After weighing the bird-shaped golden ornament in his hands, Caine swiftly returned to reality, casually selected an open space, set up an altar, and performed the sacrificial rite. For the other secrets hidden within the city of the dead, Carldron, and for the indistinct figures drifting along the "River of Eternal Darkness," he had no immediate intention to delve deeper, as he had more pressing matters to attend to and a crucial question to ask the "Goddess of Night." Soon, he completed the ritual, uniting the candles with spiritual materials to form a "Gate of Sacrifice and Bestowal." Without hesitation, Caine placed the bird-shaped golden ornament into the wind, allowing it to pass through the gently opening, mysterious gate and vanish into the boundless darkness. The very next moment, he became acutely aware of himself being forcibly drawn into a dream. At the heart of the dream stood a Gothic palace that seemed to merge seamlessly with the surrounding darkness—its details exquisite, its hues subdued yet undeniably magnificent. Klein walked through clusters of night-scented stocks and passed through the palace, moving through the deep stillness. At the deepest part of the hall, the "Goddess of Night" sat in an ancient, high-backed chair, still dressed in her layered yet uncluttered deep black gown. The shimmering points on her gown reflected with the gleams of the palace's dome, walls, and columns, creating a quiet, dreamlike expanse of starry sky. The goddess's face, veiled in layers of delicate fabric, held a golden bird-shaped ornament and slowly rose, descending the stairs until she stood before Klein. Her voice echoed like a gentle nocturne: "What would you like to know?" Klein respectfully removed his hat and inclined slightly. "I would like to know whether the gray-white mist shrouding the 'River of Eternal Darkness' is connected to that 'Master of the Enigmatic'—that is, the 'Fu Sheng Xuan Huang Tian Zun.'" Although the head of the Goddess of Night was not clearly visible, it immediately gave Klein the impression that she had smiled: "Yes, and not only is the River of Eternal Darkness shrouded in gray-white mist, but the city behind the gate in Banxi Port, as well as the entire western continent, is likewise enveloped in this gray-white mist." Klein hesitated slightly and asked: "Is this a seal?" The dream projection of the Goddess of Night nodded in agreement. "Yes, except for the Source Citadel and the Sea of Chaos, all the other source essences have been sealed by that 'Master of Mysteries' onto the western continent." Has the Goddess of Heaven sealed the River of Eternal Darkness, the Nidus, the City of Calamity, the World of Shadows, the Land of Disorder, the Wasteland of Knowledge, and the Key of Light onto the western continent? Does that seem rather excessive? What a grand gesture... It's no wonder that the city behind the door in Banxi has taken on the very essence of the old Metropolis. It seems the city of calamity has influenced not only the real-world city, but also Banxi, and in turn, has brought about certain transformations in both. Klein was both enlightened and awestruck. When he first saw the scene behind the door in Banxi, he had suspected a connection to the Western Continent. Given that Banxi is the seat of the "Red Angel" Medici family, he had further speculated that the scene behind the door was a reflection of the "City of Calamity" itself. After a moment of silence, Klein openly expressed his feelings, exhaled deeply: "The might of that 'Master of Mysteries' surpasses my expectations. "How could such a being—called a pillar of the cosmos—have quietly vanished?" The dream projection of the "Goddess of Night" shook her head: "Far from silent. From the current clues, we can infer that He fell alongside the ancient 'God' of old. The remains of that "God" formed the first "Profane Tablet" within the "Chaos Sea," and beside it lay the singular nature of the "Theft Path." That is to say, during the mid-first age, the "Mysterious Sovereign" engaged in an exceptionally intense yet quiet battle with that "God," ultimately both perishing in the clash. This explains why, when the ancient Sun God emerged from the "Chaos Sea," he possessed or nurtured the singular nature of the "Theft Path"—a nature torn from the "Mysterious Sovereign" by the ancient "God" itself. As Klein's thoughts flowed, he slightly puzzled, asking: "Why did they wish to destroy one another? Being both pillars and belonging to distinct paths, they should not have irreconcilable conflicts that could not be resolved." The voice of the "Night Goddess" in her dream-projection was soft and serene: "Convergence is instinctual. The higher the level, the stronger the instinct." "The 'Mysterious Sovereign' and the ancient 'God' are inexorably converging, uniting into a cosmic embodiment—essentially, the innate nature of the primordial Creator." All the more powerful, the more frantic? Beyond cunning, strength, terror, and wisdom, does the 'Fu-Sheng-Xuan-Huang Celestial Sovereign' possess this other facet? Kline mused: "In essence, should the 'Mysterious Sovereign' and the ancient 'God' be considered different aspects of the primordial Creator?" The Dream Projection of the 'Goddess of Night' spoke in a soothing tone: "It might be more accurate to liken them as different personae of the same existence." "The primordial Creator was both the originator and the finalizer of the cosmos—day and night, sacred light and fallen abyss, the embodiment of all opposing concepts and symbols." "Therefore, He inherently possesses an uncontrollable tendency toward division, and once divided, a powerful drive toward reunification emerges." Within the more ancient history than the era in which we once lived, the primordial Creator, still in slumber, had naturally splintered into multiple personae—each also in a state of dormancy—yet beginning to indirectly influence the world through their own powers and extraordinary attributes, laying the groundwork for the true, decisive fragmentation that would occur upon the Creator’s eventual awakening. Among these, the most powerful and dynamic are "God" and "The Master of Mysteries," the latter known by another title in the West. During the early phase of the First Age, these personae had each acquired additional, multiple primordial essences through distinct means, intensifying their innate tendency toward cohesion until it became uncontrollable, prompting them to act upon one another. According to the studies of "The Ancient Sun God," the Pillars represent the highest level of stability in their own state. Should any of the Old Days surpass this threshold—even by merely incorporating one additional primordial essence—they would inevitably be subject to the force of cohesion and unable to resist it. The specific details of that battle remain unknown, even to the Seven Radiant Beings of the Spirit Realm. We only know that following it, the two foundational Old Ones completely vanished, and all other primordial essences outside of the "Chaos Sea" and "Source Citadel" were sealed by the power of the "Source Citadel" to the Western Continent—the region once ruled by the "Lord of Mysteries." This arrangement gave rise to a problem: until the seals on the Western Continent were lifted and the "Lord of Mysteries" and the "God" reemerged, no Sequence-0 entity in the world could rise as an Old One to oppose the Outer Gods. As the End draws near, this issue compels every True God to cultivate either a "Lord of Mysteries" or a "God," and it is likely that the previous incarnations of both the "Lord of Mysteries" and the "God" will awaken within them. "Ah... So the 'Heavenly Sovereign' deliberately sealed the other primordial essences, intending to prevent the Sequence-0 True Gods from deliberately bypassing their respective paths and thus extinguishing the emergence of a new 'Mysterious Master'? As long as a new 'Mysterious Master' arises, there's a high probability that He will revive and fully awaken. How incredibly cunning and ruthless! In a way, this arrangement is actually immune to discovery—indeed, the more people know about it, the more inclined they become to swiftly and promptly elevate a 'Mysterious Master' to ensure they don't lose their respective primordial essences over the years and thus fail to become the old-day deities. The more克莱恩 thinks about it, the more he finds the 'Fu Sheng Xuan Huang Heavenly Sovereign' terrifying. He silently murmurs: 'Indeed, a pillar capable of bringing the 'God of Light' to this very predicament.' Then, he asks: 'Why wasn't a 'Mysterious Master' established during the Fourth Era?' The answer to this question, he already knew—because over time, the wills of the original creators, the distinct personae of "The Celestial Sovereign" and "The Divine," have been steadily weakening. The closer the world draws to the end, the weaker these wills become, and the more likely later generations are to resist, to suppress them, so as not to lose their own identities entirely. The fact that Adam waited until recently to be elevated to the rank of "The Idealist" demonstrates this clearly. "The Death God was also forced into a corner—on one hand, the apocalypse is only a few thousand years away, and on the other, the 'River of Eternal Darkness' is sealed by the 'Celestial Sovereign,' making it impossible to attempt control. How treacherous, how unjust! Kline couldn't help but criticize the 'Celestial Sovereign' once again in his mind. The Quaternary is also influenced indirectly through sealed sources—each one separated by its own seal. That's why Adam said I don't have a deep understanding of Quaternary history. So, it seems that Banxi Port retains Elven customs not only because it was once an Elven settlement, but due to additional factors as well. Caine thought for a few seconds, then smiled and said, "I think I understand now. Is that why you've been helping me all along?"