Sorcerer’s Handbook

“Could it be that my substitute was suddenly enlightened by the Gospel Book and ran off to work on its own?”

In a room at the Farewell Inn, Ashe sat on the bed, examining the spirit of his substitute in the palm of his hand. Due to vigorous development (daily use) and proper nourishment (being supplied with premium materials), the substitute spirit had already advanced to the two-wings stage, gaining an additional small wing. Although it still looked like a human infant, the quality of its pajamas and sleep hat had improved significantly, and it even had a pillow now.

Ashe had no doubt that the four-wings substitute spirit would carry a bed with it.

Facing Ashe’s question, the substitute spirit rubbed its eyes, yawned, and then turned its butt towards Ashe.

“‘If Ashe wants you dead in the morning, who dares keep you alive till evening’,” Igor said, sitting up straight in the chair, flipping through the Gospel Book. “The underground forum is flooded with discussions about you, people speculating about your Spellcasting Sect: prophecy, mental, fate, ritual, necromancy, chaos… Pfft, some even guess you’re from the justice sect.”

“What’s so funny about that? Don’t I look just?” Ashe responded angrily.

“If you represent justice, then I’m loyalty, Banjeet is maturity, Young Lady is purity, Lise is a bunny, and Harvey is grave grass.”

Hugging Ashe from behind, Lise said, “Why do I get compared to an animal?”

Harvey, with a cigarette in his mouth by the window, commented, “I don’t get it, but it sounds like a compliment.”

Igor continued, “According to the forum’s descriptions, Ashe is already considered a strong presence starting at the Sanctuary level. He follows the Future Ranking to kill Echoers because it’s part of a Miracle Ritual. Every future he realizes boosts his power rapidly. Once he accomplishes all the futures, he’ll become the Lord of Disaster, the bane of Revelation… The logic is sound, the reasoning accurate; I’m almost convinced myself.”

“Huh!?” Lise exclaimed, “Does that mean Dad is going to sleep with Aunty Qenna and Aunty Nona!?”

Ashe quickly ruffled Lise’s hair to avoid Annan’s death glare. Banjeet poured six cups of warm tea for everyone, sat down, and said, “It’s the first time I’ve seen a prophecy fulfilled so quickly.”

“Too hasty,” Annan said, touching her amethyst earring, her voice low. “It’s like a poorly managed company flaunting its wealth to reassure its employees and customers.”

“Exactly,” Igor added. “Even we can see that something’s wrong with the Weaving Festival. Other spellcasters, corporations, and families must be equally unsettled. Unlike us, those big organizations heavily rely on the Gospel to manage human resources, develop technology, and distribute benefits… They form the basic support for the Gospel. Once the seed of ‘the Gospel is unreliable’ is planted in their minds, it will cause a panic similar to a bank run, prompting them to quickly convert Gospel points into tangible benefits.”

“So, the Gospel not only needs to use Ashe to clean up this mess, but it also has to clean it up thoroughly, beautifully, and comfortably, for everyone to see, ensuring that only Ashe is implicated, while the Gospel remains pure forever.”

“For them, Ashe murdering Roger is enough to prove that the Gospel is still functioning normally, equivalent to major positive news.”

“Then who exactly impersonated Ashe and killed Roger?” Harvey asked, fiddling with his lighter but not lighting his cigarette. “And they did it exactly like what’s on the Evil Arts Ranking…”

“In this matter, maintaining the credibility of the Gospel benefits someone the most—that’s who the mastermind is,” Igor said. “And the credibility of the Gospel is closely tied to the city’s development, social stability, and corporate support. Therefore—”

“The Yisuo Royal Family,” Annan interjected. “I was wondering why they suddenly canceled Ashe’s wanted notice… Now they might actually fear catching Ashe because they can’t achieve their future goals if he’s taken in.”

She moved to sit beside Ashe and continued, “If it’s the Yisuo Royal Family, it’s not surprising they could pull this off. As you know, the more Gospel points you have, the more permissions the Gospel grants. From what I understand, the royal family likely has the highest level of access to the Gospel. Forget miracles; they can even request a Divine Intervention…”

As Annan spoke, she reached out to touch Ashe’s arm. When Ashe looked at her in confusion, Lise suddenly swooped in and playfully kissed him on the cheek.

“Wait, what are you all doing?” Ashe felt something was off. “Am I an ice cream cone or a doll to you? Why are you both touching and kissing me? Igor, is this your doing? … Igor?”

Ashe looked up to see the Con Artist immediately avoiding his gaze, not even glancing out of the corner of his eyes, his body trembling slightly. When he turned to Banjeet, he saw the young butler suddenly pulling out a notebook and writing furiously, as if he had transformed into a pig that could only type.

The Cult Leader turned to Harvey and noticed something strange. “Harvey, why can’t you seem to light your cigarette?”

The necromancer stared at the lighter in his hand. Every time he sparked a flame and brought it close to the catnip cigarette, his thumb instinctively released the button. When the lighter was pointed at the cigarette, his thumb couldn’t press down at all. Ashe had initially thought he was being considerate of Lise and Annan, but this behavior seemed more like a symptom of senility.

“Are you all being controlled?” Ashe grabbed Annan’s delicate shoulders and shook her. Annan looked at him in confusion but quickly regained her composure, holding his hand and saying, “This is normal; no one is attacking us.”

“Normal?”

“This is the unique feature of Nabistin,” Annan explained. “The Imperial Capital is a Boon of the Gospel, a celestial abode, a Trouble-Free Zone. Although the lower level is just the old city of Nabistin, it’s still embraced by the Imperial Capital, allowing it to enjoy the Gospel’s favor. That’s why so many people are willing to live in the underground city and stay in Nabistin…”

“So what exactly is this unique feature?”

“Don’t be impatient,” Annan said slowly, as if enjoying Ashe’s anxious expression. “In simple terms, we are all under the ‘Revelation’ of the Gospel. The Gospel doesn’t directly guide us, but it allows us to tap into its computational resources, giving us the keenest intuition to know exactly what we should be doing at any given moment.”

“What we are doing now is the most reasonable action to easily satisfy our surface desires.”

Annan turned to Harvey. “Harvey has always wanted to quit smoking but couldn’t, so under the ‘Revelation,’ he can’t light his catnip cigarette. Lise wants to get closer to you but is a bit shy, so only within the ‘Revelation’ does she dare to kiss you. And Igor is likely using mental willpower to resist the intuitive urges brought by the ‘Revelation.’”

“Wait!” Ashe exclaimed in panic, “Doesn’t this mean you’re all being controlled by the ‘Revelation’?!”

“No,” Annan explained, “We are not controlled by the ‘Revelation.’ Instead, a more farsighted, rational, and proactive version of ‘us’ is taking over. Everyone has negative traits like hesitation, laziness, and fear. Even if people know the right thing to do, they often don’t do it, can’t do it, or won’t do it. This is true even for spellcasters. The biggest difference between a talented person and an average one often lies in the amount of these negative traits they carry.”

“The essence of the Gospel Book is not just to find information but to help you take the ‘next step.’ When you don’t know how to move forward, the Gospel can guide you in all aspects of life—be it personal, emotional, spellcasting, work, research… even in something as dark as murder, the Gospel can provide you with target information.”

“But consulting the Gospel requires points, so the vast majority of the populace can’t enjoy such life consultation services. That’s why the ‘Revelation’ is so remarkable. Even if you don’t query the Gospel, by tapping into the Gospel’s computational resources and vast database, you can still make the best choices through intuition.”

“When I contemplate my next step, various action plans naturally spring up in my mind, analyzed for their feasibility and benefits, leading me to act immediately,” Annan said, winking at Ashe. “This is why Nabistin is called a Trouble-Free Zone—it’s as if simply following your intuition can guide you to a happy ending.”