CHAPTER 97: CHAPTER 95: FORGING THE IMMORTAL

Wu Chang looked at the key in his hand, a puzzled expression on his face.

"No, buddy, with this do I still need you?"

"Why are you still issuing tasks here? Until now, you haven’t understood your identity or situation?"

Ebert noticed the confusion on Wu Chang’s face, and asked, "Is there anything else? If there is, say it quickly, I’m a bit tired."

Wu Chang shook his head, "No problem, you have a good rest."

After speaking, he reactivated "Plague" and "Curse".

Ebert just felt slightly better, only to have the illness return stronger than before, and he immediately fainted.

Wu Chang pursed his lips, turned around, his face filled with panic.

He ran to the door and shouted, "Nurse! Nurse! Professor Ebert is not going to make it!"

Ten minutes later, the illness successfully claimed Professor Ebert.

This Grandmaster Level scholar of theology and history from the Ogre Kingdom, died ambiguously in a humble ward on a deserted island.

Why could Wu Chang ascertain that Ebert died ambiguously?

Because this professor, with a will and inspiration uncommon to ordinary people, left behind a blood-colored will after his death.

The will wasn’t attached to him, but rather to the lighthouse key he handed over.

The color of the blood-colored will was not the common bright red, but rather deep red.

Wu Chang turned to the little nurse beside him and said, "Life is unpredictable, don’t you think?"

The little nurse nodded, wanting to say something, yet didn’t know how to start.

Wu Chang sighed, "He was an elder worthy of my respect, his passing makes me very sad, so I need a bit of comfort."

The little nurse blushed, just like before, giving Wu Chang a hug.

"You truly are an angel in white."

After once again feeling the girl’s innocence, Wu Chang left the town hospital, humming a tune, heading towards the lighthouse by the sea.

The seaside lighthouse was about fourteen meters high and had five floors.

The lighthouse was built by Count Jemaine when he first arrived at Briff Island, primarily to guide merchant ships coming and going.

Once Briff Port took shape, the lighthouse was no longer needed for guidance, and the top floor was sealed off and handed over to Professor Ebert for stargazing research.

The person managing the lighthouse was mainly responsible for maintaining its normal use, including the maintenance and upkeep of the facilities inside and outside, without actually operating the lighthouse.

When Wu Chang arrived at the shore, he saw Gale helping the old lighthouse keeper clean up the accumulated bird droppings outside the tower.

Sword Star had already shared how Wu Chang became a Town Councilor with the other helpers, also attaching Wu Chang’s speculation about the Good and Evil Value.

Because of this, Gale was working particularly diligently at the moment, not noticing Wu Chang’s approach.

He didn’t aspire to become a councilor, just hoped his Good and Evil Value could be high enough to avoid attacks from the townspeople.

As a Town Councilor, Wu Chang was quite pleased to see Gale working hard and decided to let him rest for a while.

He put on the Shadow-Facing Face, summoned the Fog Demon, and whispered, "Let them sleep for a while."

A wave crashed, the sea spray smashed against the cliff by the lighthouse, exploding into a misty haze.

The Fog Demon entangled the mist, turning into a cold gust to envelop Gale and the lighthouse keeper.

Under the power of a Level Fifteen Fog Demon, the two had no resistance, their heads tilted, and they fell asleep in the Illusion Realm.

Wu Chang waved to retract the Fog Demon, then boldly walked into the lighthouse.

He followed the stairs inside the lighthouse, heading upwards, and the door configured with ordinary wood automatically opened as he approached, welcoming his arrival.

The top floor of the lighthouse was an observatory, housing a large telescope, with Ebert’s manuscripts scattered around, recording the trajectories of celestial bodies, as well as his chaotic interpretations of star signs.

These manuscripts appeared fancy, seemingly relevant, but were actually a facade, meant to deceive certain uninvited guests.

Wu Chang took out the key Ebert gave him, closed his eyes, and followed the inspiration to insert the key into the star map drawn on the wall.

With the key inserted, the mechanical gear sounds of the top of the lighthouse began to click.

From the floor-to-ceiling window on the observatory side, one could see the top of the lighthouse rotating.

After a one hundred eighty-degree rotation of the lighthouse top, the mechanical motion came to a clear halt, and the lighthouse quieted down again.

Outside, the once bright day viewed from the floor-to-ceiling window had turned into an expansive starry sky.

He was now in the Inner World belonging to the lighthouse.

Descending from the top of the lighthouse, one could see the lighthouse in the Inner World filled with various alchemy devices and mystical ceremony items.

The entire lighthouse resembled a gigantic alchemy workshop.

In the center of the first floor of the lighthouse, stood a massive obsidian plate, engraved with a complicated human figure.

The human figure was detailed down to each blood vessel, each muscle, and just by looking at this drawing, one would think it’s the most advanced anatomy textbook from a replica plane.

Next to the human figure were numerous notes, marking every area and every part with what material was needed to craft them.

Upon closer inspection, this was not an anatomy chart, but an assembly blueprint.

A blueprint for assembling not just a human body, but a Divine Body.

Other players might be astonished by the discovery in front of them, but Wu Chang, having seen Ebert’s resentment, was already mentally prepared for the scene before him.

He looked at the gigantic obsidian plate, but his gaze returned to Ebert’s resentment.

Ebert’s resentment ran deep, not merely the resentment of facing death, but a lifetime of resentment, into which he poured his all.

...

In the office, an elderly man wearing a professor’s robe threw the thick manuscript in his hand directly into the fireplace, angrily saying:

"Ridiculous, God is a supreme being, born as God, existing beyond human reach. To probe into God’s domain with human effort is a blasphemy against God. Ebert, in committing such heretical acts, are you true to your faith? You deserve the gallows more than those pirates!"

"Get lost, Ogre First University does not need scum like you."

...

A squad of fully armed knights kicked open the barn door, dragging out a frail middle-aged man as if pulling a dead dog.

The leading knight stepped on the man’s face, pointed at the barn full of bones, slabs, and various strangely shaped antiques, and shouted:

"Burn this blasphemous place for me! Then tie up this damned blasphemer and send him to the Inquisition!"

...

In the dungeon, on the cold floor, an Archbishop in black robes visited alone late at night. He said to the middle-aged man on the ground, covered in wounds and near death:

"I read your thesis, it’s quite interesting. I can give you an opportunity, want to try it?"

The next day, a heretic with a sack over his head was hanged in front of the church.

The day after, a group of felons escaped from prison, rampaging in the city, with casualties numbering in the hundreds. Coincidentally, friends, colleagues, and acquaintances of the middle-aged man, including the neighbor who reported him and the Knight Order Captain who captured him, all perished in the calamity.

A month later, Archbishop Gelman personally brought a church scholar to the Ogre First University, appointing him as a professor of theology and archaeology.

...

Under the Ogre Holy Light Cathedral, a little girl opened her eyes surrounded by complex instruments, neither crying nor making a fuss, she smiled at the man in the distance.

The man instinctively waved at her, a long-unseen smile appearing on his face.

But behind him, Archbishop Gelman looked at the golden crystal at the ritual terminal, his expression grim.

"We failed, the soul is indeed born with original sin, even an artificial soul as well. This defective product can only serve as a container for the Holy Mark, unable to harness its power."

For the first time, the man in resentment spoke, "Then what about her."

Archbishop Gelman said coldly, "Disassemble, recover."

...

In the Holy Light Cathedral, the man taught the little girl beside him knowledge while drawing and writing in a notebook.

The little girl finished her homework and came running over, asking, "Professor, what are you doing?"

The man smiled a bit awkwardly, "A professor also has his own homework."

...

The little girl’s body grew a size larger, looking about three or four years old. She lay at the center of the instruments, looking around with a face full of curiosity.

"Professor, when I wake up, will I really be able to see the Great Saint Mother?"

The professor nodded.

Outside the ritual, Archbishop Gelman’s face was severe: "This matter concerns our future, be sure to remove the Holy Mark."

As the ritual began, the sleeping little girl emitted pained groans, the man’s face showed pity, and while Archbishop Gelman wasn’t paying attention, he adjusted some detail of the ritual.

Five minutes later, the golden crystal shattered, the ritual failed.

The man dejectedly said, "The Holy Mark has already merged with her original sin; forcibly dismantling it might damage the Holy Mark."

Archbishop Gelman showed a look of disappointment, but his tone carried a hint of relief, "Then we can only find a way to repurpose it."

...

At the King’s banquet, the newly discovered Saintess by the church became the center of everyone’s attention.

She was born favored by God, though only eight years old, her smile was enough to influence the fiercest evildoers, and, appearing for only a year, she gained the love of everyone in the Kingdom.

Even the Pope, in terms of influence, could not match her.

The man sat in the corner of the banquet hall, looking from afar at the Saintess at the center, forlornly taking out a notebook, writing and drawing in it.

A noble with eyes sharp as a hawk sat beside the man, speaking in a calm tone, "I know your research, and I know you haven’t given up. The Royal Capital is no longer suitable for you; want to try my domain?"

...

At the Count’s Manor, looking at the scattered puppets on the floor, the man shook his head.

"The idea was right, but the island’s divine grace is too weak to serve as the core of a true god."

Count Jermaine walked up behind the man, saying slowly, "So, we need the Holy Mark, right?"

Looking at the broken puppets on the floor, the man was silent for a long time, hoarsely saying, "Yes."

Count Jermaine smiled, "The church’s missionary fleet will pass by this island, I’ll handle the matter of the Holy Mark."

...

On the top floor of Count’s Manor’s main house, Count Jermaine and the man stood together. Behind them, a faceless nun puppet rose from the alchemy device.

Gazing at the fire light from the Great Cathedral and the seven illusory shadows gathered above Briff, Count Jermaine filled their glasses with red wine.

"Seven deadly sins dispersed, the Holy Mark stripped, the ritual thus begins, to you and I forging the eternal."

With a whoosh, the surroundings plunged into darkness, the vision of resentment ended.

Wu Chang opened his eyes, Ebert’s blood-colored will surfaced before him.

[Destroy the ritual at Count Jermaine’s Manor, completely liberate the Saintess Erin.]