Opening her eyes once more, she was greeted by the white canopy of her bed. The phantom pain in her chest still lingered, making everything she had just experienced feel both real and illusory.
Where am I?
Sitting up gently, Celia looked around her surroundings.
The oak table with dark gold patterns stood quietly, the grandfather clock still ticking away, and the three items used for the sacrifice were still placed on the altar.
This is... my room?
I'm back?
How... How did I get back? And what just happened?
Just then, the memories from right before her death suddenly flooded back, slowly surfacing in her mind.
The raven, the brass lantern, the bizarre man... Wait, was I affected by that lantern?
Then what is going on with me now?!
She dug deep into her memories and quickly found some anomalies.
Could it be that the notebook saved me? Is it really helping me?
Right, the notebook—where is it now?!
Her gaze quickly swept across the room, finally landing on the long table. The Notes of Destiny was lying there quietly.
She hurriedly got out of bed, walked over to the table, and flipped open the notebook.
On the last page, a large block of blood-red text was clearly visible:
“Thank you, Saintess, I have received your sacrifice. This is an ancient relic from the Second Epoch that once triggered a devastating disaster in Arcadia above the sky. Now, after many twists and turns and much wear and tear, its spiritual power is far inferior to what it once was.”
“Therefore, I will grant you 110 points of spiritual feedback. You can use this to exchange for hidden knowledge, spiritual items, or extraordinary power. However, every transaction has a price. When the exchanged items are not equal in value, the difference will be paid with your soul.”
“Finally, because you have already experienced one death rewind, this instance will consume 20 points of your spirituality. If triggered again in the future, the spirituality cost will increase each time; your next death will cost 50 points of spirituality.”
“The sacrifice was successful? And I underwent a death rewind?!” Celia said in surprise.
“Of course. As I have said, your death is inevitable, and rewinding is my way of helping you fight against destiny.”
Death... How did I die?
She only remembered that at the very last moment, she had successfully snatched the lantern from the man's hand. But the moment she held it, a massive wave of mental pollution surged into her like a tide, and she immediately lost consciousness.
Could it have been at that moment...
Hiss... The more she thought about it, the more her head throbbed. Rubbing her temples slightly, she asked a different question:
“Then why on earth are you helping me?”
An ability as powerful as death rewind, along with spirituality points that could be used to exchange for other abilities, while she only had to sacrifice some spiritual items—she was clearly getting the better end of the deal. What was this notebook's angle?
“You sacrifice spiritual items, and I bring you more possibilities. This is an equal exchange.”
“...”
Was this equal?
She felt like the notebook was clearly trying to fool her!
But since it didn't want to explain, Celia didn't plan to press further. After all, you don't look a gift horse in the mouth!
“Then why didn't you respond when I asked you about spiritual items before?”
“I require a certain level of spiritual fluctuations to be briefly awakened. Most of the time, I am asleep.”
Huh? Then why did it wake up the first time?
Could it be because of the sacrifice? But that was impossible; the sacrifice hadn't even been sent over yet...
“During the first sacrifice, you successfully established a spiritual bridge, which produces certain fluctuations under unconventional circumstances. As for why your sacrifice wasn't sent, it was simply because the deity you believe in did not accept your prayer.”
Hiss... How did this notebook read her mind again?
But that Goddess was also strange. Why wouldn't she accept a Saintess's prayer? She had been so devout at the time... Uh, wait. Could it be because she sneaked some of the sacrificial offerings, and the Goddess got disgusted with her...?
“...”
For some reason, she found this guess increasingly plausible. She couldn't help but picture the Goddess looking down on her with disdain...
Shaking her head vigorously, she chose to stop thinking about it.
Her top priority now was to figure out how to deal with the upcoming attack.
First, let's calculate her spirituality points.
The recent death had consumed 20 points, so she should have 90 points left.
The next death would consume 50 points. To be safe, she absolutely couldn't touch those 50 points, which meant she could only actually use 40 points of spirituality.
She wondered what she could exchange these for...
With this in mind, she looked down at the notebook again and asked, “What abilities can I exchange for with 40 spirituality points? Or are there any useful spiritual items?”
“It is recommended that you exchange for the Windwhisperer's Veil. It costs 20 spirituality points. It can help you disperse mental pollution from afar, while also helping you conceal your presence and clearly perceive the enemy's movements.”
That sounded quite useful?
Looking at the text on the notebook, she suddenly thought of something else.
“By the way, did the man with the lantern avoid mental pollution because he also had a spiritual item to resist it?”
“Exchanging for this type of hidden knowledge requires 5 spirituality points.”
“...”
Why does it cost points again?!
Stingy! Celia cursed inwardly.
But it didn't matter. She had plenty of points; exchanging for it three times wouldn't even be an issue!
Thus, Celia spoke softly:
“Exchange.”
“The man is a Rank One ‘Maddener’ of the Demon pathway. He naturally possesses resistance to mental pollution.”
“Rank One of the Demon pathway? What's that? This world's power system?”
“Exchanging for this type of hidden knowledge requires 5 spirituality points.”
Spirituality points again?
Why don't you just rob me?!
Celia's lips couldn't help but twitch.
“Exchange,” she squeezed out the word with difficulty.
“In this world, those who awaken extraordinary powers are commonly known as Beyonders. The pathways Beyonders walk are not all the same. There are twenty pathways in total, and each pathway has six ranks. The Demon pathway is one of them.”
“[Blank, blank, blank...]”
That's it? That's it again?!
What a scammer!!
“Do I have a chance to advance? I'll give you another 5 points!” Celia said through gritted teeth.
“Of course. You can choose to walk the Dominion pathway. I believe it would suit you perfectly. I have a Rank One Dominion pathway Advancement Stone here, which will cost you 25 spirituality points.”
What was up with this notebook? Its tone completely changed here, almost as if it was deliberately leading her on?
Furthermore, she realized something strange. She had actually been completely following its train of thought, spending her spirituality points on all this hidden knowledge!
Could she... have been hit by some kind of curse? Surely it wasn't just because of her habit of pulling gacha all the time!
Celia fell into self-doubt, but she quickly snapped out of it and shook her head vigorously.
No, no, no, she absolutely couldn't let this happen again!
Taking a deep breath, she began to ask her questions more cautiously:
“Do I need spirituality points for the instructions on how to use it?”
“No. Once you exchange for the Advancement Stone, the instructions will be included as a free gift.”
There was actually such a good deal?
Celia found it a bit hard to believe. She suspected this might be another scam!
But that was extraordinary power! And the Dominion pathway... just the name alone sounded like a mastermind pulling strings from behind the scenes. That feeling of controlling everything was every boy's dream!
After wrestling with her thoughts back and forth, she still couldn't suppress her inner excitement. Eager to try, she said, “Exchange, exchange!”
Soon, a translucent crystal appeared in Celia's hand. A black sun emblem was carved onto it, currently emitting faint flecks of blue light.
“How do I use it?” Celia asked the notebook.
“You only need to chant in your heart: ‘O Witch of Dominion forgotten at the end of time, please part the mist for me and reveal the buried truth...’”
Rate on N.U.
