Lord of Mysteries: Taiyi

Under Kut's watchful eye, Utravsky pulled a parchment from behind his back.

He smiled and said:

"You need to register your sequence abilities, the characteristics of extraordinary items, and basic information."

Kut nodded, then asked with some curiosity:

"Do priests also need to register these things?"

The priest smiled and said:

"You have received the blessing of the Mother Goddess, and you should join the Desolate Ones, but this is Backlund, and the Mother Goddess has given you the greatest freedom."

"So now you are a registered Wastelander, and your information will be recorded by the three major churches. If there are any special cases involving the supernatural, they may contact you to offer assistance."

Kurt took the parchment and noticed it resembled a contract. He frowned and said:

"An extraordinary item from the solar realm?"

As he spoke, Kurt quietly activated his spiritual vision but found nothing unusual. He also deliberately revealed his possession of a great deal of extraordinary knowledge, so that he could reduce his learning and explanation load later on.

"It seems you know more than I thought. Haha, it's just a regular contract, mainly for registering information."

"You are now being watched over by the Mother Goddess. I believe you will abide by the rules and covenants. You are someone whom God trusts."

Kurt's lips twitched. Thankfully, Lilith probably couldn't detect the Source Castle, and she wouldn't be idly watching him all day, otherwise he'd be able to clearly see a Chosen One by next Monday… He smiled and said frankly:

"The Mother Goddess clearly saw my piety."

Although he hadn't even memorized the Holy Scriptures... Kurt added quietly.

He then honestly filled out all his information truthfully, including the side effect of not being able to remove the ring, and also signed a confidentiality agreement.

Kurt had his own considerations here. In his previous exploration of the power of the source, he discovered that the power of the "Storyteller" pathway had the ability to create clones. This would expose his inescapable nature, although he could later create a replica. If discovered later, he could claim it was a gift from the Mother Goddess, something Kurt was reluctant to part with.

So I forgot to test it when filling out the report, and because of my devotion to the Mother Goddess, I never tested it again...

Finally, Utravsky communicated with the sanctuary via telegram, and then returned to Kurt, who was fiddling with the ring.

"The Sanctuary is very interested in your sequence; they want to acquire the formulas for Sequence Nine and Sequence Eight."

"You can choose to accumulate merit or choose gold pounds, and the church will pay you 1000 pounds."

They were very generous. The recipe for Sequence Nine costs about £220, and Sequence Eight costs about £450, totaling around £700. The church gave them £1000 directly.

After all, it's probably a "completely new" approach, though it's possible that this approach appeared in the mysterious world because of my own changes.

Kurt's need for gold pounds wasn't too great at the moment, so he looked at the giant-like bishop and asked:

"What's the use of meritorious service?"

"Accumulate enough merit points, and you can use them to exchange for the next series of potions, or materials."

"You can also apply for sealed artifacts. Since you are now a registered member of the Wastelanders, you can access some information about sealed artifacts."

Utravsky paused for a moment, then added:

"You can accumulate merit by providing potion recipes, magical items, or completing quests."

Kut nodded, pondering to himself, "If I apply to the church for potion ingredients, they might suspect where I got the recipe from and how much I have. This could make the church suspect that I've joined a secret organization. But it's hard to hide my promotion from the church. That's the downside of joining the church."

Of course, with the church's help, many potion ingredients that the Tarot Society couldn't obtain immediately now have a stable way to acquire. At worst, they can just hand over the potion recipes and accumulate merit points. Moreover, they didn't inquire about the source of Sequence Seven and the prerequisite recipes and potions, which indeed gave them a lot of privacy.

Kurt suspected that this was a benefit he received as a "chosen one," perhaps a special "care" from the Mother Goddess. Maybe the Mother Goddess knew he had source potential, so she felt that letting him grow freely would make him grow faster? Or perhaps it was because the people in the church unconditionally believed in "chosen ones."

So for now, they should be good traitors and serve the Mother Goddess wholeheartedly. Once they become powerful, they won't have a say in the matter.

"I choose to accumulate merits," Kurt made his decision.

Father Utravsky nodded and spoke gently:

"I will relay your decision to the church, and for now, I will be your mentor."

"I'll first familiarize you with the work and impart some extraordinary knowledge. Of course, I'm only temporary. The 'Church of the Favored Ones' will send professionals to guide you later."

Upon hearing the words "professional," Kurt paused for a moment, then asked in surprise:

"Is being a priest really that complicated?"

Utravsky closed his eyes briefly and then spoke:

"The sealing artifact bestowed upon you by the Mother Goddess is exceptionally powerful, and you are currently a nominal 'Wilderness One.' You can remain in Backlund, but when the Church needs your strength, you may have to 'go on business.' Once you are strong enough, you will go to the Sanctuary to assume a higher position. Learning some mystical knowledge and combat skills is necessary."

Did they assume I could become powerful? Did they know I had a follow-up formula? Was I specially cultivated by the Mother Goddess to become a henchman? After several thoughts flashed through Kurt's mind, he nodded helplessly. After all, this was his original goal, but it had just gone a little too smoothly.

"The Mother Goddess has given you great freedom. You only need to come to church for two hours each day, and I will train you in the basics of being a priest during that time."

Kurt made a few cursory dots on his chest to draw a symbol of life, then shook his head with a wry smile.

"Praise be to Mother Goddess, I will keep my promise. Now I need to think about how to explain this to Lori."

Utravsky smiled:

"You can tell your sister the truth, but that would require her to sign a confidentiality agreement or join the Church of Mother Earth, so that she too can become an Extraordinary."

The extraordinary are a bunch of pathetic creatures constantly fighting against madness... This thought popped into Kurt's mind, so he subconsciously shook his head and rejected the idea. However, becoming a Sequence Nine didn't seem to be a big problem, since with himself and the church around, there wouldn't be any major issues.

"You can also keep this from your sister and come to the church just to volunteer. In time, you can become a priest legitimately."

After the priest finished speaking, he took out an iron ear of wheat from somewhere and handed it to Kurt.

"This is a church token that can prove your identity to members of other churches."

Kurt took the iron wheat stalk, feeling its cool touch, and complained, "Why not silver?" Then he wondered if this was some kind of hint from the church.

So it's already confirmed that I'm going to cause trouble? No, maybe I'm just being prejudiced, since I do want to get involved in some events from the original story.

Each member should receive such a token, but perhaps these details were omitted in the original work for the sake of length.

"Do I have any other tasks?"

"Like, catching vampires?" Kurt added in his mind.

"One side effect of the ring the Mother Goddess gave you is that it attracts vampires; perhaps this is a revelation and mission She has given you."

Utravski paused for a moment, then chuckled and said:

"The Mother Goddess loves these little guys. If you encounter vampires, you can try to change their beliefs and make them worship the Earth Mother Goddess."

"By the way, do you know anything about vampires? I don't know your level of occult knowledge yet."

"He's definitely taller than you," Kurt thought to himself. He realized that the Church didn't seem to care about his past. They might investigate him secretly, but the Church's power in Backlund wouldn't allow them to do so.

Would he ask the night watchman for help? Or does he truly trust me unconditionally? If that's the case, I can make some unusual moves in advance. They might think I've joined a secret gathering, but with the blessing of the Mother Goddess, I certainly won't threaten the church. And that's exactly the case. He naturally wouldn't intentionally make an enemy of the Church of the Earth Mother Goddess; that would be pure idiocy.

Kurt responded in a low voice:

"I know a little about vampires," Kurt said, amused, "and I can even find the White family." He thought for a moment about the scene of the White family, who lived a quiet life, being dragged into a church together. He smirked and continued, "As for the occult, I also know a little, but since I lack references, I don't know how good I am."