Chapter 4"Divination and Ritual"

"Free? Nothing in this world is more expensive than something that's free!" Zhou Mingrui muttered inwardly, determined to firmly reject any additional services the other party might offer.

“If you’ve got the skills, then try exposing that I’m a transmigrator!”

With this thought in mind, Zhou Mingrui followed the woman with red and yellow greasepaint on her face, bending down and ducking into the low circus tent.

Inside, the lighting was dim, with only faint rays filtering through, barely illuminating a table spread with Tarot cards. The woman in a black dress and pointed hat seemed unaffected by the darkness, gliding weightlessly around the table like she was floating on water. She sat down on the other side and lit a candle.

The flickering candlelight cast dancing shadows, adding a layer of mystery to the tent.

Zhou Mingrui sat calmly across from her, eyes sweeping over the Tarot cards on the table. He recognized familiar faces like The Magician, The Emperor, The Hanged Man, and Temperance.

"Could Comrade Roselle really have been a 'predecessor'... maybe even a fellow countryman from our gluttonous empire?" Zhou Mingrui's lips twitched with a brief flash of amusement.

Before he could finish scanning the rest of the cards, the self-proclaimed "accurate diviner" had already gathered them into a neat pile and pushed them in front of him.

"Shuffle and cut the deck," the circus fortune-teller rasped.

"Me?" Zhou Mingrui asked instinctively.

The fortune-teller’s greasepaint wrinkled slightly as she smiled. “Of course. One’s fate can only be divined by oneself—I merely interpret.”

Zhou Mingrui immediately became wary. "You’re not charging extra for the interpretation, right?"

As a self-proclaimed internet folklore expert, he’d seen this kind of scam plenty of times!

The fortune-teller looked momentarily stunned before replying sullenly, “It’s free.”

Only then did Zhou Mingrui relax. He shoved his revolver deeper into his pocket and began to shuffle and cut the cards with practiced ease.

“Done.” He placed the shuffled deck in the center of the table.

The fortune-teller folded her hands and stared at the deck for a while before suddenly asking, “What do you want to divine?”

Back when he had failed to pursue his first love, Zhou Mingrui had dabbled in Tarot readings. He replied quickly, “The past, the present, and the future.”

This was one of the classic three-card Tarot spreads, representing past, present, and future.

The fortune-teller nodded, then smirked slightly. “Then shuffle again. Only by clearly defining your question can you draw meaningful cards.”

She’s totally getting back at me for questioning the ‘free’ part earlier... Zhou Mingrui’s lip twitched as he took a deep breath and reshuffled and cut the deck once more.

“This time it’s fine, right?” He returned the cards to the table.

“It is.” The fortune-teller drew the top card and placed it to his left. “This represents the past.”

The second card was placed in front of him. “This represents the present.”

The third card was placed on his right. “This represents the future.”

“Which one would you like to see first?” She raised her head, her gray-blue eyes locking onto Zhou Mingrui’s.

“Let’s start with the present,” he said after a moment’s thought.

The fortune-teller nodded slowly and flipped over the card in front of him. The card depicted a young man in elaborate clothing and a dazzling headdress, carrying a staff over his shoulder with a bag hanging from it, a dog tugging at his heels. The card was numbered “0”.

“The Fool,” she murmured, her gray-blue eyes fixed on Zhou Mingrui.

The Fool? The zero card of the Tarot? A symbol of new beginnings? A point of infinite possibilities? Zhou Mingrui, though a Tarot amateur, could vaguely interpret some of its meaning.

Just as the fortune-teller was about to speak, the tent flap suddenly flew open, and blinding sunlight streamed in. Even Zhou Mingrui, who had his back to the entrance, had to squint.

“You’re impersonating me again! Divination is my job!” a furious female voice growled. “Get back to your place! Remember, you’re just an animal trainer!”

Animal trainer? As Zhou Mingrui adjusted to the light, he saw another similarly dressed woman standing at the entrance—taller and more slender.

The fortune-teller at the table jumped up and muttered, “Don’t be mad, I just really enjoy this... and honestly, sometimes my readings are actually accurate...”

She lifted her skirt and hurried around the table, exiting the tent.

“Sir, would you like me to interpret the cards for you?” the real fortune-teller asked with a smile.

Zhou Mingrui’s face twitched as he earnestly countered, “For free?”

“...No.”

“Then never mind.” Zhou Mingrui shoved his hands back in his pocket, fingers brushing against the revolver and the few remaining coins, and ducked out of the tent.

Seriously? They sent an animal trainer to do fortune-telling!

A beast tamer who dreams of being a Tarot reader... what a clown.

Shrugging it off, Zhou Mingrui continued to the “Lettuce and Meats” market where he spent 7 pence on a pound of average-quality lamb, and bought tender peas, cabbage, onions, and potatoes. Including the bread he had picked up earlier, the total came to 2 soli and 1 penny.

“Money just disappears... poor Benson...” Zhou Mingrui sighed, having spent both of the paper bills he brought and even the last penny in his pocket.

With that, he hurried back home.

Now that he had the staple food, he could begin the fortune-changing ritual!

He waited until all the tenants on the second floor had gone out before starting. First, he translated the chant phrases like “Fusheng Xuanhuang Celestial Venerable” into both Ancient Feysac and Ruenish, planning to try them the next day in local languages if the original version failed—after all, interdimensional adaptation might require local custom.

As for translating into sacrificial Hermitian script, he lacked the vocabulary to attempt it for now.

Once preparations were complete, he took out four rye loaves from the paper bag and placed them in four corners of the room: one where the coal stove used to be, one beneath the full-length mirror, one atop the cupboard’s corner, and one beside the junk pile next to the desk.

Taking a deep breath, Zhou Mingrui stepped to the center of the room. After a few silent minutes to calm his mind, he solemnly began tracing a square counter-clockwise.

First step, softly: “Fusheng Xuanhuang Celestial Venerable.”

Second step, devoutly: “Fusheng Xuanhuang Heavenly Lord.”

Third step, breath held: “Fusheng Xuanhuang Almighty.”

Fourth step, with focus: “Fusheng Xuanhuang Supreme.”

Returning to the center, Zhou Mingrui closed his eyes, waiting quietly, emotions mixing hope and fear, anticipation and dread.

Will it work?Can I go back?Will something unexpected happen?

Behind closed eyes, the dark was tinged with crimson, and thoughts churned in Zhou Mingrui’s mind.

Suddenly, the air seemed to solidify around him.

Then came whispers—sometimes faint, sometimes piercing, sometimes illusory, sometimes seductive, sometimes manic, sometimes mad.

He couldn’t understand the words, but he was compelled to listen.

The headache came suddenly and violently, as if a steel spike had been driven into his skull.

His mind blurred, his thoughts scattered.

Realizing something was wrong, Zhou Mingrui desperately tried to open his eyes—but even that simple action was impossible.

Just as his body reached the breaking point, he had a fleeting, bitter thought: “Shouldn’t have messed with things I didn’t understand...”

At that instant, the cacophony abruptly vanished. Silence fell, eerie and unstable.

Not only did the atmosphere change, but Zhou Mingrui felt his own body become weightless.

This time, he managed to open his eyes effortlessly.

What he saw was an endless expanse of gray fog—dim, blurry, boundless.

“What... is this place?” Zhou Mingrui looked around in shock, discovering that he was floating near the edge of the gray fog.

The mist flowed like water, and within it floated countless deep-red "stars"—varying in size, some buried deep within, others drifting on the surface.

Faced with this holographic-like scene, Zhou Mingrui half-curiously extended his right hand to touch one of the red "stars" on the surface, hoping to find a way out.

The moment his finger brushed the surface, ripples spread across his body, and the "star" burst into dazzling crimson light.

Startled, Zhou Mingrui instinctively pulled back—only to accidentally bump into another "star."

That one lit up too.

His mind went blank. His consciousness blurred.

Back in the Ruen Kingdom's capital, Backlund, inside a luxurious mansion in the Queen’s District...

Audrey Hall sat at her dressing table, gently stroking an antique copper mirror etched with patterns and cracks.

“Magic mirror, magic mirror, awaken...In the name of the Hall family, I command you to wake!”

She tried every incantation she could think of, but the copper mirror remained unresponsive.

After ten minutes, she pouted, whispering in frustration, “Father totally tricked me... Saying this was a treasure of the Solomon Empire’s Black Emperor... some supernatural item...”

Before the words finished, the copper mirror suddenly erupted with crimson light, engulfing her instantly.

Out at sea on the Soniya Ocean, a three-masted sailing ship outdated by decades rocked through a storm.

Alger Wilson stood steadily on the deck, holding a strange glass bottle. Inside, bubbles swirled, frost formed, and wind patterns flashed.

“Still missing ghost shark blood...” he murmured.

Suddenly, the space between his palm and the bottle flared with crimson light, engulfing everything.

In the fog-shrouded space, Audrey Hall regained her vision. Alarmed, she looked around and saw a hazy male figure standing diagonally opposite, mirroring her actions.

Soon, both noticed a third figure not far away—completely obscured by mist.

That figure, Zhou Mingrui, was equally dumbfounded.

“Sir, where are we?”“What is your purpose here?”

Audrey and Alger were silent for a moment, then asked the questions in near unison.

***Download NovelToon to enjoy a better reading experience!***