Status

"Traveler from Distant Time and Space,

The contradictory spiral of logic and wisdom,

The reflection of knowledge, the reverse side of truth."

The honorific name recited in Ancient Hermes echoed through the room sealed by spirituality, while a lone candle crackled softly.

Sno dripped two drops of Men's Perfume onto the flame. Blue-white fire immediately splashed up, mingling with the fragrance into a vortex that frantically drew in Sno's spirituality.

"I pray to You;"

"I pray that You grant me strength;"

"Grant me the strength to complete the Paradox Charm."

"Cardamom, please pass your power to my charm. Ambergris, please pass your power to my incantation..."

As Sno chanted, layer upon layer of whispers echoed beside his ears. As he infused spirituality into the ritual, a white cloud shaped like a galloping steed raced through his mind.

Without hesitation, Sno picked up the Engraving knife and carved the symbol "∞" onto a one-penny coin whose portrait and lettering had been ground away and replaced with intricate patterns. A strange, twisted force that seemed to defy all reason flowed into it.

The continuous drain on his spirituality was hardly worth mentioning to Sno, who was practically a sentient Uniqueness. As his spirituality flowed away like water, charms made from one-penny coins lined up before him.

"Phew, that went much more smoothly than I expected." Sno played with the coins, feeling the spirituality contained within them as the corners of his mouth lifted slightly. He did not know whether it was because he had greater authority over Origin Quality or because White Horse is Not a Horse resided within his soul, but responding to himself was far easier for him than it was for K.

He did not need to summon himself or push open the Summoning Gate. He had even replaced the Pure Dew and herbs normally used with a bottle of men's perfume—

Incidentally, the ambergris and cardamom in his incantation were ingredients in that bottle of perfume.

After all, he was praying to himself. Anything would do. He had enough spirituality anyway, so there was no need to use Spirituality Materials to reduce the consumption.

Still, everything had its pros and cons. For instance, he could not store items inside White Horse is Not a Horse.

After stuffing the Paradox Charms, each of which cost one penny to make excluding labor, into his pocket, Sno dearly wanted to find somewhere to test their power.

Unfortunately, he could not be certain that he had escaped the Night Watchers' surveillance. Besides, someone who had stayed in an inn for half a month without stepping outside would definitely draw attention if he suddenly went out.

Suppressing the childish urge of a kid who had just gotten a new toy, Sno returned to the bedside and began teasing Lily. Oh, and Lily (Ruri) was the name of the Rune Shorthair Cat he kept.

In fact, he had already planned out a perfect daily schedule for himself—

He would get up in the morning and pray to Mr. Fool, then begin writing. After lunch, he would study the ritual knowledge gained from the potion. In the afternoon, he would use Pavlov's Dog's ability to attach his consciousness to Lily and take a stroll outside. Then, he would go to sleep punctually before nine at night.

Oh, and before bed, he had to drink a cup of hot milk and do half an hour of physical training. Once he got into bed, he would immediately fall asleep, never leaving fatigue or stress for the next day.

However, like most schedules, this plan did not last long. It was not because Sno lacked perseverance, but because the very next day, a twisted spirit with a vertically split mouth appeared in his room.

Looks like Mr. A's messenger isn't even as fast as a train... Sno grumbled inwardly, but immediately took the envelope from the other party's hand. After watching the spirit, which clearly did not meet the Aurora Society's recruitment standards, disappear once more, he tore open the envelope and shook out the not-too-long letter inside—

"Mr. Panredax:

I have received your letter. Given the foolish actions of the two Secrets Suppliants, there is no need for you to feel guilty or afraid of your decisiveness. The Lord will not blame any devout believer.

Even we devout believers require extensive preparation for the Lord's summoning ritual. A Con Sman who does not even qualify as a lamb is not worth too much attention.

The notes you intercepted are highly valuable. They are sufficient to exchange for a Listener Potion.

I presume your potion digestion is nearing its end. I look forward to your return.

Your friend, Mr. A."

"Friends? When the True Creator isn't involved, Mr. A is actually quite polite!" Sno grinned at the elegant, graceful handwriting on the letter. At the same time, he secretly relaxed a little. Fortunately, he had already made contact with the great Mr. Fool. Otherwise, he would be considering grabbing a bucket and running away by now.

After all, he was a promising talent in whom Mr. A had placed great hopes!

As mentioned before, once one drank the Secret Speaker Potion, one's personality would inevitably be distorted. Therefore, the Beyonders of the Aurora Society were either lunatics or lunatics hiding it very well.

Yet even among lunatics, there were different ranks within the Aurora Society.

Ordinary lunatics belonged to the very bottom of the Aurora Society. These people, completely unable to control themselves, could only be expended as cannon fodder in battle. Anything involving even the slightest bit of scheming would never be entrusted to them.

Next came lunatics who appeared normal. Such people could often obtain relatively reliable identities, hide among the crowds, gradually develop lambs, and expand the Aurora Society's influence. They were the backbone of the Aurora Society.

Sno, however, belonged to the third category above them: a rational lunatic with an excellent identity.

As a veterinarian, Sno moved among high society for years and possessed quite extensive connections. He maintained contact with the wives and daughters of many noble families.

Such an identity allowed him to easily reach the upper circles of the Loen Kingdom. To the Aurora Society, an identity like this was undoubtedly extremely rare.

More importantly, he had a handsome face that perfectly represented the Aurora Society's corporate aesthetic!

It was precisely because of this that, in order to let him pray to the Lord more frequently and advance as quickly as possible into a Listener who could better make use of this identity, Mr. A had transferred him out of Backlund, where tossing a stone could hit a demigod, and arranged for him to stay in Tingen, a "peaceful" city where even Sequence Seven Beyonders were rare.

And judging by Mr. A's letter, once he finished digesting the potion, he could immediately return to Backlund, be promoted to Listener, and begin telling the ladies and young misses of every household about the glory of the rap Lord.

Sno held the letter to the candle and set it alight, then turned to look at the calendar on the bedside table. Seeing the red circle marked on it, a somewhat sinister smile appeared on his face—

"Perhaps before I return to Backlund, Mr. A will have to come here first..."

As for Listeners strengthening preaching abilities, that was a secondary setting derived from information in the original work.

First, the original work revealed that Listeners were once called Whisperers, which suggested that this profession might possess the ability to "convey whispers to others."

Second, there was the Blasphemous Language ability Magaos displayed during the battle against the Evil God Progeny.

Although the Evil God Progeny's exact level was unknown, it definitely could not have reached Angel status. At most, it was an incomplete demigod; otherwise, there was no reason for it to be suppressed by the Ashen Casket. Therefore, this ability probably did not come from an Angel-level Profane Presbyter.

Then which Sequence's ability was this Blasphemous Language?

It definitely could not have come from the Secrets Suppliant. The Shadow Ascetic was possible, but unlikely, since a Shadow Ascetic's main abilities should focus on shadow powers. The same applied to the Rose Bishop. A Sequence centered on flesh-and-blood magic was also unlikely to develop Blasphemous Language. Shepherds should be more focused on grazing. After considering it all, the Listener seemed the most likely to possess this ability.

Hearing the Lord's teachings and then passing them on to others should be the Acting Principles of a Whisperer. But because the rap Lord had gone mad, all Whisperers became Listeners.

As for why the Evil God Progeny's Blasphemous Language was so powerful... Ever heard of a Great Old One-level drinking straw?