Harry couldn't suppress the excitement in his heart. Without another word, he immediately began trying to communicate with people from other worlds.
(TN: This chapter features characters from Lord of the Mysteries).
His wand danced rapidly through the air. One after another, mysterious observation runes were traced from the tip, flickering with faint light like scattered star fragments, stacking and weaving together through the void.
With Harry's movements, the runes gradually gathered into a powerful force, piercing deep into the endless multiverse.
Before long, a strange world slowly appeared before him.
It was another Earth, but it was cut off from everything outside by a mysterious barrier that gave off a faint glow, severing all contact with the external world.
Harry wasn't unfamiliar with this world. Before, relying on chaos magic's unique perception, he had obtained some important information from it—among them, the potion formulas of the Assassin series.
After stopping Loki's scheme last time, Harry returned to his laboratory and found that the Instigator potion prototype hadn't been smashed to pieces just because Thor summoned Mjolnir and swung it around.
He let out a long breath of relief, then threw himself fully into perfecting the potion.
Days ago, he had already completed the Instigator potion in full.
The moment it was finished and confirmed correct, he drank it at once, gaining abilities such as verbal bewitchment, emotional provocation, and psychological manipulation.
Judging purely from Harry's own power level, the abilities granted by the Instigator potion didn't raise his overall combat strength by that much.
But if the target were an ordinary mortal, those abilities would be an enormous boost—enough to change their fate and push them from the mundane into the extraordinary in an instant.
And with chaos magic, the Assassin Pathway's potions could be mass-produced. That also meant Harry could mass-produce superhumans.
Unlike creating debtors, Harry wouldn't "take a loss" from creating too many potion-sequence superhumans.
Right now, the reason Harry wanted to speak with the people of this world was simple: he wanted the follow-up potion formulas of the Assassin Pathway.
If he could obtain even more potion formulas from this world, that would be even better.
Wrapped in chaos magic, Harry's consciousness passed through the multiverse's barrier and extended outward, spreading until it reached an unimaginably distant place.
His awareness slipped through that barrier with effortless ease, like a breeze passing over thin silk, without disturbing a single living being in this world. Then it swept rapidly across the surface of the Earth.
Very quickly, his attention focused on a city called Tingen. In one corner of the city, he discovered an old man.
The old man seemed to be a Beyonder with special abilities. At that moment, he was intensely focused, using his own blood to carefully inscribe a dense alchemical array on the ground.
The array was complex and eerie, its lines twisted as if containing endless malicious force. One glance was enough to know it was nothing good.
Harry raised an eyebrow slightly. With a single look, he judged the rough origin of the array—it was likely a deception trap laid by some Great Existence, something akin to a beholder, meant to lure the ignorant into a pit of suffering.
After watching for a bit, Harry quickly noticed that the extraordinary power inside the old man was in an extremely unstable state, like a volcano on the verge of eruption, ready to lose control at any moment.
At this rate, if no one intervened, the old man's life would likely reach its end in a very short time.
Harry naturally wasn't going to ignore it. He spoke directly, his voice carried by chaos magic across infinite dimensions and projected into the old man's mind:
"The alchemical array you're using has a huge flaw. It will only make you lose control. Give it up."
In Tingen, inside a dim basement that reeked of decay, Old Neil's eyes were bloodshot and his expression frantic, as if he were being controlled by an invisible force.
He clutched a dagger and, without hesitation, slit his wrist again. Dark red blood streamed out, dripping from his trembling fingers onto the icy floor.
Then he used the blood to draw the "Life Creation" alchemical array gifted by the "Hidden Sage," trying to resurrect his wife, Sally.
Suddenly, a profound, ancient voice—like something that had existed since the birth of the universe—boomed without warning inside his mind.
The voice seemed to carry boundless authority and power. In a single instant, it became an irresistible torrent that forcibly suppressed the spirituality that had been on the verge of losing control.
At the same time, Old Neil's connection to the evil god "Hidden Sage" was severed by that overwhelming force, cut cleanly apart.
In the next moment, Old Neil shuddered violently. The madness in his eyes faded away as he snapped awake.
It was as if he had jolted out of a terrifying nightmare. When his gaze fell on his blood-smeared hands and the unfinished alchemical array beneath his feet, it was like being struck by lightning—his face drained of all color.
He staggered backward several steps, nearly collapsing onto the floor.
Then, with trembling hands, he devoutly traced a full moon over his chest and confessed in horror:
"Oh, heavens… my Sally… what am I doing?!"
Seeing that the old man called Old Neil had returned to normal, Harry nodded in satisfaction and continued searching for a more suitable target.
Old Neil was a Beyonder, but judging from his actions and clothing, he was very likely affiliated with some Beyonder organization in this world—quite possibly tied to a church.
If Harry communicated with Old Neil rashly, then even if he meant no harm, given this world's existing Beyonder system and understanding, Harry would probably be viewed as a terrifying evil god anyway—inviting trouble for no reason.
Harry already had a clear plan: find someone rich, with enough social status, and completely ignorant of the Beyonder world.
That kind of person was the best candidate to become a debtor.
While searching, a thought suddenly crossed Harry's mind: should he create another chat group, pulling debtors from different worlds into it so they could keep in contact? (TN: I know...)
That was a good idea.
After a brief consideration, Harry decisively added "create a cross-world debtor chat group" to Hedwig's important to-do list.
Setting that novel idea aside for the moment, Harry steadied his mind and continued to look for a suitable target in this world.
If he could successfully develop a debtor here, the benefits to Harry would be immeasurable.
Whether it was this world's peculiar potion system or the local culture and customs, it was all something he looked forward to.
Soon, his gaze stopped above a bustling city.
The city was filled with steampunk-style architecture. Massive steam-powered machines stood everywhere. Thick smoke pouring from chimneys intertwined with metallic sheen. The streets were packed with traffic, lively and noisy.
He listened closely to pedestrians' conversations and quickly learned the city's name: Backlund.
Backlund was the capital of the Loen Kingdom, and one of the continent's economic, political, and cultural centers.
Harry had a feeling that in this city, he would find a suitable debtor.
Before long, his eyes swept across Backlund a few times, and at last, in a luxurious estate outside the city, he found someone.
It was a young lady—blonde hair, bright eyes, a face beautiful as an angel, a pure and elegant aura, a perfect figure… but none of that mattered. What mattered was that she met Harry's requirements for choosing a debtor.
After a bit of observation, Harry learned her name: Audrey Hall, the daughter of Earl Hall of East Chester County in the Loen Kingdom. She came from an illustrious background, a famous noble lady in Backlund, with more than enough status and wealth.
She had the capacity to help Harry obtain important intelligence from this world.
Moreover, she was naive and adorable, lively and cheerful, sincere and generous, and—most importantly—kind. She also fit the debtor criteria perfectly.
Even more importantly, she wasn't a Beyonder, yet she yearned for the extraordinary. With her enthusiasm for the Beyonder world, Harry only needed to sweet-talk… explain a little, and he could earn Audrey's trust.
She was simply the perfect debtor.
Harry decided to grant Audrey's wish and make her a Beyonder—and not just an ordinary one.
In the future, she would possess not only the steampunk world's Beyonder system, but also a mage's extraordinary system.
Harry would help Audrey become a Beyonder, and Audrey would use her connections and resources to gather all kinds of intelligence from this world for Harry.
A win-win.
With the candidate confirmed, Harry didn't hesitate. He began continuously sending out large amounts of chaos magic, wrapping his voice in it and delivering it into Audrey's mind.
Once everything was prepared, Harry cleared his throat, trying to make his voice sound dignified and mysterious, and then spoke slowly:
"Ahem… hello…"
At that time, Audrey had just finished dinner with her parents and returned to her room with graceful steps.
The room was warm and luxurious—pink curtains, exquisite carpets, and bookshelves filled with books—every detail reflecting a noble young lady's taste and refinement.
Inside her own room, Audrey was no longer "Backlund's most dazzling gem," but simply an innocent, ordinary girl.
Her steps turned light and quick as she ran happily to her beloved dog, Susie, scooped the dog into her arms, and muttered to herself:
"Susie, when will I finally become a Beyonder? Joining a church is one way, but I don't want to lose my freedom. Maybe I can find some Beyonder gatherings and buy potion formulas from them."
Just as Audrey was lost in her lovely fantasy, a mysterious voice carrying supreme authority suddenly thundered in her mind without warning:
"Ahem… hello…"
As the daughter of an earl, Audrey wasn't a Beyonder, but she did know something about the Beyonder realm—its mystery and its danger.
Hearing such a strange and imposing voice out of nowhere, she instantly paled and cried out in alarm:
"Ah! Y-you… who are you?!"
If she had a choice, she didn't want to respond.
But she knew very well that panic was useless in a situation like this. She had to stay calm.
Since this mysterious figure could establish contact with her so silently, then naturally, they also had the ability to harm her.
The best course was to steady the mysterious figure, draw out useful information through conversation, and act wisely.
After she learned who and what the mysterious figure really was, she could seek help from the Beyonders of the Church of the Evernight Goddess and have them handle it.
From Audrey's tense face and startled cry, Harry realized his sudden appearance had frightened the young lady badly.
So he hurriedly adjusted his voice, trying to make his tone sound gentler:
"Ahem, don't be afraid. I'm not… I'm a good person!"
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