God of Knowledge?

Recently, a legend began to circulate in Cross City.

It was a legend about a deity who possessed knowledge, from whom people could obtain any knowledge they desired.

People spoke of a newly born deity, a god who commanded all knowledge.

Some even claimed in the rumors that this was a deity created by Yinsai, the Creator, just like King of Wisdom Redlichia and Mother of Life Shelly from mythological legends.

He was generous and kind, willing to bestow upon mortals extraordinary talents and skills.

Lester attended a nobles' banquet, where several aristocrats stood in a corner discussing this legend.

Since most of the figures involved in the legend were of certain status, and were mostly refined and erudite individuals, it was considered a matter within noble circles.

So the nobles were also keen on discussing such stories.

"Have you heard? That God of Knowledge."

"Just pay a price and you can get any knowledge you want. They say a craftsman could forge divine weapons and blades overnight, and a mediocre musician could suddenly play heavenly melodies."

"Is it true?"

"Is that really a deity?"

"It's true. Someone in our Cross City has exchanged for knowledge."

"It's a painter from the south of the city. His paintings used to be ignored, but suddenly he gained the style of a royal court painter, completely different from his previous works."

These rumors said all sorts of things, but in reality, none of those discussing this legend had ever seen the so-called God of Knowledge.

Lester also treated it as just an odd tale, not taking it seriously.

The banquet was noisy, with everyone who entered greeting Lester, but he was not good at socializing and only responded stiffly.

His humble background left him with little in common with these aristocrats.

Before the banquet ended, he stood up and walked towards the exit.

"Mr. Lester, leaving already?" the doorman asked him.

"I have some matters to attend to," Lester nodded.

As soon as he got home, he went straight to his laboratory.

The clinic was being looked after by several of his apprentices, and unless there were serious patients, Lester usually wasn't too busy.

So he focused more of his attention on the laboratory, wholeheartedly conducting his "Universal Elixir Experiment."

Through repeated experiments, he had also discovered the secret of the Life Blood Stone's power.

"The power of the Life Blood Stone can replicate everything about a life."

"It only needs a drop of blood as the source, and it can replicate a life from start to finish."

Lester had already tried this experiment many times.

Using this method, he had created many trilobites in his water tank.

From a bloodline perspective, they all belonged to the same individual.

The witch doctor's statement that trilobites were the ancestors of Trilobite Men might explain why Lester chose them as experimental subjects.

Lester wrote out his theory of the universal elixir on a scroll.

"The power of the blood-sucking worm must come from the Life Blood Stone. Its function is only to absorb and convert blood. It's a supernatural life form created by Lord Left Hand Witch Doctor using the Life Blood Stone."

"So theoretically, if we could record a person's healthiest state..."

"And restore them to their healthiest moment, we could eliminate all diseases."

"That is..."

"The Universal Elixir."

Lester put down the scroll, feeling frustrated. He ran his hands through his hair, his mind racing.

"But there are still challenges," he muttered to himself. "How can we record a person's ideal health state? And more importantly, how can we make this applicable to everyone, considering the differences between individuals and even between men and women?"

The experiment had reached a point where it was no longer something a doctor could continue on his own.

He needed supernatural power.

As if possessed, Lester suddenly thought of the rumor he had heard at the banquet.

A deity named Knowledge, who could give people any memories and knowledge they wanted, allowing ordinary people to gain talents surpassing geniuses overnight, turning fools into erudite scholars in an instant.

But as soon as he thought of it, Lester couldn't help but laugh.

"That's just a rumor."

"Did you actually believe it?"

Lester wouldn't believe such nonsense about a new deity appearing.

After locking the laboratory door, Lester returned home.

His wife was reading a book under an oil lamp and looked up when she heard Lester come in.

"You're back?"

Lester nodded.

His wife then asked him: "Still not going well?"

Lester sighed: "How could it be so simple?"

His wife asked curiously: "Lester, what exactly are you trying to create?"

Lester wanted to tell her, after all, it was quite distressing to be working on experiments alone with no one to confide in.

But the Life Blood Stone was of such great importance that if word got out, it would cause huge trouble, so he ultimately held back.

"Something very important. All I can say is that it's something that could change the definition of medicine."

His wife hugged him: "Whatever you want to do, I'll support you."

Lester: "You just assume I'm doing something good?"

His wife nodded: "Because I believe that whatever you create will surely relieve everyone's pain and bring happiness."

Life's joys and sorrows are unpredictable, and fate can change in an instant.

A plague spread from the north, first appearing in some villages, then quickly entering the major cities.

Cross City was no exception.

People had barely bid farewell to the war for a few years when they faced another disaster, and this disaster was even more terrifying than the war.

In the early stages of the plague outbreak, few people noticed, because it initially spread only in some villages. Many places in this area were sparsely populated due to the war and had not recovered in these few years.

The death of some people therefore went unnoticed.

Lester's clinic was surrounded by a group of people, carrying in a patient.

After examining the patient, the doctors quickly realized the gravity of the situation.

This patient was clearly near death, but they couldn't figure out what exactly had caused the illness.

"Doctor Lester!"

"Doctor Lester!"

Lester came down from upstairs and entered the examination room.

He looked at the person's eyes and listened to their heartbeat.

"Quick!"

"Bring him in!"

Lester's wife, who was also his assistant, saw the patient in extreme pain and immediately comforted them, saying,

"Don't be afraid."

"He is Lester, the Holy Hands. He will surely save you."

However, just as the patient was pushed in, they suddenly convulsed violently.

The patient coughed up a mouthful of fresh blood onto Lester's wife, then fell still, life slipping away.

Lester lowered his hand, his pupils constricting.

This wasn't the first time he had encountered such a situation, but it was equally distressing each time.

He took a deep breath, then closed his eyes.

Others stood beside Lester, mourning the departed.

However, what Lester didn't expect was that similar patients were brought into his clinic one after another.

He began to realize that this wasn't an isolated case.

"Is this... a plague?"

Lester immediately reported to the city lord, but it was already too late.

A large number of such cases had already appeared in Cross City, and even more patients with less obvious symptoms were completely indistinguishable.

The city lord also felt afraid; disease doesn't discriminate between nobles and commoners.

"Lester!"

"You're the best doctor in the city, known as the Holy Hands."

"Now we can only rely on you."

Lester said to the city lord, "Now we can only prepare quickly. I will do my best to find the cause of the disease and then find a way to solve it."

Lester returned to his clinic, constantly recalling the knowledge he had learned: "What kind of disease is this?"

Lester began to dissect the bodies of the deceased patients, trying to discover the source of this disease.

He was horrified to find that the internal organs of each patient were incomplete.

It appeared as though something had been devouring them from within.

The agonizing deaths of these patients now made sense; their final moments must have been hellish.

Then, during a surgery, he extracted a kind of worm from a patient's body.

"Intestine-eating worm?"

Lester immediately recognized this thing.

The witch doctors had encountered it before and recorded it in their books.

The witch doctors had once encountered this disease that spread through worms in a small town, and they had saved everyone in that entire town.

Lester immediately became excited. Now that he knew what the disease was, there was a way.

No, he shouldn't say that he had a way. Although he had learned surgical techniques from the witch doctors, it wasn't possible for him to clean out the worms in patients' bodies through surgery like the witch doctors could. Such a technique seemed like magic to him.

Rather, he could ask the witch doctors for help in treating this disease. The witch doctors had created a corresponding medicinal powder to treat this disease years ago, so they must be able to produce it again.

As Lester finished the surgery, his mind raced with these thoughts.

He put down his surgical tools and began to leave the room.

Suddenly, his wife collapsed beside him.

Lester immediately went forward to support her: "What's wrong?"

His wife shook her head and said to him.

"It's nothing."

"I just feel a bit unwell, maybe I'm too tired."

But Lester felt it wasn't that simple. His wife had been in contact with patients by his side recently, and he suspected she might have contracted the disease as well.

"You rest for a while."

"I'll check on you later, in case you've caught this disease too."

Lester's fears were confirmed. His wife had indeed fallen ill with the same disease.

At her bedside, Lester was anxious.

But his wife comforted him, saying, "Lester, don't panic."

"I believe you will surely find a way."

Lester nodded: "I've already found a way. This is a disease caused by a worm, which the witch doctors encountered many years ago."

"I'm going to ask the witch doctors for help right away. We'll have a solution soon."

He paused, then added with determination, "All the patients here will be treated, including you. I promise."

Lester quickly wrote a letter and handed it to his apprentice.

"Go to the House of the Witch Doctors."

"Deliver this letter to the witch doctors."

Lester said with utmost seriousness: "The lives of all the patients in Cross City, no, all those suffering from the disease inside and outside the city, depend on this letter."

"The sooner you deliver it, even by one day, the more people we can save."

"Hurry!"

"You must be quick."

Lester's apprentice nodded: "Don't worry, teacher."

The apprentice, carrying this mission and task, set out on the long journey.

But even at the fastest pace, a round trip between Cross City and the House of the Witch Doctors would take more than half a month.

In the days that followed, the plague situation worsened day by day.

Lester walked through Cross City, where patients were everywhere.

Every household had their doors tightly closed, and people walking outside were hurrying, keeping their distance from everyone.

He also saw corpse after corpse piled on carts being sent out.

The cemetery outside the city had run out of space a few days ago, and a new cemetery was currently being built.

Lester's clinic was already overflowing with patients, and he could only do his best to preserve their lives, trying to buy time.

For a doctor like him, there was no scene more cruel and distressing than this.

By the twentieth day, his wife had also gradually become emaciated, her eyes hollow and empty.

She writhed in pain on the bed every day.

"Lester... Lester..."

She called out her husband's name, as if wanting him to save her.

Lester could only hold her hand, feeling utterly helpless.

At this moment, Lester strongly doubted his medical skills.

He no longer had any self-confidence.

"Why?"

"I've already done my utmost, I've already gone to learn medical skills from the witch doctors, I've also passed on my medical knowledge to my students."

"Why haven't I been able to change anything?"

Ordinary people were still so fragile in the face of disease and death.

In that moment, Lester truly grasped the limitations of mortal capabilities.

As the agonizing days passed one by one, Lester finally welcomed the return of his apprentice.

The apprentice arrived with a three-section carriage pulled by a small stone monster, its contents seemingly bursting at the seams.

The apprentice told Lester: "The witch doctors are currently conducting an experiment and can't come."

"However, the witch doctor named Left Hand personally made medicine that can treat this disease."

"He also told me that once someone takes this medicine, they will never contract the intestine-eating worm again."

"The human body will kill these worms on its own."

Lester breathed a sigh of relief and patted his apprentice's shoulder.

"That's good."

"That's very good indeed."

"Everyone in Cross City will thank you. You've saved everyone's lives."

But the apprentice said: "Teacher, it's you who saved everyone."

Lester immediately arranged for people to unload the medicine from the carriage.

Then he arranged for people to start distributing the medicine, setting up stations at various clinics in the city to begin treating patients.

People flocked in droves.

The witch doctors' medicine was very effective, showing results immediately after use.

Although it couldn't cure patients instantly, it could immediately kill the worms in their bodies.

"Thank you."

"Thank you, you saved our lives."

Countless patients in the city wept and grabbed Lester's hands to thank him.

As patient after patient was treated, the city gradually regained its vitality.

For a time, Lester's reputation reached its peak.

In the eyes of the city's inhabitants, he had become a figure akin to a saint.

As the patients in Cross City gradually stabilized, Lester's clinic apprentices and assistants began to lead people out of Cross City.

They carried medicine to help more people who were suffering from the plague.

In Lester's home.

He looked at his wife on the sickbed with a sorrowful expression.

Although Lester had solved the plague, his wife had been tortured by the illness to the point of being unrecognizable.

Her body had been severely damaged by this disease, barely clinging to life.

Various organs were failing, a condition that was completely beyond what ordinary medicine or doctors could solve.

"Mm~"

His wife lay on her side in bed, weakly moaning.

The pain had tortured her to the point where she could no longer speak, but her eyes, looking at Lester, remained the same as always.

"I won't let you leave me now."

"This is my vow."

Lester said to his wife with utmost sincerity.

Though he spoke these words, his heart was filled with anxiety.

Once outside the bedroom, his expression darkened with worry.

"There's not enough time."

He didn't have time to take his wife to the House of the Witch Doctors, and she couldn't endure the bumpy journey anyway.

Suddenly, he recalled the experiment he had been researching for years - the Life Blood Stone with its miraculous power.

The universal elixir he had placed so much hope in.

It was just missing one crucial element.

If he could realize his idea, he could also save his wife.

In the south of the city.

Lester knocked on a large door. When it opened, it revealed a scene inside with various stone sculptures and numerous colorful pottery plates.

There were also some oil paintings on canvas that had started appearing in recent years, though this art form hadn't yet gained true recognition from the upper nobility.

This was a painter's home.

"Hello."

"I'm Lester."

Lester introduced himself to the person who opened the door.

In fact, the painter recognized Lester the moment he opened the door.

"Mr. Lester, I don't think there's anyone in this city who wouldn't recognize you."

"Actually, my family owes their lives to your kindness. We survived this disaster and plague thanks to you. I'm very grateful."

"I've been looking for an opportunity to thank you, but I heard you haven't been out much lately."

"They say..."

"Your wife..."

The painter sighed, not continuing further.

Lester also sighed: "This is what a doctor should do."

The painter looked at Lester: "You are a true doctor, a great doctor."

The two sat down, and the painter spoke directly: "Mr. Lester, I know why you've come."

Lester was curious: "How do you know?"

The painter: "Many people have visited me. You're not the first, nor will you be the last."

"But to those people, I tell them there's no such thing."

"However, for you, I'll be honest."

Lester stood up excitedly: "So, it's true?"

The painter nodded: "It's true, but it's of no use to most people."

"The God of Knowledge only responds to those who can pay the price. His principle is exchange."

"He gives you what you want, and you pay the corresponding price."

"And most people can't afford this price."

The painter guided Lester to another room, showcasing some of his works.

Even with Lester's limited artistic knowledge, he recognized one of the paintings.

"This is..."

"It's 'The Divine Gate of the Sky' that was lost in the God-Servant City. This is a masterpiece from the late Henir Dynasty period. I heard King Henir was very fond of it."

The painter nodded: "Although it's not the original, I can tell you that what you see is exactly the same."

Lester asked: "How did you manage this?"

The painter said seriously: "Because I inherited the skills of the original artist."

Having witnessed the painter's work firsthand, Lester no longer had any doubts.

"This truly is a great masterpiece."

"It seems this being really possesses incredibly powerful abilities."

On his way home, Lester's heart stirred with excitement.

What he couldn't learn in ten years with the witch doctors, he might easily obtain here.

But he also felt some trepidation.

He didn't know what price he would have to pay. Facing such a powerful being, he felt like an ant at its mercy.

Although the painter told him that the Spirit Realm Covenant was a contract signed through the realm of God.

No one could violate the terms of the Spirit Realm Covenant.

Upon returning home, Lester took action.

He drew the spirit contract array on the ground according to the pattern given by the painter. In the center of the array, he wrote a symbolic sign representing a powerful and unknown being.

Then, on the other side of the symbol, he wrote his own name.

He knelt before the ritual array, chanting the incantation.

"Great God of Knowledge!"

"I call upon you through the ritual of the Spirit Realm to form a contract of equal exchange with you."

"Please tell me, how can I create a true universal elixir?"

The array on the ground suddenly burst into brilliant light.

His consciousness plunged into a blank void.

He felt as if he had appeared high in the sky, then continuously fell downwards, finally plummeting into a completely unknown realm.

He saw a massive, heavy door with a figure sitting above it.

"Interesting."

"Very interesting."

"What do you want to do? Create a universal elixir?"

That figure stared intently at Lester, leaning forward slightly as if observing Lester's secrets.

"So you're a student of those witch doctors. Interesting, very interesting."

The figure seemed to see through Lester's entire being with a single glance.

Lester looked up at the door, his gaze slowly moving upward until it rested on the figure made of light dust.

"Are you the God of Knowledge?"

The figure grinned: "That's right, I am the deity you've called upon."

"I possess all the knowledge that has appeared in this world. As long as it exists, you can obtain it from me."

Lester said to the figure: "I want the method to create a universal elixir."

The figure replied: "I can't give you the method to create a so-called universal elixir because a true universal elixir hasn't appeared in this world yet."

"However, I can open my knowledge treasury, and you can freely search for the knowledge you want."

The figure floated down from above and pushed open the door behind him.

"Go ahead!"

"Go and claim everything you desire."

Lester asked him: "What price must I pay for this transaction?"

The figure told him: "All the knowledge you gained from the witch doctors, as well as your research on the Life Blood Stone and the universal elixir, I'll have a share in all of it."

Lester felt this deal was fair: "Alright, I agree."

As soon as he finished speaking.

Lester was instantly sucked into the door.

Behind him, the figure of light dust was still smiling.

"Finally."

"Finally, an interesting person has come."

When he regained consciousness, he was back in reality.

Lester was still kneeling in the same spot, in his own house.

"I'm back?" Lester looked at his hands, hardly believing it.

"So it was real?" He stood up, excitedly pacing around the room.

"I can actually trade for what I want."

Everything that had just happened felt like a dream.

But everything Lester had gained in his mind told him that what had just occurred was real.

Lester had obtained knowledge he could hardly have imagined before, about divine techniques and monsters.

The God of Knowledge was incredibly generous. Even some third-rank seal priests might not possess this knowledge, yet now Lester, an ordinary person, had such powerful knowledge.

And the price was Lester's research on the universal elixir and the Life Blood Stone.

Exchanging knowledge for knowledge, very fair.

He didn't think his knowledge was necessarily more valuable than others'.

Lester rushed into his laboratory, feeling his inspiration continuously bursting forth.