Chapter 233: Selection of the Celestial Instrument Ritual — Rest (This Volume Ends)

Waved at Khorne.

Now grown even larger, Khorne—having evolved toward the size of a small behemoth—immediately abandoned its calm, crouching posture, pushed off with its hind legs, and leaped over, nuzzling close to Louis, its tail swaying gently behind it.

Louis smiled softly, stroking its dog-like head. “You’ve worked hard.”

Khorne licked Louis’s palm with its tongue.

…

Sitting in the car.

Louis closed his eyes to rest.

Louis had plans for the futures of all three great dogs, but now it seemed he needed to make minor adjustments to Khorne’s future.

After all, even without merit, there was still labor; he had been somewhat biased all along.

He rubbed his temples and began thinking about what to do next.

There were mainly two things.

First, seek out ghosts, monsters, demons—especially demons—to refine them, break through his bottleneck, and accelerate his cultivation.

Second, prepare for ascension to godhood; since the Ascension Ritual requires celestial phenomena, it certainly cannot be simple.

Any ritual involving rites is never straightforward.

In ancient times, the construction of observatories like the Star-Picking Tower, the Star-Observing Platform, and the Wind-Hearing Pavilion were massive projects, let alone the need to place talismans at different directions according to feng shui—it was an enormously vast undertaking.

Under ancient conditions, it was no wonder ministers condemned it as draining the people’s strength and wealth.

Of course, difficulty scales proportionally with ritual scale.

The larger the ritual, the better the result upon completion.

The ritual Louis planned was naturally immense, for the celestial phenomenon this time was likewise exceedingly rare—a once-in-a-millennium opportunity that must not be missed.

The eight-planet alignment occurred in 2000, a relatively rare phenomenon; in 1999, an even rarer cross-star alignment occurred—a celestial event rarer than the eight-planet alignment.

And coinciding with the Christian doctrine, the turn of the century from 1999 to 2000.

Two celestial phenomena, one symbolic meaning.

Most importantly, the symbolic meaning of the turn of the century refers to the process from 1999 to 2000, so the eight-planet alignment and the cross-star alignment can be combined and both utilized.

Two rare celestial phenomena, plus a Christian-symbolic meaning that encompasses them both.

Such a celestial configuration was unheard of.

A ritual of this scale would naturally be boundless, and its duration would be long—from the cross-star alignment’s start to the eight-planet alignment’s end, a full nine months.

Under these circumstances, covering only Florida was no longer sufficient.

According to Louis’s estimation, this ritual would likely need to cover all of America.

Fortunately, this is the modern age; had it been ancient times, countless lives would have been exhausted, and completion within the deadline would still have been uncertain.

Thank heaven for technology—making the arcane easier.

Pressing hard on his temples, Louis’s mind began calculating the ritual’s coverage area and states.

His mind, strengthened by cultivation, spun furiously.

The approximate shapes, areas, rivers, and geography of each major American state appeared in his mind, then were sketched, mapped, differentiated, and positioned.

Forty-eight contiguous states, two overseas states…

Only as the car neared home did Louis open his eyes, his gaze heavy with exhaustion, murmuring softly.

“Three years—at least three years—this project will take to complete.”

“And the Karno Group’s power must be fully unleashed, even expanded further.”

“During this time, if possible, we must acquire as much additional aid as we can.”

Based on Louis’s rough calculations, he arrived at a concrete timeframe: three years.

Three years may not seem short, but against the scale of all America, it was far too brief.

“Huh～”

“I’ll do a more precise measurement later. Also, I’ll assign the feng shui assessments to Emma and the others—they’ll be my slaves, sent to survey other states.”

Louis thought “viciously,” but this was truly what he needed to do—this was precisely when he needed them.

At that moment.

Creak—

A faint braking sound arose; Louis glanced at the house. “We’re here.”

He stepped out of the car and saw Jiali suddenly emerging from the house; he couldn’t help but twitch his lips, before he could speak.

Jiali floated over swiftly, her speed increased—her control over psychic force had clearly improved.

Upon arriving, she said nothing, merely crossed her arms and pressed tightly against Louis’s back, like a bodyguard.

Louis shook his head and walked toward home.

Behind him.

The driver smiled at the scene. “Youth—”

Too bad adults no longer had youth; so he decided to go to the club, see if there were any youthful girls who could help him rediscover the feeling of youth.

Leaving aside that old lecher of a driver.

When Louis returned home, he found Emma, Madison, and Maria all present, attempting to roast a chicken—but clearly failing.

Thick black smoke billowed; the chicken’s skin was charred black all around—obviously a disaster.

The three exchanged glances.

Eventually, someone started blaming someone else—and soon all three were accusing each other.

Emma maintained a composed, refined smile. “I remember, after I killed the chicken and plucked its feathers, I did nothing else. By the way, what temperature was the oven set to?”

Madison was about to answer when Maria blocked her, glancing sideways at Emma. “What are you sneakily trying to shift blame for?”

“I was in charge of the oven, but I recall you sneaking near it, didn’t you?”

Maria seemed to be in Elan’s alternate personality state—her words were sharp and unyielding, showing no trace of timidity.

Emma’s expression didn’t change; she shrugged. “I know you sisters are close, but you don’t have to be this hostile toward me. And are you really good friends? Oh, I didn’t mean you, Elan!”

Her tone grew loaded, pointed.

“What do you mean? This chicken was roasted to celebrate Madison’s trip to Hollywood—do you think I, as Madison’s friend, would sabotage it on purpose? Your methods are too low!”

Maria didn’t notice Madison’s suddenly complex expression behind her.

After all, Maria and Elan were primary and alternate personalities, yet their personalities differed—was Elan truly her friend?

Madison fell silent.

Emma’s smile deepened.

“I never said that—it was you who said it…”

“You…”

“….”

The petty squabbles among the three girls made Louis, who had just returned, smile faintly.

He loved watching women fight; arguments were fine too—perfect for observing their personality shifts.

For instance, Emma seemed to have evolved—or rather, her patience had strengthened, her ability to mask herself improved; she was no longer as easily provoked as before.

Madison, on the other hand, remained impulsive and hot-tempered—just as foolish as ever.

He shook his head.

Seeing the three still bickering with no intention of physical confrontation, Louis grew bored and walked in on his own, bringing Jiali with him.

!!!

The moment they saw Louis.

The verbal war ended instantly.

Louis pretended not to notice what they’d just been doing; after asking about their condition and chatting briefly, he went upstairs.

He was tired.

His recent workload had been excessive, especially the celestial ritual positioning calculations, which had drained him greatly.

And the next few days would be busy too—teaching them surveying methods, checking on the Native American tribes…

After finishing those, he’d head to Massachusetts; though he was enrolling in university, he already had ideas about what he’d actually do once there.

But now, he needed rest.

A proper rest.

Seeing Louis go upstairs.

Emma’s eyes flickered; she quietly vanished.

Moments later, Maria and Madison, still sulking, noticed Emma’s absence and simultaneously turned their gaze to the second floor—the faint sounds confirmed it; they spat, “That sneaky cat!”

(End of Chapter)