Another Possibility in History

After Erlini spoke, the pitch-black, lightless space immediately took shape and filled with color.

It was a scene Iver knew extremely well—

This was the intersection of Lloyd District and White Queen District, a place called Legal Square. He had passed through here on his way to Pelican Bar.

The setting sun hung slightly askew in the sky, while the clouds were thick. Dusky yellow light spilled over the gloomy streets, carrying the damp premonition of a storm that was on its way but had yet to arrive.

But Iver quickly realized that something was wrong.

This was considered a busy district, yet there wasn't a single person on the road. An eerie, deathlike silence hung over everything.

This wasn't an illusion.

Because at this moment, time was still frozen.

The nine of them sat in the middle of the main road, surrounding the glowing Hourglass.

Iver observed that only the old man and Sherlock showed no reaction whatsoever. Everyone else, himself included, was more or less startled.

Faced with the sudden situation, everyone maintained a cautious attitude. The instant everyone chose to remain silent, the atmosphere fell silent as well.

"An apostle... is that the angel from the legends?"

After only a second or two, Ke Ke was the first to break the silence.

She murmured softly, her voice filled with childlike anticipation and yearning. "Was it an angel sister who helped us advance?"

"—I'm afraid not."

Sherlock calmly interrupted the girl's beautiful fantasy and explained evenly, "An apostle is essentially a phantom demon. They simply choose to submit to the Nine Pillar Gods and are responsible for assisting the Nine Pillar Gods in responding to various rituals."

"...In other words, they're servants who handle small tasks for the Nine Pillar Gods."

Ke Ke's gentle voice came from the side as she softly explained, "Don't be afraid... They only guide us in conducting the ritual. They aren't responsible for judging the results, nor do they decide the ritual's contents.

"The Promotion Ritual's proper name is the 'Nine Pillar Gods Ritual.' It's a ritual that calls down the Nine Pillar Gods. In theory, all nine of them should be summoned. But there are simply too many low-tier transcendents like us. How could the Nine Pillar Gods have the time to come see us...? That's why they send apostles instead.

"At least one apostle must be sent by the nine Pillar Gods. Since we're still too weak, we've only managed to attract one apostle... The ritual can only be established once the apostle arrives."

"There's no need to care too much about the apostle."

Sherlock suddenly spoke. "Erlini is an apostle of the Equilibrium Path and places great importance on fairness. But you won't necessarily encounter an apostle of the Hourglass every time you advance. If an apostle of the Path of Love, Path of Wisdom, Path of Authority, or Path of Transcendence comes to preside over the ritual, they might maliciously favor or deceive the participants.

"But what has the greatest influence is actually the ritual's compiler... in other words, the preferences and inclinations of the Pillar God."

The Hourglass was another name for the Hourglass, the Pillar God of the Equilibrium Path. It was also the emblem printed on Avalon copper coins.

Every country had different prohibited Paths. Generally speaking, these were mainly Paths opposed to the mainstream ideologies, though political factors were also involved.

For example, the Stibium Kingdom mainly promoted the Path of Transcendence, the Path of Twilight, and the Equilibrium Path, while the mainstream ideologies of the Iris Flower Kingdom were the Path of Beauty and the Path of Love. These countries bordered Avalon, and relations among them were less than friendly.

Considering issues such as cultural invasion and the infiltration of spies, the Paths of these three countries were mutually opposed.

—But even so, despite the Stibium Kingdom's foundation as an alchemical nation, Avalon and Iris still hadn't banned the Equilibrium Path.

On one hand, they truly couldn't abandon technology and alchemy. On the other, the Equilibrium Path emphasized fairness, neutrality, and having no borders in principle—this consistent "fairness" came from the top down.

"Generally speaking," Sherlock glanced at the old man, who had remained silent the entire time, paused, then continued, "the presider also has personal likes and dislikes. After all, without a distinct will, personality, and memories, it can't be considered a true phantom demon.

"That's why the presider will choose to slightly favor transcendents belonging to their own Path, or cause trouble for Paths they dislike."

At these words, the glowing Hourglass finally spoke. "There's no need to worry too much, everyone.

"After all, this is theoretically a ritual jointly observed by the Nine Pillar Gods, so things won't go too far.

"We aren't exam graders, nor are we the ones who set the questions. We're merely proctors. We're here only to witness this ritual and confirm that no one cheats. Flattery is useless. Even verbal attacks don't matter—of course, although I don't care, that enthusiastic 'detective' is right. I also don't recommend that you attack apostles of other Paths."

Erlini's voice was gentle. She didn't interrupt Sherlock or offer any rebuttal. Clearly, she was the mild-tempered type.

"Now then, everyone. According to tradition, during your first Promotion Ritual, I will explain things to you.

"This time, three of the advancers possess multiple Paths. But take note: during the Promotion Ritual, you may only use the abilities of your advancement Path and the extraordinary items corresponding to that Path that you personally created.

"—Everything you encounter in the Dream Realm is related to, but different from, the true history of the Material Realm.

"Perhaps a ritual that calls upon a higher being, an assassination targeting a great figure, or a localized war could change the world. Perhaps the world was changed long ago, but no one is capable of remembering the original history.

"During the Promotion Ritual, you will see 'another possibility in history' deduced by the Nine Pillar Gods.

"Each dream you use during an advancement will only be used once. Its contents are entirely fictional and will differ from how events developed in reality.

"Therefore, under the gaze of the Nine Pillar Gods, you must solve puzzles, search for items, defeat enemies, or survive, thereby proving your abilities.

"This ritual is limited to four hours, with a one-to-one ratio to reality.

"You will play a certain role within the setting and complete your own tasks. Each corresponding objective you complete will earn you the corresponding number of points.

"Because this is a Full Moon Ritual, cooperation is permitted and cooperation points will be calculated. Depending on their contribution and gains, collaborators will receive additional points equal to ten to fifty percent of the points earned by the person they helped.

"But you cannot cooperate with the opposing Path you selected for this ritual. Otherwise, you will lose fifty to one hundred percent of the points earned by the person you helped.

"Take note: helping someone without discovering their opposing-Path identity will still result in a deduction. But if you fail to identify them and directly state the correct identity of their cooperative Path, helping them will not earn you any points. Once the ritual is complete, the three people with the lowest scores will be eliminated.

"During this ritual, aside from the participants, none of the sapient beings possess complete intelligence or souls. They were all fabricated by 'Amber.' Therefore, actions such as killing, healing, and sacrificing them will not trigger oaths, taboos, covenants, or curses.

"This ritual's difficulty is 'Safe.' Any injuries or deaths sustained during the ritual will not affect the health of your bodies in the Material Realm. Failure to advance will not weaken or damage your souls, either.

"One final statement: the dream for this ritual was constructed by 'Amber.' The tasks and role assignments, as well as the rules for gaining and losing points, are the responsibility of the Lord of Scales and Feathers. They have absolutely nothing to do with the ritual's witness—that is, me."

Only after saying all that in one uninterrupted breath and finishing the disclaimer did Erlini finally pause.

"Does anyone have anything they don't understand? During your next advancement, the new presider won't tell you this much."

No one made a sound. The atmosphere was just like when a teacher asked a class, "Is there anyone who didn't understand?" Not a peep could be heard.

Erlini wasn't surprised by this.

She added helpfully, "This ritual is very simple, and the process isn't long, so don't be nervous. You don't necessarily need to look for teammates, either. If there's still anything you don't understand, you can ask your guides after waking up.

"Remember, everything you see during this ritual is fictional. Don't regard anything you see here as historical events that truly happened—"

As she spoke, the sand in the Hourglass ran out.

As the Hourglass slowly turned over, the apostle Erlini spoke her final words:

"In 1884, a horrifying series of murders took place in the capital of the Avalon Kingdom..."

Once the Hourglass had completely flipped over, Iver suddenly felt a powerful wave of dizziness.

The frozen world before him remained completely motionless, but the nine people sitting in their chairs vanished like ripples on water.