Chapter 160 The Ouija Board (37) Stay with me, Ah Tan...
Xie Tan quickly kissed Lu Jinzhao on the cheek, grabbed his hand, and ran towards the fire.
Cat No. 7, who had been determined not to disturb the young couple's date, finally reappeared, running nimbly alongside them.
The firelight, like eyes in a cave, watched them intently.
Stepping into the study, one sees a thin, burning half-book, like a broken butterfly fallen from the shelf.
Xie Tan's pupils contracted, and he rushed forward.
Lu Jinzhao was one step ahead of him, grabbing the spirit paper and extinguishing the flame.
The fire melted into the paper, creating a new layer of incantation in the empty circle at the very center of the Ouija board.
Xie Tan's panic shifted from the book to his hand, which he pulled and looked at from left to right.
"Are you alright? Does it hurt?"
Lu Jinzhao originally wanted to pretend, but seeing that Xie Tan's expression was genuinely panicked, he grabbed Xie Tan's hand and pulled him to look at him: "This is the Sun Fire, I am the Sun, what could possibly happen?"
Xie Tan ignored what he said, repeatedly confirming that everything was really alright, before going back to his book.
Most of the book was burned, and he carefully fiddled with the scattered fragments and ashes, speechless for a moment.
This is the latter half of the ancient book.
"Is there anything else in this book?" Lu Jinzhao shook the increasingly red pen paper, and said hesitantly, "This is the key to the ritual, right? It's been hidden here, waiting for the right moment. When it saw you and me, it ignited as a signal... Is there anything else?"
Why are you looking so sad?
"It's nothing." Xie Tan pursed his lips, and as he stood up, his expression was no different from usual. "Today."
"Um?"
"Let's use the Ouija board."
Lu Jinzhao's smile faltered as he met Xie Tan's calm gaze.
...
On the black and white chessboard, there is a red Ouija board.
This piece of paper has gone through a lot and still retains its shape thanks to the incantation, but the pens are not so particular. They were just picked up randomly on campus, and several have been broken.
The chess club was out of pens, and Lu Jinzhao was about to get some when Xie Tan stopped him. He did have a fountain pen on him, which was a gift from the young lady when he joined the club.
Lu Jinzhao and Xie Tan sat on either side, their fingers interlocked, holding the same pen.
Cat number 7 was perched on the windowsill, glancing at the one on the left and then at the one on the right.
It sensed their subtle, somewhat conflicted atmosphere.
"Ouija board spirit, Ouija board spirit, you are my past life, I am your present life. If you want to continue our bond, please draw a circle on the paper."
They spoke at the same time.
After the incantation was finished, Cat Number 7 jumped off the windowsill and disappeared.
The pen moved slowly.
For a moment, no one spoke.
The wind lashed against the windows beside them, sounding like a mournful wail.
“Ah Tan did all this for… Ah, Observation Six? She’s your mother,” Lu Jinzhao said. “I’ve met her. She’s very important to you, isn’t she?”
"Yes," Xie Tan asked, "So, are you going to help me today?"
“That’s someone Ah Tan cares about. I don’t want Ah Tan to be sad about this anymore. The grudges should be settled.” Lu Jinzhao asked, “Is this your wish?”
"You'll grant any wish?"
"Of course, it's better than the Ouija board anyway," Lu Jinzhao muttered.
"That's why, if you change your mind, there's nothing I can do, right?" Xie Tan chuckled, as if teasing him.
Lu Jinzhao's smile faded slightly.
He stared into Xie Tan's eyes for a while, then laughed again, extending his other hand as if making a pinky promise: "Why would I go back on Ah Tan's wish? I won't go back on it, let's make a pact."
"Okay." Xie Tan hooked his little finger with his, pulled and wiggled it a couple of times, then their thumbs overlapped, a string of incantations blending into their fingerprints. "Shall we begin?"
“Before that, I also have a question, Ah Tan, please tell me.”
"you say."
"Why did A-Tan say she liked me? Did she like me for who I am, or just... like her as a person?"
Xie Tan paused for a moment, then said, "It's just that I like you, it has nothing to do with anyone else."
Lying. Lu Jinzhao's smile faltered for a moment, a sinister quality creeping up, trying to emerge from his features.
He stopped, but his smile widened.
"That's great, me too, I just like Ah Tan, everything else..." The voice was too soft, to an odd degree.
He said, "Ouija board spirit, how can I save you?"
The world around us remained unchanged, yet something was different in an instant; a new round of refinement had begun.
Suddenly, the center of the formation opened its mouth, waiting for an opportunity to bite away the sun's "goodness".
But the next second, Lu Jinzhao, who was in front of Xie Tan, was covered by a woman.
The woman slapped the paper quickly and decisively, extinguishing the mouth as if a candle flame had been extinguished.
It's the same as the last shadow that Xue Hong saw when he summoned the Ouija board.
It wasn't Su Shao, the Ouija board spirit, but rather the "impurities" Xue Hong washed away with that sword—a new Ouija board spirit.
Xiao Liu as an adult.
The woman rested her hands on the edge of the chair, looking at him with a contented expression. She was radiant and beautiful, her eyes filled with boundless tenderness.
She smiled and opened her mouth, silently calling his name.
Tan Tan.
Xie Tan's eyelashes trembled.
The woman's figure had faded considerably; next, it would be Lu Jinzhao's newly washed-down Ouija board.
However, after a long time, nothing changed; not even the momentary reflection in the mirror appeared.
Lu Jinzhao's smile remained unchanged.
At the center of the Ouija board, a pure black flame suddenly shot up, flickering eerily in Xie Tan's vision and distorting Lu Jinzhao's smile.
The person in front of me hasn't changed in any way, yet everything about him seems different.
"I said the trigger word to fulfill Atan's wish."
Xie Tan looked at him.
"So, Ah Tan, what are you waiting for?" Lu Jinzhao asked gently. "Are you waiting for the impurities to be washed off me? The part you hate... that won't do."
"Because from beginning to end, it was just me."
His eyes and lips were smiling, but his gaze was cold and undisguised, overflowing with greed, like gold refined from human flesh in an alchemical sorcery.
It looks exactly like the Mirror God in the comics.
Lu Jinzhao said slowly, "The idea that there are two of me started with the bearded patriarch of the Black Goat family. He saw that she had also refined me and misunderstood."
"For me, the refining was just to obtain enough pure solar fire to support the ritual. However, the solar fire is so intense that it does need to take up a space. I didn't expect so many people to believe it. Haha, it's quite interesting."
"Was Ah Tan also deceived?"
Lu Jinzhao's pupils shrank, like short black needles.
With eyes like those of a wild beast, it stared intently at Xie Tan, ready to devour him the moment the man showed a hint of surprise or panic.
You lied first. He thought, good deeds should be rewarded, and bad deeds should be punished.
"Ah Tan just wants that mustache guy dead, right? Anyway, he's already on the core altar covered in incantations, there's no way he can escape."
"It hasn't even been five days yet. If I just randomly pull someone with causal connections from those abandoned timelines and refine them, that will be enough to activate the system."
"And us... we'll just enjoy our time together here, and nobody will bother us."
"Stay with me, Ah Tan."
forever.
He became increasingly joyful as he spoke, unable to conceal his madness that transcended the realm of humanity.
Lu Jinzhao had figured it out: if the bird would eventually fall into the wind, he could simply lock it in the golden cage in his palm.
The sun shines on it forever.
Why bother flying?
He hasn't tasted it yet... Ah Tan's fear of the taste.
However, he stared at Xie Tan for a long time, just as long as Xie Tan had been waiting, but he couldn't detect even the slightest wavering emotion.
Xie Tan remained calm throughout.
Suddenly, a sense of unease rose in Lu Jinzhao's heart. That strange feeling was unfamiliar to him.
He saw Xie Tan suddenly smile.
As always, a helpless yet indulgent smile, reserved only for him.
Lu Jinzhao was stunned.
An idea struck him—Ah Tan knew it.
Ah Tan knew it from the very beginning.
His eyes widened.
By the way, Atan never said that his wish was to make him say the trigger word so that he could be refined.
"You said you would grant any wish I have," Xie Tan said with a smile. "My wish is that you stay away from conflict, avoid danger, and never get hurt."
I hope you are safe and sound.
He said, "My Lord, do not break your promise."
Don't get hurt.
Lu Jinzhao thought that before the time jump, the person in front of him hugged him and made this request.
He suddenly realized what was happening and grabbed Xie Tan's hand tightly, but it was too late. The contract he had been using to bind Xie Tan had now held him back. He looked at Xie Tan, who was looking at him, and softly uttered those words, as if in a sigh.
"How...can I save you?"
The clock struck midnight.
The flames suddenly flared up, and in a flash, the person opposite had vanished.
The Ouija board turned to ashes in an instant, and the countless spells that had been released scattered, turning into dust-like flying fire.
Tick-tock, tick-tock.
Lu Jinzhao looked at the clock expressionlessly.
The clock has returned to eight o'clock.
He was trapped for four days.
The burning incantation floated around him, and he suddenly remembered asking Xie Tan if she liked him because he imitated her personality.
Ah Tan's answer was...
I just like you, it has nothing to do with anyone else.
"..."
It's actually true.
His expression was blank.
...
December 30, Diqiu University.
Due to the recent spate of accidents, Dichi University announced on the evening of December 26th that the Carnival would be a holiday, the entire campus would be locked down, and no one would be allowed to enter or leave, with faculty and staff stationed there.
Not only in Dida, but the Order's influence extends throughout Diqiu, infiltrating every level of the city, which is tense and eerily silent.
The residents who have lived here for many years, like keen little animals, sensed the impending disaster and retreated into their burrows, keeping a low profile.
At 8:00 p.m., Xi Rui and Chang Mingai burst into the chess club in the student club building.
The room was empty.
There are only eighteen black pieces and thirteen white pieces that have fallen to the ground.
"Neither Jinzhao nor Xie Tan are here."
The remaining members of the travel agency's chat group, known as the Book of Life and Death, gathered together in a somber atmosphere.
"Where is your cult leader?"
"The cult leader has also gone missing and has not appeared since."
In the past few days, all the arrangements of the cult have been made by Jiang Linji, with the vice leader in charge, overseeing the overall situation.
"And there's also Observation Twelve, right? Where is he?"
"Observation is different from that of ordinary people. Having been touched by the power of the gods, it naturally also has the characteristics of the gods to some extent, possessing some 'unique' attributes. The original body and the destiny substitute are considered as one, and were refined into the ritual together."
"Wait, what about Xie Tan? Isn't he Observer Seven?"
Chang Mingai, who had been silent, suddenly said, "Also, it's not just the head of the Black Goat family, Xie Tan wants to eliminate the entire Black Goat family, right? Even if the ritual can cover the entire city, some Black Goats have already escaped outside the city, and I haven't received any information that they're showing any signs of returning... There's only one day left."
"He's the guy who fooled everyone and orchestrated everything. Don't worry about him. He's definitely got everything planned out. Today is even more so. It's perfectly normal that he wasn't here on this inauspicious day."
Xi Rui tried to ease the tension, saying, "Don't worry, Su He said that Su Huang is also out of contact. There shouldn't be any problems on their end. We're just waiting for the last day of the inauspicious day. There are less than four hours left."
The Aztec solar calendar was a dual calendar system, consisting of two interlocking cycles: a 365-day "solar calendar" and a 260-day "sacred calendar".
The solar calendar has 18 months, each with 20 days, plus 5 days at the end of the year, totaling 365 days, and is closely related to agricultural production and sacrificial activities.
Each month has a specific name, is protected by a specific deity, and is the subject of sacrificial rites.
The last five days of the year are called "Nemontemi," meaning "useless days," and are considered "inauspicious days," extremely unlucky.
With the gods gone, the world is in chaos and danger, on the verge of destruction.
Therefore, on inauspicious days, people stay at home, avoid all important activities, and wait for the terrible day to pass.
The five-day carnival originating from Art Harbor is clearly not unfounded.
Since the cult leader and Xie Tan chose this time, it means that tomorrow is the last day of the inauspicious day.
It seems even the departing black sun cannot change this outcome.
The best time to slaughter black goats.
Everyone remained silent, listening to the ticking of the clock.
Tick-tock, tick-tock.
The clock struck midnight.
Everyone was on high alert, awaiting any possible unexpected changes.
However, there was nothing there.
Even the wind remained gentle, lacking its usual wild, unrestrained energy.
They looked at each other in bewilderment.
Xi Rui and Chang Mingai immediately contacted the cult, Xia Wujin used the Xia family's connections, and Xue Hong called the police station.
But they all came to the same answer.
Nothing happened.
December 31st.
Nothing happened in the entire city.
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