Taylor family.
They were one of the four great knight families in Nasir Town and possibly the strongest. The family's first in line for succession, Robert, had a very good relationship with Byrne.
There was a bathhouse in Nasir Town especially for the wealthy, and after bathing, the two sat in the steam sauna to fully relieve their fatigue.
Byrne turned his head and looked for a long time at his thin and blonde friend, hesitating to speak. In the end, he still said:
"Robert, you might have forgotten about our Fischer family's investment final payment."
Robert smiled and remained silent for a while, then said:
"The final payment? Oh heavens, Byrne, do you really have to talk about this here?"
Byrne frowned slightly and, upon seeing his older-brother-figure, Robert, suddenly raise his voice, spoke up loudly and discontentedly:
"Haven't I already told you? I took that money to the empire to purchase new machines. When we resell them to the mine owners of Cyart, the profits for both of our families will multiply several times. I truly have no spare funds right now!"
Byrne clenched his fist, trying as much as possible not to be affected, and spoke calmly after a deep breath:
"You said the same thing half a year ago, Robert. We can't delay any longer. Our family urgently needs money."
Robert left without saying a word, his face cold, but Byrne suddenly grabbed him.
Just as he was about to explode in anger or even yell, he was taken aback by the ferocity he saw in Byrne's eyes.
The fierce look in his eyes was like that of a starving wolf, a look Robert had only seen in his own Uncle. He knew how miserably those who had deceived his Uncle had died in the end.
Realizing that Byrne was no longer the curious and timid little brother, Robert relaxed his shoulders and said:
"Alright, how about this? I'll pay you the agreed upon half first, fifteen Gold Coins isn't a small amount after all."
Byrne didn't want to fall out completely with his friend either, and indeed, fifteen Gold Coins were sufficient.
"Okay, I agree," he nodded with utmost calmness.
Robert hugged him with a smile, speaking calmly, "I am sorry, brother. I really didn't want to delay it. It's just that business is really hard to conduct."
After leaving the bathhouse, Byrne heaved a sigh. If it weren't for the promise he had made in front of his father, he wouldn't have wanted to be so forceful either.
Pretending to be violent and aggressive didn't suit him, but his father Lucius had said that he had to learn how to be tough with "friends", or he would sooner or later be a burden to the Fischer family.
Last week, the neighboring northern Rhea Kingdom suddenly erupted into civil war.
Some pro-war nobles thought the King too weak and wanted to break the ten-year peace treaty still in effect with Cyart Kingdom, to reclaim the land once occupied by the Cyart people by force.
The King's side still held an overwhelming advantage and the civil war wouldn't last much longer.
However, people were panicked, and though the flames of war in the north had not yet truly reached Cyart, the prices in various regions of northern Cyart skyrocketed overnight.
And the price of Extraordinary materials, which was already high, began to rise gradually again.
The three members of the Fischer family decided in a family meeting to urgently gather funds to purchase a piece of Class 2 Extraordinary Material, because delaying any further would make it increasingly unaffordable.
Byrne only returned home in the carriage after getting the money from Robert.
Sea merchant John, the man who had already recovered his health, was waiting at his house with a smile. He had been chatting and laughing with Irene and Lucius, clearly having waited for some time.
"Mr. John, long time no see."
Byrne greeted John with a smile and after a while, John went straight to the point, saying:
"I am willing to sell the Class 2 Extraordinary Material 'Wind Shark's Dark Blood'. I will not make money off the Fischer family this time, consider it an investment out of friendship. It'll only cost you fifty Gold Coins."
Before the war of the neighboring country broke out, the average price of Class 2 Extraordinary Materials had already risen to around fifty-two Gold Coins. Now was an excellent time to stock up, and John's price was indeed a friendly one.
Irene spoke with a smile, "It's so generous of you, Mr. John. You indeed have a keen eye. Investing in our Fischer family will definitely be the most worthwhile decision of your life."
John smiled without speaking, knowing that money was important, but in these tense times, the value of martial force was rising more than anything else.
After several years of interaction, he had noticed that the members of the Fischer family were all extraordinarily powerful experts and indeed worth building a deep relationship with.
Not to mention anything else, just the powerful force that Irene wielded was extremely worth investing in—who in their family wouldn't fall ill?
He had only heard of "Monarch" class healing-type spellcasters or forbidden-class mysterious rare artifacts possessing such strong healing powers.
Healing-type spellcasters of the "Monarch" level, when looked across the entire Ouden Continent, could be counted on one's fingers, whereas the use of forbidden-class mysterious rare artifacts always required a significant price to be paid.
He had once wondered if Irene of the Fischer family was hiding some forbidden-class mysterious rare artifact, but seeing how she released that power without any hesitation, it did not seem like it at all.
Sea merchant John stayed for an official dinner at the Fischers' on the first day, and the next morning, just as Radiant Sun had risen right after Blazing Sun, he personally came over to deliver the Class 2 Extraordinary Material "Wind Shark's Dark Blood".
Once sea merchant John had left, the four members of the Fischer family gathered in the underground chamber.
Inside the clean and tidy underground chamber, there was a small but exquisitely crafted altar, enshrining a rather plain transparent bottle.
Five-year-old Chris stood quietly beside the adults, his hands behind his back, like a little "grown-up".
He was extremely adorable, with eyes as blue as the azure sky and slightly messy silver-white fine hair, standing there with the air of a finely crafted, large art piece.
Chris was always quiet, sparing with his words, rarely speaking even once a day.
In an era that had yet to conceptualize psychological disorders, the adults of the Fischer family initially thought he had a cognitive issue, only to gradually understand the situation.
He simply couldn't be bothered to communicate with others.
The members of the Fischer family knelt down, one after another, with Irene at the very forefront.
"We beseech the great Lord of the Lost, your will extends to where our fates lie."
"When your gaze descends, those who you behold can't escape, when your voice resounds, the threads of destiny already reverberate in response."
"We offer new mysteries to you, please grant the Fischer family further strength, O great Lord of the Lost."
Karl felt the reverent emotions of everyone connected to him, each person's feelings bringing a different experience, like the thought of betrayal feeling akin to an insect bite.
He calmly absorbed the spirituality and traits from the extraordinary materials.
Advancing the 1st Rank of the God Pantheon stairway could still be done with multiple Class 0 materials as a substitute for a single primary material, but from the second rank upwards, it was not possible.
Higher-class extraordinary materials as the primary material was inevitable.
Karl's consciousness once again arrived in the Spirit Realm, seeing the black cross of light floating high in the sky of the Spirit Realm, gazing towards the Spirit Realm Ocean and the many islands above and below.
He skillfully found the brilliantly shining "constellation" in the endless firmament once more, picking out an empty star and dragging the spiritual traits of the "Wind Shark's Dark Blood" into it.
Finally, Karl's consciousness linked this "constellation" with the one containing the "Blazing Coral", connecting the next segment of the Path of Conquest!
The new "constellation" also began burning with a resplendent golden-red flame, dazzling and captivating, yet the shadow contained within the flames had now become a young man elegantly dueling with a sword!
The Power of Consecution is "Duelist"!
——
At the same time, many extraordinary exponents around the world who had just fallen asleep awoke from their dreams.
They found themselves once again in the snowy clearing they had experienced years before, looking bewilderedly at the ashes that had composed into tall trees, everything around them silent and solemn.
However, this time was different.
Not everyone was confused or passive, for some had already begun researching the various aspects of the Spirit Realm over the years.
Having prepared for several years, even causing a collective rise in the price of extraordinary materials across the entire continent, these extraordinarily powerful experts employed all kinds of mysterious methods they had studied for years.
They tried every means to leave a mark in the Spirit Realm, one that would facilitate re-entry, not wanting to miss the hard-won opportunity.