Odis looked at the island before him, shrouded in darkness.
For a moment, he felt as if he had arrived in a "land forsaken by the gods." As far as the eye could see, there was only darkness and no sun. Only when lightning occasionally flashed in the sky could he see the situation in the distance.
This is an island without any normal vegetation; the ground is bare, but it's not entirely devoid of anything. In the distance, there seem to be some animals and plants, but they all appear somewhat abnormal in appearance.
Odis and Bernadette landed at the safe point established before Cattleya, an ancient ruin that was in great disrepair and mostly collapsed.
It's raining heavily outside, and according to Cattleya, it seems to have been raining heavily here the whole time.
"It's that symbol," Cattleya said, pointing to the wall.
Odis looked over and saw the same complex symbol, mainly composed of inverted triangles, that Cattleya had shown them earlier.
He still felt that the face looked somewhat familiar, but he couldn't quite place where he had seen it before.
Bernadette glanced at the distant mountains: "There is indeed a 'mystical scholar' there."
As a Sequence 3 from the same pathway, Bernadette faced no pressure at this point.
Upon reaching the exit of the ruins, a brightly colored umbrella appeared above Bernadette's head, floating larger and larger until it completely sheltered Odis and Cattleya.
Odis exclaimed, "This ability is truly useful! Once I learn it, I'll never have to worry about getting wet in the rain again."
Bernadette smiled and waved her hand again. Immediately, a winding path appeared before the three of them, illuminated by the light of dawn, accompanied by birdsong and the sound of wind rustling through the leaves.
This way you won't have to step on the muddy ground.
Odis asked, "Wouldn't this attract too much attention?"
Bernadette replied, "This road is visible only to us... including the three of us. As long as we're under this umbrella, no one else can see us."
Odis exclaimed again, "This ability is truly enviable!"
Gadriya observed their interaction and had a strange feeling that they weren't superior and subordinate, but rather two friends out for a walk.
Walking along this path bathed in the morning light, Odis found that with each step she took, she could move forward a great distance.
In just over half a minute, the three of them arrived at the foot of a valley, with towering mountains on the other side.
This made Odis feel somewhat regretful, because it meant they missed the extraordinary creatures they encountered along the way.
While Bernadette paid no attention to those extraordinary creatures, Odis thought they were worth hunting.
Bernadette stared at the other side of the valley for a while before saying, "There seems to be a ruin in there."
Odis was taken aback. He had thought it was a "wilderness hunt," but it turned out to be a "ruins exploration."
"Stay close to me," Bernadette said. "Watch my gestures. If I tell you to leave, Odis will immediately use 'Travel' to take Cattleya away."
"I will buy you time to enter the spirit world."
Odis nodded: "Okay."
At a time like this, he certainly wouldn't try to be a hero.
The three entered the valley, and Odis asked, "Where did you find that 'magical winged horse' before?"
"It's in this valley," Cattleya replied, "but at the time I didn't dare explore the valley, and I didn't know exactly where its lair was."
Odis said "Oh," and could only hope that he was lucky and that the "magical Pegasus" was still on the island.
After passing through the valley, a tall tower appeared before the three of them.
This tower has a distinct Quaternary asymmetrical style, with a semicircle on the left and a square on the right.
Although it has been raining here, the tower still looks very sturdy, unlike the buildings outside that seem like they could collapse at any moment.
Bernadette looked around but didn't sense any danger.
Odis said, "That demigod-level monster, could it be that he sensed you were too powerful and went into hiding?"
Bernadette smiled and said, "That just shows that it is indeed quite weak."
She paused and then said, "Let's explore this tower first."
Odis and Cattleya definitely followed her wishes and had no objections to the decision.
The tower's doors were closed, but Bernadette summoned an "invisible servant" to push the doors open a crack.
The three people filed in, and the sound of the rain outside seemed to be immediately shut out.
Thanks to Bernadette's abilities, they haven't been rained on yet, and their shoes are even dry.
The tower was very empty, except for a stone statue in the middle.
On the walls, however, are formulas, geometric shapes, and descriptions of nature.
These scripts are written in Old Fusak, a language that was the common language of the northern continent during the Quaternary period.
Finally, all three of them focused their attention on the stone statue in the middle. He was dressed in asymmetrical clothing from the Quaternary period, holding a pen in one hand and a writing board in the other, as if he were writing something.
Odis glanced at the formulas again and guessed, "A polymath?"
Bernadette nodded: "That's a good idea. It's very likely that what they're trying to express is 'generalist'."
She glanced at the stairs: "We can go up to the next floor and see if we can figure out what this is describing."
So the three of them went upstairs. The place was still very empty. In the middle was a stone statue. Its clothes had changed. In one hand it held a classical magnifying glass, and in the other hand it held a book that looked a bit tattered.
The surrounding walls had been transformed into murals. The first thing that caught their eye was an elf riding on the waves, a giant wielding a heavy sword, and so on. The three people, who had extensive knowledge of mysticism, immediately realized that the murals depicted eight ancient gods.
Continuing on, there is a sacred mural standing before a giant cross, with a sun behind it, gazing at the scene with a look of pity.
That was the ancient sun god.
Continuing down, we see a mural depicting an emperor from the Quaternary period. The mural is predominantly black and portrays a mature middle-aged man with black hair and eyes, a brooding yet wise gaze, and an imposing presence.
Odis said, "This should be 'Black Emperor' Solomon."
He remembered that among the Four Emperors, only the "Black Emperor" seemed to have black hair.
Cattleya asked, "But why aren't the 'Blood Emperor' and the other three emperors included?"
Bernadette, rubbing her chin, said, "Perhaps, when this tower was built, there was only the 'Black Emperor'."
So it must be an early Quaternary building. It must have been treated with some special methods, otherwise the murals wouldn't still look so vibrant.
Bernadette glanced at the statue and said, "It seems this is an 'archaeologist'."
The three of them then climbed the stairs to the third floor, where the stone statues became more complex. In front of the stone statues was a stone platform with a stone hat on it.
The stone statue stretched out its hands, as if telling Odis and the others about the power of the hat.
This is Sequence 7, "Appraiser".
Odis looked around at the walls, which had turned into writing on this layer, all in Gibbon script, recording some precautions for the "appraisal".
Upon reaching the fourth level, the stone figure appears to be dressed as a blacksmith, setting gemstones into a stone helmet.
The surrounding area was filled with descriptions of the creation of "extraordinary weapons" and sealed artifacts, which Odis treasured. However, he couldn't examine them closely at the moment; he only glanced at them briefly before planning to "recall" them later.
On the fifth floor, a stone statue stands in front of a large observatory, representing an "astronomer," while the walls depict various celestial phenomena.
On this floor, Cattleya was looking around very carefully.
Upon reaching the sixth floor, the three of them froze at the bottom of the stairs. This floor was filled with stone statues, and they stood there quietly, staring at the direction of the stairs.
These stone figures have different expressions; some are laughing, some are crying, some are kind, and some are sinister. However, they all look exactly the same and are so lifelike that it looks somewhat eerie.
It was as if they were still alive just a second ago, but after hearing Odis and the others go up the stairs, they looked towards the stairs and turned into stone statues.
Even more bizarrely, in the middle of this group of people, there was a stone statue with the same appearance, dissecting a person with the same appearance.
The stone statue lying on the stone platform, dissected, is also very realistic. Its chest and abdominal cavities are open, and its internal organs are clearly visible.
Odis swallowed hard: "Are the abilities of an 'alchemist' really that strange?"
Bernadette looked around at the walls before saying, "It seems that in the Fourth Epoch, when 'alchemists' created 'puppets,' they didn't use gears and metal parts."
"And the person in the middle isn't dissecting anything, he's making a 'puppet'."
Odis paused for a moment and asked, "What parts are they made of?"
Bernadette did not answer, but instead exchanged a glance with Odis.
Odis immediately understood, and felt a little disgusted: "This tower must have been built by some secret organization that has mastered the 'General Knowledge' pathway, right?"
The "parts" used by the Sequence 4 "Alchemist" in this pathway to create puppets do not need to be obtained from corpses.
Because they can infuse souls into things without souls, and life into inanimate objects, without even needing to obtain them from living bodies.
For example, the demigods of the Church of the God of Steam and Machinery create puppets that are mostly mechanical devices.
If the process involved corpses, Odis immediately felt as if he had encountered an evil organization.
Bernadette didn't speak, but suddenly said, "Something's wrong with these statues."
Odis quickly took two steps back, examining the statue again as he asked, "What's wrong?"
He saw that the stone statues were still standing there quietly. Although the atmosphere was a bit eerie, nothing seemed wrong.
Suddenly Odis noticed that the dissected stone statue lying on the stone platform had its chest and abdominal cavities open, and the stone internal organs inside were clearly visible.
At this moment, blood flowed from its abdomen. At first, it was just a few drops, but soon the flow grew larger and larger, as if it had become a small stream.
The stone statue that was creating the puppet suddenly moved its eyes and grinned, revealing a strange smile.
Odis swallowed hard, but then he noticed that Bernadette remained calm and did not gesture for them to leave.
So Odis calmed down and continued to observe.
At that moment, Bernadette suddenly said, "The problem isn't on that level."
Odis noticed that the eerie stone statues were beginning to move slightly: "Are you sure you're not on this floor?"
Bernadette raised her hand, and all the stone statues on that floor suddenly collapsed and shattered, leaving only a pile of stone chips.
Immediately afterwards, a phantom light suddenly flew out from the stone chips and rushed towards Odis and the others.
Bernadette gently raised her hand, and a classic full-length mirror appeared before her, reflecting the light.
The light then flew towards the stairs and reached the seventh floor.
Only then did Odis realize that there was no trace of blood on the floor they were on, and that everything that had just happened seemed like an illusion.
Just then, Odis felt something moving beneath his feet. Before he could react, a phantom pea rapidly grew and pierced through the roof, creating a large hole.
At this moment, the illusory light reappeared, and the sturdy pea suddenly lost all its vitality. Its leaves withered, its branches died, and it quickly turned into dust.
Bernadette seemed unconcerned as a phantom silk ribbon shot up from the hole.
Then, time seemed to stand still. Odis heard no sound from above, and the illusory light did not reappear.
About four or five seconds later, Bernadette suddenly said, "It's resolved."
As she spoke, she took the lead and started climbing the stairs. Odis laughed and said, "We don't even have a chance to show off."
Soon, the three arrived at the seventh floor. It seemed as if a fierce battle had taken place here, as the walls were covered with scars. In the center of the hall, layers of illusory silk, like silkworm cocoons, enveloped a ray of light.
The light darted left and right, but it couldn't break through the illusory silk, looking like a "restless" lantern.
Odis asked, "What is that?"
"This should be considered an 'unexpected gain'," Bernadette smiled. "This is 'Light of Mystery.' After extracting all the life from the light, one can obtain one of the main ingredients for the Sequence 3 potion of the 'Knowledgeable One' pathway."
"However, 'Arcane Light' has other uses for me."
As for its purpose, Bernadette didn't say. She simply raised her hand, and a crab-like claw emerged from the illusion, clamped the illusory silk, and then disappeared into the illusion.
Then Bernadette said, "As per our previous agreement, apart from the properties and materials you need, all the other spoils here belong to me."
Cattleya and Odis had no objections to this, after all, the two of them had just been spectators, and not only that, they also needed Bernadette to be distracted and protect them.
The three of them then looked around the seventh floor. It had been severely damaged, but judging from the stone chips on the ground, there used to be stone statues here.
The inscriptions on the surrounding walls were only vaguely discernible, written in "Giants" script. However, the specific content and the damage made them illegible.
Bernadette speculated, "That 'mystical light' might have been attracted by the knowledge here."
Odis chuckled: "Now that you mention it, I'm quite interested in the knowledge depicted on the wall."
Just as Cattleya was about to remind Odis that being interested was useless, as it was all written in "Ancient Giants".
However, she then thought that perhaps the "Hermit" could understand the "Ancient Giants' Script," so she continued to remain "invisible" on the sidelines.
Not a single mistake, not a single poem, not a single post, not a single piece of content, not a single look!
Bernadette smiled and looked up at the stairs: "There's no danger up there."
So the three of them went up to the eighth floor, eager to see how the people who built this tower described Sequence 2 of the "Generalist" pathway.
Upon reaching the eighth floor, they saw a stone eye floating in mid-air, behind which was an open, exquisite scroll.
That stone eye is different from the "eye of mystery" represented by symbols. In mysticism, eyes are generally used to represent the way of the "mysterious person".
But that eye is more like a complex symbol, containing both indicative and mystical elements, all combined to form an eye without an eyelid.
The eye in front of Odis and the others had eyelids and even eyelashes, and Odis could even feel its gaze.
Because of their large eyes, one can even see what appears to be illusory information rolling within the pupils.
The scroll behind it looks like a normal scroll, but I don't know what it represents.
The three people stared at the eye for a while without speaking immediately. After a long while, Odis said, "I remember that the description of the 'Knowledge Mentor' of the 'Generalist' pathway Sequence 2 is something like: it can change some physical laws and see through the essence of angels."
Cattleya was slightly taken aback, and she roughly understood why the "Queen" had sought the "Hermit's" opinion, because he had a wide range of knowledge and could almost readily provide information about angels.
Bernadette nodded and said, "The situation before us does describe the characteristics of this 'knowledge mentor' very well."
An ordinary stone eye was suspended in mid-air, which was clearly a manifestation of altering the laws of physics.
And those bright eyes seemed to see through everything before them.
Then the three of them noticed that there were no murals or any information on the surrounding walls.
They weren't surprised by this. For any organization, knowledge at the angelic level is top secret and couldn't possibly be drawn or written in a tower like that.
The three of them went up again. The statue on the ninth floor was even simpler than that on the eighth floor, depicting a ball of light with directional symbols.
Bernadette spoke first: "I've heard that the 'Perfect One' pathway... also known as the 'General Knowledge One' pathway, Sequence 1 is called 'Civilization Enlightener,' and in ancient times it was called 'Light in Darkness.'"
Odis stroked his chin and asked, "Do you mean a light in the darkness? Or that the light is darkness itself?"
Bernadette did not answer, and Odis did not ask any further questions.
This is already the top floor of the tower. Odis laughed and said, "Is this the builders' reverence for the gods? Or do they also know that their organization can only reach the Sequence 1 level at most?"
If the tower was built in the early Quaternary period, then the organization that built it might have a chance to try and break into Sequence 1.
"Perhaps both," Bernadette said, glancing at the surrounding walls, but unfortunately, there was nothing on them.
However, Odis made a discovery on the ground: "Beneath the 'light,' there seems to be a magic circle."
The "stone light" was also floating in mid-air, and Odis saw that there seemed to be several symbols on the ground below.
Bernadette raised her hand, and the space beneath the "stone light" suddenly became illusory, and like a vacuum cleaner, it sucked up all the dust from the ground.
All the symbols and graphics were revealed, and it was indeed a magic circle.
Odis took two steps forward and glanced at it. Although the characters in the magic circle were written in "Ancient Giant script," he quickly discerned its purpose: "This...this is a magic circle that can enhance spirituality."
"Enhance spirituality?" Bernadette asked. "Enhance the spirituality of what? This 'stone light'?"
Odis considered for a moment, then shook his head and smiled, "I don't know."
Because his spirituality also noticed that nothing on this level possessed spirituality.
Thinking of this, Odis suddenly paused, because now there were three extraordinary beings with their own spirituality on this floor...
"Let's go!" he said immediately.
But it was too late. The "ancient giant script" symbols on the ground had already been activated by the spiritual energy emanating from the three of them.
The suspended "stone light" suddenly seemed to crack open like an egg, with pieces of the shell falling off, revealing a real ball of light inside!
The illusory light surged, looking like a spring made of light.
The next second, the light suddenly spread out, and Bernadette "reappeared" with the magic mirror, blocking the way for the three people.
But it did not stop the illusory light. The circle of light passed through Odis and the other two, through the tall wall, and drifted away to who knows where.
Odis and the other two quickly checked their condition and found that they were not injured. Bernadette then quickly raised her hand and summoned the pumpkin-shaped carriage.
But before the three of them could get into the carriage, it was struck by a hazy, ethereal light that appeared out of nowhere, and vanished without a trace.
Odis hurriedly infused his spirituality into the "Travel Ring," but before he could open the illusory door, Bernadette used her "Reappearance" ability first, and a thick clump of golden hair surged out from beneath the feet of the three of them.
The hair flowed like a waterfall, carrying the three people down the stairs.
Almost instantly, Odis and the others had returned to the lowest level.
Although it was only for a short while, Odis realized that the situation had become so dangerous that it was too late to enter the spirit world.
The moment the three of them reached the bottom of the tower, Odysseus immediately felt a penetrating gaze, as if his heart, liver, spleen, and lungs were clearly seen through by that gaze.
In that instant, Odis seemed to realize something: "It's the 'Master of Knowledge'!"
They were just talking about the "Perfect One" pathway, Sequence 2 Angel "Knowledge Mentor"!
Bernadette noticed this as well, so as soon as her feet touched the ground, she took out a wooden box and put on the forehead ornament shaped like a vertical eye with diamond inlay.
In the next instant, Bernadette summoned a scrolling stream of information at the top of the tower, which, like an umbrella, sheltered the people above their heads.
The penetrating gaze vanished instantly. Just as Odis was about to use her "travel" ability to escape again, the "travel gate" that opened emitted a hazy light.
Odis quickly stopped maintaining the "Gate of Travel," clearly the "Mentor of Knowledge" had already sensed that Odis's ability to "travel" was guarded by the spirit world.
If this "gateway to travel" is fully opened, the other person may quickly appear beside them.
Bernadette was about to maintain the information flow while seeing Odis and Cattleya off when Odis noticed, "There's a magic circle on the first floor too."
"Now is not the time to study the magic circle!" Bernadette's spiritual sense did not detect any urgent or dangerous aura, but she was certain that the other party was an angel.
Odis, however, searched for the corresponding symbols while saying, "No, I've seen this magic circle before! It's right here..."
He had found the corresponding symbol and immediately infused it with spirituality.
In that instant, the three of them lost their footing and plummeted to the basement of the tower.
Odis saw that the hole above his head immediately closed automatically.
Just as the three were about to hit the ground, Bernadette used her power to make each of them grow transparent wings like dragonflies on their backs, and the three landed gently.
Bernadette glanced at the ceiling: "Is there such a magic circle on the door of that 'Secret Chamber of Trensost'?"
Back in Backlund, the two of them had explored a Quaternary ruin together, which Odis suspected was the secret chamber through which Trensus communicated with the Outer Gods.
Odis nodded: "That's right, except that the magic circle was written with a symbol I've never seen before, while this magic circle is written with 'Ancient Giants' script'."
This means that the magic circle did not originate from the stars, but is a product of the real world.
In addition, Odis also saw a similar magic circle at the entrance of the Abraham family's "teleportation station".
The purpose of those magic arrays is to conceal the location of the entrance, making it difficult to find even from the spirit world.
This is a very special "lock" that even Bernadette couldn't break through.
Odis had studied this magic circle for a long time, but was unable to replicate it. It wasn't until the advent of the "Extraordinary Potion Production Line" that Odis realized that this magic circle must also contain extraordinary properties.
However, he hasn't figured out yet where to embed it, or what specific characteristics to use.
Now is not the time to study this magic circle. Odis and the other two glanced around. Underground was a huge natural cave, as well as some areas that had been carved out by humans.
Deep inside the cave, there appear to be some ancient buildings.
Beneath the feet of Odis and the other two was a stone-paved road that seemed to extend all the way to the ancient buildings.
There seemed to be some extraordinary creatures active over those buildings.
After a quick glance to make sure there was no danger around, Bernadette spread her arms, and two huge, feathered, illusory wings appeared.
Just as the illusory wings were about to obstruct Odis's view, he suddenly saw a white horse with wings take flight in the distance: "The Deceptive Pegasus!"
Bernadette glanced at it: "It is indeed 'Pegasus of Deception'."
She glanced at the top of the vast space again, seeing no signs of it being opened. She also realized who the angel above was, and that the situation wasn't as urgent as she'd imagined. So she said, "Finish the hunt as soon as possible!"
Odis ran a few steps in that direction and suddenly took flight. It wasn't that he used a "flight scroll," but rather that the wings Bernadette had just given him hadn't disappeared yet.
These wings flew much faster than the "flying scroll." The "magical pegasus" also spotted Odis, unleashed a hurricane at her, and turned to run away.
Odis immediately used a "whirlwind scroll" to shift the direction of the hurricane, so as not to affect his flight.
Bernadette raised her hand, and a phantom frog suddenly appeared in front of the "Deceptive Pegasus".
Quack~
A crisp croak of a frog sent the "Trickster Pegasus" sprawling as if it had been struck by a club, causing it to plummet from the sky.
In general, during such expeditions, whoever needs the materials is responsible for hunting them.
However, time is tight now, and there is no time for Odis to go hunting on his own.
With Bernadette's help, things became much easier. Odis flew over and shouted, "Imprison!"
Next came "death" and "harvest." Before "Trickster Pegasus" could even cast his spell, he died in a daze.
Odis quickly took out the secondary array of the "Spatial Array" and stuffed the corpse of the "Deceptive Pegasus" into the "Wilderness of Knowledge".
Bernadette opened her arms again, and the illusory feathers reappeared. Suddenly, a cold voice said, "Bernadette, are you just going to leave without saying a word?"
Odis and Cattleya were startled because their spiritual senses were under immense pressure, but they didn't know where the pressure was coming from.
Bernadette's expression shifted between light and shadow, and the illusory wings vanished once more: "Bonova! Long time no see."
As she spoke, she put on the "Sage's Forehead Ornament" again and looked at the buildings in the distance.
A young man with long chestnut hair, a handsome face, and a tall stature emerged from one of the doors of those buildings.
He was Bernadette's younger brother, Bonova Gustav, a follower of the "God of Steam and Machinery" and an angel of the Steam Church.
Odis remembered that he had been blessed by the "God of Steam and Machinery" and had been greatly influenced by this deity. At this moment, the "God of Steam and Machinery" might also be watching over this place, so he was ready to pray to the "Goddess of Night" at any time.
Bonova glanced at Odis as he walked over: "You should stay away from Odis Gar; he's dangerous."
Although they were far apart, his voice sounded as if it were right next to Odis and the others.
Bernadette replied calmly, "I don't think so."
Then she looked into the other person's azure eyes: "What? You suddenly remembered your own background? And you even know to warn me that the people around me are in danger?"
"You know, such sarcasm can't possibly anger me." Bonova's tone revealed no change in emotion: "I would advise everyone who comes near Odis Gard in the same way."
"Because he is indeed very dangerous!"