Chapter 4164: Intelligence on the Hermitage

When the three of them returned home it was three in the afternoon; Xia De had already finished reading several documents that morning, so in the afternoon at home he continued with his reading.

Princess Lei Lei Qianya had originally planned to stay by Xia De's side, holding his hand or touching his leg from time to time as she flipped through books and parchment — provided there was no cat on the leg. But not long after returning home, Princess Lei Lei Qianya was dragged off by Dorothy to help her proofread the manuscripts to be published next month. The Princess was, of course, unwilling:

"But today is Red Butterfly Day! I barely managed to set aside a whole day — a day filled with sweet romance and steaming-hot passion. Why should I still be busy with this?"

"Because you have time right now. Hurry and help me look at it, or tonight's evening lesson for Xia De will be delayed again."

Among the documents Miss Felianna had left for Xia De, there was much knowledge worthy of his study and research. Within the contents concerning flesh-and-blood creation and flesh-and-blood decay, Xia De believed that Briana must have also participated in the writing.

Briana was a witch who wielded the power of the Yellow Moon, but she was not entirely ignorant of the Red Moon's power either. The vision of a demigod witch was certainly beyond what Xia De could match at this moment; she stood at a higher vantage point to explain the Red Moon's secrets to him, and Xia De could even read a certain tenderness of Briana's between the lines.

【Like a love letter?】

"She" asked softly, and Xia De very much agreed with this view. The angle from which Daniste explained the mysteries of the Red Moon to him was not the same as Briana's; Xia De felt that if he could fully understand the contents of these materials, his control over the Red Moon's power could improve by a great deal more.

Now the crimson moon in his hands already possessed the power of "flesh-and-blood nourishment," and perhaps before long, Xia De would be able to wield the power of life without relying on the Life Fire Seed.

"This also counts as the moon invading the domain of creation, doesn't it?"

"She" merely smiled and did not answer.

Although Princess Lei Lei Qianya complained, she still worked together with Dorothy to finish proofreading next month's manuscripts. But this came at a price; as for what kind of "sacrifice" Dorothy paid, Xia De would not know until that evening.

At dusk, Princess Lei Lei Qianya suggested that since she had set aside a whole day today, they might as well go visit Adelina. Dorothy and Xia De both knew that after all she still cared about her younger sister, so they agreed:

"Let's wait for Luvia and go together with her. Winnie, could you go ahead and tell Veega that we'll be coming over for dinner in a little while?"

Xia De added, and the maid Miss immediately set off. Dorothy and Princess Lei Lei Qianya then discussed what kind of dress to change into before going out — ladies cared a great deal about their appearance.

Luvia still had half an hour before getting off work, so Xia De went out again:

"I'm going to Old John's place to ask whether there's any result on the matter I inquired about a few days ago. Wait for me at home, I'll be back very soon."

So Dorothy also had Xia De pick up on the way a precious ancient document she had ordered from Old John's place. After arriving at the pawnshop, Xia De successfully obtained the book said to be a storybook from the middle of the Fifth Epoch. Although the book contained no occult knowledge and was itself merely an ordinary object, due to its age, its price was quite outrageous.

"Regarding the intelligence on the Sea of Origin, I've already applied for it."

The old man behind the counter said after handing the wrapped book to Xia De:

"It's just that this matter is of great importance. When I applied to consult the materials, I mentioned the 'God-Summoner.'"

Xia De shook his head:

"It's fine. Besides, hasn't the Hermitage long since realized that the 'God-Summoner' is actually right here in Tobesk?"

The old man then continued:

"I can't give you the originals of those hundred-year-old documents, but everything that could be transcribed is here. The signs before the Sea of Origin descended, the signs before it vanished, the residual effects after it vanished — it's all written down in great detail here. The records left behind by the predecessor I mentioned, who once entered that region and returned with damaged memories, are also all here."

He paused:

"The descent of the Sea of Origin is not periodic — perhaps once a millennium, perhaps once a century. But each time it descends, it causes the disappearance of at least a four-digit number of people. If that sea truly is about to appear in Arcadia City, you can imagine what a disaster that would be."

"Even I don't have the ability to stop a disaster that can be called a natural phenomenon."

Xia De said, but he promised:

"But I will do my utmost to protect more people... What kind of thoughts are those who are drawn there actually harboring, to enter that sea?"

Old John answered the question:

"Once ordinary people cross that threshold, it's almost impossible for them to come back alive, but civilization's history is so long that there will always be a few special lucky ones. The materials contain this part. According to the descriptions gathered from the survivors, it's a feeling like being drawn by a mother, wanting to return to a mother's embrace. At the moment the sea descends, life's instinct shifts from reproduction to return. I don't really understand it well — this should be a very powerful form of psychic influence, I suppose."

Xia De raised an eyebrow:

"But according to legend, humanity wasn't created by that ancient god. The Sea of Origin is not our birthplace."

Old John of course knew such legends as well:

"No matter how humanity and the few special races like the elves came to be, that sea is indeed where the world's earliest life was born. As long as we are still living beings of this world, we cannot deny our connection to that sea.

Besides, even without such a conceptual constraint, from the beginning of the Mythological Epoch to now, the civilizations of the various races have weathered so many storms — whose bloodline in this world truly still contains only the blood of those very first human ancestors?"

"I understand what you mean."

Xia De put the materials away and asked cautiously:

"Among the people who returned from the Sea of Origin, did any of them encounter... other life there?"

Old John didn't understand:

"You mean other people who were drawn there? Of course they did, but there's simply no way to persuade them to leave. Even if you forcibly take them away, they absolutely cannot return to the normal world. The only chance to stop them is to intercept them before they step onto that pink beach — once they enter, the possibility of turning back is almost zero."

Xia De shook his head:

"No, no, I don't mean normal people. I mean life that lives in the Sea of Origin."

Old John, who had just been about to pick up his teacup, looked at him in surprise:

"No, there are no records whatsoever of 'natives' existing in that sea. In fact, before you asked this question, I hadn't even considered that such a place could have living beings in it... what would there be?"

The image of the bizarre and terrifying silver-headed monster he had once seen inside the coffin, the one that had appeared in his dream, surfaced once more before Xia De's eyes, and the corner of Xia De's mouth twitched:

"Some things that have gone mad. As for what has gone mad..."

"No, no, don't tell me."

Old John immediately shook his head:

"I like to think my mental resistance is high enough, but thinking of pink beaches, a red ocean, and then bizarre enormous creatures — I still feel dizzy. If you want to, you can tell Finch what you know; I'm not in Arcadia City, I don't need to know these things."

Xia De laughed:

"Old John, don't you want to go to Arcadia City and see the 'Sea of Origin' for yourself? After all, that is where the earliest life was created. Strictly speaking, it is the place of origin, a holy land, for any living being that exists today."

Old John shook his head like a rattle:

"Unless I absolutely have to, I have no interest in going to a place like that... I just have a feeling it's the kind of area where one look would give you nightmares."

His feeling was extremely accurate.

When Xia De returned home, Luvia had already gotten off work and come back. Princess Lei Lei Qianya was showing her the sketch she had drawn that afternoon; the Princess was quite satisfied with it.

As for going to Veega's place for dinner in the evening, Luvia of course had no objections either. She had already changed her clothes, so Xia De took the cat and the young ladies and set off together, with Winnie naturally accompanying them as well.

Veega was very glad that Xia De could bring so many people to dine with her. According to Veega, apart from the maids, there were hardly any people at the Fragrant Residence, yet the round table in the dining room was so large that she felt lonely at every meal, so she very much welcomed the "intrusion" of Xia De and his colleagues.

The underground wine cellar of the Ice-Snow Castle still stored a large batch of red wine left over from the Fifth Epoch — one of the few large batches of items in the entire castle to survive from Chloe's era. That evening Winnie had fetched a bottle in advance, for Xia De to bring as a visiting gift.

The wine from the early Fifth Epoch, though not as palatable as the "Blood Brew" Xia De made, held great significance for the Sixth Epoch's Great Witches — it was wine stored by the Witch Empress, and Wigor had specifically asked Miss Lorin to fetch her treasured wine set for use.

"Princess Lei Lei Qianya, you can rest assured — I will take good care of Ajelina."

She promised Princess Lei Lei Qianya at the table, and once again praised Ajelina's cleverness and good behavior. This was not mere pleasantry; based on Xia De's observations over these past days, Ajelina did indeed get along very well with Wigor.

If things continued to develop at this pace, it was entirely possible that Ajelina would become the first formal apprentice of the Great Witch of Chaos, and even become a future Great Witch of Chaos herself.

The dinner was sumptuous enough, and during dinner Wigor also reminded Xia De:

"Tomorrow we will perform the Chaos Blessing for you in the Council. The time Miss Jia Lin Na and I discussed is after tomorrow's midday lunch — everyone will have time then."

"Do I need to prepare anything in advance?"

Xia De asked.

"No need. Just come to my side as early as you can, and I will bring you into the Council. If things go smoothly, we should be able to complete the task in about half an hour to forty minutes."

Wigor said. In front of Lu Lu Weiya and the others, she did not mention anything about the "surprise" for Xia De tomorrow.