Chapter 36: Strengthened PUA Call

Louis’s expression turned peculiar; in Western legends, witches were mostly female, and though male witches did exist, their presence was negligible.

And now, having learned to brew a kind of witch’s potion, rounding off, I’m essentially a male witch—no problem!

He shook his head with a wry smile and steadied his mind, turning his gaze to the potion.

He pulled out test tubes and carefully filled them.

Soon, three pale red potions were freshly prepared; though there were three, together they amounted to only one dose.

This potion was not an ancient medieval elixir, but a modern one created by the ancestors of Emilia’s tribe around the eighteenth century, blending slight alchemical techniques.

It lacked the dramatic mythic effect of instantly turning someone into a werewolf with a single swallow.

Relatively mild, its effects were slower to manifest.

Looking at the three vials, Louis did not dare consume them immediately; instead, he closed his eyes in prayer, asking his godfather if they were dangerous.

Just after closing his eyes for a dozen seconds.

A sudden clarity arose within Louis: the potion was safe—drinkable!

“It’s great having a god as your backup.”

This, strictly speaking, had already become entangled with a special technique—spirit writing.

Spirit writing had ancient origins, belonging to the primitive shamanic traditions, meant to seek guidance from heaven, earth, and deities, helping tribes avoid calamity and granting shamans power, knowledge, even divine possession.

But later, as secular changes occurred and the cosmic order was renewed, a rule emerged: true deities do not possess mortals!

Spirit writing gradually fell from orthodoxy into the remnants of folk shamanism, fading over time; yet some folk deities still upheld this tradition, and many heretical practitioners modified it and passed it on, mostly for dark arts—like the well-known spirit pen and spirit saucer, both inferior applications of this technique.

Spirit writing was, of course, far from simple, involving numerous trials and considerable difficulty; Louis could receive guidance and answers merely by closing his eyes precisely because his connection was extraordinary!

Louis stared at the three vials, tilted his head back, and swallowed one; since it was safe, he would begin his transformation now.

“This taste… it’s kind of like Guangdong herbal tea? Weird.”

No sooner had he spoken than Louis collapsed onto the bed, dizzy as if he’d drunk rice wine and been struck by wind.

He slipped into deep sleep.

His body underwent subtle changes: muscles twitched automatically, strengthened, compressed, then strengthened again…

And in his dreams,

Louis faintly saw a golden-glowing figure, but due to some restriction—or insufficient power—he could not clearly discern its form.

When he strained to see more, the white light grew blindingly bright—until it stabbed his eyes!

Louis looked out the window at the sun blazing freely, realizing it was already noon; he stretched and carefully felt his body. “This potion packs a punch—no physical sensation, just unusually clear-headed and refreshed. So it really does work slowly.”

“But that dream… was it my godfather?”

After pondering for a while, Louis, still puzzled, decided to go downstairs for something to eat.

But as soon as he stepped down, he saw Emma stealthily putting something into Yulencar’s cup.

?

“Cough, cough.”

Emma startled, spilling powder all over the table; she spun her hand behind her back, tense as she stared at Louis. “Louis, good morning, uh, noon.”

“What are you doing?”

“I…”

Under Louis’s piercing gaze, Emma obediently pulled out what was in her hand and confessed everything.

The little girl had planned to slip a laxative into Yulencar’s drink, then wait until class to make her humiliate herself—by then, Yulencar wouldn’t even dare lead the group, let alone escape bullying; it would cripple Yulencar’s most practiced tactic at its root.

And this didn’t kill anyone, didn’t violate Louis’s bottom line—so even if discovered, she wouldn’t face serious consequences.

Let’s be honest, Emma’s little brain is getting sharper—and increasingly cunning and ruthless.

Most importantly, she’s learned to read his intentions!

Louis couldn’t help but scan Emma up and down, making her feel uneasy.

“Emma, you’re not being honest!”

Do you think Yulencar won’t figure out it was you afterward? In a fit of rage, he’ll surely strike back hard—then you can just “accidentally” retaliate, and what can I possibly say?”

Tap, tap, tap.

Louis stepped down one by one, arriving beside Emma; with her trembling expression, he exhaled, and a coil of fire appeared in the air, writhing and dancing with lifelike grace.

But the searing heat now engulfed Emma’s entire body; she could even feel tiny burns on her fingertips. Her body trembled, yet she struggled to control herself—otherwise, she’d touch the serpent of flame!

Drops of sweat slid from her temple into her eyes, stinging, drying, unbearable—she truly wanted to cry.

The next second.

The flames vanished.

A glass of water was handed to her—it was Louis!

Emma couldn’t hold back anymore; she burst into tears. “Why do you always bully me?”

“You bully me, you bully me, you bully me—why don’t you go bully Yulencar instead...”

Louis raised an eyebrow. “Ah, Emma, you just don’t understand.”

“Yulencar is just an outsider—what does she matter? But you’re different. We’re accomplices. We’ve come this far together, done so much. Think carefully—have I ever truly harmed you?”

“I’m saving you!”

“The world is changing, technology is advancing, order is tightening. Someone like you, who recklessly kills without regard for rules, who refuses to adapt—what do you think your end will be?”

“You don’t seriously believe you’ll always be seen as a child, never suspected, do you? In the end, you’ll only be wanted.”

“Do you want to hide in some remote corner for the rest of your life?”

“No new clothes, no good food, struggling daily just to survive, living like a ghost in the shadows—once caught, someone who’s callously killed so many will surely face the electric chair or chemical euthanasia.”

“Or perhaps life imprisonment, growing old alone in prison, driven mad, drooling and broken.”

“You don’t want that, do you?”

Louis waved his hand, fine powder sprinkling from between his fingers; guided by his words, Emma’s vision filled with vivid scenes of what he described.

“So I correct you, scare you, teach you—all to save you! It’s for your own good!”

“...Is... is that really true?”

Emma’s eyes grew hazy, her emotions tangled and confused.

After a long silence.

“I understand. From now on, I’ll behave. But what if someone provokes me?”

“What do you think?”

Louis smiled. A small knife had appeared in his hand, spinning effortlessly between his fingers, glinting coldly.

Emma smiled faintly.

……

Since that conversation (PUA) with Emma, she had finally undergone some fundamental change.

After giving Emma a simple lesson, Louis resumed cultivating the Concealment Art; this technique was relatively simple—he had already entered the threshold, able to make footprints nearly vanish and his figure easier to hide within the environment.

Once deeply mastered, he could conceal his soul entirely, rendering even ghosts unable to detect him.

Of course, this required time, resources, and a deviant approach.

Just then, the phone rang; Louis assumed it was the dog delivery, as the timing matched.

Pit Bull, Rottweiler, Border Collie, German Shepherd, Huaxia Xigou…

But when he answered, the voice on the other end was that of a little girl.

“Hi, is this Louis?”

ps: Thank you to Heize Zhen and Suiying_BC for the tips.

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(End of Chapter)