Chapter 1312: Chapter 1312: Miracle - Thorns of the Moon
It felt as if the whole body was immersed in warm water, holding the Holy Grail, the body instinctively curled up. Consciousness was gradually slipping into a daze, and in a trance, people on the ground offered three tributes to the altar, while "her" laughter and whispers followed immediately. It was as if a woman was holding him, whispering in his ear:
[The crescent moon, the symbol of new birth, the beginning of the moon’s phases. In the ancient First Era, before the bygone days had arrived, mortals worshipped the crescent moon, desiring primal power. The ancient moon goddess blessed those under the crescent moon, enhancing all sorceries like initiating new things, forming bonds, and invoking energies during this time.]
[Outlander, you have encountered a miracle.]
[Magic - Dream of the Moon, learning failed, you could not enter the state of deep meditation.]
[Outlander, your Silvermoon, Red Moon, and Yellow Moon Spirit Runes have resonated with these ancient ruins.]
A momentary pause followed:
[You have received the crescent moon’s blessing.]
Feeling half-awake and half-asleep, Shard finally clearly saw the three tributes floating up from the ground, which were a verdant thorn headdress, an ancient parchment roll, and a crescent-shaped glowing yellow jade.
[Please choose a blessing.]
Curling up, Shard, following his most instinctual thought, reached out to touch the thorn headdress. "She" seemed really right behind Shard, her laughter so clear and enchanting.
The Ring of Fate unknowingly appeared above Shard. The ring body parallel to the lying Shard, and Shard could see through the hollow center of the gigantic wheel ring, just enough to see the three moons. This picture of the metallic rotating wheel ring centered with the moon possesses a strange beauty and mystery.
Moonlight shone on the Ring of Fate, and as the ring accelerated its rotation, a miraculous spiritual light gathered from the surrounding earth. The blessing from the ancient moon goddess, now in the Sixth Era, due to Shard’s three Moon Spirit Runes, manifested here.
Although Shard has not yet truly mastered the Yellow Moon and Red Moon as that vampire god suggested, at least he truly possesses the three moons, therefore, the moon goddess was also willing to reveal a bit of her hem...
The concentration of miracle elements brought about a brand new power, bathing in the moonlight, the glimmer throughout the ruins all gathered, finally inscribing the second spirit rune on Shard’s Ring of Fate’s five rings.
[Outlander, you have gained the Miracle Soul Rune - Thorns of the Moon.]
[You have learned the Arcane Technique - Thorns of the Moon. In narrow terrains like doors, windows, and passages, you can release a thorn bush to create an enclosed terrain, which is easier to destroy from the caster’s side and harder from the opposite side. If the spell effect is not canceled or destroyed, it will automatically disappear when the next nightfall arrives.]
[Using the power of Silvermoon to release Thorns of the Moon, evil fiends and undead cannot destroy it in any way, and the thorn bush possesses a Holy Light effect, causing a "Moonlight Burst" effect upon being broken, depending on the casting strength.]
[Using the power of the Red Moon to release Thorns of the Moon, attackers of the thorns will have their blood and spirit absorbed by the thorns; this effect cannot be exempted in any way.]
[Using the power of the Yellow Moon to release Thorns of the Moon, the thorn bush region is surrounded by a strong Chaos Aura, and upon breaking the thorns, the destroyer loses all spatial perception abilities for a short period.]
"Only destructible from the caster’s side" means, if Shard releases the arcane technique on all windows, doors, and vents of a room, no one can enter from the outside. Even the walls, in this situation, possess extremely difficult-to-destroy traits.
This arcane technique is associated with the Thorns of the Moon Spirit Rune, and the basis for learning is possessing any of the three Moon Spirit Runes. Its essence is somewhat akin to spatial blockade. And a Spirit Rune like "Thorns of the Moon" which has such a specific meaning, generally cannot be associated with other arcane techniques.
"It’s really a complex arcane technique, Five Rings, Second Spirit Rune. So if relying solely on touching ruins to obtain spirit runes, then the abilities of a Circle Sorcerer would be very limited."
The sound of drumbeats and prayers faded away, and Shard realized anew that he was lying on the snowy ground in the woods, gazing at the vast starry sky.
The Ring of Fate indeed appeared above him, and he was observing the three moons through the ring’s center.
"The moon is beautiful."
He said, and then received a response:
[You have peered into this land’s past memories, primal power surged, the moon and the earth resonating——]
[The silver moon illuminates the earth: for three days, the effects of Moonlight Energy Shaping Magic are enhanced, and the probability of acquiring a new moonlight magic increases.]
[The red moon illuminates the earth: for a month, when treading the land, your self-healing ability is greatly enhanced.]
[The yellow moon illuminates the earth: you have received the guidance ’The truth lies among the mountains’.]
The Holy Grail in hand shattered once again, although Shard could not know why this land of ruins could extract the sublimation incantation of the "Shadow of Silvermoon’s Guidance to the Final Direction", he at least gained new power.
He didn’t rush to get up immediately but was fascinated by looking through the Ring of Fate at the night, at the starry sky, at the moon:
"If I didn’t have the three Moon Spirit Runes, would I miss it this time?"
[And the truth you seek, isn’t it among the mountains?]
"She" was still speaking, but Shard did not answer. Instead, he lay on the snow, intoxicated by the starry sky above him.
After returning home that night, Shard unexpectedly had a good night’s sleep. Of course, this does not mean he generally slept poorly, but rather that this night’s rest was exceptionally good.
Upon waking early on Thursday morning, Shard could not even remember what he had dreamed about. He only felt mentally refreshed, and his physical state was excellent. He even woke up earlier than Mia that morning, and so, taking advantage of the time before the cat awoke—one minute before the milkman reached Saint Delan Square at 6:30—Shard used his finger to poke Mia’s head, waking the cat up, letting it experience what it felt like to be woken by someone else every morning.
Clearly, Mia’s mood that morning was not as good as Shard’s.
After breakfast, Shard first went to Old John’s place. Early in the morning, the old man at the pawnshop was reading the newspaper, and when Shard pushed the door open and entered, they talked a bit about the increasingly warm weather. The shop was quite warm, and Old John had a brown wool vest over his shirt. The fireplace flames danced joyfully; in fact, a fireplace wasn’t necessary here like in Shard’s home, but Old John believed that a fireplace made this place feel like an old-style pawnshop.
"Good morning, Detective, I’ve found the goods you wanted."
"So quickly?"
"[Sand of Time] isn’t a particularly hard relic to find. In places where temporal anomalies have occurred, yellow sand can often be seen all over the ground, and it’s easy to find this sand among those dust.
He said, taking out a finely-looking glass pepper shaker from beneath the counter, the jar containing yellow sand with a slight silver sheen. This reminded Shard of the Unclassified Level Relic [Time of Retrospection] he’d come into contact with, sand in that hourglass was pure silver.
"Four ounces. If you’re using it for research, pour it out through the shaker’s mouth. If you’re using it for battle, just smash the jar. I won’t charge you for the jar; just deduct the deposit you gave me on Monday and make up the remaining £120 balance."
Since it involved time, [Sand of Time] was among the more expensive Keeper of Secrets Level Relics. Even though the amount Shard wanted wasn’t much, it still wasn’t cheap.
"No problem."
Shard said, reaching for his money, while Old John cautiously pulled out an expensive-looking long brown lacquered wooden box:
"Also, the unicorn hair you brought has been made into a hairband. You can weigh it if you want, I didn’t keep any material during the process."
"No, no, I trust you, let’s skip the weighing."
Shard opened that wooden box and saw the white hairband lying on the velvet lining. Even though the surrounding light wasn’t weak, it was faintly glowing on its own:
"It’s really beautiful."
"Unicorn hair made into any accessory will be beautiful."
Old John said, picking up his newspaper again:
"Who are you giving this to? No girl would refuse a gift like this."
He teased, turning to the next page of the newspaper to continue reading the news about the air tax reform proposal:
"But Detective, I must warn you, trading unicorn products is against the Church of the Five Gods’ regulations. Even if you have channels, you shouldn’t take out such things lightly."
"Yes, I know. Oh, have you found out any information about ’Sand of Time Tainted by the Night’?"
Shard asked again, and Old John regretfully shook his head:
"Common items tainted by the night can be acquired in many ways, but it’s unprecedented for temporal dust to be tainted by the night. The information from the Guiding Light Hermitage doesn’t include what you need. Are you sure this material can really be made? Perhaps the Old God [Veil of Eternal Night], that legendary deity of darkness, could manage it, but we cannot."
This was the first time something appeared that even the Guiding Light Hermitage couldn’t find information about.
"Then, do you know which organization might have this information?"
"I can’t give you that answer, but at least I’m sure that in the Sixth Era, no such thing as you described has ever appeared. If you really want to find it, seek help from those ancient organizations with a long history."
So Shard also went to Midshire Fort that morning. Similarly, Granny Cassandra helped him acquire [Sand of Time] as well. Shard didn’t stay long at Cassandra Auction House, instead going to Serpent Heart Hospital. Through that painting in the basement of Serpent Heart Hospital, he entered the ancient sacrificial site atop the mountain peaks and found Sister Delphine, whom he hadn’t seen in over half a month.
The peak of the mountains was covered in silver and white, the vast snowy mountains inspiring endless reverie. Sister Delphine, as if knowing Shard would come, was already waiting to greet him at the entrance of the sacrificial site.
When Shard waved to greet the blind nun as he walked up the snow-covered rough stone steps, she clasped her hands together at her chest and nodded slightly in acknowledgment.
The snow reflected the sunlight, showing a silver hue, and the eye mask also reflected the snow’s glow. Complemented by the nun’s gray-black robe, she stood at the small entrance of the ancient stone sacrificial site, surrounded by rubble.
Shard could only say that the scene before him truly resembled an oil painting.