Mystery: The Silver Key

Chapter 383 Anchor

Alger, the "Hanged Man," glanced at Cyril and said thoughtfully, "I think you should give up exploring; it's extremely dangerous."

"According to the records I've read, most dragons are also flesh-and-blood beings, even the mind dragons."

"The fact that it can survive and even swim in the so-called ocean of the collective unconscious means that the dragon you saw has a high enough sequence and is likely a demigod."

"The Hermit" Cattleya nodded in agreement, saying, "The Hanged Man is right. To appear in the vast ocean of the collective unconscious, the other party must be at least an adult mental dragon, which corresponds to Sequence 5 of the 'Audience' pathway."

"But to truly roam freely in the ocean of the collective unconscious, one must at least be a demigod."

"Moreover, aside from the giant dragon you saw, the ocean of the collective unconscious itself is dangerous enough."

"That is the ocean of the collective subconscious of all living beings. The evil thoughts, desires and terrifying memories deposited there come not only from humans, but also from evil spirits, evil gods and even some terrifying beings."

"They are like storms, reefs, and whirlpools at sea; if you're not careful, they can swallow up ships that sail nearby."

""

The advice from "The Hanged Man" Alger and "The Hermit" left Audrey somewhat disappointed, but she had to admit that what they said made a lot of sense and was very sincere.

"It's alright, Audrey, Sequence 5 isn't difficult, as long as that dragon doesn't leave before then."

Audrey, who was comforting herself in her mind, looked at Cyril, curious about what advice this equally learned member of the Tarot Club would give her.

Noticing the gaze from "Miss Justice," Cyril turned slightly to the side and said jokingly, "My suggestion is to take me with you."

Huh? "Justice" Audrey paused for a moment... "Fate" didn't advise me, but instead wanted to explore the ocean of the collective unconscious with me?

At the very top, "The Fool" Klein resisted the urge to turn his head to the side, and instead had the smaller "World" turn its head to glance at him.

Is this guy also interested in dragons?

That seems to make sense. He boarded the ship to find "Admiral Iceberg" because of the book "The Travels of Grosser," which is related to dragons, and his injured messenger was very likely an ancient dragon.

Audrey thought for a moment, then instead of answering directly, she asked curiously, "Mr. 'Destiny,' are you also interested in dragons?"

Cyril shook his head slightly: "I'm not interested in ordinary dragons, but I am very interested in the one you met."

"You recognize it?" Audrey looked surprised, then quickly asked, "Is it special?"

"Or perhaps you're familiar with fate, sir?"

As "Justice" asked the question, the other members on both sides of the mottled long table cast curious glances. Everyone was very interested in the dragon, especially one that could swim in the ocean of the collective subconscious.

"It should be Him, one of the three ancient dragons that are currently still alive."

"The local dragon worship custom you mentioned earlier is a way that dragons commonly use to obtain anchors."

"The ability to freely explore the ocean of the collective unconscious without any restrictions is a capability possessed only by the ancient dragons. Before them, the spiritual dragons could only allow their consciousness and spirit to explore the ocean of the collective unconscious."

"Ancient Dragon!" Audrey's eyes revealed undisguised astonishment.

According to what Mr. "Destiny" mentioned before, Gu Long was already an angelic being.

I saw an angel, and a dragon at that, deep in the ocean of the collective unconscious, and finally returned safely!

May the goddess... no, may Mr. Fool protect me!

"Anchor?" Alger lowered his brow and repeated the word in a low voice. "The Hanged Man."

His intuition told him that the word "fate" he casually mentioned was important, and that it might be a true secret belonging to the angelic level.

He turned to look at Cyril, hesitated briefly, and then asked, "What do you mean by 'anchor'?"

On the other side of the mottled long table, "The Hermit" Cattleya turned her head slightly. She was also very concerned about this issue, but unlike "The Hanged Man," she had some knowledge and speculation about the anchor.

Cyril raised an eyebrow and said, "This should be considered paid knowledge. Do you want to know?"

Alger fell into thought, while Cattleya, on the other side, spoke first, asking, "What kind of price will be required? Gold pounds, magical items, or knowledge of similar value?"

Cyril pondered for a moment before replying, "I have no shortage of magical items; 500 pounds or knowledge of equal value will do."

£500... "The Magician" Fors and "The Moon" Emlyn, who were initially very curious about the topic, instantly lost their minds.

"The Sun," Derrick, raised his hand and said, "Can I trade the myths of Silver City for it?"

Cyril nodded: "Okay, you have a second option. Find an opportunity to help me hold a ceremony. I want to try to locate you."

"Locate me here..."

After a brief moment of thought, Derrick nodded emphatically: "No problem, but I need to get the chief's approval first."

"Okay." Sirion nodded.

Soon, others also gave their feedback. "Justice" Audrey and "The Hanged Man" Alger chose to pay in gold pounds, while "The Hermit" Cattleya paid the same amount in information.

The World, the Magician, and the Moon remained silent.

Then Cyril requested a private conversation with the group from the "Fool" at the head of the table, who intended to eavesdrop openly.

Ignoring the gaze cast by Cyril, "The Fool" Klein tapped the edge of the table lightly with his finger and said calmly, "You may begin."

Cyril's gaze swept quickly around before he organized his thoughts and said, "As Beyonders progress to higher sequences, the contamination from their Beyond traits becomes increasingly severe. At this point, they need 'anchors' to maintain their human identity."

"But it's important to note that the 'anchor' is not a tool to help maintain humanity; in fact, the 'anchor' itself is a form of pollution."

"Its main function is to form corresponding cognition, positioning, and image, which counteracts the spiritual imprint within extraordinary characteristics and maintains a delicate balance."

"Under this balance, one's own humanity can barely be maintained, without being significantly affected by either side."

""

"An anchor can be a relative, a friend, or even an enemy; it can also be a believer."

"Therefore, the beginning of a war between gods is often a war between mortals, in order to remove each other's anchors."

"When the number of anchors decreases to a certain level, the state of the true god will become unstable, and then the war of the gods will begin."

After he finished speaking, a long silence suddenly fell on both sides of the mottled long table.

Under the shroud of gray fog, Klein's thoughts couldn't help but wander... No wonder both righteous and evil gods in this world have churches and preach to ordinary people.

Perhaps the distinction between righteous and evil gods today is simply the division between the victors and vanquished in the struggle for faith back then...

The Hermit, Cattleya; the Hanged Man, Alger; and the Justice, Audrey, all thought of Mr. Fool, who was responding to the believers on behalf of the Sea God, and turned their heads to look at him without any particular order.

At the head of the long, weathered table, "The Fool" Klein was still deep in thought, leaning back leisurely in his high-backed chair, seemingly oblivious to everything around him.

The Fool's calm and silent demeanor stirred even greater waves in Alger's heart.

Did Mr. Fool send his followers, represented by "The World," to Bayam to steal the anchor belonging to "Sea God"?

To make the faith offered by the "Sea God" followers more aligned with his own, he altered the image of the "Sea God" and bestowed the Ten Commandments upon them...

For Mr. Fool, the local followers of the Sea God were the real focus, which explains why he allowed Fate to take the Book of Calamities.

He and the being behind "Fate" are plotting against the "Sea God's" anchor, and plotting against the Sequence 2 property left behind by the "Queen of Calamities," Goshinam, in the "Book of Calamities"!

Therefore, the one behind "Destiny" is the one who is truly stealing the power that belongs to "Storm"!

goo~

Alger's throat bobbed, then he turned his head to look at Sirion.

He felt as if he had guessed some incredible secret and subconsciously wanted to verify it, but "fate," leaning back in its chair, did not give him any response.

...No, sometimes not responding is also a form of attitude.

On the other side, "Justice" Audrey also thought of Mr. Fool's actions in responding to the believers on behalf of "Sea God": Mr. Fool responded to the believers in order to obtain an anchor, and obtaining the anchor was to stabilize his own state...

In other words, Mr. Fool has now recovered to the level of a demigod, or even an angel?

Perhaps the members of our Tarot Club are also anchors prepared by Mr. Fool for himself, anchors that are closer and deeper than those of the "Neptune" believers!

As Audrey's thoughts wandered, she was genuinely happy for Mr. Fool's further recovery.

Each resurgence of Mr. Fool signifies that our Tarot will become even stronger...

The Hermit, Cattleya, was recalling in her mind the size of the "Sea God" followers on the Roseside Islands.

Despite being suppressed by the Storm Church and the Rune military, "Sea God" still has a wide following in the waters of the Roseside Islands, and his influence is considerable.

This includes not only the local indigenous people, but also pirates and adventurers who spend their lives at sea. They mostly hold awe for these beings who control the storms at sea, and have some degree of faith in them.

While such faith may not be considered devout, its numbers are certainly not small.

In terms of the number of believers, "Sea God" even surpasses "Hidden Sage," who has the faith provided by the Ascetic Order of Moss.

This means that the stable upper limit of the "Sea God" faith is not a Sequence 3 like Kavituwa, but a real evil god that can be referred to as Him.

This can be glimpsed from Mr. Fool's casual attitude toward the scepter symbolizing the "Sea God," suggesting that his status must be far above that of the "Sea God."

As her thoughts drifted, her awe and fear of the "Fool" deepened.

Taking a deep breath, her gaze fell upon Sirion, who was leisurely leaning back in his chair opposite her. The thoughts she had just suppressed resurfaced: the existence and function of the "anchor" were truly secrets, perhaps even unknown to ordinary saints...

"Destiny" also knows a lot about the ancient dragons. Based on just a few fragmented descriptions from Miss "Justice," it can deduce that the other party encountered one of the three remaining ancient dragons in the ocean of the collective unconscious.

Perhaps more than that, he may have even identified the ancient dragon.

Ancient dragons also appeared in the Bayam incident mentioned by "The Hanged Man" before, and "Fate" seems to know a lot about the whole thing, as if he was a firsthand witness.

He was also one of the demigods and angels involved in the Bayam incident, a descendant of the ancient dragons, or perhaps he himself was one of the three remaining ancient dragons.

The moment the guess flashed through her mind, Gadriya quickly gathered her thoughts and stopped thinking about it.

As far as she knew, the most representative of all dragons was the Mind Dragon, which belonged to the "Audience" pathway, characterized by keen observation.

"Sun" Derrick sat quietly in his seat, still pondering Cyril's description of "Anchor".

He didn't think as much as the others, but after seeing Miss Justice and Mr. Hanged Man looking at Mr. Fool, he followed suit and cast his gaze as well.

Seeing that everyone was looking at him, "The Fool" Klein did not say anything, and ended the one-on-one conversation after no one spoke.

After their private conversation ended, Audrey "Justice," slightly disappointed at not receiving any hints or advice from Mr. "Fool," turned to Cyril: "Mr. Destiny, do you intend to search for that ancient dragon in the ocean of the collective unconscious?"

Cyril nodded slightly: "I have that idea, but we still need coordinates."

Audrey's eyes lit up: "I know that place, if it—no, if He hasn't left yet."

"However, I entered the ocean of the collective unconscious through my own dreams, and I do not yet have the ability to bring others in with me."

"The ocean of the collective unconscious does not completely overlap with the real world, and I cannot give specific coordinates."

"Furthermore, I cannot determine whether that ancient dragon harbored malicious intent."

"Also, it was an ancient dragon. Is it possible that it sensed some of my thoughts through the collective unconscious ocean and left that place beforehand, or left a trap?"

Cyril pondered for a moment before replying, "Possibly."

"Anyone who dared to delve into the vast ocean of the collective unconscious during their 'psychologist' phase, and who was fortunate enough to avoid all dangers and successfully meet Him, will retain a certain level of attention from Him, even if it's just out of curiosity or interest."

Audrey smiled awkwardly. If she had known beforehand how dangerous the collective unconscious ocean was, she would never have dared to try it.

...I will at least wait until I become a Sequence 6 or Sequence 5 and have learned enough information from the Psychological Alchemy before I try.