Azure Scepter

The ritual array consists of three parts: the front-end auxiliary array "Negative Energy Attraction" which enriches the material; "Bone and Blood Extraction" which, as the main body of the ritual, constrains the material; and the rear-end auxiliary array "Negative Energy Repulsion" which acts as a safety valve.

At this moment, Trier stood at the edge of the magic circle. The setting sun cast a long, blood-red shadow over the corpse, and darkness enveloped it like a tide.

The time traveler used the cold blade to cut his palm, and fine beads of blood slowly seeped out from the cut, then congealed and dripped down.

"Drip." A drop of blood struck the novice priest's frozen eye, wriggling and shattering into a pool of blood.

The air instantly turned cold, and a biting chill swept through the street like a ghost.

The four corpses within the magic circle instantly withered, as if an invisible blood-draining scythe had swept over them. Layers of fine ice shards burst from the corpses' blood vessels in an instant, and a chilling aura carrying the sweet smell of blood slowly surged toward Trier, the center of the ritual.

"A familiar feeling," he thought.

[The "Bone and Blood Extraction" ceremony was held, XP-500]

[Warning: Your injuries have worsened from moderate to severe due to negative energy corruption (negative energy corruption)]

[WARNING: Your alignment is shifting significantly; current alignment: Lawful Neutral]

[You are currently undergoing the blessing of the "Bone and Blood Extraction" ritual...]

Suddenly, Trier felt a roar in his brain!

An indescribable, excruciating pain exploded from the back of his head, then cascaded down his spine. His entire body trembled violently as if he had been electrocuted. A flood of electric-like pain swept through every muscle fiber in his body, and sweat mixed with a massive amount of heat billowed up, leaving his entire body slick and soaked in moments.

[The ceremony was a success!]

[You permanently gain 1 point of inherent Strength bonus and 1 point of inherent Constitution bonus]

Trier maintained the ritual in silence, prepared for the inevitable pain.

A few seconds later, the excruciating pain subsided.

He had just breathed a sigh of relief when the wound on his shoulder suddenly throbbed with pain and numbness. Blood mixed with bits of flesh gushed out, turning the already dirty bandage a deep crimson. But then, the wound strangely stopped bleeding.

[Due to the ritual "Bone and Blood Extraction", the attribute damage caused by Blood Plague has been temporarily removed.]

"Very good." He felt the surging power coursing through his veins. With his current abilities, he was even confident that he could easily defeat the horde of zombies he had just encountered without a main class. However, due to the excessive negative energy, he smelled a strong stench of rotting corpses on himself.

Trier stepped over the mummified corpse on the ground and strode into the shrine.

The shrine was filled with blood, but there was not a single corpse in sight. A series of messy, bloody footprints extended from the shrine entrance.

“The Silent Whisperers carried out a massacre here; there should be no survivors.” Trier walked through the main hall and pushed open the door to the confessional. “But then what about the priest who gave a speech at the hotel?”

"Could it be that I guessed wrong? The cultist who poisoned me wasn't among the squires, knights, rangers, or nuns?"

As Trier pondered, he began searching for the mechanism of the confessional, and soon he found a lever disguised as a candle in a curtained compartment.

Gently pull the lever.

"Crench."

The floor of the cubicle slowly opened under the force of the machine, revealing a dark passage leading underground. He looked down into the passage and saw a coffin at the end, emitting a soft light that dispelled the darkness and exuded a sense of holiness.

Trier called out softly to the character panel—43 minutes until becoming an undead.

He took a deep breath, suppressing his anxiety and excitement, and began searching for possible traps—sure enough, he found several tripwires in the passage.

Trier was good at many things, but dismantling traps was not one of them, so he carefully bypassed the traps and headed toward the paladin's coffin.

There was no remnant soul of the paladin here; only the paladin's oath of vengeance was inscribed on the side of the coffin.

"Seek out formidable enemies with unwavering focus; show no mercy to wicked men; use any means necessary to achieve victory; and do everything in your power to atone for evil deeds."

Having just sacrificed the villain, Trier reached out and touched the inscription. The moment his fingers touched it, a feeling arose in his mind: "Young man, you also hate evil."

Are you willing to follow in my footsteps?

Trier did not respond to the spiritual connection in his mind; he knew it was merely an echo of a paladin's conviction. He directly recited the oath of vengeance: "Seek a powerful foe, without distraction..."

The holy light dimmed slightly.

"There is absolutely no mercy for evildoers."

The light faded, and the white halo, like falling petals, drifted in the air, swirling around Trier.

"To win, any means necessary."

A unique sense of fullness welled up in Trier's heart and slowly spread to his limbs and bones.

"When you witness wrongdoing, do your best to make amends!"

A burst of light surged into Trier's body, merging with the power rising within him.

"Remember your oath, young man!" The final echo resounded.

[Main Class Available: Paladin (Vow of Vengeance Only)]

"Taking office".

[XP-500]

Cobalt blue light screen characters appeared before my eyes like mercury spilling onto the ground:

[Main Class: Paladin lv1 (Charge 0, Orco Cross Sword 0, Riding 0)]

[Increase the level cap of all skills belonging to the background profession by 20]

[You have gained the class feat "Protection of Faith" based on your primary class.]

[Protection of Faith: The sacred oath grants you divine immunity! You gain an additional Justice bonus on any saving throw against a negative effect. This Justice bonus can reach a maximum of 8 points, depending on how well your actions align with the oath, and will never fall below 2 points.]

[Current Justice Savings Bonus: 2]

[You have gained the professions "Proficiency in Military Weapons", "Proficiency in Simple Weapons", and "Proficiency in Armor (Light, Medium, Heavy)"]

[Acquire the combat skill "Supreme Slash"]

[Holy Slash: Condense your conviction into a radiant light that burns away evil! You can unleash Holy Slash upon successfully hitting an enemy, dealing high Holy damage based on your Paladin Level. This damage is doubled against evil enemies and stacks with Critical Strike. Additional uses of Holy Slash between long rests are based on your Charisma bonus.]

[Current available Holy Slash attempts: 2]

“I’ve accumulated 17 points of physical resistance. Now I just need to wait for the blood plague to heal before I leave Beaver Town.” The newly promoted paladin thought to himself, “Leave the Southern Duchy, leave the Kingdom of Orco, and head straight south to the undead kingdom of the Great Swamp to become a necromancer again.”

Trier nodded to the paladin's coffin, then turned and stepped onto the stone steps.

"Although the Paladin profession is not bad, as long as one can be exempted from the Blood Plague, the Paladin profession is dispensable. Even breaking the oath is acceptable, although breaking the oath is not good."

While waiting for the blood plague to recur, Trier used ritual magic to examine the bottle used by the original owner during the "alcohol therapy," but to his surprise, the bottle was not contaminated by the blood plague.

“Someone can’t possibly inject me with a high concentration of the original blood plague, can they? Given the original owner’s social status and combat abilities, it’s unlikely he would receive such treatment.” He put down the wine bottle, his brow furrowed. “No, I’d better be cautious. I still have some spare experience points, which I can use to draw an anti-magic plague array to give myself more time.”

The only effect of the anti-magic plague circle is to delay the onset of the disease for those within it by 2-3 days. In contrast to its weak effect, the circle is quite complex to draw and requires at least 50 points of knowledge (ritual) in the game to learn. 50 points of relevant knowledge means that the person is at least a practitioner in the field of ritual.

Just as Trier finished preparing for the ceremony and was about to take a short break, a series of noisy footsteps suddenly echoed through the previously silent street.

"That cultist must be hiding here!" came the servant Hodgman's booming voice from the doorway. "Killing him will surely end this plague."

"I'm a demigod lich, huh?" Trier thought to himself. "But how did they know I was here?"

He drew his longsword and hid in the shadows beside the gate, peering out through a small hole in the wall out of the corner of his eye.

There were twelve fully armed men outside the gate! Knight Harlan stood in the center of the group, holding a golden banner aloft, beside which stood a forest of blood-stained spear tips. Their chainmail clattered as they moved. This was a formidable infantry unit.

"We probably can't beat them." The paladin silently abandoned his plan to assassinate his opponent.

So he simply walked openly to the door.

There are two reasons. First, the shrine has only one main exit, and even if he were to rappel down from the second floor, he would definitely be discovered, so he would eventually have to face this group of people. Second, he is now a genuine paladin, and paladins are extremely rare, but every paladin is a recognized righteous person, so his words are highly credible.

"Good afternoon, everyone." Trier pushed open the door and greeted the crowd below the steps.

"You bastard, how dare you show yourself?" The servant glared angrily, raising his longsword in fury. "You must pay for your crimes!"

"Calm down, Hord, you're too hostile towards Trier. We don't have any evidence yet..." the knight's voice came from the crowd.

“Evidence? He poisoned old Bart! He was the last person to speak with the halfling boss! By the light, old Bart became a zombie because of him—this wicked cultist!” The servant argued excitedly with his master. “After poisoning old Bart, he fled! That’s why he left!”

"The innkeeper has turned into a zombie?" Trier was stunned. He looked around and spotted the ranger Fythia on the second floor of a house a dozen meters away. The elf was silently watching him, her bowstring already drawn.

“Trill, in the name of Radiance, tell us whether you poisoned the poor halflings, and whether you have any connection to this plague crisis!” the knight shouted. “If you have even a shred of compassion, answer the truth!”

"NO, I have not."

“Every cultist says that,” the servant sneered.

"But I know who the cult members are."

The servant laughed out loud: "Betraying your accomplices won't save your life!"

“I would like to hear the details,” the knight said. “But how can we believe your accusations?”

Trier raised his longsword high, a milky white halo shimmering on the blade.

"I am a paladin."

His voice wasn't loud, but his words resonated like a piano hitting someone's toes.

The strange light gleaming from the sword blades drew people's attention like a mesmerizing vortex, and the once solemn and silent infantry ranks suddenly erupted into commotion. Some shouted that it was a trick, a magical feat; some angrily rebuked the squires for daring to question the paladins; and many more were simply at a loss, looking for help to the leader of the ranks—the standard-bearing knight.

"Your Excellency, please forgive our offense. But we would still like to ask you who the cultists are." If the knight's usual language was neither humble nor overbearing, his attitude at this moment had transformed into humility.

Trier looked at the flustered servant and said righteously, "Hod, you are highly suspicious."

Chapter 4 Choice

"Hod, you are highly suspicious."

—This was certainly settling a personal score, but it wasn't exactly lying, since Trier considered everyone a suspect.

The servant's face turned deathly pale, his eyes wide with terror: "I..."

“I have been inspired.” Trier descended the steps and slowly approached the attendant. “Justice must be served.”

"No...no...no!" The attendant's face grew even paler. "How did you know?! You have no way of knowing who I was! I was so good at disguising myself!"

"..."

The time traveler could hardly believe his ears; he was utterly shocked—the servant was actually a cultist from the Silent Whisper Society? He'd actually managed to trick him out? Would the Silent Whisper Society really choose such a foolish person as an undercover agent?

Although Hod had always seemed rather dim-witted, the absurd level of his intelligence far exceeded his expectations. He had barely begun to apply pressure when the servant self-destructed...

"Am I overestimating everyone's intelligence? These past two hours have been nothing short of a battle of wits with thin air!" The time traveler reflected on his thought patterns. "Thinking patterns that cannot fit existing conditions are inefficient."

Not only was Trier shocked, but the soldiers' noise and commotion also stopped because of the servant's inexplicable self-destructive remarks. The air was filled with silence, and everyone's movements came to an abrupt halt as if a pause button had been pressed.

"When...why, Hord?" The knight looked at his squire with mixed feelings.

The servant remained silent; he had realized that Trier had not seen through him at all.

A soldier wearing a helmet and holding a long spear thrust at the attendant from behind without hesitation.

—The next moment, a sudden change occurred.

Trier heard a faint murmur, and a familiar aura of negative energy swept over him like a tsunami.

Someone has used necromancy!

"Be careful! Get into the shrine quickly!" he warned before retreating behind the gate.

The soldier wearing the helmet abandoned his attendant without hesitation and immediately ran up the steps and rushed into the shrine; Harlan hesitated for a moment, then, reminded by another young soldier, also ran towards the shrine's gate, while the other soldiers remained in a daze.

"Run! Spell attack!" the knight warned.

An invisible magical energy swept across the street, surged up the steps, and rushed towards the gate.

Most of the people on the street suddenly began to convulse as if they had been electrocuted, and then fell to the ground.

Harlan clutched his throat and began to vomit violently, unconsciously crouching down in front of the shrine; while the young soldier who had warned the knight collapsed to the ground in agony, his body arching hysterically, blood mixed with translucent maggots gushing from his nostrils.

Inside the shrine's main hall, an anti-plague magic circle, drawn as a precaution, suddenly began to operate—someone had accelerated the onset of the infected people's illness through magic, and the magic circle had inadvertently taken effect!

[Perform the "Anti-Plague Magic" ceremony, XP-500]

The effects of "accelerating the epidemic" have been delayed.

Trier grabbed the young soldier by the hair, yanked him, twisted his waist, and threw him into the doorway. Under the effect of the magic circle, the young soldier stopped his illness and collapsed to the ground, pale-faced.

After rescuing the young soldier, Trier left the ritual circle without hesitation and ran towards the knight who was vomiting.

[You have been affected by the spell "Accelerate Plague," and the Blood Plague has flared up!]

He felt an unbearable wave of nausea, and everything in front of him began to blur and make him dizzy, but he was prepared, so he only staggered for a moment before returning to normal. He took a deep breath, and the cold air mixed with the smell of blood rushed into his nostrils like tentacles with sticky plates, making him shiver violently.

[You have been exempted from Blood Plague, and the status "Blood Plague Infection - Late Stage" has been removed.]

At this moment, amidst painful vomiting and groans, the squire Hod calmly walked up the steps, carrying his longsword, and approached the knight.