Chapter 201: What Evil Spirits Have in Common

Chapter 201: What Evil Spirits Have in Common

After a while, Leonard cleared his throat. A smile unconsciously crept onto his face as he lowered his voice and said,

“Old Man, Klein’s… this suggestion of his seems rather good. Very feasible. The effect should be decent too. Shouldn’t we consider it?

“Didn’t you say that when it came to revenge, you would help me as much as you could?

“Haha. I always thought Worms of Time could only be used as avatars, doing auxiliary things…”

He rambled on instinctively, while Pallez Zoroast remained silent from beginning to end. Only after a long while did the old angel sigh softly.

“At most, I can give you two Worms of Time right now.”

Before Leonard could speak, he added two more sentences:

“When taking revenge against a demigod who controls a Grade 0 Sealed Artifact, the most important things are still your own level and strength. Otherwise, even if you have a high-level charm, you won’t have the chance to use it.”

Leonard put away his smile and nodded solemnly.

“I’ve been working hard to digest.

“If I finish digesting and still haven’t accumulated enough contribution, I’ll gather the Beyonder materials needed for Spirit Warlock myself.”

He did not feel disappointed at all that there would only be two Worms of Time. In his eyes, this was already an unexpected gain. Getting one would have been a profit; two was perfect. He and Klein could split them evenly, one Luck Stealer charm each.

After stating his attitude, Leonard asked with considerable curiosity,

“Old Man, do you think Klein has already made the previous Worm of Time into a charm?”

He remembered very clearly that back then, in order to figure out who Emlyn White was truly serving, the old man had parasitized one Worm of Time inside the Tinder glove. Yet afterward, they had lost contact with it, and it had not played any role at all. Now, looking back on the matter, merely from the fact that Emlyn White and Sherlock Moriarty were closely connected, he could rather easily arrive at the truth: that Worm of Time had been cleared away by the upper echelon of that secret organization—or even by the Fool they worshiped Himself—and had, with no small probability, been bestowed upon Klein. Otherwise, this former colleague of his would have had little reason to know about Worms of Time.

Pallez Zoroast immediately gave a “heh.”

“If he hadn’t already used it and witnessed the effects, why would he actively bring the matter up and hope to obtain more?

“Enough. I’m going to start separating the Worms of Time. This will put me into slumber for at least two weeks. If you have questions, find someone else to answer them.”

Without giving Leonard the chance to ask anything more, he spread out his spirituality and created a ball of light that “hung” high within Leonard’s mind, making it very clear that he did not wish to speak.

Leonard reflexively gave a dry laugh, then returned his attention to the letter Klein Moretti had sent and read it over again, carefully and repeatedly.

“Possession by an evil spirit… the evil spirit’s origin and main objective…

“I don’t know nearly enough about evil spirits. I have no clue where to begin…”

After thinking for several minutes, Leonard took out a box of matches and burned the letter. Then he left the temporary lounge that the local Nighthawks had assigned to him and crossed to the room diagonally opposite, raising his knuckles to knock.

Before long, Daly Simone, who had not yet removed her blue eyeshadow and matching blush, opened the door. She raised an eyebrow.

“Since when did Sleepless dare knock on a lady’s door at a time that makes people think of beds?”

“Cough. I have a few questions I’d like to ask you.” Leonard did not dare follow Daly’s words and directly stated his purpose.

Daly looked him up and down, then chuckled.

“I’m not responsible for guiding psychologically underage people into adulthood.”

As she spoke, she stepped aside and let Leonard enter the room.

Not daring to look around carelessly, Leonard pulled over a round stool at random and sat down. He went straight to the point.

“Ma’am, I’d like to understand more about evil spirits.

“You are a Sequence 5 of the Death pathway, and your clearance is higher than mine. You should know quite a lot.”

“What are you asking this for?” Daly braced both hands behind her against the edge of the table.

Without waiting for Leonard to answer, she continued on her own:

“Most evil spirits are products left behind after high-sequence powerhouses die. A small number are wraiths that broke through their own limits by relying on various opportunities.

“The first situation is more common. After high-sequence powerhouses consume potions and obtain divinity, their spirit bodies undergo a mutation—an essential mutation. This means that even after they die and their power disperses, remnants of their spirit bodies can still remain. They retain quite a few mystical qualities and are extremely frightening. The second situation is no different in essence.

“Normally, evil spirits gradually weaken with the passage of time until they vanish completely. But they can assimilate the region in which they were born, causing the spirit world or even the Underworld to overlap with it. From that, they draw power to maintain their existence.

“That is why many evil spirits have their own ‘territory’ and range of activity. It isn’t that they don’t wish to leave, but that they cannot—unless they accumulate enough power for their form of existence to undergo a fundamental change.”

Leonard habitually crossed his right foot over his left leg and asked thoughtfully,

“Can an evil spirit possess a person and leave its ‘territory’ that way?”

“Yes. But ordinary people and most Beyonders simply cannot withstand an evil spirit’s extraction. They will quickly lose spirituality and body heat, and they won’t last long.” As Daly spoke, she raised a hand and pointed at herself. “The best method is to make use of a Beyonder from the Death pathway. Of course, they must be at least Sequence 5. Starting from Gatekeeper, we have a prison for the dead within our bodies. You could also call it a miniature Underworld. It can provide an excellent environment for an evil spirit’s existence. When you become a Spirit Warlock, you’ll have similar abilities as well, though yours will be closer to a seal or a resting place than a personal Underworld. Heh, natural spirits and wraiths going in and out can be very troublesome.”

Ince Zangwill’s Sequence 5 was Gatekeeper… No wonder that evil spirit has been able to possess him for so long. Or perhaps this is the result of his failed attempt to enslave an evil spirit? Leonard’s thoughts suddenly cleared, and he felt as though the entire matter had connected from beginning to end.

After considering for a few seconds, he asked again,

“What pursuit would an evil spirit have?”

“Pursuit? Singing? Dancing? Writing poetry? Men? Women? The stars and the sea?” Daly asked back with amused surprise.

Only then did Leonard realize his wording was somewhat off. Embarrassed, he rubbed his hair.

“I mean, what would an evil spirit long to do?”

“That mainly depends on what they longed to do before they died. Generally speaking, the remnant spirit inherits the original obsession, without reason to balance it. If it were you, that evil spirit might constantly try to write poetry, imprison a group of people to watch, and seek approval. Or it might do everything in a very high-profile manner, like the protagonist of a drama.” After casually teasing him, Daly said, “However, no matter what they were like before death, once they become evil spirits, they all long for two things.”

“What two things?” Leonard’s spirits lifted.

Daly glanced at him.

“First, to consume the souls of living beings. This makes them feel pleasure—the pleasure born from the instinct to maintain their own existence. Moreover, a large number of souls can let them break free, to a limited degree, from the restrictions of their ‘territory’ and activity range, replacing the spirit world or the Underworld as their source of power.

“Second, to seek the Beyonder materials of the pathway they followed while alive, using them as another foundation for their existence. Once this reaches a certain stage, evil spirits no longer need to draw power from the spirit world or the Underworld. They will no longer be restricted by their ‘territory’ or activity range. In a sense, they become transformed into special spirit world creatures.”

Leonard vaguely grasped something. After thinking, he asked,

“In other words, evil spirits can consume Sequence potions?”

“No. Sequence potions were created for humans and can effectively lower the risk of losing control. For many supernatural creatures, they aren’t actually necessary. They can directly consume the raw materials, especially evil spirits. They are obsessive, cruel, vicious, and addicted to souls. In themselves, they’re already half-mad and require nothing else to balance them. Besides, they are spirit bodies. Their method of consumption is direct containment, followed by gradual ‘digestion.’” Daly corrected Leonard’s statement.

This… To the evil spirit possessing Ince Zangwill, whenever it holds the advantage, it will manipulate the body to collect the Beyonder materials of its former pathway! Leonard was startled at first, then inspiration struck. With a trace of pleasant surprise, he said,

“I understand. Thank you for answering.”

After saying that, he hesitated for several seconds, chose his words, and continued,

“Ma’am, I think we should not only investigate the purpose of Ince Zangwill’s meeting with a Numinous Episcopate demigod, but also trace his route in reverse from Backlund to East Balam. We should figure out what exactly he did along the way and what objects he collected. That may bring us useful clues.”

Daly suddenly fell silent. After a long while, she raised an eyebrow.

“Not bad.

“But what does that have to do with evil spirits?”

“…Nothing, really. I only thought that since we’re investigating the Numinous Episcopate, we might encounter evil spirits, so I asked in advance to make some preparations. What followed was a suggestion I originally planned to bring up after resting, and I wanted to discuss it with you beforehand.” Leonard’s thoughts spun rapidly. Slowing his speech, he fabricated an explanation on the spot.

Daly listened quietly, then chuckled.

“If you worked this hard to make up stories when facing other girls, with your looks, you wouldn’t still be single.

“Unfortunately, I’m not some ignorant young woman. All right, no need to explain. Go.”

Leonard stood awkwardly and, without deliberately emphasizing anything further, walked toward the door.

Just as his hand reached out and grasped the handle, Daly’s slightly ethereal voice suddenly came from behind him:

“I don’t know what secrets you’re hiding, nor what you’ve learned. That isn’t important.

“But when it comes to Ince Zangwill, if there is anything you need help or cooperation with, you can come to me.”

Leonard paused for two seconds. His mouth moved several times, but then he abruptly pulled the door open and walked out.

…

The City of Silver.

Derrick Berg received an order to join an exploration team. The team would be led by Chief Colin Iliad himself, and their destination was Nois City—the northern city-state ruin where terrifying monsters such as the Shapeshifter lived!