Though stunned for a moment, Zhou Chen immediately guessed who the voice belonged to.

—Forbidden Object B-025: Wishing Box!

According to the records, this was an Activated Forbidden Object with its own consciousness that would entice and bewitch humans, luring them into becoming its Receptor. If they were careless enough to take the bait, they would become a slave to the Wishing Box.

As for what purpose the Wishing Box truly sought to achieve... this was not recorded in the Star Association’s classified files. The Wishing Box’s appearances were always too brief to gather sufficient information.

The only certainty was that its goal was nothing good, as none of the Wishing Box’s previous Receptors had met a pleasant end. In fact, being left with an intact corpse was considered a good death.

’The Wishing Box is contacting me, but the Black-robed Man isn’t reacting at all. Can he not sense its subtle movements? If so, the Wishing Box’s rank is probably higher than anyone imagines... Hmm... Is it trying to tempt me?’

On the surface, Zhou Chen betrayed nothing unusual. He didn’t respond to the Wishing Box in his mind, instead picking up where the Black-robed Man left off. "That’s the very reason I’ve let go of my obsession with resurrecting her. Instead of wallowing in the past, I’d rather look to the future and do something more meaningful."

"I can’t resurrect the dead, but I can help you advance to Tier Three. Think about it," the Black-robed Man said bluntly.

"Siegfried" raised an eyebrow slightly, a curious expression on his face. "You mean I can directly condense a Golden Soul through a wish?"

"That’s right. I’ve used the Wishing Box to create over two hundred Ascenders and helped more than sixty Tier Two Ascenders safely advance to Tier Three. Heh, where do you think the Salvation Army gets its Ascenders?

You can rest assured. This method has been examined by several of the Salvation Army’s Tier Four members. They’ve confirmed it has no side effects. At most, the process is rather painful, but compared to the Power you’ll gain, that pain is not worth mentioning."

The Black-robed Man continued slowly, "In an instant, all the joys and sorrows you’ve ever experienced will be recreated by the wish’s power and amplified infinitely, reaching a level sufficient to condense a Golden Soul. In your case, you’ll likely re-experience the grief and pain from when your lover departed.

But you’ll only feel that way for a short while. Once you’ve advanced, the wish’s effect will disappear, and you’ll return to normal."

Simply put, the method’s essence is to induce emotional resonance. Under normal circumstances, events that trigger such resonance are rare and unpredictable, which is why most Ascenders use self-analysis to form their Golden Soul. However, in special situations—such as possessing a miraculous Forbidden Object like the Wishing Box—one can artificially create that resonance and force an Ascender’s Advancement.

"No, thank you. I still think advancing on my own is better."

"Siegfried" politely declined the Black-robed Man’s kind offer. He paused, then asked curiously, "Can I see the Wishing Box? I’ve always wanted to see a B-Level Forbidden Object with my own eyes."

With a flick of his wrist, the Black-robed Man produced an ornate box made of Gold. It looked like the latest product from a luxury company, so exquisite it seemed to possess a magical allure. A single glance was enough to captivate a person, creating the urge to take it home, treasure it, and even worship it.

"Be careful. It’s an Evil Object," the Plague Doctor reminded him from the side.

At that moment, Zhou Chen, who was in his state of Divine Descent, saw the black aura enveloping the Wishing Box. This indicated that the Forbidden Object carried a certain degree of contamination.

He sensed it carefully but did not detect any Power from the same source as the Wish Bottle. Instead, he felt a chilling ferocity and an immense malice hidden within the Darkness. That must be the Wishing Box’s own consciousness.

’No Power from the same source as the Wish Bottle... Does that mean the Wishing Box’s fundamental Ability isn’t to grant wishes?’

Zhou Chen was a little stunned. This didn’t fit the "Wishing" Box’s name at all.

Just then, the Black-robed Man put away the Wishing Box and stood up. "Fighting has broken out on the front lines. I have to go."

The next second, he vanished without a trace.

The Plague Doctor picked up his phone. A few seconds later, he received a message that fighting had broken out again on the front lines. After sending a reply, he put his phone down. Staring at the spot where the Black-robed Man had been sitting, he let out a soft sigh. "To be honest, I always thought he was Havier."

"I thought so for a while, too," Zhou Chen nodded. "In the beginning, the Black-robed Man really did resemble Havier—returning for revenge after more than a decade of nursing his wounds. He was similar in all sorts of ways. Fueled by widespread rumors, many people came to faintly believe it. Even I considered it highly likely that the Black-robed Man was the Havier who had been missing for decades."

"But he’s not. Havier would never do something like annihilate a city," the Plague Doctor said, shaking his head. "But even now, no one knows his true identity. He was dressed like this when he first came to the Salvation Army and has never removed his disguise."

"How could you trust someone so suspicious?"

"He had Havier’s personal Token," the Plague Doctor said. "It was Havier’s most important possession. That, combined with him being a Tier Four Ascender, made us all suspect he was actually Havier in disguise. A pity he’s not.

Of course, that was just our own wishful thinking. He never claimed to be Havier."

Even so, the Plague Doctor and the others were likely still very disappointed. To the Salvation Army, Havier was like the Sun in the sky—an icon of faith for all. If he were still alive, the Salvation Army’s morale would surely soar, and the future for the people of North Carolina would undoubtedly be much brighter.

"Whether he is or isn’t, it’s not actually that important. Every Warrior of the Salvation Army is a hope for North Carolina. Anyone can become a Havier; we don’t have to wait for him to come back," Zhou Chen said.