Chapter 98: Ways to Obtain Divinity

"Hmm, this is very good."

In the dimly lit room, Xia De, who had been lowering his head, suddenly said, and then used a pencil to put a checkmark behind "Satiated Food," handing the pencil, the slip of paper, and 11 pounds in cash together. The library's transaction commission is paid by the party selling the item; this point does not need Xia De to consider much.

The sound of a door opening came from behind the shutter, and then he waited for a full half-hour before the other party returned, handing over a book from the hole in the wall. The book title was "You Can Too: Simple Cooking of Lamb Stew."

This cookbook was very thick but very light. After opening it, he discovered that the inside had already been hollowed out, containing specific information and materials for learning the secret art. Xia De carefully checked under the light that there were no problems, only then did he stand up, preparing to leave.

But the man behind the wooden shutter called him back again:

"Since it's your first time at the library, do you know about the incident at Lake View Manor last weekend?"

Xia De was startled in his heart, but on the surface, he remained calm:

"I heard about it. I heard that the masked man under the silver moon kicked down half of the mansion at Lake View Manor in one kick under the moon."

He deliberately said incorrect information, and then was naturally corrected:

"Your news is probably problematic. What I heard is that that man evaporated a small half of Schluch Lake in one kick."

Saying even more problematic information, the man said to Xia De:

"You are here for the first time; you probably don't know that we also collect intelligence here. Now, news about that person is very valuable. If there is confirmed intelligence, you can consider selling it to us."

"Okay, I will pay attention."

Xia De said, wanting to leave in a hurry; he did not want to discuss this topic with others.

Leaving was not through the door he came in, but by continuing to walk forward along the corridor and leaving from the back door hidden in the alley on the other side of the library.

Xia De deliberately circled a few times in the intricate alleys nearby, fully utilizing the characteristic that today's choking gray fog was even thicker, confirming that no one was following him, before taking off the vest, wearing the coat correctly, taking off the mask, and returning to the main road.

He wasted some time at the Black Raven Library, but summer days are long, so at this time, the sunset had just appeared on the western horizon.

Xia De merged into the crowd on the street. After a carriage rushed past the street, he crossed from one side of the street to the other, turned at the mailbox, and walked forward along the low wall by the street with two rusty pipes.

"So, spirit runes obtained by devouring from Old Gods are different from ordinary runes?"

He thought in his heart.

【Yes.】

Stopping at the intersection ahead, looking left and right, he was somewhat hesitant about which road to take home. The thin fog was hazy. Housewives wearing long skirts and lace hats passed by him in a hurry, while police officers in uniform looked around on the other side of the intersection.

Xia De asked in his heart:

"That is to say, my contacting Old Gods and devouring their power not only allows me to obtain divinity, but also allows me to obtain extraordinary spirit runes? Interesting, it's simply tempting me to contact evil gods again."

【This is not me tempting you; this is the fact.】

"I know."

He chose the road on the right. Although the road on the left would be closer, he had never walked the road on the right and wanted to try walking it.

After making the decision, he took a step. The small building where the printing factory's office was located attracted his gaze for a few seconds. Hamilton the detective's business cards also needed to be reprinted:

"Speaking of which, what is the method for devouring a god's power? I can probably be clear that I need to actively contact the god. But is that all it takes?"

This was the most important question, which should have been asked earlier, but things after waking up had not stopped at all.

【This is very simple. Just repeat the situation that night. This does not necessarily have a connection with the blood-sucking ring itself. You only need to find a way. A Relic like the blood-sucking ring, capable of absorbing a god's power, even if only for a split second, can reproduce the scene of that night. Of course, this is also what the knowledge of divinity told me.】

"And then you will appear?"

He thought of the soft body that appeared behind him on that night when he was on the verge of death. He missed that feeling very much.

He did not get an answer, nor was he reprimanded for his impolite imagination. The woman just chuckled, and that laughter made Xia De very relaxed:

"But it doesn't matter. The divinity that washed the 1st-Ring Sublimation Language rune is already there. I will not waste it. So, at least until the 2nd Ring, I will need another drop of divinity. This will probably take several years."

The woman did not answer. As Xia De disappeared into the intersection facing the thin fog, she was still chuckling in his ear.

He did not return to St. Theresa Square immediately, because of the hint given by "the other me." In the glow of the sunset, Xia De went to Old John's pawnshop.

Even if the city had fog, the fierce summer sunset could still project the fiery red color onto the floor through the shop window. Pushing the door, the bell rang, but at this time, the pawnshop had other guests. It was a middle-aged lady wearing a lace hat tilted to the side, who was talking to Old John at the counter.

The shop owner of the pawnshop gave Xia De a look, telling him not to approach first. Thus, after confirming that the woman was just an ordinary person, Xia De did not care, but wandered around the pawnshop and became interested in the prototype of the Steam Engine Mark IX covered in dust in the corner.

"Why, are you interested in this? I can sell it to you cheaper."

After the woman left satisfied in her high heels, Old John said to Xia De. Xia De shook his head:

"What do I want this thing for? I'm not running a museum. Speaking of which, you really have quite a few strange things here."

He came to the counter.

Out of politeness, Xia De did not use the more appropriate term "junkyard" to describe this place.

"I am running a pawnshop. As long as it is not real trash, even if it is just a broken quilt, I will accept it."

The old man was still a bit proud when talking about this matter. He took off his reading glasses and closed the account book.

Xia De looked at him with slight surprise:

"May I ask why this is? Such a business won't make money, right?"

A smile appeared on the old man's face; he was waiting for Xia De to ask:

"What did you take me for? A miser who only thinks about gold pounds? Then okay, Detective, I'll ask a question. From this pile of things, what can you see?"

He pointed to the strange pawned items placed in the shop, among which there was no lack of truly valuable things, just like the cane Xia De pawned last time, but most were just ordinary objects.

"See..."

He pondered hesitantly.

"If you guess my thoughts correctly, this business will be half off for you."

Old John encouraged. Xia De immediately had spirit. But this kind of open-ended question was not easy to guess correctly. After thinking for a long time without finding a definite answer, he could only give a relatively broad answer:

"Society and life?"

Old John laughed:

"Very close, but not correct. It is civilization."

Xia De originally thought his answer was already exaggerated; he didn't expect him to be even more exaggerated. ===== CHAPTER 99 =====