The plump "Orange Light" Hillarion seemed to be the most cheerful and outgoing among the Seven Lights, and immediately responded on behalf of all his companions:
"Duke Aaron, you don't need to be so polite. With the apocalypse approaching and Outer Deities lurking, this is what we should do."
"Red Light" Aiur Moria, wearing a diamond crown, nodded gravely and added:
"Although we still cannot confirm whether the 'Great Ruler Above the Spirit World' has awakened, we hope that you can help that young man with Sefirah Castle's aura in the real world."
Aaron was not surprised by this request. As the Seven Lights of the Spirit World, although their own Beyonder characteristics were very high, they were also restricted by the Spirit World itself. Most of their interference in the real world was achieved through avatars.
In the matter of "helping Klein return to the 'Great Ruler Above the Spirit World's' throne as soon as possible," the Seven Lights of the Spirit World could not be too proactive, otherwise it would almost be equivalent to telling Amon.
This was also why "Orange Light" Hillarion was willing to help him and even tell him about the passage to the Forsaken Land of the Gods deep within the Abyss after detecting the aura of the Nation of Disorder on him in Bayam from the very beginning.
"I will keep my promise and do my best to protect him. The birth of the Lord of the Mysteries is already imminent."
After making a promise in front of the Seven Lights, Aaron pondered for a moment and immediately asked:
"I learned from Evernight Goddess that after the Night Emperor fell in the Fourth Epoch, his Divine Kingdom shattered, but several fragments still remained."
"One of them was obtained by God of Steam and Machinery, and as far as I know, it was eventually given to Roselle, who was then the 'Son of Steam.' Do you know the final whereabouts of that fragment?"
Regardless of whether this battle succeeded in the end, the Seven Lights of the Spirit World would definitely be watched by the Seven Deities and other existences in the short term. Aaron would need to avoid contact with them for a period of time, so some questions needed to be asked now while the Seven Lights were gathered.
Hearing Aaron's question, a thin old man in a lemon-yellow robe with a long white beard, standing beside "Red Light" Aiur Moria, smiled and explained:
"Duke Aaron, you must be aware of Roselle's situation, or rather, all high-ranking individuals within the Seven Orthodox Churches have such a problem."
"Once a Pathway produces a deity, even a Pope can at most reach Sequence 2, but Emperor Roselle was bestowed the title of Son of Steam after he initiated the Steam Age."
"To show the importance of Roselle, the one who had already changed his honorific name to God of Steam and Machinery at that time bestowed that Divine Kingdom fragment upon him."
"Roselle was indeed exceptionally talented, but this was also the beginning of his tragedy."
"It was precisely by using that Divine Kingdom fragment that he avoided the gaze of the gods and us, secretly going to the Moon, and was almost defenselessly corrupted by the Mother Goddess of Depravity."
Aaron raised his eyebrows, not expecting that the Great Emperor had actually used that Divine Kingdom fragment to go to the Moon. However, he felt that Roselle being able to do this without anyone knowing was more likely due to Mr. Door's guidance.
Thinking this, Aaron nodded slightly towards "Yellow Light" Venithan, who had spoken, signaling him to continue.
Although this Pure Light had not been seen before, he was not unfamiliar with it, as "Yellow Light" had previously made prophecies of the apocalypse and family curses to a Traveler of the Abraham family, which were recorded in the "Sights in the Spirit World."
Stroking his white beard, "Yellow Light" Venithan added in a gentle tone:
"The last time that Divine Kingdom fragment appeared was when Roselle was planning to advance to Black Emperor."
"Although I don't know exactly how he did it, there is no specific revelation in the Spirit World, but it is certain that he used this item when he forcibly advanced to Black Emperor across Pathways."
"But after he ascended to godhood, the relevant information in the Spirit World was distorted, and even we cannot glimpse the final whereabouts of the item you are looking for."
"You can try asking Bernadette or Bornova Gustav; you might find relevant clues."
Hearing the first half of the sentence, Aaron gently shook his head. He had already been to "Emerald City," and he had read all of Roselle's diaries preserved by Bernadette.
Perhaps the corresponding diaries were lost, or Roselle simply didn't record it in his diaries, as Aaron hadn't found any information about the Night Emperor's Divine Kingdom fragment.
This was why he was so surprised when he learned from Evernight Goddess that Roselle had once obtained another Divine Kingdom fragment.
But upon hearing the name Bornova Gustav, Aaron paused, realizing that he had focused too much on Bernadette and neglected Roselle's second son.
Perhaps he could sound out this Angel through Bernadette. Given his position in the Church of God of Steam and Machinery, he could at least know whether this item, which Roselle once held, was still within the Church of the God of Steam and Machinery.
If God of Steam and Machinery had not reclaimed that Divine Kingdom fragment, the greatest possibility was that Roselle had taken it back to that mysterious island in the Fog Sea.
Aaron sighed in his heart and could only keep this matter in mind. Neither of these two possibilities was a good answer for him.
The worst possibility was that it was still controlled by Roselle. If it had been before, it would have been fine, but now that he knew from Adam that the Mother Goddess of Depravity was also coveting the Nation of Disorder, how could he dare to go to that island?
Without the Beyonder characteristic of Sequence 1 or even a King of Angels, it was no different from delivering a grand gift to their doorstep.
As the symbol of the "Meditation" domain, "Blue Light" Kuthumi, with love and wisdom as his own traits, amiably changed the subject:
"Duke Aaron, sealing the Spirit World requires the concerted efforts of us Seven Lights, so we may not be able to help with the specific battle."
"Therefore, I need to remind you of some points to note."
Seeing Aaron nod, the old man, whose forehead was bound with a "sapphire" and whose mouth was surrounded by a thick beard, continued:
"Your messenger should have informed you of the origin of that Angel wandering in the Spirit World, but it is not by us that he can resist the invasion of the Mother Tree of Desire in the Spirit World."
"More importantly, he himself was formed by the fusion of an Ancient Bane Beyonder characteristic separated from the Chained God and a terrifying Sealed Artifact."
"That terrifying Sealed Artifact was personally crafted by the Ancient Sun God in the Third Epoch using the remains of Giant King Aurmir. After this existence fell in the Cataclysmic Era, he, who was then only the 'God of Spiritual Creatures,' obtained that Sealed Artifact."
"Only the remaining ancient god will of Aurmir can barely prevent the corruption of the Mother Tree of Desire. Therefore, never underestimate him just because he has lost his sanity."
Aaron raised his eyebrows slightly, subconsciously looking at Astolfo beside him. He had heard similar questions from his messenger, but perhaps because it was a separated imprint that re-condensed in the Spirit World, the memory was not complete.
A Sealed Artifact made from the remains of Giant King Aurmir... Referring to the current God of Combat, that likely contains the Sequence 2 "Glory" characteristic with the will of an ancient god.
Recalling the exaggeratedly huge and terrifying body in the Spirit World, Aaron's face twitched slightly. Similarly corresponding to "Glory," the City of Silver's "Proof of Glory" protected this city-state in the Land of Darkness from wave after wave of Monster invasions, and its defensive power was absolutely maxed out.
Nodding silently to indicate that he already knew, Aaron thought for a moment and tentatively asked:
"Do you know how the Chained God was eroded by the Mother Tree of Desire to the point of being unable to resist?"
Astolfo only knew that the main body might have been eroded by the system, but he did not know the specific process.
But the Chained God's erosion happened a thousand years ago, and the Primordial One barrier was much stronger then than it is now. Without special circumstances, how could a King of Angels be so cowardly and completely controlled?
Even now, with the Primordial One barrier about to break in a few decades, the more terrifying Mother Goddess of Depravity has not dragged the Sanguine into the water, only creating an artificial Vampires who worship the Primordial Moon.
Even if Lilith secretly protected them, it was enough to show that the influence between Sequences alone was not enough to make the Chained God fall to such a state.
Looking at each other, "Purple Light" Saint Germain, holding an amethyst, replied:
"In the Cataclysmic Era at the end of the Third Epoch, he, who was then only the 'God of Spiritual Creatures,' obtained the Uniqueness of the Chained in addition to that Sealed Artifact. This is also why he later changed his title to 'Chained God.'"
"But he never successfully accommodated that Uniqueness until the end of the War of the Four Emperors and the beginning of the Fifth Epoch."
"If there is no way to 'accommodate' the Uniqueness, then before holding the ritual and advancing to Sequence 0, the Uniqueness is a burden rather than an aid to a Sequence 1 Angel."
"And he also had to avoid Death, who dominated the Southern Continent at that time. This is also why the Chained God was largely unknown throughout the Fourth Epoch."
Aaron looked at "Purple Light" Saint Germain with some surprise. He himself knew the method of accommodating Uniqueness. After the fall of the Ancient Sun God, the most feasible method currently was to reconcile the 'Uniqueness' into an incomplete Beyonder potion and consume it with a simplified version of the deity-ascension ritual.
He didn't find a suitable opportunity throughout the Fourth Epoch, and he was also targeted by Death… Aaron silently mourned for the Chained God for a few seconds. Perhaps he should have asked Will Auceptin for some luck.
I wonder if I can forcibly suppress the Justiciar Uniqueness by relying on the Nation of Disorder after I have the Beyonder characteristic of a King of Angels… As Aaron thought this, "Purple Light" Saint Germain's words did not stop there:
"With the beginning of the Fifth Epoch and the fall of Death, the Berserk Sea formed, and the Chained God established the Highland Kingdom."
"The information we can glimpse indicates that for some unknown reason, the Chained God secretly entered the Abyss once for a hundred years, and when he reappeared, he had successfully accommodated the Uniqueness."
"But in less than a hundred years, the Abomination Suah was born. Now it seems that the trip to the Abyss was more like a carefully prepared trap."
"We speculate that there was a problem when the Chained God went to the Abyss to try and accommodate the Uniqueness, and the Mother Tree of Desire seized the opportunity, thus completing the erosion relatively easily."
Looking at Astolfo, who stood silently beside him, Aaron sighed, unsure how to comment, and also understood why the philosophy of the Indulgence Faction had such a high similarity with the Devil Pathway. He then asked with some interest:
"Then do you know the Chained's deity-ascension ritual?"
"Orange Light" Hillarion took over the conversation and responded in a calm tone:
"This knowledge has corresponding mysticism attached to it and is not in the Spirit World, but from our observations, the Chained's ritual should be closely related to binding madness and suppressing desire."
Nodding, Aaron ended the topic. Knowing the information warned by the Seven Lights of the Spirit World, he should also make some preparations.
-----------------
Berserk Sea, Dilynius Island, Port Area. Night had already fallen, and the previous storm had quietly receded, with crimson moonlight shining through the thick clouds.
Daly Simone, wearing a Spirit Medium robe and with blue eyeshadow and blush, walked aimlessly on the street, attracting a lot of attention.
As one of the outposts of the safe passage, most of the people on Dilynius Island, apart from the natives, were ruthless individuals eager to venture into the Southern Continent. Even though Daly's attire was somewhat peculiar, many people were still eager to make a move.
However, just as they were about to take action, several translucent, eerie faces with a greenish glow would reflect in their pupils, and a chill far more biting than the sea breeze would emerge in their hearts.
One by one, burly men with fierce faces scattered like mice seeing a cat, not daring to utter a single harsh word, fleeing in all directions, so much so that a moving vacuum zone appeared in the dock area.
In a room on the second floor of the "Snake of Fate Hotel" near the port, Dunn Smith sat on the bed, his body flickering with light, like a night sky dotted with stars.
After a long while, he opened his eyes, his gray eyes looking at his hands with some complexity, and he murmured in a low voice:
"Is this a Soul Assurer?"
There was no excitement in his words, only annoyance and unwillingness.
If he had been stronger in Tingen back then, perhaps things could have taken a turn, but now, what good would a Sequence 6 be in front of Ince Zangwill?
Standing up from the bed, Dunn Smith clenched his fists and muttered:
"Undying."
After a long while, he walked to the window, and with just one glance, his gaze suddenly froze. The graceful figure in a Spirit Medium robe was reflected in his gray eyes, and a name so familiar it was etched into his soul trembled from his lips:
"Daly…"
Still walking aimlessly on the street, letting the little guys inside her relax, Daly suddenly paused, and as if sensing something, she looked up towards a hotel not far down the street.
Although she didn't discover anything, the feeling she had just now, being a Spirit Medium for a long time, made her sense a trace of abnormality.
Her expression unchanged, Daly did not deliberately approach that hotel, but transparent figures, difficult to detect with the naked eye, surged out from within her. These spirits quickly plunged underground and flew towards that hotel.