Seeing Wood approach, Old Man stood up and opened his arms warmly: "Oh, dear Wood, ever since I learned of your existence, I have always wanted to meet you—and today, my wish finally comes true. By the way, you are even cuter than I imagined."
Thank you.
Wood accepted Old Man's hug, feeling overwhelmed by the favor, his heart leaped with joy once again.
(The greatest and most merciful Boss in the whole world! Thank you for making an ordinary person like me the most dazzling rising star in the mysterious realms of New York and even all of America overnight.)
—By the way, how has Mister Master been lately?
As they released the embrace, Old Man asked with feigned indifference.
Boss has been the same as usual lately.
The same as usual? By 'the same as usual,' do you mean the last five months?
Of course.
Wood blurted out, "I only met the Boss five months ago."
Then I'm relieved.
Old Man" gave a subtle smile, then turned his head toward Peterson, who had been left aside: "Peterson?
Yes!
Peterson hurriedly took out his credentials: "I am an Agent of the New York Branch of the Special Events Investigation Department. I once visited with our leader, Jason—"
I remember.. Jason.. Peterson..
Old Man" extinguished his cigar with a cold expression. "You want my help?
Yes, we've run into some trouble..
Peterson then gave a brief overview of the recent strange occurrences and stated with certainty, "Boss Jason believes this matter is related to Cursed Gold."
Cursed Gold?
Old Man" said with a cold sneer, "If the matter involves Cursed Gold, Mister Master will never intervene—Cursed Gold is worthless to him.
Then, with a smile covering his face, he explained to Wood, "To get Mister Master to act, you must give him the mysterious object that triggered the incident as compensation once the event has concluded—if that object is worthless to him, then no matter how great or many the promises are, he will not intervene."
(Is the Boss's status in the mysterious realm really this high?)
Wood clicked his tongue in surprise.
The earliest known records of Cursed Gold date back five thousand years to Ancient Egypt. It is believed to be fragments of the body dropped after the sun god Ra was attacked and injured by the chaos god Apophis or other underworld monsters, possessing a mysterious and enigmatic power.
Legend has it that Cursed Gold can transfer another person's life into the wearer, but—once a wearer has used Cursed Gold, he or she must wear Cursed Gold jewelry permanently for the rest of their life. If the Cursed Gold jewelry is removed for more than three hours, his or his body will undergo irreversible decay, ***, he or she will face death in extreme agony. Therefore, Cursed Gold is both a priceless treasure and something of no value.
"Old Man" added.
.. No wonder Boss refused the Cursed Gold.
Wood muttered, the Ancient Egyptian Cat Mummy's charred hand with its Golden Seal Ring appearing mysteriously before his eyes, he couldn't help but ask, "In ancient Egyptian history, were there any other golden artifacts that weren't Cursed Gold but possessed similar mysterious powers? For example, a ring that could make the dead walk around like the living?"
Are you talking about the Seal of Osiris?
The Seal of Osiris?
The ancient Egyptians believed that names possessed special magic, so pharaohs of every era had their names carved into the stone of temples. At the same time, they also crafted seals bearing their names into rings that could be worn on the hand. Therefore, while modern people call the gold ornaments worn on pharaohs' fingers rings, to the ancient Egyptians, these were seals carried by the pharaohs.
So the Seal of Osiris is actually the Ring of Osiris?
Not just a ring.
Please provide the Chinese paragraph you would like me to translate.
—Osiris was one of the most important deities in Ancient Egyptian belief. He was the first Pharaoh in Ancient Egyptian mythology, murdered and dismembered by his brother Set, later resurrected with the help of his wife, the goddess Isis, becoming the King who rules the Underworld. The Seal of Osiris is the ring worn by Osiris when he ruled Egypt as Pharaoh. Legend has it that the Seal of Osiris retains the magical power Isis used to resurrect him—therefore, whoever wears the Seal of Osiris can ignore the boundary between life and death and determine their own demise.
Please provide the Chinese paragraph you would like me to translate.
Peterson couldn't help but mutter.
Wood was puzzled: "Is deciding one's own death a very terrible thing?"
Of course!
Peterson glared at Wood in dissatisfaction and explained with a half-hearted tone, "The Seal of Osiris can make a person immortal, but it cannot repair a person's body, let alone grant eternal youth. In other words, even if the wearer is charred all over or has their internal organs hollowed out, as long as he does not want to die, he will not die."
Ah—!
Wood shuddered, the image of the humanoid monster—charred black and shriveled like a mummy—flashing in his mind once again.
.. In short, I must perform a Spiritual Summoning Ritual as soon as possible.
Peterson muttered to himself, "Find Mike or Andy's souls, through communicating with them, obtain the key information."
Spirit communication?
Hearing this, Wood felt a chill run down his spine, he asked tremblingly, "Do people really have souls after they die? Can a soul really communicate with you through mysterious means?"
Then why do you think I brought you here!
Peterson suppressed his anger and glared at Wood before turning to Old Man to make a request: "I need your help."
.. No problem.
Old Man" said somewhat reluctantly, opening the sliding wall on the left. "Go on in.
Thank you.
Peterson lowered his head and walked into the stall.
Wood followed behind him, his gaze drawn to an ebony statue of the goddess Isis in a glass display case as he passed through the cubicle door.
This statue..
(—It's as if it's winking at me!)
Thinking back to the various tragic encounters at the Museum, Wood's palms immediately broke into a cold sweat.
Old Man" walked to his side at that moment, glanced at the statue, introduced it with profound meaning, "This is an artifact from the Kush Dynasty established by the Nubians.
The Kush Dynasty..
Get ready, we are about to help Peterson enter the Spiritual Summoning State.
"Old Man" interrupted Wood's contemplation.
Yes! Yes!
..
The spiritual tool provided by Old Man is a blood-stained Electric Chair.
Whether it is Andy or Andy, they both died unnatural deaths, their consciousnesses lingering in the cracks between the living world and death. To find them—one must artificially enter a state of near-death.
While explaining, Old Man used rubber straps to tie Peterson's hands to the armrests of the chair, first immersing his feet in cold water before securing them with rubber straps as well.
Are you ready?
I—
Peterson showed obvious nervousness.
Don't worry, we will watch you by the Electric Chair to ensure you don't lose your life because of it.
"Old Man" promised coldly.
Peterson took a breath: "—Let's begin."
Let's start—
Having finished speaking, Old Man pressed the switch.
In an instant, Wood saw intense currents pierce through Peterson's body, the cold water soaking his feet boiled instantly, evaporating into white mist from above Peterson's head!
Peterson, sitting in the Electric Chair, trembled uncontrollably, looking extremely pained.
Will he die?
Wood asked worriedly.
This Electric Chair has undergone special modifications. The current intensity is within a relatively safe range, providing the user with a near-death experience while causing almost no actual death, but—
“But what?”
Wandering in the cracks between the living world and death is extremely dangerous. Not only is it easy to lose one's way, but one might also be caught and torn apart by other things wandering in the cracks between life and death, or have their body seized by consciousnesses longing to return to the living world.
Old Man" said with a smile, "That is why Peterson chose to complete the dangerous Spiritual Summoning Ritual with my assistance.
Oh, oh..
Wood nodded repeatedly, appearing to half-understand.
Wood, do you know what death is?
What is death?
Please provide the Chinese paragraph you would like me to translate.
Old Man" gazed at Wood, his expression subtle: "Everything in this world moves toward death. Life dies, gods die, even the universe itself is inevitably moving toward death—no matter how long you live or how long you have lived, when the moment of death arrives, you must return your life—and your consciousness, or rather your soul, will drift in the gap between the mortal realm and death after your physical body has completely collapsed, communicating with the mortal realm through special means until your consciousness completely dissipates.. So-called gods, so-called faiths, are originally such existences..
Please provide the Chinese paragraph you would like me to translate.
You don't understand?
Old Man" revealed a strange smile: "I see.. Mister Master hasn't told you the truth yet..
The truth? What truth?
Wood grew even more confused.
If you want to know the truth, you can pass my words on to Mister Master—then you will understand.
"Old Man" said something that shocked Wood.
Understand what?
Wood puffed out his cheeks in dissatisfaction. "A woman who is tricked into becoming a substitute for the first wife of a tall, handsome, wealthy male protagonist—once she discovers she is merely a substitute for a dead person, his happy life will come to a complete end. That's the most common trope in romance dramas, I won't do something that stupid!"
Author's Note:
----------------------
Note: This story takes place on the same Earth as the neighboring novel "Reincarnated as the Spoiled Beauty Duke's Younger Brother." The origin and handling of the Cursed Gold will be clearly explained in a special bonus chapter in that novel (Xiao Yun is working hard to support his brother), so Master refuses any work related to the Cursed Gold. The male lead from the other novel, Xiao Yun, his brother may make cameo appearances in this story later. Muah!
Thank you to readers "Raising a Feifei ing." and "Go to work in a factory if you don't study hard" for providing nutrient solution.