Mystery: Big Alarm Clock Ghroth Path

Chapter 336 Prophet

Because all the materials involving divine and extraordinary creatures in the "Prophet" potion recipe had already been collected, and the remaining miscellaneous auxiliary materials were also very easy to find, Roger had prepared them well in advance.

He and Jack Burton arrived at an alchemical potion-making room deep within the church of New Fog City, where there was a cauldron specifically used for concocting magical potions and various extraordinary elixirs.

Roger placed the potion recipe, which had been transcribed into Giantsman by Leomaster, on the table. He then took out all the ingredients and told Jack the correspondence between them and the Giantsman words. Roger then sat down and watched Jack concoct the "Prophet" potion.

Although New Fog City is a city-state of abandoned human survivors in a "forsaken land" and the inheritance of the divine path is almost incomplete, the extraordinary people here are very skilled in basic operations such as concocting magic potions, and Jack, as the second-in-command of New Fog City, does not need Roger to worry about him.

Soon, as Jack Burton poured the prepared potion into a translucent glass that appeared to be made of crystal, it turned into a silvery white liquid. Occasionally, many illusory figures of people, things, and objects would appear on the mercury-like surface. If one stared at it for more than 5 seconds, it would give the starer a strange sense of detachment.

"Now, you, my Lord, and your family, may pray."

Roger looked at Jack Burton, who had a solemn expression, and spoke in broken Giantsman characters.

"Ok."

The latter nodded, and then began to set up the altar in the "New Fog City" style according to his own experience.

This method and the materials used were basically for praying to the "true creator." Jack Burton did not know what the "original creator's" retinue, who was suspected to be the "angel of time," liked, so he still used the same series of things from the past.

This didn't bother Roger—in ritual magic targeting mythical creatures, the herbs, incense, candles, and offerings used to please the gods were partly to establish accurate mystical orientations, and partly to appease the gods and gain their attention with a respectful attitude.

However, Roger cannot refuse Jack Burton's request. In other words, Jack sees himself as pleasing a god, but in reality, that "god" values ​​the ritual more than he does.

As Jack lit a candle made of some unknown oil, a strange, burnt smell and the sounds of giants' prayers echoed through the alchemy room.

"The intersection of the starry sky and the spirit world, the crimson retinue of the shadowy curtain, the living embodiment of the starry sky and the calendar, the protector of the scattered souls of 'Mist City'."

"I beg for your attention, I beg for your favor."

"I pray that you will bestow good fortune and revelation upon me, guide me to see through the fog of fate, help me to find a way out of my destiny, and successfully complete the ascension ceremony of a 'prophet'."

"..."

Just as Jack was praying, Roger quickly closed his eyes and went to the stone platform at the very center of the "Original Core".

Sure enough, he saw the rust-colored star that symbolized Jack Burton flickering.

Roger connected with his spirituality and quickly felt Jack Burton's devout prayers.

It must be said that Jack's occult knowledge is quite solid. He made his request very clear in this prayer, which greatly helped Roger, who did not yet fully grasp the "Primal Core," to respond.

In most cases, Roger's response to his followers was to directly convey voice, text, or images, or to offer some kind of simple protection. Such a delicate operation as helping Jack open up a side path in his destiny was actually very difficult.

However, since Jack's demands were very clear and specific, Roger only needed to have the "Primal Core" respond semi-automatically and meet all his demands, thus fulfilling the requirements of the ritual.

Of course, Roger didn't just abandon the situation; he kept a close eye on how the "Original Core" managed to separate Jack's fate from the right path.

Within the spiritual sky of the "Primal Core," everything about the past of "Jack Burton" was presented, flashing back rapidly like a revolving lantern.

From Jack's birth, to his parents being transformed into blood-red monsters by the "Crown of Creation" and then devoured by the "Servants of God," to Jack becoming a glorious "Mystic."

From the moment he single-handedly saved a team of more than a dozen people in battle and was rewarded, to when "Fog City" was destroyed by "Saint of Calamity" Vinera, he chose to join forces with several archbishops, including Alexis, to save a large number of "Fog City" residents and embark on a journey of wandering together.

From his repeated acts of bravery in rescuing the homeless in "Fog City," to his discovery of the activity patterns of the "protectors" and his leadership in gradually building a "new Fog City" within the cave system.

Then there's Jack's sobbing, perseverance, occasional moments of glory and joy, and the courage and choices he makes as he leads the residents of "New Fog City" to try and break through the darkness time and time again.

Of all the things in a person's life, the environment and genes at birth determine only a part, or even a very small part. What matters more is the catalysis caused by the people and things they encounter later in life, and the various choices they make in those times.

There were countless crossroads, and that little boy made his own choices, which shaped Jack Burton into the Jack Burton we know today, and made him the leader revered by the residents of "New Fog City".

Suddenly, the scene split in two. In the other hemisphere of the spiritual sky of the "Primal Core," another trajectory of Jack's destiny appeared.

It was a series of subtle choices that led to Jack's different fates in different events.

Along this trajectory of fate, Jack did not choose to stand up and protect the people of Fog City during their exile, which led to the death of Alexis, and in her place, two other elders survived.

Afterwards, Jack became the third-ranking officer in the "New Fog City" garrison. Although he was still a candidate for elder, his personal prestige was insufficient, and there were two well-performing Sequence 5 candidates ahead of him who were firmly ahead of him.

That is why, when Roger and the others arrived, it was not him who became the "prophet," but another "shepherd."

Unlike Jack's original life trajectory in the spiritual sky on the right, the life trajectory on the left is a major difference in Jack's life caused by just a small choice.

This difference was not obvious at first, but it eventually became almost diametrically opposed.

At this moment, Jack is also able to see and immerse himself in the revelations that the "Primal Core" has given him.

These images made him realize that the so-called fortune in life is essentially a series of choices. People are always in a state of superposition of positive and negative, and may at any time go from one path to another.

The relationship between destiny and mindset is not a one-way cause-and-effect relationship, but rather a mutual one that shapes each other.

The road ahead is not fixed; only reverence and wisdom are the true foundation for it.

With this realization, Jack fully understood his choices on that side track of fate. He could see two versions of himself making different choices, each of which would create a completely different future and stir up different ripples.

Immersed in this realization, Jack overcame the potion, feeling his perspective on problems split in two, and feeling many paths ahead become clearer.

After a long while, Jack opened his eyes and looked at Roger.

Unlike his previous fervent and resolute gaze, Jack Burton's eyes softened considerably at this moment, a look that involuntarily reminded Roger of Mr. Azik and Bentley Morris.

"Thank you, Mr. Roger. I have successfully completed my promotion."

Jack Burton rose and bowed respectfully to Roger Zhou.

"That's good."

Roger also looked at Jack Burton with a smile.

He knew that this promotion was of great significance to Jack. After arriving in New Fog City, he had come to understand that the internal structure of New Fog City had been showing signs of splitting into two factions over the past twenty years.

One faction is the priests, led by the "readers," and the other is the warriors, led by the "mystic prayers." Although the two sides are still in a cooperative relationship, there are subtle rifts in many specific matters because they focus on completely different issues.

In the human survivor city-state of "New Fog City," a "forsaken land," this tendency toward division is extremely deadly. It may not be apparent at first, but over time it could lead to internal strife or even a second split within "New Fog City."

Where there are people, there will be disputes and estrangement, especially in a place like "New Fog City" where there are no angel-level sealing artifacts to protect it.

Jack's choice to become a "prophet" was likely based on this realization. As a "mystic," he enjoyed high prestige within the garrison, and now, as a high-ranking "reader," this difference in status within the same line of work would give him an advantage among the "readers."

In a sense, Jack originally possessed the potential to become a "prophet" and "insightful one," and his correct choice this time had a very positive potential effect on the internal stability of "New Fog City."

The only problem is that in the days to come, Jack needs to learn as much knowledge and various skills as possible in order to become a true wise man.

Afterwards, Roger called in Alexis, Leomaster, and Bernadette, and the group began to discuss Jack's newly acquired abilities.

Bernadette, the "master of prophecy," was also very curious about the abilities of "prophet" and wanted to see how Jack's abilities differed from her own.

"My physical condition, thinking ability, learning ability, ritual magic ability and reasoning ability have all been greatly improved, and I have also gained three other new abilities."

Jack pondered for a moment, then spoke:
"The first is 'foreseeing the future.' I can use the perspective of 'fate' to see the different consequences that different choices I and people with mystical connections may make, thereby avoiding some disasters and dealing with some hidden dangers in advance."

"This ability can be used in battle to see the opponent's choices and some of their abilities in advance, so as to make the right response."

"It should be noted that while I can make conventional predictions, the accuracy of my predictions is directly proportional to the breadth and depth of my knowledge. The more familiar I am with a particular area of ​​knowledge, the more accurate my predictions become."

Jack rubbed his chin:
"Moreover, this ability seems to be able to be combined with the 'Rose Bishop's' flesh and blood bomb, by secretly releasing one's own flesh and blood during battle to establish a weak mystical connection with the opponent, or by laying out plans in advance to bury one's own flesh and blood for a longer period of time, thereby establishing a stronger mystical connection with the opponent."

"Depending on the strength of this connection, I can make different degrees of 'predictions' about my opponents, thereby multiplying the effect of 'foreseeing the future'."

“I haven’t jumped through any sequence pathways… Lord Roger, is this a fusion-type ability?”

Roger nodded:

"Yes, it is certain that the jump between adjacent pathways can grant extraordinary individuals the ability to merge, and there is more than one way to merge."

"I see, I've learned a lesson."

Jack nodded and then looked at Bernadette:
"Your Excellency Bernadette, is this any different from your abilities?"

"Yes, there is a difference."

Bernadette thought for a moment, and then said:

"The abilities of 'prophet masters' come from the esoteric concept of the river of fate, and our observations of the future tend to be inspired directly from the river of fate."

"But from what you've said, although 'prophets' can also foresee the future, it seems that you see the consequences of different choices from the perspective given by 'fate sidetracks'."

"Although this also relies on knowledge, it is essentially a kind of logical reasoning with a high-dimensional perspective, and it can be completed in an instant."

"This appears to be a high-level performance by a 'reasoning student' and a 'detective'."

Upon hearing this, Jack looked thoughtful, then nodded slightly and continued:
"The second new ability I gained is 'visual magic.' Now, when I look at anything, I can actively enter a special field of vision, and the mystical symbols corresponding to what I see will appear in my field of vision."

"I can influence and reorganize these symbols to a certain extent to create different magic, and I can even learn to temporarily copy some of the enemy's simple supernatural abilities or destroy some spells with complex internal logic."

"This ability can be used in conjunction with 'foresight' to double the effect on enemies."

Upon hearing this, Roger asked with great interest:

"If I use a spell now, can you copy it?"

“I can give it a try, but since you are a demigod, and the abilities are at the same level, and it involves knowledge that I don’t understand, I can’t guarantee success.”

Jack nodded in reply.

"Watch carefully."

Upon hearing this, Roger made a strange gesture with his hand, pointing to the cauldron that Jack had previously used to mix potions.

The next second, the crucible flew straight up and hovered in mid-air.

Jack watched all of this intently, seemingly analyzing it rapidly in his mind. When Roger put the crucible down and looked at him again, Jack breathed a sigh of relief.

"How about it? Can you do it?"

Roger asked curiously.

Jack bit his lip:
“I can confirm that this is not the ability of the 'shepherd'... not used by the 'herding' of souls.”

Then, he mimicked Roger's gesture and pointed at the crucible again.

Soon, the crucible began to vibrate on its base with a "bang bang bang" sound, and two seconds later, it actually floated upwards.

The levitation was not as stable as the anti-gravity effect created by Roger; it trembled constantly throughout, and this state did not last long before the crucible fell down.

Fortunately, Roger caught it in time with an "anti-gravity" technique, preventing it from shattering. However, he still looked at Jack with great surprise.

Jack was just a newly promoted "prophet". Roger thought that making the cauldron vibrate was the limit of what Jack could do, but he didn't expect that he would actually make it float briefly.

"Your abilities are quite impressive."

Roger couldn't help but sigh.

"It's embarrassing."

Jack scratched his head:

"The reason I can make it float is actually thanks to you."

“Your gesture is itself part of the mystical symbolism of this magic. I used it as a starting point to simplify the spell's structure to some extent... In other words, I only used a castrated version, which cannot create a gravitational field to control enemies or fly through an anti-gravity field like you can.”

"I see."

Roger suddenly realized.

Because several of the "Living Star Chart's" attack abilities require special hand gestures to guide them, Jack's words served as a reminder that in the future, when facing Beyonders with exceptional observational abilities such as the "Reader" pathway, or Beyonders skilled at exploiting bugs such as the "Thief" pathway, he would need to use shadows to conceal his hand gestures to prevent the opponent from copying or nullifying the corresponding abilities through his gestures.

"I have a magic spell. If you don't mind, could you try to copy it?"

At that moment, Bernadette suddenly spoke up.

“I can give it a try, Your Excellency Bernadette.”

Jack nodded and agreed.

"Good work."

After Bernadette finished speaking, she stretched out her hands, and a moment later a burning match appeared in her palms.

The moment Jack saw the match, he was unconsciously drawn to it and stared at it intently.

Soon, Jack saw some unreal things, including a warm fireplace and food he had never seen before. After a moment, Bernadette made the match disappear, and he came back to his senses.

After thinking for a moment, Jack created a phantom match in his hand that looked very much like Bernadette's match. However, the match only burned quietly for a while before disappearing without causing any hallucination.

"interesting."

Jack looked somewhat curious:
"It looks like a simple illusion magic, but a significant portion of the occult symbols it contains are incomprehensible to me... If I had to put it another way, it's as if they are beyond my perception and completely unrecognizable to me."

"Sure enough, it's just as I thought."

Bernadette nodded slightly, and then explained:
"This is the 'mystical re-creation' ability of the 'mystic.' We can draw power from the mystical knowledge we have to create magic or witchcraft. The fewer people know the corresponding mystical knowledge and the less it is passed down, the more powerful this spell becomes."

"The magic I just used comes from a story I heard when I was very young. Almost no one knows this story, so it cannot be analyzed or copied."

"I see."

Jack nodded. He had to admit that Bernadette's attempt had been quite enlightening for him, giving him a deeper understanding of the limitations and shortcomings of his own abilities.

However, Roger could see clearly that the match Bernadette had created using "mysterious reappearance" was a fairy tale magic derived from the earthly fairy tale "The Little Match Girl." Because no more than ten people in the world know this story, it perfectly fits the "low degree of dissemination," so it was inevitable that Jack could not replicate it.

“Go on, tell me about your third ability.”

After Bernadette finished her experiment, she spoke to Jack once again.

"The third ability is called 'Axiom Shaking'."

Jack slowly began to speak:
"Based on the principles or axiomatic knowledge of things that I already know, the 'prophet' can connect these principles or axioms and derive new theorems, which can extend new knowledge and also leverage corresponding magical power."

"Most importantly, I can weaken the effects of any extraordinary ability within the scope of all axioms and theorems, depending on my understanding of the corresponding knowledge. In the knowledge domain I understand best, I even have the opportunity to directly disable the corresponding extraordinary ability."

"For example, if a Sequence 6 'Rose Bishop' wants to use flesh and blood magic in front of me, I can weaken or even disable the effect of that magic, because I myself am a fairly experienced 'Rose Bishop', and I learned a lot about anatomy and medicine from another elder when I was in Fog City, so I am also very familiar with the structure of the human body."

"When this knowledge is infused into 'Axiom Shattering,' the result is the failure of 'Rose Bishop's' magic."

"I see."

Everyone present realized that although the "prophet" possessed all sorts of incredible abilities, in essence, these abilities were still based on the foundation of the "reader" approach itself—knowledge.

To reiterate, the more knowledge Jack possesses, the stronger his combat abilities become. This also explains why many extraordinary individuals in the Church of the "God of Knowledge and Wisdom" spend long periods of time in the library, from the Pope and archbishops to ordinary priests.

This approach perfectly illustrates the meaning of "knowledge is power," and the more knowledge one possesses, the stronger the direct reflection of one's strength.

"Lord Roger."

Jack scratched his head:

"I have a favor to ask. If possible, could you please consider bringing some books from outside the 'Forsaken Land'? In return, I can help you with research in areas that interest you."

"After all, there are too few books in the 'New Fog City' right now, and I've already read many of them."

"In fact, knowledge in 'New Fog City' has become depleted, so not only me, but many priests in 'New Fog City' have a strong desire for knowledge."

"can."

Roger nodded in agreement. In fact, he had already planned to do so, but Jack had made the request first and explained what he could do for Roger.

To be honest, his request was very appealing to Roger, but Roger couldn't think of anything he needed Jack's help with research at the moment.

However, knowledgeable people are always useful, and Roger wouldn't mind giving Jack and his "readers" more books to read before they really came into play.

"However, I don't have anything to research or analyze at this stage... If I do, it's not for myself, but for 'New Fog City'."

“You can take some time to study how to remove the pollution that is widespread among the residents of the ‘New Fog City’.”

Roger thought for a moment and then answered:
"Since you just mentioned that you know a bit about medicine and anatomy, I will find you some books on these topics, as well as related books on pharmacology, botanical illustration, and mysticism."

“If you can find a way, ‘New Fog City’ can leave ‘God’s Forsaken Land’ as soon as possible. Otherwise, in your current situation, even if you leave ‘God’s Forsaken Land’, you may still be regarded as an enemy and a target of encirclement and suppression by the churches outside.”

"Yes, Mr. Roger, thank you very much."

Jack became excited as soon as he heard that "New Fog City" offered a chance to leave "the Forsaken Land".

He immediately assured Roger that he could entrust the matter to him.

After chatting for a while, Jack took his men to arrange the follow-up work.

Roger returned to his room in "New Fog City" to think about his next steps.

However, at that moment, a strange feeling came from Roger's heart.

He stared incredulously into the dark corner of the room, and a moment later a cute, half-mouse, half-rat creature with white fur, red eyes, and carrying a small silk pouch jumped out.

"Oh, there's a letter for you."

Upon seeing Roger, the "Rat of De La Hoya" waved its little paws with practiced ease.

However, Roger stumbled and almost fell off his chair.

He struggled to steady himself, looking at the "Rat of De La Hoya" with a shocked expression, and asked:
How did you get in here?

"Get in here?"

This time, it was "De La Hoya's Rat's" turn to be dumbfounded. The little guy scratched his head and then calmly said:

"I just came in the same way as before. There's no special restriction on this room. It's perfectly normal for a spirit being like me to be able to come in, isn't it?"

"No, you probably don't understand how serious this is."

Roger stood up, walked over to the "Rat of De La Hoya," circled it several times, and carefully examined it.

The mouse was still the same mouse, the same mouse that had been delivering messages to him, just like before.

However, the problem is that this is the "forsaken land of the gods," a dark region where the spirit world and the starry sky are separated from it!
However, the fact that the "Rat of De La Hoya" was able to swagger in completely overturned Roger's understanding.

Soon, a guess popped into Roger's mind.

"Could it be that after I signed the contract with the 'Rat of Dela Hoya,' some kind of mystical connection was formed, allowing it to expand its territory into the spirit world projection corresponding to the 'Forsaken Land'?"

Roger thought it was increasingly likely, because when he was exploring Amra's tomb and facing the extraordinary ability test of the "Traveler," he used the special territory that the "De La Hoya Rat" had clearly opened up in the spirit world as a coordinate to find the corresponding location and pass the test.

Therefore, it is possible that not only can Roger use the territory coordinates of the "De La Hoya Rat", but the "De La Hoya Rat" can also use Roger's map-finding ability in the "Forsaken Land" to find the corresponding spirit world coordinates!
Roger then questioned the "Rat of De La Hoya" for a long time, trying to find out if its journey was any different this time, but the latter shook its head and said it didn't know.

Finally, just as Roger was getting annoyed with its questions and was about to explode, Roger quickly calmed it down, gave it a reward for delivering the message, and then watched it go.

"...No, this is too strange. I need to find a chance to ask the 'De La Hoya Giant Rat'."

Roger took a deep breath and looked at the envelope in his hand, discovering that it was from a sender he had never seen before.

While wondering, Roger opened the letter and, in the process, he smelled the scent of Bach tobacco.

This made him realize that the letter was from Esinger Stanton, and after reading the contents of the letter, he confirmed it.

In the letter, Detective Isengard greeted Roger and expressed his gratitude for the recovery medicine he had provided.

Detective Eisinger has largely recovered and is expected to be discharged from the hospital within two days. At the same time, he has expressed his desire to retire.

Finally, Isengard said this:
"Mr. Jones, there's something I've always wanted to say."

"Do you remember the old gentleman with the 'Eye of Wisdom' at the gathering of extraordinary people on Iron Gate Street that you and Detective Moriarty attended?"

"That was actually me, didn't expect that, did you? Hahaha!"

"In any case, it's a pleasure to meet you both... I'm old now, and I don't have much of a future, but I sincerely wish you both all the best in the future."

"That old guy..."

Roger smiled knowingly. He hadn't expected that Isengard, with his personality, would make such a playful self-disclosure before his retirement.

This could be because his identity was already an open secret to Roger, or it could be because Isengard might return to Remenberg to spend his later years in peace after retirement.

He patiently wrote back to Isengard, expressing his best wishes and a reasonable and appropriate shock that the other was indeed the "Eye of Wisdom."

Roger summoned the "Rat of De La Hoya," who had just left, and sent the letter away.

He stretched and was about to take a nap when he heard the prayer coming from the "Original Core" again.

(End of this chapter)