Endless Debt

Soul.

The most mysterious and noble unknown presence among all things, maintaining the shackles of human nature, and the cornerstone for Condensers to embark on the Path of Transcendence.

Since humans recognized the existence of souls, research on the soul has never ceased.

Judging the boundary between humans and Demons by the amount of soul stock, the pale void left after soul removal, the instinctive Bulimia Nervosa driven by the soul longing, the blood-colored Philosopher's Stone formed through Condensation, and even the memory echoes remaining within the Philosopher's Stone...

Soul, a splendid and beautiful thing.

After Bologue finished this sentence, he fell silent, his blue eyes observing Teda's expression, trying to capture all his reactions within his sight.

"Soul?"

Teda whispered, plunged into contemplation due to Bologue's judgment. After a while, he smiled and shook his head.

"Who knows about such a thing?"

"You don't know either?" Bologue was somewhat surprised, thinking Teda would know more.

"How could I know? You are the first Condenser to successfully seize the Power of Dominator in seven years. Before you appeared, all our research materials came from those surviving memories and Overlord Xilin's corpse."

Teda sighed, but soon he perked up, looking at Bologue like he was observing a treasure.

"You should have learned about Xilin's life, right?" Teda continued, "In the King's Secret Sword privy to the bloody night, someone once called Xilin a fugitive, his whole life escaping from his father, fleeing the nightmare of the bloody night."

Bologue nodded, having thoroughly studied the materials Teda had provided him before coming.

The impact of the bloody night was enormous, and once the mad truth was exposed to the public, it would only incite turmoil. Therefore, the King's Secret Swords spent a long time sealing and modifying the information.

Under layers of lies, the truth of the bloody night was finally covered up, and those who died vanished silently into history.

"During his lengthy escape, Xilin joined the King's Secret Sword, constantly advancing and raising his status. There were several times King of Slaughter tried to recall him, but Xilin refused... he defied the king's orders," said Teda.

"But he's the only heir of King of Slaughter. Even though he defied the orders, the king wouldn't kill him; at most, he would just confine him like an animal," Bologue stated.

"That's right, but interestingly, the King's Secret Swords all support Xilin. Although they directly serve the royal family, now there's only two people left in the royal family, and in many of their eyes, young Xilin is far more worthy of allegiance than the mad King of Slaughter."

Teda continued to speak of the unknown secrets.

"According to intelligence, Xilin's conflict with the Pillar of Royal Authority was ongoing, but as he grew stronger, the Pillar of Royal Authority's restraint on him weakened daily until Xilin became a Seeker of Glory. Even King of Slaughter had to admit he could no longer control his child."

"I've read all this in the materials... is there anything noteworthy?" Bologue asked curiously.

"Didn't you notice the contradiction in it?"

Teda expressed his surprise slightly, thinking Bologue would notice this point.

Bologue fell silent for a few seconds, a strong sense of astonishment rising in his heart, and spoke.

"We still don't know why King of Slaughter wanted to initiate the bloody night, nor do we understand why only Xilin survived within the entire Kagader Royal Family.

But if King of Slaughter wanted to confine Xilin, the simplest way would be to have Xilin live as an ordinary person rather than implanting him with the Alchemy Matrix, making him a Condenser."

Silver Snake coiled around the palm, its exquisite scales scraping against Bologue's skin, bringing a slight chill.

"In that case, Xilin couldn't possibly become a Condenser, nor bear such bizarre power, let alone become a Seeker of Glory."

Listening to Bologue's words, Teda nodded with satisfaction, affirming.

"This is a judgment circulating within the Order Bureau. Perhaps Xilin and King of Slaughter are opposing forces, and within this opposition, another power helped Xilin... Keep in mind during the bloody night, he was just a child. Even if someone within the King's Secret Sword favored him, they couldn't protect him under King of Slaughter's hand."

"Overlord Xilin is the most powerful Sword Holder in the history of the King's Secret Sword. The Alchemy Matrix he carried was, until my appearance, an unsolved mystery," Bologue murmured, "If the Order Bureau's judgment is correct, King of Slaughter definitely wouldn't hand such power over to Xilin..."

"We hypothesized another mysterious and powerful existence that protected Xilin, nurtured his growth, and bestowed upon him this Alchemy Matrix."

Teda's expression became excited, the frenzy completely released on his aged face, as he reached out his hand, pointing at Bologue.

"We don't know who that existence really is, but now... this power has been transferred to you."

...

Their excited discussion didn't last long, as Bologue and Teda both preferred hands-on practice over theoretical discussions. As a result, the empty workbench was suddenly filled with various metal products.

Bologue, like a blacksmith, repeatedly hammered the metal with Secret Energy, shaping the material he touched. As bursts of blue light erupted, Teda put on thick goggles and watched from the side.

It felt like a construction site, with Bologue as a skilled master using a welding gun to repair the metal in his hands, while Teda was a diligent apprentice wearing a protective visor, observing the master's work.

Alright, Bologue had to admit that Palmer had a strange infectiousness. After working with him for a long time, one's thoughts seemed to deteriorate, and sometimes would suddenly come up with some lame jokes.

Bologue could effectively control these impulses, so during work, he remained the cold expert, taking all of his partner's jokes as if he was talking to himself.

The goggles Teda wore were not protective visors for vision protection; they were a type of alchemy equipment known as "Ether Flow Goggles."

Ether, like air, permeated the world and was omnipresent. Correspondingly, it also had its flow trajectory like air currents. Driven by a few Condensers, Ether could even stir up invisible storms.

The Ether Flow Goggles were a type of alchemy weaponry that allowed these invisible forces to possess color and form.

In the eyes of some Condensers who mastered Ethereal Perception, Ether was vaguely visible. Still, that demand was too high for Alchemists, so most used Ether Flow Goggles to observe Ether.

At this moment, Teda could clearly see the ghostly blue trails winding around Bologue's body. The denser the Ether, the more vivid and bright the color, even turning into blinding daylight. The thinner the Ether, the dimmer the color became, nearing a grayish-white colorless state.

Upon learning about this device, Bologue's first reaction was to think if it could be used in combat, but Teda quickly dispelled Bologue's idea.

The observation of Ether Flow Goggles had some delay and would interfere with vision, making them unsuitable for combat. However, this was not absolute. According to Teda, some Condensers from the Origin School would use such equipment in combat.

"Hearing you describe it is one thing, but actually seeing it is really interesting... First, the Alchemy Matrix extends into the material, then Ether is infused, causing it to distort."

Teda took off the Ether Flow Goggles and rubbed his slightly sore eyes, speaking to Bologue.

"It reminds me of my apprentice days when there was something new waiting for me every day, and curiosity was like an unquenchable flame."

"That sounds nice," Bologue said, releasing the Secret Energy, and the brilliance emanating from him dimmed, "Did you discover anything?"

"Hmm... Actually, it's my first encounter with someone like you from the Commanding School," Teda thought for a moment and said something rather perplexing.

"What do you mean?"

"The Commanding School uses Ether as a medium to command the substance, but you're different. You need to extend the Alchemy Matrix over before issuing commands," Teda explained, "Remember your partner? He was also from the Commanding School, but you didn't see the Alchemy Matrix's glow covering the storm during combat, did you?"

"Of course, you can't say it's so definitive. The distinction among schools is merely our way of categorizing based on the characteristics of Secret Energy, thus making it easier for us to understand.

The schools have evolved over the years, from the original six schools to the current eight, so seeing a few peculiar exceptions is not impossible either."

Teda pulled over a chair and sat down, turning his back to Bologue as he began writing something resembling experimental records on the workbench.

"Do you mean I'm an exception in the Commanding School?"

Bologue didn't feel much about it, having already become accustomed to the mysteries and strangeness of Overlord Xilin. He no longer thought his Alchemy Matrix was that simple.

"Probably... maybe you're not even from the Commanding School," Teda said something astonishing.

"What did you say? Not from the Commanding School," Bologue was stunned.

"Didn't you hear what I said? The division of schools is merely the classification of different nature Secret Energies. Sometimes there are such exceptions; they fit multiple school classifications. When it's undetermined, this kind of Secret Energy is classified as from the Deceitful Structure School."

Teda continued, elaborating on his thoughts.

"Of course, your current Secret Energy traits are still primarily from the Commanding School, but with your advancement, this power will gradually reveal its full nature, at which point its true essence will be known."

Teda turned his head, looking at the slightly surprised Bologue, and said with a profound tone.

"I hope I have the chance to witness that day."