Someone Was About to Lose Business

After Lin Chuan finished offering his advice on "how to become a Beyonder," a brief silence fell over the palace.

Audrey blinked her emerald eyes, her initial anticipation gradually giving way to confusion before settling into a subtle expression that said, Am I being toyed with? She seemed to want to say something, but his status made her reluctant to question him outright.

Klein, meanwhile, had understood absolutely nothing.

Beyonders, Pathways, the Blasphemy Slate-he knew nothing about any of them. He had been completely lost from beginning to end, but he could now be certain of two things:

First, the fellow who knew him, spoke Chinese, and was almost certainly a transmigrator was definitely Lin Chuan.

Second, given this guy's personality, his first answer could not possibly have been serious. Judging by the other two's reactions, it was probably something like, "Want to make a million? Deposit a hundred million first and live off the interest."

When Alger heard the words "Blasphemy Slate," his first reaction was an absurd sense of being so annoyed he could laugh. What nonsense is this fellow spouting? It felt like listening to some preposterous fantasy, but then his pupils contracted almost imperceptibly.

Under normal circumstances, if someone told him, "The best way to become a Beyonder is to read the Blasphemy Slate," he would have assumed they were being sarcastic or deliberately making fun of him.

Yet in these circumstances, he could not help wondering whether the other man had actually seen the Blasphemy Slate and was simply recommending it offhand.

In other words, this was an ancient being at least a thousand years old, perhaps even... Alger remained silent, only making his breathing still quieter.

Klein maintained his inscrutable air, neither approving nor rejecting Lin Chuan's suggestion, as though he were listening to a friend's idle chatter.

Lin Chuan had clearly noticed Audrey's confusion. He chuckled softly, as though he had finally had his fill of teasing, and his tone softened a little.

"I was joking. Don't take it seriously."

He paused, swept his gaze over Audrey and Alger, and extended a finger to slowly trace a circle on the bronze tabletop.

"The Blasphemy Slate records twenty-two roads leading to supernatural power. They're called 'Sequence Pathways,' or 'Paths of the Divine.' By consuming the corresponding Potions recorded on it, starting from Sequence 9, you can truly enter the realm of the supernatural and become a Beyonder."

"Of course..." He looked at Alger and added with a hint of regret:

"As things stand now, though, whichever Blasphemy Slate we're talking about, there's virtually no chance of you finding it and seeing its contents in full. So I was only making a joke."

Klein continued listening in silence, deep in thought. It sounded as though this thing called the Blasphemy Slate-or rather, the Potions recorded on it-was the source of this world's supernatural powers.

So is this actually some sort of world of warlocks? But a grand name like "Paths of the Divine"-roads leading to the throne of a god-makes it sound like the power ceiling here is probably pretty high...

He adjusted his posture, resting his left elbow on the armrest of the high-backed chair and lightly supporting his slightly tilted forehead with his fingers. He assumed the appearance of someone listening calmly, while another thought involuntarily came to him.

...Come to think of it, just how many Blasphemy Slates are there? He even said "whichever one." Are there really several of something that important?

Lin Chuan noticed Klein's movements, then glanced at Audrey. Seeing that she was still listening attentively without interrupting him, he added:

"For someone who's only just come into contact with the mystical world, the more practical approach is usually to find a Beyonder willing to take you under their wing, or to join an organization with an established tradition."

"An official church, a secret organization, a royal family, or one of those great noble families with a thousand-year legacy-any of those would do. I imagine you're aware of that much?"

Audrey listened quietly to the end, then let out a soft breath.

"Yes, Your Excellency. I know about all of those-the Nighthawks, the Mandated Punishers, the Machinery Hivemind, for example. But I don't want to lose my freedom, and as for secret organizations..."

She hesitated here, because a question had occurred to her: did this Gray Fog Space count as a secret organization? And did these two gentlemen, who knew one another, count as secret entities?

Lin Chuan understood and smiled, picking up where she had left off. "Secret organizations really aren't a good choice for ordinary people. Their members are a mixed bag, and their lack of rules is a minor concern compared to the biggest problem: how easy it is to run into an evil god. It's practically a pitfall at every step."

As he spoke, his gaze swept over Alger's position, whether deliberately or otherwise, as though he were hinting at something.

"But since you don't want to lose your freedom by joining an official organization or a family, and you're also worried about accidentally falling into an evil god's trap..."

"...Why not simply buy what you need from someone?"

Alger remained silent, but cold sweat had begun to bead at his temples. He felt as though his thoughts had been seen through, yet he could not tell whether Lin Chuan's glance had been a warning against making any rash moves or a hint that he should bring up Potion formulas himself.

"Buy? Do you mean... with gold pounds?" Audrey looked thoroughly puzzled. Her family's treasury contained some materials from supernatural creatures, but throughout her life, none of her fellow noble friends had gained supernatural abilities and become a true Beyonder.

How could Potion formulas be bought with money? If gold pounds could buy them, why had not a single one of her friends succeeded?

Klein still wore the same calm, detached expression, but questions similar to Audrey's welled up within him, albeit from a slightly different starting point.

Audrey thought gold pounds could not buy them. He, on the other hand, had no money to buy them with.

"Of course," Lin Chuan said casually.

"Why can't Potion formulas be bought with money? Does becoming a Beyonder mean you no longer have any use for gold pounds? Where there's a need, there'll be trade. That's perfectly normal."

"Of course, once you get to the higher-level formulas, money alone certainly won't buy them. But at least the formulas for the first few Sequences are relatively easy to obtain."

At Lin Chuan's matter-of-fact reply, Audrey's eyes brightened slightly. Her fingers gently curled inward, as though she were restraining some impulse, before she asked:

"Then... where can I buy them? I mean, through legitimate, reliable channels."

Her tone retained the propriety of a young noblewoman, but the slight upward lilt at the end betrayed her irrepressible curiosity and anticipation.

"Legitimate channels?" Lin Chuan sounded as though he had heard something amusing, and teased:

"Do you really think there would be some official, formal marketplace for this sort of thing? These so-called 'channels' ultimately just mean finding someone to buy from."

He thought for a moment, then listed a few examples:

"Underground trading, gray areas, recommendations from acquaintances... That's

"all there is to it. Of course, the risks aren't small either. The specifics depend on you."