"We have no other choice. In this era, there are less than ten true believers of our Lord left, and we three are the strongest. This is not the Fifth Era, and the cult has long been destroyed."
The words "not the Fifth Era" caused the three people present to think endlessly. Mr. Richard sighed:
"The information about it that has been passed down can only be viewed by devout believers like us. Even so, even the strongest me can only view a small part of it. We have inherited these secrets, but we have lost the ability to view them. Perhaps in a few generations, there will be no new believers. At that time, throwing the information to the Orthodox Church may be the only option."
At least for now, they have absolutely no intention of letting the church handle this matter.
Xia De understood this. If there was no other way, no one would be willing to give away the knowledge and power passed down by their ancestors for thousands of years. The cult of the pure creator could not hold on any longer, so they built the underground ruins under Tobesk City. However, the believers of the God of Love can still survive with the help of the Rosicrucian Order.
"Mr. Watson, perhaps we can exchange information. What documents did you get your knowledge of it from?"
After Mr. Richard finished his introduction, Ms. Hope asked cautiously again, and Shade shook his head:
"I also thought about learning about it from literature, but unfortunately, I couldn't find that kind of literature."
"Then your way of understanding is..."
"I have seen it."
Clang~
The cup slipped from Mr. Richard's hand and fell to the ground, spilling the wine all over the floor. He and Ms. Hope quickly stood up and took a step back, but when they saw that Shade had not suddenly mutated into something strange, they sat down again.
The few guests in the country tavern also heard the noise, but they just thought they accidentally knocked over the wine glasses. So the servants came over to clean up, and the three of them stopped talking for the time being. After the spilled wine was cleaned up, Mr. Richard and Ms. Hope stared at Shade nervously, and Shade continued:
"I saw it last year. Yes, it was its true form. It hasn't been seen for a long time, hasn't it? Because it was sealed by the evil god's followers using the power of God. But unfortunately, the seal has expired and it has gained freedom. I was forced to look it in the eye, and in her eyes, I saw my own desires."
Ms. Hope and Mr. Richard noticed that Shade's pronoun for "it" had changed to "she."
Ms. Hope's hands were shaking, and she shook her head violently:
“It’s unbelievable.”
"Yes, it's hard to believe, but I survived, and because of this, I have some... connection with her. No, no, don't be nervous, I'm still a normal person. It took a fancy to my soul and tempted me to become one with it, and I have been resisting it all the time."
Shade calmed the two and revealed as much information as possible. It took Mr. Richard and Ms. Hope a while to accept all this, and they both showed awe:
"You are truly amazing. You have been fighting against it all along, right? According to the records of the cult, only those legendary heroes can do this. As expected, no matter what era, evil will always meet its enemies."
They probably thought that Shade was the kind of brave man who investigated and collected information alone just to gain spiritual freedom. Shade did not correct their thoughts. He told them his plan:
"I was originally planning to report it to the church, but now that I've met you, I think it's best to keep it. I'm going to take it away from Mr. Upton. I'll find a way to contain something this dangerous."
That is to say, put it in God's gift box.
Mr. Richard and Ms. Hope nodded together:
"We will help you. This is what we have always hoped for. But how are you going to do it? If you try to take it by force, Upton, who has already established a connection with the painting, may immediately cause the relic's derivative to go out of control."
It is not wrong to call the painting a "derivative of the relic". The derivative is not necessarily produced by the relic itself like the "empty bottle fruit" and "metal disc", but can also be indirectly born from the power of the relic.
Xia De clenched his right hand:
"So, I want Mr. Upton to hand over the painting to me willingly. I need you to provide as much information about it as possible."
Mr. Richard nodded:
“No problem, but there are problems.”
"What do you mean? The information was not brought to Green Lake City?"
Shade asked worriedly, and Ms. Hope shook her head.
"Its information cannot be recorded on an ordinary carrier, otherwise there is a possibility of mutation. After all, it is level 0. We carry it with us. If you want to see it, we can give it to you now. This is the part that is not a problem."
"So what's the problematic part?"
Shade asked again, and Mr. Richard took out a silver pendant from his chest. The pendant looked like a pocket watch, but when the lid was opened, it turned out to be the holy emblem of the god of love.
The main body of the holy emblem was red, but it was outlined with golden threads to form heart-shaped patterns. Mr. Richard moved the golden threads, and with a click, the holy emblem popped open like the lid, revealing the black stone flakes at the bottom.
He placed the square piece of paper in his palm and handed it to Shade:
"This carrier made of 'Dead Stone' needs to be immersed in water in order to reveal information, and it must be in a lake or river of a certain size."
He frowned and looked at Shade:
"Sir, we are not as knowledgeable as you, and we have never actually seen it. But from your description, it is obviously not a good idea to enter the lake or river to spy on it."
Xia De nodded in agreement, hesitated for a moment, and then suddenly asked:
"Can you lend this to me temporarily? I'll return it to you tomorrow, Wednesday evening, or Thursday morning."
After saying this, he realized the preciousness of this item, so he added:
"I know this is our first meeting and you may not trust me, but I can give you collateral and I can swear to God that I will not use this for any bad purpose."
Mr. Richard and Ms. Hope looked at each other, and the old man carefully put the stone slice back behind the holy emblem, buckled the holy emblem back to its original position, then took the holy emblem off his neck and handed it to Shade:
"Although our Lord has left, we can still feel the call of God. You are not loyal, but perhaps you are actually loyal to love... This contaminated knowledge is temporarily handed over to you. May I ask where you want to take it to use it?"
Shade looked to the north:
"It's right at Green Lake. Since danger cannot be avoided, why not bring the danger to another danger?"
Although Mr. Richard and Ms. Hope didn't quite understand what Shad wanted to do, they nodded in agreement.
Moreover, when Shade carefully put the holy emblem into his pocket, Ms. Hope whispered some advice:
"If you feel in danger and lost, just pray quietly to the Lord."
"I actually believe in Mr. Dawn."
“But you also believe in love.”
Mr. Richard said, looking into Shad's eyes:
"We can see that you are confused and feel guilty towards the people you love. If you really don't understand, then pray to God. And I can also give you a personal suggestion based on my life experience."
"Please go ahead."
"You feel that you have done something wrong, but you are reluctant to let go. Then ask yourself: What do those girls who care about you think about this situation? Young people, love is not just a one-sided matter. Ask the other person what they think, and you may get an unexpected answer."
After bidding farewell to Mr. Richard and Ms. Hope, Shad returned to Green Lake City and then returned home from the Green Lake Hotel. He did not throw the crystal slipper back because he did not want to bring the dangerous knowledge in the holy emblem of the God of Love back to his house. So after arriving at the hidden space in his basement, Shad put the holy emblem directly into the gift box of God.
Shad knew what it meant to check this knowledge, but he did not reveal his intentions and plans to anyone. Before dinner, he went out to find Dorothy and shared the magic of heart connection with her and Leicia. His worried look still made Luvia, who came home in the evening, a little concerned:
"Are you worried about the eclipse tomorrow?"
At night, she hugged Shad's neck and whispered in his ear. The curtains were not drawn, and the bright moonlight illuminated Shad's back, as well as Luvia's face and eyes emitting purple halos.
Luvia Annatte felt the warmth of the body hugging her, and looked out the window at the dim moonlight:
"Come back early tomorrow night. I'll wait for you at home. How about calling Dorothy or the princess? It will be fun."
"Hmm... Luvia, what image do you have of me?"
Shade complained softly, and Luvia smiled, closed her eyes, and huddled under the quilt, listening to Shade's heartbeat.
"You and Megan Edwards will go to the island tomorrow. If you can't leave before dusk, don't worry too much. The Earth Guardian and Sister Defulin didn't say that the lunar eclipse is dangerous to you. You don't have to hide in advance tomorrow night. Do what you want. But no matter what, remember not to take risks, Shade."
"I know... you're going to hate me because I'm surrounded by more and more girls?"
He suddenly asked, and then Luvia pinched his waist:
"Why are you asking this kind of question again? Didn't we agree on this? I won't mind anything you do. I chose you, and you have been proving that I am the luckiest girl."
Xia De hugged her with both hands:
"Good night, Luvia."
"Goodnight... Need to get your cat out of the closet?"