Chapter 33
The Audience is Born to Be Manipulated
Before attending the Tarot meeting, Xia Er made thorough preparations.
He first used sacrifices and ritual magic to borrow the ability of vengeful spirits to transform into a spirit form.
Then it contains the sealed object formed by combining the characteristics of the praiser.
After arriving above the gray fog, as planned, it was decided that in this place independent of the historical fog of the real world, the "Crimson Star" could help connect the characteristics of the Fourth and Fifth Ages, and "bestow" the lowest level of the sealed artifact containing the spirit body upon the past self.
The experiment was a failure.
The sealed artifact within Xia'er's body failed to travel back in time; instead, it was shattered by a force, turning into fragments that began to coalesce anew into extraordinary properties.
Unfortunately, in order to conceal it, Xia'er did not remove the sealed object from his body. These fragments of properties were not re-condensed and were absorbed by his spirit.
What use would I have for this praiser trait?
Chael wanted to "sing praises" to the sun.
"The Emperor of the Land of the Sun, Intis, the Great Emperor Roselle?"
Xia Er coughed lightly and said.
This was the first emperor of the Fifth Age.
Although he wanted to complain more about the Sun Path's lack of martial ethics, its attempts to deceive, seduce, and ambush him, the Secret Prayer Person.
"That's right, it's this guy. I want you to collect his diary, tentatively titled 'Diary'."
"The Fool," Klein smiled.
"I've heard that this...diary was written by Emperor Roselle using a mysterious script or symbols he invented?"
"Justice?" Audrey asked.
"Yes, no one has found the correct way to interpret it yet, at least that's how I know it."
But this "Fool" seemed to be able to understand. Alger glanced at the Fool, somewhat doubtful.
"Emperor Roselle still has descendants alive, and even the Steam Church cannot decipher these diaries, which can only mean that Emperor Roselle left these diaries for other purposes."
"It's actually a good thing that it can't be interpreted; knowledge does have weight."
"I said casually."
He focused more on the experiment he had just conducted; it wasn't a complete failure, but rather a partial failure.
He did send a sealed artifact to the Fourth Age... though not the one he had already absorbed.
But this is a good start, isn't it? Shouldn't it?
What was said in jest was taken seriously by the listener. Upon hearing the information provided by Shael, Klein instantly realized that Rosell's diary might indeed have been left for another time traveler.
How did Rosell know there would be a second time traveler?
Suddenly, Russell's diary gained immense importance in Klein's mind.
"Miss Justice, let's give it a try."
"The Fool" Klein begins to teach Audrey how to put her thoughts on paper.
"Mr. Fool, can you read my mind?"
Audrey looked at "The Fool" with some unease and asked.
This future mind reader felt fear towards his mind-reading ability.
"No, I am just a guide, helping you to imprint the inner thoughts you want to express."
Klein lowered his voice to reassure him.
It would be nice to have mind-reading abilities, but he really doesn't.
"This sounds like putting your inner thoughts on paper."
"Mr. Fool is really something."
"This is much more difficult than writing with spirituality."
Shael uttered a praise, and spiritual energy extended from his hands, shadows intertwining to form black paper. His fingers traced across the paper, imprinting pure white runes onto its surface.
Spirituality is the paper, and the mind is the pen.
Depravity as the base, pure white description.
As the Pinduoduo version of Light and Darkness Unity, Xia'er has high spirituality and mental strength.
The three "Fools" watched as the "Angel" gracefully wrote the ancient Fusak runes that read "Praise the Fools".
Praise the fool?
Klein muttered to himself.
Why do I have this feeling that someone is planning to harm me?
"Mr. Angel, you're amazing!"
"Justice" sparkled in Audrey's eyes.
"This is not something an ordinary extraordinary person could do."
Alger, the "Hanged Man," also said.
He felt that this was due to the special nature of the "Angel" pathway, just as the Storm pathway was better suited for fighting at sea.
"Even some weak spirits can create illusions and interfere with reality to a certain extent."
"And what about people?"
Chael crumpled the paper in his hand and casually wrote "Praise the Fool".
This made him reflect on whether this was an influence of the characteristics of a eulogist.
A cryptic instigator and a singer—is this a sign of fanaticism?
Fortunately, he had no religious beliefs.
"I am a person who likes equal exchange. If you can collect more diaries, I will give you more rewards."
"The Fool," Klein said in a tone that suggested he didn't want to take advantage of a child.
That's wonderful.
Audrey clenched her fist in delight, then looked at the "angel" and the "Hanged Man" and asked:
"Gentlemen, is there anything else you would like to remind me about the 'audience'?"
Chael and Alger exchanged a glance.
Alger spoke first:
"Remember, the audience is just the audience."
"Only by maintaining an absolutely detached attitude can you capture the actor's most authentic thoughts through observation."
"That sounds interesting."
Audrey listened attentively, then looked at Chael.
"I want to emphasize that the audience's existence is for the purpose of interfering with the performance on stage."
"Observation is merely a means; manipulation is the ultimate goal."
"Whether you're forcing actors to dance your favorite dances at gunpoint or exerting influence through various social connections, the only thing you need to consider is how to get the 'actors' to value the opinions of the 'audience'."
Chael shared a bit of his own understanding.
Are you an angel or a devil?
"Fool" Klein looked at the "Angel" with his cascading black hair through the hazy mist and grumbled.
This person's character can already be gleaned from these words.
"Mr. Angel, I don't quite understand what you mean."
"Justice" Audrey wasn't used to Chael's straightforward way of speaking.
"Mr. Angel, the audience just needs to be audience members. If they try to immerse themselves in the drama, they will be influenced by the characters in the play."
Alger frowned slightly; he felt the angel's idea was a bit extreme.
"Yeah?"
"Are sailors destined to be sailors on ships for their entire lives?"
"A good sailor knows from the moment he sets foot on the sea that his existence is to challenge the storm."
With just three sentences, Chael killed Alger, the "Hanged Man".
Alger's head was spinning, feeling even more dizzy than when he heard the "Fool" role-playing prompt.
Isn't he just a slightly older 'sailor' now?
Why didn't he have that thought?
"Mr. Angel, you're amazing!"
"Justice" Audrey was also somewhat shocked. Even though she still had some reservations about what Chael said about manipulating others, she instinctively remembered Chael's words.