"Screech~"

Just as the chief of the Shaman Society, upon hearing that his dark past had been completely exposed, was anxiously rushing back, the familiar, piercing noise echoed once more in the Evil Prince's ear, three blocks away from the Great Witch Court.

[Through fair dueling and persuasive force, you have successfully conquered the nine major societies of the Witch Kingdom, governing half of "Ephemeral's" bloodline, thereby activating the silver-level hidden badge "Half-Shaman's Blood"]

[Half-Shaman's Blood: As the last Shaman King revered by the ten scions of the Great Court, Ephemeral, troubled by the delay in giving birth to her own bloodline, divided her heritage and bloodline, entrusting them to the eighteen Secret Techniques of the Great Court.

And whenever a human with part of the ten scions' bloodline masters any Secret Technique to a certain degree, they automatically inherit Ephemeral, the Shaman King's bloodline. By mastering nine or more Secret Techniques, they become the direct descendant of Ephemeral, awakening the Half-Shaman's Blood]

[Badge Effect: Gain half the inherent talents of Ephemeral, the last Shaman King, and significantly increase your affinity with time powers]

[Progression Path: Once all eighteen Secret Techniques of the Great Court are mastered to the "Great Witch" level, or after completely conquering all of Ephemeral's bloodline, this badge will automatically advance to the hidden gold-level badge "King Blood Great Witch"]

[Hidden Trait (No Need to Wear): Influenced by the lingering obsession of Ephemeral, the Shaman King, the probability of having offspring after engaging in corresponding activities with a partner will significantly increase]

My goodness... and merging societies can even yield a hidden badge? Also, besides the Great Shaman King's lineage, there are a total of seventeen major societies in the Witch Kingdom; could they be exactly these eighteen Great Court Secret Techniques?

After glancing at the [Half-Shaman's Blood] shimmering with silver light on the panel, Leon, just about to study its effects, suddenly felt a tap on his arm.

"Leon."

After calling out to the Evil Prince, the Cat Witch, who had done a lot of "dirty work" with Leon over these two days and was quite familiar with him now, asked with some concern:

"The chief of the Shaman Society is very formidable. Are the two shamans you sent capable of taking him down?"

"No need, sending two people is already enough."

The Evil Prince smiled upon hearing this, then explained:

"Although in terms of Leon Value, the chief of the Shaman Society is stronger than many first-level Cleaners, he lacks any specialized protective anomalies, making him not too difficult to handle.

I've got everything arranged. By the time he reaches the door to argue with his relatives, those two shamans will ambush from behind, and one hit each will be sufficient to bring him down."

Indeed...

The Cat Witch nodded at these words, reluctantly accepting Leon's explanation. However, after pacing around the room for a while, she couldn't help but suggest again:

"Leon, the Shaman Society ranks first among the seventeen major societies and controls many key departments. If he escapes, it would be very troublesome; I still think it would be safer if I went."

"Don't worry, I've got it all planned out."

Glancing at the Cat Witch, whose complexion was slightly pale, with wet hair sticking to her temple, Leon directly refused her request to join the battle.

"You're still shackled by [Bedtime Story], your strength is not much greater than an ordinary person, and last night you were dancing with the Dancing Society people from midnight until sunrise; you should rest already!"

"But what if..."

"There won't be an 'if', but if you're really uneasy, I can go myself."

"No, I don't want to trouble you; you've already helped me a lot these past two days."

Realizing she was just being overly worried, the Cat Witch felt slightly embarrassed looking at the composed Leon.

"Sorry, now that the situation is improving, I can't help but feel anxious."

"It's understandable, human nature."

Nodding understandingly, Leon glanced at the Cat Witch, her black robe drenched in sweat, and her calf muscles trembling slightly. He then gestured towards the sofa opposite him.

"Catherine, would you like to sit down and chat?"

"Ah! Okay!"

Though feeling a bit urgent inside, hoping to settle the Shaman Society quickly, the Cat Witch still obeyed and sat down across from Leon, lifting her gaze to meet his.

"Catherine."

After looking at the [Half-Shaman's Blood] on his panel, Leon curiously asked:

"Do you know 'Ephemeral'?"

"?!"

Upon hearing Leon's question, the Cat Princess was slightly stunned, then surprisedly asked:

"I do; she's my ancestor, the last Shaman King of the Great Court... Why do you suddenly ask this?"

"Oh, it's just that after contacting the Earth Scions in the Northern Kingdom, I wanted to learn more about the past."

Offering a barely plausible reason, Leon sincerely sought knowledge:

"Catherine, I've only recently become a director at the Cleaning Bureau, and there's much I don't understand about past events. Could you tell me more?"

"Sure."

Nodding in agreement with Leon's request, the Cat Witch promised:

"Just ask me anything you'd like to know and I'll tell you everything I know."

"Thank you very much."

Leon smiled at her words and continued asking:

"During Ephemeral's time, there should have been eighteen Secret Techniques of the Great Court, correct? I'm curious to know if the seventeen Secret Techniques inherited by the seventeen major societies of the Witch Kingdom are the same as those eighteen Secret Techniques?"

How do you even know such things?

After hearing Leon's question, the Cat Witch nodded in amazement and proceeded to explain:

"That's indeed the case... The seventeen major societies of the Witch Kingdom originate from those ancient Great Court Secret Techniques, and the witch lineage from my mother and me, inherits the final eighteenth Secret Technique."

Just as I thought.

Nodding in understanding, aiming to gather more insights that might earn a good badge, Leon persistently asked:

"Catherine, what are the effects of these eighteen Secret Techniques? Have you learned them all?"

"I've learned a bit of most of them, but I'm not proficient in many; I'm particularly skilled at the secret techniques of Fate and Advent, while the exact effects are..."

After organizing her thoughts, the Cat Witch tried to explain:

"The Secret Techniques of the major societies are actually derived from their names. For example, societies like Astrology, Spiritual Number Calculation, and Dancing are based on celestial divinations, spiritual number predictions, and ritual dancing; whereas Totem, Priest, and Shaman societies focus on totem cultivation, ritual ceremonies, and communing with nature;

Only the Societies of the Silver Philosopher and Gnosis are particularly unique, with the former accelerating mental processing speed as a Mind Secret Technique, and the latter providing insight through the Revelation Secret Technique. Although entry is not difficult, truly mastering them has always been rare."