Chapter 659: 137. The True Being (6.5k)
The early autumn sea of Nali is incredibly beautiful. At this moment, when the heat of summer has not yet faded and the deep autumn has not yet arrived, it retains a vibrant warmth without the annoying heat, leaving only a refreshing coolness.
As Fisher and Elizabeth stepped down from the carriage, the tangible sea breeze felt like a cool touch against his cheek, provoking an urge to stretch.
But he couldn’t help but glance in a certain direction behind the carriage. In that direction, he had seen eyes and a mouth floating in mid-air before leaving Nali, but now they had mysteriously disappeared, like an illusion, leaving him both alert and puzzled.
“Let’s go, Fisher. I’ve already arranged for our residence in the palace below. Let’s go take a look.”
Elizabeth, who had come from behind, spoke to Fisher without acknowledging the servants handling their luggage.
The ailing Alicia and Emhart, cradled in her arms, were also brought down from the carriage, appearing as wilted as winter flowers.
The extent of the life chaos eroding her was getting deeper.
“Okay.”
The so-called palace stood a few hundred meters from the ocean, at the foot of a grove of verdant trees, built many generations ago by the Godlin king as a summer retreat. The Godlin family has a tradition of vacationing here every summer, but due to Elizabeth’s birthday approaching, she had been busy lately, leaving little time for rest.
Counting this year, it was her first visit to this place since her coronation.
Thinking about this, Fisher suddenly felt he embodied the image of a “demon queen” often depicted in traditional Nali tales.
In past stories, there is a pattern where diligent monarchs gradually become decadent and neglect state affairs upon the arrival of a peerless beauty, leading people to blame the woman’s seductive nature for the decline, transforming her into a devil.
Perhaps at this moment, Fisher, like them, could be wrongfully portrayed by uninformed outsiders as the “damned Benavides seducing the sovereign, causing a laxity in governance,” and then bound to a pillar of shame and mercilessly whipped.
Not only would this evil image emerge in Nali’s history books, but also in the New History of the Southern Continent’s Dragon Court and the New History of the Northern Continent’s Parasol Tree, all coincidentally depicting this calamity-bringing “demon queen,” leading to a writing style that became a prevalent trope over the following centuries.
But if that were the case, it might only be possible after the Apocalypse Prophecy was resolved, right?
At this time, both outside and inside the palace were bustling due to Elizabeth’s arrival. This royal courtyard, which had been on standby for years, was finally being tested for its effectiveness, with all staff becoming active. Servants lined up to welcome them, while Diane, who had already coordinated with this side, confirmed the next steps.
However, perhaps because it had not been operational for so long, it appeared somewhat chaotic to Fisher.
He did not continue to listen to Diane’s confirmation of the upcoming procedures; instead, he watched as the maids carried Alicia into the room. He turned to Elizabeth and softly said,
“I’ll check on Alicia; she seems a bit unwell.”
But before he could finish, Elizabeth grabbed his wrist and gently said,
“Then I’ll go with you.”
“It’s just to check her condition; aren’t you at ease with that?”
Elizabeth hesitated for a moment, then subtly pouted, still not letting go of his hand,
“Alright, I’ve prepared a surprise for you in the evening, so remember to come back quickly.”
Her adorable demeanor made Fisher’s heart flutter slightly. Looking at Elizabeth before him, as she awaited his response, he suddenly leaned down and kissed the corner of her lips, then watched as she touched her lips in surprise, her face flushing slightly.
Others could not see Fisher; they could only see Elizabeth. At the front, Diane, who was conversing with the head of the royal beach, noticed the queen behind her suddenly stop and touch her lips, prompting her to walk over with concern, asking,
“What’s wrong, Your Majesty? Is something amiss?”
Seeing Diane approach, Fisher prepared to leave. He squeezed Elizabeth’s hand, quickly following the servants carrying Alicia away, leaving Elizabeth standing there with a sigh.
But soon enough, she smiled fondly. That smile quickly faded, and she said expressionlessly to Diane,
“Nothing, please continue with the arrangements.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
Diane paused for a moment but seemed unable to smile, turning back to continue her tasks.
Alicia’s accommodation was in a secondary palace within the main palace, originally designed for hosting guests. While named a secondary palace, it was not far from the primary residence of Godlin. Standing on the second floor, one could see the ocean and the Godlin Palace a few hundred meters away.
Fisher silently followed two maids along the corridor of the secondary palace. At this moment, Alicia was squinting her eyes in discomfort, her small face flushed and seemingly in a half-dreaming state.
The carriage ride to this place lasted five or six hours; children were the least capable of enduring such travel. Bored, Alicia resorted to sleeping to pass the time.
Though she was more mature than her peers, she still succumbed to sleepiness, causing Emhart considerable fright, worried that she might turn into a monster in the carriage.
While she hadn’t shown any signs of chaotic transformation, she still had not awakened at this point and looked quite uncomfortable, compelling Fisher to check on her, coincidentally trying to resolve her artifact-related issue.
“Little girl, wake up, we’ve arrived.”
“Hmm.”
“She’s still asleep; let her rest well for now. We can come back to call her later.”
The two maids diligently brought Alicia into the prepared room, gently placing her on the bed and covering her with a blanket. After noticing she didn’t respond to their calls, they turned to leave for the next room.
Once the maids slowly exited the room, Emhart, who had been playing dead, finally floated up, letting out a sigh and muttering,
“Finally able to move. I’ve been almost overwhelmed by her ghostly aura. You’re really causing trouble, Fisher; you get to be carefree beside Elizabeth while I’m constantly on edge. This isn’t fair!”
“I’m here to solve that problem, aren’t I?”
“Solve? Wait, you can use your powers now?”
Just as Emhart was about to complain, he sensed something transparent writhing on Fisher’s body, along with that sealed rank beginning to surge until it gradually transformed back into its original appearance.
But he quickly realized that in this unfamiliar state, the hidden blessing was becoming very unstable, as evidenced by the continuously writhing and trembling transparent tendrils from Fisher’s body.
This forced Fisher to restrain himself to stabilize the tendrils.
“Yeah, your hard times are nearing an end, you should thank me.”
“Thanks to your mother! Isn’t it because of you that I’m suffering? Oh, now that I’m not suffering, am I supposed to be grateful to you?”
Emhart grunted, standing atop the still-drowsy little Alicia, but despite his sharp tongue, he secretly hoped Fisher would quickly address her troublesome condition.
“Enough of that, hurry up and act; otherwise, this little ghost might perish in her dreams.”
“Okay, don’t rush.”
Fisher squatted by her bedside, gently pressing his hand against Alicia’s hot forehead. As he sensed the presence of the “artifact,” the hidden life chaos within him became restlessly agitated.
“Big Brother.”
“Alicia, don’t be scared; I’ll help you.”
“Mmm, thank… ah.”
She seemed to want to say something, but soon she struggled to breathe, her body starting to tremble uncontrollably.
Fisher’s expression stiffened slightly, but he had already formulated a plan to address this issue before coming here.
He squatted at her bedside, reaching out his hand towards Alicia, and the tendrils coiling around his arm gradually transformed from transparent to golden, while the golden glint appeared in his eyes.
Before coming, he had unlocked another aspect of Azanros’ authority: 【Collection】.
This power could replicate the abilities of other authorities and creations, but it required points for researching sub-humans.
According to the Supplement Handbook for Sub-Humans, it required paired research, similar to the prior studies of Raphael and Jasmine, and could not be repeated.
Ha, this is remarkable; she doesn’t even know how to approach it. Thinking carefully, the only plausible way would be to extract the currently sealed Eil. Eil is quite open-minded, and then select another pairing.
Hmm, come to think of it, this does seem a bit indecent.
Fortunately, when unlocking this ability, the Supplement Handbook for Sub-Humans granted Fisher a point, which means he could use this power to replicate something.
He was unsure how to alter the artifact but believed it might be documented in the third part of the Life Completion Manual, making the subsequent actions clear.
He needed to copy the nature of the artifact onto himself and then unlock the contents of the third part of the Life Completion Manual so that he could depend on that to change Alicia’s nature and free her from the shackles of chaos.
Thus, Fisher gently placed the golden tendrils on Alicia’s forehead and softly pronounced the deity’s name,
“Azanros, please.”
“Gigi.”
Wrapped in countless illusory suction cups that emitted dazzling golden light, a certain nature within Alicia’s body was quickly grasped by the tendrils, transmitted back into Fisher’s body.
At the moment the nature was transmitted back, Fisher’s entire body trembled slightly, and he quickly realized that his body was starting to change.
It worked!
He was really transitioning into what’s referred to as an “artifact”!
What a rewarding endeavor.
“Wait, Fe… Fisher! What’s wrong with you!?”
“What’s…”
Fisher felt completely at ease but, at the same time, Emhart beside him suddenly let out a sharp cry, obviously startled.
This made the perplexed Fisher extend his hand, only to find that his hand had unexpectedly become half transparent, and it wasn’t even human but had a somewhat tendril-like phantom form.
No, what is this thing?!
Could it be a failure?
“Look for yourself! Look at you! Why have you turned into a Chaos Race?! Your appearance, oh my god!”
Chaos Race?
Fisher was extremely frightened but quickly tried to get up to find a mirror to see his appearance. As he did, he floated into the air, as light as a disembodied soul, instantly reminding him of Renee’s ethereal state.
He disbelievingly flew to the bathroom, turned on the bathing light, and looked into the mirror, only to be stunned.
What he saw was a phantom figure resembling himself but without facial features; the figure resembled a coffin-like shape with a peculiar black vortex at the position of the brain, while its limbs were random tendrils, making him instantly think of the “Pisces” he had seen in star magic.
As he transformed into this shape, all the items on him slid off, including his clothes, Fluid Sword, and the other manuals. Only the Supplement Handbook for Sub-Humans remained affixed to his heart, as if it were a band-aid connecting to his phantom skin.
“Fisher, speak! Why have you turned out like this? Was it a failure? Or…”
“No, I seem to… have not failed.”
Fisher stared blankly at the mirror, a disbelieving thought suddenly forming in his mind.
He attempted to activate the power of the Life Completion Manual, and in the next moment, he gradually transformed back to the human appearance he was familiar with, even better than before, more radiant.
“You changed back! That’s wonderful! What just happened?”
“No, Emhart.”
Fisher opened his mouth, touched his face, feeling increasingly incredulous, and turned to Emhart beside him, murmuring,
“I seem not to have just ‘changed back’ now, but rather, just previously, I truly ‘changed back.’”
“What do you mean?”
At this moment, Fisher’s mind was also swirling, but he quickly realized what was happening. It was just too hard to believe, making it difficult for him to accept.
He had indeed succeeded; he had copied the nature of the artifact from Alicia onto himself.
Do you remember the nature of the so-called “artifact”?
That is, no matter what, “chaotic transformation,” his essence would not change.
In other words, when Fisher entered the “artifact” state, he would revert to his essence state, which means that no matter how Alicia was affected by the chaos at night, her essence remained human.
When Fisher acquired the nature of the artifact, he also returned to his essence state, meaning that thereafter, regardless of how he used the Life Completion Manual, he would not deviate from his essence.
And his essence had always been a chaotic being under “chaotic transformation.” It was only when he unlocked the “artifact” nature that he reverted to his original form.
He swallowed hard but attempted to reason through it.
“You must have seen that, when we went to Nali, we visited the residence of a Trans. That Trans should, in a true sense, be akin to my… mother. I couldn’t see my past life due to the chaos of the soul, which implies that from the beginning, I was not a normally birthed life but was created by her using various mimicking chaotic authorities.”
Fisher stretched out his hand, looking at his palm, and continued,
“Thus, since my birth, I have unconsciously been maintained in human form by her copied 【chaotic transformation】 authority; it’s even possible that my soul, my everything, was formed by the authority she replicated. But I still haven’t figured out why my essence is identical to the Chaos Race.”
Emhart opened his mouth but quickly regained composure, methodically analyzing,
“In other words, you were never human after all. No wonder you don’t like doing human things.”
Fisher shot him a glance, already contemplating how to tear the cover off his book from which angle. Emhart, frightened, quickly added,
“…However, I do have some thoughts on why you exhibit traits of a Chaos Race. The so-called Chaos Race is, in fact, born from powerful souls in the Spirit Realm’s Sea of Souls, which means that their unique qualities are closely related to the Sea of Souls. You mentioned that you have no past life, but your soul could have been generated by that Trans through chaotic authority. So could it be that there’s something else within you that originates from the Sea of Souls?”
“Something from the Sea of Souls…”
“Exactly. Look at those Chaos Races; they often have the characteristics of yin and yang inversion. If that’s the case, shouldn’t you be small and soft like the Sardinians? You don’t exhibit such traits, so there must be something infused with the Sea of Souls in you.”
“…Let’s put that aside for now; I’ll deal with Alicia’s situation first.”
“Right, that little ghost is probably not doing well.”
He contemplated for a long time without finding a clue, ultimately deciding to put on his clothes first and then inquire about Azanros’ manifestation later.
As he slowly dressed himself and gathered the scattered items on the ground, he returned to Alicia’s side once more.
He took out the Life Completion Manual and, unsurprisingly, after gaining the nature of the artifact, the previously locked third part of the content opened to him.
The story of the climber continued along with the verses. After the original climber’s death, of course, other eager climbers tried to challenge the third mountain but returned empty-handed before the angel guarding the entrance, who demanded the artifact.
Until one day, a climber, bearing a treasure, appeared before the angel. He presented the treasure with both hands and said to the angel,
“I have here a treasure that, regardless of the passage of time or the alteration of mountains and rivers, will retain its original appearance; whether day or night, it will emit an unmistakable radiance; regardless of gender or age, it will appear the same to all; no matter how it is rubbed and beaten, its weight on the scale will remain unchanged. Noble angel, I wonder if such a gift could be deemed this world’s most precious artifact?”
The angel was perplexed and took the treasure, saying to the climber,
“Such a thing exists? Good, let me present it to God, who will determine the value of this treasure.”
Thus, the angel took flight, returning after seven days, expressing astonishment to the climber,
“For a hungry person, the value of a meal is greater than that of splendid jewels; for the supreme who possesses the world, the value of an artifact forged with the might of the world is likely far greater than any meal.
“The value of worldly things varies, and for an ant, an angel, or even an omniscient God, what is ‘precious’ cannot be seen uniformly. However, your gift allows an ant, a pauper, a king, an angel, and that God to see equal value; therefore, this is undoubtedly an 【artifact】.”
Thus, the angel nodded with delight, opened the great door behind him, revealing the appearance of the third mountain.
It was a mountain higher than the firmament, filled with formless beings existing naturally, living eternally as angels. Their existence bore no fixed meaning but endlessly operated in accordance with the laws of nature and instinct.
Everywhere on the mountain, dazzling gold abounded, yet no greedy angels ventured to collect it; they could only use it to manage it, as it bore no distinction from using scrap metal.
Everything here felt dreamlike; the transformations of matter and the desires became ethereal and shapeless. Only that towering mountain, only that apex piercing the clouds continued to captivate the climbers looking upward.
The angel gave a slight smile, returned the offered artifact to the climber, and said,
“Now, please continue your journey of authenticity, climber.”
Under the hidden blessing, Fisher read the contents of the Life Completion Manual earnestly, unaware that outside the room, a single eye and mouth abruptly floating in the sky gazed intently at Alicia on the bed.
Meanwhile, outside in the corridor, two maids awaiting orders wanted to check if Alicia in the adjacent room had awakened, but just as they stepped outside, they suddenly noticed several large men dressed in the religious garments of the eastern side of the Western Continent standing in the corridor.
They were armed and gloatingly stared at the Godlin palace outside the window.
That was the residence of the Nali Empress.
“Cotr, that tyrant has settled in.”
“Good, we…”
Their words were interrupted by the maids, who had just opened the door. The maids froze slightly, and just as they were about to speak, they caught sight of the weapons in the men’s hands and their eastern attires, quickly realizing they were assassins.
The defense here was so tight, especially when the empress was out; they had long conducted internal and external lockdowns, not to mention the mechanisms and magical protectors. How did they manage to get in?
“You… ummm!!”
Before the maid could finish, she was silenced by a large man who pressed his hand over her mouth, shoving them back into the room, quickly silencing their struggles and protests.
At this moment, all across the royal beach, countless illusory ropes of fate twisted continuously, while in the hidden corners of various buildings, armed easterners passed through those ethereal destiny threads, ready to lie in wait.
“Buzzing…”
Everything was quietly converging, while the eye and mouth floating in mid-air, fixated on Alicia in the room, remained motionless, merely opening to emit more ethereal ropes, cloaking the entire beach.
(There will be another update tonight)
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(End of chapter)
