Tao Yu was planning to wait for the next gathering to gather materials, when he suddenly spotted a head of messy blond hair.


    A dwarf was standing tiptoe at the window, peering around curiously.


    "Well look at you, how did you know where I live?"


    Tao Yu walked over and patted her head, making her already disheveled hair even more chaotic.


    "What are you going to smear on my head this time?"


    Hugh said somewhat annoyedly.


    But then he pursed his lips and said,


    "I do have my ways of finding things out. Are you proposing a business deal, cooperation? The boss said he would provide Roselle’s notes if you help too."


    Tao Yu now had a fake million Gold Pounds in hand, which had gone undetected by Eve earlier, this suggested that it could still circulate in the Extraordinary World, at least at the lower levels.


    Originally, he had little interest, but his attention was piqued upon hearing that it involved Emperor Roselle’s notes, so he nodded,


    "What’s the mission? I’m very interested. Is it dangerous?"


    "Indeed, there is risk. Come, let’s discuss this properly."


    Having effortlessly overpowered him before, Hugh had a fair bit of respect for Tao Yu’s strength. Although their trust was still lacking, their previous encounters had been relatively pleasant.


    Moreover, after Tao Yu had proactively sought him out last time to buy information, he turned out to be an Extraordinary newbie with impressive abilities. Thus, they had a foundation for initial cooperation.


    Having mingled in the streets for so long, Hugh too had his own ways of judging people. Your journey continues at novelhall.Co?m


    Soon after, the two returned to Fors and Hugh’s residence.


    Upon seeing Hugh bring Tao Yu back, Fors, who was lying on the sofa, attempted to sit up several times but failed, and eventually managed to roll off in a somewhat awkward manner.


    She had incredibly poor athletic ability, even worse than an average person.


    She smoked, stayed up late, lacked exercise, and the dark circles under her eyes never seemed to fade.


    Indeed, she must have some talent to not have starved to death...


    Hugh ignored Fors clambering up and took out a piece of intelligence, a sketch.


    "Our target is this man."


    Tao Yu examined it carefully. It was a wild sketch of a man, quite well drawn.


    "However, this can only be used as a reference; he possesses an extraordinary item or ’Sealing Techniques’ that allows him to change his appearance."


    Hugh’s words made Tao Yu nod. Having gained a preliminary understanding of the Extraordinary World, he was aware of such extraordinary items, similar to Yuan Force artifacts.


    Speaking of altering one’s appearance, he could do that too, although it was an external power, the level of forces involved was minimal, and it was mainly a technique.


    His recent subtle adjustments to blend in with the locals were also thanks to his second Deification’s "Sculpting."


    Having become an ’Assassin,’ controlling his body had become even more second nature to him.


    "Who is this?"


    "One of the seven great pirate generals, ’Hurricane’ Zilinges, a ’Wind Favored’ of Sailor pathway Sequence Six, who also holds a powerful extraordinary item, capable of harnessing abilities from multiple pathways, but that item requires the consumption of one person every day."


    Hugh’s brief explanation gave Tao Yu a framework to work with.


    The bounty was ten thousand Gold Pounds, and providing valid information could earn hundreds in reward.


    More so, the fact that such an extraordinary item consumed people was rather peculiar.


    "Looking for a wanted criminal isn’t something we need to keep secret. Neither of us is good at this, why not continue to recruit someone who is?"


    Tao Yu wasn’t short on money, so he was interested in quickly completing the task in exchange for the diary.


    "What do you mean?"


    "Wasn’t it you guys who recommended him to me? That great detective, Arrodes."


    "Now I need to go find some gang members. That area just happens to be my Domain. You all can go back and rest up. Didn’t Fors copy a new page of the diary?"


    Eve said to Tao Yu, then adjusted her own collar.


    As an Arbiter in the local underworld who was known for her fair dealings, many sought her help, and thus she had connections among the gangs.


    However, seeing her petite figure retreating, Tao Yu felt somewhat moved.


    Having interacted with her, although she hadn’t explicitly stated it, Tao Yu could sense that she was likely someone who had fallen on hard times, possibly a young lady of a noble house in the past, but now forced to mingle with gangs.


    "Let’s go. Let’s get the new diary page, and I’ll borrow your books to read too..."


    Although Tao Yu had learned some knowledge of the Extraordinary World through them, he had also realized that this world’s Extraordinary World was quite complex. Both women still seemed clueless; continuous study was needed...


    ...


    Tao Yu received several pages of Emperor Roselle’s diary from Fors.


    At least from what he’d seen so far, Roselle appeared to be an extraordinary of a high Sequence.


    Even from just a few of his diary entries, Tao Yu received a lot of information about the Extraordinary World that Fors and the others didn’t have access to.


    Tao Yu thought they were very valuable.


    But this time, instead of reading it on the spot, he brought the diary back home.


    As Tao Yu read the diary, he felt somewhat speechless.


    He was once again revising his own preconceptions about Emperor Roselle.


    He seemed to be even more... well, more unrestrained than Tao Yu had initially thought.


    Tao Yu, who wasn’t exactly a role model himself, pondered over his choice of words.


    This batch of diary entries was almost entirely about the Emperor’s romantic escapades, his engagement, and becoming a ’Child of Steam.’


    Then he learned that his real name was Huang Tao.


    It seemed he had some regrets about his Sequence choice, believing that the Marauder or the Diviner would have been better.


    "Hmm? What’s this?"


    Just as Tao Yu read about Emperor Roselle’s musings over the Marauder and the Diviner, he noticed what seemed to be doodles underneath the diary page that didn’t belong there.


    "A Fool that doesn’t belong to this age; a Mysterious Master above the gray mist; the Yellow and Black King who wields good fortune..."


    Tao Yu muttered, feeling that this intrusion didn’t fit with the diary’s content.


    "Since no one has successfully deciphered Roselle’s diaries yet, others might not notice anything wrong, but..."


    Just as Tao Yu felt the discrepancy,


    suddenly, a sense of being watched emerged in his heart, startling him.


    What the hell?


    Is this a revered name of a hidden existence?


    Tao Yu barely had a smattering of knowledge about the extraordinaries, and he lacked a deep-seated reverence for divine spirits. His fear stemmed purely from their strength.


    Luckily, he had kept his Divinity pressed within his Mental Body, preventing rash exemptions from revealing more significant issues.


    All he could do now was act ignorant and rapidly contemplate in his mind.


    "It seems there really is such a hidden existence. No wonder Fors and the others told me to be careful, to keep reverence, that uttering the name could attract attention. This entity has a high standing..."


    Tao Yu, lacking substantial knowledge about the extraordinary Domains or an inherent reverence for the divine spirits, feared them only because of their strength.


    "The Fool, huh? Sounds clumsy, not famous, wields good fortune? Shouldn’t be too evil, right? If there really is such a low-key organization formed by a high-standing being, it would actually fulfill all my needs for finding support..."


    The next moment, Tao Yu felt a force tugging at his spirituality, lifting it upwards.


    Startled, he once again suppressed his Divinity at the core of his Mental Body to avoid conflict, then followed the force upwards, his perspective soaring infinitely high, as if arriving at a mysterious gray mist space above...@@@@