'This senior... how should I put it?'
As a former keyboard warrior himself, Klein naturally understood what "working as a mason" meant. However, he didn't realize the severity of the problem at first and continued reading,
"Through a deep union of spirit and body, I obtained the potion formula for a Bizarro Sorcerer. Honestly, such a troublesome advancement ritual, yet no new abilities. Once again, I'm starting to doubt the future of the Seer pathway. Hmm, after advancing to Bizarro Sorcerer, maybe I should consider jumping to the Wanderer pathway? Astral travel sounds rather interesting."
"???"
Klein fought the urge to spit out whatever was in his mouth, his brain temporarily freezing. He had initially thought "Bizarro Sorcerer" was the name of some low-to-mid sequence, but it turned out to be a demigod of the Seer pathway?
After all, Klein now knew the names of five Seer sequence potions. If Bizarro Sorcerer also belonged to the Seer pathway, it was bound to be an existence at or above the demigod level.
And this Mr. Pandrax had actually obtained the potion formula and ritual from a demigod by "working as a mason"?
His "technique" must be quite something...
Cough, cough!
Klein pulled his thoughts back and continued reading. This gentleman truly had more tricks up his sleeve,
"From Aine's sister, I learned some secrets. It turns out their leader, Zaratul, has gone mad in his pursuit of the Sequence 1 formula? The Seer pathway truly is a trap. If only this pathway didn't require reaching Sequence 3 to jump pathways... Speaking of which, the Abraham family seems to have no more demigods due to the Full Moon Ravings. Where should I find the Wanderer formula... I heard the Tamara family also possesses the Apprentice pathway inheritance... I wonder if they have any female Wanderers?"
'Why does it have to be a female? Can you only coax out potion formulas while working as a mason? And Aine's sister? I remember this senior's Marionettist formula was obtained from a high-ranking Secret Order member named Aine, right?'
By the time he reached the last line of the diary, Klein's mouth couldn't help but twitch. Although this transmigrator senior's lifestyle was... well, quite "eventful," Klein had still gathered a significant amount of information.
For example, the name of a Seer sequence potion, the fact that Zaratul,the Secret Order leader featured prominently in the Emperor's diaries,had gone mad, and the requirement of an advancement ritual when becoming a demigod (something mentioned in the partial Unshadowed formula as well).
Furthermore, the Abraham family seemed to have no demigods left because of something called "Full Moon Ravings."
Although this information wasn't directly helpful to him now, dropping a line about it at the right time would certainly help boost Mr. Fool's mysterious aura.
'Speaking of which, the time span of these few diary pages submitted by Mr. Devil should be quite large. If he's memorizing them from his ancestor's notes, shouldn't they be in order? Did some reason cause the drafts to become jumbled? Or did the Pandrax family treat them as ordinary copies of Roselle's diaries and thus didn't handle them properly? He did mention the family's decline... perhaps part of them have already been sold off as Roselle's diaries...'
Klein didn't suspect Mr. Devil of understanding Chinese. After all, he had used Spirit Vision to observe him before. When Snow said his ancestors hadn't passed down the language, there hadn't been a hint of a lie.
Bound by the stature of "The Fool," Klein couldn't ask directly. He found a seemingly reasonable explanation and stopped delving deeper, instead addressing the Tarot Club members who had been waiting for a long time:
"You may begin your free exchange."
With Mr. Fool's permission, Audrey took the initiative to speak, "I need the complete pituitary gland of a Rainbow Salamander."
Although she had successfully established contact with the Psychology Alchemists with Mr. Devil's "help," the other party clearly intended to observe her for a while longer. Even if she could obtain potion materials from them in the short term, it would likely only be for the Spectator sequence.
Moreover, she didn't want the Psychology Alchemists to know she had already advanced to Telepathist, so she decided to acquire the material through the Tarot Club.
"I don't have it. To be honest, I've only seen that creature in textbooks," Little Sun said with his usual honesty, immediately sparking the curiosity of Justice and The Hanged Man.
After a moment of imagining what Little Sun's textbooks were like, The Hanged Man glanced toward Mr. Devil. Seeing that he had no intention of speaking, The Hanged Man breathed a sigh of relief. He first looked at The Fool to confirm the great being wouldn't compete for the business, then pondered, "I might be able to obtain it."
A joyful expression appeared on Audrey's face, but in the next moment, The Hanged Man added:
"On the condition that Qilangos is found. That would be enough of a reward for the gland. Although the price of Sequence 8 materials is only a few hundred pounds, Miss Justice, you should understand that not everything is necessarily buyable with money alone."
At this point, Alger paused slightly. Perhaps worried he might be seen as hiking up the price, he added:
"Perhaps you weren't aware, but Rainbow Salamanders are actually on the brink of extinction. Currently, their presence can only be found on a few primitive islands in the Fog Sea, Berserk Sea, and Sonia Sea. The coordinates of these islands are known to only a very few people. If you're interested in the future, we could make some exchanges regarding this, as I am one of those few."
Alger spoke with a trace of pride. This wasn't because he was becoming arrogant, but rather because he was attempting to demonstrate his value.
Miss Justice possessed immense capital, Little Sun possessed the massive resources of what seemed to be the Forsaken Land of the Gods, and Mr. Devil was powerful and possessed a wealth of high-end knowledge. To establish a foothold in the Tarot Club, Alger had to demonstrate sufficient value. Now, these small islands providing materials for nearly extinct Beyonder species were undoubtedly a good label for him.
'On the brink of extinction?' Hearing The Hanged Man's words, Mr. Fool rarely thought about those mysterious islands. Instead, he inexplicably recalled the joke he had shared with Old Neil,
The Association for the Protection of Dragons and Giants.
'I wonder how Old Neil is doing now, if he's escaped the influence of the Hidden Sage...'
Thinking that he might never see the Captain, Old Neil, and the others again, Klein couldn't help but feel a pang of sadness.
Fortunately, whenever Mr. Fool was in a low mood, the Tarot Club's mood regulator, Miss Justice, would immediately jump in. With an excited and longing tone, she said:
"I've always dreamed of sailing the seas, searching for those primitive islands and witnessing those ancient customs. It must be a wonderful adventure, wouldn't it?"
[Translated and Rewritten by Shika Kagura]
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A/N: Rainbow Salamander (七彩蜥龙) - The source of the Sequence 8 'Telepathist' main ingredient.
A/N: Zaratul (查拉图) - Head of the Secret Order, a key figure in the Seer pathway's lore.
T/N: "Working as a mason" (做泥工) - A euphemism used in the CN community (and Snow's internal monologue) representing intimate relations, often for the purpose of obtaining information or advantage.
T/N: "Mood Regulator" (情绪调节师) - Klein's internal thought regarding Audrey's positive and cheerful influence on the group.