Chapter 537
A few weeks ago, Xia Er might have chosen to avoid conflict altogether, but her mindset had gradually shifted.
Since the system indicated that she would inevitably be exposed to the gaze of certain entities, she had to prepare herself, no longer approaching problems with her old mentality.
She needed to transform the "cards" in her hand into tangible support, enabling her to better confront potential enemies in the future.
To ensure that outsiders couldn't harm her at will, the first step was to solidify her own internal environment.
The Church of the Savior Goddess, the Order of the God of Order, the Redemption Society, the Russell family, the Dedton Group... these factions were all intricately connected to Xia Er. Except for the Redemption Society and the Dedton Group, the other factions could form a strong bond with her.
Now, Xia Er had a solid plan in mind.
She aimed to facilitate the merger of the Church of the Savior Goddess and the Holy Ascendancy, but first, she needed to secure the support of the Order of the God of Order, preventing them from perceiving the merger as a threat.
The Russell family and the Order of the God of Order had no extreme conflicts with the members of the Joy Society entrenched in Bei An Su, but the Church of the Savior Goddess harbored a deep-seated hatred for the Joy Society members there.
This was because Bei An Su was the stronghold of the Church of the Savior Goddess, where the populace predominantly followed their faith. The longer the Joy Society continued their antics, the more anxious the Church of the Savior Goddess became.
The merger of the churches would provide the Church of the Savior Goddess with a sword, allowing them to cast aside their worries and focus on dealing with the Joy Society in Bei An Su.
By shifting the main conflict of the Joy Society from the repeal of the Corn Laws to the Church of the Savior Goddess, they could confuse the Joy Society's focus and buy Xia Er some time.
And with that time...
Xia Er would accelerate her collection of all pathways.
Ultimately, the Joy Society's goal was merely to achieve "uniqueness."
This was a matter of a higher order, and Xia Er's understanding of "uniqueness" was still quite limited.
During the time she gained from the Church of the Savior Goddess, Xia Er would do her utmost to activate the Old Simulation as quickly as possible.
She intended to actively engage with the hidden, profound secrets of the extraordinary.
Why had Xia Er never witnessed the so-called Ascendants? Why were there beings in the Otherworld far beyond the fourth tier? Why was the Otherworld so powerful yet did not directly invade reality?
Why did the system claim she could create pathways in the Old Days? Why did it say that the Old Simulation could alter reality?
Only by activating the Old Days could Xia Er clear the fog ahead and uncover deeper truths, answering these questions...
Perhaps once she unraveled these mysteries, the Joy Society in Bei An Su would no longer seem such a significant threat?
This time, Xia Er would actively embrace the mysterious.
"By the way, Aivina, there are some things you might find useful. Just a moment..."
Xia Er recalled something and walked over to her desk, sitting down to pull out a brand-new notebook, beginning to write.
"What is it?" Aivina seemed curious as she approached Xia Er from behind, resting her hands on her shoulders to see what she was writing.
But when she caught sight of what Xia Er was actually writing, Aivina's pupils slightly contracted.
Third-tier "Soulwalker"... Fourth-tier "Nightmare"...
This was...
The replication ritual and potion formula for the "Listener" pathway?!
Where had Xia Er obtained this information?
Back at the Dedton Manor, Aivina had inquired extensively about these subsequent pathway rituals and formulas, but the Dedton Manor had no records of such high-tier pathways.
Before Aivina returned to the Russell estate, Charles had also been searching for information on the "Listener," but after consulting numerous extraordinary beings, the consensus was that it was best to switch to "Subverter" directly at the third tier...
So when Aivina asked Charles if there was a second-tier "Psychologist" pathway upon her return, he had replied that he was still searching, without mentioning the switch.
Regardless, the Russell family, with its detective roots, stood firmly on the side of order, and nearly half of its members followed the Order of the God of Order. The "Subverter" pathway was entirely opposed to order...
If Aivina truly intended to complete the replication ritual for the "Subverter," and if this were to be discovered by the family, it would undoubtedly cause a rift within.
The daughter of the leading patriarch betraying order to embrace chaos? No one would dare remain loyal to such a family.
But now, Xia Er had laid the replication ritual and potion formula for this pathway right before her, leaving Aivina feeling as if she were dreaming.
The surprise was overwhelming...
Aivina looked down at Xia Er, who was still writing, feeling a bittersweet pang in her heart.
Originally... finding potions had been something Xia Er had always asked her to help with since they met...
Somewhere along the line, Xia Er had become capable of gathering even higher-tier potion formulas that Aivina herself couldn't obtain...
This feeling left Aivina with a sense of emptiness.
What more could she do to help Xia Er?
With the presence of Lucy Xilufa, Xia Er wouldn't even lack for money now... If this continued, it would seem as if Xia Er was the only one giving...
Aivina didn't like that feeling.
Taking a deep breath, Aivina realized that dwelling on this was pointless... Since Xia Er had already pointed her toward a path, she would follow it and strive to become strong enough to assist Xia Er.
Aivina watched as Xia Er continued to write, quickly falling into thought.
Once Xia Er finished and turned to Aivina, sensing her contemplation, she chose not to interrupt, patiently waiting for Aivina to gather her thoughts.
After a few minutes, Aivina finally spoke up.
"I don't quite understand..." Aivina's gaze shifted from the notebook to Xia Er.
"What's wrong?" Xia Er asked.
"While the 'Listener's' abilities do have some connection to dreams, they fundamentally modify the mind and subconscious through different methods."
Aivina pointed to the "Nightmare" pathway and continued, "The replication ritual and materials for this third-tier 'Soulwalker' resonate with the previous ones, and the formula and ritual are quite reasonable... but the fourth-tier 'Nightmare,' without discussing the replication ritual and materials, doesn't even align with the name 'Listener.'"
Listening to Aivina's explanation, Xia Er pondered for a moment before responding, "Are you suggesting that this seems more like a continuation of the 'Subverter'?"
"Instigator," "Dream Thief," "Subverter," "Nightmare"... there seemed to be no sense of dissonance.
"Exactly." Aivina nodded, her brow furrowed in confusion. "Is this really the fourth-tier pathway for the 'Listener'? Where did you get this information?"
Aivina's question prompted Xia Er to seriously consider the matter.
Previously, Xia Er had deduced from the words of the Pure White Knight that the third tier of "Detective" might not necessarily be "Crown Sentinel"... All the extraordinary beings on this pathway had gone astray... but why had this path still led somewhere? And why did it veer back at the fourth tier "Eye of Judgment"?
Clearly, "Detective" could only interchange with the "Assassin" pathway... and a noble pathway like "Crown Sentinel" could not possibly be the third tier of the "Assassin."
The information on the "Listener" was already scarce; was it possible that Imogen had provided an incorrect pathway... or rather, what she believed to be the correct pathway...
At least from the current perspective, it seemed there were not just two pathways that could interchange... perhaps there were more, undiscovered, lost pathways that had been incorrectly applied to these transmitted but incomplete pathways, resulting in a patchwork.
Why had the patched pathways succeeded?
Because those who failed had perished; only the successful had survived and passed down their methods.
"The 'Nightmare' definitely needs further investigation..." Xia Er shook her head and asked, "But the 'Soulwalker' should be correct, right?"
"Yes, several materials overlap with both the 'Listener' and 'Psychologist,' and the replication ritual is merely an upgraded variant of the previous two pathways, so it should be accurate." Aivina nodded.
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