From Secret Clan to the Divine Dynasty

Legends abound across the world about illustrious figures from ancient history, and to have such a personage truly appear before one's eyes was simply too astonishing!

In his mind, the many books he remembered all mentioned the Sapphire Library and its enigmatic curator.

Byrne took a deep breath, feeling a surge of excitement deep within, and it took him a long while to fully calm his emotions.

If not for the severity of their positions, he, who had spent a lifetime studying mysticism, would even have wanted to worship the elderly man in blue robes before him.

The curator looked at him as though he were an insignificant being, speaking very calmly, "Mithril, no, Byrne Fischer, give your life to me."

He continued quite naturally.

"I will never give you the Philosopher's Stone, but rest assured, I will offer a portion as compensation. The so-called promise to shelter the Fischer family for hundreds of years is definitely not a deception."

Byrne's face revealed a cold, mocking expression.

"What?"

The curator looked at him again, as if he couldn't understand why Byrne would scoff.

Byrne shook his head and continued, "I just think you are very hypocritical."

"Is it not deception if it's only half a lie? Sapphire Curator, you are unwilling to part with the Philosopher's Stone and yet you want my life. Where in the world is there such a good deal?"

The curator's expression remained very calm; he was not angry, nor did he display any rage.

He gazed at Byrne as if looking at an animal on guard.

That look made Byrne very uncomfortable. It didn't feel like disdain, but rather complete contempt, almost ignorable!

The curator spoke his thoughts indifferently.

"It is only right that the strong dominate the weak. The gap between you and me is immense, as wide as the filthy, decaying mud on the ground is from the noble rainbow. So, what I wish to do, why should I care about your thoughts? It's like the sun and moon rising and setting, never consulting the views of mortals."

"Assist me in advancing to the Apocalypse Upper Rank, and I will remember your name on the path to becoming a god, Byrne Fischer. Perhaps, this is your born purpose and mission."

Byrne was completely stunned, almost petrified by that insane arrogance.

The elderly man before him was entirely different.

He was unlike any Extraordinary powerful expert Byrne had encountered before; there was a distinct "non-human sense" about him.

It was absolute arrogance, not just "I am stronger and better than you," but "I am entitled to be the center of the world, while you are utterly meaningless, and it is your luck to serve as nourishment for me"...

Byrne suddenly realized that perhaps in the eyes of those Heavenly Enlightenment powerful experts, in the hearts of those so-called demi-gods, all mortals, lower-level Extraordinary Exponents, and even Extraordinary powerful experts of the Monarch Level, fundamentally, could not be compared with them, and were not even the same species!

After all, even Extraordinary powerful experts at the Monarch Level were constrained by lifespan, while those at the Heavenly Enlightenment Level possessed extraordinarily long lives, typically active in history for thousands of years. Thus, it was indeed likely that in the long course of history, their "humanity" would fade significantly, and their thinking would become increasingly non-human.

Byrne shook his head vehemently and said loudly, "No, being your stepping stone is certainly not my mission!"

"Are you trying to say that dedicating yourself to the Lord of the Lost is your mission?" asked the curator indifferently.

Suddenly confronted with that query, Byrne was shocked, stepping back half a step, staring at the person before him in astonishment.

The old man slowly approached, coming to Byrne's side.

"What? You thought I wouldn't know? I know who you are, and naturally, following the trail, I've learned many things. However, you needn't worry about that; I will never speak of it."

"Byrne Fischer, let me be blunt, using you will not cause me any guilt, and you have no other choice."

Byrne nodded lightly, pondered for a long time, and suddenly said, "You really don't need to feel guilty about anything because I never intended to dedicate myself from the start!"

The Sapphire Curator's expression did not change. He merely looked on, keenly aware that the Byrne Fischer before him possessed the genuine soul of Byrne Fischer and was not a body double or anything else...

Byrne Fischer's power was indeed much too weak compared to his own.

Even if he wanted to escape, there was no chance at all.

And just as the curator internally reaffirmed his judgment, the Byrne Fischer before him suddenly underwent a bizarre transformation!

He was no longer a flesh-and-blood human but had become a flowing black light entity with an unpredictable shape composed of dark shadows.

This shadowy life form was neither completely intangible nor solid material. It seemed capable of freely changing its shape according to will, stretching long like a whip, condensing into a sharp blade, and even merging into the surrounding shadows, moving silently and without a trace.

"Eh?"

Surprise and curiosity instantly flashed across the old man's face, even a budding desire to investigate arose within him.

"What is this?"

Even with his vast knowledge, perhaps the most in the Claud World, the curator had no idea what this was.

This was "Little Black," which Helen had encountered by chance in the Spirit Realm.

It could merge with Byrne's Body Double, masquerading as Byrne's soul, a nearly perfect deception. Even Heavenly Enlightenment powerful experts who could easily sense the fluctuations of a soul were completely unable to detect any difference.

Thus, from the beginning, Byrne's true self had not come here, but remotely controlled his Body Double to make the trade. However, the "Oath" he made through the Body Double, as determined by the laws of the gods, was still considered an oath established by him and not by "Little Black."

The next moment, Little Black suddenly swallowed the half-piece of the ruby-red Philosopher's Stone without a sound and disappeared on the spot, slipping into the Spirit Realm.

The Curator, seeing the half-piece of the supremely important Philosopher's Stone taken away, still did not show panic in his eyes, instead stepping forward. In the blink of an eye, he was already in the Spirit Realm.

He turned his head, looking toward the black life entity not far away.

"Come back here."

Little Black was also surprised, completely unable to understand how, after randomly appearing in the Spirit Realm, it could still be caught up with instantly by the other.

Without a word, the Curator stretched out his hand, the power contained within his palm was incredibly terrifying, aimed specifically at souls, and could even instantly destroy any Extraordinary Exponent who had not reached the Heavenly Enlightenment Level, wanting to eliminate it right there.

However, that power went straight through Little Black without causing any harm.

"Huh?"

The Curator frowned slightly, his extraordinary power having inexplicably failed, something exceedingly strange that he hadn't encountered in nearly a thousand years.

"What exactly are you? Do you really belong to the Claud World?"

It was at that moment that a voice came through.

"Little Black, Little Black, come back!"

Suddenly, Little Black heard Helen's call, and it immediately dove into the ground like diving into water, vanishing from the Spirit Realm in an instant.

The half-piece of the Philosopher's Stone was taken away.

"..."

Still, the Curator felt no surge of anger or irritation inside; he had encountered too many things over thousands of years, having been close to death over a dozen times. Even if that half-piece of the Philosopher's Stone was truly lost, it wouldn't drive the old man insane.

That black life entity.

What exactly was it?

The Curator gently shook his head, deeply intrigued internally, but he also knew he had to consider other matters first.

No matter what transpired, he could maintain his rationality.

"So it seems the one who has broken The Oath is you, Byrne Fischer. However, I've come to understand that you must have a way to evade punishment, right?"

After a long silence, the Curator still considered sending thousands of his soul incarnations to the East Coast of Cyart to directly destroy the Fischer family and reclaim the Philosopher's Stone.

However, among those thousands of soul incarnations, only about a dozen had Monarch Level strength. Even if he destroyed the Fischer family, it would likely lead to heavy casualties among them, affecting his next breakthrough.

Besides, by doing so, the Curator felt he might thoroughly offend... Him!

So, before deciding how to proceed, he decided to make a prophecy first.

"How can this be?"

The Curator's face drastically changed, revealing an extremely rare expression of shock, as if he had foreseen an immensely exaggerated, inconceivable future!

"Does such a future mean He is about to awaken?"

"Then I... must leave this world... I cannot return to the Claud World for a short time."

He stepped forward without hesitation, and in the next moment, he was already in a new world outside the Claud World.

——

In Nasir City, inside Fischer Manor.

In Helen's room.

Byrne and Helen were both anxiously waiting when suddenly, Little Black appeared before them.

Helen breathed a sigh of relief and rushed to embrace it!

She truly regarded Little Black as her best friend, her face instantly blooming with a warm and radiant smile like a flower bursting forth in spring, both tender and vibrant with life.

Byrne, on the other hand, took a deep breath subconsciously, staring at the bright red Philosopher's Stone!

"The ultimate alchemical tool has come into my possession just like that. I thought there would be many risks... but I still won the bet!"

But he quickly realized something.

In the end, he could only choose one!

The miracles the Philosopher's Stone could incite were limited!

Was it to restore his daughter Lilian's life or to help the Lord of the Lost awaken, without question, he could only choose one!

He took a deep breath, and gripping the Philosopher's Stone for a long while, after only a moment's contemplation, his voice was pained yet resolute.

"Use it to resurrect the great Lord of the Lost then, I'm sorry, my dearest daughter... Lilian, even though deep down I know it's the choice you would want, it's still too painful for me." Continue reading at empire