As an NPC, having a lot of skills is quite reasonable, right?

After returning home, Moen first went to the corridor to exchange for the [Azure Foxfire], planning to pass it on to Lily after the imprint cooldown was over.

A day has passed, and I haven't seen the other two people in the house.

Moen went to the basement and pushed open the door, and a strange smell mixed with gunpowder and herbs hit him.

The sight before him made Moen's eyelids twitch.

Over at Elwin's side, a dozen or so modified [magical bombs] were neatly stacked on a shelf.

Because of the addition of snow mammoth ivory powder, these bombs now not only explode but also inflict frost damage, and Moen is already considering raising the price by a few silver coins.

On the other side, Green was even more extravagant, with a small mountain of potion bottles of various colors, including [Basic Berserk Potion], [Intermediate Recovery Potion], and [Cold Resistance Potion].

Green was slumped over the table, clutching an empty glass bottle tightly in his hand.

His dark circles were like a panda's, clearly indicating that he had exhausted himself to the limit.

"Do these two really have to fight so hard?" Moen smiled helplessly and gently draped a blanket over Green.

At this moment, Alvin approached mysteriously, pulled him aside, and whispered, "Mr. Moen, let me tell you, that guy called Night Owl is definitely up to no good."

She pointed to several spots above her head and in the corners: "I scanned the house today with my surveillance equipment. The living room chandelier, the paintings in the hallway, and even the doorknob of the front door—they've all been implanted with miniature [Secret Vision Runes]!"

"That person was just using the excuse of repairing the house; their real purpose was to monitor our every move!"

Upon hearing this, Mo En's face immediately contorted with exaggerated surprise: "What! Is that true? I never imagined he was this kind of person! This is terrifying!"

As he spoke, he dramatically clutched his chest, feigning surprise.

Alvin was speechless at Moen's exaggerated expression. Although she was a bookworm, she wasn't blind.

Who is this exaggerated acting performance for?

【Nohanville Black Rat Tavern - Secret Room】

In front of the huge crystal screen, an intelligence officer in charge of surveillance looked at Moen's expression on the screen and couldn't help but sneer: "Lord Night Owl, this Moen is indeed a brute who only has brute force. He actually thinks that a lecturer from the Star Pattern Academy can easily find out our arrangements."

Sitting on the sofa, Night Owl swirled his wine glass and cursed, "Idiot."

"Huh?" The intelligence officer was stunned.

"Who do you think he's putting on an act for? He's putting on an act for me." Night Owl pointed to Moen's seemingly terrified but actually completely unmoved eyes on the screen.

"The Eye of the Void that I personally placed by his bedside in his bedroom had already become ineffective the very first day we left."

"There were no warning signs, and even now, I still don't know how he did it."

Night Owl's tone carried a hint of excitement: "This whole show is just telling me: stop wasting your time, just get rid of this garbage and let everyone have some dignity."

The intelligence officer broke out in a cold sweat: "Then...then what do we..."

"Let's go." Night Owl waved his hand.

"Now that they've already discovered it, forcibly peeping would make Anmi seem too low-class."

"Yes, sir!" The intelligence officer didn't dare hesitate for a moment; the corpse of the last person to defy Night Owl had already been fed to the rats in the sewers.

Late at night, Moen lay in bed, feeling the faint magical probing completely disappear, and stretched with satisfaction.

"Heh, apart from that Void Eye which is indeed quite impressive, the rest are just illusions."

In fact, Moen didn't have any counter-surveillance skills; he relied on caution and a few little-known facts.

Any continuously functioning advanced magical rune will create an extremely weak etheric vacuum around it, which means that dust will not settle on it.

That day, he noticed that the carved corner of the headboard was unusually clean, standing out from the dust in other places. After a careful inspection, Moen finally discovered a small magical device that blended perfectly into the environment.

Moen threw it directly into the magic node in the basement, and the precious Eye of the Void was destroyed after being subjected to intense magical interference.

After resolving the surveillance issue, Moen reopened the system forum.

[Closed Beta Countdown: 00 days, 11 hours, and 59 minutes]

The posts refresh so fast it's dizzying.

Subject: "Can anyone tell me if the pants in this game have a physics engine? Can they be taken off? Urgent! Waiting online!" — Posted by: Crotch-Hidden Mine

Subject: Discussion on whether it's possible to commit suicide at the start of the game to get the first kill - Posted by: Ruthless Harashao

Moen was engrossed in reading when suddenly a familiar ID caught his eye.

Subject: "[Hardcore Analysis] Speculations on the 'Resurrection Mechanism': Beacon Lighthouse and Soul Anchor Point" — Posted by: Natural History · Carl

"Hey, isn't this old Karl?" Moen recognized the ID.

The bigwig who co-authored the Encyclopedia with him in his past life, a meticulous scholar among those who love research.

When Moen clicked on it, he found the article to be very well-reasoned, suggesting that the Spirit Beacon was a device similar to a "cloning chamber".

"Mostly correct, but the details are wrong." Moen tapped his finger and replied below: "The Spirit Beacon is not a clone, but a summoning of souls to reshape bodies. That's why resurrection in the Hall of Requiem requires payment, because each resurrection consumes a portion of the ley line magic they've mined."

After replying, Moen closed the forum and prepared to rest, because tomorrow would be a day that would be recorded in the history of the continent of Vangard.

……

Let's go back a few months.

In the heart of this continent lies Elysium, the City of Crowns.

A secret meeting of the highest level, the likes of which have not been held in seven hundred years, is taking place in the Divine Throne Hall.

Beside the enormous round table sat six figures shrouded in mist and holy light.

They represent the six major orthodox churches of the continent of Vangard: the Ring of Judgment, the Star-Patterned Mystic Academy, the Iron Oath War Hall, the Hall of Requiem, the Sacred Plains of Green Fields, and the Radiant Holy Court.

Another member was the Deep Shadow Secret Society, who had never accepted an invitation.

Just a few days ago, the seven major churches almost simultaneously received their first divine oracle in nearly a thousand years since God disappeared, and the content of the oracle was exactly what they were discussing today about the coming of God's gracious one.

"This is utterly absurd!" The representative of the Iron Oath War Hall, a burly commander clad in heavy armor, slammed his fist on the table. "Immortal? Ha! I'll chop off their heads, rip their guts out and feed them to the dogs, then let's see how they resurrect!"

"Hey, you guys playing with corpses, isn't that a trick you undead pulled? Trying to use the oracle's name to instigate a calamity of the undead?"

The representative of the [Hall of Tranquility] was shrouded in a pitch-black shroud, his voice hoarse and unpleasant: "Watch your words. This is a divine oracle from the God of End and Reincarnation, and the common will of the Seven Gods."

"The blueprints for the [Spirit Beacon] have been bestowed by my Lord. It is a beacon anchoring souls. Even if you take their corpses to feed the dogs, my Lord's divine power will protect their souls and keep them intact. If you wish to defy the divine decree, the Hall of Requiem does not mind tolling the death knell for the War Temple ahead of time."

"Want to fight? Come on!" The representative of the Iron Oath War Hall grinned and reached for the battle axe on his back.

"Silence." The Discipline Bishop of the Ring of Judgment, seated at the head of the table, spoke coldly.

"This is the Council of the Seven Gods, not your War Temple's arena. The authenticity of the divine oracle is beyond doubt, and the Judgment Throne of the Ring of Judgment has also received the same revelation."

"Hmph, the court still loves to give orders."

Seated to the right of the Discipline Bishop of the Ring of Judgment, the [Radiant Sanctuary] Bishop of the Sun smiled contemptuously and continued in a sarcastic tone:

"August, the oracle says that those with divine grace are messengers of the gods and should be guided. But I've heard that your Church of Judgment is already sharpening its knives, preparing to judge these messengers of God as heretics? What, even messengers of God must be tested by your Ring of Judgment?"

"The doctrine of the Glorious Church is love, not indulgence," August, from the Church of Judgment, retorted sharply, not giving an inch.

"These gracious ones are not bound by the law. If left unchecked, they will be a more terrible disaster than the beast tide. The Radiant Holy Court wants to influence them with love? Don't be ridiculous. Your hypocritical rhetoric won't even fool goblins."

"Who are you calling hypocritical?" The Sun Bishop of the Radiant Holy Court raised his voice by an octave, and the holy light behind him instantly became dazzling.

"I'm talking to you!" The phantom of the scales behind August also appeared, not to be outdone.

The divine spells from both sides were about to hit his face.

"Oh dear, let's all keep quiet for a bit." The Archdruid of [Aono Seihara] sighed helplessly, tapping his oak staff lightly on the ground, and a refreshing natural breeze dispelled the tense atmosphere.

"Ladies and gentlemen, the divine oracle has arrived, the first time in hundreds of years. No matter how we fight in ordinary times, before the will of God, we are all servants."

"The point isn't whether they are a disaster or not, but rather, why did God send them down?"

The sage from the Star Pattern Mystic Academy, who had been silently perusing ancient texts, adjusted his monocle: "According to astrological predictions, the world's barriers are thinning, and the Divine Graces may be some kind of corrective mechanism."

His arrogant gaze swept over the crowd: "The oracle mentioned that although they are immortal, they are extremely weak in the early stages and are subject to many restrictions of the laws, which means that they can be used."

Instead of arguing here, let's think about how to take control of this power.

As he spoke, he glanced meaningfully at the empty seat in the corner and sneered, "It's better than letting those cowardly rats snatch it first. Those guys have probably already caught a whiff of it and started moving."

"This is an opportunity, but also a threat," Auguste said, setting the tone as he withdrew his divine power.

"Since God requires us to build beacons of light, then we will build them; since God has endowed them with immortality, then we will acknowledge it."

"but."

His gaze was icy: "This doesn't mean we can let them run wild. We can't just issue them tasks, reward them, or treat them like mercenaries. If they dare cross the Church's bottom line..."

"Then kill them." The commander of the Iron Oath War Hall grinned, revealing a set of gleaming white teeth.

"Killing them once isn't enough, kill them a hundred times. They'll just revive anyway, so it's a good opportunity for new recruits to practice on."

"Agreed," the representative of Anhun Jingtang said softly.

"Then it's settled." The Grand Druid of Aono Seihara concluded, "From this moment forward, spirit beacons will be built in all regions, and a neutral to slightly friendly attitude will be maintained towards those blessed by God. This is probably a test from God for us, His agents."

The six figures gradually dissipated amidst the arguments and compromises, bringing this meeting, representing the highest level of the Vangard continent, to a close.

Back to the present, Moen stood on the terrace of Blackberry Manor, watching the giant countdown in the sky, visible only to him, reach zero.

[Closed Beta Begins]

Welcome to the continent of Vangard!

In the sky, countless meteors streaked across the heavens, falling towards every corner of the continent.

Moen smiled, straightened his collar, and turned to walk down the stairs.

"It's time to open the doors and welcome customers."