Mystery: The Undead Don't Die from Linking the Fire

Chapter 231 Leapfrog Promotion

"One last question."

"What?" Elaine looked nervously at the crazy adventurer who had kidnapped her.

Klein raised his gaze slightly, and his facial muscles twitched:

"How big are your breasts really?"

"..." Elaine was taken aback at first, then her face turned red.

This wasn't a blush of shyness, but rather the kind of blush that comes from wanting to punch someone in the chin.

Klein's gaze didn't waver; he calmly added:

"This is an academic question."

"..." Seeing that there was no lust in the other person's eyes, Elaine took a breath, closed her eyes, and answered the question from before.

Klein glanced at Elaine's chest, which was flattened by strips of cloth, and to be honest, you really couldn't tell from the surface.

Before the other party could get angry, Klein calmly looked away and took out a ship ticket and a stack of papers:

"New identification documents, and a ferry ticket to the port of Tiana."

"Once we get there, we'll buy the ones from Pulitzer Port."

Elaine was both wary and nervous. She silently took the tickets and documents, picked up her suitcase, and carefully stepped off the carriage, where she saw the ship she was going to board.

Klein followed behind her, watching her board the passenger ship, and out of the corner of his eye, he noticed that Danitz was struggling to hold back his laughter.

Klein turned around, walked back to the carriage, and asked casually:

"Did you hear the conversation clearly just now?"

"No, no, just a little bit, just a little bit..." Danitz shook his head with a dry laugh.

To be honest, he really had no idea what Klein was up to.

After going through so much trouble to find out Elaine's whereabouts, all they got in the end was a few questions. And they were all things like what food she liked, what she was allergic to, and what her habitual actions and verbal tics were.

To the uninitiated, it might sound like a suitor asking his crush about her hobbies, but even Danitz, who had never been in a relationship, knew that no woman would like to be questioned like that.

At least Danitz wouldn't ask the captain that question—

Although Vice Admiral Edwina is fond of teaching, she never refuses to answer the crew's questions and even enjoys seeing them ask questions actively, as it makes them seem very eager to learn and not like an illiterate person who knows nothing.

But if anyone dared to ask such a private question to her face like Gehrman Sparrow did, the captain would certainly give her a lesson she would never forget—

For example, there was this guy with the bow tie who wished to remain anonymous, "Yodson." This piece of trash brazenly asked the captain about his measurements the first time they met, and naturally, he got what he wanted—he was left hanging on the ram for three days and three nights by the captain…

This glorious achievement is still talked about today, and the crew members often bring it up to mock Jodson. After all, that bastard was really unlikable, and none of the captains liked him.

He thinks he can chase after the captain? Bullshit, go eat your ass!

Danitz scoffed, his emotions devoid of any rationality, driven entirely by personal agendas.

Klein nodded slightly and said:

"I have to remember it, otherwise it will be easy to tell that it's fake."

"Being recognized as a fake... me?" Danitz raised his hand blankly and pointed to his own nose.

Klein said without changing his expression:

"She's from the Sauron family and possesses extraordinary counter-tracking skills. Combined with her subtle movements and actions just now, it's enough to confirm that she's Sequence 7 of the 'Hunter' pathway, the 'Pyromaniac.' This suits you well, and you can play the role perfectly."

"Me? I can't! I can't make up like that at all! I'll be recognized in an instant!" Danitz exclaimed in surprise.

Klein suppressed a laugh and said in a low voice:

"I will lend you 'the creeping hunger'."

"...No, no, I have no experience in this area. I definitely can't hide it from 'General Disease's' subordinates!"

Danitz was extremely nervous and terrified as he tried to refuse. In his eyes, this was utterly bullshit and shameful, something only a pervert or a madman could do without any psychological barrier!

Klein nodded in agreement, saying expressionlessly:

"Indeed, you're rather foolish."

Danitz forced a smile: "Yes, I'm stupid."

So what if I'm stupid? At least I'm not ashamed.

Klein stopped talking, walked past Danitz, and opened the carriage door.

Danitz's gaze followed instinctively, and he suddenly noticed that Gehrman Sparrow's sideburns had turned red.

He blinked blankly and saw that the other person's profile had softened, his eyes were deep green, and his lips were slightly pursed, showing a slight weakness and sway, with a kind of androgynous handsomeness, exactly the same as Elaine who had just left.

"..." After watching Gehrman Sparrow's figure enter the carriage, Danitz turned around and his lips twitched twice.

What a madman! He can turn into a woman without hesitation!

Inside the carriage, Klein was not as calm as he appeared.

According to the measurements Elaine provided, his chest became heavy, and so did his mood.

I'm so embarrassed, I feel like dying.

but--

What does the woman Gehrman Sparrow transform into have to do with Klein?

"Yes, that's right. What does Gehrman Sparrow's disgrace have to do with me, Klein?"

Klein took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down.

-

Backlund, Queens.

In the luxurious carriage adorned with the Hall family crest, Audrey suddenly said:

"I want to go home."

The witch sitting opposite the girl pretended not to understand, looked around, and asked in confusion:

"Aren't we going home?"

Audrey, somewhat helpless, had no choice but to make things clear:

"I want to go home. Are you still going to come with me?"

"certainly."

Carula smiled and said, "Didn't I tell you? I'll stay with you until he comes back."

"But aren't you preparing for a promotion?"

Audrey frowned slightly and offered a reminder.

The higher the rank, the greater the risk of promotion.

Advancing from a lower sequence to a middle sequence is one hurdle, and advancing from a middle sequence to a demigod is another. The risks faced by a demigod advancing to an angel might even be greater than those faced by an angel at sequence 1 advancing to a true god at sequence 0!

It was Karula who told her this information. Audrey originally thought that Karula would start preparing for her promotion, but Karula didn't seem to show any need for it at all. Instead, she seemed to have a deep obsession with following Audrey, or you could say resentment.

"Promotion?"

Carla blinked, seemingly finally understanding what Audrey was saying, and chuckled, "Who told you I was preparing for a promotion right now?"

Audrey was already used to Carula's unpredictable nature and said without much expression:

"You said it yourself, that you were going to start preparing for promotion to Sequence 2, or were you lying to me?"

"No, that's not it~"

Carula smiled and said, "I'm not lying to you, I did need to prepare for my promotion back then."

What does "at that time" mean?

Audrey had this question in her mind, somewhat confused, but quickly seemed to realize something. She looked at Carula with some surprise and couldn't help but ask:

"Are you already a Sequence 2 angel?"

"certainly."

Carula didn't keep them in suspense, smiling and nodding as she readily admitted it.

Audrey stared in astonishment at the witch opposite her, though she had already guessed the answer. But when she heard Carula admit it herself, she was still somewhat incredulous!

After all, Karula had been staying on the train these past few days, and even came to "have heart-to-heart talks" with Audrey from time to time. Under these circumstances, even though Audrey had finished digesting the "psychotherapist" potion, she had not yet chosen to advance to the Rank 6 "hypnotist".

Before she could even advance to Sequence 6, Karula had already quietly advanced to Sequence 2 Angel!

What happened to the rule that promotions above Rank 5 in the lower tiers would require a ritual?

Wasn't it supposed to be that the higher the rank, the more complicated the promotion rituals would be?

She almost instinctively suspected that Karula was lying, but her intuition told her that Karula was telling the truth.

Audrey suddenly asked:

"When?"

Karula thought about it carefully for a moment, then answered casually:

Three days ago.

Three days ago, on Monday.

At that time, Audrey had just finished a tarot session, and it was then that Carula revealed to her her desire to advance to Sequence 2 Angel, and even tentatively asked her if she craved power.

Audrey pursed her lips and said silently:

"So, you just said you wanted to be promoted to Sequence 2, and then you immediately completed the promotion?"

"Pretty much," Karula said with a wink and a smile.

"You said this would be dangerous."

"Just to correct you, I never said that~"

Audrey gazed calmly at Carla. Although the other woman hadn't explicitly stated it, her tone and expression hinted at and guided her to make similar inferences.

Karula smiled and said:

"Of course, promotion itself is indeed very dangerous. Even with the assistance of rituals, the risk of contamination and loss of control is not reduced much. On the contrary, it will follow you like a persistent disease, and you will lose your mind if you are not careful."

Audrey frowned slightly and asked in confusion:

"How did you do that?"

Audrey was no stranger to the risk of things getting out of control, having experienced it firsthand. While it was difficult to imagine just how great the risk of losing control was for high-sequence systems, she was acutely aware of the difficulties involved.

But Karula seemed to be an anomaly. What was a risk that could kill a demigod was just a trivial matter for her, something she could do anytime, as easily as eating and drinking...

Carula looked at Audrey with some surprise, seemingly astonished that she would ask such a question.

Audrey was puzzled, but Carula suddenly said something that surprised her:

"I already told you the answer."

"What's the answer?"

Audrey looked bewildered, and then she saw Karula open her fair little hand, with a bright flame in her palm.

That wasn't an ordinary flame; it had another name—

"King's Soul".

Audrey murmured softly. Three days ago, Carula had asked her if she craved power and explained to her what the King's Soul was. But at that time, Audrey didn't understand what the King's Soul really meant, nor did she know how the King's Soul could make her stronger.

Now, it seems that all of this has an answer.

"Can the King's Soul replace the Ascension Ceremony?"

Audrey looked up at Carula and asked.

She believed that Karula possessed the extraordinary properties of Audience Path Sequence 2 and that Karula could resist the risk of going out of control, but she didn't think Karula could so easily complete the rituals required for advancement.

In other words, all of this was likely achieved through the King's Soul.

"You seem to have misunderstood something."

Carula's expression was somewhat amused, and she said jokingly:

"The so-called promotion ceremony is not a 'necessity' for promotion; its purpose is merely to reduce the risk of losing control. The same applies to potions. Taking a potion made by combining various secondary ingredients with extraordinary properties is safer than taking extraordinary properties directly."

"But all these cumbersome procedures can actually be eliminated, and taking extraordinary properties alone can achieve the same goal of advancement."

Audrey neither confirmed nor denied this.

If one were to use extraordinary traits for promotion alone, the risk of losing control would be 99%.

Therefore, completing the digestion of the previous sequence of potions can reduce this risk by 30%.

Choosing to combine the extraordinary properties into a potion before taking it can further reduce the risk by 10%.

The auxiliary ritual, on the other hand, takes a one-step approach, directly reducing the risk by at least 50%!

If these three elements are combined to form a complex but complete process, the overall risk of loss of control can be reduced by 90%!

One is 99%, the other is 9%, and the risks they face are almost worlds apart.

Therefore, unless absolutely necessary, no extraordinary individual would choose to use their extraordinary traits alone for advancement.

Of course, using extraordinary traits for promotion alone also has its advantages, namely saving money.

No need to buy additional potions and auxiliary materials, nor to inquire about or purchase the main materials. All you need to do is find an Extraordinary of the corresponding sequence, kill them, and you will get the ticket to advancement—some wild Extraordinary might have done just that.

But Audrey is not short of money. If she wants to advance, she can't do without the potion recipe and the advancement ceremony.

Audrey pulled herself together and looked at Carla with a puzzled expression, not understanding the meaning behind what she was saying.

"Where does the risk of spiraling out of control come from?"

Instead of answering her question, Karula suddenly asked another question.

Audrey thought for a moment, then carefully replied:

"The mental pollution that remains within the extraordinary characteristics."

The answer to this question was already known long before she became an Extraordinary being—

That's what Mr. Fool told her.

The core of the potion lies in digestion and role-playing. The purpose of role-playing is to deceive the residual mental pollution in the potion's core, while the purpose of digestion is to truly resolve this mental pollution and become the true master of the potion.

This is why one must wait until the potion is fully digested before advancing in rank.

Because if the potion in the current sequence is completely digested, then when advancing, one only needs to face the mental pollution of the next sequence. Otherwise, one will have to face two mental pollutions at the same time, and the risk of losing control will increase exponentially.

"A very standard answer."

Carula nodded slightly, meeting Audrey's eager gaze, a slight smile playing on her lips:

"The risk of getting out of control stems from the mental pollution left by extraordinary characteristics, but the power of the 'King's Soul' can completely 'purify' this pollution. In other words, as long as you have enough extraordinary characteristics, with the help of the King's Soul, you can even leap from an ordinary person to a Sequence 0 true god in a single day."

Audrey was shaken; her reason made it hard for her to believe that such a power as the 'King's Soul' actually existed. But her intuition told her that Karula hadn't lied, and that all of this was true in Oudu.

"wrong."

Audrey shook her head to bring herself back to her senses, took a deep breath, and calmly asked, "If that's really the case, why has Ember never mentioned it?"

Karula's King Soul was divided from Ember, so there's no reason why Ember couldn't do what she could do!

Karula blinked:

Is there a possibility that...

"Did he forget?"

Audrey paused, realizing that it seemed, perhaps, maybe, that such a possibility really existed...

(End of this chapter)