Chapter 1020
Mask of Secrets and Nu Dance Wizard
Eivass stepped forward and picked up the crimson Mask of Secrets from the ground.
This was a smiling face mask crafted from Carnelian, its color like that of Flesh and Blood—this was the very mask the Heavenly Envoy had worn previously. When not worn, the eye and mouth positions were transparent holes, but once it was worn, they would fill with black, obscuring the features beneath.
“…As I suspected.”
Eivass murmured softly, holding the mask.
He could faintly sense Path Power from it, yet his system offered no prompts.
This was normal.
Ever since Eivass had completely distorted the destined future, causing this World to formally enter the “IF Line,” the system had been unable to recognize more and more things.
In the original Worldline, the Heavenly Envoy was never defeated. They survived until the very end, emerging victorious—after the Great Transcendence Wave ended, the Heavenly Envoy became the sole surviving Heavenly Envoy of The Path of Beauty. They participated in none of the plot, even skillfully avoiding all camera attention… Precisely because of this, Eivass was very unfamiliar with their abilities and personality.
Eivass actually didn’t know the Heavenly Envoy’s purpose. If one were to say they came to get close because they didn’t want to be pulled down by the Ouroboros Ring Ritual like the Shadow Heavenly Envoy, it didn’t quite feel right… He could only sense that, at least for now, the Heavenly Envoy bore no malice towards him.
“What is this thing for?”
Sherlock walked over and casually asked Eivass.
Eivass raised an eyebrow in surprise, handed the Mask of Secrets in his hand to Sherlock, and retorted, “Why would I know?”
“You seem to know everything.”
Sherlock carefully felt the texture of the mask, his pupils glowing with cerulean light.
He replied Slowly and deliberately, “Wasn’t someone already openly discussing the succession of Pillar Gods when they were still at the First Tier?”
“I don’t know everything; I only know what I know.”
Eivass said earnestly.
This was not a joke—it was the honest truth. Arsen might not understand, but Sherlock, who was familiar with Eivass, would surely grasp what Eivass meant.
Sherlock ignored Eivass and focused on infusing the Extraordinary Power of the Path of Wisdom into the mask.
“…Yo,” Eivass said, somewhat surprised, “You’ve learned Appraisal?”
This was an “Appraisal” ability that high-tier Extraordinarys of the Path of Wisdom could potentially learn—by communicating with the Origin River, one could bypass experimentation and proof to directly obtain fragments of Truth.
The reason the mages in the Mage Towers could develop products far superior to top Alchemists was through this near-cheating “Truth Prayer Technique.” As long as they obtained fragments of ancient technology, they could perform a certain degree of retrospect and restoration. The Dream Traveling Monk’s mental library was a similar ability, both being Mystical Arts directly related to “Truth.”
“It was alright to learn, not too difficult,” Sherlock said casually. “This is also the advance payment the Duke gave me, and why he needed the help of a Path of Wisdom Extraordinary. I didn’t expect that the first time I’d use it outside of work after learning it would be to Appraise something for you…”
“It’s not for me.”
Eivass earnestly drew a line. “As I said, even if I give something, it’s for you guys.”
“Heh.”
Sherlock let out a cold laugh. “Well said, Mr. Fox. You say that as if we have the ability to use it… I’ve roughly finished Appraising it.”
As he spoke, Sherlock lowered his hand, the cerulean glow in his pupils dimming and dissipating.
He handed the crimson mask to Arsen, saying simply and directly, “Put it on.”
Arsen didn’t ask why or what he was supposed to do.
He trusted Sherlock implicitly, so he directly put the mask on his face.
—The next moment, crimson smoke billowed out from the mask’s seams. Arsen was startled and tried to pull the mask off, but it extended Carnelian-like tendrils, anchoring itself to Arsen’s face.
Then, Arsen’s raised hands suddenly froze.
“Hee hee hee…”
Arsen suddenly let out an uncontrollable chuckle.
His raised hands flipped in the air, then his right hand traced an exaggerated arc in front of him and was placed to the left of his chest and abdomen.
He took half a step back with his left leg, bowed elegantly to Eivass and Sherlock, and spoke with the Heavenly Envoy’s resonant, joyous voice, “This is truly delightful and surprising. I didn’t expect us to reunite so soon!”
“…So this is its purpose.”
Eivass suddenly understood.
No wonder the Heavenly Envoy had left so quickly and so suddenly… Without even explaining what the reward they left behind was. It turned out they knew that as soon as Eivass and the others started researching the mask, they would return!
He had seen—even used—Isabel’s Mask of Secrets.
But he hadn’t expected that the mask left by the Heavenly Envoy would truly be their own Mask of Secrets…
To have a Heavenly Envoy descend onto one’s own body—this was genuine Divine Descent!
“Isn’t this equivalent to a tradable High-Tier Divine Art?”
Eivass asked the Heavenly Envoy possessing Arsen.
“That’s different,” the Heavenly Envoy replied smilingly. “I can’t condense Path Crystallization. That means only Extraordinarys of The Path of Beauty can wear this mask. And the Mana I can use is only the Mana this body inherently possesses.”
Hearing this, Eivass shook his head slightly.
Even if that were the case…
Even with just one unit of Mana, what a Heavenly Envoy could accomplish would far surpass a mortal. The gap between a Heavenly Envoy and a mortal was not merely a difference in Mana.
And judging by Sherlock’s words… this mask seemed to have no usage limit?
Sherlock seemed to have guessed Eivass’s thoughts and directly said, “This mask can be used once every two sunrises and sunsets. Roughly speaking, it can be used once every two days. As for the duration…”
He paused here and looked at the Heavenly Envoy.
The fragments of Truth obtained through Appraisal were ultimately not as complete and comprehensive as the attributes provided by the system. It was better to simply ask the Heavenly Envoy who made the mask.
“Ha! There’s no such thing,” the Heavenly Envoy let out a hearty laugh. “Or you could say… this performance ends when I myself get bored, or when the Nu Dance Wizard explicitly refuses to let me control this body any further. Unless the Nu Dance Wizard wearing the mask truly angers me and I crush this mask… otherwise, it can be used continuously, and even if the Holder dies, this mask can be passed on.”
“…Nu Dance Wizard?”
Eivass raised his eyes in surprise.
He vaguely remembered similar sayings. It was knowledge remaining from his fractured memories… He only recalled it seeming to be a form of traditional culture related to rituals.
“This is actually… the original usage of this art,” the Heavenly Envoy chuckled. “To invite the dead ghost, the one who cannot come, the unseen god… allowing actors who could impossibly appear on the same ‘stage’ to perform, dance, and chant together—
“When the mask is removed, they are human. When the mask is worn… they are gods.
“Take me out for a stroll. This Dream Realm is becoming more and more boring. To put it another way, this Material Realm is about to get lively…”
After he spoke, the overwhelming, mysterious aura on “Arsen” suddenly dissipated.
Arsen paused, and when he spoke again, his voice had changed back. “You guys… What does my voice sound like now?”
Before he finished speaking, he had already heard his own voice.
So Arsen directly removed the mask from his face.
After the Heavenly Envoy left, the mask lost its suction.
And at this time, its color had already faded somewhat.
Although it still looked like Flesh and Blood, it now resembled raw meat left out in the air for a while, appearing somewhat purplish and faded—no longer fresh and bright as before.
