Chapter 977: First Sermon

Klein wasn't surprised at Patrick Bryan's answer. He nodded gently and

said, "Which incarnation number are you at?"

Based on what he knew, Undying died once every sixty years before

reviving. They would then lose most of their memories, which needed to

be slowly recollected. It was like the beginning of a new life.

This was knowledge that came from the potion, so Patrick Bryan easily

understood what the Blessed meant. He deliberated over his words and

said, "I'm not 50 yet. I haven't been an Undying for more than 10

years."

Klein then asked, "When did you switch faiths to our Lord?"

Here, "Lord" referred to the Lord of the Underworld.

Bryan recalled for two to three seconds before he said, "I had just

celebrated my 30th birthday back then."

Stepping into the world of mystery at 30 and becoming a Beyonder.

Becoming a Sequence 4 demigod before 40... This speed either means

shocking talent or that he's a Blessed... Heh, indeed, his spirit and

body had been influenced by the Death pathway's Uniqueness during that

ritual... As Klein listened, he became more certain of his theories from

before.

Of course, compared to how he had only taken a year to go from an

ordinary person to a Sequence 4 demigod, Patrick Bryan's advancement

speed was nothing

On this point, Klein didn't feel that there was anything to be poignant

about, because he was truly a "Blessed." Furthermore, he had cheats-far

greater than one.

The only problem was that he wasn't sure if everything that he had done

was enough to exchange for something

After some thought, Klein asked, "What's your current public identity?"

"I'm a businessman. I have two garment factories in Backlund. On the

surface, I believe in the Evernight Goddess and am a supporter of the

New Party..." Patrick Bryan introduced himself.

Klein nearly let out a scoff as he continued, "How many Numinous

Episcopate members do you have under you? What are they doing?"

Already prepared, Bryan answered eloquently, "Two teams, a total of

twelve Beyonders. Some of them are working at my garment factory while

others are in the watch and clock industry. All of them have their own

formal occupations.

"Typically, they will be careful when proselytizing to the people around

them. The progress on this is very slow, nor is it the main goal. We do

not have more than a hundred believers.

"Most of the time, they are searching for clues that God had left

behind, as well as the different materials needed for the awakening

ritual.

"With clues in hand, we will carry out operations. And once the

materials are gathered, we will experiment in different awakening

rituals and seek out the most effective one. I'm the main person behind

this operation, and am also core to the rituals."

You sound pretty proud of that... Klein asked about other matters and

received detailed answers.

Finally, he thought for a moment before saying with a stern expression,

"In accordance with the revelation from God, you are to heed my

instructions from this moment forth."

Patrick Bryan immediately got up and gave a solemn bow.

"Yes, Your Excellency."

Klein nodded slightly and answered, "First, stop all rituals and stop

gathering materials. God has already partially awakened. 'He' is in

'His' recovery stage, so 'He' isn't to be disturbed by 'noise.""

From Klein's point of view, regardless of the changes in Bryan's

awakening rituals, they were ultimately pointed at Artificial Death-the

Death pathway's Uniqueness. This would only increase its chances of

coming to life, making it disadvantageous for the Goddess to deepen her

control over it.

And regardless if Klein was happy for this to happen or not, since the

Evernight Goddess had assigned Bryan to him, he had to make such

arrangements.

Patrick Bryan had zero doubts toward his explanation, because Death had

indeed awoken, and "awakening rituals" were, in essence, a form of

"disturbance."

This Undying thought before asking, "Your Excellency, what should we do

next?"

Klein smiled with approbation.

"Continue seeking out clues for things that God left behind. This will

aid in 'His' recovery."

Upon saying that, Klein originally had a second request, but he was

worried that there were too few clues to it, making it possible for the

Numinous Episcopate members to stir up trouble with nothing to be done.

He added, "In addition, promote reading to all those around you and your

subordinates, be it at the garment factory or elsewhere. Establish night

schools or learning classes. Let the people around you extricate

themselves from ignorance and savagery."

To make it more convincing, Klein stretched out his right hand and

pressed it to his chest. With abnormal piousness, he began preaching,

"God said one needs to understand the belief to believe.

"God said that to those who are lost, one has to first strengthen their

body and arm his brain. This is because the kingdom 'He' promises is one

without ignorance and savagery."

Patrick Bryan didn't doubt Dwayne Dantès's words, nor did he find it

strange that such records weren't found in the Numinous Episcopate's

bible. This was because this person before him was God's Blessed, a

representative appointed by God!

He earnestly nodded.

"I will heed God's teachings.

"May every spirit gain eternal life in God's kingdom!"

As he said that, he used the praying gesture that the Numinous

Episcopate's Artificial Death faction used. It was to raise both hands

high, thumbs facing each other as he held them at his forehead.

In mysticism theory, this was the core to the Underworld contained in

every Gatekeeper. It represented Death's position.

Klein returned with the same gesture and words before saying, "Second,

orders from the Southern Continent-no matter who it comes from---has to

be handed to me first. They can be done only after I give permission. If

no permission is given, you are not to do it in private. You can only

give feedback based on what I say."

This was because he was worried that Haiter, the angel of the Death

domain, would still remain fervent about the Artificial Death plan,

occasionally instructing Bryan and the others to make new attempts.

Meanwhile, he also had to ensure that Haiter and the other two saints

wouldn't notice anything amiss before the Goddess gained a deeper

control over the Death pathway's Uniqueness. He needed to prevent them

from doing anything excessive.

Bryan had no objections on this matter.

"Yes, Your Excellency!"

After giving instructions on the two most important matters, Klein wore

the same expression, but he inwardly felt relieved. He said after some

deliberation, "Third, unless convened by me, do not seek me out. Our

usual communications shall be completed via messengers.

"As you know, there are many existences in the astral world who do not

wish to see God return."

Patrick Bryan nodded heavily.

"I understand.

"My messenger's summoning incantation is 'Spirit wandering above the

world, absolutely friendly creature, Patrick Bryan's Contract

Companion." Indeed, it's impossible for a demigod of the Death pathway

to not have a messenger... Normally, Sequence 6 Beyonders of this

pathway should have one... Klein didn't hesitate as he answered in an

unhurried tone, "Remember, my messenger's summoning incantation is 'The

spirit that wanders about the unfounded, the friendly creature that can

be subordinated, the messenger that belongs to Gehrman Sparrow.' Oh, be

it receiving or sending mail, a gold coin needs to be paid to complete

the transaction."

Klein deliberately revealed that Gehrman Sparrow and Dwayne Dantès were

related, in order to determine Bryan's reaction.

"Gehrman Sparrow..." Patrick Bryan repeated the name in puzzlement

before coming to an enlightened state. He exclaimed in pleasant

surprise, "Your Excellency, Death Consul?"

Thankfully, although he's a byproduct of a ritual and is fervently

zealous, he has normal intelligence. He can consciously seek out

information and do an analysis... Klein exhaled in relief and replied

with a smile, "I'm not him. 'He' is my teacher."

Bryan nodded in thought, believing that he had fully understood the

entire matter.

Klein guessed at his thoughts but ignored it. Crossing his right leg, he

placed both hands on his knee and asked, "What do you know about the

other factions of the Numinous Episcopate?"

Patrick Bryan sat down again and said, "The Numinous Episcopate's

strongest faction is the royal family faction. With God's descendants as

the core, they have established many organizations...

"Their leader is currently a descendant with a relatively thin

bloodline. Her name is Sia Palenque Eggers. She might be an angel or

wields an important relic of God. She calls herself Pale-White

Empress...

"Other than her, the royal family faction had five other saint apostles.

Some of them are true demigods, while others rely on Sealed Artifacts...

"Other than the royal family faction and us, the other factions are

relatively weaker. The main ones are the Repose faction and the

Underworld faction... Only by working together do they have three

powerful Beyonders who are equivalent to the saint apostles..."

After Bryan finished, Klein nodded indiscernibly.

"That's it for today. If there's anything in the future, feel free to

contact me."

"Yes, Your Excellency." Patrick Bryan stood up and bowed before leaving

the room. The door silently opened as the "figure" outside slinked into

the shadows and disappeared with the cold wind.

After everything calmed down, Klein glanced at the door that had closed.

He walked to the window, drew the curtains, and looked towards the

street.

There were a few carriages there at some point in time. Each of them had

two lanterns hanging in front of them. Their lights were abnormally

pale-white with a tinge of dark green. They illuminated the surroundings

into a blur.

Nearly transparent figures surrounded this blurry scene. They were

wearing illusory clothes that appeared like formal wear, making them

appear rather formal.

After Patrick Bryan landed from midair and returned, the figures bowed

and attentively followed the demigod and the spirit beside him onto the

hardly-visible carriages. Then, they steered into the distance.

The pale-white light with tinges of dark green grew faint and finally

vanished into the darkness as though it had never arrived.

Klein looked away and muttered to himself with a solemn expression,

Although the revelation received by Patrick Bryan stems from the Goddess

and "Her" considerations, I have a nagging feeling that there's

something dark and sinister about to break out in Backlund or even the

entire world.

I wonder when it will stir up some waves...

With this in mind, Klein didn't delay a second. He immediately contacted

Demoness Trissy to confirm that nothing abnormal had happened to her.