Thanks to the Chief, Colin, and his party clearing the way earlier, there were no monsters left in the church tower. Ebner easily glided down along the staircase, whose wooden planks had been fully corroded, all the way into the deepest part of the basement.
The moment he arrived, the black gemstone left by the Evernight Goddess in his chest condensed dense "Darkness" once again, instantly dragging him into a deeper layer of the nightmare.
Ebner felt the ground vanish beneath his feet, leaving him falling endlessly…
He didn't know how long it lasted. When he finally landed, he stood before a pair of bronze gates.
The gates were covered with countless symbols and strange patterns, much like those at the God of Luck's ruins, though with subtle differences.
Now, however, the doors stood wide open. Beyond them, there was no trace of the Sea of Chaos, but rows of illusory black torii-like gates instead.
Actually, I've always felt these bronze gates that sealed the Sea of Chaos resemble the one inside the Gatekeeper of the Death pathway…
Also, those who die before these bronze gates that seal the Sea of Chaos are easily turned into wraiths, then, under some unknown force, gathered into Ancient Wraiths… And Ancient Wraiths are the main source of materials for the Door pathway.
Death, the Door, and the ability to seal the entrance to the Sea of Chaos… Was this the handiwork of the Phoenix Ancestor Gregrace?
And the God of Luck's authority doesn't align with Death or the Door… Back when I built this passage, aside from the Evernight Goddess, could the Phoenix Ancestor have helped too?
Looks like the God of Luck really had a wide circle of friends!
Whether in pride or helplessness, Ebner sighed before stepping through the bronze gates.
But he soon realized he hadn't entered the passage of black torii gates.
Unlike when he had the "key" earlier, this time—even though the passage was open—returning required crossing into the dimension of those torii gates by himself.
In other words, only pure spirit world or astral creatures could enter? After observing with the Pure White Eye for a while, Ebner understood. *Of course, reaching the Angel level would also work…
Good thing I didn't suggest bringing little Sun out for a stroll… Otherwise, I'd really have embarrassed myself!
He did have a mystical item—the Azure Shadow—that could turn him into a "special wraith." But it wasn't pure enough. It worked for short-distance traversals, but crossing such an enormous passage would likely fail.
Still, such conditions didn't trouble Ebner himself.
Starlight suddenly gleamed in his pure white eyes. In the next moment, his entire body transformed into shimmering worms of radiant light.
Worms of Star!
This was the signature ability of the Cognizer, "Mimicry," which Ebner had mastered early thanks to the Pure White Eye. It allowed him to temporarily take on incomplete mythical forms of other pathways he had fully analyzed.
Though his inspiration warned him not to rely too often on this power of the Pure White Eye, using it in emergencies a few times wasn't a problem.
With his transformation complete, the Worms of Star blinked into the passage and, within seconds, traversed countless black torii-like gates to arrive before a "wall" on the other side.
Ebner quickly dispelled the transformation, lest Edwina see his incomplete mythical form and fall into madness.
He also conjured a new outfit—his stone armor had been completely destroyed during the transformation.
Though his journey seemed full of twists, in reality only three hours had passed. Thus, Vice Admiral Iceberg Edwina was still waiting for him.
Seeing him return safely, she let out a breath of relief and stepped forward.
Ebner gestured for her to wait, then turned back to remove the stone tablet that acted as the "key," closing off the hidden passage to prevent any monsters from crossing through.
Edwina, an experienced adventurer, immediately understood his intent and asked with bright eyes, "Was the other side dangerous?"
Ebner, still savoring the unique perspective of the Worms of Star, nodded. "Extremely dangerous. Without the protection of a deity, I might not have returned."
He wasn't exaggerating. Without the Evernight Goddess's concealment, he could have been discovered by the True Creator—and then survival would have been uncertain.
Of course, this was also to dissuade Edwina from attempting exploration herself.
"So dangerous… you weren't hurt, were you?" Edwina frowned. Her light blue eyes turned black as she began carefully examining his body.
"Wait—!" Ebner hurried to stop her, but it was too late. Edwina's gaze froze blankly for a few seconds before she quickly ended the spell.
Right now, the only real fabric between us is that cloak… Turning on 'True Vision' at this moment—wasn't that just asking for trouble? Ebner grumbled inwardly and hastily changed the subject, telling her only parts of what he'd seen in Afternoon Town.
Of course, he left out the floating city and Silver City, mentioning only the environment and monsters.
"Gates separating reality and myth… the Giant King's Court…" Edwina repeated, her eyes shining with longing, as if she wished to see it for herself.
But her weakness wouldn't allow it. Even Ebner hadn't been sure of returning alive—if she went, death might be the best outcome.
With this thought, Edwina touched the brass mirror in her hand, determined to advance to demigod soon.
After intercepting the Aurora Order's divine emissary and indirectly saving Ebner, Xio, and Miss Gwen, she had been rewarded with this brass mirror capable of prophecy.
Once she solved the Pale Admiral crisis and completed the deity's mission, the artifact would fully belong to her.
She knew clearly that this brass mirror was actually the potion ingredient granted by her deity for her advancement—she just hadn't found a way to shatter it and return it to its raw characteristic.
Her potion, Mysticism Magister, had only been fully digested not long ago, so she hadn't been in a rush.
But now, a sudden urgency struck her. Ebner was moving faster and faster. She had to keep up—or she would be left waiting behind, just as she had this time.
Lost in thought, Edwina continued chatting with Ebner about Afternoon Town's details. Soon, they climbed the stairs back to the God of Luck's throne.
Facing the tall and robust yet handsome ancient god, both Ebner and Edwina fell silent, unwilling to disturb his slumber.
Edwina's silence came from reverence, but Ebner's heart brimmed with sarcasm.
Finally, imitating Reinette Tinekerr's habit, he stuck a "label" onto this oldest version of himself—"Perverted Bandit!"
After cursing himself, Ebner led Vice Admiral Iceberg down to the palace platform. He picked up some of the gold and jewels Roselle had left behind and gave Edwina her share before leaving the God of Luck's ruins.
This harvest is already enough. The rest isn't for me to take right now.
Before leaving the grand hall, he glanced back at Roselle's "Paragon Card" and the Knowledge Magister characteristic. He knew the latter was likely prepared for the resurrected Mechanical Emperor's advancement.
Though the Mechanical Emperor's body had been obliterated, Ebner suspected the yellow gem-like relic, similar to a relic pearl, was the key to Liu Bo's undying persistence across generations.
As long as that remained, combined with his Beyonder characteristics, resurrection into one of Ebner's avatars was possible.
So… even Daniel may not truly be dead. His sealed artifact, 1-025, which I sacrificed, is likely inside the Chained God's original body… and Suah is probably taking over that vessel, seizing the Sequence 1 "Abomination" characteristic.
While Ebner's thoughts spiraled, Edwina also looked back at the God of Luck, the Knowledge Magister characteristic, and the blasphemy cards, softly asking, "Aren't you going to take them?"
"That could be dangerous… best to wait until we're stronger. By then, Roselle's Vajra Guardian rituals will still be here to protect this place." Ebner answered casually.
But it wasn't just an excuse. His intuition told him that taking the God of Luck's characteristic without reviving Him as his avatar would twist his and Edwina's fates severely—for the worse.
Though called the God of Luck, He would not hesitate to grant misfortune to others.
Ebner's observations even suggested that within the God of Luck, misfortune had far outweighed fortune. Whether this was His nature or a change from some accident was unclear.
He also remembered the "Crystal Ball of Misfortune" he had gotten from the original owner of the Amyris Leaf Bar, the Strongman Ozil, and handed over to Klein. That object was deeply tied to the God of Luck. Its holder even dreamed of this ruin's location.
Ebner suspected it had been deliberately released to siphon off the God of Luck's misfortune.
But on this expedition, it hadn't come into play at all. He had thought it would be a key item for one of the "levels."
Hmm, must be Roselle's fault… He bulldozed through the stage meant for the misfortune crystal with brute force, then left behind six iron lions as guards.
Lions ward off evil, suppress misfortune… Maybe there's some Mystical Reappearance involved… Alright, I can't spin this any further.
Grumbling inwardly, Ebner pulled the increasingly puzzled Edwina out of the ruins' gates.
(End of Chapter)