OBS Chapter 3576 The Ring of Destruction
Chapter 3576 The Ring of Destruction
Chapter 3576 The Ring of Destruction
After explaining his purpose, Shad handed the eyeball-shaped stone with strange runes on its surface to Mr. Edmund.
He had been worried that Lady Gerd had said the Fifth Age's Order of Light would recognize the symbol, but the Sixth Age Order might have lost this knowledge. However, upon seeing the symbol, Mr. Edmund immediately and solemnly put down the fishing rod he had just cast, letting it casually drape over the bank.
"Tell me in detail about the origin of this stone."
The story about playing cards wasn't complicated, but out of respect for Elder Harald, Shad didn't explain the cause of the matter in detail. He only explained the appearance of the "Order of Doom" and the secrets they revealed in great detail.
Mr. Edmund did not interrupt Shad while he was telling the story, and only spoke amidst the sound of the waves after Shad had finished:
"Although we, the Order of Light, are a low-profile organization that rarely interacts with others, we do have our enemies. Our enemies are not fixed groups or individuals, but those who preach the coming of the apocalypse and then create chaos or profit from it. Some are genuinely insane, while others have ulterior motives."
While we, the Secret Order, also firmly believe in the coming of the end times, we are actively preparing for it.
Xia De nodded:
"I see."
“A few mad prophets or seers who claim to have seen the future often have their own narratives about the end times. I am familiar with the symbols on this stone, and anyone in the Secret Order will be familiar with them—they are symbols of the ‘end times’.”
While we don't know the exact origin of this symbol, it has frequently appeared in the notes or private letters of truly gifted and eccentric prophets since the distant ancient times. What appears to be an infinite serpent is actually a self-devouring two-headed snake, symbolizing a seemingly eternal world that is fading away through self-destruction.
He returned the stone to Shad:
“You said this stone wasn’t given by mortals, but by some being in the ancient god’s temple. Combined with what you just said about that southern island where a terrible fate was sealed by the ancient god of destiny, I have an idea.”
The waves crashed against the rocks on the shore, and droplets of water splashed onto their faces. The sea breeze still carried the chill of winter; winter was not yet over.
"The destiny that Mr. Tamaki sealed during his last divine descent was not a 'mistake of the original destiny' at all, but the destiny of the world's impending destruction."
Mr. Edmund looked at the sea, paused to give Shad time to think, and then continued:
"This is not a baseless speculation. We have always believed that it was the efforts of the Old Gods at the end of the First Age and the beginning of the Second Age that prevented the world from ending in the Mythical Age. Thirteen Old Gods continued our broken world, which we now call the 'Old Days'. After the Old Days, the world went through five more ages in the 'Twilight'."
The fact that we are standing here proves that the Old Gods' actions were very successful. As for preventing the apocalypse that should have occurred at the end of the First Age, I think it involved various factors, including, of course, the very fate of that apocalypse.
"So the 'Mr. Snake' that the ordinary person talks about is actually the one who symbolizes the end of the First Era and the fate of the world's destruction?"
Xia De asked, looking down at the stone in his hand;
"The destiny that diviners throughout history have foreseen the end times foretold is actually something beneath the snow-capped mountains? Is the final enemy on Fatumunst Island the 'embodiment of doomsday destiny'?"
Mr. Edmund nodded:
"Although this is just my guess based on what you brought, it should be close to the truth. It occupied the temple of the ancient god and drew power from the level of fate through transactions with ordinary people."
The seal of the ancient god should not be completely broken yet, but the failure of All Souls' Day will undoubtedly exacerbate the leakage of his power. The information you brought is very important. I will write to my colleagues in the Secret Order later, and we will delve deeper into the meaning of this symbol. The Secret Order has prepared for the apocalypse for such a long time. While our interpretation of fate may not be as professional as the Society of Prophets, we are absolutely the most professional in researching the end times.”
While concluding that "Mr. Ring sealed away the destiny of the apocalypse" from a single stone is somewhat hasty, Mr. Edmund's explanation is indeed reasonable. Furthermore, it was indeed Mr. Ring's last divine intervention, making it suitable for dealing with the most pressing problems in the material world.
"If we can defeat that so-called 'Mr. Snake,' does it mean that the apocalypse will not come in our time?"
Xia asked this question again, but the old folklorist shook his head:
"That thing should just be the fate of 'the world being destroyed at the end of the first era.' If you don't stop it, it will bring about the apocalypse that should have happened long ago; if you stop it, it will only settle a problem that was not completely dealt with in the past."
Perhaps the true end of the world is approaching, and even this sealed destiny needs to be eliminated before the apocalypse arrives. After all, the world cannot be destroyed twice. Only when the destiny of the world ending at the end of the First Era is gone can we truly usher in our own doomsday.
We call the symbol you brought the 'Original Ring of Destruction,' and Mr. Snake is the embodiment of the Ring of Destruction. The concept of the 'ring' is closely related to fate; on that snowy island, you can pay close attention to similar symbols or markings.”
The Order of Light, which rarely participates in major events and at most sends people to check things out, has unusually offered to help this time. While they are unlikely to send anyone to the island, they should be able to provide Shad with a great deal of theoretical support.
Thinking back to the end of the Battle of Vesta Grove last winter, the Outsider thought that although the Chosen Ones' stories would become more and more difficult, and the final enemy would be more troublesome each time, he couldn't imagine what could be more troublesome after the World Tree's remains.
But as it turns out, the troubles of this world always exceed his expectations. This time, the God of Misfortune has already decided to descend, and the "incarnation of doomsday fate" is the kind of thing that you can tell will be difficult to deal with.
With the demons preparing to unleash the "Demon King," the final act of the Fatummont Island story is predictably one of great chaos.
Mr. Edmund's fishing rod suddenly began to shake. The surprised old man quickly picked up the rod and caught a rather large haddock, about the same size as the one that was originally in his bucket.
He gave both fish to Shad:
“Fatummont Island is in the south of the Old World. Although there are traditional fishing grounds there, you can’t find this kind of delicate-fleshed haddock there.”
Shad then asked Mr. Edmund if he knew anything about "Snake Fangs," but received a negative answer. Before leaving, however, Shad purchased some more materials, preparing to learn the secret techniques shared by the vampire witch that evening.
No matter how formidable the enemy we are about to face, we must always confront the situation.
Mr. Edmund has most of the materials that Shad needs to purchase. For the few that are not available, which are related to blood, Shad plans to go to Moon Bay later to ask Mr. Albert for help.
"Speaking of which, do you have any suitable gifts for a girl who is about to turn eighteen?"
As the old man prepared the goods for him, Shad asked the same question again, and Mr. Edmund glanced at him:
"What type of girl? I mean, you need to tell me at least her background so I can give you advice."
"Yes, the royal princess is a very talented low-level sorcerer."
The old man didn't show any surprise. He asked Xia De to wait a moment and soon returned with a metal rod and a staff.
The staff was about 5 feet (about 152 cm) long, which was about 4 inches (about 10 cm) shorter than Adelina's height, but it suited her well.
Its entire body is forged from a deep and pure yellow metal, but it is not a dazzling bright yellow or an extravagant pure gold color, but a restrained and luxurious dark gold.
The lines are exceptionally simple; the main body of the staff is a nearly perfect, straight, and flowing cylinder, tapering inward only near the top to form a pedestal for holding the gem. However, the pedestal is currently empty, which is why Shad initially mistook it for a stick.
Of course, although the staff was simple in design, without any complicated patterns or redundant decorations, only a circular mark on the staff, Shad still felt the weight of time and its silent majesty:
"Not just a staff, but a scepter?"
Unlike in ancient times, modern Ring Sorcerers mostly do not need catalysts to cast spells, as they all have Life Rings to assist them, which is considered a convenience of the Ring Sorcerer system. However, catalysts such as staves, ritual swords, and sacred bells have not completely disappeared; Ring Sorcerers use them selectively. Of course, the most common casting catalyst in modern times is actually the sacred emblem carried by clergy.
This staff is not a relic, but an ancient alchemical artifact. Mr. Edmund told Shadki about its origin:
"Compared to other races, humanity has never had a long-lasting unified empire. Although there have been brief periods of unification in history, the history of human empires is extremely short compared to the millennia-long empires of elves, dragons, and even giants."
Around the end of the Fourth Age, an unnamed prophet hoped to end the era of darkness and chaos through the unification of a human empire. So he forged this staff, claiming he had endowed it with a fragment of a star, declaring it the scepter of the first and last founder of a unified human empire.
Mr. Edmund handed the heavy scepter to Shad, which was made entirely of metal and was quite heavy.