Chapter 486: Stealing is prohibited here

Chapter 486: Stealing is prohibited here

Amon, as expected, has arrived.

Hastur looked at Amon, who appeared before him, with a mix of surprise and inevitability.

He had once tested Amon by assuming the identity of the Stars, striking Amon's avatar with lightning to demonstrate the Stars' stance towards him.

But Amon did not leave Backlund; instead, he remained on Burklund Street, making Hastur question Amon's true purpose for coming to Backlund this time.

The High-Dimensional Overlookers had indeed been chasing Amon, but playing hide-and-seek to evade them for a short while wasn't too difficult, especially since Amon was Adam's brother.

Thus, it was possible that Amon's true form had come to Backlund.

Why did Amon come to Backlund?

Currently, he had no idea that Pallez was hiding in Backlund, let alone that he would come in person.

After much thought, Hastur still believed that Amon was likely after 008.

Adam and Amon had made some sort of deal. Adam helped Amon delay the High-Dimensional Overlookers, allowing Amon to come to Backlund to steal 008 for him.

This was very likely.

After all, if Adam had come to Backlund himself, 008 would have sensed it and alerted Hastur to be wary of Adam.

So tonight, Hastur had Mrs. Lisa handle Amon's avatar on Burklund Street while he stayed in the study to personally guard 008.

Unexpectedly, Amon really came.

That avatar was deliberately left on Burklund Street to attract the attention of the Stars, the Fool, and the Goddess of the Night.

"Hastur Campbell, you're quite a difficult one to deal with. No wonder that paranoid asked me to do him a small favor."

Amon sat naturally across from Hastur, his expression unhurried. "How should I address you? The Earl of Campbell in the Kingdom of Ruen, the Favored of the Stars, or the Divine Envoy of the Monk in Yellow?"

"Of course, you might have other new identities to be uncovered, such as the earthly representative of the Stars, or the recently widespread legend of the King in Yellow."

"I'm really interested in you."

With a faint smile, Amon casually revealed Hastur's hidden identities with relaxed words.

"Delaying tactics won't work on me."

A burst of starlight flashed around Hastur, the Time Reset Talisman activated, and the surrounding space-time reset, leaving three Time Worms on the ground. One of them was larger with twelve segments, clearly a higher-grade Time Worm.

As Amon showed slight surprise, Hastur naturally collected the three Time Worms as his spoils.

"Can't waste them."

During their conversation, Hastur had already guarded against Amon's hidden invasion through the Time Worms.

He had thought more than once about how to extract the Time Worms from Amon's body.

This was just the beginning.

"An astonishing authority, the Stars, truly an interesting existence. If I ever go to the stars one day, I hope to visit this entity."

"There will be such a day."

Amon's expression grew slightly serious at these words. Just a moment ago, when Hastur responded, he inexplicably felt a fluctuation in future fate.

It seemed that one day in the future, he would indeed go to the stars.

Did the Stars foresee the future, or arrange it?

Or did his words trigger some change in the future?

"Facing me with just an empty shell, as the Favored of the Stars, do you need to be so cautious?"

Through the small test just now, Amon understood that the Hastur before him was just an empty shell formed of starlight, empty and devoid of any fate, past, or future.

Not to mention stealing anything from him.

"Don't you also use avatars to confuse people? Is the one before me an avatar or your true form?"

"The Stars watch everything. Didn't they give you any hints?"

"The Stars giving no extra hints only proves this matter is not important."

"Very reasonable." Amon nodded slightly, then looked at 008 lying quietly in the pen box. "This thing is of little use to you."

Hearing Amon speak, 008 trembled violently, then quickly leaped from the pen box and wrote on the blank paper in front of Hastur: "Master, he just tried to steal me!"

"Don't worry," Hastur comforted 008. "It has already pledged its loyalty to me. I'm not in the habit of giving my possessions to others."

"We can trade."

"You don't have anything I need," Hastur smiled. "I don't need anything else."

"What a hassle."

Amon sighed, looked at Hastur, then glanced up. He knew the Stars were watching.

Stealing 008 under the watchful eyes of such a mysterious entity was quite challenging.

But worth the challenge.

An ancient, twelve-segmented clock-like shadow reappeared behind Amon, its immense aura shaking the entire building and causing the whole Queen's District to tremble.

But at that moment, everything around them vanished: no building, no Queen's District, no study. Only Hastur stood in a vast, empty world, holding 008.

This was the Spirit World.

In the Spirit World, the ancient clock-like shadow behind Amon became even more mottled. Without the need to worry about the aura of the Angel of Time, it fully blossomed at this moment.

As the hands on the twelve-segmented clock began to turn, time flowed back and reshaped. Amon reached out and grabbed 008.

But the 008 in his hand quickly became illusory and then disappeared like a bubble.

Along with it, Hastur and the real 008 also vanished.

This was not just the Spirit World... this was the Underworld deep within the Spirit World!

This was the divine kingdom created by the ancient Phoenix, a land of death. Though it had been shattered before, it was now gradually being repaired and perfected.

"Gods should stay away from the earth and return to the stars."

Amon whispered, the mottled hands of the ancient shadow behind him quickly reversed. He reached out again, and when he withdrew his hand, he held another 008.

His theft was not limited to fixed fate; at the moment Hastur and 008 disappeared, he had used his authority to steal that moment of time.

Hastur was indeed an empty concept, unaffected by fate and unable to be stolen, but 008 did not have this ability. It was a concrete existence.

And existing things can naturally be stolen.

"Stealing is prohibited here!"

008 began to frantically save itself. At this moment, a pair of eyes rose from the depths of the Underworld, glowing with golden flames, and just a glance set Amon and 008 ablaze.

"Sigh."

Amon sighed, and as he tried to leave with 008, the surrounding space and time suddenly froze, even Amon was momentarily trapped.

The golden eyes grew brighter, forming a massive prison in the Underworld, completely trapping Amon, preventing any escape.

Sensing the abnormality, Amon reversed the hands of the ancient shadow behind him again, returning to the moment the golden eyes had just risen.

He tore open a rift and threw 008 out, trying to send it away.

"Returning it to its owner, it seems you can't take it away yet."

Outside the rift, Hastur easily caught 008, glanced at Amon, and sealed the rift. Holding 008, he wrote in the air, "Thieves will be imprisoned!"

"Thieves will be struck by lightning!" Thunderbolts struck down.

Amon, dressed in a black classical robe and wearing a pointed soft hat, was struck into powder by the lightning, leaving only three Time Worms behind.

In the study, 008 still lay in the pen box, and Hastur still sat in the armchair.

The space before him rippled, and Amon reappeared, showing no signs of frustration.

When he was sucked into the Spirit World, he had swapped places, letting an avatar enter.

"How many avatars do you have?"

Hastur whispered, starlight flashing around him, and the world changed again. This time, it was not the Spirit World but the starry sky!

Without hesitation, Amon turned and left, leaving behind four more Time Worms.

"A false starry sky can make Amon retreat quickly, showing that the starry sky is still terrifying for beings like him."

Hastur whispered, collecting the four Time Worms.

As for Amon, whether it was his true form or an avatar tonight, he would need to shed a layer of skin to leave here.

To prevent Amon from harming innocent people, Hastur had long transformed his study into a multi-layered space.

Unfortunately, the authority he learned from the High-Dimensional Overlookers was limited. Even with the support of the Hall of Stars, it couldn't compare to a true multi-layered space.

Otherwise, he could trap Amon in endless illusory worlds, unable to distinguish reality from illusion.

When Amon finally left, Hastur had three more translucent Time Worms in his hand.

Tonight, his spoils were quite rich, especially the process of peeling off the Time Worms from Amon layer by layer, which was both relieving and satisfying.

As for Amon, who knows where his true form is hiding, perhaps staying by Adam's side, being a good boy.

In the real world, 008 was writing on the blank paper: "Master, my master, you are so wise and brave. You protected me once again, boohoo..."

On Hastur's shoulder, the Phoenix Gregory stood quietly.

To prevent any accidents, Gregory had been guarding the study.

Whether Amon came in person or not, he could not take 008 from Gregory.