants has disappeared... You seem to have a little bit on you. In any case, if the Seven Families still wish to continue their power to rule Moon Bay, they must welcome back their respective dragon scales; otherwise, they are no different from ordinary mortal families."

"Is that so? Is this considered fate?"

Xia De asked; he hadn't known about this. But the "Blessing of the Fourth Child" was very clear: even if the Seven Families welcomed back their respective dragon scales, Xia De's legal right to rule this land was now stronger than theirs.

"Fate?"

The coroner, who was also a diviner, wore a very serious expression:

"Mr. Watson, this is not fate, yet it is also fate."

This was why Xia De always thought diviners loved saying such incomprehensible things. This time, the vampire diviner did not exceed his expectations.

"Then I will accept the dragon scales. Oh, since you gave me that door, I will give you this in return."

Xia De put away the playing card and the dragon scales, and took out the item he had specifically brought out from his pocket during this trip.

It was a very exquisite small wooden box. After opening it, inside was a small metal dragon statue.

"Meow~"

The cat, which had been very well-behaved, meowed at the small statue, and only quieted down after Xia De patted its head. Little Mia's head felt very nice to the touch.

Mr. Albert leaned in to look, then said with some surprise:

"This is the one in the hands of the 【Light-Worshiper Training Society】... I thought you would keep this for yourself, or give it to the 【Witch Council】."

Xia De pushed the box over:

"Compared to us, this divine statue is more suitable for you, isn't it?"

"You should know its value, Mr. Watson. The value of this divine statue can even compare to the holy sword in my hand, which only has its strongest power when in my possession. The 【Light-Worshiper Training Society】 was able to produce a Thirteenth Tier sorcerer like the 'Light-Chaser' because of this."

Xia De naturally understood, but he also understood that the "Light-Chaser" was the only truly dead Thirteenth Tier he had seen in over a year:

"But you need it, don't you?"

The outlander looked at the coroner across the table:

"We are friends."

Ptolemy Albert also looked at him, and after a moment of eye contact, he nodded gently:

"Yes, we are friends."

He took the box to his side very carefully and let out a long breath:

"But friends must also be equal... You need that diamond, right? I will lend it to you for a month; use it however you like. But I must remind you, although the 【Diamond of Hope】 is the mildest among Unknowable-level Relics, it is still an Unknowable-level Relic. You have professional diviners around you; it is best to let them help keep an eye on this thing.

Although it bears the name 'Hope,' this does not mean it cannot summon despair." ===== CHAPTER 2445 =====