From Secret Clan to the Divine Dynasty

Somthing dark seemed to be surging within the depths of Ebner's heart.

He felt strange, very strange—the unprecedented sensation was both unsettling and exhilarating.

That dark entity welling up inside him seemed to be what was known as malice.

In reality, Ebner had never done anything bad in his decades-long life, not even harbored ill will towards anyone; it was today, truly left with no alternative, that he decided to lead the other three traveling companions to this cave.

Before the group had even set out, the elderly village chief had sought him out for a private word.

At that moment, he had been tidying up herbs at the entrance to his home when the old man approached, leaning on his walking stick.

"Ebner."

The village chief's usually clouded eyes revealed an uncommon sharpness, his frail, wrinkled hand resting on Ebner's shoulder.

"There's something I need to discuss with you in detail, and it must only be known between you and me, absolutely not to be disclosed to others."

After a long hesitation, Ebner asked,

"Respected village chief, may I ask what it is?"

After Ebner's question, the village chief's eyes flickered with a profound hesitation for a long while before he finally spoke earnestly,

"In truth, the people of the Salvation Church will not care about us."

"What?"

Ebner was startled because the chief's tone was firm, as if they already knew the outcome without needing to try.

He shook his head in objection,

"I think we should still have faith in the church. Besides, if we don't trust the church, who can we trust? Aside from praying for protection from the Lord of Salvation, whose rescue could we possibly receive?"

"This is our only option, Great Village Chief." Explore new worlds at empire

The old village chief shook his head, certain of his view, and continued,

"Ebner, you simply don't understand, but I often deal with the nobles, and I roughly know that the Extraordinary Exponents are entirely different from one another, so ordinary priests cannot save our village."

Seeing Ebner still hesitant, the old man suddenly dropped a bombshell.

"The nearby village has already begged the church in town, and in the end, they received no help. The incompetent priests merely told them to keep waiting for death..."

When Ebner heard this, an overwhelming sense of desolation and despair surged from the depths of his heart.

How could this be?

If the old man's judgment was correct, the Salvation Church would definitely not rescue them.

But if that was truly the case, what would become of his wife and daughter? How long would the drought last?

How long could they hold out?

The village chief paused for a moment before continuing with a cold snort, "Moreover, over the years, that church we once knew has grown increasingly shameless; they probably no longer care about the lives of common folk."

Ebner immediately said,

"But if that's the case, what can we do for our village?"

Ebner's heart was filled with anxiety. He didn't know what to do but was determined to find a solution!

After all, his wife and daughter were at home—if they ran out of water and food, his family's survival would be a significant concern!

Could it be that he really had to resort to becoming a bandit with his wife and daughter?

His heart felt cold, but he could think of no better option, so he shouted out loud.

"No, I must go to the Salvation Church no matter what, at least to try."

Ebner was resolute, and the old village chief sighed, slowly shaking his head as he said,

"Then you go ahead and make your attempt. If you succeed, then all will be well. But if you fail, you must do as I say and find someone here."

The village chief then took out a parchment scroll, detailed with a simple map that marked a cave. While others might not find the place, Ebner, familiar with the wilderness, certainly could.

Ebner felt something was oddly amiss and cautiously asked,

"What am I to do there?"

"Sacrifice."

The village chief's voice was like sharp, biting frost, sending a shiver down Ebner's spine.

"What did you say?"

The old man squinted his eyes, smiling as he said,

"I will choose three people to accompany you. Either they are outsiders, or they are edge-case individuals in the village without relatives, essentially unimportant, and they will be your 'offering' to carry with you."

The more Ebner listened, the wider his eyes opened in shock! He could hardly believe that the unremarkable old village chief would do such a thing!

"As for your task, it's to 'deliver the offering' to the Stars Embrace Order..."

"The Stars Embrace Order!"

Ebner felt as if struck by lightning. Of course, he had heard of the Stars Embrace Order and knew very well that it was a heretical cult that the Salvation Church was particularly keen to apprehend.

He stretched out a trembling hand and said loudly, "This cannot be!"

"Do you know, if we really collude with the Stars Embrace Order and it gets discovered, we could be put on the gallows!"

The village chief suddenly let out a sly chuckle, then began to dance around somewhat maniacally.

"Hahaha! So what if I face the gallows? Death by hanging is still better than dying of thirst or starvation! The latter might be even more painful!"

He suddenly stopped and stared at Ebner, who was hesitant but had not refused. He revealed a devilish smile.

"Ebner, think of your wife and daughter; you know what you must do!"

"That is the only correct way, Ebner. We need you to save everything..."

----

Knelt on the ground, Ebner's eyes were bloodshot as he took a deep breath.

For the first time in his life, he was releasing malice towards someone.

The two villagers, excluding Karno, stood rooted to the spot, totally unaware of what was going on.

"Ebner, what are you doing?"

"What in the world is going on here, and where is this person who can save our village?"

However, Ebner completely ignored them, just staring coldly at Karno.

Although he wasn't completely clear about the specifics, his instincts as a hunter told him one thing: Karno was the person to be most wary of.

That outsider named Karno, the feelings he gave Ebner were not at all like those of fierce creatures such as tigers or lions but rather like a giant magic beast tens of meters tall passing by him at a slow pace...

Entirely harmless, but still capturing attention.

That sense of being an unshakable behemoth made one feel deeply uncomfortable inside.

Karno calmly looked toward the cave and then heard the hunter Ebner shout as he drew his bow.

"All of you, get in the cave now; no running away and no looking back, whoever dares to run gets shot!"

The other two were terrified, while Karno didn't say anything. Eventually, all three entered the cave under Ebner's coercion.

Ebner coldly watched Karno, always vigilant for any sign of retaliation from the man.

After traversing through the cave, the four of them arrived at a vast space and soon encountered numerous mysterious figures in black robes standing around a hidden altar.

The atmosphere was incredibly eerie; a heavy silence enveloped everything, as if even the smallest noise was devoured.

The leader of the black-robed figures slowly nodded and spoke:

"Very well, your village will be saved."

One of the robed figures approached the four of them, then turned and nodded to the leading figure.

"Great Priest, this is marvelous. With four new sacrifices, I believe the constellation we follow and uphold will be very pleased!"

Four?

Ebner was stunned for a moment before shouting, "Wait, hold on, I am not a sacrifice!"

"You are not?"

"Hahahahahaha!"

The many robed figures burst into laughter as if they had heard a very pleasant joke. Ebner stood there dumbstruck, not knowing what to say, while the other two villagers were so frightened that one wet his pants and the other knelt on the ground, begging for mercy.

Karno had not spoken a single word from beginning to end, just calmly contemplating.

He had long heard that the followers of the Stars Embrace Order often preyed on the lower echelons of Cyart society, recruiting followers and selecting sacrifices from the destitute farmers.

His father had once encountered a follower of the Stars Embrace Order, who initially claimed to be a refugee from the countryside and later committed a terrible act against his father.

Now, Karno felt that the old village chief of that village must also be a member of the Stars Embrace Order.

A horrifying evil was spreading inexorably through the lower strata of Cyart society, and the various natural disasters and calamities only accelerated this spread. The number of followers of the Stars Embrace Order swelled continuously, and the churches did little to effectively stem the tide.

"Hmm, a Transmutation and seven Beginnings, is it?"

Karno took a deep breath, showing no sign of panic in the face of those robed figures.

In fact, he had already been promoted to the 4th Rank "Unpredictable Sorcerer."

At the time of Sunbelle's departure, Karno had already completed the promotion ceremony.

"Experience the unfathomable vicissitudes of fate..."

Initially, he didn't like Sunbelle at all, even refusing to accept her. But when he gradually grew fond of Sunbelle and then suddenly found out she couldn't bear children, combined with his own lifestyle which she couldn't accept, he slowly lost her.

Karno had no desire to go back and accept the power when he completed the promotion ceremony six months ago.

However, Karl was not going to let the Fischer family's "savings bank" slip away, so he sent a divine revelation to Lilian. Then, through one of Lilian's sacrifices, Karl still endowed Karno with the power of the 4th Rank of Consecution.

He still couldn't go against his own orders and also had no intention of betrayal, which for Karl was good enough.

Even if Karno made no contributions, when he died, his Spiritual Power would still be payable to Karl.

The power of Consecution "Unpredictable Sorcerer."

It was indeed the 4th Rank of the Path of Revelation.

The "Unpredictable Sorcerer," in the Spirit Realm, is an enigmatic figure holding a peculiar pendulum, his face indistinct.

Karno's physical fitness increased by 20, his Spiritual Power by 180.

Additionally, he gained three entirely different extraordinary powers.

These were "Weaving of Destiny," "Lock of Destiny," and "Illusory Mirror Image."