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Chapter 883: The Core's Deception

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Holding the iron cigarette box, Sharon, after passing through the wall and leaving the warehouse where she had been concealed, strictly followed Sherlock Moriarty’s instructions, transforming into a spectral form and flying toward the tallest lighthouse in Princestown. As she mentally counted the time: “Three seconds… two seconds… one second…” the corresponding thoughts had barely settled when a loud roar resonated in her ears—seeming to indicate that a terrifying tornado had landed at the distant wharf. With her left hand gripping the iron cigarette box, her fingernails suddenly lengthened and sharpened, piercing the “spiritual wall” with a spiritually charged attack drawn from the essence of the spectral being, thus completely shattering the intangible “separation.” A sudden gust of wind swept through, and suddenly, Sharon felt an inexplicable strengthening of her ethereal form—this enhancement originating from the item contained within the iron cigarette box. Unaffected by curiosity, she had long since grown accustomed to suppressing such emotions, and continued swiftly approaching the lighthouse. Throughout the process, she maintained an unstructured course of action, at times veering left and forward, at others drifting right and upward, occasionally using "mirror flashes" to leap onto a different path before continuing toward her destination. This gave the impression that she was evading an invisible, terrifying adversary, yet Sharon was certain that nothing was pursuing her, nor was there any distant attack targeting her specifically. She felt she was simply performing a solo act as though there were an opponent present. Nevertheless, she did not question it, nor did she waste time observing or waiting, instead pretending that the surrounding air was the silent entity Mahams, the half-god of the Roon military, skillfully maneuvering between them. As she flew on, she kept her gaze fixed upon the deep blue eyes in the sky, where a streak of crimson light shimmered. When she reached higher altitudes, it burst suddenly, transforming into a beautiful, radiant plume of interwoven red, orange, and yellow hues. Sharon immediately withdrew her gaze, using the ethereal essence radiating from the fingernails of the "spirit souls" to rebuild the isolating "wall," and leapt toward the line where Marijich was. At intervals along that path, broken mirrors stood, and Sharon's slender figure in her small, soft hat and black dress repeatedly appeared upon them, soon becoming distinct in Marijich's brown eyes. She then moved lightly, the iron cigarette box now once again covered by the "wall of spirit essence." Marijich and Sharon exchanged no words, made no eye contact—seeming to be pursued by an invisible, transparent creature, unable to pause even slightly. To be honest, they had a good grasp of how their individual actions would play out—after all, Sherlock Moriarty had once demonstrated drawing the living and shadows with a copper whistle, and Sharon’s "mirror apparition" was also well known to both of them. Yet, they could hardly imagine the overall course of events: how would the busy, secretive detective manage to steal the mummy of Tutankhamun from the watchful eyes of several half-gods? It wasn’t as if the mummy would simply decide to run and then vanish on its own—those half-gods would surely intervene and pursue. At that very moment, they saw a figure suddenly take shape ahead of them. Dressed in a black suit, wearing a half-high hat, with a gray iron mask covering his face, and holding a dark-red clump of soil and a book bound in deep brown leather—none other than Sherlock Moriarty. Marich immediately slowed his pace, allowing the other to smear the soil onto the book's surface and into the folds of his garments, then reaching toward his shoulders while glancing around. Yet, he failed to spot the mummy of Thutmose II. Finally, he had to concede defeat—having anticipated this, he sighed, watching himself, Sharon, and Sherlock Moriaty gradually fade into transparency and vanish together. Yet during this brief interval, he found himself unable to pin down the elusive visitor's presence—either the guest had exerted interference at the semi-divine level, or had instantly "transmitted" himself to a distant location. Regardless of which scenario held true, the pursuit risked significant failure. More importantly, if he departed, he would leave the lady in the evening gown alone with the "Silent One," Mahams, and another semi-divine of the Rose School—an extremely dangerous situation, since the current region's mysteries had not yet diminished to the point of being fully suppressed by real-world artillery. Moreover, no losses had occurred, and the mummy remained intact—only a small amount of spiritually rich soil had been taken. The semi-divine with golden eyes surveyed the now bewildered, motionless mummy of Tutankhamun II and refocused his attention on Mahams. Suddenly, the mummified figures—wrapped in yellow-brown bandages soaked with dark red fluid—disappeared from the minds of the four half-gods. There it was, a tangible mummy, vanishing without a trace, without warning! For a single moment, the half-gods, especially Mahams, the "Silent One," watched as if they had just witnessed a magnificent magic act or a carefully orchestrated drama full of hidden tricks—but tragically, despite being half-gods themselves, they failed to discern the very essence of the magic or the drama's secret. Immediately thereafter, Mahams and the other half-god from the Rose School, now directionless, effortlessly faded into the air, striving to enter the spirit realm and make a forced escape. The half-god with golden eyes and the lady in the formal gown promptly intervened to stop them. "As soon as Sharon had settled in, she spoke, at the same time returning the iron cigarette box to Sherlock Moriarty. They had agreed in advance that, regardless of whether their mission succeeded, Sharon would provide the details of the 'Spirit Harvester'; and if the endeavor truly succeeded, she would add an additional 3,500 runes or 5,000 pounds sterling. Upon receiving the iron box, which bore slight signs of corrosion, Crane lifted it casually and felt the gentle pulsing of the Azkian copper whistle within. He then placed it aside, smiled warmly at Miss Sharon and at Mariachi, and said: 'Please, both of you, go to the room outside and wait for me for another five minutes.' His tone was confident, as though he had already succeeded—what could five minutes possibly accomplish?" He could no longer "transport" himself there to bring back the mummy of Tutankhamun—this would be even more dangerous and difficult than just now... Marić was filled with doubt, his steps moving slowly, while Sharon had already drifted and walked toward the wooden door separating the inner and outer chambers, passing through it. Marić quickly gathered his thoughts, followed closely, and stepped out as the door opened. Klein remained smiling, then made a "journey" to a budget inn in the eastern district—where he had arranged to rent a room earlier in the afternoon under a false identity. Immediately afterward, he drew forth the brown-bound book concealed in his coat, its cover stained with dark, muddy sludge. This was *The Grollese Travels*. As long as fresh, blood still carrying spiritual residue was gently smeared across its cover, the book would forcibly draw the designated target into its world! And the liquid within the golden sarcophagus of Tutankhamun contained blood! That is to say, at this very moment, the mummy is already in Klein's hands, within the pages of "The Grolsch Travels." After hearing Marič's explanation about the preparation of pharaohs' mummies, Klein had already formed a clear plan: to use the azk copper whistle's attraction to the corpse as the "spiritual thread," manipulating the mummy of Thutmose II to guide the present half-gods away from the sarcophagus, thus creating the conditions for Klein himself to "transport" and retrieve the liquid. He had never imagined being able to directly take the mummy away or have it successfully escape the dock—such an outcome was unrealistic. It would require direct confrontation with the half-gods, and even with Sharon and Marič bound to him, he could not adequately withstand their attacks. Even with a substantial price paid to summon the messenger, Lady Renéte Tiniçol, success was not guaranteed. Thus, although the resurrection of the Azk copper whistle and the mummy appears to be a clear objective and strategy, it is in reality merely a technique of manipulation and guidance—designed to cause the other "actors" to overlook developments near the golden sarcophagus. This is a masterstroke that even the half-gods cannot resist, since they protect the mummy itself, not the golden sarcophagus, and they are targeting the high-tier strongholds such as Maḥamis of the Rose School, rather than just a few scattered figures far away, whose intentions remain unclear. Klein's plan wasn't one of tightly interwoven, exquisitely crafted sequences where any single unforeseen event would bring the entire operation to a halt. He needed to manage only a few key issues. As long as the tornado successfully overturned the coffin, and Miss Sharon maintained her irregular, prescribed trajectory as instructed, and as long as the military wasn't so well-staffed that they could easily handle figures like Mahamis, the semi-divine representatives of the Rose School, then all he needed to do was wait for an opportunity. After the semi-divine beings had moved away from the vicinity of the golden coffin, and before the mummies had been fully possessed by malevolent spirits, he would "transport" himself there, retrieve an object soaked in liquid, and then immediately vanish. He didn't need to be involved in the specifics of the semi-divine combat—whether one side gained the upper hand, whether injuries occurred, nor did it matter how many meters the mummy of Thutmose II had to travel to be considered a victory. As long as the semi-divine beings could start moving smoothly and remained elusive, everything would proceed without issue. As for the final moment, he bent low, performing a bow—partly to pick up the soil at the same time, effectively signaling the close of the scene, and partly to keep the *Groszler's Travels* pressed against his chest, so that in case of any sudden mishap, he could swiftly draw it out as a shield. Precisely because of this, as soon as Kline had "transmitted" himself to safety, he naturally smoothed a clump of soil, still soaked with blood, over the book's surface. The overall progress had met expectations—directly achieving the director's goal. Kline felt a deep sense of reflection, sensing that the magic potion within him was now being digested at an accelerated pace. Without delay, he swiftly arranged the ritual, offering the *Groszler's Travels* to the gray mist above, and then entered the world of the book in his ethereal form, carrying with him the "growing hunger," the Azk copper whistle, his unique Hospitaller trait, and the anti-curse golden beads gifted by Sharon.