## Chapter 101: The Grey Heavenly Envoy’s Creation
The “Shadow Cloak” card possesses four powerful effects: repelling, dispelling negative status, invisibility, and blinding.
Seal, freeze, burn, bind, and petrify are the five most common restrictive negative statuses originating from the light, water, fire, wind, and earth attributes, respectively.
—Among these, the Law Master’s “Capture,” “Shackles,” and other Law Spells fall under [Bind], while “Silence” and “Stillness” belong to [Seal].
This card cannot dispel negative statuses originating from dark attribute mana, such as [Curse], because shadows cannot disperse darkness. This is its greatest drawback.
Even so, it is the most effective Phantom Card in the “Moon” slot. Many high-tier Phantom Card creations may not be as useful as this one.
The “Moon” slot is generally quite flexible. most Phantom Cards created for it tend to focus on secondary areas like de-control, invisibility, detection, precognition, berserk, and illusions.
In this slot, the Shadow Demon’s “Shadow Cloak” is undoubtedly the most versatile card—unless the BOSS has a special mechanism or their equipment is Shadow Demon-specialized requiring the Shadow Cell to be equipped, the Sin Scholar defaults to using this card.
Essentially, the Shadow Cloak is effective in any situation.
In most cases, players are more troubled by the dilemma of “Should I use the Shadow Cloak now or save it for later?” rather than thinking “This card is useless.” Due to its high tactical value, misjudging the timing can lead to dire consequences.
However, in the current environment, Eivass doesn’t believe he will encounter overly potent control. His primary enemies are the Noble Red Society, who are mainly composed of Transcendent Paths. The dark attribute curse, which “Shadow Cloak” cannot dispel.
Its greatest significance lies in its invisibility, followed by the subsequent blinding curse.
The most common invisibility ability comes from Path Adaptation. As everyone knows, cards from Path Adaptation do not carry curses—this means those attempting to find Eivass will be completely unprepared for the blinding curse that follows the invisibility.
Invisibility has a duration, but the curse does not. Without dispelling the curse or purification, it is permanent. Even if the curse is dispelled, it still requires time… enough time for Eivass or Lily to launch a sneak attack.
This World is relatively peaceful at the moment; Extraordinary individuals generally lack the resolve for mandatory combat, and Extraordinary Power is more akin to a simple pursuit.
Unlike players, who are equipped with a full set of de-control skills for every situation and roam the streets… most Extraordinary beings in this World lack such “preparedness” in their tactical disposition.
Their countermeasures are usually directed only at the most common enemies within their immediate vicinity—for instance, in Avalon, because the Twilight Path is extremely rare, almost no one prepares countermeasures against petrification. Many Extraordinary beings, even at the Third or Fourth Tier, are unaware of the Twilight Path’s characteristics of necromancy and petrification. The Path of Love is even rarer, so rare that the “Steel Mind” potions cannot be bought anywhere in the Royal Capital’s Glass Island—Charm, Fear, Berserk, Slumber, and Madness all fall within the Path of Love’s domain.
Due to the characteristics of the Path of Love, the statuses inflicted by it are not considered negative statuses. Even the Illuminate Spell from the Path of Devotion cannot dispel them. Without specific countermeasures, they are extremely difficult to resist.
What surprised Eivass was that after he tidied his room and even went out for breakfast… Lily still hadn’t come to greet him.
—Could something have happened to her? Did she fall into a coma from a burst of inspiration while reading a Grimoire?
Eivass was somewhat worried and immediately pushed his wheelchair to find her.
“Lily, are you alright? Lily…”
He was startled as soon as he opened Lily’s door—her room was filled with dense, grey spiderwebs.
But those spiderwebs seemed like an illusion… as Eivass focused, they vanished in the blink of an eye.
“Young Master.”
Lily’s voice, now weak and weary, sounded softly, like someone waking up from a serious illness: “Do you require me to serve you a bath… Did I oversleep? I’m sorry…”
It was then that Eivass noticed Lily standing quietly by the wall, wearing the glasses Eivass had given her.
It was as if she had been standing there from the very beginning, but he hadn’t noticed her presence at first.
It was the “Command: Untouchable” Authority Path Spell, coupled with [Observer in the Shadows], that made Eivass fail to notice her existence.
—Undoubtedly, she has successfully embarked on the Path Adaptation.
She drifted over, her footsteps completely silent… like a moth or a spider.
“I’m just here to check if your situation is going smoothly and if you need my assistance.”
Eivass gently closed the door.
He glanced over and spotted the grey Grimoire lying quietly beside the pillow.
It had already imparted its stored knowledge to its reader, and at this moment, it had temporarily lost its mystical properties, appearing no different from an ordinary book.
“What is its name?”
Eivass asked. It was as if he wasn’t asking about a book, but a pet.
“The Spider Silk Grimoire,” Lily explained.
She briefly relayed the secrets contained within the book to Eivass—it held a special inheritance.
Unlike the Shepherd’s Secret Manual, it did not store lost legacies but was more akin to a method for using “summoned creatures,” or rather,異種 weapons.
—Specifically, it was about “Spider Silk.”
“【Spider Silk】 is a special life form created by the Grey Heavenly Envoy. Its essence is a collective of Phantom Demons—not an individual, but a ‘collective.’ It has no physical form or material entity; its vessel is ‘lies.’ It did not sign a contract with me but completed a ‘symbiosis’… This is also a unique form of existence within the Path Adaptation.”
“…Lies?”
Eivass didn’t have any trouble understanding the concept of symbiosis.
He simply murmured softly, deep in thought: “As expected of a creation of the Grey Heavenly Envoy…”
The Grey Heavenly Envoy was one of the nine Heavenly Envoys during the first descent. His domain was “lies”—things that were neither black nor white, words that were neither evil nor good.
Lily also shared the most important secret of the Spider Silk Grimoire with Eivass without reservation.
“The hair of a snake, the step of a cat, the cage of a moth, the noose of a centipede…”
Eivass recited this metaphor, guessing its meaning: “Snakes have no hair, cats have no specific steps, moths don’t have cages, and centipedes cannot be noosed—this represents four nonexistent things. In reality, this should refer to the Disciples of the Lord of Scales and Feathers, and the Lord of Scales and Feathers’ eight domains besides deceit.”
“Akropolis, the most powerful disciple of the Lord of Scales and Feathers, has the metaphor of a snake. In Path Adaptation, the snake simultaneously represents poison and medicine.”
“Cats represent disguise and hunting; ‘Hunters’ of Path Adaptation worship cats; moths symbolize disappearance and change, and are the emblem pursued by impersonators and assassins. Centipedes can adapt to various environments, evade dangers, and burrow into various holes, thus symbolizing precognition and refuge.”
“Furthermore, the Lord of Scales and Feathers’ domain also includes deceit. This domain is very close to the Grey Heavenly Envoy’s lies, which is likely why the Grey Heavenly Envoy harbors hostility towards the Lord of Scales and Feathers…”
Of course, it might not be hostility.
—Perhaps the Grey Heavenly Envoy was thinking, “Boss, don’t you feel like you’re missing a Disciple? I’d be a perfect fit.” That would be quite adaptable.
Eivass added in his mind.
The Spider Silk Grimoire narrates sixty-seven secrets about “Spider Silk,” a very complete inheritance. It includes four Mystical Arts: [Weave Lies], [Spider Silk Perception], [Spider Silk Stealth], and [Thread Control], which are sufficient to form a profession… However, this inheritance predated the emergence of professions, which is why Lily did not obtain her own Extraordinary Profession.
Conversely, she could be considered the founder of this profession. It could be called “Silk Walker” or “Silk Messenger,” or something similar… whatever she prefers.
Currently, after just one night, Lily has mastered three of these abilities.
One is to erase her footsteps, which is “Spider Silk Stealth”; another is to sense “flying insects” that enter her capture range by spreading spiderwebs. She can also manifest a tough, sharp thread as a weapon.
This is the manifestation of Lily’s “Spider Silk” itself, composed of Lily’s lies.
The more solid the lies used to weave the silk, the tougher it becomes; the sharper the lies used to weave the silk, the sharper it becomes… It cannot be poisoned or enchanted, but it also won’t harm oneself and will not be depleted; it can be dissipated at any time.
She is still contemplating how to develop this ability.
When Eivass entered earlier, the dense spiderwebs he saw were not an illusion. It was Lily continuously creating silk as she researched her newly acquired ability. By the time Eivass entered, she had just figured out how to use the silk. With a single thought, the spiderwebs covering the entire room vanished instantly, like an illusion.
She is unlikely to become an assassin. Fortunately, she still possesses stealth abilities… so the rare equipment Eivass had prepared for her can still be useful.
Thus, Eivass gave Lily the [Stealthy Observer in the Shadows] as a celebration of her successful entry into the extraordinary world.
Lily had seen this waist guard before—when she helped Eivass tidy up the personal belongings left by those assassin ladies in his room, she noticed it and even cleaned it specially under Eivass’s instructions.
But she never expected it to be the gift Eivass had mentioned intending to give her…
Still, Lily accepted it solemnly and put it on immediately. After all, Eivass had specifically emphasized its extreme value. Upon wearing it, she immediately sensed that her “Spider Silk Stealth” ability had become smoother.
Eivass’s wheelchair’s automatic driving was once just a jest.
But now, if Lily pushes his wheelchair from behind, it’s truly difficult to notice someone behind Eivass. If Lily doesn’t speak, ordinary people wouldn’t notice her existence at all.
With Lily’s protection, Eivass will no longer need to wear the asbestos collar when going out to the Lloyd District. Even if someone prepares to sneak attack Eivass, Lily can sense the danger immediately—equivalent to an external hostility alarm and a mobile-looking eye in stealth mode.
This looking eye is quite capable!
And likely much more capable than an unequipped Eivass… With two core purple-tier equipment for her profession, Lily’s fully analyzed sneak attack might even pose a direct threat to Haina. And her perception range is far more reliable than Haina’s.
The personal maid has now become a personal bodyguard. When Eivass wants to go out, he no longer needs to drag someone along with him.
Furthermore, taking Lily out has its advantages—if he encounters danger, he can utilize the Shadow Demon. This is something he cannot do when going out with Sherlock or Haina.
Because Lily knows about the Shadow Demon’s existence and will keep it a secret for Eivass. As long as Eivass can clean up the evidence.
Even if not as a maid or bodyguard, she is undoubtedly a reliable teammate.
With Lily’s talent, she might even catch up to his first Advancement Ritual…
Therefore, this time, Eivass did not call Haina for protection but went out directly with Lily.
They followed the address provided by the elven old butler towards Bishop Mathers’ residence. That is, “Madam Mina’s Divination Shop.”
Sherlock is currently recovering injuries there, and Eivass, now featured in the newspaper, must find a way to explain to Bishop Mathers why he was able to activate the Holy Sword sealed within the key…
One lie requires a hundred lies to conceal, and Bishop Mathers can sense Eivass’s energy level in the Path of Devotion—he is now at the Second Tier.
Therefore, Eivass decided to stop playing along directly. There is no need to hide his talent, or rather, hiding it is useless anyway. Once the Holy Sword, which requires thirty-three mana to manifest, appears, Bishop Mathers will understand everything.
So Eivass decided to reveal himself first. Not only to Bishop Mathers but also to Sherlock.
“—Yes, I advanced and succeeded immediately that day after returning. And next month, I will advance to the Third Tier.”
This is what Eivass intends to say at the time.
This way, Sherlock will likely guess who “the Fox” is.
—If Sherlock and Isabel both know he is “the Fox,” but both believe the other doesn’t know…
What kind of interesting reaction will they have during the Advancement Ritual?
Eivass feels a bit wicked.
An update of nearly eight thousand characters, meow~
