Mystery: When the Fool Meets the Masked Fool

Chapter 573 Simultaneous Advancement to Ethereal Ghost and Mysterious Servant (4,000 words)
Through the overhead light, Klein saw the potion in the glass bottle refracting colorful light.

They seemed to have a living consciousness, twisting into various shapes inside the bottle, forming one human face after another, and these faces seemed to converge into codes of 0s and 1s.

Klein raised his head and poured the potion into his mouth.

In an instant, he lost his sense of his physical body and the "spirit worms" within him, watching helplessly as they dissipated and merged into the spirit world, which could not be described in normal language or understood with normal logic, seemingly about to disintegrate into abstract and complex information.

One after another, translucent toys appeared around him, swirling around him.

Everything about him spread in the form of memes, appearing in the minds of people throughout Loen and Silver City, and even in parts of Intis, Fussac, and Lunburg.

At this moment, Klein's consciousness was barely preserved, and he still possessed self-awareness.

Everyone who had a problem with the Church of the Fools felt their emotions surge in an instant.

This also includes Leonard Mitchell, who harbored resentment towards the Fool because of Klein.

Those who believed in the Fool's Church or admired Mr. Fool also experienced significant emotional fluctuations at this moment.

The potion entered the mouth and quickly spread throughout the body, permeating every part and every cell.

Like a consciousness floating in the spirit world filled with countless strange figures, after losing the ability to sense the body and its extraordinary characteristics, it further endures the onslaught of all kinds of thoughts, information, knowledge, symbols and signs, teetering on the edge of completely losing itself and becoming one with the spirit world.

At this moment, a light gray mist began to spread.

The Source Castle, perched high above the Spirit Realm, began to stir.

A black "velvet curtain" was spontaneously projected, falling into the spirit world, quickly disintegrating into countless fragments that drifted towards Klein's spirit insects along the connection.

Without consuming any supplementary materials or preparing any magic potions, they directly left the Source Castle and flew into the Spirit Realm.

This appears to be a reinforcement of the law of aggregation of extraordinary properties.

It could also be a vulnerability from some higher being, or a deception.

Klein's head exploded, but instead of blood and flesh splattering, it transformed into data composed of 0s and 1s.

Klein's main body, starting from his neck, gradually digitized downwards until it was completely transformed into data and merged into the room and the space.

Finally, Klein vanished, completely transformed into data.

His consciousness spread out, going further and further away.

Gradually, Klein lost sight of who he was and what he was.

He seems to be just a mass of data; he can be anything.

He can become a flower if he wants to.

If he wants to become a mountain, he can become a mountain.

He can also turn into sweet iced tea, into a Dipsy pie, into a gold pound...

If this continues, Klein will definitely lose his way completely.

He sensed that people were letting their mouths and ears dart into public opinion and rumors, indulging everything that had been suppressed.

Watching people follow the tide of public opinion, praising those with ulterior motives while oppressing the innocent...

That's really interesting.

He couldn't wait to shatter, copy, and divide his own consciousness, scattering it into this murky water. Amidst the lively discussions, they closely observed one farce after another that delighted onlookers.

They have their own preferences, their own personalities, their own principles, and their own destinies.

Gradually, they began to get involved.

What a delightful story, the chaotic sounds spreading like tentacles.

He plunged headlong into the sea of ​​numbers, using the splashes of water to mask his loud laughter.

They may incite arguments or engage in wanton fraud.

They are the best performers, bringing all sorts of laughs.

One ghost plays the clown, another ghost mocks, and yet another ghost calls for applause from the audience.

They cursed, and the audience joined in their contempt; they shouted, and the audience roared along with them.

Fragments of the black velvet curtain appeared, seemingly trying to envelop them.

But they are too lazy to pay attention and unwilling to accept it, quickly disappearing into the world's information and public opinion.

Even the extraordinary characteristics of the Sequence One "Mysterious Servant" cannot catch them.

Gradually, the black velvet curtain seemed to get lost in the spirit world, attracting the covetous eyes of countless spirit beings.

As time passed, Klein's consciousnesses gradually noticed something even more interesting.

They sensed that a spear was being pointed at them.

Oh my god, have they been caught? This is going to be hilarious; they'll definitely have to go see what's going on.

Ah, it seems not. It was just some trivial matter, a discussion about "fools," and a verbal attack on a god.

Pity.

But this seems quite interesting.

Klein's consciousness merged into it, continuing to try to fuel the public opinion.

But this time, they seem to have run into trouble.

In the world of information, a figure gradually emerges.

That was Klein shrouded in gray fog, Mr. Fool.

As soon as Klein's consciousnesses got closer, they discovered that the body was devouring them.

They tried to escape, but the massive torrent swept them away.

They couldn't escape; their fate was to be "devoured" by Klein.

Fear? Horror? Resistance?
None of these.

Klein's consciousnesses just found it amusing.

Haha, they fooled themselves.

It's still countless versions of myself.

The torrent of public opinion converged to form the real Klein.

Good, bad, extreme, neutral...

Countless comments fixed Klein's physical form, preventing it from spreading again. A portion of Klein's consciousness awakened.

The black velvet curtain wanted to merge with the newly awakened Klein.

At this moment, a certain area of ​​the spirit world made contact with the remaining part of Klein's consciousness.

The "mysterious servant" characteristic was immediately detected, and it disappeared from its original spot, appearing in the spirit world town that did not exist.

That corresponds to a real town where people live ordinary lives. They have their own names, their own stories, and their own destinies, all intertwined and intertwined, bringing complete spiritual information, which is a concept in the abstract sense.

The fragments of the "black velvet curtain" disappeared into the corresponding area of ​​the spirit world, merging into one secret puppet after another.

Having lost track of Klein himself, it had to settle for second best.

Klein sensed a series of chaotic and complex pieces of information.

I played the lyre by the fountain in the town square; I cut steak with a knife and fork; I preached the teachings of the goddess to the faithful in the church; I extended my right hand and, with the courteous help of a gentleman, got off the carriage; I received the new dress I had been longing for and couldn't wait to put it on; I laughed loudly and stumbled around playing with a dog; I watched a comedy in a space called "The Dominion Theatre"; I went on stage myself in the Dominion Theatre to a man named Inszangwell...

I sat at home, listening to negative news about the Fool through the cash register; I sat at my desk in the classroom, pontificating about conspiracy theories about the "Fool"; I was a staunch believer in the Fool, and I had a big argument with a few friends in defense of Mr. Fool's dignity; I listened to rumors; I joined in, I carefully examined the facts, I fueled the flames; I was being chased by a child on all fours...

Suddenly, we all shuddered and looked up at the sky, where we saw ethereal, fine lines emerging from our bodies, stretching towards the infinite heights, towards a gray-white mist, and towards an ancient palace, landing in the hands of a lofty figure shrouded in mist.

“Conspiracy theory…” One of the puppets raised its finger and pointed at the figure in the sky, only to be slapped on the head by the puppet next to it.

The town appears to have suffered a massive disaster.

What was it? It looked like the sky had collapsed? Or perhaps dusk had transformed into a giant sword and cleaved down?

But none of that matters. What matters is that "Mr. Fool" intervened and protected Utopia.

Mr. Fool's reputation in Utopia has improved.

A more intense conflict erupted between the "anti-fool" rhetoric and the "anti-fool" movement.

Klein dispersed like mist, almost merging into the spirit world's body. Guided by fate, he combined with the spirit world projections of different Utopia puppets, regaining his physical form.

They suddenly came to their senses and realized what their most essential identity was.

Is it Zhou Mingrui, or Klein Moretti, or Sherlock Moriarty, Gehrman Sparrow, Dawn Dantes, or Merlin Hermes?

One thing can have many names.

But its essence will not change.

These "people" raised their heads, gazing at the infinite heights from the illusory city in the spirit world.

They saw illusory, intricate lines of spirit energy.

I saw a symbol composed of a part of an "eye without pupils", a part of a "twisted line", a "joyful smile" and several "harmonious knots".

Centered around this symbol, the figure of a second Klein is depicted, with his eyes tightly closed.

Klein, surrounded by a torrent of public opinion, also looked up and saw this scene.

His body leaped swiftly from the spirit realm and flew towards its highest point.

One by one, “spirit worms”, a few extraordinary characteristics, and a series of self-awarenesses were projected onto the first Klein, reshaping his somewhat illusory body and gradually giving it substance.

At this point, there was no longer a clear boundary between Klein's spirit and his physical body; they were both one and separate, existing in a rather delicate state.

In other words, the spirit body can be equal to the flesh and blood body, and the flesh and blood body can also merge into the spirit body. As long as Klein is willing, he can switch between these two states at any time. Of course, he can also separate the flesh and blood body and the spirit body, each with its own characteristics. It's just a matter of a thought.

Klein flew into the spirit realm, and the second Klein opened his eyes.

Klein, who was floating deep in the spirit world, opened his eyes. His pupils were now only deep black, without a trace of light.

He looked at Klein, his eyes devoid of spirit, humanity, and only divinity.

The moment He opened His eyes, the entire spirit world was in turmoil, as if the entire spirit world was cheering and jumping for joy.

This is neither the scenario that should occur when a "mysterious waiter" is born.

But at that moment, a deluge of negative public opinion emerged, turning into spears that pierced directly at the dark-eyed "Klein," becoming anchored information that locked him in the form of "Klein."

Klein had just raised his hand, attempting to mobilize the entire spirit world to suppress these ignorant commentators and turn them into puppets.

He knew He could do it.

Even if He doesn't possess any extraordinary characteristics right now, He can do it as long as there is a "spirit realm," because He is the ruler of the spirit realm...

puff.

A hand pierced through His chest.

"The final step of the ceremony is to put an end to this public opinion."

"This is the final destination of every baseless opinion."

The voice of the ancient sun god echoed across the astral plane.

He said that Klein's path to becoming the "Lord of Mysteries" would be smooth.

And what He said will surely become reality.

At the same time, the power of the Lord of the Stars descended, instantly severing His connection with the Spirit Realm.

Having gained physical form, Klein raised his hand and pierced through the chest of Klein, whose eyes were deep black.

Klein, with his deep black eyes, watched this scene without resistance or flinching.

But the corners of his mouth gradually turned up, widening and widening until they tore open, eventually tearing open his lips and his skin.

"Ha." He let out a laugh.

Damn it, these people actually tricked Him into coming out to kill Him.

Although I won't actually die, it's such a pity that the consciousness I've painstakingly cultivated is just going to dissipate like this...

He looked up at the starry sky and saw the ancient sun god, and in a daze, he seemed to see the God who had always been at odds with him.

That old geezer, he's writing a script and arranging it for me again.

…………

P.S.: How was it?
How many people guessed it? Did they guess the ritual of the "etheric ghost"?

I feel like I've hinted quite clearly, but not a single person in the comments section has said anything...

I'm so disappointed.

(End of this chapter)