Support me and be 30 chapters ahead of webnovel:
patreon.com/Draco_
For every 5 Patreon memberships I receive, I'll release 15 chapters all at once. Your support means a lot to me.
*****
A blinding light rose over the skies of Queens, casting a brilliance that sent looks of sheer terror across the faces of the Beyonders from the three major Churches who were rushing to the scene.
"Not good!"
By the time the radiance finally dissipated and they reached the villa, they found only the remains of the demigod Seth, whose body had been sliced clean in two. Both his Beyonder characteristic and the mysterious attacker had already vanished without a trace.
"It's time to consume the potion."
Hidden within the shadows, George withdrew Jason and tilted the potion back, draining it in a single gulp. As the liquid slid down his throat and entered his system, the Bizarro Sorcerer characteristic began to take effect, immediately attempting to tear his spirit and flesh asunder.
Under normal circumstances, the raw power contained within a Bizarro Sorcerer characteristic would be wholly insufficient to split a spirit and body as powerful as George's. However, knowing that this was a mandatory step for the advancement, George did not resist. Instead, he actively exerted control, guiding his mental and physical form to cooperate with the process.
Under the influence of the characteristic, George felt his flesh and spirit merge, only to then shatter into a swarm of countless maggots. Each individual maggot was him, and each maggot possessed the potential to grow back into his complete self. This sensation felt remarkably similar to how his main soul split across different planes to activate various clones in the myriad worlds.
Because of this familiarity, he adapted to the fragmentation with ease. There was no agonizing pain or overwhelming discomfort; the entire process was exceptionally smooth.
The reason a Bizarro Sorcerer's advancement ritual requires "merited applause" from an audience is that the Fool pathway requires anchors much earlier than other pathways. While most other sequences only necessitate anchors—believers to stabilize one's mental state—upon reaching Sequence 0 to become a True God, a Sequence 4 Bizarro Sorcerer needs them sooner. Because their spirit and body can divide into clones of Worms of Spirit, they require established anchors to prevent their consciousness from drifting apart.
The audience members in the ritual serve as these initial anchors. Ideally, developing a base of actual believers would make those anchors even more stable.
Yet, to George, none of this was a concern.
His spirit was far too formidable. Even without anchors, there was no risk of him losing control due to schizophrenia or mental fragmentation. Furthermore, he had already amassed a significant number of believers: the impoverished civilians he had saved during the Great Smog. Their gratitude provided a stable and ample anchor.
Beyond that, George realized he possessed an even more massive network of anchors to stabilize his existence, even if he lacked the civilians or a ritual audience. His clones in different worlds held high-status positions and were worshipped by countless people. In the Wizarding World of Harry Potter, for instance, he had established an entire magical empire.
As his body transformed into individual, transparent maggots, each worm shimmered with layered, three-dimensional mystical symbols. New abilities and fragments of occult knowledge began to flood George's mind. Simultaneously, he gained a clear understanding of the acting method required to digest the potion.
"Shock and horror... so, I'm supposed to scare people?"
The primary method for digesting the Bizarro Sorcerer potion involved instilling fear. The more targets he terrified, and the stronger those targets were, the faster the potion would digest. Alternatively, leaving behind eerie legends that spread far and wide would achieve the same effect.
"Right then. Let's start by giving Little Zaratul a fright!"
There were only three Sequence 1 Attendant of Mysteries characteristics in existence. One had been inside Antigonus; George had already claimed that one. Another belonged to Zaratul; it was first taken by Antigonus, then reclaimed by Zaratul's younger self, and was currently held by the main body of the now-insane Little Zaratul.
George intended to head there to retrieve that second characteristic. While he was at it, he could scare the Sequence 1 Zaratul to help digest his own potion. Scaring a Sequence 1 as a Sequence 4—if successful—would likely digest the vast majority of the potion in one go.
As for the clue to the final Attendant of Mysteries characteristic, the Evernight Goddess had already informed him of its location. It was contained within a Sealed Artifact inside the Land of the Forsaken Gods.
It turned out that after the Evernight Goddess, Amanises, and Roselle Gustav both declined to choose the three pathways of the Celestial Worthy, Sefirah Castle had added a special condition when releasing the third soul, Zhou Mingrui. It attached a Sealed Artifact containing the Attendant of Mysteries characteristic to him. This was intended to make Zhou Mingrui a Sequence 1 immediately upon waking, thereby triggering the instant revival of the Celestial Worthy.
Amanises had discovered this plan and intervened, separating Zhou Mingrui's soul from the artifact. While Zhou Mingrui's soul entered the body of the recently deceased Klein Moretti, the Sealed Artifact fell into the Land of the Forsaken Gods. Therefore, George would eventually need to make a trip there if he wished to ascend to the position of the Fool.
Of course, entering the Land of the Forsaken Gods was no difficult task for him.
"Obliviate!"
Extracting the sliver of soul from Little Zaratul's Historical Void projection within his own world, George first modified its memories before releasing it. After all, a good scare required the element of surprise.
Once released, the soul fragment instinctively dove into the Fog of History, flying toward the specific point in history where Little Zaratul's main body was hiding. George vanished from sight, concealing all his tracks and aura as he quietly followed behind.
A Sequence 2 Miracle Invoker of the Fool pathway can already enter the Historical Void, hiding within segments of the past. When Little Zaratul had sent his projection to the peak of the Hornacis mountain, his true body remained hidden in a segment of history that was nearly impossible to detect. He had intended to use that safety to attempt his advancement once he secured the characteristic.
Unfortunately, at the critical moment of his ritual, the Evernight Goddess had severed and sealed his projection at the peak, leaving his soul incomplete. Although he technically succeeded in the advancement, he lost his sanity and became a madman.
But now, as that sealed soul fragment returned, Little Zaratul's consciousness finally flickered back to normalcy.
"Damned Amanises... I will have my revenge sooner or later!"
The Mythical Creature form, composed of countless squirming maggots, shifted back into a human shape. Little Zaratul stroked his beard, his teeth clenched in silent fury. If not for the Goddess's schemes, he wouldn't have been a madman for all these years. He also suspected that his father's death at the hands of Antigonus years ago had likely been orchestrated by her as well.
"And who was that other fellow? Has a new True God emerged while I was mad?"
After calming his emotions, his brow furrowed deeply. According to the memories brought back by the soul fragment from the Hornacis mountain, a Beyonder named George had entered the Foggy Town. His projection had fought this George, only to be dissipated almost instantly. Fortunately, George had then clashed with Antigonus, giving the soul fragment a chance to escape back to the main body.
"I just don't know who won in the end, or whose hands the Fool's Uniqueness and that Attendant of Mysteries characteristic fell into."
If George had won, Zaratul would eventually have to face someone who might already be a True God, since he needed those items to become the Fool himself. If Antigonus had won, he would have to find a way to return to the Hornacis peak.
(End of Chapter)