Chapter 739: Ceremony

Chapter 739: The Ritual

He was communicating with the Shinto Star of the Witch God Dao?

He even gained knowledge instilled by the Witch God Dao from a dream?

This strange ritual... was the self-salvation method taught to him by the Witch God Dao?

A few simple sentences provided Chen Ling with a wealth of information. Previously, through several flashbacks, he had believed he had unraveled everything that happened on that rainy night. However, the appearance of Chen Ling from District Three overturned his assumptions... What he had seen from his and Chen Yan's perspective might only have been the tip of the iceberg of that night's events.

Damn it, what exactly happened on that rainy night?

In the snow, the boy in the padded coat picked up the bone crucifix, placed it against his chest, and slowly closed his eyes...

Black blood streamed from his seven orifices, dripping onto the black formation beneath him. The mingled aura of the Witch God Dao spread along the formation's patterns, connecting them into a chaotic mess like a spreading contamination, appearing as meaningless scribbles when viewed from above.

At the same time, an inexplicable aura from beyond a distant world locked onto this spot!

The boy in the padded coat took a deep breath, and an indistinct incantation began.

Even Chen Ling, standing close by, couldn't discern what he was saying. What emanated from his mouth seemed not to be human language, but rather the ancient growl of some beast. As the incantation sounded, the surrounding formation remained unchanged; only the snowflakes continued to drift down.

The boy in the padded coat chanted for nearly three minutes before stopping.

His pale knuckles unconsciously tightened their grip on the crucifix. Switching to human language, he murmured:

“I pray to the mysterious existence at the other end of fate... Be it a god or a demon, I hope you will bestow a miracle, protecting my brother and me, turning misfortune into blessings, and allowing us to always be by each other's side...

I will be forever grateful for your protection.”

As his voice faded, a profound silence fell over the hillside.

Dozens of seconds later, the boy in the padded coat slowly opened his eyes. He saw the unchanged formation on the ground and was momentarily stunned, then a flush of color returned to his cheeks, and he bent over, coughing violently!

Black blood splattered uncontrollably onto the ground, like a horrifying purgatory slowly dragging the boy deeper. With difficulty, he pulled a shard of glass from his pocket and looked at his reflection; his face in the reflection was becoming even paler and more withered.

Nothing happened; his condition even worsened.

The boy in the padded coat knelt in the wailing snow, remaining silent for a long time before letting out a self-deprecating laugh...

“I should have known... just a strange dream.”

He shakily stood up, discarding all the items in the formation. Then, as if venting his anger, he stomped the snowy formation to pieces. His eyes were filled with bitterness and despair.

He let out a long sigh and, head bowed, slowly disappeared over the horizon, following the path he had come from...

The swirling snowflakes continued to fall;

the black patterns, scattered like graffiti across the snow, melted into liquid and slowly seeped downwards, eventually vanishing deep into the earth.

The scene froze at this moment.

Immediately after, Chen Ling felt his surroundings shatter abruptly, leaving only ripple-like patterns undulating in the darkness. A pair of purple eyes, like a dreamlike reflection, opened from the void directly opposite him...

“...It's you?” Chen Ling's brows furrowed deeper as he saw his other self in the padded coat reflected in the water's ripples. “You showed me your memories?”

“As I said, we are one now... That memory has always been sealed within your confusion; you just haven't discovered it yet.”

“What happened next? What transpired afterward? Is that memory also part of my confusion?”

“Yes.”

“How can I see it?”

“I don't know... But perhaps when you see everything clearly, there will be no more confusion in your heart.”

Chen Ling and Chen Ling from District Three stood as if separated by a shimmering lake surface. Their clothing and demeanor were different, yet at this moment, they appeared like mirror images, symmetrically opposite.

Chen Ling pondered for a moment before speaking again:

“I haven't seen you since the last True Self Mirror... Why have you suddenly appeared again?”

“Master is activating the Divine Sacrifice Grounds, awakening this fragment of my soul. He wants me to help you return to the stage.”

“So... will you help me?”

Chen Ling from District Three looked at Chen Ling behind the reflection, his eyes filled with complexity.

“In a way, you were summoned by me through the divine descent ritual... Although everything deviated from the original expectation, at least A-Yan and I 'survived' that catastrophe. You are good to A-Yan; letting your consciousness control his body is at least better than this madman who controls it now.”

Seeing this, Chen Ling also let out a long sigh in his heart.

He could discern the helplessness in Chen Ling from District Three's eyes and understood its origin... Initially, Chen Ling from District Three performed the ritual hoping to recover his health and live a peaceful life with Chen Yan. However, he unexpectedly attracted this 'outsider'—himself. He had taken over Chen Yan's body, merged with Chen Ling's soul, and seized everything that originally belonged to the brothers. And after merging with him, Chen Ling from District Three was completely powerless... because he and Chen Ling had long become one. Not to mention whether he had the ability to expel him, if he were to do so, not only would Chen Yan's body become a living corpse, but his own soul would also cease to exist.

However, it must be said that the tragic fate of these brothers was not caused by that ritual... or rather, it was that ritual, his own transmigration, that saved them from their desperate, earthen graves. Without him, they would have ultimately had all their organs harvested and died silently together.

Chen Ling remained silent for a long time, then extended his hand towards the rippling water, speaking earnestly:

“...Thank you for your recognition.”

Chen Ling from District Three looked deeply at Chen Ling, and likewise extended his hand:

“Although I still don't know what exactly you are, it's... fortunate to have you.”

The hands of the two Chen Lings passed through the ripples and clasped together in the darkness.

The next moment, the water ripples began to tremble violently!

“The Divine Sacrifice Grounds are the source of all 'sacrifices.' As long as a connection is established here, I can re-enact the divine descent ritual without using any offerings or other rituals... Although the cost of doing so is immense, I will ensure you descend upon the stage once more.”

As his voice faded, Chen Ling from District Three's figure vanished before Chen Ling, carried away by the undulating water patterns...

Darkness enveloped him once more.

But in the next moment, a brilliant surge of purple light rolled forth from the void like a tide!

BOOM—!!

As a faint purple hue tinted the depths of 'Chen Ling's' eyes, a trace of the Witch God Dao's aura began to emanate from him!