There's a powerful devil lurking behind this union, directing their actions. And this devil happens to be the very person you're looking to deal with?
Wow! Really? What a coincidence!
If Hayden didn't doubt these words at all, then he would be out of his mind.
Adam, you really have the nerve to talk to me like we've been friends for years?
That being said, neither Hayden nor Adam intended to break off relations with the other. So Hayden simply went along with the conversation somewhat coldly: "A worker stole my things, and I'd go and fight a great devil for that? Do you think I'm stupid?"
"Anyway, it's just a little bit of material being embezzled. All I want is technical research, and these kinds of things are hard to avoid. You keep saying that fighting the Great Demon is beneficial to me, but I've paid such a high price for this. Isn't that a losing proposition?"
"You said there's a big devil stealing my materials, but that's just the basic premise. The question is... what benefit would I get from helping you with this?"
This is a lie.
But this was very effective at fooling Adam. At least Adam couldn't help but laugh when he heard it.
[Benefits? That surprises me. Okay, sure.]
He was somewhat surprised, but then smiled and said,
"Then I'll offer you a price within my means. You've been researching the secret fire of the ancient gods, right? I'll give you something in return—100 grams of Ruyi Pearls as a deposit."
噫
【You surely know why I gave you the Wish-Fulfilling Pearl, right? With a reference point corresponding to the old Mystic Fire, your research on the new god's synthetic variants should proceed much more smoothly.】
Hayden certainly knew.
He had known about the Wish-Fulfilling Pearl for a long time. Alastor had talked about it with Hayden back then. It was an extremely expensive strategic magical resource unique to the Mithra Group, and it was generally used by them to establish new cyberspace or to construct giant mental arcane spells.
Moreover, Alastor once told Hayden that by simply adding a few milligrams of Ruyi Pearl Dust during the consciousness uploading process, the consciousness uploader would not suffer from Soul Atrophy for two hundred years.
Back then, Hayden didn't know what the Wish-Fulfilling Pearl was, but now he knows for sure: to put it bluntly, the Wish-Fulfilling Pearl is a new type of secret fire developed and synthesized by the Mithra Group, or rather, a variant of the original secret fire.
Long, long ago, the most primitive ancient gods had to regularly devour blood sacrifices, otherwise they would suffer from insufficient soul energy and fall into the symptoms of soul decay.
Later, the ancient gods from beyond the heavens fell to earth. The most intelligent of them invented a completely new method: instead of cannibalism, they extracted the secret fire energy directly from people's thoughts, beliefs, and souls through social order, rituals, and governance. This eliminated the need for inefficient blood sacrifices. Social order and rituals were therefore considered extremely sacred in that era.
Even so, even if the ancient gods from beyond the heavens could extract the secret fire through the rituals and order of feudal society, its yield would still be very low.
Then, four hundred years later, a new set of gods, led by Mithras, rose to power. Based on the ideology and social structure of capitalism, these new gods developed new technologies for synthesizing new types of secret fire with higher yields.
Through this technology, they were able to create "variant" versions of the Secret Flame. These variants could do things that the Secret Flame in the hands of the Old Gods might not be able to, and different companies had their own specializations. For example, the Mithra Group's Wish-Fulfilling Jewel specialized in the realm of the mind. This technology for mass-producing variant Secret Flames defeated the Old Gods and ended the feudal era.
...All of this was nothing new to Hayden. However, the Wish-Fulfilling Pearl was an extremely valuable strategic resource within the Mitra Group. Even Hayden couldn't find a way to obtain it for research purposes without attracting the attention of the company's top management.
Besides, Hayden's actions during the last virtual idol incident were quite conspicuous. The higher-ups at the Mitra Group are probably already watching him, which is why he doesn't dare to secretly use underhanded methods to obtain the Ruyi Pearl... However, if Adam dares to get it for Hayden, that's a different story.
Unless Adam is tired of living, he would definitely take precautions to keep it a secret.
A 100-gram Ruyi bead, and that's just the deposit!
If Hayden had access to so many resources, he would surely be able to work with his friends to create amazing results. Thinking about it this way, it was no wonder that Hayden was tempted.
"Well, that's something to talk about."
Therefore, Hayden pondered for a moment and soon made a decision.
"What kind of devil are you looking for trouble with? Tell me more about it."
Realizing the conversation was getting down to business, Adam on the projection screen straightened up slightly and adopted a serious expression.
[I'm looking for a great demon who escaped from the seal of the Mars Industries Group this year. I can't mention her name directly because the encryption of mobile communications might not be able to prevent her from sensing me. But...]
[What impressions do you have of the ancient gods and great demons who possess the attributes of "moon," "fire," or "witch"?]
210: The Witch Hunter
An ancient god-demon with attributes of "moon," "fire," or "witch"?
Oh dear, what a coincidence! My local Adabit guild just happens to have a unique spell that uses moonlight to guide paths! What a coincidence!
...Hayden wasn't foolish enough to say something like that. Rather, several of these keywords could be linked to Hayden's side.
But he still feigned annoyance, saying impatiently, "What's the use of just these few keywords? I could come up with that myself. Our world is a mess of all sorts of fantastical tales mixed together. Can you be more specific?"
Adam shook his head on the phone screen: "I can't even mention your name directly, so what specific details can I tell you over the phone? Aren't you afraid of being eavesdropped on by sympathetic magic? Your level is getting higher and higher; you should be more aware of this."
His words weren't entirely unreasonable, but they were also too blunt, leaving Hayden speechless.
The Great Demons are indeed not to be underestimated. Because being a demon is merely a social identity. In principle, all the old gods who haven't become modern capitalists are considered Great Demons. Their combat power fluctuates wildly, with the lower limit being the weakest among the Lesser Gods (Heavenly) and the upper limit probably being the strongest among the Great Gods (Virtuous Kings), like the Peacock King.
If it's just a minor deity-level demon, then perhaps it's not a big problem. But if the other party is a Peacock King-level demon, even without mentioning their name, just mentioning related keywords might be detected through the sympathetic connection... Moreover, these gods won't tell you exactly which keywords they've set.
Of course, the Peacock King is an exception. Nobody really thinks this great demon is as powerful as the Peacock King. However, it's definitely necessary to be on guard, especially when speaking carelessly online.
In this age of interconnected information, the safest way to communicate—and sadly enough—is for two people to remain within a barrier isolated from the StarNet, speaking face-to-face. It's said that some espionage workers even learn sign language for this purpose; conversing in sign language within a barrier that isolates communication is essentially close to true security.
This is why many legends mention that ancient shamans frequently and skillfully communicated with each other using riddles, storytelling, and analogies. Secrets related to the gods were often too dangerous and powerful to be discussed openly, and thus had to exist in the form of riddles and stories.
Long, long ago, in ancient Asia Minor—the crossroads of Europe and Asia—there lived a myth about the Daughter of a Meteor.
Adam carefully considered his words, speaking slowly and deliberately.
They say that a shooting star once fell from the star-studded night sky and into the Aegean Sea, giving birth to a goddess of heaven, earth, and sea. She possessed an extraordinary body, eternal youth and beauty at fourteen, and unparalleled magical wisdom. None of the children of earth (Gaia) and heaven (Uranus) dared harm her or take her things. Her honor and sacrifices were comparable to those of the king of the gods (Zeus).
The god-king bestowed upon her precious gifts, granting her the land and the sea to share;
She also received honors in the star-studded sky and was highly respected by the gods.
Because she possesses boundless magic from the heavens, she is a goddess belonging to the sky, the earth, and the sea. Her eyes can simultaneously see the past, the present, and the future, and even perceive the mysteries of time and space.
"A goddess fell from the sky, a meteorite..."
Hayden pondered the short story Adam had told him.
Now that things have come to this, he actually already knows that a long, long time ago, there really was an alien god who flew to Earth.
"If the myth is based on fact, this does sound like a story of ancient gods from beyond the heavens. Heterogeneous... that's a really harsh word."
Adam countered, "The devil is an alien and different being. They are fundamentally different from humans—don't you think so?"
Hayden didn't answer directly, but changed the subject: "If this Old God is truly that powerful, it's strange that she's so unknown. How come I've never heard of her?"
[Good question. While it's possible that new gods have overshadowed the myths of the old era, I believe this is a special case.]
So Adam continued,
Because those ancient legends tell us that although she was a powerful goddess, she was also a goddess with a capricious personality.
An ancient poem sings of her thus:
Herds of cattle, large numbers of goats,
With many sheep,
It was all because she was happy about it.
She can turn a small amount into a large amount.
It went from many to few again.
Mythology often describes her as a multifaceted goddess who acts solely on her own whims. She can bestow good fortune or bring misfortune upon people at will. Neither good nor evil, she can give everything and take everything away.
She can bless people with wealth, and make livestock multiply and grow; she can help humans hunt and fish, and bless seafarers with favorable winds; she can grant victory in races and battles, and help abandoned lovers. Many gods and humans seek her help. Some try to ask her for her services, but she only spews harsh curses at them. Others plead with her, but she hates beggars the most. Anyone who offends her, whether god or king, she will retaliate. Nothing dares to stand in her way.
[For those who please her, she guides them with moonlight or lights up their lives with starlight on moonless nights. Some witch priests revere and worship her because of her powerful magic and her ability to guide people in the darkness. But once she loses interest and favor, she will use her light to toy with these people at will, leading them to their deaths.]
Unparalleled beauty, invincible, free to do as he pleases, sweeping across the three realms—wow, what kind of evil god is this?
Hayden now understood why even in ancient times, few people sang the name of this goddess. Such a troublesome, eccentric, and powerful goddess was someone that neither gods nor mortals wanted to discuss openly. Perhaps only a few witch priestesses would revere her as their protector and patron, learning special and mysterious magical secrets from her; the size of the cult's followers was unlikely to be very large.
As time passed and the world changed, on the continent of Europe, Zeus ruled as the king of the gods, while this goddess enjoyed unrestricted privileges under the king's respect—until four hundred years ago when new gods rose and the old gods' rule came to an end.
Even this capricious goddess was defeated and sealed away by the new god Mars Group—it seems that the new god of modern capital is indeed the most terrifying.
In short, after listening to all this, do you have any clues? Do you know where she might be hiding, or who she might be connected to?
For some reason, after hearing Adam say that, Hayden did have a gut feeling that something was strange.
As mentioned earlier, Hayden's guild magic is indeed related to moonlight, but that's not particularly unusual. There are countless spells related to moonlight, found all over the world. One common element isn't enough.
As for "Flame" and "Witch," where would the guild get these things? The only "Witch" was brought by Hayden himself.
...Then Hayden finally realized something that had been obvious from the very beginning.
heterogeneous body
Eternal youthful beauty at fourteen
Supreme magical wisdom, even capable of understanding the mysteries of time and space.
Some witch priestesses revered her, honored her as their patron, and learned magic from her.
But she is also a capricious and capricious evil goddess, to the point that sometimes she turns around and manipulates these believers.
"Grass."
Hayden finally realized what was happening, inwardly cursing himself for being an idiot, and jumped up from his desk.
Four hundred years ago, this goddess was defeated and sealed away by the rising new gods.
But what about the witch priestesses she left behind? What did they do?
It's unlikely that there would be a loving and trusting relationship between such a priest and a goddess.
Now she has finally escaped the seal.
...So she probably isn't very satisfied with her former priests, right?
————————————————————————————
Two flowers bloom, one branch each.
Meanwhile, Abigail, after leaving Hayden's office, immediately went to investigate the case of the workers stealing salt.
Even without being able to easily use her magic, this witch is still incredibly efficient at "interacting with people." After all, the more socially inept a goddess is, the more socially adept a priestess will be.
Therefore, Abigail spent less than an hour using simple coercion and enticement. By offering rewards and subtle threats as bait, she quickly gleaned information from some of the workers:
“Sometimes, when we finish work, we see the next shift of workers carrying materials into the area. But when we go back and look at the work schedule and layout map, it feels like they are heading towards an area that has already been excavated and cleared.”
This action isn't actually that strange, otherwise Abigail would have received a report from her subordinates long ago.
But now that we know some of the workers are up to no good, it seems rather strange when you think about it carefully.
Let's assume these workers were carrying the stolen Secret Fire Salt into the ruins... but even so, they couldn't get it out, right? These ruins are maintained by magic parting the seawater; how can mortals enter and exit without proper channels?
Where could they possibly move the salt? Hide it? Throw it into the sea?
Abigail pressed her index finger to her lips, pondering deeply. But every answer seemed off to her.
Until, a divine inspiration flashed into the witch's mind.
Could it be that... if these scheming workers managed to steal the Secret Fire Salt and couldn't trace where it went... then perhaps they used the salt themselves?
Since everyone is using the Secret Fire Salt to refine their bodies, even if someone steals a little more, it would be difficult to detect without a thorough physical examination of all the workers, and it's not impossible for it to be concealed for a long time.
Considering that neither the workers nor the experts were necessarily reliable, Abigail ultimately decided to take matters into her own hands and follow the trail to find the source.
Of course, she wasn't stupid. As a loli-like old witch who had lived for over four hundred years, Abigail wasn't particularly strong, yet she had survived for so long naturally because she was very cautious. Thousands upon thousands of gods and demons stronger than her had died, yet she had fared quite well—wasn't it all because of her caution?
Although Abigail doesn't usually dare to use magic casually, if something really happens, she can stop time or teleport in the blink of an eye. Besides, she's consumed the golden elixir given to her by Hayden, and now possesses a celestial body. Even if a piece of construction machinery were to fall on her head, it wouldn't break her defenses.
In addition, Abigail never forgets to carry a bag full of various expensive magical items. Even without casting spells herself, her current combat power is no less than that of an ordinary god, and her ability to escape is even better.
So what is there for Abigail to be afraid of?
Before long, she led a small group of workers, using moonlight to illuminate the traces, and following the clues, quickly found the place where the workers had moved the materials.
As they had said before, it was a building in the city ruins that had already been cleaned up. A grand staircase led to a vast and dilapidated temple ruin, where intricate and abstract decorations remained, and pillars full of reliefs supported the crumbling walls.
To be honest, Abigail had a vague feeling that something was off about the place as soon as she stepped into the ruins. The air here seemed colder and drier than anywhere else in this ancient city. However, she looked around but didn't see anything strange.
Broken statues, tattered decorative patterns, broken pillars and severed beams—that's all.
"This is it?"
Abigail raised her eyebrows and asked the workers who had brought her there, without even turning her head.
"I don't see anything special about this place."
The workers did not answer. Silently, they had formed a circle around her, subtly surrounding her at a certain distance.
What this action means is obvious even to a fool.