Most rooms at the Three Cats Inn were exceptionally narrow, with the desk, cabinet, and bed occupying the majority of the space. Although the room could be fully observed at a glance, Xia De patiently and meticulously checked it once:
"Diviner, I need to use a Miracle to listen to sounds from the past 48 hours. While I do that, you try to divine this room and find out what Darkness did here."
A Ring Arcanist who manipulates time also possesses the characteristic of resisting time-related abilities. The Orthodox Church would undoubtedly search this room thoroughly. While the possibility of the Church having a Ring Arcanist who can listen to past sounds is very low, and the probability of them hearing Xia De's voice is even lower, for safety, Xia De did not reveal the name of the Miracle, nor would he call Luvia's name during the action.
"No problem."
Luvia nodded and sat on the chair in front of the desk, while Xia De supported himself on the bed and sat on its edge.
The room was a bit small, but the soundproofing was quite good. Furthermore, Darkness lived here alone, and Echoes of the Past tended to capture human speech. Therefore, Xia De believed that with a few attempts, he could hear the conversation between Darkness and the Thirteen Ring Sorcerer, Weeping Blood Hermons, that had just occurred.
He was very curious why that Weepers hadn't directly killed this traitor.
As the spiritual power within him connected with the elements to use the Miracle, he heard the sound of boots pacing back and forth on the floor. Then, Xia De truly heard Darkness's voice. But it wasn't the conversation that had just happened; it was the other party's "soliloquy."
"The thing I need is actually in Yodel Palace? Is this script trying to kill me?"
"For power, isn't it normal to take some risks?"
The second sentence was in Demonic, a terrifying language that made Xia De's scalp tingle just by hearing it. The demon's voice, speaking through the fish training ring, was very low, almost a whisper. It was tempting Darkness with a very seductive voice. Perhaps Darkness granting the demon the ability to speak was the biggest mistake he had made.
"If I worried about risks, I wouldn't have come to Tobesk. But that's Yodel Palace after all, and even if you help me pay the price, the script will definitely make me encounter bad luck during the operation."
Darkness sighed.
"Yes, but this is very necessary. Didn't the small amount of Human Pus you released get cleaned up quickly? I can feel that even without considering the Orthodox Church, there are still many terrifying people living in this City, including even my own kind. You and I alone are not enough to fight them."
The demon continued to whisper. The matter it mentioned should refer to the dream that Xia De and the doctor had cleaned up.
"Oh, my dear Evan."
Even though he wasn't in the same time as the other party, this tone still gave Xia De goosebumps:
"Darkness requires you to understand it yourself. The key to the ritual is in the Darkness Domain, and do you think items with the power of the ancient god crawling darkness can be found anywhere?"
The demon continued to whisper. Although it was tempting Darkness to take risks, what it said was actually very true. Luvia had paid a great price to find the Holy Bell of the Judge for Iluna.
"The Puppeteer's Script says that the hilt of the Dark Sword, the ritual longsword used by the priests of the ancient god crawling darkness, is in the Yodel Palace treasury. It contains a bit of power. Since I've already embarked on this path, yes, I can't turn back."
He then paced back and forth in the room, then pushed open the door and left.
Xia De waited for a while longer, confirming that there was no more to this sound, before tilting his head and asking Luvia by the table:
"Do you know about the Dark Sword?"
"Yes, the ritual longsword used by the priests of the ancient god. Before the gods left, those swords possessed power no less than relics. It is said that the longsword was completely invisible due to the power of Darkness, and only the priests of the ancient god could see it, so it was also called the Sword of Non-Existence. After the gods left, although the Dark Sword lost its invisibility, it was still a powerful divine and alchemical item. It's just that it's so old that only records of it exist in the sixth epoch."
Among the three's division of labor, Luvia was responsible for researching information, so she had learned about those famous items containing the power of the ancient god crawling darkness.
"Oh, was this what was stolen last night?"
Luvia understood that Xia De had found a clue.
"Yes, but only the hilt, which the royal family kept as an antique. Also, the price Darkness paid for using the Puppeteer's Script was borne by the demon."
"The demon definitely didn't tell the truth, otherwise how could it have run into Steel Right Hand and you last night?"
Luvia shook her head:
"Never trust a demon."
She continued her divination, and Xia De continued to listen to the sounds.
The second attempt heard the maid's complaints and the sound of mopping the floor. She was complaining about working hard but getting low wages. The third and fourth times, he heard the quiet sound of wind and a sound from the next room that made Xia De blush a little.
On the fifth attempt, Xia De finally heard Darkness's voice again. But this voice not only sounded like it was coming from an extremely distant place, but it was also accompanied by rustling background noise, making the speaking voice extremely blurry.
Even concentrating to listen, he could only barely hear parts of the content.
"What's going on?"
Outsider, someone is interfering with your listening. The other party is not targeting time power, but is using a Miracle that interferes with sound propagation at their own time point.
"Darkness 'talking to himself' definitely wouldn't use this method, so it can only be that I heard his conversation with someone else!"
Xia De was delighted. He moved his steps to make the sound clearer, and at this moment, Darkness happened to say something crucial:
"Mr. Hermons, are you sure you won't kill me, this traitor?"
It seems the conversation happened about an hour ago.
"Evan, you just took the wrong path. You are a very promising Ring Arcanist. I knew I could persuade you, which is why I came."
This voice was indeed that of Weeping Blood Hermons; his weak tone was very distinctive.
"Then what exactly do you want me to do? Do you know about the whispering chapters?"
"Of course I do. Now, Evan, I'm giving you a way to redeem your betrayal. Become the second Chosen One, and then come back to the New World with me. You should have heard that the organization found the entrance to the Creation Birthing Chamber. If you succeed, I can give you a chance to enter there."
"Are you talking about Golden Humans?"
Darkness's voice trembled, and Xia De also knew about "Golden Humans."
The Blood Spirit School believes that the current sixth epoch is the Bronze Age. In the distant past, human blood was golden. Humans of that Golden Age possessed greater power, and pursuing "Golden Humans" and purifying human blood is the most fundamental goal of the ancient transcendent organization, the Blood Spirit School.
Helping Mercury Blood back then was also because the school believed that Mercury Blood was a bridge from the Bronze Age to the Golden Age.
"We've only found the entrance; we haven't fully excavated its power. But you are different, Evan, you are the Chosen One."
Xia De heard the Thirteen Ring Sorcerer cough a few more times.
"After becoming a Chosen One, your Destiny Ring will turn pure gold, which is one of the characteristics of Golden Humans. After that, when you enter the Creation Birthing Chamber, I think you will be closer to the gate to Golden Blood than anyone else."
Xia De interpreted this sentence to mean that Weeping Blood Hermons also didn't know how to use the Creation Birthing Chamber, but he believed that a Chosen One entering such a space could receive special treatment.
"Evan, I don't have the patience to wait for you to think. Tell me the answer now, whether you agree to my request. If you agree, I will help you complete the Selected One Ritual. I have prepared a lot for this, and I have people outside the City. If you don't agree, I think you also know the school's punishment for traitors."
Although Hermons' tone remained calm, for a Thirteen Ring Sorcerer to say such words was a genuine threat.
And the fellow who coexisted with a demon was indeed very sensible:
"Sir, please forgive my betrayal. I am willing to become a Chosen One with your help, and then return to the school to help the school move towards the Golden Gate."
"Very good."
Hermons chuckled:
"Then tell me, how does your ritual need to be performed?"
Darkness was obviously hesitant, but for his life, this hesitation didn't last too long. He said very cautiously:
"The ritual requires me to devour Darkness. Sir, I need to enter the core area of the angel-level relic Darkness Domain."
"Good, I knew you didn't come to Tobesk at risk just because you went mad. Do you have any other relics on you, or do you need any extra preparations?"
"On the way to Tobesk, I experienced some battles. Now I only have the Murderer's Steel Needle. You know, it's a keeper-level relic. A single stab at an ordinary person can be fatal, and it can produce a very strong paralyzing effect on a Ring Arcanist. Even a Thirteen Ring Sorcerer would be paralyzed for at least half a second. The others are absolutely necessary."
This was a precious offensive relic, more expensive than all the relics Xia De had bought combined. But Darkness obviously didn't tell the truth; Xia De knew the fish training ring was definitely still in his possession.
"Then, Evan, you have five minutes to pack your belongings. I was able to find you, and the Orthodox Church will find you sooner or later. You are truly bold, living in a place like this."
Then came the sound of Darkness simply packing his things, and then the two leaving together.
"I have a result."
Only after the sounds around him completely quieted down did Xia De speak to Luvia again.
He briefly recounted what he had heard. The two most crucial points were Darkness's temporary reconciliation with the Blood Spirit School and their confirmed plan to head to the small town in the southeast of the City, which had been swallowed by Darkness and completely forgotten by Outsiders.
"This is bad now. Darkness already knows about Darkness and has obtained an artifact with ancient god power. Once he completes the ritual, it will probably be much harder to kill him than it is now. The Chosen One is protected by destiny."
Luvia dropped the amethyst pendant in her hand:
"My divination didn't yield as much real information as yours did in one go. But I can at least confirm that they are not heading directly to that Darkness. Even a Thirteen Ring Sorcerer wouldn't rashly break into a location-based out-of-control relic without preparation."
"So, the situation isn't so urgent that we need to chase them directly?"
Xia De confirmed, looking into Luvia's eyes.
"Yes."
The purple-eyed girl nodded, packed her divination tools, and looked very anxious:
"Next, we'll split up. I'll go to the black market to pass this information to the Church. Detective, you go find that witch and tell her this information too. It's best if the Church and the witch act immediately. Originally, I thought that perhaps Darkness wouldn't even live to reach the Darkness Domain, but now he has a helper..."
The female Diviner bit her lower lip.
Xia De knew what Luvia meant. Originally, the trio's plan never included dealing with a fully powerful Thirteen Ring Sorcerer.
