Chapter 734: Ritual

As that deep‑red light burst through the gate into the shadows, the previously insubstantial shadows came alive, continuously collapsing inward and shrinking, forming a black giant.

The black giant, as soon as it took shape, split uncontrollably into two smaller black giants, one with deep‑red eyes, the other with pale‑gold eyes.

Instinctively they regarded each other as enemies, fighting each other uncontrollably, trying to devour the other to become whole again.

At the same time, fierce winds rose around, howling as they tried to close that gate in the sky.

When it drew near, the raging hurricane, like the shadows before, came alive, gaining an independent self and life; one vortex after another contracted inward, sprouting limbs and a head, becoming a black, howling human silhouette.

Just as before, the human silhouette formed by the hurricane began to split uncontrollably, then fought each other.

The deep‑red moonlight behind the gate grew ever denser, stretching and distorting, straining to let more light seep in.

A deep‑red palm had already grasped both sides of the doorframe, pulling the body behind it forcefully.

In the struggle, an illusory, rippling, black‑terrifying "Ocean" materialized out of nowhere, as if it could encompass all things, enveloping the black shadow giant, the howling wind giant, and the gate whose deep‑red light kept spreading outward, erasing them into nothingness.

Within the black, illusory "Ocean," everything was melting away, being assimilated.

The deep‑red light gradually dimmed until it was completely covered, then the illusory "Ocean" spread out at once, like a black, illusory curtain draped over the sky.

Under the interference of the Chaotic Sea's aura, the Star Realm gods' gazes could not pierce reality to discern the situation here.

Beneath the black, illusory "curtain," at the moment Mr. Door returned to the real world, their god‑making ceremony had already begun.

Their already vague silhouette had completely vanished, leaving only an illusory, abstract, layered "gate" seemingly woven from pure starlight and crimson moonlight.

In an instant, the crimson moonlight interlaced with pure starlight kept disappearing or dimming, making the concept‑like beings of starlight become somewhat purer.

A Meng's voice echoed at the right moment: "Give up, hand everything over to me, how about it?"

"You probably don't want to ascend to Sequence 0 in this state, right? At that point, you, who wield the authority of 'Wandering,' 'Star Realm Passage,' and the Door, will become the opener for their invasion of reality, triggering the apocalypse that still had about ten years left to come early."

"I don't need much; accommodating too many traits would diminish my own state. The remainder I'll hand over to the Abraham family, and you can keep some resurrection fallback for yourself. Dying once and then reviving is the best way for beings of our tier to shed negative states."

"This world needs a Lord of the Mysteries; Antigonus has gone mad, you're contaminated, so only I remain."

Each time A Meng spoke, Mr. Door would let go of some resistance, allowing them to siphon more destiny, traits, and the god‑making ceremony.

Within the illusory, abstract Star Realm, grotesquely twisted faces protruded at the top, blocked by an invisible barrier, impossible to cross even a hair.

On the primordial leftover barrier, the already existing illusory cracks subtly showed a tendency to expand.

This gave the star‑outside gods, who were barred outside, a glimpse of hope; they intensified their erosion of the Star Realm, and transparent, twisted faces covered the entire top of the Star Realm.

In the perfect realm embraced by a canopy of countless interwoven colors, the separated information, traits, and spirit were reclaimed, allowing its own state to return to the subverted Reckton calm, while the old ones beyond the barrier stared back.

Lines of dim, unclear, colorless light formed around him, blooming from the perfect realm as the center.

They quickly coalesced into one projection after another, like paintings without thickness yet imparting an immense sense of weight.

On these scrolls, light and shadow constantly shifted, displaying humanity's enlightenment and development across different classes.

They seemed to bear millennia of civilization, carrying billions‑year‑spanning generations of human history, with an indescribable weight and breadth, unfolding right against the primordial leftover barrier, completely isolating the star‑outside gods' outpouring of power and gaze.

In a phantom realm guarded by numerous dark, pyramid‑shaped tombs, Luo Sai Er lounged on a massive stone high‑backed chair, watching the civilizational scrolls that separated the outside gods' power and gaze, shook his head and chuckled: "Ha, you think a single person can replace the Seven Gods who have guarded the Star Realm for millennia? You really embarrass them."

As he spoke, his silhouette suddenly grew far more illusory, as if he were in another world where the underlying rules were entirely different, drifting like a shadow between two contradictory rivers of fate, leaving the Star Realm and entering reality.

Deep in the Spirit Realm, Ke Lai En and Qi Guang sat in a reception hall he had pulled from a historical fissure, its fireplace lit, listening to Qi Guang's description of the star‑outside gods, the Source Fortress, and the old days.

"Regarding the previous Lord of the Mysteries, that is, the Celestial Venerable, we know little; we can only infer from lingering traces that they and that god fell before the Second Era."

"But they did not truly die. According to our Qi Guang's speculation, they are personalities split from the primordial, essentially equivalent to the primordial; as long as the corresponding extraordinary traits persist, they may return from the void."

"That probability will decline over time as the spiritual imprints of the extraordinary traits fade, but it will not vanish entirely." "Ju Guang" Xi La Li Ang enthusiastically narrated to Ke Lai En their conjectures and understanding of the Celestial Venerable, until the ever‑silent "Huang Guang" Wei Ni Tan suddenly spoke up: "Your Highness, apologies for the interruption; I have seen some reminders from that 'Sage' transmitted through the Spirit Realm."

"Mr. Door has already shed the darkness and storm, returned to reality; A Meng is attempting to steal their god‑making ceremony, becoming the true god of both the 'Error' and 'Door' paths."

"They hope you can use the Source Fortress's power to tear apart the barrier the True Creator erected using the Chaotic Sea's power."

Ke Lai En stared blankly for a moment, murmuring to himself as if bewildered:

"Mr. Door has returned?"

"A Meng is trying to steal their god‑making ceremony?"

He felt everything was overly dreamlike and unreal; he had just become a "Miracle Master," just learned the true side of this world from Qi Guang in the Spirit Realm, and before he could digest the news, A Meng was already ascending to godhood, and as a true god of the dual paths.

Regaining composure, Ke Lai En gave Qi Guang a slight nod and said, "I'll step out for a while."

"Hong Guang" Er Mo Rui Ya rose first, bowing to Ke Lai En:

"Your Highness, if you need anything, we can also offer some assistance."

"Mm." Ke Lai En gave a slight nod; his silhouette instantly vanished from the Spirit Realm, passing directly into the ancient palace above the gray mist.

The black "curtain" lifted of its own accord, draped over him, becoming a black cloak.

Ke Lai En lifted his hand; the "Fool" card that had been upside‑down on the table flew into his hand, his aura rising again, deepening his grasp of the gray mist.

After preparing, he lowered his gaze; without needing to pray for a light point's location, the "Diviner" intuition led him instantly to look toward the southern Su Nia Sea.

He saw an illusory, pitch‑black, lightless "Ocean," seemingly frozen eternally in the sky above the clouds, even the real view above the gray mist could not penetrate it.

Above that pitch‑black, lightless "Ocean," he saw Luo Sai Er's silhouette, extremely illusory, as if it were a hallucination, appearing as though isolated in another world.

They were attempting to cross that "Ocean," entering the Su Nia Sea below.

Seeing this, Ke Lai En casually summoned a paper figure from the cluttered corner, infused it with power, and tossed it out.

In an instant, the paper figure traversed the long distance, appearing beside Luo Sai Er, transforming into a gray‑white mist that constantly surrounded them.

"You're really slow."

Luo Sai Er gazed at the black "Ocean" below, sighing softly; with the Source Fortress's aura forming a barrier, they need not fear contamination from the Chaotic Sea.

Immediately, their body turned into pure shadows, bearing gray‑white mist, plunging into the black, lightless "Ocean" below.

Relying on the gray mist from Luo Sai Er, Ke Lai En finally pierced his sight downward, seeing what was happening on the sea's surface.

He saw a dazzling starlight, extremely illusory, as if composed of layered illusory gates, no longer like a physical being but more a concept, a symbol.

A single glance allowed Ke Lai En to decode numerous pieces of information, understanding the realms symbolized by those dazzling stars.

"'Wandering', 'the Door', 'Star Realm Passage', 'Key', 'Keeper of Secrets'—these are all domains included in the apprentice path; is the final form of this path becoming a conceptual being? I don't know what the 'Fool' is like."

Muttering to himself, Ke Lai En noticed that the dazzling starlight always contained a layer of crimson, the two seemingly fully merged into one, indistinguishable.

""Original Moon" pollution? This is already pickled in flavor, right!"

In his sigh, he saw a figure appear in that starlight, a figure wearing a monocle.

It also seemed to have noticed Klein's gaze, smiled, raised its head, and locked eyes with Klein.

(End of chapter)