Chapter 285
"Saint of Divine Retribution" Eleanor, "Sound of Illusion" Qiangyin.
Both were at the fourth tier...
Eleanor was from the Tribunal, likely a continuation of the "Avenger" path.
As for Qiangyin, who was part of the Royal Symphony, his path was probably the royal monopoly of the "Performer."
However, when it was mentioned that Qiangyin was suitable for handling large-scale riots and chaotic events, it immediately piqued Shaer’s interest.
The "Saint of Divine Retribution" Eleanor was manageable; being from the church, there might be an opportunity to persuade her to become an ally.
But this "Sound of Illusion" Qiangyin was clearly someone who could disrupt Shaer’s plans.
Especially since it was likely he was the one who sent the Anworm back to the Otherworld... This was the first time Shaer had seen someone other than himself capable of resisting the Otherworld, so he needed to gather more information about him.
To know oneself and know the enemy is the key to victory in a hundred battles.
Since Tara mentioned she didn’t know much about Qiangyin, Shaer waited a moment before rephrasing his question, "What do you know about the 'Sound of Illusion'?"
"The records from the Holy Ascendancy regarding the 'Sound of Illusion' during the Holy Era are quite sparse... but there are detailed accounts of the 'Sound of Illusion' from the Ancient Era."
"The Ancient Era was the era of the Holy Wars, and in almost all records concerning the Ancient Ansu War, the 'Sound of Illusion' is present. Their magical sound can inspire our soldiers and extraordinary beings to fight fearlessly, unleashing tremendous potential, while simultaneously weakening and exhausting the enemy mentally."
"In Ancient Ansu, there was a nickname for the 'Sound of Illusion': 'The Strongest Sound on the Battlefield.' Qiangyin's name likely derives from this title."
"They excel in large-scale, long-range attacks, amplifying allies and dispelling negative mental states. However, once they are in close quarters, the 'Sound of Illusion' is merely a stationary punching bag."
"To be honest... our Holy Ascendancy has almost no means to deal with the 'Sound of Illusion.' Unless we can bring them into the range of shadow control, as for the weak-minded 'Crown Guardians,' they are even less capable of closing in; they can only serve as punching bags."
"However, 'Sound of Illusion' has become exceedingly rare in the Holy Era, and compared to other paths of mental attack extraordinary beings, the talent requirements for 'Sound of Illusion' are much higher, making their existence even scarcer, which basically won’t affect our church's operations."
Tara shared everything she knew about the "Sound of Illusion." Although she had little interest in the study of the extraordinary, this entity that shone brightly during the Holy Wars left a deep impression on her.
At this moment, Shaer fell into contemplation after hearing Tara's description.
Large-scale attacks, amplifications, and dispelling... it certainly sounded like a tricky existence.
Not only could it counter extraordinary beings like the "Crown Guardians," who had no means of breaching defenses, but it could also significantly impact the "Instigator" path.
If an "Instigator" painstakingly planned a riot, and the "Sound of Illusion" showed up with a lullaby, the "Instigator's" plan would likely go up in smoke.
But fortunately, the existence of the "Sound of Illusion" was exceedingly rare...
I wonder if the "Sound of Illusion" can amplify instigation effects... I really want to catch one to experiment.
After listening to Tara's description of the "Sound of Illusion," Shaer was no longer surprised that Qiangyin could drive the Anworm back to the Otherworld.
After so many rounds of summoning, Shaer had gradually grasped a pattern.
That is, overly powerful beings from the Otherworld cannot directly descend into reality.
For instance, when summoning a divine servant before, it manifested as a swirl of starlight, possessing Jidi, which then formed a visible monstrous form.
According to Amy's previous description, in her eyes, the divine servant's image was merely a white shadow... Based on the shadow abilities of the "Ascetic," Shaer couldn't help but suspect that the divine servant sealed on Amy's back was just a shadow.
As for the Anworm's arrival, Shaer had run away too quickly to see the specific process of its descent, but the church left behind a relatively intact headless corpse of a key person... Perhaps the Anworm gained the ability to act in reality through the remains of the headless person.
Just a third-tier corpse, the power it could exert and contain was likely very limited.
If Shaer could see the Anworm up close, it would confirm her suspicion that, to maintain its consumption, the Anworm dragged along a large mass of debris and corpses to replenish its strength, unable to fully absorb these remains.
Next, Shaer asked several questions about Ansu, but Tara, like a student caught off guard by an unexpected question, stumbled through her answers, using a lot of vague terms like "possibly" and "maybe."
Having spent most of her life in the monastery, deeply engrossed in theological studies and pondering how to topple the Church of the Savior Goddess from a theological perspective, Tara's understanding of Ansu was likely... no, absolutely less than what Avelina knew.
After all, Avelina was a true native of Ansu, and her pure Ansu noble accent could attest to that.
As for matters concerning Ansu, Shaer decided to wait until they returned to reality to discuss them with Avelina.
With some time left, Shaer thought for a moment and decided not to continue questioning the now-sweaty Tara. Instead, he asked her for a pen and a blank notebook, and began writing in Chinese.
["The 'Instigator' path is really useful; I’ll definitely use the 'Instigator' again next time."]
["Remember, this time save it to No.1; all subsequent paths of the 'Instigator' must be in No.1!"]
["The strength of No.1 is evident; its performance can be checked online. Whether in simulations or after entering simulations, it can excellently complete tasks, leaving a deep impression."]
["Using the 'Instigator' path to complete the replication rituals of other paths can quickly fulfill the requirement of gathering 16 paths, and the destined points will surely pile up..."]
Shaer began to enthusiastically praise the "Instigator" path in the notebook.
Such things cannot just stay in the mind!
They must all be written down! Then, using his photographic memory, he would firmly and permanently engrave them in his mind!!!
At this moment, Tara, relieved after Shaer stopped his relentless questioning, watched him write rapidly in those incomprehensible square characters, and a sense of admiration welled up in her heart.
The all-knowing and omnipotent Mother Goddess must be recording an incredibly grand plan right now...
The true angel has descended upon Ansu! It’s just around the corner!
But now, she had no followers left to use... She needed to find an opportunity to return to the Holy Ascendancy and request a batch of helpers...
With a glorious track record of assisting in summoning the Anworm, she could probably gain quite a bit of support.
The true era of the Great Holy Ascendancy! It is coming!
[Countdown - 00:00:13]
[Countdown - 00:00:12]
Shaer put down the pen, looking at the nearly half-empty bottle of ink and the notebook that was almost filled to the brim, releasing his somewhat exhausted hand and wiping the sweat with the back of his hand.
Phew...
I might never forget the "Instigator" path for the rest of my life.
As the countdown slowly ticked down to an end, a blinding silver light enveloped Shaer.
When she opened her eyes again, she found herself in a silver space.
All desires related to instigation, the fervor for creating chaos, and the seemingly ever-excited state of mind vanished without a trace, as calmness and rationality returned to her mental world.
"How terrifying..."
Shaer frowned slightly.
In the simulation, she had never felt influenced by the potions in the slightest; everything was merely her self-awareness controlling her body to act, and all her thoughts were her own will.
And she had no doubts about any of this.
Until she returned to this silver space, where all her potion influences and negative states reverted to their original state, the now-calm Shaer realized just how deeply the potions had affected her.
This feeling of seemingly merging with the potions... filled Shaer with a hint of fear.
It was as if she was still herself, yet somehow not quite herself...
Shaer hesitated, wondering whether to save the "Subverter" to a new No.7.
But after a long while, she shook her head.
She was swayed by one of the reasons given by her former self.
The current "Subverter" had a higher level of digestion and progress than the "Instigator" in the No.1 save file; she had no reason not to overwrite the "Instigator" save and keep the "Subverter" in No.1.
Creating a separate save would only risk contaminating the original first-tier "Instigator" save, polluting the "Time Distortion" pool and lowering her combat effectiveness.
Shaer would never do something that would cripple herself.
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