Lord of Mysteries 2: Circle of Inevitability

Chapter 1131  Individual Preparations

As 0-17 stepped out of the solitary door standing on the ruins, its figure was abruptly erased and entered directly into the special mirror world.

Meanwhile, the Great Old Dominators who constantly monitored changes in the astral barrier began to react.

Stars of various colors—scarlet, gold, brown, blue, and orange—lit up simultaneously, banishing the darkness and crimson in the sky. Their presence infused it with other hues and emitted creaking sounds.

Soon after, the crimson moonlight that seemed to shine from an unknown source brightened and grew viscous, as if filled with blood.

From within Leonardʼs body, segmented Worms of Time crawled out one after another. These worms assembled in front of him, forming the image of an elderly man with neatly combed white hair, deep brown eyes, a sombre demeanor, and a face largely free of wrinkles.

The man, clad in an asymmetrical black robe, was none other than the Angel of Time Pallez Zoroast from the Church of the Fool.

The moment Pallez appeared, He immediately addressed Leonard, ”Go support the other Major Arcana card holders in the mirror world. Leave this to me.”

Without hesitation, The Star Leonard nodded and slightly parted his lips.

An intangible spirit extended from one of his teeth, growing enormous and enveloping him entirely. It carried him into the mirror world.

The next second, as if the void itself had been torn open, two figures emerged from the spirit world.

At first glance, these figures resembled grotesque trees covered in a viscous black fluid. Upon closer inspection, they were massive, distorted human forms with twisted and terrifying arms sprouting from their bodies. These arms bore sinister features—bulging veins with crimson eyeballs, embedded skulls, tongues lined with sharp teeth, and other unimaginable horrors. The figures exuded an overwhelming aura of madness and malevolence. They were none other than the Rose School of Thoughtʼs indulgence factionʼs two Abominations: Suah and Tirié.

Compared to when They previously aided in the growth of the Tree of Shadow beneath Trier, They had undergone noticeable changes.

Suahʼs belly was grotesquely swollen as if He were pregnant. However, the fetus remained still, seemingly cursed and already a stillborn.

Tiriéʼs body, coated in tar-like fluid, was covered with dark, tumor-like growths resembling mammary glands. These tumors continuously split open and closed, secreting black milk.

When the Great Mother descended to the ground, even under the protection of the Mother Tree of Desire through the astral barrier, Suah and Tirié could not entirely escape corruption and became pregnant several times.

Yet, for beings like Suah and Tirié, madness was intrinsic. As long as the children werenʼt born, a little extra corruption didnʼt matter much—it merely caused Their faction members and worshipers to die in more grotesque ways or mutate into monsters more frequently.

As an Archangel of the Error pathway and a noble from the Fourth Epoch who had lived for over two millennia, Pallez Zoroast had seen much. Even so, He couldnʼt suppress a frown at the sight, and His abdomen seemed to ache in phantom pain.

Beside Him, the Angel of the Holy Spirit Reinette of the Church of the Fool stepped out of the spirit world. She had just placed four blonde, red-eyed heads back onto Her neck.

The leader of the Rose School of Thoughtʼs temperance faction transformed into a massive doll the size of a castle. Her blood-red eyes shone beneath a black Gothic dress entwined with sinister vines and countless mysterious symbols.

She revealed Her Mythical Creature form.

On Pallez Zoroastʼs other side, atop the ruins of a building covered in green plants, The Hermit Cattleya, wearing a purple robe and no longer donning her heavy glasses, returned from a non-existent state to reality.

She had initially intended to invite Queen Mystic Bernadette to participate in this operation to increase their chances of success. However, given the limited number of Angels remaining in the protected zone of Trier, the reduction in their forces would have been unacceptable.

…

When The Star Leonard arrived at the depths of the mirror world, where The Sun Derrick, Two of Cups Franca, and others were battling the Demonesses of Unaging, the area was already in shambles, as though it had suffered a partial collapse and destruction.

Demoness of Black Clarice wore a crystalline queenʼs crown on her head. Beneath its translucent surface were miniature visions of hurricanes, volcanic eruptions, falling meteors, and other disasters, resembling a complex, mystical weather bottle. The crownʼs pinnacle was stained crimson, radiating the light of the crimson moon.

This crown, named ”Calamity of Crimson,” was a Grade 0 Sealed Artifact originating from the remains of the Demoness of Blue.

The holy and dignified Demoness of White Katarina had already raised her left hand. A glass ring encircled her middle finger, extending a sharp crystalline spike.

This was ”Loveʼs Dread,” a Grade 0 Sealed Artifact belonging to the Demoness Sect, corresponding to a Demoness of Catastrophe.

Wearing a cyan hunting outfit, Yalenna, with thick, long eyebrows, had an unusual black rooster perched on her shoulder. Though it seemed carved from stone, it appeared alive.

Its most distinctive feature was its three heads—a crestless one, a brightly crested one, and one with a dark red crest—and a slightly parted shared beak that revealed sharp teeth.

This was ”The Setting Sun Rooster,” another Grade 0 Sealed Artifact held by the Demoness Sect.

When the crimson moon descended, the Demoness Sectʼs headquarters suffered significant losses, retaining only five Grade 0 Sealed Artifacts. After recovering the Demoness of Blueʼs Beyonder characteristic, they now had six.

Currently, these artifacts were wielded by the Demonesses of Black, White, Cyan, Gold, Crimson, and Orange, among whom two had nearly killed Franca moments earlier.

Only through her status as a Demoness of Unaging, her numerous Mirror Substitutions, and having merged with her mirror self through reconciliation, did Franca survive the first wave of attacks and await reinforcements.

Silver, Green, and Brown were Demonesses who had advanced after the crimson moon descended. They replaced the titles of the completely deceased and lacked the qualifications to wield a Grade 0 Sealed Artifact. They could only use Grade 1 Sealed Artifacts that synergized with them.

The colored Demonesses, who had already digested the Unaging potion, couldnʼt use the Calamity of Crimson and Loveʼs Dread to advance due to their inability to complete the ritual. They could only use them as Sealed Artifacts.

Facing such overwhelming forces, The Star Leonard drew a black staff embedded with gemstones from his Travelerʼs Bag.

0-62, Staff of the Stars!

It was bestowed by Mr. Fool prior to the current events with added seals.

The moment he gripped the Staff of the Stars, Leonard allowed his thoughts to scatter and emptied his mind.

The Sun Derrick donned a crown that seemed to coalesce from dawnʼs light. Its ancient design exuded splendor, majesty, pride, and resilience.

This was ”The Proof of Glory,” a Grade 0 Sealed Artifact belonging to the City of Silver, once worn by the ancient god, Giant King Aurmir!

It had originally been used to seal the Gift of the Land. Not long ago, Mr. Fool had temporarily sealed the latter, enabling it to be lent out.

The holy and glorious light gathered more and more, forming a pure and solid barrier in the front and around. This both protected the companions and prevented the targets from escaping.

Madam Judgment, Xio Derecha, had just spent nearly a year filled with chaos digesting the Chaos Hunter potion. She had not yet had the chance to complete the ritual to advance to a neighboring pathway, Duke of Entropy, but this did not stop her from using the severely asymmetrical black-and-gold mask that caused discomfort upon sight.

She placed this Solomonʼs Mask on her face.

She and Franca would alternate in assisting Mr. Sun in utilizing the Proof of Glory—this Grade 0 Sealed Artifact required two Saints to wield.

The Moon Emlyn had already received the Sequence 1 Beauty Goddess Beyonder characteristic of the Moon pathway, along with the separated Sequence 2 Life-Giver Beyonder characteristic, bestowed by Ancestor Lilith. However, he did not dare to take the former out of the protected zones, fearing it might provoke an abnormal reaction from the Great Mother and introduce unknown risks.

He used his Life-Giver Beyonder characteristic as collateral to borrow a Grade 0 Sealed Artifact, the ”Robe of Divine Blood,” from the treasury of the Sanguine. He now had it draped over himself.

Madam Temperance Sharron held a three-layer jewelry box in her hands, its surface silver-black and embedded with various gemstones.

This was 0-61—Box of the Great Old Ones—borrowed from the Abraham family through Madam Magician.

This Sealed Artifact would randomly cause its holder to disappear, die suddenly, or undergo aberration. To counter this, Madam Temperance Sharron specifically visited the Angel of Fate Will before the operation and received His blessing.

Will was currently in the protected zone in the Southern Continent, maintaining stability and eliminating anomalies alongside Azik and other Angels. While He could not leave, granting blessings posed no issue.

Not only Madam Temperance Sharron but also The Star Leonard and the other participants in this operation received blessings from Will and a miracle from Mr. Fool to reduce the likelihood of negative random effects.

Magicians didnʼt perform unprepared.

The Hanged Man Alger held a thin brass book and the Card of Blasphemy, Tyrant.

The former was 0-02—Trunsoest Brass Book!

Having received assistance, Franca finally recovered. From the Travelerʼs Bag Lumian had entrusted to her earlier, she retrieved an ancient book bound in parchment: Post-Apocalyptic Scripture!

For this operation, every participating Saint from the Tarot Club carried a Grade 0 Sealed Artifact.

At this moment, a figure passed by, seemingly slow yet incredibly fast.

It was a woman who appeared to be in her forties, still stunningly beautiful and exuding charm, radiating an aura of maternal brilliance.

Upon seeing this figure, The Moon Emlynʼs gaze froze instantly.

It was Roland, the former Matriarch of the Church of Earth Mother!

Roland appeared normal, her upper body bare, but numerous bird-clawed infants hung from her chest, covering the pale skin and constantly drawing nourishment.

She wore a faint smile, radiating crimson moonlight, as She passed through the battlefield and walked toward the special mirror world.