I loaded the Mysticism panel.

Ares took out a palm-sized iron box from a hidden compartment next to the armrest of the chair and placed it on the round table.

The metal box lid was opened, revealing a black velvet cloth lining the inside, on which lay six bullets.

The warhead has extremely fine etchings arranged on the conical surface to form a complete ring of micro-inscriptions.

Enchanted Bullet, Richard's heart raced.

He had seen this kind of thing at Old Bige's place.

The bullet has a silver casing and a lead-silver alloy bullet, with exorcism inscriptions engraved on the bullet's surface.

But the enchanted bullets in Old Big's box only had one layer of inscription rings.

The six coins Ares took out had three layers of inscribed rings.

Between the three layers of inscribed rings are two extremely fine silver wires, forming three concentric circles, each engraved with inscriptions.

"Triple Ring Enchantment Bullet." Ares's voice came out muffled from the copper mask.

He pointed at the bullet with his index finger.

"The first ring is a standard exorcism inscription, which causes direct burns to the ethereal body upon impact."

As you all know, this is the effect of single-ring bullets on the market.

"The second ring is an enhancement ring, which amplifies the burning effect of the first ring and extends the duration of the burn."

"The third ring is a special effects ring..."

He deliberately kept them in suspense.

The effect is "anchoring".

Upon impact, the target etheric body is pinned to its original position for ten seconds, unable to undergo displacement or phase transition at the etheric level.

To put it simply, once you're hit, there's no escape. The spirit can't hide behind the veil or disperse into mist.

Richard was a little envious.

The enchanted bullet effect comes from the bullet's own inscription and does not depend on the archer's aether.

All you need to do is fire and hit the target, and the inscription will activate automatically.

This means that even a newcomer, as long as they have this kind of ammunition, can deal with spirit targets that are far beyond their own level.

Of course, this is all on the premise that you can hit the target.

Ares placed the tin box on the table, and Richard's gaze naturally fell on the other's hand.

He noticed that the other party hesitated noticeably when opening the metal box.

This is a very small detail, but it can reveal a lot.

It was the same when Old Big took out that little iron box at the underground firing range and showed him the standard single-ring enchanted bullet.

They carefully displayed their savings, which they had kept for a long time and were reluctant to use.

Richard began to make plans in his mind.

If Ares were a hunter at the Lesser Proficiency level, a three-ring enchanted bullet wouldn't be such a rare find for him.

For minor proficiency users, enchanted bullets are more of a "labor-saving tool" than a "necessity".

A junior expert takes out a level 3 enchanted bullet to exchange for information, his attitude being that of "casually tossing over some gadgets".

But Ares's posture is different, which is quite interesting.

"I have six here." Ares pushed the tin box toward the center of the round table.

"Whoever has the latest survey report on the 'Ash Belt' in the northern Glasgow moors, or can provide information on safe routes within the Ash Belt, can take these enchanted bullets."

Richard had no recollection of the name "Ash Belt".

The northern moors of Glasgow, towards the Gaelic Heights, are far from the capital.

He had not read the relevant content.

But judging from Ares' tone, this "ash belt" is clearly a dangerous area, so dangerous that a "safe route" is required to enter.

Ares wanted to go in.

What are we going in for?

Richard didn't know, and didn't intend to ask.

Dionysus put down his wine cup.

"I don't have the survey report for the ash zone."

He took out a flat tin box from a hidden compartment in his chair, a size larger than Ares's.

The tin box was opened, revealing a piece of parchment folded with exquisite precision.

He unfolded the parchment, and the surface was covered with symbols and diagrams.

"This is a complete 'sensory shielding' technique," Dionysus said.

"After the procedure, the target cannot be locked by any remote sensing technique for six hours."

This includes tracking of destiny fingerprints, etheric remnant regression, and directional positioning by spirit messengers—all of these methods have failed.

He pointed to a symbol on the parchment with his index finger.

"This spell can be used on friendly units. The medium is three drops of the caster's own blood, a hair from the target, and plenty of ether."

The procedure takes approximately fifteen minutes, requires no special venue, and can be performed independently by the practitioner.

"What I want in exchange..." Dionysus picked up his wine glass and swirled the liquid inside.

"A temporary pass to the area above the third floor of the Imperial Capital University Library, or a contact who can help me get a pass."

Richard's ears perked up.

The area above the third floor of the Imperial University Library.

When he last went there, the old lady at the door said that "additional applications are required for areas above the third floor".

He only stayed on the first and second floors at the time and did not try to go up to the third floor.

It now seems that even this "Dionysus" cannot obtain normal access to anything above the third floor.

What exactly is hidden up there?

Richard began to assess Dionysus's strength.

He didn't recognize all the spells on the parchment, but he could understand the general structure.

Dionysus himself said that practitioners could complete the task independently.

His ability to write out the entire surgical procedure demonstrates that he is at least a senior practitioner.

But more importantly, it's what he wants to change.

Temporary access pass for areas above the third floor of the Imperial University Library.

This information, in turn, revealed that he had no other way to get in.

A junior expert shouldn't find themselves in such a predicament.

Prometheus also moved.

He took a cloth bag from a hidden compartment in the chair.

The bag was small, tied with a hemp rope, and made a slight clinking sound when placed on the round table.

He untied the hemp rope and emptied the contents of the cloth bag onto the table.

Five small glass bottles.

Each bottle is only the size of a thumb, with the opening sealed with wax, and contains a strange, dark liquid.

Richard keenly sensed the scent of the contents of the bottle.

Heavier, colder, and more...ancient than ether.

"Deep etheric condensate." Prometheus deliberately lowered his voice to a hoarse tone.

"This is a highly concentrated condensate that naturally precipitates from deep within the curtain, about 0.3 ml per bottle."

"It has many uses: it can accelerate breakthroughs in meditation, serve as a catalyst for techniques, and repair damaged bodies. But each bottle can only be used once; once it's gone, it's gone."

Five bottles.

He put the cloth bag away, and the five small bottles were neatly arranged on the table.

"I need to exchange the internal records regarding the ruins of the Silent Abbey in Carmarthenshire."

Any form is acceptable: logs, letters, survey notes, or even dictated transcripts.

Richard also had no recollection of the "Silent Monastery".

But he noticed a detail: Prometheus said he wanted to "record it internally".

He should have already seen the publicly available information about the Silent Monastery; it's not enough.

What he wants are the things that haven't been made public.

What might be recorded in the internal records of an abandoned monastery?

He had heard far too many dark stories about the monastery.

Richard kept this information in mind.

Based on the previous reasoning about Dionysus, he believed that Prometheus probably hadn't even reached the level of minor mastery.

He wants to replace the internal records of the "Silent Monastery".

Any form is acceptable: diaries, letters, survey notes, oral transcripts—we welcome all submissions.

This attitude suggests that he only has a vague direction regarding the monastery, without any concrete steps to take.

Now, all three of them have set up their "stalls".

Each has its own needs and its own priorities; this is how the roundtable truly operates.

The three people revealed their needs to each other, and the needs themselves were the most valuable intelligence.

The most important intelligence he gleaned from this information was the approximate strength levels of these three individuals.

The weight that had been hanging over Richard's heart slowly lifted.

The three core members who spoke the most and offered the heaviest prices are probably all practitioners, at most just barely touching the threshold of minor expertise.

The actual distribution of combat power on that round table was a level lower than he had originally estimated.

Hecate is a different matter.

Her position is "host," at least a junior expert, and possibly higher, but she doesn't necessarily participate in the show herself.

These are the players who will be taking the stage.

Richard slightly adjusted his posture.

He had originally planned to present himself as a humble, promising newcomer whom the other party would be willing to "cultivate long-term," but now he can adjust his approach slightly.

His opponent was stronger than him, but not ridiculously so.

At most, he's just a group of people who started earlier than him, have better equipment, and have wider access to information. They're far from the people he imagined who could easily crush him.

Dionysus spoke first.

"Ares, I do not have the survey report for the Ash Belt."

He placed the wine glass on the armrest of the chair.

"But I heard that last month a hunter squad came back from the edge of the Ash Belt, going in five times and coming out three times, with three returning alive."

They sold the route to a middleman in Edinburgh named Lauren, who ran an office in the Old Town.

Ares nodded, then hesitated.

"Lauren," he repeated the name, "Edinburgh's Old Town."

"Yes, but I'm not very familiar with him, so I can't guarantee he'll be willing to sell."

Ares nodded and didn't ask any further questions.

He closed the metal box, but didn't put it back.

Leaving it on the desktop indicates that the transaction is still open.

"This clue is a favor to you," Ares said to Dionysus.

"Next time you need fire support, you can come to our team."

Dionysus raised his wine cup in response.

He then turned his gaze to Prometheus.

"Prometheus, your five vials of condensate."

"If you're willing to open it up, I can trade you two bottles for a perception shielding spell."

"It can be disassembled."

Prometheus's voice was still very hoarse.

"But I don't need the perception shielding technique; I'm not afraid of being found."

The words were spoken casually, but Richard sensed a certain confidence in them.

Not afraid of being tracked, either you have enough strength or power that even if the trackers find you, they can't do anything about it;

Either he was already in a state of "it doesn't matter since he's already been found" or he was already in a state of "it doesn't matter since he's already been found".

It seems my assessment of Prometheus's strength has to be moved to the pending stage.

"Then what do you want?" Dionysus asked.

"The records of the Silent Monastery," Prometheus repeated. "I only need this."

"I don't have that."

"Then let's not make the deal for now."

Prometheus pushed the condensate back to the center of the table.

"Keep them for now. Whoever can give me the monastery's records, all five bottles belong to him."