Chapter 238: Faceless

Chapter 238: Faceless

15 Minsk Street, inside the damp, cold kitchen.

Klein searched out a newly bought large iron pot, filled it with clean water, and carefully scrubbed it several times.

Then he threw a few matches into the pot and snapped his fingers.

Crimson flames rose. Under his control, they rapidly dried the remaining water droplets without damaging the pot’s surface.

This time, the potion formula did not contain pure water as an ingredient, so Klein was more careful than the previous two times. He strove not to add any extra supplementary material, lest some serious problem occur.

Although he could divine whether the potion had been successfully concocted, and it would not endanger his life, the result of failure would be that the potion was wasted. Extracting the Beyonder characteristics from it again would be extremely difficult, like removing the mental corruption from someone who had lost control. It required corresponding techniques, methods, or rituals, and Klein had no way to gather a second set of materials in a short time.

After completing the preparations, he glanced at the neatly arranged boxes and took a breath, recalling the potion formula one final time.

“Faceless. Main ingredients: the mutated brain pituitary gland of a Thousand-faced Hunter; the characteristic of a Human-skinned Shadow. Supplementary ingredients: 80 milliliters of Thousand-faced Hunter blood, five drops of black mandrake juice, 10 grams of dragon-tooth grass powder, and three strands of Deep-sea Naga hair.”

He first picked up the cardboard box from the vampire Emlyn White, opened it, and took out the glass bottle containing 100 milliliters of Thousand-faced Hunter blood.

Glancing at the scale marks, Klein unscrewed the cap. With a steady wrist, he poured the viscous liquid that constantly changed color according to the light into the iron pot.

Because it was a supplementary material, he did not pursue extreme precision and did not use chemical experiment instruments to separate and titrate the liquid.

The Thousand-faced Hunter’s blood was like thin honey, slowly filling the bottom layer of the iron pot. Once Klein felt it was about enough, he stopped tilting the bottle and allowed the liquid to flow back.

There’s roughly 20 milliliters left. My spiritual intuition is quite accurate… Klein withdrew his gaze from the glass bottle’s scale marks and solemnly tightened the cap. Those 20 milliliters of Thousand-faced Hunter blood could be used to create mystical items, Beyonder weapons, supernatural scrolls, or to trace symbolic markings in certain ritual magic. It remained very precious.

After placing the glass bottle back into the cotton-filled cardboard box, Klein followed the order and successively added the black mandrake juice and dragon-tooth grass powder. He watched bubbles gurgle up inside the iron pot.

Without pause, he used his right hand in a black glove to pick up the three deep-blue strands of hair that resembled little snakes, steadily placing them on the surface of the liquid.

Sizzle!

A faint mist rose from the iron pot, and the liquid’s color turned deep blue.

Even before adding the main ingredients, there’s already such a wondrous effect… As expected of a Sequence 6 potion… Klein reached out and grabbed the grayish tin box with silver-white edges that the vampire Emlyn White had given him.

With a snap, Klein opened the lid, exposing the shell-stripped-walnut-like item inside.

He did not directly touch the mutated brain pituitary gland of the Thousand-faced Hunter. Instead, he placed the tin box above the iron pot and overturned it.

The yellowish-brown item, with brain-like ridges and grooves, fell and collided with the deep-blue liquid.

At that moment, no drop of liquid splashed. The pituitary gland, whose shape constantly changed, melted soundlessly.

Grayish white and yellowish brown swiftly fused with the deep blue. The gurgling bubbles suddenly grew larger and more numerous.

At this step, Klein had become somewhat nervous. But he controlled himself well, picked up the final box, and dumped the huge diamond-like Human-skinned Shadow characteristic into the iron pot.

All at once, all the mist drew back. Even the light from the gas wall lamp seemed to be attracted and devoured, dimming considerably in an instant.

Only when everything returned to normal did Klein finally see what the finished potion looked like.

Its entire body was blackish green. From time to time, an eye-sized bubble slowly rose up, as if the potion itself possessed life and let out a hiccup every few seconds.

When the bubbles reached the surface, they immediately ruptured. During that process, they reflected light and flashed with various colors.

Those colors together outlined faces of differing appearances, their features as if randomly arranged.

Holding the iron pot in one hand, Klein poured the liquid inside into a glass bottle he had prepared in advance. Because of the potion’s properties, not a drop remained behind.

After confirming through divination that the degree of danger was acceptable—in other words, that the potion had been successfully concocted—Klein held the bottle of Faceless and returned to the second floor with steady steps, entering the bedroom where the curtains had already been drawn.

Locking the door, he sat at the edge of the bed and used meditation to calm his somewhat excited and anxious mood.

After sitting upright for more than ten seconds, Klein unscrewed the cap, lifted his right hand, and abruptly poured all the potion inside into his mouth.

A slightly stinging numbness echoed through his mouth and esophagus, finally fermenting into a paralysis that robbed him of sensation.

Klein’s spirit seemed to be drawn out of his own body. From a spectator’s point of view, he saw his mouth melting, his nose melting, his ears melting, his eyes melting, and his entire face melting!

In only two or three seconds, his face and head had become like white wax roasted by fire. His body displayed similar abnormalities, his bones and skin seeming to be dissolved by his blood.

No. I can’t let this continue! Klein knew that if he failed to control it, he could approach the edge of losing control at any moment.

The “watching” him struggled to return his thoughts to his body. He worked to visualize the image of layer upon layer of light spheres overlapping. He fought to maintain a meditative state.

After brief yet repeated attempts, he finally sensed his own body again. With all his strength, he controlled every tiny part, using that to hold the final boundary.

Melting and dissolution assaulted him again and again. Klein had no idea how long he endured before it finally ended, and he found once more the feeling that his body belonged to him.

At that moment, he knew that he had at last crossed that threshold. He had stepped into Sequence 6 and become a Faceless!

Klein had not sweated, but his mind was abnormally exhausted. He barely stood, walked toward the full-length mirror, and tried to observe what he currently looked like.

Under the illumination of the gas fireplace, he abruptly retreated two steps, striking the floor with tap-tap sounds.

The scene in the mirror was unusually horrifying.

Klein saw that his face and the exposed parts of his skin were covered in dense pale flesh sprouts. Any normal creature would feel their body go numb and instinctively reject it at first sight. The more timid might even lose their reason.

Even though I understand the acting method and have completely digested the Magician potion, advancing to Sequence 6 was still quite difficult. I was only two or three steps away from losing control. For Beyonders who rely on accumulating time and barely qualify to take the corresponding potion, I wonder how great a risk they must bear. Their failure rate definitely isn’t low… No wonder Sequence 7 is relatively common inside the major Churches, serving as grassroots captains and bishops, while at Sequence 6, numbers begin to plunge sharply… Klein closed his eyes briefly and retreated to sit on a chair.

Using meditation, he drew in his overflowing spirituality and restored his fatigue.

After about ten minutes, all those disgusting flesh sprouts on his body receded, fusing back into his flesh and blood.

Huff. Klein exhaled, then walked back before the full-length mirror and examined himself, his beard still forming a ring around his face.

Suddenly, those whiskers began wriggling. Flesh and skin changed strangely, like half-melted wax.

In only one or two seconds, Klein returned to his former appearance: black hair, brown eyes, ordinary features, a clean face, deeper contours, and a slightly thin build.

He quietly watched his past self and extended his right hand, pressing it against his face.

With a light wipe, Klein’s face changed again. His nose bridge became high, his lips extremely thin. Handsome with a hint of delicacy, his brows and eyes held a concealed pride that would not disappear. It was precisely the vampire Emlyn White.

A little short… he mocked himself with a smile.

At that moment, the bones and ligaments inside his body made cracking sounds, and his entire person abruptly grew taller by a stretch. From outward appearance alone, he no longer differed from Emlyn White in any respect.

I discovered that I can accurately recall the appearance and temperament of every person I know, and grasp their unique scent… Klein’s pores wriggled, and corresponding changes occurred within his body. The smell on him changed accordingly.

He once again looked toward the full-length mirror, allowing his hairline to slowly recede and his eye color to turn a deep, serene gray.

Silently and soundlessly, Dunn Smith seemed to have come alive again, looking at the team member before him who was always reporting abnormalities.

Slowly exhaling, Klein changed back to his original appearance, though the corners of his mouth were still curving upward.

After some thought, he stepped back a few paces, looked at the Ladies’ Aesthetic magazine he had bought to view fashionable beauties, and memorized the appearance of the stage actress on the cover.

Then he returned to the full-length mirror and wiped his face with his right hand.

When he looked in the mirror again, what appeared there was a young woman with black hair past her shoulders, delicate brows and eyes, and exquisite features.

It really works… Klein lowered his head toward his chest and discovered that there was not the slightest bulge there.

He did his utmost to control his body, moving fat and part of his flesh and barely creating a pair of A-cups.

As for the difference below, he was utterly powerless.

In other words, the changes are only superficial. They do not involve the essence… Also, at present, I can only make myself taller or shorter by ten centimeters. Beyond that range, it becomes very difficult… Also, the enlargement and shrinking of the head has limits. I can’t imitate a head like Father Utravsky’s half-giant one at all… Furthermore, I can only instantly observe the target’s appearance and temperamental traits. I cannot know the corresponding things about them. If I encounter someone like Miss Justice, a Spectator, it would be easy to be exposed… Heh. During the Clown stage, Clowns countered Spectators. But at the Faceless stage, they instead seem somewhat countered by Spectators. Interesting…

Thinking of this, Klein stopped changing and returned to Sherlock Moriarty’s appearance.

Divination, combat, and the Magician’s Beyonder abilities have all been enhanced. But exactly how much they have improved must be confirmed through practice. I’ll make time to visit the Krag Club tomorrow… Klein examined himself one last time, then went downstairs to clean up the aftermath.

After handling the loose ends, he quickly washed up and burrowed beneath his blankets.

Lying there, looking at the crimson moonlight filtering through the window, he felt a certain measure of confidence and gradually became calm and peaceful.

After several minutes, Klein slowly closed his eyes, smiling as he said inwardly to himself:

“Good night, Faceless.”