When he opened his eyes again, the threats and pleas that had once filled his mind had vanished, and the soft blue flame continued to burn steadily upon the dark wick ahead. He carefully examined the state of his spiritual form, confirming that all traces of disarray had disappeared and that his aura had grown pure, no longer fragmented. Finally, it was resolved.克莱恩 exhaled, set down the "Rod of the Sea God," and snapped his fingers—silently—causing the "Heart's Torment Candle" to go out instantly. He did not immediately return to the physical world. Instead, he sat quietly atop the gray mist, allowing the lingering negative emotions within him to settle and dissipate in the silent stillness. Now, having gone through this, Caine understood more deeply than ever that the path of the extraordinary was one constantly in opposition to madness and peril—any extraordinary being, with just a little misstep, could easily falter under internal pressures or external stimuli, teetering on the brink of mental collapse. Once symptoms emerged and were not addressed promptly, recovery would become exceedingly difficult. This time, both internal and external factors contributed to the emergence of a secondary personality... the root lay in my own status as a traveler across dimensions, yet one who also incorporated fragments of Caine Moretti’s memories and emotions, inherently predisposed to personality fragmentation. Moreover, recently, in pursuit of the Antigonus family’s notes and in order to convincingly embody D’Artagnan, I had been walking an ever-narrower path, akin to treading near the edge of the abyss—under immense pressure. The mental contamination and stimulation from the internal guardians, which had been gradually eroding my stability, finally triggered the crisis. Caine gently rubbed his temple with one hand and then vanished into the gray mist. Only just returned to his body, Kline suddenly felt a remarkable lightness and clarity in his mind, as though a dusty glass pane had been carefully wiped clean, and the additional doses of the "Faceless" magic potion had been fully absorbed and integrated. The emergence of the secondary personality indeed stemmed from the various psychological issues he had previously experienced. By using the "Heart-Phantom Candles" to resolve these concerns, he had effectively undergone a comprehensive and thorough psychological analysis. In the short term, there were no significant concerns in this regard, though he still needed to remain vigilant, pay close attention, and continuously engage in self-regulation. Kline stepped out of the bathroom and onto the balcony, gazing at the distant mountains and the nearby greenery, feeling in excellent spirits. He could clearly sense an enhancement in his self-awareness and sense of identity, with the occasional sense of detachment that had previously been common now noticeably diminishing. I never expected winning the battle against my secondary persona to come with such benefits… If the secondary persona were to regenerate, even stronger and more difficult to handle, I’d probably consider undergoing personality splits again, even killing off “myself” several more times. Kline shook his head, offering a self-deprecating chuckle. To be honest, for anyone else, merely this single personality split would have been quite dangerous and hard to resolve. Only because Kline knew exactly where the “heart-phantom candles” were located, understood how to obtain them, grasped the core issue, and had experience in handling such situations could he promptly eliminate the隐患, preventing the secondary persona from maturing. Otherwise, the best outcome would be like the situation of Bishop Utzlovsky at the outset—worse, the condition would gradually deteriorate and become irreversible. Moreover, I still have a backup “psychologist” ready. Kline smiled gently and walked slowly back to the room, settling into the armchair. He reflected once more on today's experience, extracting key points for future attention: "If a mid-tier pathway of the 'Unsleepers' loses control, it can directly pollute its target at the mental level through pulling them into dreams—this must be carefully monitored in the future..." Most pathway failures below the high-tier level are unable to achieve this. Instead, they typically transform into monsters and exert control or attack their targets via specific extraordinary abilities, making it difficult to transmit the mental contamination they themselves have sustained. Besides the mid-tier unruly ones on the "Sleepless" path, those on the "Audience" path should also be able to manage it... When encountering similar foes, if they don't act first to eliminate them, they genuinely don't know how to defend themselves at all. Moreover, although I've now understood the condition of the internal wardens and their relationship with the sealed core, new issues have arisen: if I wish to infiltrate under cover, how can I create the appearance of being eroded by the core—without being detected by it? Klein pondered carefully, but found himself completely at a loss. He finally stood up, walked to the desk, picked up a pen, and sketched a composite symbol of secrecy and observation on a blank sheet of paper. This was his invocation of "The Mirror" Arodos. Instantly, ripples of invisible water spread across the surface of the full-length mirror in the master bedroom, and silver glimmers emerged, forming runes: "Most Noble and Supreme Lord, your faithful, humble, and obedient servant Arodos stands ever ready to serve you." "My previous actions have caused certain damage to your current image. I am deeply humbled and remorseful. Will you accept my apology?" This time, he actually knew how to apologize... Clary exhaled, "Make sure not to make the same mistake again." "Understood!" New words burst forth on the surface of the full-length mirror, forming fresh content. "What can I do for you?" "There is," Clary said, after a moment's thought. "The internal wardens of the Night's Watch are being gradually eroded by the power of the sealed core behind Charnis' gate. Their condition differs from that of ordinary extraordinary beings. Is there any way to perfectly conceal this?" The silver-white words swayed and transformed, outlining a new message: "Great Master, there is only one solution—sacrifice your companion. Allow it to be eroded by the power of the sealed core, gradually altering its condition until it matches that of the internal wardens. Then, incorporate it into your body, and thus deceive the sealed core." "That's actually quite a thought... Still, a secret companion crafted entirely from a Sequence 5 'Soul of Wrath'—even with ample wealth, one might not be able to secure such a thing. To obtain the recipes and materials for high-sequence potions, one truly has to pay a heavy price. Kline mused, "Then, how can we make the secret companion endure the encroachment of the seal core?" Normally, a 'Soul of Wrath' companion would be detected by the sealing forces as soon as it approached the Charnel Gate or appeared in the Grand Chapel, and would be forcibly purified or dispelled! The surface of the mirror rippled once more, reflecting a figure. The figure wore a rather formal hat, stood tall, with chestnut-colored hair—none other than Queen Bernadette, the 'Mysterious Queen.' "Honorific Master, you must seek her assistance," Arordes hastily assembled the silver words to explain. Yet, she? Queen Bernadette is not from the 'Night' path—how could she possibly assist? Alternatively, does she possess a seal corresponding to the high-tier path of "Night," similar to the seal core behind the Charnis Gate? Indeed, the "Starborne Generals" require a drop of mythical creature's blood—besides fulfilling what will please Wil. Aonsedet, I'll also have to pay my "intermediary fee"... That's what the "intermediary fee" is! Kline nodded thoughtfully. "Very well, you may now return." "Yes, Most Exalted Lord, your devoted and humble servant, Arodus, awaits your next summons." As the silver-white words materialized, Arodes continued to sketch on the mirror's surface a hand constantly patting a handkerchief and gently swaying. Kline watched, his mouth twitching slightly, momentarily unsure of what reaction to make. ........ West District, the Odras family's villa. Emlyn White sat down casually on one of the armchairs in the living room, a smile faintly present on his lips. Opposite him, another baron of the bloodline, Rus Batthyány, held a wine glass filled with blood, his eyes slightly narrowed, openly conveying his disdain and hatred—Rus Batthyány had not only been wounded during the hunt of his first "Primal Moon" devotee, but had also seen his prize taken away by Emlin. Such a performance from you would only please me... Emlin smiled faintly, turned his head toward Casimir Odra, who had just entered, and waited for the baron to announce the results and bestow the prize. Casimir forced himself to ignore Emlin’s gaze, walked to the fireplace, and addressed all the bloodline members present: "Today, I have summoned you all because the hunting competition has now crowned its final victor." Who? The bloodline members glanced at one another, exchanging glances, speculating who had emerged triumphant. Their gaze was more focused on Rus Batthyány than on Emlyn White, and only Rus Batthyány faintly sensed something—her eyes filled with astonishment, fixed on that dreadful man. Casimir sighed softly, "Emlyn White has already eliminated three targets and has thus secured victory by himself." "What?" a younger vampire exclaimed, unable to believe it. The vampire race, in general, was far smaller in numbers than the human population, and in Bekland, only a portion of them remained—so they were all quite familiar with one another. Everyone knew well what kind of vampire Emlyn White was! PS: First publish, then revise.