Above the Gray Fog, inside a palace that resembled the dwelling of Giant.
Klein sat upright in the Fool's position, raised his right hand, and sent the " Sea God Scepter " hidden in the pile of junk flying out and landing in his palm.
He the Original intended to place this Sealed Artifact, comparable to a "Level 1" item, next to his chair as a sign of respect for a Demigod- level artifact. However, after careful consideration, he felt that the " Sea God Scepter " was somewhat inadequate to match the mysterious and powerful " The Fool," who could contend with evil gods such as the " True Creator " and the " Primordial Demoness." Only the " Card of Blasphemy " was barely qualified. Therefore, he tossed the " Sea God Scepter " into the pile of miscellaneous items.
Looking at the specks of blue and green swirling around the bone staff, Klein had an idea and suggested making a preliminary classification of them.
As he had predicted, the Blue Light dots differentiated on their own according to his will. Those that simply praised the " Sea God " or offered casual prayers sank to the bottom and disappeared at a faster rate, while those involving confession or supplication Levitation upwards, getting closer to Klein's palm.
He followed his Spirituality intuition and "pointed" to one of the latter.
Suddenly, he saw towering waves and heard the howling wind.
A fishing boat in the nearshore waters bobbed up and down in the undulating deep blue, seemingly on the verge of capsizing.
On the fishing boat, local indigenous people were clinging to the mast or pulling on the ropes, making their last effort. Many of them were chanting the name of the " Sea God " in a panic.
Klein realized this was an ongoing prayer, so he raised the milky-white scepter.
At the top of the scepter, a series of blue-green "gems" emitted halos of light, merging together and illuminating the scene.
Just as the fishermen were beginning to despair, they suddenly felt their boat, which had been tossed about, come to a stop.
They looked around in astonishment, only to see that the towering waves, which had been like small mountains, had somehow calmed down, and the raging winds on the sea were getting gentler, as soft as the taste of Zarha beer.
The dark clouds that had been pressing down in the sky dissipated, and before a storm could even fully unfold, it was forcibly suppressed by a mysterious force.
The fishermen quickly snapped out of their daze and realized what had happened:
The Sea God protected everyone; the Sea God displayed His majesty!
Thump, thump, thump!
They all prostrated themselves on the deck, spread their hands, and placed them to their mouths, chanting the name of the " Sea God " in a somewhat disordered manner:
"Thank you, praise be to you, Blessed by the sea and the Spirit World, Protector of the Rorsted Archipelago, Ruler of Undersea Creatures, Master of Tsunamis and Storms, great Kavithua!"
Above the Gray Fog, Klein inexplicably felt a little depressed:
I'm the one who saved you, why are you thanking Kavithua?
That sea serpent only deliberately creates hurricanes and stirs up waves to frighten you, forcing you to devoutly believe in it...
Klein was silent for two seconds, then suddenly burst into laughter:
" Kavithua is dead; the current Kavithua is my other identity."
Why should I feel bad because others thank me for my other identity?
"Is this the problem that the ' Faceless ' must pay attention to when truly Acting someone? To truly immerse oneself in the identity, to regard the other's joys and sorrows as one's own, but without forgetting who one originally was... This is really difficult to do. If one is not careful, one will go insane, and once Beyonder goes insane, losing control is not far away..."
After thinking carefully for a while, Klein let out a breath and chuckled to himself:
" Acting ' Sea God ' was quite rewarding."
"Although the Gray Fog provides shielding and isolation, this Acting may not necessarily receive feedback or directly accelerate the digestion of my ' Faceless ' Potion, but it can still provide experience and lessons to help me explore safer and more effective Acting methods."
Composing himself, Klein extended his Spirituality to another point of light.
This time, the prayer came from under a bridge. A woman, her clothes tattered and her body festering and oozing pus, leaned against a corner, murmuring the name of the " Sea God " as she made her final confession.
Through her description, Klein felt as if he were witnessing her short life firsthand.
This is an indigenous woman whose parents both worship the " Sea God," so she also worships the " Sea God." For the Original ten years or so, her father worked as a miner, repaired roads, and laid railway tracks, while her mother mainly did various temporary jobs, such as sewing, washing, helping at the docks, and intermittently working as a streetwalker. The family struggled quite a bit, but they managed to make ends meet.
The turning point came two years ago when his father died in a road construction accident. The Rorsted Railway Company offered only meager compensation, driving the family to despair.
Subsequently, the girl was sold by her mother to the " Red Theater," where she became a legal prostitute.
Although Emperor Roselle had invented condoms long ago, many pirates and adventurers, seeking only momentary pleasure, refused to use them. The " Red Theater " itself did not enforce this, and the girl's resistance was in vain. She could only submit and eventually contracted a disease from someone unknown.
The managers of the " Red Theater " tried some basic treatment, but seeing no significant improvement, they kicked her out because the cost of further treatment was significantly higher than the cost of buying another girl.
The sick girl couldn't find a new job, and she didn't even have money to rent a place. Her mother and younger siblings were nowhere to be found; perhaps they were dead, or perhaps they had been kidnapped and enslaved.
The girl became homeless and lived under a bridge, surviving for a while on food from a charity and some free medicine.
But this was only temporary. Her condition worsened, her body grew weaker, and she soon reached the end of her life.
At that moment, she recalled the days when she was well-fed and warmly clothed, and the occasional words spoken by pirates and adventurers. She whispered a prayer to the " Sea God ":
"I want to live like a human being..."
Klein raised his cane slightly again, only to find that the Sealed Artifact had no ability to cure diseases.
He considered buying a batch of potions from Emlyn White in the name of "the world," only to discover that the prayer scene was from noon, and the girl had already passed away in the muddy, filthy bridge arch, writhing in pain and intense hunger.
Klein remained silent for a moment, then raised the perspective of the prayer image to reveal the location of the bridge arch.
After noting down the characteristics of the nearby streets and surrounding area, Klein leaned back in his chair, sighed, and smiled without a hint of amusement:
"What a humble Wishes."
"There's nothing to Acting... I'll try my best to give you a proper burial..."
He turned his attention away and browsed other points of light, searching for subjects he could actually Acting, but for the time being, he found nothing.
During this process, Klein noticed that the rebels, including Kalat and Edmonton, were holding a ceremony where they placed a batch of items on an altar, praying to the " Sea God " for power.
So that's how they obtained the extraordinary "things" they traded... Reaching the level of Demigod really makes a difference... Moreover, they're all used to not getting immediate responses, seemingly wanting those items to stay overnight on the altar... It seems that the sea serpent Kavithua isn't an instant responder either; it depends on its mood and whether it's asleep, otherwise it can only make some instinctive responses and can't mass-produce extraordinary "things"... Klein picked up the " Sea God Scepter " and made those blue-green "gems" shine brightly once more.
A powerful Spirituality, wondrously combined, with an extraordinary quality, surged into the prayer scene, into the altar, and randomly merged with different objects.
Some were Electric Shock talismans, some could make people swim in the sea like fish, some could create strong winds... Within three months, their Spirituality would gradually diminish to nothing... Klein half-closed his eyes, sensing the changes in those items.
By this time, he was quite exhausted. Although he had only responded twice, mainly relying on the power of the " Sea God Scepter," one was to forcibly disperse the storm and calm the waves, and the other was to simultaneously "enchant" dozens of items. Both were applications at the Demigod level, and the consumption of his Spirituality was also very high.
Even if I could use this ' Sea God Scepter ' normally, I couldn't sustain it for long... The negative effects, on the other hand, wouldn't be a burden to me, and sometimes I might be able to use them...
"Hmm, the resistance's situation reminded me that I also need to pray to myself to make a batch of talismans, mainly the kind for underwater activities. That way, even in naval battles, I won't be at a disadvantage. Oh, right, I still don't know how to make lightning talismans. I need to gather relevant occult information. With that, I can deal with enemies who have air superiority..."
Klein muttered a few words silently, tossed the " Sea God Scepter " back into the pile of junk, and quickly returned to the real world.
In the vast and beautiful countryside of East Chester County, the side gate of a sprawling manor.
Audrey Hall, dressed in a fitted black riding outfit over a simply decorated women's blouse, sat quite comfortably on a tan mare, without swaying at all.
Her black leather boots were firmly planted in the stirrups, her legs, clad in white trousers, were slightly turned inwards. She turned her head and smiled at Susie, the large golden retriever carrying a small leather bag beside her:
I'll be waiting for you at the edge of the woods!
After saying that, she bent down with her whip in hand, causing the brown mare to start running slowly across the open field.
Compared to the magnificent but gloomy family castle, Audrey preferred the beautiful manor and the scenery of the countryside.
A line of fine horses galloped out, each rider accompanied by a squire and a maid. Their sole mission was to protect Miss Audrey.
Susie ran around joyfully, a feeling she could never experience in Backlund.
Moreover, she and Audrey will have a small adventure today: exploring an ancient tower in the woods that has been collapsed for a long time. Valuable items have long been taken away there, and no accidents have ever happened there. It is a perfect place for inexperienced people to practice their skills.
The only problem is that it will get dark in two hours, and there might not be enough time.