“But Sister Devlin is already an Eleventh-Ring, and there’s no rule that says a Chosen One must be a High-Ring when they awaken their power. Iluna is a Low-Ring, Darkness is a Middle-Ring, so it seems perfectly fine for the third to be a High-Ring.”
Xia De thought about the Chosen One and looked at the silver-haired sister.
From the side, he couldn’t see the patterns on the silver ornament, only the silver ring clasping her grayish-white long hair.
“Is there anything else?”
The blind sister turned slightly to “look” at Xia De, who then asked, “I noticed you’ve been looking at this fire. Is this bonfire also part of the ritual?”
He had thought it was just for roasting meat.
“Yes, this fire is your beacon for return.
As long as the fire doesn’t go out, even if you don’t find Priest Augustus, you’ll be able to return safely.”
Xia De nodded, somewhat worried the fire would go out.
It wasn’t that he underestimated Sister Devlin’s combat power, but rather that all the stories he had read followed this trope.
As if “seeing” Xia De’s thoughts, the sister smiled for the first time: “Don’t worry, this fire will not go out no matter what.”
“Why?”
“A very powerful being resides in this mountain.
I once obtained a spark from Her; this fire is inextinguishable.”
As she spoke, Sister Devlin clasped her hands together in front of her, as if holding something, and raised her arms towards the bonfire.
The fabric of the sister’s sleeves shifted with the firelight, while Xia De looked at her hands in surprise.
As her clasped hands slightly parted, Xia De saw a tiny red flame flickering in her palm.
The spark in her palm was nearly circular, with a slender tail of flame swaying upwards.
The sister held the flame, and the fire harmed her hand, but when the fair skin showed charred marks and cracks, it slowly healed as if time were flowing backward.
【Outsider, you feel blasphemy.】
“A relic? The flame is a relic?”
Xia De was very surprised, but even more curious about where the sister had produced the flame from; there had clearly been nothing in her hand just now.
The flame was not as bright as the bonfire in front of them, but as a Ring術士, Xia De could feel how powerful this strange fire was.
In fact, for some reason, he had an urge to swallow the flame whole.
“Oh no! Am I finally being influenced by the Blood Feast Lord’s power?”
Xia De was somewhat terrified.
【No.】
“That’s good… The color and temperature of this flame, why does it feel so familiar?”
After showing the flame in her hand to Xia De, the sister put it away.
Since she didn’t explain what it was, Xia De didn’t ask, as it was her private matter.
The two stood silently in front of the bonfire, Xia De pondering the situations he might encounter once he delved into the Between Life and death.
“Mr. John Watson, do you know there’s also a Great Witch in this area?”
Sister Devlin suddenly asked, and Xia De’s heart skipped a beat, but he remained outwardly calm: “No, The Lady didn’t mention it.
However, I heard that the Witches of the Witch Council are not interested in men, and some even dislike them, so perhaps The Lady introduced you instead of the local Great Witch for that reason.”
“The local Great Witch is quite powerful,” the sister said, but this differed from the information Xia De had.
Miss Jialinna said that Grandma Cassandra was a Tenth-Ring, which was one ring lower than the Eleventh-Ring sister.
“Is her rank very high?” he asked, feigning curiosity.
“A bit lower than mine, but she has a good teacher.”
Miss Jialinna had said this too.
“So, you mean the former Witches were very powerful?”
Xia De asked, but Sister Devlin shook her head once again: “No, her teacher was not a Witch.”
This sparked even greater curiosity in Xia De.
The Witch Council uses a nearly apprentice-based inheritance system; a Witch whose teacher is not a Witch—he couldn’t imagine it at all.
But Sister Devlin didn’t say another word, even when Xia De looked at her, practically screaming “I’m very curious” with his face, Sister Devlin remained silent.
“I’ll ask Miss Jialinna when I get back.”
Xia De thought to himself, looking up at the three moons in the starry sky: “If I can get back safely…”
At 9:30 PM, the ritual was complete, and the final checks had been made.
The Ring術士 of the Spiritual Cult gathered orderly from inside the mansion into the courtyard.
Sister Devlin stood by the bonfire, giving Xia De his final instructions: “The Between Life and death is patrolled by a large number of souls, and there are also some evil spirits with special powers.”
Xia De was still in a state where he could easily be attacked by evil spirits.
“Therefore, the ritual will protect your living aura from leaking, so the possibility of you getting lost there due to evil spirits is very low,” the sister said.
Xia De breathed a sigh of relief; this meant he would only be attacked by evil spirits if they saw him at close range.
“In the Between Life and death, you must not make too much noise.
The Cult has always believed that many extremely dangerous beings reside in that ancient place.
Please find the Priest as quickly as possible and bring him out; do not do anything extra.”
“I understand.”
“Also, in the ambiguous region of life and death, soul power is more important than physical power.
Physical strength is not very effective in that area; the strength of the soul and spirit is true strength.
Therefore, you must control your emotions, whether positive or negative, as they can all lead to you getting lost.”
“Strength of the soul, huh? I understand.”
Xia De nodded again.
“Finally, the flow of time in that strange world and the material world is not the same, and there’s no pattern to it.
You might experience a whole day, while outside it’s only been the time of a dream, but it’s also possible you only walked a few steps, yet several tens of minutes have passed outside.
Due to the limitations of the ritual itself, you must return before dawn, so…”
“It’s okay, I have the power to perceive time.”
Xia De pointed to his head: “I can sense both real time and my own perceived time.
However, what time is dawn usually in the Middlesburg area?”
He asked, and Sister Devlin immediately provided the answer: “The next dawn will appear at 6:23 AM.”
Xia De noted the number.
At exactly ten o’clock, the moon overhead reached the appropriate position, and in the cloudless night sky, the sea of stars seemed to be frozen above them.
The bonfire crackled in the courtyard, and only the 34 sisters wearing silver coronets and blindfolds remained in the courtyard.
Nine of them were evenly spaced around the huge bonfire, dressed in identical sister habits, with their hands clasped together in front of their chests, chanting incantations to communicate with the other side of the world.
The firelight danced on them, and the crackling of the flames almost drowned out the sisters’ murmuring.
The bonfire was in the center of the courtyard, and along the path connecting the bonfire to the mansion’s main gate, 22 sisters stood quietly waiting, some holding pure silver bells, others holding white porcelain water bottles, or raising white banners embroidered with ancient runes.
At the mansion’s entrance, two sisters, who appeared to be twins, each grasped a doorknob of the double doors.
Both were High-Ring Sorcerers, but Xia De did not know their names.
The last sister, Sister Devlin, stood with Xia De by the bonfire, behind them the nine softly murmuring sisters, and in front of them the path leading to the large gate at its end.
Amidst the crackling of the bonfire, no one spoke until Sister Devlin took out two white threads of equal length.
She threw the threads towards the bonfire behind her, but the next second, the two threads floated out again, now crimson.
The sister handed one to Xia De, motioning for him to wrap it around his wrist; Xia De could feel the warmth on the cotton thread.
“One for you to tie to your wrist, and one for me to hold.
When you need to return, this thread will guide you to see the beacon,” the sister said.
Xia De nodded.
Then, she handed Priest Augustus’s silver holy emblem pendant to Xia De: “This will guide you to find your friend.”
Xia De nodded, hanging the holy emblem on his chest.
“Also, please ensure in advance that you won’t be corrupted by death.”
Xia De took out the youthful immortality leaf from his pocket watch and held it in his mouth.
The leaf itself had a tart taste, but Xia De had never licked other leaves, so he didn’t know if they tasted the same.
“Finally, Mr. John Watson, I wish you a successful journey.”
She bowed slightly to Xia De, a courtesy Xia De dared not accept, so he quickly dodged: “Sister, I cannot express my gratitude purely with words.
After Priest Augustus is rescued, I will…”
“Three.”
The sister began to count down, and Xia De immediately stood shoulder to shoulder with her.
“Two.”
The grayish-white haired sister clasped her hands together in front of her chest, holding them in a cupped gesture, and Xia De once again saw the faint firelight between her palms.
This flame, which could be defined as a “relic,” would become Xia De’s greatest safety guarantee.
“One.”
The final sound was somewhat trembling, because as the sister clasped her hands completely together, firelight spilled from her palms.
She was not swallowed by the instantly expanding firelight; instead, cracks appeared in her hands, with flames flowing within them.
This was somewhat similar to Xia De’s “divinity overflow” state, both being manifestations of inner power appearing on the outside.
Xia De took a deep breath: “Then I’m off.”
The sister, holding the flame, bowed her head slightly: “Good luck.”
