Mystery: Big Alarm Clock Ghroth Path

Chapter 363 gave the old man a fright (Thanks to sunhoo for the twins' Qidian coins)

Dunn, Leonard, Daly, Cohen, Luo Yao, Xijia...

Just as Roger had hoped, all of Klein Moretti's former teammates who were supposed to come arrived.

In fact, the sheer number of people here was somewhat beyond Roger's expectations. He had only told Fura that he hoped Dunn could gather his men, but he wasn't sure if Dunn could summon all of his Tingen City "Night Watchers" who wanted to avenge Klein and Frye.

Although Klein had changed his appearance and physical characteristics, Leonard still felt a slight sense of disorientation when he saw Klein.

A moment later, after being reminded by Palez Soloasde, Leonard whispered to Dunn:

"Captain, this is a demigod... and it seems to be one that has just completed its advancement."

Dunn nodded solemnly. In fact, he shouldn't have known this person before him, but at this moment, Dunn still felt a strange sense of closeness and familiarity.

If you had to put it in perspective, it was as if this person had deliberately leaked some kind of aura from himself. This feeling puzzled Dunn greatly, but after only a brief pause, Dunn made his move.

He tapped his teeth lightly, and in an instant, countless strange hands, like shadows, rose without warning from beneath the feet of the man wearing the odd rubber mask and bound him tightly.

This scene was somewhat unexpected for Klein. Dunn Smith, who was originally only a Sequence 7 "Nightmare", had actually been promoted to a Sequence 5 "Spirit Wizard"!
However, under Dunn's gaze, the man in front of him neither flinched nor avoided the gaze, but simply showed a somewhat gratified smile.

The next moment, he simply waved his hand, and the spirits binding him under his feet completely disappeared!
This scene greatly alarmed the "Night Watchers," who all used their extraordinary abilities to attack the strange man who had become a demigod, but the latter easily blocked their attacks.

Then, Klein walked straight up to Dunn, and for some reason, Dunn felt completely paralyzed at that moment.

He desperately wanted to ask the man in front of him what his relationship was with Ince Zangwell, but for some reason, although Dunn could pronounce the words, he couldn't make a sound at all.

"Dunne Smith? The deacon of the 'Night Watch'?"

The man suddenly spoke in a low, hoarse voice. He looked around at the people in front of him with a relaxed and cheerful air, as if the extraordinary beings of the "Earth Mother Goddess" church not far away did not exist at all.

The next second, the man in the rubber mask did something that made everyone present feel strange.

He pulled up Dunn's left hand, which was already immobile, and then pulled up Daly's hand, which was also stiff, and held their hands together firmly.

Then, he spoke:
"In matters of the heart, men should take the initiative and not be ungrateful."

After saying that, he looked at Daly beside him and asked with a smile:

"Madam, do you agree with what I said?"

This scene completely surprised many of the "night watchmen," who were all momentarily stunned and bewildered, unsure of what to do.

However, the masked man seemed to have no intention of explaining at all. He took a few steps back and then disappeared on his own.

Dunn was stunned. He was about to order his men to give chase when he felt his face being slapped twice.

"Captain, wake up!"

The impact of the slap brought Dunn back to his senses. He looked at Daly, who had the same blank expression as him, and Leonard Mitchell, who had somehow appeared in front of him with a look of anxiety on his face.

"Hallucination?"

Dunn realized what was happening and turned to look again at the spot where the rubber-masked man had disappeared.

There, the other person had disappeared, replaced by a man wearing a worker's hat, about 1.75 meters tall, with some Indistinctive features.

At this moment, the man stared blankly ahead, like a lifeless puppet.

Dunn took a deep breath, turned to look at the extraordinary beings of the Church of the Earth Mother who were approaching, and at the "fountain" that was already weakening and sinking downwards, a mixture of blood and amniotic fluid. Then he spoke in a low voice:
“I think Ince Zangwell is dead.”

……

It's 8 p.m. in Fenneport, inside the Church of Life.

Roger, who had regained his original appearance, sat with Fula Jenkins, while across from them sat Mattiada, the archbishop of the Church of the Earth Mother.

At this moment, her complexion was quite good. This plump and beautiful lady glanced curiously at Bandit, the tabby cat sleeping at Roger's feet, and then spoke softly:

"I am very grateful to both of you for today's events. If it weren't for your reminder, the consequences would have been unimaginable."

"You're too kind. This matter is all thanks to His Excellency Abraham's reminder. I was merely a messenger."

Fula Jenkins turned to look at Roger, the archbishop of the Church of the Night, who did not try to take all the credit but instead attributed most of it to Roger.

Having communicated with Roger beforehand, Roger now understands what happened today.

Previously, after Jacqueline Iverson awoke, her willpower was unstable, which allowed Ince, who had been lurking near her sleeping place, to control her mind using the seal that corresponded to the extraordinary characteristics of a "manipulator".

On the other hand, it wouldn't be difficult for the higher-ups of the "Earth Mother Goddess" church to notice that she was being mind-controlled. However, considering the special nature of Jacqueline's divine path, and the fact that her speech and behavior were mostly clear except for occasional dazed expressions, they were able to assess the situation.

So although her position was retained, the Church of the Earth Mother also arranged for another "chosen one" to help Jacqueline with her work.

However, the "favored one" was not a "full-time" position, but was also simultaneously handling the work of another archbishop, so there were many loopholes that Ince could exploit.

Subsequently, in several instances where both the "Graceful One" and the "Cherished One" were required to jointly issue decrees, Jacqueline, who was under control, was helping Ince to guide the "Graceful One" Mattiada in a direction that could lead to loss of control, and subtly influencing her mental state through certain rituals related to the "Primordial Moon".

After Fura's reminder, the Church of the Earth Mother secretly took measures. They helped Mattiada reduce her tendency to get out of control, and then, in a counter-strategy, they directly replaced Mattiada with an alchemical doll made by the "alchemy of life" in cooperation with Apostolic Mother Roland, in order to trick Ince and Jacqueline into revealing their true intentions.

Mattiada herself used her high-ranking "Druid" abilities to transform into a giant bear leading the float procession, thus evading the gaze of those secretly watching.

On the other hand, considering that Ince might cause a lot of killing among the civilians, the Church of the Earth Mother also mixed some movable androids into the crowd. These androids were made by combining two special "Level 1" sealed artifacts with "Life Alchemy". They were also given similarity marks that made them more likely to attract attacks from underworld creatures. In addition, with the supervision of the Church of the Earth Mother among the crowd, the attacks of the underworld creatures summoned by Ince looked like a big scene, but in fact, they caused very limited damage to the civilians.

In contrast, the stampede that occurred in the crowd was much more dangerous, but fortunately Roger and Mattiada intervened in time to minimize the damage.

Without knowing Ince's specific plans, this is the only way to lure him out, after which Klein will kill him and fulfill Roger's agreement with Flame Jenkins.

As for the potential negative impact and conflicts that may result from such chaos during the National Day celebrations, the high-ranking officials of the Kingdom of Fenneport and the media with official backing need to do their best to compensate and appease them, and may even need the Church of the Earth Mother to erase the memories of certain groups of people.

On the other hand, they will also shift the blame to achieve their own political goals, and at the same time use this as a basis to purge some domestic opposition political enemies who are closely connected with Intis.

Seemingly aware of this, when Klein fled the "Church of Life," he even exchanged one of his high-ranking intelligence agents from Intis, whom he had previously identified and converted into his own puppet, for a place in front of the Church of Life. He carried with him a detailed list of Intis Republic personnel who had infiltrated the Kingdom of Fenneport and cooperated with Intis in planning this attack.

Although the Kingdom of Feneport was betrayed by the combined forces of the Kingdoms of Rune and Intis in the "War of the Oath," given the current strength of the Kingdom of Rune in the Northern Continent and its alliance with the Kingdom of Feneport to divide up most of the interests in the Sunia Sea, the geopolitical environment has undergone an unprecedented change. Therefore, Feneport also wants to use this as a pretext to leverage the intelligence capabilities of the Kingdom of Rune to resolve its territorial disputes with the Republic of Intis in the border region between the two countries, as well as some conflicts in its colonies in the Southern Continent.

As a side benefit, the Church of the Earth Mother will also receive the "Night Watcher" extraordinary trait and the "Moon" blasphemous card dropped by Ince. The former can be returned to the Church of the Night Goddess to strengthen the alliance between the two, while the "Moon" blasphemous card can be sealed to enhance the safety of the Church of the Earth Mother. This card can also play a special role at certain key moments.

As for the potential contamination in these two items, that's something the two churches need to figure out themselves; it's not something Roger needs to worry about.

In contrast, Klein not only advanced to become a "Trickster" and fulfilled his dream of reuniting with his teammates, but also obtained a sealed artifact corresponding to the extraordinary characteristics of a "Manipulator," making him arguably the biggest individual beneficiary in this incident.

"Thank you, Your Excellency Abraham. Your suggestion has helped the Church of the Mother Goddess resolve two major hidden dangers. If there is anything we can do to assist you in the future, please do not hesitate to ask."

Just as Roger had expected, Matthiada spoke in a gentle tone after hearing Fura's words.

"It's nothing serious."

Roger smiled slightly:
"I'm currently setting up a maritime trading company, and I might need to send some products from the Southeast Sunia Sea to Feneport. I'll also be shipping some of Feneport's specialties to the Rothschild Islands and even the southern continent for trade."

"If possible, I hope the Kingdom of Fenneport can give me some preferential treatment in terms of procurement and tariffs... Of course, this is not just simple assistance, because we can achieve a partnership and win-win situation here, and I will give 30% of all the net profits."

"Yes, there's no problem with that."

Mattiada seemed to have been prepared, and she nodded slightly in response.

In fact, Roger's proposed solution, as he himself said, was indeed a true win-win situation.

While Fenneport could gain direct benefits and employment from trade, the most crucial aspect was that they could use it to squeeze the Intis Republic's share of trade in the Southern Continent and the Sunia Sea, thereby strengthening their influence in territorial disputes through bargaining power.

This is also a possible direction for future national policies.

In this way, Roger effectively established a long-term connection with the Kingdom of Fenneport and the Church of the Earth Mother, which would inevitably bring him a continuous stream of benefits in the long run.

Afterwards, the three parties discussed some matters concerning future cooperation, and Roger then left the "Church of Life" with Bandit.

……

Late at night one day later, in Tingen, at Raphael's Cemetery, which had just been rained on.

Leonard stood with a shovel in hand, looking cautiously at the name on the tombstone that read "Klein Moretti."

At the entrance of the "Church of Life," Leonard had not fully seen the entire illusion created by the masked man, but judging from the somewhat subtle and ambiguous atmosphere between Dunn Smith and Daly Simone, as well as Dunn's narration, a strong sense of doubt arose in Leonard's mind.

That is, the masked man seems to have some connection with Klein Moretti.

Today, he came here because he wanted to dig up the grave of his former teammate and see what was inside.

Composing himself, Leonard softly apologized and then plunged a shovel into the damp, decaying soil in front of him.

As the soil in front of him was shoveled away, Klein's coffin finally appeared before Leonard.

He took a deep breath, then stuffed the shovel into the edge of the coffin lid and pried it open with all his might.

As the coffin lid slammed to the ground with a thud, a bolt of lightning flashed across the sky.

Leonard finally saw what was inside the coffin in front of him.

It was the rotting body of a man, still dressed in the clothes Klein had worn when he was laid to rest.

However, what puzzled Leonard was that even though he wasn't a "corpse collector," he could still tell that the degree of decomposition of the corpse in front of him was abnormal.

After all, more than half a year had passed since Klein died, and considering the climate in Tingen, his body should have decomposed into a skeleton long ago.

On the other hand, since Klein's "divine observer" extraordinary trait was not recovered, there should be such an extraordinary trait or a corresponding sealed artifact at the scene.

However, looking at the corpse, although it was emitting a foul stench, its decomposition was at most forty percent, and there were no extraordinary characteristics or sealed artifacts at the scene. This made Leonard feel very strange.

"...Yes, I know, there's something wrong with this body."

Suddenly, Leonard whispered, and then he added:
"What do you think?"

However, before Leonard could finish speaking, a horrifying scene unfolded before him.

Suddenly, the already decaying corpse in the coffin opened its eyes and looked at Leonard with two white, rotting eyeballs crawling out of maggots.

Immediately afterwards, the rotting corpse of "Klein" lunged directly at Leonard!
"Shit."

Even the usually civilized and elegant Leonard couldn't help but swear. Without thinking, he pulled out his revolver and fired three shots into "Klein's" forehead, sending him back into the coffin.

"Huh...huh..."

Leonard, still shaken, carefully examined Klein's body twice, confirming there were no abnormalities, before speaking again:

"It seems to be some kind of necromancy spell... Yes, you're right, it is indeed very realistic."

At this very moment, in a small inn not far away, Roger leaned back in his chair, watching Bandit jump around with a smile as he prepared the "Faceless" potion for Sam.

Just then, he heard a clear, cold female voice beside him:

"...Yes, cousin, I have fully digested my 'Necromancer' potion."

Cecilia's eyes looked strange:
"Who exactly was that cultist corpse whose appearance you altered, which you had me resurrect using my 'resurrection' ability, meant to be used against? And why did my potion digest instantly?"

Cecilia originally planned to figure out how to digest potions on her own, but her progress was not very good, since her job didn't offer many opportunities to play the role of a "necromancer".

She was too embarrassed to tell Roger these things, until Roger offered her such an opportunity, at which point Cecilia finally agreed.

Roger chuckled:
"Never mind that, he's just a 'big shot from the mysterious world' anyway."

Because he had tampered with the corpse beforehand using the power of two different source substances, Palles Zoroaster did not immediately notice its abnormality.

Judging from the fact that Cecilia was able to completely digest the potion, the old man must have been caught off guard and given a little fright.

“I said, cousin.”

At this moment, Sam's somewhat helpless voice came through:

"Why do you always come up with strange ways to help Cecilia digest potions? Why don't I get the same treatment?"

Roger said:
"You little rascal, I told you to go lie in a coffin after you finish taking the 'Faceless Man' potion, but you said you were afraid of getting shot. Otherwise, your potion would probably have been digested by now."

"I gave you a chance, but you didn't use it. What can I do?"

Sam immediately retorted:
“That’s the ‘Red Gloves.’ Cecilia only put a corpse in there. If she were to risk getting her head blown off and lie in there herself, would she dare?”

However, as soon as Sam finished speaking, Cecilia calmly nodded:

"dare.

"If my cousin says it's okay, then I dare to do it."

Roger immediately burst into laughter upon hearing this:
"Did you hear that, you brat? Compared to your sister, you still need to work on your mental fortitude."

While the three were chatting idly, Bandit tapped the table with its paw:

"Sam, the potion is ready, come and drink it."

"coming."

Sam perked up, nodded, and drank the "Faceless Man" potion in one gulp. Then he sat down on the ground and began to meditate.

“Cecilia, let’s go outside and talk. Don’t disturb Sam.”

Roger glanced at Bandit, who was guarding Sam, and then called Cecilia to the balcony.

Cecilia nodded, and then followed Roger outside.

“I happen to have some free time today, so I’ll help you prepare the ‘Gatekeeper’ potion later. I have all the materials on hand… I bought them all from the Church of the Goddess of Night. This is a channel that most people don’t have.”

Roger chuckled, and then added:

"After you digest the Sequence 5 potion, you can think about which direction you should advance in."

"I have the extraordinary characteristics of the 'undead' here, as well as the potion recipe. This is your own extraordinary path, and continuing down this path is perfectly acceptable."

"The only downside is that the ascension ceremony for the 'Undead' is quite grueling and risky, so if you can choose one of the other two adjacent paths to jump to the next level, that would be a good option as well."

The "Undead" ascension ritual involves the ascensionist finding an underground river tainted by death, performing a true funeral on its banks, burying themselves and the potion there for sixty days. If they fail to survive and retain a certain level of sanity after sixty days, the ritual fails.

This promotion ceremony sounds difficult, but it is actually not simple at all. Roger speculated that Ince Zangwell may have made some kind of mistake during this ceremony, which is why he failed to complete the promotion.

"As for 'Demon Hunter' and 'Night Watchman', they are actually quite good. I have the extraordinary characteristics of 'Demon Hunter' in mind. The only problem is that I need to find the corresponding potion recipe."

"I don't have the 'Dark Brain' and 'Heart of the Guardian of the Evil Moon' needed for the main materials of the 'Night Watch,' but I can try to find them for you... As for the ascension ritual, it requires collecting the bloodline characteristics of the descendants of the true gods. There are plenty of resources for this in Fursac. The only problem is that I might have to make some connections with the Church of the Night..."

As Roger finished speaking, he suddenly felt as if he were telling a horror joke. Ever since the "God of War" fell and His corresponding church was effectively controlled by the goddess, Badhall's descendants had suffered terribly.

Originally, the extraordinary characteristics of the descendants of the true gods were not easy to find, which greatly limited the progress of the Church of the Night Goddess in producing "Night Watchmen". Back then, in order to advance to Sequence 4, Ince even went to great lengths to dig out the skull of Salinger's grandson to complete the advancement. The whole process was incredibly difficult and full of surprises.

Now, the descendants of the "God of War" throughout the entire Fusak Empire have become a treasure trove for the Church of the Night to obtain the bloodline of the true god. From this point of view, "Goddess of the Night" Amanisis has truly devised a plan to wipe out the family and is really forcing the Badhall family to the brink of extinction.

Cecilia listened to Roger with a smile before nodding.
“Cousin, there’s no need to rush these things. I estimate it will take me several months to digest the ‘Gatekeeper’ potion, so you don’t need to worry too much about me… after all, your safety is the most important thing.”

"That's not necessarily true. If all else fails, you can apply for a doorman position at Charness Gate. They might be able to fill that position quickly."

Roger uttered a load of nonsense, then shook his head:

"You don't need to worry about promotions or anything like that. These things are easy for me now. Considering the future development of the family, we need more extraordinary individuals at the demigod level."

"Once you and Sam become demigods and the trading company's business is on track, I reckon those two brats, Alister and Perseus, will be in college by then."

"At that time, you can consider finding a few professional managers that you think are suitable. After that, I need you and Sam to find out if there are any other survivors of the Abraham family in the Northern Continent."

Roger had always believed that there were still young survivors of the Abraham family scattered around the world, and his and Sam's previous divinations had repeatedly confirmed this.

However, his four younger siblings were not yet fully grown, and he himself was too busy to have the time and energy to search for his surviving relatives.

However, Sam and Cecilia have both grown up and soon have the hope of becoming demigods, which is a good time for Roger to consider this matter.

On the other hand, Roger had previously asked Sam if he had any plans to jump back to the "Gate" pathway in Sequence 3, and Sam showed considerable hesitation.

He greatly admired the extraordinary abilities of the "diviner" path, but he also cherished the achievements and glory of the Abrahamic family in the "apprentice" path.

However, compared to the relatively safe "Diviner" path, Sam was terrified of the "Full Moon Curse" that Abraham's "Gate" path extraordinary individuals might suffer after advancing to a high position. Even with the protection of the "Primal Core," Sam's life would definitely not be easy, considering the similarity between Sam's bloodline and extraordinary abilities and Mr. Gate's mysticism.

To give Sam and Perseus more options, and also to realize Roger's own plans, he intends to begin exploring Koske Island after he advances to Sequence 3 and becomes the "Black Prophet," hoping to collect the last fragment needed to resurrect Mr. "Door" Bethel Abraham as soon as possible.

Once Mr. Door's curse is completely lifted, the Abraham family will once again become the angelic family of the Door pathway. At that time, their future path will become wider and brighter, and the family's revival will be a foregone conclusion.

"it is good."

Cecilia nodded obediently, and then she asked:

"Brother, are you coming back to Backlund with Sam and me tomorrow?"

"Back."

Roger nodded:

"I will stay home until Monday night before leaving."

"That's great."

Cecilia smiled:
"How about we go out for dinner as a family on Sunday night?"

"Let's change it to Monday. I have an astrology class on Sunday night."

Roger thought for a moment and remembered his agreement with Master Qiu.

Because he was busy on Wednesday and didn't have time to attend class, this Sunday will be his first class, barring any unforeseen circumstances.

"Okay."

Cecilia nodded. In any case, she would be happy as long as Roger agreed.

Then she asked, somewhat puzzled:
"You've taken on astrology classes outside of school? Can Sam and I audit them? What are the requirements?"

"Uh."

Roger waved his hand:

"I'm not the one giving the lectures; I'm the one listening to other people's lectures."

"You're attending someone else's class?"

Cecilia immediately gave a strange look:

"In Backlund, there's an astrologer who can give you lessons? Is he an angel?"

In Cecilia's view, Roger's astrological abilities were already top-notch. Unless one of the angels who became Sequence 2 or even Sequence 1 archangels through the "Apprentice," "Generalist," and "Secret Seeker" pathways could claim to have surpassed Roger in astrology, she couldn't think of any other being who could be Roger's teacher in this field.

"No."

Roger shook his head:

"That teacher is only Sequence 8, and is a 'Fighting Scholar'."

"A martial arts scholar?"

Cecilia's brow furrowed even more; she felt a profound sense of unease upon hearing those words.

If she remembered correctly, "Fighting Scholar" was the Sequence 8 name of the "Mysterious Seeker" pathway, which only had relatively strong astrological abilities up to Sequence 5, and at the Sequence 8 level, it was still more adept at fighting techniques.

The fact that a "fighting scholar" could teach astrology to Backlund's top demigod-level astrologers is, to use a somewhat imperfect analogy, like a chef who suddenly discovers a crazy knife technique and then teaches knife-fighting skills to high-ranking officers in the Rune military—it's like taking cross-disciplinary skills to the extreme.

"It's a complicated story, I'll tell you about it slowly when I have time."

Roger waved his hand, knowing that it would be difficult to explain the "Hessing School" to Cecilia, so he changed the subject for the time being.

At that moment, Sam's voice also came from inside the hotel room; he had successfully advanced to the "Faceless Man".

"Let's go in and I'll prepare the 'Gatekeeper' potion for you."

Roger smiled and patted Cecilia on the shoulder, and then the two went back inside.

……

At 7 p.m. the following evening, Roger, dressed in a long robe, arrived at Madison’s property on time. Under the curious gaze of his classmates, he entered the classroom with the surname “Otto” on the wall and found a seat.

About five minutes later, Master Qiu finally arrived, albeit late.

"Sorry, students, I overslept."

The middle-aged man shook his head, then placed the documents in his hand on the podium:
"Now, begin roll call!"

(End of this chapter)