Chapter 654: Prisoner and Guard

*No way. I haven't gone anywhere... Has the far-reaching hands of

trouble come on its own?* Klein revealed a grimace that didn't

match Gehrman Sparrow's persona. He nearly drew a gasp.

The only thing stopping him from doing that was because it would cause

quite a stir, making "trouble" discover his hiding spot!

No longer a green Nighthawk, he rapidly made up his mind. He held his

breath, slowly stood up, and moved to the side of the metal gate,

without a sound. He secretly and silently looked in the direction of the

incoming footsteps.

He believed that, since hiding and avoiding it wasn't necessary useful,

he had to determine the danger revolving around the situation so as to

make the best choice!

The two miniature suns in his eyes dimmed as Klein waited for nearly a

minute as he heard the footsteps turn heavier and clearer. Following

that, he heard the clanking sound of a metallic gate slamming into the

wall.

Following that, he saw a towering figure appear on the right of the

corridor.

The figure was nearly 2.5 meters tall and wore black, full-body armor.

The cold feeling it exuded seemed corporeal like a gigantic knight.

His aura was converged, and he was staid like the deep sea. In the space

where his eyes were, there were two deep-red glows that flickered. In

his hand was a long and broad black sword.

Creak!

He pushed open the metal gate to a cell and stepped in. He circled the

cell, seemingly in search of something.

*Man... Is he trying to find a particular prisoner? I'll definitely be

discovered if this continues...* Klein hesitated for a moment

and wondered if he should leave the cell and search for a way out before

the figure came close, or to sneak an attack to finish the target in a

clean swoop before continuing to huddle in a corner to await the end of

the dream.

After judging how much time he had left to think, Klein quickly took off

the topaz pendant on his left wrist and began divining with a voice that

perhaps only he could hear.

"That knight from before is very strong."

After quickly repeating it seven times, Klein opened his eyes to see the

topaz pendant turning clockwise at a high frequency and large

amplitudes.

This meant that the target was an extremely dangerous existence!

Without any hesitation or time to hesitate, Klein used the Beyonder

powers of a Clown and controlled his muscles to pull open the metal

gates without causing any additional stimulation.

Then, he took the opportunity when the black-armored entity entered

another cell, to gently walk out into the corridor and rapidly headed

left with his body crouched.

In the immense darkness, as he listened for any commotion behind him, he

maintained his stealthy and swift motions, quickly making a bend and

arriving at a metal gate which opened outwards. It looked like an exit.

Attempting to push and pull, Klein discovered that the metal gates

weren't heavy, but it had been locked.

After two seconds of thought, he took out the key he picked up inside

his cell, inserted it, and twisted it without holding out much hope.

A light click of a latch opening sounded as the metal gates unlocked.

*That works? Although it's a dream, you can't just have a randomly

picked up key be an important item... I originally planned on folding

some paper to insert into the keyhole and repeatedly slice at it, bit by

bit...* Klein slowly pushed open the door as he lampooned while

thinking in puzzlement.

To his disappointment, what stood behind the metal gates wasn't the exit

but a hall filled with junk.

Closing the gate behind him in passing, he locked it again and circled

around the items randomly strewn around, in search of a possible door or

path.

A few seconds later, he noticed an inconspicuous black wooden door in a

corner. Therefore, he carefully approached it and reached out for the

handle.

The scene inside naturally appeared in his mind. It was a storage room,

and on the right was a full-body mirror. And to its right was a figure

wearing a short linen robe.

There's someone there? The escaped prisoner? Having been

forced to leave his comfort zone, Klein decided to take hold of the

initiative in a limited fashion. Therefore, he gently twisted the handle

and pushed open the black wooden door.

He wanted to gather information on the general situation, so as to

determine where to engage in combat or flee at the critical moment in

time.

"Who is it?" the figure wearing a short linen robe hurriedly but softly

asked. Its voice was filled with despair and pain.

"An adventurer," Klein succinctly answered.

He had already used his night vision to discern the figure's looks.

It was a man with a weathered face. He had wrinkles on his forehead and

the corners of his eyes and mouth, but his hair was raven-black and

lustrous. There wasn't a single strand of gray hair.

His short linen robe was ancient and simple. His expression was

distorted due to the pain. His rarely seen pure black eyes were filled

with unconcealed surprise and puzzlement.

"Adventurer?

"Why would you be here?"

Klein maintained a certain distance from the man who was difficult to

discern whether he was considered young or old. He stood by the entrance

and looked at him.

"Before asking others, introducing yourself is a necessary form of

politeness."

As a Faceless, just the short act of sizing him up from before had made

him grasp the man's features. Apart from the discordant hair and the

wrinkles, he had an old, gruesome scar on his cheek.

The man was startled as he worriedly glanced at the hall.

"It's best you close the door. We cannot be caught by that devil;

otherwise..."

The muscles on his face clearly twitched as though he had recalled

something nasty.

"Devil?" Klein murmured and extended his hand back to close the black

wooden door.

The man heaved a sigh of relief and smiled wryly.

"I apologize. I was indeed impolite.

"My name is Leomaster, an ascetic of a religious organization."

"A religious organization? From the looks of it, you aren't a devotee of

any of the seven deities." Klein discovered a problem with his choice of

words.

If he was an ascetic of one of the seven deities, he could've directly

said it out loud. Even the high priest of the Church of Sun and the

bishops of the Church of Storms wouldn't come to blows the moment they

met in such a dangerous place.

Leomaster said with a self-deprecating laugh, "That's right. I worship

the original Creator. 'He' is an omnipotent and omniscient existence,

the source of everything great. 'He' is the Beginning and the End. 'He'

is the god of all gods!"

This... Upon hearing how this person revered the original

Creator, Klein's first reaction was that it was the Twilight Hermit

Order.

*However, there are also some smaller denominations in the Northern and

Southern Continents. There's quite a number of people who believe in the

original Creator...* Klein deliberated as he asked, "What's the

name of that religious organization?

"How did you end up here?"

Leomaster hesitated for a moment before saying, "To the far east of the

Sonia Sea is where my Lord sleeps. 'His' sacred mountain is hidden

somewhere there. I led a pilgrimage here in an attempt to witness his

miracles to redeem myself.

"Perhaps it's a necessary test. We were caught by that devil, and one by

one, we died...

"Later, I seized the opportunity to escape the cell and hid here,

awaiting the devil's departure."

Klein thought for a moment before saying, "Do you know the name of that

devil? What characteristics does he have?"

"He?" Leomaster shook his head, saying in a somewhat puzzled manner. "I

do not know his exact name, but many pilgrims seem to know him. They

call him the Saint of Darkness."

*Saint of Darkness? A demigod? Is this Leomaster's dream, or is it the

demigod's dream? From the outcome of my divination, it's likely the

latter. Otherwise, it wouldn't be that dangerous...* Klein was

about to continue asking which organization Leomaster was from and

determine the Beyonder powers of the Saint of Darkness when he suddenly

noticed the full-body mirror opposite the ascetic through the corner of

his eye.

In mysticism, mirrors were passages that connected hidden and unknown

worlds. It easily brought about terrifying accidents; therefore, Klein,

who was in a dangerous dream, carefully walked over and planned on using

the powers of a Priest of Light to destroy the item.

"No, don't!" Leomaster seemed to sense Klein's intention as he cried out

softly in horror. "Without it, I-I will immediately die!"

Ah? Klein looked at the mirror again in puzzlement.

Although the environment was abnormally dark, the mirror clearly

reflected two figures. One of them was Leomaster with his numerous

wrinkles and raven-black hair. The other was the thin-faced,

black-haired and brown-eyed Gehrman Sparrow who wore a cap.

At this moment, the Gehrman Sparrow in the mirror slowly moved his head

even though Klein didn't make any movements. He revealed a deep,

sinister smile towards him!

The mirror's surface suddenly rippled as a hand reached out.

With just the blinking of his eyes, the Gehrman Sparrow, who looked

identical to him, crawled out of the mirror. His face was tainted with

an obvious sinisterness due to the darkness cloaking it!

*How terrifying... Unfortunately, I don't look like Gehrman Sparrow;

therefore, you failed to scare me... If Zhou Mingrui came out of the

mirror, I might've been woken up out of fright...* Klein calmly

looked at his counterpart and raised his left hand which swirled with a

layer of sunlight.

The sinister Gehrman Sparrow smiled as he raised his left hand as well,

making a darkness that was made up of magnificence and sinisterness

surface on his glove.

This corresponded to the powers of a Baron of Corruption!

My clone? Klein thought as he raised his right hand

expressionlessly.

From out of nowhere, he held a short milky-white scepter in his palm,

and at its tip were embedded blue "gems."

Sea God Scepter!

Although his actions in a dream needed to abide by logic in order to

achieve the desired effects, Klein suspected that the illusory world was

unable to influence the mysterious space or the gray fog. Therefore, he

attempted to simplify the ritualistic process and told himself that the

Sea God Scepter was stored in a similar unique zone in the spirit world.

He could retrieve it whenever he wanted.

The outcome from his attempt delighted Klein. Indeed, the dream world

was unable to differentiate between a unique zone in the spirit world

and the space above the gray fog. With the premise of the Sea God

Scepter belonging to him, this Sealed Artifact at the demigod level was

"retrieved!"

*It really works... Otherwise, I'd have to engage in an intense

battle...* Klein secretly heaved a sigh of relief.

He similarly believed that the mirror was unable to replicate matters

related to the gray fog.

The sinister Gehrman Sparrow looked opposite him in a dazed state. He

instinctively raised his hand, but his right palm was empty.

Then, he saw countless bolts of silver lightning shoot out, enveloping

him inside, causing him to expend one Paper Figurine Substitute after

another without being able to escape from the area.

With a sizzling sound, a huge ball of lightning illuminated the cramped

room which provided no room for dodging. Following that, the Gehrman

Sparrow from the mirror vanished.

For some reason, Klein felt himself immediately turn serene, as though

he had become a sage.

He turned his head and looked at Leomaster again.

"What's the name of the religious organization you joined?"

Leomaster trembled as he answered, "Aurora Order..."

Aurora Order? Klein was stunned as he couldn't help but prick

up his brows.

At this moment, there was a loud clanking outside. The locked gates that

opened outwards had seemed to have been kicked open.

Thump! Thump! Thump!

The heavy footsteps that sounded like drumming walked towards the

corner, seemingly discovering where Klein and Leomaster were hiding.

Klein suspected that the Lightning Storm from before had been sensed by

the Saint of Darkness!

There's no way of hiding... Klein held the Sea God Scepter and

kicked the black wooden door of the storage room open towards the Saint

of Darkness!

As the door tumbled, he clearly saw his target's appearance.

The knight, who was wearing black full-body armor, had already raised up

his visor at some point in time, revealing his deep wrinkled face and

some of his bright raven-black hair, as well as the old scar on his

cheek.

He looked identical to Leomaster. Even the minute features were

identical!

The only difference was the deep redness that emitted from his eyes.