The setting sun dipped westward, casting long shadows across the dark wooden floor of the study on the second floor of Lanqi's residence.
The hands of the wall clock had already passed five-thirty.
Lanqi sat before his desk, several hefty volumes of Creti-language reference materials spread out before him, flipping through them as he prepared for his upcoming work.
Talia sat beside him to keep him company.
From time to time, she would pick up a fountain pen and fill in what Lanqi had left half-written in the books.
She understood very well what Lanqi was thinking and what he aimed to accomplish.
"Did taking a break this afternoon improve your efficiency?" Talia asked.
"Affirmative," Lanqi answered.
As promised, after finishing lunch that day, he had rested beside the creek at Saint Creti Monastery on a bench for the entire afternoon, returning home only to dive straight back into work.
Talia had also begun helping him shoulder his duties for Saint Creti Monastery.
By now, not only had she nearly made Boss Cat redundant, but she had also begun phasing out the Poet of Great Love. Practically anything the Poet of Great Love could do, Talia could do better, and her knowledge base in magic engineering far surpassed the Poet's.
"Why 'nearly' made Boss Cat redundant?" Talia asked, looking up.
She could hear Lanqi's inner thoughts at any moment.
She wanted to know where else she could do better.
"Because it's a cat," Lanqi answered succinctly.
"What does that mean?" Talia did not understand.
"Because it's a cat," Lanqi repeated.
"..."
Talia's grip on the pen gradually tightened. She understood.
She really wanted to punch him.
Yet, fearing that Lanqi might actually enjoy it, she held back.
The fading glow of the setting sun dyed the sky above Brierda outside the study in fiery clouds, with a canary or two occasionally flitting past the window.
Lanqi was completely engrossed in preparing his lesson plans, utterly oblivious to the passage of time.
The fine nib of his pen scratched softly across the paper.
Class would resume on Monday.
Lanqi had to be prepared in advance.
If he wanted to impart some of his knowledge, wrapping it in the guise of the *Book of Genesis* made it much more justifiable.
For example, last time in the lecture hall at Elliot Building, he had written the *Chapter of Sealing and Imprisonment* and the *Chapter of Fire and Wrath* using demon script, surreptitiously weaving in quite a few secret insights from the [Original Slate - Fire] and [Original Slate - Sealing].
For the deeper teachings that followed, he needed interpretations more closely aligned with magic engineering; he could no longer simply keep using the *Book of Genesis* as an all-purpose shield.
What he needed to employ was the crown jewel of magic engineering—
The *Periodic Table of Attributes*.
It was an indispensable tool in the field of magic engineering. Arranged in ascending order by the Divine Era ordinals of attributes, it revealed the relationships and underlying laws governing them. Back when Lanqi was at Ikerite Academy, his favorite course, *Introduction to Magical Genealogy*, had been all about it.
The *Book of Genesis* had already provided the prototype of the *Periodic Table of Attributes*. Since an era lost to time, the table had undergone numerous reorganizations, retranslations, and revisions, evolving into several forms, such as the short-form, long-form, and extra-long tables.
Ikerite used the short-form periodic table for instruction.
It was compact and easy to read, well-suited for demonstrating fundamental properties of attributes, ideal for beginners and educational settings, and convenient for comprehension and memorization.
The Creti Empire, on the other hand, had long used the long-form periodic table. Strictly speaking, the Kingdom also utilized the long-form table in advanced curricula.
At this moment, Lanqi held a book printed with the Creti Imperial version of the *Long Periodic Table of Attributes*.
The periodic table as a whole formed a ring, with each attribute cell shaped into a subtle sector rather than a conventional rectangle.
Simply put, on the left side of the first row lay only one attribute: the [Basic] attribute. It represented basic attacks and stood at the very beginning, signifying that it required no learning and belonged to everyone naturally.
It corresponded to the first chapter of the *Book of Genesis*, the *Chapter of Origin and Void*, and likewise to the [Original Slate - Basic], whose effect was to empower all basic attacks—a truly unique slate in its own right.
Looking toward the right side of the table, the right side of the first row was entirely composed of elemental attributes.
Most people were naturally proficient in at least one or two elemental attributes, which consisted of [Ice], [Fire], [Light], [Darkness], [Wind], [Thunder], [Earth], [Water], and [Wood], corresponding to Chapters Two through Ten of the *Book of Genesis*.
"You're better suited to Light and Fire, while I have a greater affinity for Ice and Darkness," Talia said, gazing at those elemental attributes. "It's frankly bizarre that the two of us can get along at all."
She felt that she and Lanqi ought to have been natural-born adversaries, destined to clash. Yet judging by their history together, that was undeniably true.
"The Basic attribute is still the best. Everyone loves it," Lanqi remarked, his gaze drifting leftward with a sigh.
"..."
"No, the Mental attribute is the best. You have to love it," Talia blurted out instinctively for reasons she could not explain, a strange sense of competitiveness rising within her. "Remember the very first magic card you ever crafted? That was Mental attribute."
She made an effort to remind Lanqi of the magic card he had first forged back home in the South Vantina Territory.
"Fair point." Lanqi thought for a moment; the Mental attribute was indeed where his journey had begun. "Then the Concealment attribute is pretty good too. The magic card I'm best at and have crafted the most, [Metamorphosis: Human], is Concealment attribute."
Lanqi reflected on this. By now, he could craft [Metamorphosis: Human] with his eyes closed.
"You really are well-versed in the Concealment attribute," Talia remarked.
Whenever she watched Lanqi craft cards, most of the time he was tinkering with Metamorphosis spells.
She recalled that Hyperion's primary specialty was Concealment; the innate demon magic she used to erase her own presence was derived from her primary branch, the Concealment affinity.
Lanqi's gaze followed down the periodic table.
The Concealment and Mental attributes they had mentioned were located in the second and third rows, respectively.
On the left of the second row was a single attribute, [Poison]. While relatively close to the elemental group, it already counted as a special category, corresponding to Chapter Eleven of the *Book of Genesis*. To its right were nine attributes: [Appraisal], [Enhancement], [Healing], [Regeneration], [Alchemy], [Curse], [Corrosion], [Detection], and [Concealment], corresponding to Chapters Twelve through Twenty of the *Book of Genesis*.
Starting from the third row, the prevalence of attribute holders dropped markedly compared to the second row, with rarity growing increasingly pronounced toward the right.
On the left of the third row were two attributes: [Machinery] and [Link]. On the right were eight attributes: [Mental], [Telekinesis], [Illusion], [Barrier], [Slash], [Sealing], [Counter], and [Undead], corresponding to Chapters Twenty-One through Thirty of the *Book of Genesis*.
Finally, in the fourth row, the left side held two attributes: [Space] and [Divination]. These were the most unstable and exceedingly rare attributes; across nearly every era, worldly powerhouses who possessed either of them could be counted on one hand.
On the right side of the fourth row stood a solitary attribute: [Fate]. It was unattainable by mortal beings and had no corresponding Original Slate, yet it corresponded to the final chapter of the *Book of Genesis*, the *Chapter of Fate and Samsara*. Serving as both an end and a beginning, across a gap and shift on the diagram, it seemed to loop back and connect directly to the [Basic] attribute at the top-left of the circular periodic table.
"No one can master Fate."
That was the reason there were thirty-three attributes and thirty-three chapters in the *Book of Genesis*, yet only thirty-two Original Slates.
Talia observed Lanqi closing the volume bearing the Creti Imperial version of the periodic table of attributes and spoke from beside him.
"Or perhaps fate rests in everyone's hands. After all, the Goddess of Fate merged with the world itself long ago, bestowing the authority over fate upon this world," Lanqi said with a soft laugh, murmuring to himself.
"Don't you disbelieve in gods?" Talia asked in confusion.
"I don't believe in deities, but I respect those who do. Some believers of the good alignment strictly uphold moral principles precisely because of their genuine devotion to their gods. Isn't that a wonderful thing?" Lanqi set the book aside and turned his head to look at Talia. "At any rate, I feel that anyone who prays sincerely to a deity of the good alignment can't be a bad person," he stated with conviction.
"True."
Talia agreed wholeheartedly.
Little Hyperion was the most angel-like girl she had ever seen, and Little Hyperion prayed to the Goddess every single day—Talia had seen it with her own eyes.
Wait.
Talia suddenly remembered that Lanqi had once prayed to the Goddess of Fate as well.
Except this fellow had pressed his palms together and raised them high above his head, which felt rather off.
"Landry's sister, Elsa, seems to be a rather devout believer as well," Talia said, steering her thoughts away from Lanqi's distorted way of worship.
She worried that dwelling on it any further might constitute blasphemy against the gods.
"The child mentioned at noon that she was heading to the Pantheon first and only going to the theater in the evening. Not many young people are willing to travel all the way from Saint Creti Monastery to the Pantheon," Lanqi agreed.
In this regard, Elsa and Hyperion were cut from the exact same cloth. Hyperion also made a point every week of traveling from Ikerite Academy in the eastern district all the way to the Church of the Goddess of Fate's temple in the northern district of Ikerite to pray.
Aside from the Church of the Goddess of Fate, whose Southern Continent headquarters was situated in Ikerite, there were many churches devoted to other deities across the vast expanses of both the Southern and Northern Continents—for instance, the temple back in the Flower Capital of Palieu had been the Temple of the Goddess of Love.
"If Hyperion were here, she would definitely visit the temple often. It's been a long time since I accompanied her to one."
In truth, Talia had fantasized about visiting temples together with Hyperion in a foreign land.
Hyperion had also long yearned to see the Creti Pantheon, a historic monument famed throughout the Southern Continent.
What Talia had never anticipated was that her last visit to a temple had actually been exploring the Temple of Love alone with Lanqi.
"The Creti Empire actually worships the God of War. There isn't much to see at Brierda's Temple of the God of War, but aside from that temple newly built by Creti within the last century, there is also the Pantheon, which accommodates activities for the majority of prelates and believers." Lanqi pulled a Creti history book from the stack beside him and casually leafed through a few pages. "If you ask me, Dean Loren looks the most like a prelate of the God of War, yet he happens to be a prelate of the God of Fate and Samsara rather than the God of War and Swords."
Here in the Creti Empire, there was no dedicated Church of the Goddess of Fate. The only place to find a statue of the Goddess of Fate was inside the Pantheon, where statues of various deities stood, maintained by imperial prelates who served differing faiths.
For all churches, the origins of divine arts were rooted in ancient texts passed down from the Divine Era. Even if the world were annihilated multiple times, the traces of the *Book of Genesis* could never be destroyed. It was precisely the existence of this tome that gave rise to the vocation of the prelate, whose duties were inextricably intertwined with the gods.
The *Book of Genesis* comprised thirty-three chapters in total. The first chapter was the *Chapter of Origin and Void*, and the final chapter was the *Chapter of Fate and Samsara*; neither left behind any divine arts, whereas the remaining thirty-one chapters all recorded divine arts that could be deciphered.
The distinction between divine arts and spells lay in the fact that divine arts relied more heavily on resonating with the world, or with deities existing on the conceptual plane, whereas spells relied on oneself. Consequently, divine arts consumed exceedingly little mana, yet had a limited number of daily uses.
The potency of divine arts wielded by the prelate class was not only slightly correlated with the "Mental" and "Mana" attributes, but also heavily dependent on the prelate's unique "Faith" attribute.
Engaging in church duties and ecclesiastical service offered opportunities to raise one's Faith attribute.
Furthermore, if one believed in the Goddess of Fate, the Faith attribute applied universally across the divine arts of all chapters. If one worshipped a specific deity, the Faith attribute applied solely to a single chapter, yet granted an exceptionally powerful boost to the divine arts within that chapter.
The drunkard warden Lanqi and Hyperion had previously encountered on the negative sixth floor of Herrom Prison was a prelate devoted to the God of Storms and Freedom. Fully specialized in Wind-attribute divine arts, he could rely on his innate Wind-attribute magic damage reduction to withstand countless magical attacks, while employing crowd-control divine arts to impede the movements of inmates within the prison—even shoving them backward—making him practically invincible inside the Great Demon Trial, the Inverted Path of Rebirth.
"No wonder you have the [Inverted Mark]," Talia marveled.
The negative sixth floor of Herrom Prison had been converted directly from their demon realm relic, the Inverted Path of Rebirth.
The Inverted Mark could be considered the simplest mark, granting a minor boost to one's baseline Mental attribute.
Back in the demon realm, every demon had wanted it.
After all, the baseline Mental attribute was universally useful.
"Is Tiberius, Lord of the Inverted, even stronger than Caliera, Lord of the Fallen, and Satia, Lord of the Hopeless?"
Lanqi had rarely discussed stories of the Northern Continent and the old demon realm with Talia. Hearing her deep sigh over the Inverted Mark, he could not help asking out of curiosity.
For the next Shadow World, he would be taking Talia back tens of thousands of years into the historical projection of the demon realm, so there was plenty to discuss with a bona fide native demon like her.
"Of course. Even ninth-tier great demons have differences in strength. Think carefully about who was imprisoned across those three prison floors," Talia confirmed.
As his teacher, she was never stingy about answering Lanqi's questions.
Provided he did not ask anything infuriating.
Sensing his thoughts suddenly springing to life, she added that caveat in her mind.
"So that's how it is." Lanqi propped his chin in thought.
In truth, one could tell just from the internal layout of Herrom Prison.
Caliera of the Fallen's Great Demon Trial, [Fallen Land of Gentle Slumber], could only be placed on the negative fourth floor to restrain the weakest, Antanas.
Meanwhile, Satia of the Hopeless's [Hopeless Battle of Annihilation] was placed on the fifth floor to hold Sinora, who possessed the strongest direct combat power.
The trial truly positioned at the very bottom of Herrom Prison on the negative sixth floor to seal Pranay was the [Inverted Path of Rebirth]—the ultimate magic left behind by Tiberius of the Inverted.
"According to the surviving histories of the demon race, Lord Tiberius was a ninth-tier great demon who predated Lord Caliera by several eras, and his is among the oldest Great Demon Trials still in existence. He specialized in the [Mental] and [Divination] attributes and must have left behind many treasures for the demon realm, though sadly, they were all lost to the vast expanse of history," Talia continued explaining.
Great demons who chose to transform into Great Demon Trials upon their deaths were typically those willing to make sacrifices, bestowing their final worth upon subsequent generations of demons without reservation.
Whether tens of thousands of years ago or over a hundred thousand, it was an epoch so distant it had nearly faded into complete obscurity. Living beings today could no longer calculate just how far back the Divine Era lay, nor how many tens of millennia had passed in between.
"In the era of Lord Caliera, one might still have been able to find remnants left by Tiberius."
Talia actually envied Lanqi for possessing the [Inverted Mark].
Only by truly crossing the threshold between life and death could one overcome the brutal trial of the Inverted Path of Rebirth to obtain this mark.
However, since this mark was already hers now, she figured it was far more convenient to just make wishes directly in her heart.
"Wait, did you confiscate my Poet of Great Love? We're going to separate eventually, right?" Lanqi asked, bewildered.
"Actually, if I wanted to, I feel like I could truly devour Lanfu completely. She shares the exact same origin as me to begin with, so once fused, there's no distinction between us," Talia said with a triumphant smirk, as though threatening Lanqi that she might confiscate his epic card for good.
Doing so, however, might permanently consume both magic cards, [Demon Fusion] and [Poet of Great Love].
Talia still could not bring herself to do that.
Besides, she now found Lanfu rather adorable.
"In the timeline the Goddess of Fate showed me, you obtained the Poem of Compassion and embarked on the path of invincibility, after all." Lanqi felt relieved upon learning Talia's thoughts.
It was only as six o'clock approached and the room gradually dimmed that he snapped back to reality, reaching out to turn on the study lamp.
Warm yellow light washed downward. Lanqi rubbed his tired eyes, stretched lazily, and decided to take a short break.
He stood up, walked to the window, and pushed it open, letting the crisp autumn air pour into the room.
Taking a deep breath, Lanqi took in the unique beauty of an autumn twilight.
Except, in the timeline foreseen by the Goddess of Fate, he would be beaten by Talia into a white mummy swathed head to toe in bandages; Hyperion would be murdered early in Ikerite; and Talia, upon uncovering the truth about her niece, would have no choice but to gaze at Hyperion's tombstone. Investigating further, she would discover that her sister had been killed by the vampires, followed by upheaval across the Northern Continent, the fall of the Protoss Empire, and grim fates for her old friends in the prison.
And thus was born *The Rise of Talia*.
In essence, a tragic tale of revenge.
The moment she realized she had lost everything, she was no longer that Talia.
And the Poem of Compassion happened to grant her the power to exact her vengeance.
"..."
Talia walked over to the study window as well, gazing at the distant autumn scenery alongside Lanqi.
"Thinking about it that way, I really should be thanking you," Talia said, her gaze softening. She gently raised her hand and ruffled Lanqi's hair.
"..."
Lanqi turned his head in stunned disbelief, staring at Talia.
The warm light seemed to drape a veil over her, and her golden demonic eyes held an unprecedented tenderness.
A Talia like this felt almost unreal.
"Wait a second. Why would I beat you into such a state?"
Talia suddenly thought of something, her expression reverting to its usual sharpness as she met Lanqi's eyes.
Reasonably speaking, even if Lanqi's thoughts were utterly infuriating and she had not been in the best of tempers when they first met, she had spent over a century surviving cautiously in human realms. No matter what, she would not have been pushed past her breaking point by Lanqi to the point of pummeling him for catharsis, disregarding all danger, right?
"*Cough!*"
Lanqi cleared his throat violently.
Feeling that the hand resting on his head had abruptly turned lethal, he scrambled to escape.
"Spill it! What did you do to make me that furious?!"
With a swift burst of Beyond Fear of Death, Talia grabbed him by the back of his collar and yanked him back, preventing his escape.
"Nothing! Truly nothing!"
Lanqi frantically shrugged off his coat in a desperate bid to flee.
"Hmph, trying to run?"
Talia seized Lanqi's arm and pinned him against the wall, fixing him with an intense glare. "Confess honestly. You won't be resisting your way out of this one."
Talia's strength vastly outmatched Lanqi's sixth-tier physique; no matter how desperately he struggled, he could not break free.
Cold sweat beaded on Lanqi's forehead.
He deeply regretted sending the cat away.
With Boss Cat around, Talia would at least exercise some restraint.
Now that it was just the two of them at home, she could do whatever she pleased.
And what he had to do was suppress his inner thoughts while concocting an explanation that could bypass Talia's telepathic connection and convince her.
It was absolute hell mode.
Just as Lanqi was swallowing hard, desperately searching for a survival strategy, the communication magic card he had left in Talia's possession suddenly sent out a pulse of magic, cutting through their thoughts.
Puzzled, Talia released Lanqi and pulled out the purple communication magic card.
"Why is it Boss Cat?"
Talia murmured to herself and hurried to hand the magic card to Lanqi.
Without them realizing it, the last remnants of twilight beyond the window had submerged beneath the horizon, replaced by the rising curtain of night.
A red moon draped in a veil of pale gray mist cast a faint reddish tint across the curtains of the study.
Lanqi reached out and accepted the transmission.
"Meow... Lan... quick... dan—"
Boss Cat's broken, distorted voice filtered through the communicator, crackling with waves of magical static as if the signal were suffering from severe spatial interference.
Chapter 737