Lord of Mysteries: Return of the Stars!

He named this chain, which represented order and rules, the Chain of Order!

Once he could control it as easily as an extension of his arm, Hastur turned his gaze toward the star that symbolized the Son of Chaos.

It was time to find a test subject for the Chain of Order.

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Compared to the star where Mr. Door and the Mother Goddess of Depravity reside, the Son of Chaos sealed in the Magic Wishing Lamp was clearly a much easier target to bully.

If even this Chain of Order couldn't deal with the Son of Chaos, then there was no point even thinking about solving the more complicated situations involving the Mother Goddess of Depravity and Mr. Door.

His gaze drew closer, starlight dispersed, and the phantom of the Magic Wishing Lamp was once again revealed.

After observing for a moment, Hastur directed the Chain of Order to fly in front of the star. The chain coiled and then suddenly lashed out at the phantom of the Magic Wishing Lamp!

Starlight gathered, and the Chain of Order seemed to pierce through a barrier. The chain head, filled with endless starlight, fiercely struck the body of the Magic Wishing Lamp, sending it flying!

It actually worked!

Hastur was overjoyed and was about to whip the Son of Chaos a few more times to see what would happen.

But then, a wave of dizziness, murkiness, and splitting pain struck his mind. His star spirit body, representing his own state, dimmed significantly, leaving him unable to strike a second time with the Chain of Order.

Hastur sighed in regret, had no choice but to retract the chain, and observed the changes on the star where the Son of Chaos resided. After waiting for a while, he found that the Son of Chaos was unable to follow the "internet cable" to come attack him and could only rage helplessly in place.

This made his eyes narrow, and he let out a sly chuckle.

Even if he could only whip once per night, he could enter the Starry Hall every evening. One whip a day—over time, that would still be quite significant.

After watching for a while longer and confirming the Son of Chaos really couldn't come over, Hastur finally put away the Chain of Order and happily logged off to sleep.

…

Under the red moon, stars emitted faint light, setting off the crimson moon's beauty and reflecting on the endless sea.

On the Dawn, Bernadette Gustav, who had been resting with her eyes closed, was disturbed by a strange movement from the Magic Wishing Lamp.

The lamp, which had always obediently stayed sealed, suddenly hurled itself at the ship's cabin wall, hit it, fell to the ground, and even rolled a few times.

Then, an infuriated roar came from inside the Magic Wishing Lamp!

"Damn it! This is just too much bullying!"

The Son of Chaos manifested in fury from within the Magic Wishing Lamp, its eyes like forged yellow gemstones, brimming with killing intent.

"Heh."

Bernadette walked over and gave the Magic Wishing Lamp another kick, making it roll a few more times on the floor before she waved her hand and called it back.

"Are you done?" she asked coldly, glancing at the lamp.

These past two nights, the Son of Chaos had been completely unsettled. Both the night before last and last night, it had suddenly manifested from the lamp, sulked, and then silently returned inside.

Tonight, it was enraged enough to shout and scream. From its appearance, it seemed like it had been humiliated.

Was I the one who wanted to cause trouble?!

The Son of Chaos was utterly furious. Being sealed in the Magic Wishing Lamp was already a terribly unfortunate fate.

But these past two days, its situation had grown increasingly difficult.

The first two nights were still manageable—just a vague sense of being watched. The gaze that came from the stars, as if mocking, was irritating but not intolerable.

But tonight, that being actually lashed out across the starry sky, through the seal of the Magic Wishing Lamp, and struck it with a whip!

It didn't hurt and caused no real damage, but the insult was immense!

It was a child of The Original Creator, a mighty being even in the old days beneath the starry sky!

Though it had fallen from grace, that didn't mean anyone could step on it!

This wasn't just a whip—it was a slap to the face!

What made it worse was that it had tried to trace the source of the whip but was blocked by the starry sky and couldn't cross even half an inch, left raging helplessly in place.

The Magic Wishing Lamp's seal hadn't weakened from the blow either, meaning it had been whipped for nothing.

After its rage cooled, it gradually regained rationality and fell into deep thought.

Who was that existence toying with me?

To lash out across the starry sky with the power of the stars… could it be a Complete Great Old One?

Or perhaps a Higher-Dimensional Overlooker?

Only those two kinds could possess such power. But something didn't quite add up.

If they could reach across the stars and act upon reality through the barrier set up by the Lord of Mysteries, then they'd already be trying to influencing the real world, like the Mother Goddess of Depravity and the Mother Tree of Desire.

But there was no sign of their worship on this continent.

And they didn't wield powers of order or law.

If not them, then who?

The Son of Chaos carefully recalled the details of the past three nights. Perhaps this being wasn't playing around, but testing something?

It felt it had grasped the key point and made a reasonable deduction:

That nameless existence had probably stumbled upon its sealed self in the Magic Wishing Lamp, observed for a night, confirmed it couldn't fight back, and then made a move tonight to try something out.

As for why it could detect and target it, the answer was simple: that being, like itself, possessed the powers of order and law!

Those on the same pathway are mortal enemies. Great Old Ones sharing the same dominion are even more so!

No one wanted to share their authority, and merging was an instinct, an irresistible temptation.

The more the Son of Chaos thought about it, the more likely it seemed—and the more dangerous it felt.

In His current state, if a Great Old One of the same pathway really appeared, He would definitely not be a match. Even a True God of the same path might be able to devour Him.

No, He couldn't just sit around and wait for death any longer!

He had to try to save Himself.

The Son of Chaos' thoughts spun rapidly. He glanced at Bernadette, chuckled without saying a word, and returned to the Magic Wishing Lamp with a mysterious smile.

This, instead, made Bernadette uneasy, afraid that the Son of Chaos might pull off some trick again.

After all, this was a Grade 0 Sealed Artifact—even True Gods couldn't destroy it. It was extremely dangerous.

For now, the only option was to strengthen the seal and prevent the Son of Chaos from breaking free. Even if the probability was low, she couldn't take the gamble.

She laid down several layers of seals in succession, making it impossible for the Magic Wishing Lamp to move even slightly. Even if the Son of Chaos wanted to manifest from it, He was no longer free to do so.

After doing all this, Bernadette left the cabin and ordered the Dawn to change course, sailing toward the nearest Church of the Lord of Storms.

If the Son of Chaos really did break free from the Magic Wishing Lamp, then she would immediately throw the lamp into the Church of Storms and let the Lord of Storms and the other Seven Gods deal with it.

This was the worst-case scenario—and the future that had to be avoided at all costs.

Inside the Magic Wishing Lamp, the Son of Chaos silently observed Bernadette's actions, feeling quite pleased. His plan had worked.

He wanted to see whether that mysterious being could still target Him across the starry sky after the seal was reinforced.

If something truly unexpected happened, He would rather Bernadette throw Him into the headquarters of the Church of Storms. Even if He were suppressed by the Seven Gods, it was still better than being replaced and devoured.

This was also His contingency plan to avoid the worst outcome.

...

In the early morning, Hastur woke up from his large bed feeling especially refreshed.

Perhaps his thoughts last night about order and rules had helped him digest part of the Lawyer potion.

It was a good start.

He got up, opened the window, and took a deep breath of fresh air. The sunlight outside was perfect, and the gray fog had yet to taint the sky over Backlund—it was another beautiful day.

After washing up and having breakfast, Hastur locked his doors and windows, boarded a carriage, and headed for Backlund University.

Having taken the Lawyer potion, his learning ability had greatly improved. It was the perfect time to tackle the complex legal texts all in one go.

He believed that during the process of studying these legal nuances, his Lawyer potion would be further digested.

Upon arriving at Backlund University, Hastur was once again warmly received. He pulled five 10-pound banknotes from his pocket and handed them to the administrator, prepaying for his lessons.

This sum of money was enough to support more than half a year of study at Backlund University, even if Hastur attended daily.

Soon, a middle-aged professor named Wayne led Hastur to an empty classroom for a private lesson.

"All laws are man-made!"

"All laws have both a fair and impartial side, as well as a flawed one!"

"The original intent of all laws is for everyone to follow them, but there will always be situations beyond the scope of law!"

...

Right from the start, Professor Wayne presented a multi-layered definition of law, highlighting both its bright, just side and its flaws and limitations.

This kind of approach, not blindly promoting the supremacy and fairness of law, made Hastur nod silently in approval.

Seeing that this young baron wasn't angered by his seemingly bold statements, but rather listened with interest, Professor Wayne relaxed and allowed a smile to appear on his otherwise rigid face.

True law couldn't be all great and perfect, nor could it cover every aspect. Otherwise, there would be no need for the legal profession and judges could simply act like puppets and rule strictly according to the law.

If that were really the case, the judge profession could be abolished, and all authority handed directly to the police for instant capture and judgment, completely straightforward and time-saving.

It was precisely because of law's imperfections and shadows that the legal profession was needed to assist, observe, and correct from the side.

As a law professor who had devoted most of his life to the field, his pursuit of law was naturally for it to be supreme and fair.

But that wasn't realistic—at least not yet. The road ahead was long and full of responsibility.

Professor Wayne didn't want to mislead his student. However, if Hastur only wanted to hear about the purely righteous side of law, then that was the only part he would teach.

As for the rest, the young baron would have to learn and experience it through the frustrations and disappointments of society.

This was a student who didn't put nobility above all else and had a certain level of insight.

The more Professor Wayne taught, the smoother his lecture became. He no longer worried about Hastur's noble status.

The first class, two hours long, ended quickly with Hastur still wanting more.

Professor Wayne closed his book, wiped the blackboard clean, and smiled while holding the textbook: "Baron Campbell, I look forward to teaching you again next time."

Hastur stood up and gave a slight bow: "Professor Wayne, just call me Hastur. A teacher who earnestly imparts knowledge deserves the respect of every student."

Professor Wayne nodded and left with a smile.