Sasrir

"Lord, we shall take our leave now." Ouroboros departed with Hermes, leaving only Truman and the Ancient Sun God in the church.

This was a gathering of fellow townsfolk.

Much like when Truman had first learned the Goddess's identity, there was a sense of kinship, yet an invisible barrier born of this world's essence stood between them.

"Do you want a drink?" Truman suddenly asked. "Vodka, I promise! Authentic, just like the old days!"

Truman flipped open the Book of Dreams and pulled out two bottles directly.

Wish Fulfillment—the dream descended upon the world.

"This is a gift for you." Truman handed the bottles over.

"...Thank you." The Ancient Sun God stared at Truman for a long moment before accepting the two bottles, his expression complex, tinged with regret and nostalgia.

"Truly a distant memory."

He twisted off the cap and took a hearty swig, downing half the bottle. "A very familiar taste!"

"According to the customs of the Eastern ancient kingdom, a return gift is expected." The Ancient Sun God set down the bottle, his gaze falling on the Badge of Divinity pinned to Truman's chest.

"Got it!" He reached out and pinched lightly, as if condensing a sun in his hand, until it formed a Sun Badge nearly identical to the Badge of Divinity.

Truman's eyes lit up as he sensed its effect—Eternal Day.

Its primary function was exorcism and purification, but it also held the power to awaken sleeping beings.

"Many thanks!" Truman took it and placed it alongside the badge imbued with the Sleepless Divinity of the Evernight. Dream Phosphor flickered, and the two badges fused into one.

The Badge of Divinity now bore two patterns on either side, the power of the sun and the star surging together, sustaining Truman's state.

"Sleepless and Eternal Day—I'm afraid I'll never be able to sleep again." Of course, for Truman, this was a blessing instead.

Truman laughed. This was an unexpected gain.

"Did you and that lady come to see me for something?" The Ancient Sun God had clearly already met with the Goddess!

"Naturally, cooperation." Truman's expression turned serious as the power of the Chaos Sea and Dream Phosphor enveloped the church.

"How shall we cooperate?" The Ancient Sun God gripped the cross with one hand, asking calmly and gently.

In this moment, he was more god than man.

"The Ancient God Alliance, Lilith, and the Destruction Demon Wolf." Truman offered these key words.

The Ancient Sun God's face remained placid, his eyes clear, unmoved by the mention.

But Truman knew that something called the Authority of Omniscience had begun to stir within the Chaos Sea.

Though the Ancient Sun God had not reclaimed the Spectator and White Tower pathways, he could still indirectly wield the authority of omniscience through the Chaos Sea.

He was deducing, using endless knowledge to trace the currents of this era!

He lacked the authority of fate, but an Author's ability in this regard was no less formidable.

"Lilith..." The Ancient Sun God's gaze fell on Truman, thoughtful. "You've already persuaded Her?"

"No one wants to lose themselves." Truman didn't answer directly, but spoke with implication.

"Good." The Ancient Sun God nodded slightly, deciding to go along with the tide of the times. "For the specifics, go find Sasrir."

After that, the Ancient Sun God walked to the base of the massive cross, closed his eyes, and began to pray to himself.

It felt like this god was just slacking off...

Truman blinked, then obediently walked out of the church, where he found Ouroboros and Hermes.

"Hello, Ouroboros. My apologies for what happened before." Truman looked at Ouroboros.

The earlier eruption of the Chaos Sea had nearly swallowed Ouroboros whole.

"Hm?" Ouroboros only then lifted his eyes from the Slate, looking at Truman. After a pause, he replied, "It's fine. You didn't harm me, and you are a friend of the Lord."

He noticed the badge on Truman's chest, which carried a power very familiar to him.

"The Lord's oracle bids me take you to Sasrir." Ouroboros suddenly recalled something and gestured in invitation.

"Alright, let's go." Truman and his little follower Hermes walked under Ouroboros's guidance through the Sun God's divine kingdom.

"These people!" Hermes was stunned. They witnessed grand sacrificial processions and majestic hymns that never ceased, praising the deity who brought sunlight to this land.

Of course, such things happened in other human city-states from time to time, but what truly shook Hermes's soul was that some humans here actually had mysterious power surging within them.

Most crucially, they showed no signs of mutation, their spirituality was stable, and their spiritual bodies were in a state of peace Hermes had never seen before!

"O Sun, you grant us sunlight and rain, food and holy water..."

The hymns never stopped, sung under the lead of several priests, their grandeur stirring the true power of the divine.

"What is this?!" Hermes asked, dazed.

"They are Praise Singers." Ouroboros was also praising the sun, but turned his head at Hermes's confusion to answer.

"Praise Singers?" Hermes's voice churned with intense bewilderment, as if a film blocked his understanding of the scene before him.

"Sequence 9, Praise Singer." Truman offered a timely reminder.

"Sequence 9?!" Hermes's eyes lit up, and everything became clear.

"You know about Sequences?" A voice came from far to near, and a figure materialized before the three of them.

The newcomer wore a deep black robe with shoulder-length black hair. His face bore some resemblance to the Ancient Sun God, but was more handsome and striking, his eyes also black, with heavy shadows faintly visible within.

His clothes were extremely refined, adorned with silver threads and intricate patterns, accompanied by decorations that could only be called magnificent.

"Sasrir, why are you here?" Ouroboros blinked, puzzled. "Has the Lord's divine kingdom city been completed?"

Sasrir's face darkened slightly. He cleared his throat twice. "I've come to receive the guests."

"Oh," Ouroboros nodded lightly. "Then I'll be off first. My mural isn't finished yet."

Ouroboros turned his attention back to the slate in his hands, gesturing with one hand, completely immersed in his own world.

"Ahem, friend, give me two bottles of Vodka!" The Dark Angel Sasrir approached and said in a low voice.

"..." Truman opened the Book of Dreams and pulled out a bottle of Vodka.

This Sasrir gave him a very strange feeling. The Ancient Sun God was entirely divinity overwhelming humanity, only showing some emotional fluctuation when facing those distant memories, more like the Adam in Truman's impression.

But this Sasrir, a King of Angels, gave him a sense of extremely rich humanity, even stronger than Ouroboros.

Perhaps this was the meaning of His creation...

Clearly, Truman preferred dealing with Him like this.

"Ahh! Good stuff!" Sasrir gulped down an entire bottle. "Bayeharri!"

Truman simply grabbed a handful of Dream Phosphor from the Book of Dreams and stuffed it into Sasrir's bottle. The Dream Phosphor rippled, and the liquor inside actually refilled completely.

"What a convenient ability!" Sasrir praised. Before the Dream Phosphor faded, the liquor would never be fully consumed.

"Can't let Him get this." Sasrir took another full swig, then carefully stowed the bottle away.

The Sun God might be able to procure this kind of old-era item, but those drinks would definitely not have the effect of neutralizing madness.

Truman was demonstrating his value.