Hearing Lucian's question, Elven Empress Aglaya considered for a moment before replying: "Time-and-space legendary materials are extremely rare. Our people did once maintain a collection, but they were used separately in the forging of legendary artifacts and the construction of labyrinths, so none remain. If you wish to obtain similar materials, I currently know of only four places where they can definitively be found. The first is the 'Azure Secret Key' held by the Kotau Merfolk Emperor…"
The current Kotau Merfolk Emperor was none other than the "Lord of the Endless Ocean," a peak Legendary existence for whom all sea territories served as his personal domain. Upon hearing this, Lucian merely nodded slightly without offering any response.
Aglaya continued: "Beyond that, the Dark Council's ancient Time Dragon, Danisos, is itself the finest time-and-space material. If there are other ancient Time Dragon remains in the Dragon Graveyard within the Dragon Marshes, they should also be serviceable. However, dragons are already a rare race, and Time Dragons are the most precious among them. In the entirety of recorded Elven history, no more than five Time Dragons have ascended to the ancient stage. So this too would be very difficult."
Listening to the Elven Empress's account, Lucian furrowed his brow slightly — this didn't align with his intentions or his nature.
Aglaya shifted her tone: "Compared to the first two choices, the remaining two paths are considerably easier. Within the Abyss lies a hidden plane that our Elven ancestors named the 'Chaotic Starfield.' At its core, a 'Spacetime Stone Slab' naturally condenses. Once it is taken by someone, the entire plane collapses and hides itself, becoming impossible to find. Only after a very long passage of time will it recondense its core and resurface."
"Our Elven people once obtained a Spacetime Stone Slab, which we used to construct a vital component of our labyrinth. As long as the demons of the Chaotic Starfield have not advanced to Sovereign, the Spacetime Stone Slab will definitely be there."
A demon's advancement was entirely different from that of mages, knights, druids, and other professions. On the surface, it relied on devouring opponents of equal rank, but in essence it was about receiving feedback and rewards from the Abyss. Thus, upon unifying a particular layer of the Abyss, the core power of that plane would be bestowed upon the demon lord, boosting its strength and allowing it to advance to Sovereign.
As for the Chaotic Starfield layer, if a demon had already become Sovereign, that meant the Spacetime Stone Slab had undoubtedly fused with it!
"The Chaotic Starfield?" Lucian turned the name over in his mind. The Arcane Council's records of the Abyss had never mentioned this plane — nor had those of the ancient magical empires!
Atlandt also showed a hint of confusion, clearly having never heard of the name.
The Elven Empress smiled: "Precisely because the Chaotic Starfield hides itself by collapsing, no one knows of it except the ancestors who stumbled upon it by chance. If you are interested, Evans, I will tell you how to find it."
"Then allow me to express my gratitude in advance," Lucian said promptly.
Aglaya transmitted the intelligence to him through a secret message technique, then said: "The fourth location is the 'Silent Hell.' Before his disappearance, the previous 'Frost Duke' Tivtidis obtained a most peculiar 'Star Core' in the 'Star Tomb.' It is certain that this Star Core still lies hidden somewhere within the Silent Hell — perhaps Tivtidis intended to use it to revive himself. The current Ice Duke is searching for it diligently."
The intelligence about Tivtidis's demise at the combined hands of Rhein and Saer de had not been relayed to the Elven people by the Arcane Council, as there was nothing important enough to warrant it.
"Revive himself…" Lucian clicked his tongue inwardly. Given the "Lord of Silver" Tivtidis's methods, it was entirely possible he had made such preparations. But bad luck was bad luck — he had encountered Rhein, who could summon the power of the Silver Moon, and Saer de, who wielded the "Light of Judgment." Under that dual assault, no Legendary being besides a quasi-god could harbor any hope of resurrection.
This cunning, treacherous arch-devil had been plagued by misfortune ever since being sealed by Maskelyn and the others beneath the Altor reflection in the Land of the Dead. First, his plans were disrupted by Lucian, the transmigrator. Then he fell into someone else's schemes. Even in death, he never managed to piece together what had truly happened. It had to be said — he was a tragic figure.
Collecting his thoughts, Lucian rose to express his gratitude once more, stating that he would choose carefully. The ancient Time Dragon had no grudge against him, neither old nor new — killing it for materials was simply not in his nature. The Lord of the Endless Ocean was the same; it would clearly not hand over the Azure Secret Key simply because Lucian showed up. That left only two options: the Chaotic Starfield and the Silent Hell.
The latter would very likely mean encountering the "Lord of Hell" Mardimoth, and fighting on hostile ground at that. So Lucian leaned toward the Chaotic Starfield. Regardless, he needed to return and make thorough preparations first — rushing in blindly was not the way of a mage.
After the banquet, Lucian, Natasha, and the others departed from the "World Tree," flying toward the labyrinth's outer boundary, intending to use the "Atomic Universe" to jump back to Allion.
"Hedi, there's something strange here. I believe that Lord Felagond was slandered — Marsha's behavior before she self-destructed was far too suspicious. But why Lord Lancier? And how did the Elven Empress discover it and intervene in time? She said you found the clues and notified her at the critical moment?" Having participated in a Police Bureau investigation once, Hedi had awakened her "Detective's Soul" and raised the same question that Anik, Katrina, and the others all shared.
Lucian chuckled twice, looking at them: "Lancier was indeed the mastermind behind the scenes. As for the specific truth of the matter — what does it have to do with us? As long as the Elven people can accept it themselves, there's no need for us to do anything superfluous."
"So there really is something strange?" Hedi grew excited, feeling her deduction had been confirmed.
But Lucian refused to answer further, smiling without a word.
This was intelligence that fell under the authority of the High Council.
Holy City of Lands.
Pope Benedict III's body fluctuated constantly, sometimes diffuse, sometimes contracted, as though he were testing something.
Suddenly, the fluctuations ceased. His gaze narrowed slightly, and then he raised the Platinum Scepter and began casting a form of prophetic Divine Arts.
"The 'Dark Lord' Goenheim slew and devoured the former Demon Prince?" The fall of a peak Legendary was a major event, and Goenheim hadn't made any effort to conceal it, so Benedict III naturally received a clear and unambiguous result. As for the changes surrounding the Elven Empress, he obtained only a vague impression.
Benedict III set down the Platinum Scepter and paced back and forth, thinking: "Who told them the quasi-god method?"
He suspected that one of the Legendary beings who had obtained the method from him had deliberately leaked it to the Dark Lord and the Elven Empress. He wanted to identify who it was and determine their true purpose — though according to the original plan, the method was to be spread into the Strupp Forest anyway.
After thinking for a while, the Cardinal on watch outside finally entered carrying intelligence on the Abyss's recent changes. The Church always maintained powerful observers monitoring the Abyss and Hell:
"Your Holiness, the 'Dark Lord' successfully ambushed and gravely wounded the 'Demon Prince' within the 'Abyssal Stomach,' and dragged the 'Sea of Acid' into the 'Frozen Fortress' to become the new 'Demon Prince'!"