The Shepherds Are Dense – Chapter 361

Chapter 361
The Ritual of Annihilation of Form and Spirit

Merlin, seeing the purple light flickering in Eivass’s eyes, pressed his hat down a bit, covering the upper half of his face, with a hint of helplessness.
“It seems you’ve understood something, Eivass,” Merlin said softly, a slight smile gracing his lips.

He was exceptionally intelligent. Merely by observing Eivass’s expression and his sudden resonance with the Transcendent Path, he could roughly guess what had happened, without needing Eivass to explain it himself.
—The process in between, and “how it was done,” were also unnecessary considerations.
Thus, the remaining possibilities were few.
Eivass was a pawn required for the Ouroboros Ring ritual’s underlying plan, Eivass was a contingency prepared by the Ring Heavenly Envoy, or Eivass was part of Jacob’s conspiracy… broadly speaking, these were the likely scenarios.
In any case, it was either related to Jacob or the Ring Heavenly Envoy.
Merlin could quite empathize with the feeling of being manipulated. After all, when he was deceived in love by Viviane back then, he’d had a similar mindset.

So, Merlin affectionately placed a hand on Eivass’s shoulder and advised softly, “Though I don’t know exactly what you’ve realized, I have something to say.”
Hearing this, Eivass looked up at Merlin.

“You are the most talented person I have ever met, bar none. You are also a good child, having saved the future for countless people.”
“In those plans, you might be the shell, or the fuel, or the wheel, or the pawn.”
Merlin stated, word by word, “But no matter what, I feel… it’s a real shame for you to be just ‘fragments.’ You were meant to have a brighter future, and all you need to do is remove your shackles.”

“Will you support me?” Eivass retorted.
His words held no trace of the respect that was due to an Apostle. Merlin keenly caught the subtle shift in his attitude.
—Interesting.
It seemed this matter was indeed related to the Ring Heavenly Envoy. The Ouroboros Ring ritual could force other Heavenly Envoys to descend to the lower realms… but what was the meaning of that? Forcing the Heavenly Envoys out of the Dream Realm, only for them to rule the Material Realm instead?
Though he didn’t quite understand the intermediate process, Merlin had likely grasped the ultimate purpose.
—The Ring Heavenly Envoy was plotting to seize the Position of Pillar God.
This was no secret. The Dwarves’ faith was open, and their purpose was crystal clear. As a Heavenly Envoy of the Transcendent Path, how could they not wish to transcend their own Heavenly Envoy position?
To achieve this, mere power was not enough. A Great Deed capable of profoundly changing the World was necessary.
So, now that he had realized all this so early… what should he do? Was it time to choose a side?
Side with the Father of Snakes and help Him prevent the proliferation of the Ouroboros Ring ritual?
Or side with the Ouroboros, and help Him advance this plan?

“…Heh.” Merlin chuckled.
—He didn’t want to side with either.
Since he was going to gamble based on his information advantage, why not go for a big one? Otherwise, what would differentiate him from those who knew nothing?
Thus, Merlin raised an eyebrow and said to Eivass with a smile, “Yes, of course, I will support you. Why wouldn’t I?”
“You said it yourself.”
“Yes, I said it.” Merlin replied readily, “If you need anything, pray to me. Call me using a ritual, and I will answer you if I’m free.”
He released his hand from Eivass’s shoulder and glanced back at the Prince of Giants he had restrained.
“Why don’t you try it, Eivass? I’m also very curious about how ‘Divine Entities’ actually operate… can you show me?”
“Certainly.” Eivass replied.
He closed the Book of Law in his hand and slowly walked before the bound Prince of Giants, Wolfram.

It was laughable—Eivass almost said it. According to the original timeline, Wolfram wouldn’t have died this early. He had essentially brought about his own demise.
According to the Punisher Demon, Wolfram had believed a prophecy and came here seeking the Book of Law—though, he didn’t really need to hear the Punisher Demon’s words; just looking at Wolfram’s intense gaze fixed on Eivass was enough to understand everything.
“…How pathetic.” Eivass sighed, “You know nothing at all about all of this.”
Bishop Mathers had told Eivass long ago that Noble Red’s sudden entry into Glass Island was to find or approach a “Divine Entity.” And if their goal was to obtain the Book of Law… then the prophecy could indeed be considered quite accurate.
The Book of Law indeed contained the Power to change the World. Upon obtaining it, one would gain the “Ouroboros Ring” ritual. Furthermore, if by chance, one might even unearth the Sin Scholar profession and acquire other rituals.
These rituals were all bestowed by the Ring Heavenly Envoy to his “Prophet,” Jacob. Rituals too weak were not worthy of being collected in this Grimoire that concealed the advancement conditions for “Lord of Great Beasts.”

“You originally had a chance,” Eivass mocked, “but you missed it.”
“Giant” and “Human” were not of the same race. Giants were descendants of Supreme Heaven, while Humans were descendants of Hengwo and the Father of Snakes. That is to say, Giants using Humans as ritual materials would not trigger the sin of “Heavenly Calamity.”
Because they were not of the same race to begin with.
And the Giant kingdom, the Kingdom of Arctos, had fallen too early. Even if they wanted to use Giants as ritual materials, they couldn’t find any—Wolfram had already become a prisoner, and the Punisher Demon Cassiem had been wandering the wilds of Avalon as a Giant civilian for over a hundred years. If he could find other Giants, he wouldn’t have been the only one to defect to Wolfram.
They naturally met the advancement requirements for the Sin Scholar.
Just like Players.
Perhaps due to regulations, Players were not allowed to use Humans as materials for rituals. Therefore, all Player Demon Scholars couldn’t advance to Demon Avatar, only to Sin Scholar.
Wolfram, as Jacob’s student, inherited the same profession as him. He fell into the same trap.
Wizards who advanced from Curse Ritual Mages could not comprehend this book.
And Cassiem, who originally had a good chance of receiving the Book of Law’s acknowledgment… had advanced into a Demon Avatar.
For a Demon Scholar to advance into a Demon Avatar, they absolutely had to commit the sin of Heavenly Calamity. Without this “unpardonable Great Sin,” they could not gain the recognition of a Fallen Heavenly Envoy.
This meant that Cassiem, in order to fulfill his advancement qualifications, had to specifically seek out a portion of Wolfram’s body fragments as advancement materials.
—And so, Cassiem, after much painstaking effort, finally managed to advance into a Demon Avatar, thus successfully missing out on the Book of Law.
And now, Wolfram didn’t even know what the Book of Law truly meant. He also had no idea what a ridiculous role he and the Noble Red he commanded played in this plan.

Thinking this, Eivass felt a sense of weary disinterest, “With such immense Power… yet still unable to break free from the shackles of Fate.
“Then I shall grant you liberation.”
He said, raising the Book of Law he held.
The pages flipped open on their own, stopping at the page of “The Hanged Man.”
It recorded a ritual that could only be used on someone bound and hanging upside down.
“Please turn him upside down,” Eivass requested of Merlin.

“Oh?” Merlin asked with keen interest, “Like ‘The Hanged Man’ on the Tarot Card?”
He thought of something and immediately became interested.
“Yes.” Eivass replied.
Merlin then grasped his staff, and the Prince of Giants was spun around and suspended in the air by chains, upside down.
He glared fiercely at Eivass, clearly aware of what was about to happen to him.
But Eivass calmly said, “Didn’t you want to obtain the Power of the Book of Law?
“Then I shall give it to you.”

Great Wizards were not easy to kill first. Once killed, they might revive or reincarnate—even with Merlin watching, he might not be absolutely reliable.
Moreover, Eivass wasn’t sure if such a Giant as Wolfram, upon death, would be recruited as an Apostle by the Bear Heavenly Envoy.
Wolfram likely wanted to obtain the Power of the Book of Law to resolve the predicament faced by the Bear Heavenly Envoy… and faced with such a rare loyal subject, perhaps even the last loyal subject in the Material Realm, the Bear Heavenly Envoy might be willing to grant him some Power, thus preserving his soul.
That would be too dangerous.
He knew too much about Eivass. And as an Apostle, he would be too powerful—even the Grand Guardian might die from his revenge.
—If he were to be killed, it had to be complete annihilation of both form and spirit.