Chapter 1799: The Secret of the Ritual

"In the worst-case scenario, we can at least save the Witch. That's a decent result. My condition is excellent today, so what shall we divine next?"

Luvia asked the two. Yi Lu Na pondered for a moment:

"We still lack five of the thirteen keys. Laplace Howard's entire plan is also of great importance. Secondary is locating the soul of Maria Edwards, which drifts in the Green Lake region."

"And the 'Godhood Ritual of Edwards'. I strongly suspect this is merely the name the Diviner gave to the Chosen One's ritual. Finally, there is the method to enter the other island."

Xia De added. The three discussed briefly, then decided to first divine the whereabouts of the remaining five keys. News regarding Maria Edwards might not be critical. Xia De felt many clues could lead to the method of entering the island, and the Diviners' Association was already striving for it. As for the Godhood Ritual and the Diviner's plan, they might require too many coins due to their connection to the Chosen One.

Thus, one of the fresh coins brought by Yi Lu Na was tossed into the air, scattering into flying ash before it could fall back before Luvia. The girl with purple eyes opened her eyes, her face bearing a look of deep thought:

"Fascinating. Three of the remaining five keys are already fully formed. One is in the hands of the 【Tyranny Club】, one in the hands of the 【Dragon Feast Order】. If there are no accidents, these should refer to those two Edwards cultists. The last fully formed key is in the hands of the 【Society of Truth】. Through divination, we learned they acquired it after ascending the island themselves, trading with the soul of the last Great Gravekeeper of the island."

That method was consistent with how Megan and Xia De exchanged keys with the blacksmith and the mineralogist.

"What about the two keys not yet formed?"

"One clue lies beneath the island, the other within the island. Specifically, the one beneath the island is not on the island itself, but hidden in the soul of the boatman of the former Yi Lu Na Town, located on the waters at the edge of the island shrouded in white mist. The clue within the island is in the hands of the predecessor of the most recent mayor of Yi Lu Na Town."

That passage was not simple; the ritualistic knowledge involved was quite abstract. That was merely the part Luvia could perceive. The Diviner beneath the island likely had even more preparations:

Luvia also understood Howard's meaning. Since she had already performed eight consecutive divinations, Xia De and Xue Binyan both urged her to rest a bit. The three held their teacups and chatted idly. On that rainy, hazy Monday afternoon, under the light of the gas lamps in the hotel room, they spoke of their inner thoughts and plans.

I held a rather stiff cat, preventing it from sticking its claws into my teacup:

Just as the coin fell and rapidly scattered into flying ash, the girl with purple eyes suddenly let out a happy grunt, and blood subsequently oozed from the corner of her mouth:

Two coins scattered into flying ash in the air. Luvia also opened her eyes, meeting the probing gazes of Xue Bin and Howard;

However, Luvia's condition was not as bad as we imagined. It was not that the divination itself had a problem, but rather she had seen something very dangerous:

Having performed two dangerous divinations in succession, her face had turned somewhat pale. Xia De urged her to rest a bit, while Xue Binyan poured her a cup of hot tea. Luvia did not force herself; holding the teacup, she organized her thoughts a bit:

"This final battle will absolutely be more dangerous and troublesome than the time at Randel Valley. Even if the corrupted guardians at Randel Valley were incredibly powerful, even if they could split into thousands of forms, in essence, they were still just a single entity. But now, beside Laplace Klein Edwards, there are at least seven entities surpassing the Eighteenth Ring."

Howard enjoyed such an atmosphere. Idly chatting in a cool room on a rainy day was inherently delightful, let alone having Xia De and Luvia beside him. He complained to Luvia that the environment of Yi Lu Na City was not as good as Tobeske, discussed with Xue Bin whether Xue Binyan would turn green as rumored, and finally recommended Luvia try the specialty wild berry jam of Yi Lu Na City. The jam, made from blueberries and redberries produced by the shores of Yi Lu Na Lake, was sold only locally, but the taste was quite excellent.

"To see Laplace Klein Xue Binyan, one must pass through that scarlet door. Although this door appears in the dreams of the Green Lakes, its true form is on another island. By performing the symbolic act of 'passing through the door,' the Green Lakes will replicate the power awakened in their bloodlines, like nutrients absorbed by roots, and transmit it to the Diviner at the very bottom of the root system. Only after the so-called 'feast' will the true fusion of soul and flesh be realized. The eighteen keys, as Xia De guessed, symbolize the degraded version of the ritual for the eighteen Chosen Ones in the 【Whispering Chapters】. The process of seeking the keys is the process of seeking the Chosen Ones. The keys themselves represent the history and heritage of the Green Lake family. Accumulating both, opening the door with the eighteen keys is equivalent to the door finally opened by the Chosen One: the Green Lakes push open the Final Door." Qian Qian Xiao Yue

Luvia listened to his words with a smile. The topic he raised was the scenery Xia De had seen during his several ascents to the island, as well as the island's terrain.

Xia De hurriedly supported her. Howard handed her his handkerchief and pressed his hand, which carried the cool light of the sun, against her lower back. That was a healing miracle.

"So it's not that the stronger the Xue Binyans are, the weaker the final Diviner becomes. And our gathering of these keys is actually equivalent to aiding his ritual?"

"It doesn't matter. I have divined it. I have even divined the location of the boatman's corpse underwater."

"It's fine, I'm fine. I saw too much." Howard frowned and summarized. Luvia shook her head:

"The final information from this divination: Once the ritual is activated, all Green Lakes will instantly appear on another island shrouded in mist and, following the guidance, reach that scarlet door. This is the spatial power hidden within our bloodlines, passed down through generations, just like bloodline prophecies, impossible to erase."

【Continuation of previous sentence】

Only the last two coins remained on the table. Howard left the 【Home Coin】, which would be exchanged for a house, and picked up the last 【Machine Blessing】:

A coin was tossed into the air, but it had no effect. The three discussed again. Luvia then simultaneously tossed a 【Machine Blessing】 and a 【Phantom Iron Coin】 into the air.

"I am unclear on the ultimate purpose of the Xue Binyans' Godhood Ritual. I have never seen such consciousness before."

"I am truly extremely curious about that gentleman."

This was a divination regarding dangers that might be encountered in the future. Although demons would likely be removed, the means employed by that "Ancestor" were not

merely demons.

"This ritual is one of unification. It is not that if we do not gather the keys, the ritual cannot proceed. Laplace Edwards has no way to retrieve those keys himself to open the door. But once we can gather the eighteen keys in advance, we can ascend the island before his ritual is activated. After he holds his ritual, we can see him through that door."

"Do we need to continue divining the relationship between that scarlet door and the Green Lake Godhood Ritual?"

"Gather the eighteen keys as soon as possible, then lead people to ascend the island, and defeat or contain Laplace Klein Edwards."

The first 【Machine Blessing】 resolved the trouble regarding all the keys. Luvia picked up the second one:

The conversation lasted for a short hour. During this time, Luvia repeatedly claimed she had rested well, but Xia De and Howard still did not allow her to toss the coin. It was not until 10:30 in the afternoon that the second coin finally flew into the high sky.

Howard signaled for Xia De to make the decision. Xue Bin considered for a moment:

"Since the goal is now clear, regarding the other details of the Green Lake Godhood Ritual, we can temporarily ignore them. Just as we did when we fought against the 'Silver-Eyed One' and the 【Blood of Mercury】, for this final divination, please divine as much as possible about the dangers that exist beside and in the hands of this Diviner, which we must face."

"Very well. Let us try to obtain an answer."

"Divinations for finding things generally do not yield detailed intelligence. Divinations that can pinpoint a range are the simplest. The clue underwater still requires Xue Bin to go there personally. As for the predecessor of the mayor, he is currently living in the Glass City across the lake. I will write down the specific address now, but we can only divine that the clue is in his hands; the specifics must still be found by us."

"The result is not very clear, but it can be confirmed that the Chosen One's ritual is merely a part of the Green Lake Godhood Ritual. It is related not only to family fusion but also to the creation of space required by the ritual. Beyond the Chosen One's ritual, the Green Lake Godhood Ritual holds other secrets. His collection of the flesh and blood of Yi Lu Na Town's descendants and the creation of the eighteen keys are all related to this. Becoming the Chosen One is merely a part of his plan; he is seeking other things."

As for Xia De, besides mentioning that the 【Demon Men's Council】 was preparing supplies for the Chosen One's ritual for Rust Green Lake and Druet Giles, he also stated that once the affairs in the Yi Lu Na region concluded, he would go to the town where Mia Gao De's eldest sister's family resided, no matter what:

"Wait a moment." Luvia nodded lightly:

Xue Bin finally understood the most important, and final, task before him:

"Is the mayor of Yi Lu Na Town a member of the Xue Binyan family?"

Luvia said with a smile:

Howard asked Xue Bin in confusion:

"No. The mayor and the lord are not the same concept. However, since the abandonment of Xue Binyan Town, more than a hundred years have passed. Who the mayor was back then, even the seventh and eighth generations of the Green Lakes likely do not know."

"In the spring, due to my severe illness, combined with the fact that Eldest Sister Gao De was too busy to entertain me, the original spring trip was cancelled. This time, no matter what, I must go. Traveling from Middleburg to the small town on the eastern coast of the Old Continent will not take too much time."