Chapter 75: Is it the lam Genie that’s drifting, or can I no longer lift the blade?
Chapter 75: Is it the lam Genie that's drifting, or can I no longer lift the blade?
In the Hall of Stars.
Hastur sits at the highest seat, a star cradled in his palm, silently observing the clearly delighted lam Genie.
The lam Genie manifests two golden arms and legs, with long legs resting on the table and slender arms laid flat, gently swaying his body.
A wishing lamp, now behaving like a person drunk on their own success.
After watching for a while, Hastur feels that the lam Genie resembles the Medici of the early years, embodying a willful and unruly child.
Compared to the unruly lam Genie, the Mother Tree of Desire is much more composed, perhaps its roots deep in the earth give it an unmatched stability.
Even losing this bet doesn't seem to bother it.
The lam Genie speaks in a light tone, "Is the Temperance card ready? It's my spoils of war."
"I've had my followers place it at the Port of Belenus; you can fetch it yourself."
"Are you trying to lure me into a trap?"
"That's up to you."
"We must change the method of transaction; I don't trust you."
The Mother Tree of Desire remains silent, letting the lam Genie decide, having witnessed the lam Genie's methods and knowing its true nature.
This time, it was a joint action by the three churches that disrupted its divine descent ceremony. This was no coincidence; it must have been the lam Genie who leaked the information to the triune church.
Using them to win the bet while avoiding being targeted itself.
The idea itself is not bad, but even after suffering a major loss from the lord of the mysterious, the lam Genie's wisdom has not improved much.
Knowing the lam Genie as it does, if the lam Genie still had such great power, it would have personally gone to disrupt the divine descent ceremony and mockingly jeer from behind the initial barrier.
But the lam Genie did not show up directly, which proves its current state is not good.
Bernadette also did not go, which suggests two possibilities: first, Bernadette is not its true follower, and second, the lam Genie is not confident it could protect Bernadette during the divine descent ceremony.
Either possibility confirms the lam Genie's current situation is not optimistic.
A Temperance card, just to test the lam Genie's reality, this trade is very worthwhile.
"I can have my followers conduct the ceremony and chant your exalted name; you just need to open the gates of your divine kingdom to easily retrieve the Temperance card."
"…"
Faced with another test from the Mother Tree of Desire , the lam Genie looks somewhat unnatural, coldly laughing on the surface, "My divine kingdom does not wish to receive anything tainted with your consciousness."
The lam Genie then turns its gaze to Hastur, chuckling, "This Temperance card, I originally planned to give to you, do you dare to accept it?"
Hastur, who was enjoying the show, is momentarily stunned by the lam Genie's words, but he reacts just as quickly, "I am merely a witness; a mere Temperance card is not enough to please me."
The lam Genie laughs, "Then consider it a small gift for your followers."
Damn it! The cunning old lam Genie is waiting for me! From the start of its gamble with the Mother Tree of Desire , it had planned to divert disaster eastward, preventing me from sitting on the sidelines.
It's clearly trying to test my reality! Just like the trap the Mother Tree of Desire set for the lam Genie, any action I take in the real world will reveal some of my reality.
Unless I admit that I cannot intervene in the real world and that I have no divine followers or believers.
But then, my deterrence would be severely lacking, and I could no longer stand tall against the Mother Tree of Desire and the lam Genie.
According to the prestige and posture I've shown, I should smile and easily accept this gift, while also making the lam Genie's calculations come to naught.
That would fit my narrative.
But obviously, that's difficult, as my real situation is even worse than the lam Genie's.
After all, the lam Genie has Bernadette by its side, while I have no high-ranking powerhouses.
The Mother Tree of Desire also casts a glance, increasing Hastur's pressure.
Hastur's thoughts race, and he speaks with a smile, "I wouldn't mind notifying the Seven Churches to play the role of the fisherman behind the scenes."
"I don't mind."
The lam Genie taps its fingers on the table and smiles again, "Consider it a little compensation for them disrupting the divine descent ceremony at my behest."
The Mother Tree of Desire remains silent, and now it's its turn to sit on the sidelines.
At their level, few beings pose a threat to them.
But it cannot fully see through this Hall of Stars, which is a terrifying thing.
The unknown brings fear, and more unknowns bring greater fear.
In revealing the true face of the Star Sovereign, its stance aligns with the lam Genie's.
"Testing often comes at a price," Hastur says meaningfully, glancing at the lam Genie.
"This is just a gift; you can choose not to accept it," the lam Genie appears fearless.
In this situation, no matter which course of action I choose, it's inappropriate.
The most suitable action is to flip the table. Flip the table? Play the barbarian?
Hastur's eyes brighten; such an Outer God as the lam Genie could surely accelerate my barbarian role-playing, right? Tsk tsk, is it the lam Genie that's drifting, or can I no longer lift the blade? Hastur glances at the lam Genie again, and the lam Genie trembles inexplicably, as if something bad is about to happen.
"This is the Hall of Stars; why can't you find your place?"
A murmur, and two chains of order fly out. The lam Genie tries to dodge, but the power of the stars suppresses it, pinning the lam Genie to its seat, unable to move, only to be pierced by the chains and then hung beneath the towering hall.
The lam Genie wants to curse out loud but finds it cannot speak; clearly, a new rule prohibiting it from speaking has been added here.
It tries to influence the rules of the Hall of Stars but fails; the rules here belong only to the stars, not within its domain.
It cannot only not modify the rules of the Hall of Stars but is also constrained by them!
For one who claims to hold rules and order, this is undoubtedly a humiliation and a significant threat.
It thinks of the relationship between the Fallen Mother goddess and the Mother Tree of Desire ; they share the same authority, but the Fallen Mother goddess is the pillar, encompassing broader and greater authority.
Simply put, the Fallen Mother goddess is the superior to the Mother Tree of Desire .
Now, my relationship with this Star Sovereign is similar to that between the Fallen Mother goddess and the Mother Tree of Desire .
I am the inferior, and the other is the superior.
If it wishes, it could completely devour me, and the price would be just a bit more madness.
Thinking back to my performance upon arriving at the Hall of Stars tonight, it's clear that winning against the Mother Tree of Desire made me a bit too arrogant, hence my audacity.
I somewhat regret my earlier audacity.
The other clearly gave me a way out, but I insisted on kicking it away…
The Mother Tree of Desire merely glances at the lam Genie and does not plead on its behalf.
It also feels that tonight's lam Genie is too presumptuous and unaware of its limits.
This is someone else's territory; they are just an avatar here.
A rank 8 daring to show its claws to a being at the pinnacle of Outer Gods is indeed unruly.
When it first arrived and chose to act, didn't the lam Genie laugh at it?
Now, it's just a turn of the wheel.
"Put away your little schemes; this place doesn't lack for an Outer God like you."
As Hastur speaks, the dome of stars twinkles, each star shining its own light.
Instantly, the starlight is brilliant, making the entire Hall of Stars even more sacred and extraordinary.
The usually composed Mother Tree of Desire is also moved, falling into contemplation.
Each star in the sky represents an Outer God, and there are only eleven seats here.
Apart from this Star Sovereign, there are only ten seats left.
Although it's still unclear what these eleven seats represent, they must have extraordinary significance.
Every Outer God that can come here is certainly better than those who cannot reach this place.
This may be a stroke of luck or a twist of fate.
Only the recognized and powerful Outer Gods have the chance to sit at the table.
The power of the stars…
The being that holds the destiny of the stars?
In this universe, does there really exist a being that controls the fate of the stars? A sense of fear inexplicably rises in the Mother Tree of Desire 's heart.
The lam Genie is also shaken by this scene; it has always speculated, but even upon witnessing it, it remains profoundly moved.
In the entire universe, many Outer Gods are like stars, yet here there are eleven seats, able to overlook their fates.
What kind of transcendence is this?
The more it contemplates, the more terrifying it finds this Hall of Stars.
Hastur, sitting at the highest seat and barely holding on, sees the Mother Tree of Desire and the lam Genie both fall silent, their attitudes much more proper than before, and he relaxes a lot.
He had originally thought that if he failed, he would immediately expel the lam Genie and the Mother Tree of Desire from the Hall of Stars, then tightly close the Hall of Stars, not allowing them to enter again.
After all, without an Outer God meeting, he can still hold the Hall of Stars and gain great power.
"Tolerance and forgiveness, only
"Tolerance and forgiveness, only once."
Hastur's tone is calm yet authoritative as the chains of order withdraw from the lam Genie, allowing it to sit back down.
(End of Chapter)
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