Shard stood there, staring at the water's surface, while the beautiful human head had completely affixed itself to his back. Dripping with water, countless hands grabbed the Ring of Fate, halting its rotation, while rows of legs shackled his body.
It was gradually enveloping him, its mouth whispering into Shard's right ear:
"People call me 'Desire,' but you are actually..."
It leaned even closer to Shard, yearning to truly sprawl upon his back, intimately speaking into his ear.
However, by chance, as Shard's gaze fell on the pool along with that of the creature, he saw in its reflection—the silver-haired woman in the mirror appeared blurry to Shard, but the creature on his back, which claimed to be "Desire," saw the silver-haired woman in the mirror looking directly outward.
It couldn't make out the woman's face clearly, but those eyes...
Shard heard no sound, but it did. Those silver eyes peered beyond the mirror, beyond the water's surface, staring at the human head on Shard's back:
"Only I can speak from this position."
This ancient language signified the true passage of years. As if winds from a distant past had brushed into the present, crossing through several Eras with old grammar, the woman's head recalled a past that was very long ago, a past so eroded even to a Relic.
It was stunned.
Meanwhile, Shard suddenly furrowed his brow, turned his head back, and gazed closely into the eyes of the head:
"Wait, you called me a man, and said that I am from the Sixth Era?"
"What?"
In the eyes of the head, Shard saw a glimmer of wisdom that represented coherent thought.
"Of course, I'm a man, but the Old God told me that strictly speaking, it's not currently the Sixth Era. Wait a second, you don't even know this? Hah, I thought you were quite formidable, but as it turns out, I was utterly deceived by you."
As he spoke, the sight of those eyes snapped Shard fully awake, and he seriously told the head behind him:
"Also, don't, don't talk into my ear."
Only then did he realize that the monster had entwined itself around him. After a moment of panic and disgust, he immediately understood what he had to do.
Behind him, the silver-white light of "Gluttony" mingled nearly as one with the black iron hue of "Greed." The scalding Brass Ring spun with rapid velocity, steaming and compelling those hands to let go of the Ring of Fate. At the same time, Shard pointed his right index finger behind him:
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In the confined darkness of the chamber, an intense gleam of Holy Silver burst forth like the sun, and one by one, the legs that had clamped down on Shard's body began to release.
Splash~
Shard felt a lightness on his back, followed by the sound of something heavy hitting the water and the sensation of splashed droplets wetting his pants. But he did not look back at the pool; instead, he took a step forward, moving from one end of the pool directly to the door at the other end.
He wanted to rush through the already opened door, but the voice behind him stopped him. The head's voice was still sweet, but Shard inexplicably felt that its enthusiasm had waned. It still asked, almost as if humming a song:
"You've won, don't you want to know how to obtain that golden pearl?"
Shard didn't even move, a series of water droplets flew from behind him, forming a dense mass of ancient letters before his eyes.
During the "Sea Return" ceremony, that golden pearl would be buried in the heart of the gargantuan mermaid corpse that brought the tsunami. A terrible spell could separate the pearl from the merman's abdominal cavity, and now the spell was right before Shard's eyes.
"That golden pearl holds the power of a god, which is why I've been sealed up to this day. Those mermen even thought I was just a siren. But if you dare to touch that thing, the gaze of the deities will fall upon you, little thief..."
She paused deliberately, waiting several seconds before continuing:
"But if you can desecrate the Sea Return ceremony with a blasphemous method before you touch the pearl, the deities will not bother with you. After all, for the transcendent Great Ones, it would not be worth upsetting themselves over a petty thief."
Shard wanted to speak, but then he heard something flying out of the water and landing behind his feet.
Turning around, he saw it was a small piece of fresh flesh stained with red blood:
"What does this mean?"
"I said that as soon as you laid eyes on me, I would give you an answer and a gift. This is the gift."
In the pool, only the woman's head was visible above the water. Now that Shard knew what lay beneath the surface, he had no illusions about her body anymore.
"What is this?"
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The woman leaned on the edge of the pool and chuckled lightly, extending one of her arms to show Shard the bloody wound on it. The perfect skin and flesh were marred, but this only increased the charm of that pristine arm:
"Haven't you guessed already? This is my flesh, eat it and you will gain new strength.
Your enemies are mermen, but are you sure you can beat them in the water? You are only at the Second Ring, and I doubt you could overcome them even on land. My flesh will allow you to perfectly adapt to an aquatic environment, extend your life, and give you momentary immense strength. There may even be other permanent powers."
Rumors of immortality from eating mermaid flesh were something Shard had heard many times in this world. But since the mermaids themselves were not immortal, eating their flesh obviously couldn't grant any special powers.
The creature in the pool, claiming to be a Relic named "Desire," looked indeed like a mermaid... a very peculiar mermaid. Eating her flesh would be akin to consuming a part of the Relic itself.
The notion sounded utterly mad, yet Shard hesitated not.
Awakened from the true reflection of "Desire," though no manifest power was gained, the Outlander felt an unprecedented resolve. He truly understood himself, his heart, and this was more precious than any power.
The woman's light laughter echoed in his ear, and the woman in the pool laughed as well. The piece of flesh at his feet was rapidly blackening and reeking—it was all for Shard to decide.
Suppressing his disgust, he bent down and picked up the piece of fresh flesh. This sticky mass was probably even more repulsive than the worst thing he had ever eaten, which were those frog ingredients.
"How about it?"
He asked in his mind.
[A pure amalgam of essential elements and spirit, consuming it will certainly affect your mental state.]
"How does it affect?"
[I cannot give you an answer.]
"Also, just now in the pool, I saw..."
Only this thought carried a hint of shame.
[Outlander, I don't mind anything, including your doubts about me all along.]
"Your greed, what choice will it lead you to make? Or rather, will your courage allow you to attempt it?"
The head of [Desire] smiled at Shard from the edge of the pool. If normal girls were to lean over the edge of the pool, you would be able to see their smooth shoulders. But with this creature, you could only see the head:
"Do I need to swear to the Ancient God once again that there is no malice this time?"
Shard, weighing the piece of flesh, answered very seriously:
"No need for oaths, but can courage really be distinguished from recklessness? No, in my view, the difference between the two lies not in the circumstances on which the judgment is based, but in what the final outcome is."
His fingers lightly grazed it, and the silver light between them shaved off a thin slice of meat. His control wasn't bad; the slice was thin as a cicada's wing and completely transparent, allowing Shard to see the fine, hair-like muscle textures.
Carefully, he placed the thing into his mouth, and the foul taste immediately spread throughout his entire mouth. Shard didn't dare to chew and savor the taste but swallowed it directly into his stomach.
Abundant spirit spread to every corner of his body, that strange and powerful sensation was even more effective than the soup on the White Bone Pirate Ship.
"Can further judgments be made now?"
[There are no toxins, no curse. It can indeed provide you with the power of dark desire temporarily. But if you eat all the meat in your hand, even though you are currently in the Divine Afterglow State, for at least one month, all your desires will be amplified.]
The woman in the pool did not hurry Shard. He stood in place, considered for a moment, closed his eyes, and stuffed the entire piece of meat he was holding into his mouth.
"Ugh~"
After swallowing directly down his throat, a strong sense of vomiting made him tremble and fall to his knees. One hand supported the ground; the other covered his chest. This sense of vomiting was not only due to the bad taste but also because, once those pieces of flesh had been swallowed, as the spirit quickly accumulated in his body, it seemed like something was absorbed from the meat.
All his muscles tensed, veins bulged, and beneath the skin, it was as if tiny worms were squirming. Dark lines spread from the stomach, moving towards all parts of the body as if Shard was covered in black rune shackles.
Beyond the physical abnormalities, Shard felt as if the world was spinning, as though he had stepped into a bottomless dark abyss, falling while various abnormal and terrifying, yet addictive visions unfolded before him.
His brain could no longer perceive the real world, the endless void and the mad craving urging him to obtain the things he desired.
However, the benefits of consuming this lump of flesh also manifested. The Ring of Fate, which had just been retrieved by Shard, automatically appeared behind him. Only accompanied by the enrichment of black iron spiritual light, there were no new spirit runes emerging.
[Gluttony] and [Greed] seemed subtly to converge at this moment. The dual-colored spiritual lights of both were not intense but carried an ancient and profound feeling.
As Shard continued to dry heave, supporting himself off the ground, her voice appeared in his ear, the murmuring sound still carrying a laugh:
[In the pool of desire, you have glimpsed me. Do not be afraid of the dark desires; sin is also a part of you. The flesh of desire you devour is the strength you have yet to discover.]
[The Relic of Desire has given you new power.]
The black light spread to the entire Ring of Fate, and the strange luster kept the woman in the pool smiling, her eyes slightly narrowed:
"Karmic Sin..."
[Outlander, you have gained the Arcane Technique: Great Sin Chain. Forge chains with your desire, and imprison enemies with desires.]
The black light on the surface of the Ring of Fate eventually turned into black flames rising fiercely upon the Ring as the Brass Ring spun, transferring from the Ring to Shard's body. The black patterns on his skin began to merge with the flames, and with a clinking sound, physical black chains materialized in Shard's hands.
The Arcane Technique, "Great Sin Chain," had a strange name and was not an Arcane Technique corresponding to a single Spirit Rune; the new technique was associated with both the "Gluttony" and "Greed" Spirit Runes.
You should know that even Professor Garcia's Maze Lock: Barren Wilderness only corresponded to three Spirit Runes.
Although the name of the Arcane Technique was somewhat intimidating, it had no attack power. Its effect was quite simple: the black chain, seemingly capable of absorbing light, was non-aggressive, but could be used to bind enemies. And the stronger the enemy's desire, the stronger Shard's desire, the more powerful the chain's sealant power would be.
It not only bound and restricted mobility; this chain could even lock down a Circle Sorcerer's supernatural powers. Although it couldn't directly enhance Shard's combat abilities, it was still a very useful Arcane Technique.
As the Arcane Technique took shape, Shard's consciousness also recovered; however, the fear and sense of void from tumbling into the abyss of darkness lingered for a long time before truly disappearing.
After a while, Shard realized he was gasping for air, supporting himself on the ground.
The spirit within had indeed increased; in his current state, combined with the Witch's Golden Ring, he was almost capable of incompletely using the Maze Lock "Little Match Girl" once. However, this power, not belonging to him, was quickly fading; he could not afford to waste time.
He lowered his gaze to his arms again, where the strange black patterns had now vanished, and his stomach felt as if it was empty. He shaken the black chain in his hand, the weird metal making the user of the Arcane Technique somewhat uncomfortable.
The black metal was cold, not emitting any glimmer as if it could absorb light. Though it appeared to be a chain, each link was an ancient rune. All the rune designs were different, yet translated into Draleon's common language, they had only two meanings:
Gluttony, Greed.
More information about the Arcane Technique "she" whispered in his ear: the length of the chain could be extended as needed, and Shard could also manipulate the movement of the chain, but it had to be within his line of sight.
"It seems like such a high-level Arcane Technique, yet it has no aggression."
He took some time to stand up again and then sensed something was odd about his body.
"Hm? Why does it feel... like this body has become stronger?"
His physique had already been greatly enhanced to the Second Ring due to Divinity, far surpassing Circle Sorcerers of the same level, and now there was a feeling of a sudden increase in physical quality.
And it wasn't just a strengthening of physical quality; it was probably an illusion, but Shard felt that even his skin had improved quite a bit.
The original inhabitant of the body was a vagabond, and a few months was not enough to reverse the years of wandering that had damaged his skin. But now, although his skin was not as exaggeratedly good as the woman's in the pool, it was definitely not in its previous state anymore.