151: Chapter 152 Arrangement

Chapter 151: Arrangement

Inside the Collection Room, under the orange lamplight, Locke sat at the desk, his brow furrowing slightly.

As he took out the manuscript paper, he couldn't help but hold his breath and focus.

In less than a minute, he finished reading the contents of the Goddess of the Night's manuscript and silently digested the information within.

It could only be said that it was truly a manuscript written by a supreme figure like the Goddess of the Night; despite being only a few sentences, the information it contained brought him no small shock.

"So the Goddess of the Night is actually a fellow countryman?" Locke couldn't help but mutter to himself.

The parchment was not large, about the size of a palm, but it was densely covered in Chinese characters—Chinese, not English—which was what led him to that association.

The handwriting was elegant, the strokes were powerful, and the color was a pale red.

He didn't know what it had been written with, but even after a long Time, the color of the script didn't seem to have faded at all.

The entire manuscript was presented to Locke in the form of a diary.

"September 1st. Feeling inspired, I record these notes.

After experiencing the baptism of long ages, I have finally discovered that it... that guy was lying.

In the advancement of Extraordinary pathways, absorbing Extraordinary Factors and performing Sequence promotion rituals are not the main points; the key is to overcome.

The ritual is the door, and overcoming flaws is the key.

As long as one can overcome the flaws of their current Sequence stage, they can easily advance to the next Sequence.

I think I have found the path to becoming a god!

Phew, but I can't get excited before achieving godhood. That guy has been guarding against me. Fortunately, I shielded it in advance this Time, otherwise, it might have moved against me.

If any latecomer sees this manuscript of mine, remember, remember not to leak the secrets within, otherwise—"

Locke's eyes scanned the manuscript, his heart unable to settle for a long Time. He felt as if a low, cold voice was reciting these sentences in his ear; he wasn't just reading, he was listening.

He seemed to feel the Goddess's fluctuating emotions from these words, from excitement to wariness.

This caused him to mutter to himself as well; there was no helping it, the information revealed in this manuscript was simply too massive.

"The Goddess is actually Chinese? Is that why she only gave me a single glance during the previous ritual? With just one look, she saw that I'm a transmigrator—"

It was very likely.

However, Locke felt that Teacher Time probably hadn't noticed, otherwise he wouldn't be so calm.

"But it looks like she probably has no ill will toward me. Since the Goddess and I are from the same place, I wonder if there's a chance to cling to her greatness or something."

Meeting an old acquaintance in a foreign land, especially in a world like American Horror where danger is everywhere, he naturally couldn't help but have such thoughts.

But he quickly suppressed these somewhat unrealistic notions.

A god probably wouldn't have much human emotion. Regardless, in the end, one still had to rely on oneself.

Only the stronger his own power, the more secure he would be.

After moving past this matter, Locke began to ponder again, his fingers lightly tapping on the table with a rhythmic 'da-da-da' sound.

"Then 'it'... who is it? Why was even She guarding against it before becoming a god?"

"Is it a person, an object, or something else entirely?"

"Why did the Goddess demand secrecy? Could it be that once this secret is revealed, I'll be targeted by something?!"

Since it was a warning from a major figure like the Goddess, Locke naturally wouldn't choose to ignore it, deciding to keep this secret buried deep in his heart.

At least until he had enough power to establish himself in this world, he wouldn't reveal it to anyone.

After all, even the Goddess had been pried upon by some inexplicable things before she achieved godhood.

He was currently just a small Sequence 9, having only just taken the first step on the path to godhood; he had to be cautious.

Taking a deep breath, he calmed his emotions and then told himself: "It seems that for any future missions, I must be even more cautious. I must think thrice before acting. Without a ninety-nine percent certainty, I absolutely won't act lightly."

Burying the secrets regarding the Goddess hidden in the manuscript, he began to think about the most useful information conveyed.

Sequence promotion is about overcoming, not absorbing!

The ritual is just a door, and overcoming is the most critical key!

"Overcoming flaws—"

"Then what flaws do I need to overcome?"

"What is my flaw? Is it mental strength? Or some other learning I haven't noticed?"

Although the passage was not long, the information within was very critical.

Especially for Locke.

After all, what he lacked most for growth right now wasn't the various materials needed for rituals, but how to grow to the point where he could perform the ritual.

With the system panel's missions that could refresh at any Time, he really didn't worry about those things.

And according to the Goddess's words, once he overcame the flaws of his current Sequence, the ritual would very likely not fail.

"So to progress rapidly on the Extraordinary pathway, what needs to be done is not preparing rituals or digesting Extraordinary Factors, but overcoming the inherent flaws one carries."

Locke could understand this concept of flaws.

For example, Vampires; their innate flaws are bloodlust and fear of sunlight.

When Serena absorbed Alexander's blood, she was able to overcome the damage from sunlight and appear openly under the sun.

Thus, she went from being a half-step Extraordinary Creature Ghoul to becoming a true Sequence 9 Vampire in a very short Time.

"Vampires fear sunlight, Werewolves easily lose their sanity after transforming—then what exactly is the flaw of my Sequence 9 Night Demon?"

Locke's own subjective feeling was that Sequence 9 Night Demon was very versatile; whether in speed, agility, or strength, it was not inferior to Vampires or Werewolves.

He knew that as long as he found the flaw of the Night Demon today, he would be only one step away from breaking through to Sequence 8.

Thinking of this, he immediately closed his eyes and frantically recalled the several battles he had experienced since transforming into a Night Demon.

The first was facing Kraven with zero pressure; the second was facing Marcus, where although he was almost knocked down by a mental attack, it was also without pressure. Only the third Time, facing the full-strength Werewolves and Jason, did he encounter significant pressure.

And that Time, it was during the day.

Locke's brain spun frantically, thinking about where his own flaw lay.

"Night Demon?"

"Daytime... Night... Night... Night Enhancement!"

"I think... I understand."

When he figured it all out, he immediately clenched his fists and stood up from the stool in great excitement.

"It must be this, it must be exactly this."

Although the Night Demon wasn't weak in any aspect, it could only display its true, full-powered form under the illumination of moonlight in the dark of night.

Then this flaw regarding Time... wasn't that the point he needed to overcome now?

"So what I need to achieve is being able to use the Night Enhancement skill bonus during the day as well, right?"

3

Locke raised his hand to put away the manuscript, his eyes becoming bright and spirited.

Since he had identified the key flaw he needed to overcome, it meant he had found the path to break through to Sequence 8. Next, he just needed to find a way to solve this flaw.

He wouldn't be like Marcus, who lived for hundreds of years but never grasped the essential point, remaining stuck before the barrier of Sequence 9 and wasting hundreds of years of precious Time, only managing to barely touch the grace of Sequence 8 through sacrificing to an evil god.

"What exactly should I do?"

Locke closed his eyes and thought with all his might. Just then, he had a sudden flash of inspiration, remembering the rewards he had earned from completing missions that he hadn't spent yet, which might help him overcome his current flaw: "How could I almost forget this!"

Following that thought, he summoned the system panel and stared intently at the skill point that had changed from zero to one.

"Please don't let me down!"

Locke took a deep breath, then steeled his resolve and muttered in his heart: "Night Enhancement... upgrade!"

As his thought fell, the skill point that had just become one instantly returned to zero. Following that, the Night Enhancement skill entry began to emit a burst of brilliant white light, like fire meeting hot oil, undergoing a violent reaction.

After about a few seconds, or perhaps just an instant, the Night Enhancement skill disappeared directly, replaced by Sun and Moon Shine Together.

[Sun and Moon Shine Together: Through your arduous cultivation, you have gradually overcome the issue of Time. Whether it is night or day, you can strengthen yourself by absorbing moonlight and sunlight.]

When he saw this skill appear, Locke immediately breathed a sigh of relief.

"It seems I was right."

At the same Time, Locke clearly heard the sound of a shackle breaking from within his own body.

He felt that the barrier restricting his upward advancement had vanished.

"Next, I just need to obtain the ritual for breaking through to Sequence 8, and I can start working on the promotion."

Clenching his fist, Locke felt a surge of joy; the most difficult step restricting his sequence advancement had been solved.

And because of this information from the Goddess of the Night, he had also found the path for his future progress.

Isn't it just overcoming flaws? With the system, Locke firmly believed that as long as he persistently completed missions, he would one day stand at a higher position.

Of course, before that, he had to take his revenge first.

"Jason... and the Death Walkers, right? Just you wait. Don't let me find any trace of you."

Locke was never a magnanimous person. Back when he played RPG games, if he was bullied by a boss, once he could defeat that boss, he would find every way to kill it countless Times to vent his hatred.

Thinking of this, Locke immediately left the Collection Room and went to the conference room, quickly summoning Emilia.

Seeing him sitting at the head of the table, his temperament somewhat different from before, Emilia couldn't help but swallow her saliva.

"How is it that after not seeing him for less than a day, Master's aura seems to have improved again?"

Locke tapped the table. "Emilia, come here. Come before me."

"Master, do you have some business with me?" Emilia hurriedly moved her steps to stand before Locke.

Locke was expressionless, but his eyes were very deep: "I need you to send Vampires to investigate something, something very important to me."

"What is it?" Emilia's expression immediately became serious upon hearing this.

"It is to help me check if there was any intervention from certain supernatural forces in my parents' deaths. At the same Time, have all Vampires look out for an organization called the Death Walkers."

When mentioning the Death Walkers, Locke paused, his eyes uncontrollably filled with cold killing intent.

This killing intent almost made the entire conference room freeze, and the aura that subsequently radiated invisibly from him immediately made Emilia, who was half-kneeling before him, feel a chill, causing her to tremble uncontrollably.

"Mas—Master, do you have a grudge against the Death Walkers?"

"A massive grudge!" Locke returned to calmness once more, saying coldly: "It's a relationship where either they die, or I do."

"Yes, I will certainly have the Vampires above put all their effort into searching for information on this organization." Emilia immediately knelt on one knee and lowered her head to state her position.

As a Star Slave, Locke's business was her business. If Locke told her to go east, she would never go west. Even during mating, if Locke told her to rise and stop, she would never descend.

Locke nodded. Thinking of those people's silent and mysterious methods, he cautioned again: "Don't make it too high-profile. It must be done secretly. These two matters must be investigated very, very carefully."

"The strength of those guys is extremely unfathomable. Once our people encounter them, I'm afraid there will be only one path: death."

"Does it need to be so cautious? Could it be that they are all Transcendents as powerful as you, Master?" Emilia asked, suppressing her somewhat trembling voice.

"I don't know how strong they are."

Locke shook his head expressionlessly, then lowered his eyelids to meet Emilia's gaze, saying at an extremely slow pace: "But they will definitely not be weaker than the current me, and it's not impossible that they are even much stronger than me."

Although his tone was flat, it made Emilia, kneeling on the ground, feel a great sense of dread.

After all, in her eyes now, Locke was the most powerful.

And the figures they were about to investigate might actually be even more powerful than Locke, which couldn't help but make her worry: "Then... Master, is it necessary for us to investigate them now? I'm a bit worried."

Of course, she wasn't worried about herself, but about Locke.

"You don't need to be urgent; just investigate slowly. If you find any clues, do not act rashly. Just give the information to me, and I will make all the decisions thereafter."

Locke didn't expect the Vampires to deal with these guys of unfathomable strength.

If this group of Vampires under him could help him find a bit of information, that would already be considered worthy of their status.

"Yes, Emilia understands."

Emilia cupped her fists and then wanted to stand up and withdraw to arrange the work.

However, just as she moved, she was pressed down by Locke's hand.

"Master, do you have other matters to instruct me on?" Emilia didn't think much of it, instead looking up to ask.

"I am about to depart for New York. Before I go, let me take you to smoke a cigar one more Time."

After Locke finished speaking, he leaned back against the chair, lit a cigar for himself, then slowly closed his eyes and began to puff out clouds of smoke.

Emilia's face showed joy, her gaze uncontrollably beginning to soften, and then she slowly moved toward him, taking that cigar from him and beginning to puff in and out.

"Phew—"

Under the smoke, Locke's expression gradually became relaxed, and those matters weighed down on his heart were gradually pushed to the back of his mind.

"Indeed, only at this Time can I be most relaxed. This is my anchor for maintaining humanity."