Mystery: The Silver Key

Chapter 9 Apprentice

After carefully putting away the notebook containing the potion recipes for the "Apprentice" pathway, and briefly explaining the existence of the role-playing method, Sirion looked up and asked the other person:

"If you choose the 'Seer' path, may I purchase the 'Apprentice' potion ingredients you have?"

Owen readily agreed and said, "Of course, you can just take it and use it. Whether it's the potion recipes for 'Faceless Man' and 'Master of Puppets,' or the acting method, their value already exceeds that of this material."

"Please wait a moment, I'll go get the materials for you right away."

Cyril raised his hand to stop him: "Don't you want to check the authenticity of those potion recipes I gave you first?"

Irving belatedly slapped his forehead: "Oh right, I was too excited and forgot about that, but I believe you."

Although he said he believed it, Irving still took out a crystal ball slightly smaller than an adult's fist from the left pocket of his coat.

This is a very pure crystal ball, a clear, deep blue, with faint starlight twinkling inside.

Cyril took another look out of curiosity. When he asked Professor Fils for leave at Backlund University, he had noticed the rich spiritual light emanating from Owen's pocket and knew that the other man carried a magical item with him.

It's probably at the level of Sequence 8 to Sequence 7, but since it's shaped like a crystal ball, it will most likely correspond to the extraordinary characteristics of an "astrologer".

Seemingly noticing the confusion on his face, Irving turned his head and explained:

"This is a magical item left by my father. I call it the Crystal Ball of Destiny. As long as you carry it with you, it can interfere with divination and the spiritual intuition of extraordinary people. In addition, you can also obtain revelations from destiny by actively using divination. This can help you avoid danger and seek opportunities."

"However, the revelations of fate are not a shortcut. After each divination, one will encounter different dangers depending on the degree of revelation received."

"However, most of the time it's just losing money, tripping on flat ground, encountering thieves, or being robbed by thugs; it's not life-threatening."

Cyril glanced at his injured shoulder, as if he understood something:

"So the reason you encountered those people from the highlands was because you used it for divination before?"

"Um, that's roughly it."

Irving scratched the back of his head, feeling a little embarrassed. He was the one who brought the danger, but it was his friend who got hurt.

Cyril himself didn't care too much. A minor injury in exchange for three potion recipes and a complete set of materials was a win for him no matter how you looked at it.

After a brief pause, he asked another question: "Was your decision to take the potion during the full moon also inspired by this crystal ball?"

"That's right." Owen's nodding motion froze for a moment, then he belatedly realized:

"No wonder I didn't encounter any danger after that divination; danger was hidden in the revelation of fate!"

Cyril nodded slightly: "This should be a hidden negative effect of this magical item. You shouldn't use it for divination casually in the future."

"Hmm... it seems you won't need it much after this. The path Sequence 9 that I gave you is 'The Diviner'."

Owen froze in mid-air, holding the crystal ball of fate to divine. He suddenly felt that this magical item, which had always been quite useful, was a bit too hot to handle. The danger was hidden in the revelations obtained from the divination, which was really hard to guard against.

After hesitating for a moment, he placed the crystal ball of fate on the notebook containing the recipe for the "Diviner" pathway potion, closed his eyes, and muttered divination phrases.

It's just a divination to see if these potion recipes are real and effective. There shouldn't be any serious danger. At worst, I can just stay home today.

A few seconds later, a flash of azure light appeared on the crystal ball.

The divination was effective; all the potion recipes were genuine.

With his last bit of worry gone, he looked up at Sirion: "Do you need a divination? Using the Fate Crystal Ball is simple; as long as you can perform the formal divination, you'll get a response."

Cyril shook his head: "No need, I don't want to run into those highlanders trying to rob me again."

Irving scratched his head awkwardly again: "Actually, most of the time it's just a fall, dropping some money, forgetting your keys or something."

"I'll go get the materials for you, and I can also witness the birth of an extraordinary being while I'm at it."

.....

A few minutes later, in the living room with the doors and windows closed and the curtains drawn, Sirion held a glass and carefully placed various ingredients into it.

Water from an ancient well, hydrosol from sheep's beard grass, flowers growing from corpses, soil contaminated by spirit creatures, and finally, the main ingredients: gem-devouring worms and illusion crystals.

The moment all the materials were placed into the glass, they melted strangely, as if triggering some kind of chemical reaction.

As Sirion gently shook the glass, the melted material gradually clumped together, turning black and viscous, resembling the most traditional herbs, or perhaps poison.

"It looks a bit unappetizing."

Cyril raised his hand and rubbed his stomach. Although he knew that the potion would be absorbed by his body before it even entered his stomach, the image really looked like a culinary disaster. Just looking at it made his stomach feel uncomfortable.

Irving comforted him, saying, "Although it looks awful, and it probably is, once you drink it, you'll become an extraordinary being. In this situation, even if it's sewer sludge, you have to force yourself to drink it."

"You're really not good at comforting people."

After making a casual remark, Cyril brought the glass of potion to his lips and drank it all in one gulp.

Bitter and spicy, like biting into a mixture of garlic, ginger, mustard, and lemon, the taste was so intense that he forgot to breathe.

The sensory stimulation from his taste buds lasted for less than two seconds. The black, viscous potion disappeared after flowing down his throat and was completely absorbed by his body.

At the same time, his spirit suddenly began to rise, his vision broadened, as if he had escaped reality and entered a higher dimension.

In this state, he felt like a fish returning to water—no, not a fish, but a dragon, a ruler returning to his domain.

Before he could fully savor this wondrous state, a magnificent and powerful will, filled with rage, descended upon him.

"thief!"

Cyril instinctively looked up and saw an unreachable shadow appearing high above, looking down at him with anger and greed.

But He could only watch, for an invisible barrier stood between them, preventing them from touching each other.

Seeing that the other party could only watch him from the other side of the barrier, Cyril finally felt relieved and began to carefully sense the changes within himself.

His biggest worry was that the enhancement of his life essence brought about by taking the potion would establish a deeper connection between him and the "higher-dimensional observer," allowing the other party to influence him remotely.

But now it seems that their connection has indeed deepened, but the barrier remains strong. The "higher-dimensional observer" can see them but cannot touch them unless they advance several more times.

As the changes brought about by the potion deepened, Sirion was surprised to find that something ethereal yet real had transferred from the "High Dimensional Overlooker" to himself.

Then, he found that he had a certain control over the surrounding dimensions, and could see and even touch them. Even his previously empty soul was filled, like a floating castle in the air that finally had a pillar and could touch the ground and become barely stable.

"Is this authority, or a symbol?"

"Despicable usurper!"

"Thief who intends to seize control of dimensions, the barrier left behind by the primordial order will not protect you for long..."

As the voice, which sounded like a whisper, entered his ears, Cyril saw an eye open in the shadows that seemed to stretch endlessly high above.

The next instant, his mind suddenly felt heavy, and he began to fall back into his body.

Before he could even adjust to his surging spirituality, a familiar white-robed, blond figure silently came into view. It seemed as if He had just appeared, or as if He had been there all along, but his mind had been subconsciously ignoring Him.

"Adam..."

Cyril opened his mouth with a complicated expression, somewhat surprised, yet not entirely.