As the bloody symbol merged into the telegraph machine, the surrounding jungle suddenly turned cold and dim, as if the Spirit World had merged with reality here.
Completely different from the previous lack of response, as soon as Klein raised his hand, the familiar clicking sound began, and a illusory white paper timidly emerged:
"Great, supreme, transcendent Master, your loyal, humble, lowly servant Arrodes has answered your summons, you..."
Seeing the flattering address, Klein's face twitched, and he subconsciously glanced at Mr. Azik beside him, feeling a sense of embarrassment like being caught with a bad habit by a parent. He opened his mouth, wanting to explain, but didn't know where to start.
Fortunately, the somewhat excited Arrodes also sensed Mr. Azik's presence. The illusory white paper paused slightly, and the subsequent, even more embarrassing, flirtatious words did not appear. Instead, it switched to a more normal tone:
"That cunning and treacherous 'Blasphemer' tried to force me to reveal your information, but your loyal servant endured through that inhumane torment, and thus was unable to respond to your summons for a while."
"Great Master, can Arrodes obtain your forgiveness?"
Amon... Klein's gaze sharpened, but his expression remained inscrutable. He nodded slightly, his mood already extremely grave.
A comical stick figure appeared on the illusory white paper, and Arrodes responded quite happily:
"Great Master, thank you for your generosity. Now it's your turn to test Arrodes."
Placing the mermaid skeleton in his hand before the telegraph machine, Klein spoke in a low voice:
"I want to know where all the mermaids who escaped from the Sea of Ruins to the Sonia Sea are now?"
The clicking sound of the telegraph machine stopped for a few seconds, then several patterns formed by various distorted symbols quickly appeared on the illusory white paper. Using divination to interpret them, Klein recognized that these pointed to several Spirit World coordinates!
He nodded in satisfaction, casually answered Arrodes's question, and then, staring at the telegraph machine, continued to ask with some anticipation:
"I want to know the current hidden location of Vice Admiral Ailment!"
Originally, he had planned to use the forces behind Vice Admiral Iceberg to investigate Tracy, but he didn't expect Arrodes, who had been unresponsive to his summons before, to answer this time.
He had never forgotten what the Demoness Sect did in Backlund, and planned to start settling scores with Vice Admiral Ailment after advancing to Marionettist.
To Klein's surprise, the illusory white paper trembled violently for a moment, and it was only after a while that text condensed:
"Great Master, a power has blocked my gaze. Please forgive Arrodes's incompetence..."
Klein frowned. This was not the first time he had encountered a question Arrodes could not answer, and it usually meant that at least an Angel, or even a God-level power, was influencing the situation.
Could it be that Vice Admiral Ailment's disappearance from the Five Seas during this period was actually a return to the Demoness Sect's headquarters?
This thought involuntarily arose in Klein's mind, and he even felt that it might be related to the lingering effects of the great smog in Backlund. He did not make things difficult for Arrodes, waving his hand and putting away the telegraph machine.
Things had to be done step by step, and the most important thing now was to advance!
As this thought flashed through his mind, Klein glanced at Mr. Azik, who had a smile on his lips beside him. He hesitated for a moment and did not draw a wall of spirituality to cover his actions, but skillfully set up the sacrificial and bestowal ritual.
High-Sequence Beyonders of the Fate Pathway and high-level Spirit World creatures could perceive anomalies on him to a certain extent, and Mr. Azik, who belonged to the latter, was naturally no exception. This ancient powerhouse, who was both a teacher and a friend, might be able to answer some of the doubts buried in his heart.
Passing through layers of murmurs, Klein appeared at the head of the bronze long table, directly summoning the Marionettist Beyonder characteristic left by Rosago from the pile of sundries, as well as the supplementary ingredients he had collected at the last pirate gathering.
A few seconds later, all that remained was a mass of ink-black potion, in which countless tiny, almost invisible worms seemed to be rapidly swimming.
Without further delay, Klein returned to the real world with the Marionettist potion. The first thing he did was turn his head and meet the gaze of a pair of deep, ancient eyes.
Azik stared at Klein intently, a wisp of thin gray-white mist still coiling around his fingertips. After a long time, he raised his hand and patted Klein's shoulder, his gentle voice carrying a hint of complexity:
"Sefirah Castle!"
"I think I can guess why you are so special..."
Sefirah Castle? Does he mean that mysterious gray fog space?
Feeling the pressure on his shoulder, Klein could clearly hear his increasingly rapid heartbeat, and began to ponder how to subtly ask his questions.
Azik withdrew his arm, pinched his brow, and seeing Klein's dilemma, sighed:
"My memory is still incomplete; I can only recall some scattered knowledge, so I may not be able to resolve your confusion."
"That seems to be one of the legacies of the original Creator, and to some extent, it is an existence beyond Sequence."
Beyond Sequence, and related to the Creator who created the world? Klein's pupils suddenly contracted. He recalled some records in the 'Revelation of Night' and the City of Silver's creation myth, and thought of his bizarre transmigration and miraculous resurrection. His thoughts were instantly jumbled, and he whispered with some difficulty:
"One of... How many more places or items similar to 'Sefirah Castle' are there?"
Azik frowned slightly, squeezing out incomplete memory fragments from his mind, and placed the wisp of thin gray-white mist in front of Klein, responding with some uncertainty:
"There should be eight. This seems to be specifically recorded on the second 'Blasphemy Slate'."
"I once saw these mists outside 'Calderon' deep in the Spirit World, but that place has become extremely dangerous now. Don't be rash!"
Eight! Klein was stunned for a moment, inexplicably recalling the strange space controlled by the Lord of Disorder.
Coming back to his senses, Klein heard the concerned tone and smiled wryly, nodding. He quickly composed himself; no matter what, advancing steadily was what he should be doing most right now.
Using the Spirit World coordinates provided by Arrodes, as soon as Mr. Azik led him out of the Spirit World, Klein heard a faint, ethereal song drifting from afar with the waves.
On the reef-strewn shallows, figures sat on the edge, their melodious singing echoing.
These creatures had human heads, their eyes holding a hint of allure within their purity, their chests swelled high but were covered in dark red scales, and their lower bodies were large fish tails, rhythmically slapping against the reefs.
Without acting rashly, after dispelling the mermaids' hostility with the Sea God Scepter, Klein, under Azik's protection, took out the prepared Marionettist potion and drank it in one gulp amidst the melodious singing.