Not long afterward, Jing Yan and the Astral Express crew naturally crossed paths at the Goethe Hotel.
The main reason he hadn't used his abilities to help them get through before was that the three of them stood out too much. His ability could indeed stir up other people's desires, but it couldn't make them completely blind.
Trying to use more of his power would mean controlling more people, which seemed like overkill for a situation like this.
"You, you, you..."
March 7th pointed at Jing Yan, looking rather displeased.
If they hadn't realized that "Cocolia" was probably an important name, they might have said something disrespectful after entering the city. Then they could have ended up in a cell instead of being treated as honored guests and invited to stay at the Goethe Hotel.
"What's wrong? You look a little worked up."
Jing Yan smiled.
By now, he'd successfully received his sign-in reward: a Curio.
It was the Galactic Lottery, a Curio that worked much like a lottery prize.
[Description: Scratch it off for a chance to win a grand prize—or suffer a tremendous penalty!]
Jing Yan smiled and scratched it off without a word.
[Galactic Lottery Reward: The host's Path Aeon power has become more closely integrated with the host!]
Jing Yan examined his Eros power. Compared to before, its overall strength didn't seem to have changed much, but his understanding of it had deepened once again.
In an instant, he gained a fourth ability, in addition to [Manipulating Others' Desires], [Enhancing and Enchanting Objects], and [Infusing Objects with the Power of Desire].
[Verbal Domination]
This ability was something like an upgraded version of [Manipulating Others' Desires].
While manipulating someone's desires only involved stirring up specific desires, [Verbal Domination] involved a more complex kind of desire.
It was similar to a feeling of reverent worship.
Of course, those affected by [Verbal Domination] would be in a state much like sleep, with little awareness of their surroundings.
In addition, as his connection to his Path power grew stronger, his other abilities improved as well.
Specifically, his control over others' desires could last longer. Objects he enchanted and strengthened also became considerably more durable. Likewise, if he imbued an object with an effect that could influence someone's desires, that effect would be more pronounced. He could also tailor it to his needs and make it more potent.
For instance, if he wanted an object to affect a large area, he could precisely control its range down to the centimeter.
Naturally, the farther someone was from the object, the weaker its influence would become.
Moreover, if he wanted a specific person to be affected by a certain power of desire, he could make sure that others remained unaffected when they came into contact with an object like the Emotion Stone.
By this point, he could bring the three members of the Astral Express into Belobog without the guards noticing them. Jing Yan, however, had no intention of telling the crew anything about it.
Besides the reward he'd received from the Galactic Lottery, Jing Yan had also unlocked a new, freely selectable strategy mission.
Anyone he knew could be selected as a target.
The system also let him check his targets' favorability toward him and choose to "work on multiple targets at once."
"All right, all right." Jing Yan looked at March 7th's angry little face and smiled.
"That was just a test."
"You didn't really think I was going to push you into danger, did you?"
The three of them were speechless.
"I bet you're a follower of Elation," March 7th said.
"I'm not," Jing Yan replied with a smile.
"Really?" Stelle still wasn't convinced.
As far as she was concerned, if Jing Yan wasn't a follower of Elation, why did he love stirring up trouble so much?
"Okay, no more joking. Let's talk about something useful." Jing Yan's expression gradually turned serious.
"When you met Cocolia just now, did you notice that she wasn't looking at you, but seemed to be looking at something behind you?"
His words left all three of them stunned.
"How did you know?"
Stelle asked.
She'd felt the same way.
Cocolia had been polite when she welcomed them, but as she spoke, it seemed as if her words weren't meant entirely for them. It was as though she were speaking to some unseen presence.
"That's because Cocolia has already been bewitched by the Stellaron," Jing Yan said casually.
At this, their expressions immediately grew more solemn.
If that was true, it did seem to make sense.
Still, they weren't ready to believe it just yet.
It didn't seem wise to jump to conspiracy theories just because Cocolia had acted strangely when they met her.
After all, Cocolia had arranged this suite at the Goethe Hotel for them.
And among the people they'd met that day, there had also been Bronya. It was the Supreme Guardian's adopted daughter who had brought them to meet the Supreme Guardian.
Without Bronya, they might not have had the chance to meet Cocolia at all.
Bronya had struck them as well-mannered and courteous, and they'd taken quite a liking to her.
So...
That was another reason they found it hard to believe Cocolia had really allied herself with the Stellaron.
"By the way, Mr. Jing Yan, why do you know so much about Cocolia and the Stellaron?" Dan Heng asked.
"Because... Would you believe me if I said I was curious?" Jing Yan said with a smile.
"No," March 7th said, crossing her arms.
"Good. You shouldn't."
"Then I'll say I want to see if I can devour this thing," Jing Yan said.
His words left all three of them stunned.
But Jing Yan had already waved a hand and turned toward one of the rooms.
He hadn't said that on a whim. He wanted to try devouring and fusing with the power of the Stellaron.
In theory, his power existed independently of the Paths of the eighteen Aeons.
Moreover, if his divine power could enchant weapons and let them break through any enemy's elemental weakness, then perhaps he could also devour the power of other Aeons and use it for himself.
Even if his Path seemed to have no obvious connection to Nanook's Path of Destruction...
Still...
If Herta of the Genius Society could seal a Stellaron, and the Astral Express crew could do the same, while the Stellaron Hunters could even implant a Stellaron into an Artificial Body, then there was no reason he couldn't find another way to handle this power.
The more divine power he had, the better his odds of surviving danger!
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