Chapter 198: A New Line of Thought

Chapter 198: A New Line of Thought

After receiving The World’s nod of agreement and settling the matter of Louis Wayne, The Magician Fors thought for a moment and continued, “Everyone, does anyone have Meteorite Crystal and Lava Octopus blood crystals, or news of them?”

Those were the main ingredients for the Astrologer potion formula.

Fors had originally intended to continue with another commission, hoping that Mr. Moon, who was also in Backlund, could help her search for Louis Wayne’s whereabouts. But after considering it, she decided to try on her own first. Only if she truly had no method, or if all clues were thoroughly cut off, would she seek help at the Tarot Gathering.

Meteorite Crystal? Lava Octopus blood crystals? That sounds very familiar… Not because I already have the Astrologer potion formula… Right. The main ingredients for the Seer potion formula are fifty grams of Star Crystal and ten milliliters of Lava Octopus blood! The Astrologer’s main ingredients resemble upgraded versions of the Seer’s… As expected, the Apprentice pathway and Seer pathway can be interchanged in the future… As Klein thought to this point, inspiration suddenly struck him.

Since the Bizarro Sorcerer potion formula is difficult to obtain, and all three paths are extremely dangerous, can I consider the Sequence 4 of a neighboring pathway? For example, the Apprentice pathway!

The moment this thought burst forth, he saw things clearly, and more than half of the difficulty weighing on his heart vanished.

As for the Apprentice’s Sequence 4 potion formula, the Tarot Club already had a clue: the Abraham family behind The Magician!

With that thought, the gaze The World gave Miss Magician unconsciously softened a little, causing Fors to inexplicably shiver and suspect that Mr. World had already started imagining how to hunt Louis Wayne.

At that moment, The Fool Klein remembered another issue. According to Dunn and Daly’s conjecture, the first five Sequences of the Seer pathway did not appear to have an obvious progressive relationship. Each provided one aspect of Beyonder ability, and at the critical node of Sequence 4, the five fingers would close into a fist, producing a qualitative change.

When Captain and Madam Daly made that conjecture, they only knew part of the information regarding Seer, Clown, and Magician. The later Faceless and Marionettist had used their own existences to verify this idea… So could it be that the Seer, Apprentice, and possibly Marauder pathways cannot be interchanged at Sequence 4, and that such interchange must wait until Sequence 3? Klein’s earlier joy slowly receded.

He knew too little about the matter and temporarily could not make a judgment. He could only wait for Mr. Azik’s reply and wait until he left the sea that had drawn the True Creator’s attention to contact Magic Mirror Arrodes.

While Klein’s thoughts surged, he suddenly heard The Hermit Cattleya speak:

“I have Lava Octopus blood crystals. One portion is 600 pounds.

“As for Meteorite Crystal, I know where to obtain it. How many grams do you need?”

Six hundred pounds. A very reasonable price… The Magician Fors answered with surprise and delight, “Sixty grams.”

“All right. I will provide it within two weeks. The price is also 600 pounds,” The Hermit Cattleya said succinctly and clearly.

Solved just like that… Madam Hermit is especially proactive today. She seems very involved. Uh, just now she… Fors quickly nodded.

“No problem.”

I currently have 830 pounds in savings, enough to buy the Lava Octopus blood crystals. But within two weeks, I’ll still need to raise about 400 pounds. The manuscript payment from after the new year will arrive soon, around 150 pounds, leaving a gap of 220 pounds. I’ll have to find another way to earn money… Fors swiftly calculated her financial situation in her mind.

Seeing Miss Magician gather the main potion ingredients in only a minute, Justice Audrey could no longer endure it. She raised her hand slightly and said, “I wish to obtain either the complete pituitary gland of a young Mind Dragon, or sixty milliliters of spinal fluid from a Black Hunting Giant Lizard and one fruit of the Illusory Chime Tree.”

These were the main ingredients for the Hypnotist potion. If she used only the complete pituitary gland of a young Mind Dragon, then she would not need anything else paired with it.

As soon as Audrey finished speaking, she heard Madam Hermit reply:

“Since the Fifth Epoch, Mind Dragons have almost gone extinct and are very difficult to find.

“I have a way to obtain the spinal fluid of a Black Hunting Giant Lizard, but this likewise requires two to three weeks. The price ranges from 1,500 to 2,000 pounds, because I am not the one who decides it.

“I will help you ask about the fruit of the Illusory Chime Tree, but I cannot guarantee any news.”

So—so efficient… After being punished, Madam Hermit’s sense of belonging to the Tarot Club seems to have strengthened. She has become more proactive and more amiable… For a moment, Justice Audrey was actually at a loss for words.

After several seconds of silence, she gave a slight bow.

“That is no problem.”

Observing from the side, The Hanged Man Alger suddenly felt that the situation was developing differently from what he had imagined. After being warned and punished by Mr. Fool, The Hermit, instead of withdrawing, had changed her previous style of mainly watching and listening. She was now participating deeply in every matter within the Tarot Club that she could take part in. And her strength, background, resources, and channels as a pirate admiral immediately burst forth with intense, dazzling brilliance!

It “stung” Alger so badly that he nearly could not open his eyes. For no reason, he once again felt a powerful sense of crisis.

At that moment, he very much hoped Madam Hermit would return to her previous state.

The Fool Klein was equally surprised by what he saw and heard.

I had thought Madam Hermit would be depressed for a while and develop a certain degree of rejection toward Tarot Club matters. But instead…

Could she be the type who won’t listen unless she’s beaten?

Mm… Teaching children really does require beating. The Queen simply beat her too little… Heh. The Queen’s way of doing things isn’t exactly good either. The Emperor likewise beat her too little!

While lampooning inwardly, Klein manipulated The World, making him look around and give a low laugh.

“Does anyone have the Seer pathway’s Sequence 4 potion formula, or clues to it?”

Sequence 4… Mr. World is preparing to step toward the level of a demigod? Justice Audrey felt a burst of astonishment.

She had originally felt that her own advancement had already been very fast, and had held a little pride in that. But now, she suddenly felt she had fallen behind!

Mr. World suddenly feels so high-end… The Magician Fors was likewise astonished.

In her mind, the gloomy, reserved, solitary Mr. World was indeed a powerful Beyonder, but he still seemed very, very far away from demigods and Sequence 4. Who could have known he would suddenly begin seeking a Sequence 4 potion formula?

As expected of Mr. Fool’s Blessed… The Hanged Man Alger, meanwhile, sighed inwardly.

The Moon Emlyn and The Sun Derrick also shook their heads, indicating that they had never even heard of what Sequence 4 of this pathway was called.

Klein, who had thought he might obtain clues from the City of Silver or the Sanguine, could only helplessly make The World withdraw his gaze.

After several seconds of silence, The Hermit Cattleya spoke.

“I need one drop of blood from a mythical creature. Any mythical creature will do.”

Inside the palace supported by stone pillars, silence suddenly became the dominant theme. Even The World did not clearly know the precise definition of the concept “mythical creature.”

Klein did not expose that point. He planned to ask someone he could consult afterward. Manipulating The World, he remained silent for several seconds before saying, “I will keep an eye out.”

Considering that this was one of Madam Hermit’s rare requests, Justice and the others also gave similar replies.

“Very well.” The Hermit Cattleya was not surprised by the outcome.

The only reason she had spoken to purchase it was to demonstrate to Mr. Fool her attitude of integrating into the Tarot Club. She believed that this would be more useful in dispersing the aftereffects of the previous incident than trembling fearfully and acting with extreme caution.

After a brief pause, The Sun Derrick was about to speak when he was preempted by The Moon Emlyn.

The Sanguine baron chuckled and said, “The needs on our row are all very clear. He wants the Sun pathway Sequence 6 Notary potion formula, while Mr. Hanged Man wishes to obtain Ocean Songster.”

Hearing those words, Klein suddenly felt a burst of shame. Back when he first obtained Creeping Hunger, he had thought about releasing the Priest of Light’s soul as soon as possible, obtaining the Sun pathway’s Sequence 6 and Sequence 5 potion formulas from him, then selling them to Little Sun. In the end, after so long, he still had not completed it.

Tonight, I’ll go around Toscarter Harbor and find a damned pirate or gang leader with Beyonder powers for emergency food, regardless of what Sequence they are… Or I can directly release the Priest of Light… Klein made The World ponder briefly before saying, “Within three days, I will provide the Notary potion formula.”

At that point, he looked toward Little Sun.

“You may consider what item to exchange for it.”

“All right, Mr. World,” The Sun Derrick answered with delight.

As for the Ocean Songster potion formula that The Hanged Man needed, everyone still had no clues.

The Moon Emlyn immediately cleared his throat.

“My request is somewhat different from last time.

“I hope you can help me find these believers of the Primordial Moon. For every valid clue, I will pay 100 pounds. If the clue directly locks onto the target, I will pay 500 pounds!”

He looked toward Mr. Fool and made the request. After receiving permission, he conjured five notice-like sheets, one for each of the five members. He and The Sun Derrick did not receive any.

Klein manipulated The World to pick one up and casually scan through it.

“Galise Kevin, Dandy, Laura, Windsor Behring, Argos… Their strength is not weak. They are at least equivalent to newly born vampires…” he silently muttered, memorizing the relevant information.

After completing his own matter, The Moon Emlyn gained a little more confidence in winning the “competition.” Relaxed, he leaned back in his chair and waited for the other members to make requests.

This time, no one spoke again.

Seeing this, The Fool Klein chuckled and said, “We shall enter the free exchange session.”

In an instant, Justice Audrey, The Hanged Man Alger, The Hermit Cattleya, and the others all turned their gazes toward The Sun Derrick.

They remembered that The Sun had said previously that, during this period, he might be assigned to an exploration mission involving the region surrounding the Giant King’s Court.