Chapter 451: Faceless

15 Minsk Street, in the dank, cold kitchen.

Klein rummaged for his newly bought large iron pot, poured fresh water

into it, and carefully scrubbed it several times.

Then, he dropped some matches into it and snapped his fingers.

The scarlet flames soared, and under his control, they quickly burned

the remaining water droplets dry, without harming the surface of the

pot.

This time, there were no ingredients such as pure water in the potion

recipe, so Klein was even more careful than the previous two times. He

wanted to ensure that everything was in good measure to prevent any

problems.

Although he was able to divine whether the concoction would be

successful or not, at least to not endanger his life, such a result

could still involve his potion being ineffective. Attempting to extract

the Beyonder characteristics from the concoction would be relatively

difficult, just like the removal of the mental corruption of a Rampager.

He would need the corresponding technique, methods, or rituals, and

Klein wouldn't be able to gather a second round of ingredients within a

short period of time either.

After finishing his preparations, Klein took a deep breath as he looked

at the neatly arranged boxes. Finally, he recalled the potion recipe:

"Faceless:

Main ingredients: Mutated pituitary gland of a Thousand-faced Hunter,

Characteristic of a Human-skinned Shadow.

Supplementary ingredients: 80 ml of a Thousand-faced Hunter's blood, 5

drops of black Jimsonweed juice, 10 grams of Dragon Tooth Grass powder,

3 strands of hair from a Deep-sea Naga."

He first picked up the cardboard box which came from Vampire Emlyn

White. He opened the box and took out the glass bottle that contained

100 milliliters of a Thousand-faced Hunter's blood.

Glancing at the scale, Klein unscrewed the lid and steadily poured the

sticky liquid into the pot with a stable wrist. The liquid changed its

color depending on the variation in the lighting.

As it was a supplementary ingredient, he didn't pursue precision and

didn't use chemical experiment apparatus to separate and titrate the

liquid.

The Thousand-faced Hunter's blood was like thin honey that slowly filled

the bottom of the pot. When Klein felt that it was about time, he

stopped tilting it and allowed the liquid to flow back.

*There's still about 20 milliliters left; my spiritual intuition is

quite accurate...* Klein withdrew his gaze from the glass bottle

and tightened the lid. This 20 milliliters of Thousand-faced Hunter's

blood could still be used to make mystical items, Beyonder weapons,

extraordinary scrolls, or for drawing symbols or labels in some

ritualistic magic. It was still very precious.

After putting the glass bottle back into the cotton-filled box, Klein

went down the list and added the black Jimsonweed juice and the Dragon

Tooth Grass powder. He saw that the liquid in the iron pot started to

bubble.

Without pausing, he picked up three strands of dark blue hair that

resembled tiny snakes with his black-gloved right hand, and he firmly

placed them on the surface of the liquid.

Sizzle!

A faint mist rose from the iron pot, and the color of the liquid turned

a deep blue.

*It already has such a strange effect even without adding the main

ingredients... As expected of a Sequence 6 potion...* Klein

reached out and grabbed the silver tin box which Vampire Emlyn White had

thrown in as well.

With a snapping sound, Klein opened the lid of the box, revealing a

peach-like item inside.

He didn't directly touch the Thousand-faced Hunter's mutated pituitary

gland. Instead, he placed the tin box over the top of the pot and

overturned it.

A yellow-brown object with the grooves and ridges of a brain fell in,

crashing into the dark blue liquid.

At this moment, no liquid droplets splashed up, and the pituitary gland

that was constantly changing its shape silently melted.

The colors of gray and yellowish-brown quickly merged with the dark

blue, and the bubbling suddenly increased in size.

At this point, Klein was a little nervous, but he controlled himself. He

picked up the last box and overturned the huge diamond-like

Human-skinned Shadow characteristic into the pot.

All of a sudden, the mist converged, and even the glow of the gas lamps

showed signs of being attracted and devoured as the room turned darker.

When everything returned to normal, Klein finally saw what the final

potion looked like.

It was blackish-green all over, and from time to time, it would produce

a bubble the size of an eye, and as if it had a life of its own, it

would produce a burping sound every few seconds.

When the bubble reached the surface, it would immediately burst, and

during this process, it would reflect light in a myriad of colors.

The colors combined to form a picture of different faces, and the facial

features seemed to be a random combination.

Klein picked up the iron pot with one hand and poured the liquid inside

into a glass bottle that he had prepared beforehand. Because of a

potion's characteristics, not one bit was left in the pot.

Using divination to confirm that the degree of harm was acceptable,

which meant that the potion had been successfully concocted, Klein took

the Faceless potion bottle and walked steadily back to the second floor,

entering the room with the curtains closed.

After locking the door, he sat on the edge of the bed and, with the help

of Cogitation, calmed his slightly agitated and anxious mood.

After sitting upright for more than ten seconds, Klein twisted the cap

off of the bottle, raised his right hand, and swiftly poured the entire

potion into his mouth.

A slightly tingling sensation swished in his mouth and esophagus, and

finally, it fermented into a numbing sensation that made him lose his

senses.

Klein's psyche seemed to be extracted from his body as he had the

feeling of being a bystander and saw his mouth, nose, ears, and eyes

melting---his entire face was melting!

In just two or three seconds, his face and head had turned into what

seemed like scorched white wax. His body was similarly abnormal; it was

as if his bones and skin were being melted by blood.

No, I can't allow such a situation to continue developing!

Klein knew that if he didn't keep it under control, he could be on the

verge of losing control at any moment.

As a "spectator," he tried his best to pull his thoughts back to his

body, trying to visualize the layers of stacked spherical lights and

maintain his state of Cogitation.

After a brief but repeated attempt, he finally felt his body once again.

He tried his best to control every tiny part of his body to hold onto

his lower limit.

As the melting and dissolving assaulted him again and again, Klein lost

sense of how long he held on for, but when it finally came to an end, he

regained the feeling that his body belonged to him.

At that moment, he knew that he had finally broken through the threshold

and was now a Sequence 6. He was now a Faceless!

Klein didn't sweat, but he was mentally exhausted. He barely got to his

feet and walked to the full-length mirror, trying to observe what he

looked like.

Under the gas lamp's illumination, he took two sudden steps back and

caused the floor to reverberate.

The scene in the mirror was extremely shocking!

Klein saw that his face and exposed skin were covered with dense, pale

granules. It would make any normal creature who saw those go numb and

subconsciously resist. The more timid ones might even lose their mind.

*Despite knowing the acting method, and having completely digested the

Magician potion, my advancement to Sequence 6 was still rather

difficult. I was only two to three steps away from losing control. I

wonder how much of a risk those Beyonders who relied on the accumulation

of time and barely qualified to consume the potion faced. The

probability of failure definitely isn't low... It's no wonder Sequence 7

is relatively common among the members of the Churches, and they will

shoulder the responsibility of captain or bishop, while the number of

people at Sequence 6 begins to plummet...* Klein closed his eyes

and sat back in his chair.

With the help of Cogitation, he was able to restrain his overflowing

spirituality and recover from his exhaustion.

After about ten minutes, the disgusting granules on his body had

completely faded and merged into his flesh.

Phew. Klein exhaled, walked back to the full-length mirror,

and he looked at his full-bearded appearance.

Suddenly, his facial hair began to squirm. His flesh and skin began to

undergo a bizarre change like half-melted wax.

Within a second or two, Klein had reverted to his original appearance:

black hair, brown eyes, ordinary facial features, a clean face with a

deep outline, and a somewhat thin body.

He quietly gazed at his past self and stretched out his right hand to

press it against his face.

With a gentle touch, Klein's face changed again. His nose bridge was

high, his lips were extremely thin, and there was a tinge of elegance in

his handsome face. There was an unconcealable pride in his appearance.

It was none other than Vampire Emlyn White.

A little too short... He laughed at himself.

At this moment, the bones and ligaments in his body began to produce

cracking and snapping sounds as his entire body suddenly soared up a

little. He now looked identical to Emlyn White, externally.

*I've noticed that I can accurately recall the exterior appearance and

temperament of every person I know, and I can grasp their unique

scent...* Klein's pores squirmed, and his body changed

accordingly. The smell of his body became different as a result of this.

He looked into the full-length mirror again, letting his hairline slowly

recede, and he changed the color of his eyes into a deep gray.

Without a sound, Dunn Smith seemed to come alive again, and he was

staring at the team member who always came to him to report on unusual

matters.

Letting out a breath, Klein returned to his original form, but the

corners of his mouth remained curled upwards.

He thought for a moment, took a few steps back, and looked at the

magazine, Ladies Aesthetics, which he had bought to look at fashionable

beauties, and he noted down the appearance of the actress on the cover.

Then, he went back to the full-length mirror and wiped his face with his

right hand.

When he looked in the mirror again, he saw a young lady with black hair

that went past her shoulders and delicate facial features.

It really works... Klein looked down at his chest, but he

didn't see any protrusions.

Trying hard to control his body, he managed to create a pair of A cups

by moving his fat and some of his flesh.

However, there was nothing he could do about his lower body.

*That is to say, it is just a superficial change in appearance, nothing

fundamental... Also, I can only grow taller or shorter by 10 centimeters

at the moment. Going beyond this range would be difficult... Also,

there's a limit to the enlargement and shrinkage of the head. For

example, I can't mimic Father Utravsky's half-giant head at all... Also,

I can only observe the appearance and temperament of the target in an

instant, without knowing anything related to him. It's easy for me to be

exposed when facing a Spectator like Miss Justice... Heh heh, in the

Clown stage, the Clown restrains the Spectator, but in the Faceless

stage, it is actually somewhat restrained by the Spectator.

Interesting...*

Upon having this thought, Klein stopped changing and returned to the

appearance of Sherlock Moriarty.

*Divination, fighting, as well as a Magician's Beyonder powers, have all

been enhanced. As for how much they've improved, it can only be

confirmed through practice. I should find some time to head to the

Quelaag Club tomorrow...* Klein took one last look and went

downstairs to clear up the mess.

After rounding up everything, he quickly washed up and crawled into bed.

Lying there, looking out the window at the crimson moonlight, he

gradually calmed down.

After a few minutes of this, Klein slowly closed his eyes and smiled to

himself.

Good night, Faceless.