Port Priz, within a warehouse undergoing reconstruction. After several days, Folsie once again met her teacher, Dorian Gray Abraham. "Are you ready?" Dorian asked in a steady tone. At their previous meeting, he had informed Folsie of the requirements for the fourth rank in the Apprentice Sequence—"Seer Mage"—and had urged her to prepare accordingly. "Almost—probably sufficient," Folsie replied, with only modest confidence. The promotion ceremony for "Seer Mage" is relatively straightforward, though this simplicity is the opposite of complexity, not the counterpart of difficulty—Folsie herself would have preferred to pursue a different path. —The ceremony requires the aspirant to seal a being of half-divine status with a clear adversarial stance. The more independently accomplished without external aid, the more effective the ritual becomes. As for the target's status, any entity of at least half-divine rank qualifies, and its actual rank does not materially affect the ritual's outcome. Upon hearing the student's response, Dorian nodded slightly. "That will do—indeed, for a Sequence 5 extraordinary who relies entirely on their own strength, the ritual is truly quite demanding. Seeking appropriate assistance is essential, but one must strike the right balance, not exceeding the established limits; otherwise, the ritual will surely fail." Previously, he had advised Folshe to borrow only one "Level 1" seal object, ideally without even summoning a helper at the level of Saint. Folshe replied somewhat vaguely: "I only intend to make one request to Mr. The Fool—specifically, to increase the likelihood of successfully advancing after taking the magical potion. This is more akin to securing good fortune at the moment of drinking the potion, rather than receiving protection during the actual sealing of the half-divine being. Beyond that, I will make use of the painting you mentioned." This painting was not the "Level 0" seal object, "The Divine Scroll," but rather a "Level 1" seal object belonging to the Abraham family, known as "The Devil's Oil Painting." During the Quaternary period, when many members of the Abraham family had ascended to the rank of "Master Magus," they created the "oil painting" to seal off semi-divine beings at the corresponding divine levels. However, after suffering the assault by the Aurora Society and losing a significant amount of records, Dorian Gray is no longer certain exactly how many terrifying beings the "Painting of the Demons" still seals—only that there are still several, and more than one. Originally, his plan had been to release a semi-divine being that had become completely insane and acted solely on instinct, using it as the ritual focus for his students—an undertaking far less demanding than confronting wise and rational saints, and one that fully met the ritual requirements. Yet he had not anticipated that Fotherse had instead decided to directly utilize the "Painting of the Demons." Dorian furrowed his brow, reminding, "The 'Devil's Painting' itself only has containment and sealing effects—it doesn't actively influence its target. In other words, you have to personally insert demi-gods of semi-divine level into the 'Devil's Painting.' " Folth nodded, indicating he understood this point: "Teacher, you've mentioned that the ability to 'record' itself doesn't count as external assistance." "Exactly," Dorian Gray replied with full confidence. "If the very ability to 'record' were considered external assistance, then hardly any 'Traveller' would be able to advance—after all, 'recording' is the most fundamental ability a disciple possesses before reaching demi-god status. Once it's eliminated, Folth would be left merely running from one thing to another, with little capacity to engage enemies." "Theoretically true, yet the number of demi-god-level abilities you can record is at most four or five," Dorian said, not entirely reassured. Before he had finished speaking, he thought of the "Knight of Fools" and his attendants, and felt a slight sense of reassurance. "If the elements are well matched, success is certainly possible—only a creature driven by instinctual madness." Vorth was convincing both his teacher and himself. Dorian gave a barely perceptible nod, said nothing further, and immediately summoned his contracted creature, the music-loving Malmos, retrieving the primary and auxiliary materials for the "Sorcerer" potion, then prepared a bottle of the "Sorcerer" elixir on the spot for the student. "Should the sealing fail, and if the potion and glass vial fuse into a sealed form, you need not force it down—by simply appealing to the 'Knight of Fools,' you can restore its exceptional properties." Dorian still felt a bit uncertain and added this reminder before handing the elixir to Vorth. Within the glass vial, layers of starlight shimmered, as though the celestial Milky Way had been captured inside the potion. "Hmm." "Vhale nodded firmly, emphasizing that she absolutely would not worry about the potions being wasted. She had already prepared a contingency plan: should the half-divine beings released fail to be sealed, she would immediately 'teleport' away and make a plea to the 'Fool,' asking Him to handle the matter. Dorian then produced an oil painting from his suitcase, depicting a series of highly abstract patterns that were utterly incomprehensible—mere moments of prolonged viewing could induce dizziness, nausea, and mental fatigue. These were precisely the 'Devil's Paintings' that sealed countless terrifying creatures. 'If you succeed in your advancement, I have one request,' Dorian said seriously to Vhale. 'On the night of the full moon, listen carefully to what the 'Gate'先生 has to say, and ask Him why He does so.' The members of the Abraham family still haven't fully accepted that the curse befalling them stems from their ancestral lineage, believing that the "Gate" gentleman might not fully grasp the consequences of His plea for help. They yearn to completely understand the truth of the matter. "Very well," Folshe responded without hesitation to the teacher's request. Then, she took the "Devil's Painting" and transported it to the Prizh port, arriving deep within a vast, uninhabited desert. This way, should the ritual go awry, she would have ample time to address the issue without disrupting the lives of ordinary people. After inspecting the surroundings and her own preparations, Folshe inserted the "Devil's Painting" into the ground. Immediately, she clasped her hands together, bowed to the "Knight of the Fool," and prayed for an increased success rate in her elevation after consuming the magical potion. Almost without delay, she saw a shimmering gray-white mist, knowing that the "Knight of the Fool" had already responded. After a moment's hesitation, Folshe finally overcame herself and produced the pre-mixed herb powder, scattering it toward the "Devil's painting." Then, she recited the incantation that unlocked the spell—a spell designed to release a single being. Silently, the floating herb powder settled entirely upon the painting, spinning rapidly around a central point. As it spun, the surface of the painting became ethereal, as though a deep vortex were forming within it. Suddenly, a hand—deeply greenish-black, marked with signs of decay—emerged from within the painting, reaching outward into the world beyond. Folshe's body instantly grew cold, as if she had plunged into a lake that had frozen and cracked. This sudden chill cleared her mind, yet simultaneously severed her sense of connection to her body; despite her strenuous efforts to move her arms and legs, she could not succeed. At that moment, Folsie seemed to have returned to her former state—when, each night, she wrote books and slept during the day—during which she often felt as though she had woken up, yet remained utterly immobile, as if pressed down by an invisible being. Although the terrifying creature within the "Painting of the Demon" had not yet fully escaped, its very presence, exerting influence through divine power, had already stripped Folsie of most of her strength to resist. Once the creature fully broke free from the painting, Folsie would even lose control simply by gazing upon it. The gap between them, in certain respects, was vast and unimaginable. Gradually, Folsie's consciousness began to blur. She often felt fully awake, raised her arms, and took steps—only to realize, in a flash, that these were merely her own imaginings. Her body grew colder and colder, and the sensation of being pressed down by an invisible force became increasingly vivid. Fortunately, she had a number of half-gods providing her with timely intelligence, allowing her to close her eyes just in time and avoid gazing at the "Devil's Oil Painting," otherwise the consequences would have been dire. Using meditation techniques to maintain a steady awareness, Folshe counted down in her mind—according to the hint given by the "World" gentleman, she knew that the terrifying creature would fully detach from the "Devil's Oil Painting" in exactly five seconds. 4…3…2…As the final second approached, a phantom book appeared within her eyes, swiftly flipping through its pages until it settled on one particular page. 1! As soon as she finished her silent count, she suddenly spread her arms wide. Instantly, blossoms of peach flowers drifted down around her, vibrant and colorful. The deep green and black hands that had been about to grasp her neck instantly recoiled, blocked by a lush, flourishing grove of peach trees, then finally separated by the mountain peak at the far end of the stream, leaving only a small cave through which they could attempt to extend outward. This is a fairy tale magic recorded by Fols from the "Recluse" lady, known as: "The Source of the Peach!" It creates a secluded, hard-to-reach barrier, isolating a space from the outside world. Seizing this moment, Fols, who had barely regained control over her body, drew out a queen piece from the chess set of Rosel and threw it toward the Source of the Peach, toward the mountain passage through which the stream flowed. This is another fairy tale magic she has recorded, called: "The Chessboard of Time!" Its effect is to slow down the target's movements, as though they had entered a region where time flows at a different pace. With a soft *thud*, as the queen piece landed, the dark, jade-like hand, which had been struggling to break through the "Peach Source" barrier, instantly shifted from an outward projection to a slow, pulsing motion. Fols didn't even glance at the effect—she used her "Invisible Hand" to grasp the "Devil's Oil Painting" stuck in the sand pile and pressed it firmly against the mountain passage. After just a few seconds, the palm of that dark greenish hue resumed its normal form, and its movements became incredibly swift, launching directly toward the Tao Yuan and colliding with the oil painting. As the painting trembled, the terrifying creature pierced through its surface and entered within. Folshe felt a surge of relief and immediately recited the incantation once more, sealing the outer ward of the "Devil's Oil Painting." Fortunately, the half-divine being that had been trapped earlier had become uncontrollable, reduced to mere frenzy—lacking any sense of awareness. It remained to be seen whether, after consuming the magical potion, it would suddenly hear the calls of "Mr. Door." Folshe, still mentally alert, produced the bottle of "Master Mage" potion and swallowed it whole.