In the southern outskirts of Froz in the early morning, within the Beauty Goddess Palace, an elegant dance was nearing its end with almost no audience present.
On the empty ceremonial square, Adelle, dressed magnificently, leaped on the mosaic stones, twirled amidst the water curtains, and bloomed under the morning light. The steps of the once-boasted king from the distant dynasty’s palace were recreated here.
As the sunrise slowly rose at the eastern horizon, the lotus halo from the top of the Rainbow Hall gradually dissipated. Adelle’s movements slowed down, and after one last spin, she spread her arms and squatted slowly, concluding this silent performance.
When Adelle’s dance ended completely and her posture froze, red-colored beams flowed over her body, traveling through her exposed skin, and finally converged on her head, forming three red petal marks. They then gradually disappeared, as if they had merged into her skin.
‘It seems… I succeeded. I didn’t think wrong after all…’
The small zombie puppets on alert around her, as well as Dorothy who was far away, thought this in their hearts. She observed the unusual traces left on Adelle after the dance, confirming her previous speculations.
In the riddle left by the Magnificent King, only by dancing on three overlapping stages could one become “a flower.” This meant that to truly glimpse the Magnificent King’s legacy, one needed to dance simultaneously on the three hidden stages in the Beauty Goddess Palace.
Among these three stages, only the second stage, the water curtain stage, was immovable. The essence of the shattered stage was not the floor of the singing hall but those mosaic tiles. The halo stage changed positions along a central axis with the rising and setting sun before and after the Audience Banquet, so transferring the mosaic tiles from the shattered stage to the water curtain stage and waiting for the halo stage to align with the sun would suffice.
Doing this meant that the projected halo stage’s light couldn’t come from the sunset in the west but required the morning light from the east. Dorothy calculated that the halo stage needed the morning light of the day after the Audience Banquet to achieve perfect alignment, not the dusk light of the banquet day itself. This morning was the true time for the ritual; the Audience Banquet was merely a preliminary event. Only during this morning could the three stages align perfectly.
The holding of the Audience Banquet served two purposes: first, to use the double-stage to reinforce loyalty among local lords, and second, to mislead others into thinking that the Audience Banquet was the critical ritual, thereby concealing the most crucial parts of the ceremony. The Amniotic Sac Sect seemed misled by the Audience Banquet, believing the correct moment for the ritual was when the king danced in the singing hall at sunset each year.
In fact, the Magnificent King had hinted at the correct timing through the names of the structures. The second stage, the Fountain, was called the Dawn Fountain, suggesting it should be used at dawn.
This was why Dorothy requested the use of the Beauty Goddess Palace this morning—to have Adelle complete her dance on the full three stages, thus fully triggering what the Magnificent King intended to leave behind. From Adelle’s current state, she had succeeded.
After adjusting her dance steps and the anomalies disappearing from her body, Adelle opened her eyes and stood up slowly on the stage. She scanned her surroundings, taking in the scene of the Beauty Goddess Palace, then her eyes revealed a hint of melancholy.
“How is it, Adelle? How do you feel now?”
At this moment, Dorothy communicated through the consultation channel, and Adelle responded quietly in her heart.
“It’s okay… I felt many things I never felt before. What a wonderful experience… It’s like being close yet far, intense yet hazy. This might be the most unforgettable dance I’ve ever done.”
“Your tone suggests you’re in good condition. I sense the extraordinary changes in you. So, have you advanced to the Red Rank now?” Dorothy asked through the channel, and Adelle replied with a smile.
“Haha, how could it be so easy… Although my level is higher than before, I still have a body of chalk. To become Red Rank, I need to perform two more dances.”
“Two more? So even though you haven’t become Red Rank yet, you’ve mastered the promotion ceremony?” Dorothy asked curiously, and Adelle answered straightforwardly.
“Yes, while dancing, I accessed the information hidden within the extraordinary system of the Beauty Goddess Palace. Originally, this place was an important site for the Faith of Abundance in the Faraluo region before the Era. It was the temple of the Goddess of Abundance’s demigod, the Goddess of Love Dance and Flowers, Yastati. When the Magnificent King Charles searched for relics of abundance across the country, he found this hidden underground temple here. He then restored and transformed it into the current Beauty Goddess Palace.
“Yastati… Could this be Her name?”
“Yes. According to the information in the temple, the title of the Flowers’ Lady, originally meant to be at the top of the Path of Desire, is such a name. I know little about this lady. My teacher told me that She might no longer exist, but at Her demise, Her ultimate powerful force still guards the entire branch path, preventing unrecognized heritages from touching the power of the branch path.
“Besides the recognized heritage, others cannot advance even if they know the promotion ceremony. The Amniotic Sac Sect has tried for millennia to break this protection. The Lady’s power seems to have gradually weakened over time. Recently, the sect has been able to make initial breakthroughs in this protection…”
Adelle explained her understanding of the goddess to Dorothy, who nodded in agreement.
‘Indeed, every branch path’s deity at the top has some influence over their respective paths… Perhaps the higher the position, the greater the influence. Like the Red Rank wolf of the Wolf bl**d Association… clearly, the more it fights, the more it is dominated by wildness. This might be due to the influence of the Gluttonous Wolf. But Edward, as a traitor of the Sea Abyss, does not seem affected by the Abyss Serpent. Is it because he hasn’t been injured too much, or because the Abyss Serpent’s power is weaker than the Gluttonous Wolf? What about the Spider Queen? If Gregor advances to the Red Rank, will he be influenced by the Spider Queen?’
Dorothy quickly pondered these thoughts, then refocused on the current situation and continued questioning Adelle.
“I understand the temple’s affairs. You mentioned earlier that to truly become Red Rank, you need to perform two more dances. Can you explain more about this? Didn’t you complete the Red Rank promotion ceremony already?”
“Yes… but it was only part of the ceremony. I just accessed the complete method for ascending to Red Rank on the Path of Desire, which requires performing three dances.
“The first dance is for others, the second for oneself, and the third for the deity. The dance I completed just now was actually the third dance for the deity.
“The third dance is a dance dedicated to the deity, performed at a sacred moment in the appropriate temple and receiving spiritual blessings from the temple at the end. The dance I completed on the triple stage was a dance for the deity. At that moment, I did not need any permission to truly master the temple and convert all its spirituality for my own use.
“Without external acceleration, the Flowers’ Lady’s temple naturally accumulates spirituality every sixty years. After completing the dance in the sacred time on the triple stage, the accumulated spirituality turned into a blessing bestowed upon me, enhancing my Red Rank. This is part of the entire promotion ceremony. Generally, it can only be used once every sixty years. Since the last time the Magnificent King used it, no one else has promoted here. Therefore, the accumulated spirituality is almost full, enough to bless me. This is the remaining power of the Flowers’ Lady, guiding me.”
Adelle explained to Dorothy, who silently nodded in response and then spoke again.
“Once every sixty years? That’s really a long time… What about the other two dances?”
“The second dance is a dance for the world. I need a large-scale performance where I influence at least fifty thousand people with my ability. I must complete the dance within the absolute enchantment of these fifty thousand spectators,” Adelle continued explaining to Dorothy, who furrowed her eyebrows slightly.
“Fifty thousand… That’s quite a high number…”
“Yes, it’s extremely challenging for a Chalk-level Extraordinary Being to influence fifty thousand people at once. This far exceeds the limits of Chalk-level abilities. To achieve this effect, I need to find a lot of external assistance, such as rituals, sigils, drugs, and props, to significantly boost my capabilities in a short time and complete the dance,” Adelle responded, and Dorothy thoughtfully replied.
“Rituals, props, and other external aids… If you look for them, you can find them, although it will take more time. Gathering fifty thousand people for a performance is indeed difficult. However, given your fame, it shouldn’t be too hard. So, what about the last dance?” Dorothy continued asking, and Adelle looked at her hand solemnly.
“The first dance is for myself. It’s a solo dance, a test of myself. I need to find a safe and quiet place and perform a cruel, enduring dance.
“This dance is performed alone, without any audience. It must continue without stopping until completion, and to perform it correctly, it takes seventy days, without relying on any external assistance.”
“Seventy days of continuous dancing? Can you endure that?” Dorothy said seriously, and Adelle replied.
“Yes… Not eating, drinking, or resting for seventy days of continuous dancing is a huge test, even for Chalk Extraordinary Beings. It’s a test of both physical and mental endurance. During these seventy days, the dancer must continuously dance, and each movement must be precise. The first few dozen days are manageable, but it becomes increasingly difficult to sustain. Intense monotony and fatigue will continuously torment the dancer’s mind and body until they collapse completely. Even if the body can barely hold out, the mind may become disoriented due to prolonged dancing, leading to mistakes in movements. Any mistake ruins the entire effort, and one must start over.”
“Seventy days of continuous dancing, and even a single mistake means starting over. That’s harsh.”
Adelle explained, and Dorothy responded with a sigh.
“Yes, it’s cruel. According to the standard order of promotion in the past, this was the first dance needed. This dance, ostensibly for oneself, primarily tests whether one has the qualifications to advance. Without the necessary qualifications, even decades of effort would be insufficient. Only those with strong bodies and minds, patience and precision, and both physical strength and strong will can pass this test. Only such dancers are qualified to receive help from the Abundance Church to perform the next two dances.
“After all, among the three dances, only the first one relies solely on the dancer’s own efforts, without requiring any additional resources. Only dancers who can complete the first dance are qualified to receive resource support to advance to the Red Rank.”
Adelle explained the significance of the first dance to Dorothy, who couldn’t help but reflect on the difficulty of the Red Rank promotion ceremony on the Path of Desire. However, thinking back, the regular promotion to Red Rank should not be easy, and her own collection of six divine blessing objects was also quite challenging.
It was known that these divine blessing objects, once used in the promotion ceremony, were marked in a special area of the consciousness realm and formed a mysterious connection with the one being promoted. Such connected divine blessing objects could not be used again to promote a new Truth Mentor. Therefore, in the First Dynasty, each promotion of a Truth Mentor required time and effort to collect six divine blessing objects, and the investment of extraordinary resources for each Truth Mentor was enormous, far surpassing the consumption of extraordinary resources for the Red Rank on the Path of Desire.
“So, are you planning to immediately begin the promotion process after returning?”
After a brief period of reflection, Dorothy continued to ask Adelle, who quickly responded.
“Of course. I plan to start with the first dance, then delegate the collection of materials for the second dance to others during this process. After completing the first dance and coming out of seclusion, I can immediately plan and execute the second… the final dance for me, and then I can complete the promotion perfectly.”
“You speak so naturally, it sounds like you’re very confident in completing the first dance. Aren’t you afraid of failing and taking several years?”
Hearing Adelle’s confident tone, Dorothy said, and Adelle immediately replied.
“Why would it fail? Detective, you know I’m the best dancer and the best Chalk. I’m very confident in completing this dance in a short time.”
Dorothy responded calmly.
“Alright, since everything at the Beauty Goddess Palace has been resolved smoothly, let’s move on to the next stop. We still have other matters to attend to today.”
“Sure, it’s time to handle your affairs now, Detective.”
Speaking, Adelle raised her head and surveyed the Beauty Goddess Palace once more before crossing the water curtain and stepping off the stage.
…
In the morning, in a high-end hotel suite in Froz City.
Adelle, dressed in ordinary plain clothes, sat on the sofa in the suite’s living room with a smile, scanning the surroundings. Several figures stood in the room.
These figures included men and women with various expressions, dressed differently, standing guard beside Adelle, watching the front. In front of them stood several black-clad individuals in uniform black suits and hats, with five of them carrying briefcases in their hands.
In a solemn atmosphere, the five black-clad individuals carrying briefcases stepped forward and placed ten large briefcases in front of Adelle on the coffee table. When the table couldn’t hold them all, they were placed on the ground, then opened uniformly. Inside the opened briefcases were neatly arranged old booklets written in Faraluo script, listing various numbers and classifications.
“These are archives retrieved from the national museum’s archive library, documenting the registration records of various artifacts acquired from Northern Ufeiga over the past two hundred years since the Bourbon Dynasty. These booklets initially record the appearance, source, acquisition date, and method of these artifacts. Although they haven’t been thoroughly studied, they should meet your requirements.
“According to the instructions of that person, these documents will be temporarily stored in this suite for five days. After that, we will retrieve them. If you need to search for anything, please do so quickly and do not take these items out of the hotel. If you don’t find what you’re looking for in this batch, let us know, and we will prepare the next batch.”
The leader of the black-clad individuals said seriously after placing the briefcases. Adelle responded with a slight smile.
“Oh… I estimate it won’t take five days. Anyway, thank you all for your hard work. Please convey my gratitude to that person.”
The leader of the black-clad individuals bowed slightly and turned to leave with the others. Once all the black-clad individuals had left and closed the door, Adelle began carefully examining the old files in the briefcases.
“These things… They’re just registration lists? There are so many of them, filling several briefcases, and not just one batch. How much did Faraluo plunder from Northern Ufeiga?”
Adelle murmured to herself, astonished by the sight of the files. Soon, Dorothy responded with her voice.
“Faraluo colonized Northern Ufeiga for two centuries, plundering countless treasures. It’s not surprising that there are so many lists. After all, the First Dynasty was wealthy, with ample resources to exploit.
“Well, it’s time to get to work. Hopefully, these robbers kept detailed records…”
From afar in her hotel room, Dorothy, sitting by the fireplace sipping hot milk, thought to herself. Then, she controlled her zombies to carefully remove the documents from the briefcases and distribute them throughout the room, dividing the task of quickly reading through them.
Adelle glanced at the busy zombies and picked up a Faraluo fashion magazine, leisurely flipping through it with interest.
For a while, the entire room was filled with the sound of pages turning, like being in a library.
Using several zombies, Dorothy quickly reviewed the documents sent by Sanders’ subordinates, meticulously examining all the information to understand what Faraluo had obtained from Northern Ufeiga over the years.
To be honest, Dorothy was quite satisfied with Faraluo’s archival work. Each artifact recorded in these archives had detailed information about its origin, registration time, and acquisition method. Additionally, each artifact had detailed descriptions and sketches from different angles, providing Dorothy with a clear understanding of the artifact, which was very important.
These archives spanned different periods, some very ancient, requiring careful handling. Some were relatively new, with photographs rather than sketches used for the artifact illustrations. The content of the registrations was diverse, ranging from noble ritual objects to ordinary household items, from delicate crafts to massive statues. This demonstrated the wide range of Faraluo’s collections.
Dorothy’s zombies worked methodically, stacking the reviewed archives neatly, the rhythmic flipping sounds almost like a lullaby, causing Adelle, lying sideways on the sofa reading a magazine, to yawn. Finally, after about an hour of thorough review, she found something interesting.
It was an old archive, nearly a century old, possibly worthy of a museum exhibit. On the yellowed pages, Dorothy noticed a sketch that caught her attention, detailing an artifact.
“‘Truncated Crystal Golden Engraved Triangular Pyramid,’ October 11, 1221. Found in the palace of the local chieftain in Mukutuna after suppressing the rebellion, initially judged to be an artifact from the First Dynasty, showing no extraordinary signs, specific uses unknown.”
This was a brief introduction of the artifact. More captivating was the sketch of the artifact, a triangular pyramid-like object with a golden body covered in mysterious engravings, with an eye-shaped symbol similar to “Enlightenment” at the center.
The four corners of the golden body were not gold but replaced by four sharp crystals. The crystals were embedded in the golden body, forming the four corners. According to the sketch, these crystals could be removed, and there were separate sketches for the removed crystals and the golden body.
“The ancient artifact is a triangular pyramid with equilateral sides measuring 30 centimeters. All four corners are removable crystals, though it lacks extraordinary properties, the material is of excellent quality, comparable to the golden body, but potentially useful for other purposes.”
This was an additional description on the page, but Dorothy’s attention was not on these details. She focused intently on the sketch of the crystal, especially the sketch of the crystal itself.
The shape of the crystal looked familiar to Dorothy. She quickly identified the source of the familiarity—the sharp crystal’s shape and style were extremely similar to the Reading Key she had obtained from the Boneyard Society, almost identical!
Reading Key? Could this be the key to linking the Great Library? Seeing the sketch of the crystal, Dorothy’s heart raced with excitement. If this was truly the Reading Key, wouldn’t having it allow her to search for information in the Great Library again?
‘It looks… too similar. The crystals are basically identical to the Reading Key, and as the recipient device for the Great Library authorization, there should be more than one. This could very well be another Reading Key!
“However, there are four crystals here, all assembled together, and there’s also a golden main body, which differs from the single Reading Key I previously obtained. What could be the reason? Is the golden item itself a container for the Reading Keys? Or do these Reading Keys and the golden main body form a more advanced whole? Interesting differences…
“But regardless, I should obtain this thing as soon as possible. When it was discovered, it lacked extraordinary properties and was considered mundane. If this is truly a Reading Key and its mechanism matches the one I got from the Boneyard Society, then these… or this Reading Key, was likely used for a short period before being discovered. It was in a cooldown period and wasn’t immediately noticed.
“But it has lain in Faraluo’s treasury for over a hundred years. The cooldown period should have passed by now. Logically, it should have recovered to a usable state and regained its extraordinary properties. I wonder if the relevant personnel in Faraluo noticed it.’
Dorothy pondered this in her heart, after much contemplation, she decided to directly inquire to confirm the status of the item.
…
Another day quietly passed. After receiving Adelle’s proactive contact, Sander’s trusted subordinates, still the same black-clad individuals, came to the hotel where Adelle was staying early the next morning. Upon entering Adelle’s suite and seeing the archives neatly reorganized in the open boxes, some faces showed subtle complexity.
Looking at Adelle, who was still sitting on the sofa drinking early tea, the leader of the black-clad individuals walked up and asked.
“Miss… You contacted us saying you’ve finished reviewing these documents?” The black-clad individual’s leader asked with an uncertain tone, and Adelle silently picked up an archive from the top of the box in front of her and smiled.
“Yes, our luck seems to be good. We found something useful shortly after you left yesterday. It looks like we won’t need the full five days.”
Adelle put the archive back in its place and continued.
“Now, I want to see the actual artifact of a certain relic. Your superior mentioned giving me such authority, so please lead the way now.”
