Chapter 491: Kunpeng's Phantom (Two in One)
The consultant was still confused and didn't know what was going on.
But when he heard the mocking sound, Aiwass saw that "Sherlock" calmed down in an instant, rubbed his face, and made a sleepy expression, finding an excuse for his previous loss of composure: "I was a little sleepy... When I woke up just now, I thought I was dreaming..."
...The reaction is quite quick.
The corners of Aiwas' mouth rose slightly, and he praised in his heart.
"It's a pity," Aiwass said meaningfully, "This is not a dream, but reality."
——Unfortunately, this is just a dream. And you are just a person in the dream, and you will disappear like bubbles when I wake up.
The consultant sarcastically thought in his heart.
After calming down a little, he realized what he should do now.
Now the war is roaring outside, and even in the secluded White Queen District, you can hear exclamations and screams - remember, this is Glass Island, the capital of Avalon!
Even with such a big incident, Oswald, the butler of the Aiwass family, hadn't shown up to take him away. In fact, only Aiwass and he were here, and everyone else had vanished without a trace... This could only mean one thing: they had all left Glass Island.
He lost his memory for a period of time, or there was a problem with the ritual itself...it was all possible.
The consultant had also heard of special cases where the promotion ceremony had been interfered with, or the dream had been disturbed by an intruder, causing the promoted person to suffer unexpected consequences. This was also the reason why the promotion ceremony required the use of dream intoxication tincture - when the dream lasted too long, or the promoted person's physical body was significantly affected, it was possible that the promotion ceremony dream would become blurred.
But it doesn't matter what the reason is.
As a result, he lost his memory for one or several days.
Judging from the colossus outside, he probably lost more than just one day's memories—perhaps the third day, or even the fourth. Surviving the colossus... this was in line with the difficulty of the ascension ceremony set by the Lord of Scales and Feathers.
The reason so many people left at the same time could only be to escort Isabel to the Theocracy!
The consultant's eyes flickered slightly, and he quickly analyzed in his mind:
As a detective who was able to go to the Queen to inform her before the banquet started, Sherlock showed that he was very loyal to the royal family.
Now that he was rescued by Shafiya, he did not leave with the princess... This could only mean that he had something to do here.
The same goes for Aiwass.
Although the consultant now had top-secret intelligence, knowing that Aiwass and Princess Isabel were actually at odds and wary of each other, even with such a sharp confrontation, they clearly trusted each other deeply - otherwise Princess Isabel would never have gone to Moriarty Manor at this time.
Rather than saying they are enemies, it would be better to say they are both enemies and friends.
...Thinking about it this way, I'm a little envious of them. The consultant curled his lips.
In this case, the only reason Isabel would leave Aiwass and Sherlock here is to complete an important task that must be completed!
——Complete the National Defense Ceremony: Shadow of Avalon!
Then another question arises...
The consultant looked at Aiwass, hesitant to speak.
He carefully considered how much Sherlock knew about this matter. If he revealed something he shouldn't have known, or if he didn't know something that had already been said, it would inevitably arouse Bishop Moriarty's suspicion...
And Aiwass just looked at Sherlock's sudden silence and guessed what he was thinking.
So he very considerately passed the message to the consultant to ensure that the conversation could continue normally -
Aiwass said seriously, his expression serious, "It seems we can't wait any longer. Even if it's not the agreed time yet, we must prepare for the 'Shadow of Avalon' ceremony in advance."
"If we wait until the Star Antimony army completely controls Glass Island, it will become very difficult for us to take action."
--I see.
I already know this crucial information, but I'm not taking action yet because the time is not right yet...
The consultant's mind suddenly brightened, and he immediately grasped the current progress of the task.
Now there's just one problem.
Is Olive, the ascendant of the Transcendent Path, still alive? If he is dead, how can they find a Transcendent Path transcendent in Avalon who can gain the trust of Bishop Moriarty and can be considered controllable?
Thinking of this, Sherlock simply nodded: "As you say, Bishop. What are you going to do now?"
At this time, I seemed to hear some movement downstairs... and cautious footsteps were also heard upstairs.
——Is there anyone else here?
Aiwass and Sherlock raised their heads at the same time and looked upstairs.
There stood a white-haired, dignified old man, like a lion. When he saw Aiwass and Sherlock, he was stunned for a moment, and his frown deepened.
That man was John Osborne.
One of the two court ritualists of Avalon and a colleague of Teacher Ibn.
He was also the sole court ritualist of the Avalon royal family before Iben, a foreigner, was recruited by the queen. Unlike Iben, one could tell from his features and fair skin that this old man was a native of Avalon.
If he didn't exist...even Queen Sofia wouldn't dare to recruit a foreigner whose background she didn't know to be the palace ritual master.
In the ancient Parthian Empire, the name "Ibn" could be understood as "son of someone," a preposition in a string of names. Besides signaling his identity as a Parthian, the name offered no real identification. "Ibn" was essentially a nickname, like "Parthian."
According to Iben himself, when he first met the Scaleless Hand, the name he introduced himself to was too long, so they didn't remember it and only remembered "the middle name, Iben." This later became Iben's new name in Avalon. When he was recruited by Queen Sophia, it was because of "Iben of the Scaleless Hand."
Like Osborn and Iben, they are both third-level transcendents - they are merely ritual wizards and have not advanced to become great wizards.
As a spellcaster, he appeared here at this moment, revealing such surprise and hesitation...
The person who plays "John Osborne" at this moment is probably Mr. Iben, code-named "Olive"!
...Strange, why didn't he use his own body?
Is it because Eben is no longer in Avalon in this timeline?
Aiwass thought to himself that he was going to test him and hint to him not to reveal his identity.
"Mr. Osborne, you're awake."
Aiwass nodded slightly and said politely, "Sorry to wake you, but I had to. The Star Antimony people outside seem to have broken in. We must hurry to the Temple of Silver and Tin to complete the Shadow of Avalon Ritual. Detective Hermes will assist us."
Aiwass introduced Sherlock, "He's Avalon's most reliable ritualist. He and I are quite familiar with each other. We once had a somewhat master-disciple relationship... We just invited him back last night. The ritual Her Highness Isabel entrusted to us still depends on him to complete."
When "Osborn" heard this, he immediately understood the identities of Aiwass and Sherlock, as well as the cause and effect of the matter.
The white-haired old man stroked his lion-like beard, nodded slightly, and said seriously, "I can't even be called the best. Compared to that Lord Ibn, I'm still far behind."
Hearing this, Aiwass almost laughed out loud.
He tried very hard to keep a straight face and look serious.
Osborn walked down the stairs and extended his hand to Sherlock from a distance.
"Nice to meet you, Great Detective Hermes."
The old ritualist said meaningfully, "I hope we can have a pleasant cooperation from now on—at least I hope to cooperate with you."
He guessed who Sherlock was, but also realized that the other party definitely didn't know Aiwass's true identity.
Otherwise, if they were all promoted, there would be no need to be so vague. If promoted people only discussed matters outside the ceremony with other promoted people, and it did not affect the rationality of the "NPC" and the plot, they would not be punished.
"Me too."
After hearing this, the consultant understood what the old ritualist meant.
——He was hinting to me that he was Olive!
Fortunately, "Olive" came here by himself!
The consultant immediately breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that the ritualists of the ancient country of Parthia were still reliable.
If Olive is a demonologist or a demon from Star Antimony, he would probably have started acting on his own by now...
The consultant then stepped forward, smiled, and shook hands with the old ritualist, saying cryptically, "I've long been ready to work with you... I can't even wait."
The implication is that my path of rejection does not transcend the path.
"—Then add me in."
At this moment, a slightly cold but steady voice came.
Aiwass looked in the direction of the voice and saw another person.
He suddenly couldn't hold it in any longer.
The man was wearing a black suit, his hair was neatly combed, his expression was solemn and dignified, and he was holding a heavy cane.
He walked down politely, his steps light and steady. He bowed slightly to Aiwass and said softly, "Thank you for taking care of my brother Sherlock, Your Excellency. And Mr. Ritual Master... Let us protect the safety of both of you."
His voice was very soft and gentle, and he seemed very gentlemanly.
——But the problem is, this person's name should be "Mycroft Hermes".
Hearing the fat man's slow but polite words, Aiwas felt goosebumps all over his body.
...Help, help.
How could Mycroft be so disgusting if he spoke normally...
——I really want to expose Miss "Grape" directly!
Aiwas only hated himself for being a promoted person and not exposing the abilities of other promoted people.
"Olive" next to him also felt as uncomfortable as he did.
Ibn also knew Mycroft and knew the fat man's usual style. Generally speaking, he was very close to Ms. Meg's casual attitude, and his daily behavior was characterized by three tricks:
"It's none of my business", "It's none of your business", "If it's okay, I'll leave."
And now, this "Mycroft" looked like a noble lady, polite, gentle, and well-behaved... Even her usually messy, greasy hair was neatly combed. As if she had obsessive-compulsive disorder or mysophobia, she kept herself clean and tidy in a very limited time.
Aiwass even suspected that Grape had used some magic to wash Mycroft's hair...
Olive guessed that Aiwass was keeping up the pretense, so he couldn't even hint to Mycroft that there was something wrong with his performance - if Aiwass saw through it all, then he would become suspicious if he didn't reveal it. So the two of them, who knew Mycroft, had to pretend that Miss Grape's performance was flawless.
Thinking of this, Aihua suddenly felt fortunate.
Thankfully, Sherlock didn't follow them into the ceremony.
But thinking of this, he suddenly felt a little regretful.
Because Aiwass really wanted Sherlock to see this scene.
Fortunately, "Sherlock" himself was not aware of the abnormalities of this "brother" who only existed in the setting.
He just frowned and looked at the other person, and soon seemed to recognize the other person's identity from some details.
"Brother, come with me."
Sherlock said something coldly to Mycroft, then pulled him away. Before leaving, he politely said to Aiwass, "Bishop, please wait for us for a moment."
After the two of them left, Aiwass and Iben looked at each other and sighed at the same time.
"What are you going to do?"
Ibn lowered his voice and asked Aiwass, "You mean the Shadow of Avalon Ritual? Didn't you say there was something wrong with that ritual?"
Aiwass shook his head slightly. "Let's talk about it outside. First, let me tell you what this ceremony requires and how to proceed."
So Aiwass relayed the information he had obtained from Isabel to old Ibn.
The consultant and the grapes returned soon.
Aiwass's voice returned to normal: "Do you have the Queen's Blood?"
"Yeah, I brought it down. Now I carry it with me."
"Then it's up to you... I will pray and treat you all."
Looking at the returning advisor and Grape, Aiwass nodded slightly and said seriously, "I'll pray for you all first, and then we'll set off. I have a bad feeling, so we'd better not delay too long."
"Who are you going to pray to?"
At this moment, the consultant suddenly asked.
"The candlelighter, of course," answered Aiwass.
Sherlock stroked his chin and said solemnly, "It's very dangerous outside right now. It might be difficult for us to even approach the Temple of Silver and Tin. In this situation, we might need the protection of the Way of Adaptation even more..."
"If possible, please ask the Bishop to pray to the Lord of Scales and Feathers."
For some reason, after coming into contact with Grape, the consultant suddenly began to doubt Aiwas's identity.
The Lord of Scales and Feathers was solely responsible for this promotion ceremony—which meant He was most likely watching them. An ordinary priest wouldn't dare pray to Him at this moment. It would be like a student suddenly asking for the invigilator's contact information during an exam, chatting without paying attention to anyone else.
While this wasn't dangerous, it was certainly disrespectful—priests usually held the Ennead in awe. Only the Ascended knew that the Lord of Scales and Feathers was watching them.
Apparently, the consultant's suspicions were not profound.
However, his temptation was meaningless to Aiwass, because Aiwass had already prayed to the Lord of Scales and Feathers.
"no problem."
Aiwass nodded and said, "You're right... At times like this, we should pray to the Lord of Scales and Feathers."
His idea is simple.
Regardless of whether there were any accidents during this promotion ceremony... but in a promotion ceremony personally constructed by the Lord of Scales and Feathers, even if there were accidents, they were definitely within His expectations.
The path of adaptation controlled by the Lord of Scales and Feathers includes two professions: the prophet and the astrologer, capable of foreseeing the future. The Lord of Scales and Feathers himself possesses the ability to peer into the future. If he can see the future, then this situation they are currently facing is part of the ascension ritual.
It is even possible that their mission was determined based on the "modified promotion ceremony"!
Whether it is "The Heart is a Sanctuary" or rescuing Sherlock, they are closely related to their current actions.
It was because Aiwass rescued Sherlock and killed Minister Droste in time that they gathered together at this time; Isabel also completed her task, fabricated a false "history" and made everyone believe it, so she came here to see Aiwass.
Therefore, she had the opportunity to let "Sherlock" know about the Shadow of Avalon Ritual and let the consultant stay here.
From this perspective, whatever they thought or did was within the Lord of Scales and Feathers's predictions. He didn't design an "enemy that would pursue them wherever they went," but rather, he had anticipated the Ascendants' every move from the outset and had therefore placed enemies along their inevitable paths.
Then even Aiwass's prayer at this moment should be within His expectations.
Aiwass asked Ibn for a pinch of emerald dust.
His left hand clutched the gem dust, and his right hand gently touched his forehead, eyes, nose, mouth, throat, and heart. Then Aiwass placed his right hand on the back of his left fist and chanted loudly: "I call on the Lord of Scales and Feathers—"
As he spoke, he turned his hand over and spread it out.
The powder hissed and turned into green smoke, surrounding everyone.
Aiwass's voice gradually became lower: "The God with the sacred number of six, the God with scales and feathers, the God with a thousand clothes and myriad appearances... the shape-shifting Kunpeng!
"Please grant us the ability to conceal our bodies so that we can reach our destination unnoticed!"
The four of them immediately hid their figures.
It wasn't completely invisible, and if it moved in a well-lit area, some distortion and blurriness could be seen with the naked eye. But if it was at night when the light was dim, it was enough.
Aiwass's voice was also distorted by the blessing from his prayer, becoming muddy and distorted. "The group invisibility will last for three hours. Everyone go pack up your things first. Meet at the door in five minutes."
"The area outside may have been blocked by the Star Antimony Army. We need to pass through the blocked area and first go to the Temple of Silver and Tin to get something, and then go to the Chapel of Saint Guinevere."
In order to complete the ritual of the Shadow of Avalon, the elven dagger separated from the holy sword "Arondite" hanging in the Queen's bedroom is indispensable.
But Aiwas didn't see it when he went there before, so it must be hidden somewhere else.
But thinking of this, Aiwass had a new doubt in his mind——
He remembered that the other Arondite seemed to have been stolen by Vivian and hidden in Haena's possession. Later, it mysteriously disappeared... perhaps taken away by someone, or perhaps melted into Haena's body. Regardless, it wasn't even in the base of the Avalon Shadow ritual, which had led to the ritual's failure and the fall of Shadow Tiansi.
...So here comes the question.
Now that he is holding the Shadow of Avalon ceremony at this time, what exactly will he pull down?
Where is the other Aarondite now?
In this world line, Aiwass has no desire to transcend, so will there be Haina?
...If Haina was there, wouldn't he have just pulled her soul here?
And if in this world where Aiwass has no desire to transcend, then there is no Haena at all...
"That's a big problem." Aiwass murmured in a low voice.
Transition chapter two in one meow!
(End of this chapter)
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