Chapter 344 : Ritual of Divine Descension
Chapter 344: Ritual of Divine Descension
"You may come in."
Still waiting outside the Antler Alley Tavern, Janna Roland instantly flew up to the second floor upon hearing Grace Eva’s telepathic message, arriving at the door of the room where Elena was.
"The pregnant woman you mentioned has already gone missing."
Hearing Grace Eva’s words, Janna felt a jolt in her heart and immediately looked inside.
Because it was already evening, the sky had darkened. Under the pouring moonlight, the snow-white sheets on the bed stood out sharply.
"It’s Bloodfang—"
On the bed, there was only Bloodfang, eyes shut tight, lying silently.
But judging from Bloodfang’s ashen face and the absence of breathing, Janna knew he was already dead.
"His cause of death was his soul being taken."
At those words, a quiet, indescribable sorrow welled up in Janna’s chest.
"I’m sorry, Professor Grace. I didn’t keep watch over him——"
"This has nothing to do with you—no one could have done better than you."
From Grace Eva’s earlier expression and Elena’s sudden disappearance, Janna deeply realized that the Radiant Dream Butterfly’s divination had indeed been correct.
The unborn baby in Elena’s womb truly concealed a tremendous danger—one directly connected to the Darksun Church.
Yet seeing Grace Eva’s heavy expression, Janna couldn’t help but feel terrible suspicions rising in her mind.
"Professor Grace, the child in Elena’s belly—"
"—is the vessel for the Darksun Church’s Ritual of Divine Descension."
Hearing Grace Eva’s firm answer, deep dread welled up in Janna’s eyes.
If not for the Radiant Dream Butterfly’s divination and her own spiritual alertness, Janna might have faced Dim Sun directly.
For a witch like Janna, who was only at Third Tier Wizard Apprentice strength, facing Dim Sun was equivalent to facing a god—just one look, and her soul would end up like Bloodfang’s, falling into oblivion, soul-flame extinguished.
"Professor, if I hadn’t stepped in to heal Elena this time, would it have stopped the Ritual of Divine Descension—"
"—and also prevented Mr. Bloodfang’s death?"
"No, it wouldn’t have."
Hearing Janna’s slightly dejected voice, Grace Eva merely glanced at her from the corner of her eye and calmly explained:
"If you hadn’t healed that pregnant woman named Elena, the mother would have died prematurely, which would have caused the Darksun Church’s 【Ritual of Divine Descension】 to activate ahead of time—"
"And although an early activation would slightly weaken the Divine Descender’s strength, it would also cause more deaths in Turin City and catch us completely off guard—"
At this point, the normally stern Grace Eva placed a hand gently on Janna’s shoulder.
"But fortunately, you discovered this early, allowing us to minimize the disastrous impact."
With that, Grace Eva withdrew her hand and let her expression vanish back into the darkness.
"Janna, return to the Academy at once and trigger the Emergency Recall Signal to summon all White Coral Academy apprentices outside back immediately."
"Understood——Professor, will you be returning to the Academy today?"
"Of course I will. But before that, I must first make a trip to the Blackbone Grove—"
Bang—
The night, still and tranquil as water, was suddenly broken by the burst of a blue-white firework.
With the fireworks blooming in the sky, all White Coral apprentices still on outside assignments received the Academy’s Emergency Recall Signal through the foggy branches.
"What’s going on?"
At that moment, in Turin City, while carrying out plague-treatment duties, Idris looked up at the blue-white flare in the sky, puzzlement flashing in his eyes.
"The Academy’s Emergency Recall Signal? Could something sudden have happened again?"
Idris, a necromancy apprentice who attended Introductory Medical Studies with Janna, felt an overwhelming tide of unease wash over him the moment he saw the flare.
Meanwhile, at the far end of the Misty Forest, Elena—already close to labor—was fleeing like a madwoman, chanting some incomprehensible words under her breath.
"Don’t kill my child… don’t kill my child—"
Bang—
The second blue-white flare lit up the sky like daylight, freezing the delirious Elena in her tracks.
"Fireworks—"
In midsummer, rain was frequent, and in the Misty Forest, night rain often fell without warning, shrouding the whole forest.
Now, standing dazed in the rain at the sound of fireworks, Elena’s face was soaked through, and even the chanting in her ears seemed washed away by the downpour, allowing her mind to clear.
"Lucas——Lucas is dead——"
Her trembling hands covered her face. Feeling the wetness at the corners of her eyes, Elena could no longer tell whether it was rain or tears.
"I killed Lucas——"
As her memory cleared and all the details returned, Elena collapsed to her knees beneath a nearby tree, her whole body shaking uncontrollably.
"Uuh… uuh—"
The rain in the Misty Forest grew heavier, and Elena’s mournful sobs sounded pitifully small amid the downpour.
"Caw—caw—"
The next morning—
At first light, thousands of black rooks took flight from above the White Coral Academy, heading straight toward Turin City.
"Emergency notice—everyone in the southern district must immediately pack up and evacuate to White Coral Academy for shelter!"
The rooks’ voices rang across Turin City’s southern skies like morning thunder.
"What happened? What’s going on?"
Residents, just awake from sleep, felt panic upon first hearing the repeated calls of the rooks. But very quickly, they followed the instructions with orderly efficiency.
After all, Turin City was a place plagued year-round by shadow creatures, and every resident possessed a strong sense of crisis.
Sudden warnings from the rooks, calling for large-scale evacuation to the Academy for safety, had happened before.
Thus, after a brief moment of confusion, the residents of the southern district swiftly packed their belongings and rushed toward the nearest White Coral Academy branch.