He rushed into the house, closed the door, and only then realized that the curtain behind the windows had remained tightly drawn all along, allowing only a faint glow of crimson moonlight to seep through. Without pausing to make further observations, he found a wooden chair and sat down, attempting to enter meditation to calm the bodily disturbances that had been pressing upon him. Having witnessed the incomplete mythic forms of saints—beings of extraordinary stature—how could he have simply endured them so easily? This wasn't a mysterious realm above the gray mist, endowed with inherent healing properties! While克莱恩 possessed a relatively high level of mental resilience in this regard, enabling him to regain composure and manage the disarray in his thoughts, thus successfully completing his escape, that did not mean the issue had been fully resolved. He sat there, relying on meditation and his own mastery over emotions, countering wave after wave of frantic thoughts. During this time, he heard the creaking of his facial bones and watched his black hair grow uncontrollably thicker and longer, pushing against his clothing and forming grain-like bumps on his skin. After nearly thirty seconds, Caine finally exhaled, relaxing slightly. He had fully escaped the influence of Panatia's incomplete mythic being form and even gained a new insight: the entity operated at a level centered on "despair," excelling at generating and spreading epidemics. Due to the escalating madness and physical transformations caused by mythical beings, not only does one exhibit signs of disruption in their own path, but they also begin to display characteristics of the other's sequence... Initially, I was nearly roasted to a crisp by "Eternal Scorching Sun," and this time, I was on the brink of becoming a "Witch." Klein carefully examined his current state, restoring his skin, chest, and hair to their original condition. If he weren't the "Faceless One," apart from the growths gradually retracting inward, everything else would require external intervention. With no time to reflect, sigh, or analyze, Klein slowly rose and directed his gaze toward the closed, deep-colored curtains, attempting to grasp his current situation. His expression suddenly shifted, as he heard a bustling murmur coming from outside the street! At that moment, he felt as though the quiet town—once empty save for himself and the "Lady of Despair," Panatia—had suddenly come alive with a crowd of residents walking through the streets, greeting one another and discussing whether to buy just bread today, or treat themselves with a pound of beef. The misty town had suddenly gained vitality! Yet, the faint, shifting figures seemed to avoid entering the houses on either side, merely pacing back and forth along the streets. Their voices, though, were hard to believe were human—they sounded more like low, animal-like growls. Kren could not imagine what was happening outside, only that this was a danger so profound that even a half-divine sorceress would have to shy away from it. He drew his gaze back, pondered for several seconds, and murmured silently: "I can't go out... yet I can't stay here either. Who knows when the red moon high above will once again be veiled by mist, restoring Pannatia's freedom of movement? Should that happen, with such close proximity, I'd have no chance of escape! Yet, if I don't leave, how can I shift the situation?" In silence, Caine slowly turned his body toward the dark, ancient spire church. According to Pannatia, the "Lady of Despair," this church was the only area she had neither explored nor dared to venture into—seemingly, only by entering it could he escape her "hunting." Of course, Pannatia's magic might not be telling the truth, but Caine believed she wouldn't deceive him on this matter, for, in her eyes, she herself was the prey, the feast. Moreover, Panatia had already been gradually guiding the conversation with her rhetoric and personal charm, setting traps and preparing to hunt. For a half-god of such confident stature, it would be unlikely that she could be deceived by the information she revealed. At this moment, telling the truth was the most straightforward and safest choice—there was no need to worry that the prey would sense the lies and flee prematurely. Unless her half-mad state caused her to habitually lie, everything should be fine… With no other options, Caine swiftly made up his mind. He immediately lowered his left hand, making the "craving hunger" transparent. ——Although he knew the "journey" wouldn't work, he still held out a slim hope, since this was the clearest phase of the Red Moon, completely unobstructed, appearing like a silver plate. At such times, the "Gate" gentleman could always transmit the cries of those in distress from his point of confusion directly into the ears of his descendants through their bloodline. It was not impossible that the "journey" would be strengthened and undergo a transformation. Klein's figure rapidly faded and vanished, only to reappear a few seconds later at his original location. "Unable to enter the Spirit Realm, nor even sensing its presence at all… The extraordinary ability of 'travel' now only functions effectively in the first third of its range—barely sufficient to serve as 'invisibility'." Klein murmured quietly, summarizing his recent experiences and insights, and then paused, forming a question in his mind. "Yet, why does the body's fading and transparency—originally effective in the Spirit Realm—still work here?" He pondered for a dozen seconds, gaining a vague sense of understanding: "Everyone inherently maintains a connection with the Spirit Realm, since the Stellar Spirit Body remains within it, receiving various abstract insights—this is precisely the principle behind divination. Therefore, when we are transformed into a 'secret' or 'hidden' state, does this connection with the Spirit Realm also become part of that transformation?" "This explains why we can still draw upon the special qualities of the spirit realm yet fail to enter it—the former has already become part of the 'hidden' itself! Indeed, when I previously tried the 'Flame Leap' without fully considering it, I succeeded, and that too requires drawing upon the spirit realm's special qualities." Once this point was confirmed, Caine raised his right hand and snapped his fingers, attempting to reignite the half-burnt candle inside the adjacent house. He intended to move from house to house using the 'Flame Leap,' gradually approaching the spire church, and only once the red moon was obscured by mist would he decide whether to risk entering it! Suddenly, the wick of the candle in the neighboring house flared up with a bright crimson flame, slowly expanding and casting light around. At that very moment, the streets outside grew unusually quiet—the low growls of the beasts vanished entirely! The figures moving back and forth, murmuring to one another, seemed to have all turned this way, their gaze fixed entirely on the window through which the candlelight spilled! Cain's brow suddenly beaded with cold sweat; he didn't dare "jump" over, instinctively tapping his finger once and extinguishing the candle flame. After a brief silence, the murmurs resumed, and the figures continued to walk in and out. Only then did Cain breathe easier, raising his right hand to wipe the cold sweat from his forehead. He realized, as he had entered this misty town, he had made several mistakes unconsciously—so perilous and eerie the situation had been, yet he hadn't consulted his divination to decide whether to light the candle in the neighboring room just now! My spiritual intuition had originally been signaling me, yet nothing materialized... It seems that once the gray mist was shielded, neither my spiritual intuition nor my sense of impending danger received any meaningful enhancement. Currently, I'm only slightly stronger than peers at the same level—far from reaching a truly exceptional state. Precisely because of this, when Pannatia used her "influencer" ability to gradually guide my attention toward her wound, I didn't feel any sense of danger; instead, I instinctively perceived a layer of "mystery" between us, as though the situation were manageable. For now, Caine hasn't had the time to reflect on the previous battle and has instead refocused on figuring out how to remain indoors while gradually approaching the spire church. He systematically examined his own extraordinary abilities and those of the magical artifacts, and then suddenly, his eyes lit up—he found the solution. The key lay in what he once considered the most useless ability of the "Traveler"—the "door-opening" power. This extraordinary ability is typically completely overshadowed by the "teleportation" function—yet within this mysterious and enigmatic misty town, it proves surprisingly useful thanks to the unique properties of the spirit realm! Klein didn't rush to act. He took the gold coin originally used by Senyor, the spirit of the deceased, and used divination to inquire about his own spiritual nature, receiving the answer that he should "pass through walls." When he couldn't directly receive symbolic revelations from the spirit realm, he had to rely on his own intuition and immediately walked up to the shared wall with the adjacent house, placing his hands upon it. Silently and without a sound, Klein passed through the stone wall and entered the neighboring house. He continued along this row of houses until he reached the last one. Based on his initial impression of the town, this building was already close to the spire church—only a couple of "flame leaps" away. The faint crimson moonlight filtering through the dark curtains had not yet dimmed, and the figures outside still moved about as if going about their ordinary lives. Klein couldn't move anymore, so he sat down in the wooden chair farther from the window, where it was nearly pitch black and deeply shaded. Only now did he have a moment of quiet to recall the various details of his encounters with the sorceress Panatia. "She was the very one who had caused the great smog that engulfed Beckland—thousands had died because of her, and countless others had suffered the pain of losing loved ones. 'Old Kole, struggling to survive, and Liv's wife, who had devoted herself tirelessly to raising her two daughters...'—Klein closed his eyes, tilted his head back, and took a deep breath. He forced himself to break free from the sudden surge of anger and hatred, calmly reviewing what had happened before: "Unfortunately, I didn't have Senior bring the 'Blood' ring along. Otherwise, he should have been able to put up a bit more resistance. But that's simply unavoidable—under these circumstances, wearing the ring corresponding to the 'Rose Bishop' through the gates of Charnis would amount to self-sacrifice. The only magical items I still have at my disposal are 'The Thirsting Hunger,' which contains the 'Living Dead,' the 'Decayed Baron,' the 'Apostle of Desire,' and the 'Traveler.' Ah, and let's try to reach out to the Gray Mist under clear red moon conditions, using a prayer-based method. No luck. It's confirmed—despite the presence of the secret figure, I remain susceptible to the enchantments and manipulations of the sorceress. If Panatia can spread a widespread plague, why doesn't she launch a sustained, covert assault, waiting until I lose control and reveal my position due to witnessing her incomplete mythic beings?" "Well, she's definitely capable—proof is the great smog of Beckland itself... Two reasons come to mind: first, since I was personally 'delivered' here by that angel, she holds me in high regard, fearing that prematurely spreading the plague might trigger my spiritual intuition. Second, she's afraid of something, hesitant to implement widespread coverage. If it's the latter, then there are other dangers here as well..." While reflecting, a sudden inspiration struck him, sending a cold shiver down his spine. Almost simultaneously, the deep shadows enveloping him and surrounding him suddenly contracted, drawing inward and slipping into his nostrils, mouth, and ears! PS: Revised. The earlier standalone chapter has been deleted as per my habit—only summary chapters are retained, so readers who aren't following the series chapter by chapter won't find themselves reading a single standalone chapter that feels out of place.