Method

Drawing on the physics he had learned, Lumian thought for a moment and asked, "Why not just call it the law of conservation?"

"That's another law, but you don't need to know the details for now." The lady nodded approvingly. "In essence, it's actually the same as the Indestructibility Law, just with some additional prerequisites and specific explanations."

I see... Lumian pondered briefly before choosing his words. "According to the Indestructibility Law, if I want to obtain Beyonder characteristics, I can target other Beyonders instead of just hunting the corresponding monsters?"

Since Beyonder characteristics were indestructible, a Beyonder's death would surely cause the corresponding characteristics to separate out.

The lady seemed somewhat wistful.

"You're very perceptive.

"That's why this law isn't something most Beyonders should know. It would lead to them slaughtering each other and destroy every last shred of trust between Beyonders."

"Humans kill each other even without this law." Lumian wasn't concerned. "Is there any shortage of suspicion, bullying, and murder in the real world?"

The lady replied with interest,

"But at least there's still some warmth, some light in human nature."

Lumian thought for a while longer.

"From another perspective, this law should be common knowledge among Beyonders. Only then can the weak take precautions instead of becoming helpless prey for the few who know."

The lady nodded gently.

"There's some truth to that.

"Actually, once they've experienced a few battles between Beyonders, those involved can probably work some of it out."

She changed the subject. "The second law is called the Convergence Law of Beyonder Characteristics."

"Convergence..." Lumian struggled to understand.

He couldn't deduce it from what she had explained earlier.

The lady's expression grew slightly more serious.

"As the being who created this world, the Original Creator didn't completely leave the stage even after splitting into Beyonder characteristics of different pathways. His spirit is scattered among the different Beyonder characteristics and will never fade unless this world is utterly destroyed.

"Although these fragments of spirit are more akin to imprints, they all possess the instinct to converge again and resurrect the Original Creator.

"In other words, once you become a Beyonder, you'll encounter other Beyonders more easily than before. You'll encounter Beyonders of your own pathway and neighboring pathways more easily than those of other pathways. This is convergence at the level of fate. The higher your Sequence, the more pronounced it becomes."

Lumian had so many questions about this that he couldn't ask them all at once. He had to start with the most pressing one.

"Combined with the Indestructibility Law of Beyonder Characteristics, does that mean we can conclude that convergence leads to slaughter?"

Once again, the lady looked approving.

"You're truly perceptive about these things.

"It's manageable at lower Sequences, but once you reach the Half-God stage, especially after becoming an Angel, you'll need to find ways to weaken or avoid the effects of convergence."

"Half-Gods? Angels?" Although Lumian already knew that following any Sequence pathway to its end could lead to becoming a true god, hearing these two terms still surprised and intrigued him.

The lady explained casually, "'Half-God' is short for half god, half human. It encompasses Beyonders from Sequence 4 to Sequence 1.

"Among them, Sequence 4 and Sequence 3 are called Saints, while Sequence 2 and Sequence 1 are called Angels. There are other titles above those, but you'd best not know them yet."

Saints... Angels... Lumian immediately thought of the patron saints and angels of different regions.

They really exist?

Are holy relics the bodies of Saints, with Beyonder characteristics still inside them?

Lumian suddenly felt a little frightened and asked instead, "Every Beyonder characteristic contains a spiritual imprint of the Original Creator, and the higher the Sequence, the more remains?

"Then wouldn't people who drink potions be affected in other ways, too?"

The lady nodded with a smile. "Why else do you think it's called a path full of danger and madness?

"This is also one of the main reasons drinking a potion can cause loss of control.

"Well, loss of control means losing control over your supernatural powers and your own mind, mutating into a terrifying monster."

"There are other reasons?" Lumian pressed.

The lady gave a hum of assent.

"First, there are the spiritual remnants of the Beyonder characteristic's previous owners. Their strength mainly depends on the owners' level, though their obsessions and degree of madness before death also contribute. Second, taking potions in the wrong order or using the wrong method causes tremendous conflict within the body. Third, certain beings use the act of drinking a potion to exert their influence. For example, every time someone on the Mystery Pryer pathway drinks a potion, they're forced to receive an infusion of knowledge from the Hidden Sage."

Was the voice I heard after drinking the Hunter potion something similar? After a little consideration, Lumian gave an honest account of his experience, then asked, "Which being's influence was that?"

The next second, he saw the lady opposite him look a little odd.

She said solemnly, "With certain beings, merely knowing that they exist can corrupt you and cause you to lose control.

"Unfortunately, the owner of that voice is just such a being. You aren't ready to learn His honorific name yet."

That terrifying? A Sequence 0 true god? But I and most people in Intis know about the Eternal Blazing Sun and the God of Steam and Machinery, and nothing's happened to us... Is there a difference between true gods and evil gods? No, she just mentioned the Hidden Sage directly, and that's also a Sequence 0... Could it be that she doesn't actually know which being it is and is hiding her ignorance behind vague words? Several thoughts flashed through Lumian's mind.

Considering his own strength, he dropped the subject and asked about another term that interested him.

"What are neighboring pathways?"

The lady's expression returned to normal.

"Normally, once you've chosen a pathway and drunk its corresponding potion, you can only advance step by step along that pathway. Otherwise, you'll inevitably lose control, or at least partially lose control. But there are exceptions to everything. Every pathway has one or more neighboring pathways, and you can switch to them at specific Sequences, such as Sequence 4, the level that divides humans from Half-Gods.

"The Hunter pathway's neighboring pathway is Assassin."

Assassin... That sounds more impressive than Hunter... Lumian asked eagerly, "What's the Mystery Pryer pathway's neighboring pathway?

"If someone switches to a neighboring pathway, will they stop being affected by the Hidden Sage?"

"It's the Generalist pathway. Its current Sequence 0 is the God of Steam and Machinery," the lady replied calmly. "After switching, they'll still be affected by the Hidden Sage, just to a much lesser degree. After all, the corresponding Beyonder characteristics are still there, unless they find a way to expel them."

"How do you expel them?" Lumian hadn't expected such a thing to be possible.

"The simplest way is to have a child. There's a fairly good chance of transferring the corresponding Beyonder characteristics to the child through mystical inheritance." The lady only touched on the subject. "You can also use the special abilities of certain pathways, but that carries some risk and requires paying a substantial price."

Lumian nodded and asked another question.

"Do you have to switch at specific Sequences?"

Advancing to Sequence 4 and becoming a Half-God sounded like a remote prospect.

The lady glanced at him.

"In theory, you can switch at lower Sequences, but the risk of losing control is much greater. Unless you have no other choice, try not to attempt it."

She paused. "That covers the two laws. Next is the method.

"It's one of the most important pieces of knowledge in the mystical world."

The most important? Lumian instinctively straightened his back, his concentration sharpening.

The lady continued, "It's called the Acting Method.

"It's a way to help you digest a potion. Once you've digested it, the risk of losing control when you drink the next Sequence's potion will be much lower."

No wonder you can't drink a Sequence 9 potion today and a Sequence 8 potion tomorrow... You have to use the Acting Method to digest the previous one first... Understanding dawned on Lumian.

He didn't interrupt her, listening carefully to her explanation.

"Remember, it's digestion, not control.

"What is the Acting Method? It means acting like an actor according to the Sequence's name. Through this, you reconcile the differences between yourself and the residual spiritual imprints in the Beyonder characteristic, gain the corresponding recognition, bypass the existing barrier, and fuse the Beyonder characteristic with yourself."

"So I need to act as a Hunter and go hunting in the mountains every day?" Lumian had settled into the role of a student.

The lady shook her head.

"That's the most superficial form of acting. We need not only to understand the surface meaning of a Sequence's name but also to explore its deeper implications. For example, a city is also a jungle, and everyone is both prey and hunter."

That's something I know well... Lumian already had some understanding of the deeper meaning of Hunter.

It mostly came from his past life as a vagrant.

"Then how do I know I've digested the potion and can advance to the next Sequence?" he couldn't help asking.

The lady smiled.

"When you've truly digested the potion, you'll feel it yourself."

All right... Lumian didn't pursue the subject. Instead, he asked in puzzlement, "Who came up with the names of the different Sequences?"

Why did acting according to those names allow someone to digest a potion?

The lady's expression grew solemn.

"The earliest division of Sequences came from what remained after the Original Creator split apart. It was a slate covered in mystical knowledge.

"Because it concerned the secrets of becoming a god, it was called the Blasphemy Slate.

"In ancient times, at the end of the Second Epoch and throughout the Third Epoch, there was a powerful god who came close to the Original Creator. He was called the Ancient Sun God. After He fell, a second Blasphemy Slate was born from His remains. All current Sequence names and potion formulas come from it."

That's not what I learned about the history of the Second and Third Epochs... Lumian grumbled inwardly.

The lady continued, "During his lifetime, Emperor Roselle used the second Blasphemy Slate as a reference to create a deck of Blasphemy Cards based on the Major Arcana of the Tarot. There are twenty-two cards in total, each containing a Divine Pathway."

"Emperor Roselle was a Beyonder, too?" Lumian was shocked.

As an ordinary citizen of Intis, it was hard not to feel some admiration for Emperor Roselle.

"What else would he be?" The lady chuckled.

Lumian pressed, "Was he very powerful?"

"Close to a god," the lady answered succinctly.

That powerful? Lumian was stunned and surprised, yet also felt that it was only fitting.

He thought for a moment and asked, "Then wouldn't the diaries Emperor Roselle left behind be very valuable?"

The lady nodded.

"Yes, but very, very few people can decipher that strange script."

Aurora seems to have collected some copies of Emperor Roselle's diary, and she seems able to decipher them... Does some of her power come from those? Lumian sank into thought.