Chapter 211
New Life from Old Death
As the ritual proceeded, the air around them began to feel dreamlike.
A faint, elusive aroma wafted in, capable of quickening the heart and flushing one’s face red.
Everything around seemed to become more vibrant, as if on the verge of blooming. Colors, light, scents, and auras all became dazzlingly brilliant.
It was as if the mundane reality one saw every day had suddenly transformed into a beautiful painting; or as if, under the effect of an illusion-inducing alchemical potion, the entire world had become a more fantastical, dreamlike vision.
Walls extended beyond walls, colors bled into colors.
And at the intersection of countless illusions, a brilliantly, dazzlingly colorful butterfly gathered in mid-air.
It seemed to be there, yet not. It was as if it were merely a phantom, yet everyone present could see this phantom. At the same time, it continued to change—the patterns on its wings constantly shattered and reformed, and each reformation caused the entire surrounding world to shift.
“Your wish—”
The voice of the Butterfly Heavenly Envoy echoed.
It was a beautiful and light maiden’s voice.
“I offer the blood of the Ouroboros—”
Meg said solemnly, “I humbly request the privilege of performing the sacred ritual of ‘Mutilation’ by myself!”
“Granted—”
The Butterfly Heavenly Envoy agreed.
“I grant you the right to ‘Shed Skin and Be Reborn’—”
The next moment, the butterfly illusion shattered in the air. It transformed into countless pink scales, or rather, countless wings.
The purple liquid on the ground then evaporated and dissipated… the space below turned purple, and above, pink, for a moment resembling a dream.
When all the purple smoke had evaporated and vanished, Meg was already encased within a chrysalis. Two vein-like tubes were connected to the infinity symbol, one drawing out a silvery white ethereal liquid and the other an orange-red liquid. They spun rapidly in the ritual trough, blending with each other.
The intense pain of her body disintegrating made Meg cry out involuntarily.
Her cry was soul-stirring, causing Lily and Isabel, who were observing the ritual nearby, to grip each other’s palms.
Eivass, on the other hand, stood solemnly before the ritual circle, observing every step with seriousness.
He wasn’t too panicked… despite Meg’s agonizing screams, the most difficult part was already over. Now, she just needed to endure, not succumb to the pain and end the ritual prematurely, or have it interrupted by others.
Her pained wails continued for a full twenty minutes, until the two colored liquids in the trough fully mixed, transforming into a new, viscous fluid. It resembled mercury, or perhaps silver-white nail polish flecked with glitter and iridescent powder.
Then, it was injected into another chrysalis.
—That was the Egg of Ascension, constructed with the power of the Ring Heavenly Envoy. It slowly absorbed the silvery white liquid until its purple exterior turned completely silvery white, and then became still.
“…Is it over?”
Isabel asked in a small voice after waiting for a long time.
Eivass breathed a sigh of relief and turned back, shaking his head slightly. “Not yet… but it’s basically successful.”
—Meg had managed to endure after all.
The willpower boost from bathing in dragon blood meant she hadn’t even cried. She had merely screamed loudly to complete the most agonizing first ascension.
This was essentially a successful class change.
Shedding skin was the Butterfly Heavenly Envoy’s domain, but she didn’t wish for “infinite shedding.”
Instead, like an insect transforming into a butterfly, she would completely alter her body, race, and appearance through a Mutilation Ritual.
During the pupal stage, most of an insect’s internal organs would melt into a pupal fluid, becoming a pot of broth. Except for the “adult components” that existed from birth but were not yet used. The Mutilation Ritual originated from this phenomenon.
But for the Butterfly Heavenly Envoy, her role was merely to collect her fee and then help others achieve this shedding and rebirth.
In other words, she charged per instance. And the price would increase, as the Butterfly Heavenly Envoy disliked fickle individuals.
The Ascencist, however, used the “Mutilation Ritual” as a tool to achieve continuous evolution—this profession’s power came from the Ouroboros, which devoured itself in an eternal cycle, namely the Ring Heavenly Envoy.
To allow mortals to shed their skin infinitely, the Ring Heavenly Envoy had to pay a price to the Butterfly Heavenly Envoy, directly “buying out” the Mutilation Ritual for Meg. Henceforth, she wouldn’t need to pay extra when calling upon the Butterfly Heavenly Envoy for help with shedding skin again.
Because the concept of abandoning the past, self-devouring, and infinite evolution itself resonated with the Ring Heavenly Envoy, it would not only please her but also imply that she might have the opportunity to become her Disc in the future—as long as Meg’s “Ascencist” level surpassed her other profession on the Path of Authority, her soul would belong to the Ring Heavenly Envoy rather than the Silver Crown Dragon.
And this was a form of early investment.
If the Butterfly Heavenly Envoy were dead, then the ascension ritual would only require the Ring Heavenly Envoy to preside, and she could then complete class changes in batches—after all, the power of shedding skin was not hers, but an unclaimed authority belonging to no one, dead and not yet controlled by a new Heavenly Envoy.
But now, she had to pay an additional fee—Eivass didn’t know if she fancied Meg or deemed the transaction worthwhile. This was the potential for the ritual to fail.
Fortunately, she had agreed to the transaction in the end.
Of course, it might also be because this was the first transaction, and she felt that such a deal had a certain appeal… so she decided to offer an opening promotion, taking a loss to gain publicity.
The three of them waited there until the sun completely rose above the horizon. The two chrysalises in front of the mirror finally made sounds of breaking.
First came cracks, then they suddenly split open—
The chrysalis in front of the mirror shattered, leaving behind only some blood-stained clothes.
Immediately after, the chrysalis behind the mirror broke.
The next moment, Isabel’s eyes shot open wide.
The Ritual of Rejuvenation was successful!
The Meg who walked out was not even human—
She had two silvery white dragon horns like ram’s horns, her skin bore a few silvery scales, and a dragon tail trailed behind her. Her hair had turned silvery white, just like the color of the Silver Crown Dragon. Her pupils were an elegantly dark green, and even her facial features were completely different.
Although she had slain a green dragon in the past, she had now transformed into a white dragon similar to the Silver Crown Dragon. Only her eye color showed a trace of being bathed in the blood of the green dragon.
—There was just one small issue.
That was, Meg at this moment appeared to be around eight or nine years old. She looked even much younger than Yulia.
“It seems the ritual was successful.”
Madam Meg was not wearing any clothes, but she acted naturally, without any hiding or shame.
She looked down at her body, then walked around to the mirror to admire herself for a while. Only then did she look up at the three of them, baring her teeth in a smile. “Yo, you’ve all gotten so tall. Looks like I’ve returned to childhood—damn it, what childlike nonsense. I wasn’t this cute when I was little.”
The newly born half-dragon girl spoke with a tender voice.
Her casual, almost overbearing demeanor and speech were filled with a sense of incongruity.
Isabel rushed over and took off her coat, draping it over little Meg.
She knelt on the ground, helping her fasten the buttons. Meg simply watched her with a smile, reached out to stroke her hair, and pinched her earlobes.
“Good child, thank you,” the young girl with dragon horns said gently.
She then turned and looked at Eivass. “Great kindness needs no thanks, little fox. I’ll remember this huge favor—you saved my life and helped me return to youth.
“Such a young and vibrant body… ha, those who defected to the Path of Twilight would surely regret it for the rest of their lives if they knew.”
“Don’t forget… don’t be content with the status quo. Once you start ascending, you must continue to ascend.”
“Ah, I will. Don’t say such disheartening things—”
Little Meg waved her chubby hands dismissively. “If I fail then, you don’t need to worry about me. You’ve already helped me immensely, and I’m very grateful.”
She completely disregarded the contract’s requirement of “cannot stop evolving”; she didn’t dislike change anyway.
If she could evolve, she would. If she couldn’t, she’d just chill.
After all, for her, living for another year was a gain. Not to mention living in such a young and vibrant body.
She stood there thinking for a while, then strode towards the entrance.
Isabel quickly ran to stop her. “Where are you going?”
“To see Sophia.”
Little Meg grinned, her voice clear and crisp. “She must be incredibly envious.”
“Go change your clothes first.”
Isabel insisted. “You can wear my childhood clothes—”
“Tsk.” Little Meg clicked her tongue.
“Also, you can’t drink alcohol right now.”
“—That won’t do; that’s the one thing I can’t accept,” Little Meg immediately looked unhappy. “I wanted to return to youth precisely so I could do as I pleased without worrying about my body.”
“But, Madam Meg…”
“Alright, [Leave me alone]!”
Little Meg’s authoritative voice rang out, as imposing as a dragon’s roar, capable of striking great fear.
Isabel’s footsteps froze; the Word Spirit, more powerful than before, made her face turn slightly pale.
But as Little Meg toddled towards the door, she suddenly stopped.
Eivass walked over to comfort Isabel, then walked towards her with a smile. “What is it, Madam Meg? Can’t reach the handrail?”
Hearing this, Little Meg rolled her eyes at Eivass.
“I was just thinking… the current me can no longer be called ‘Meg’. Even if I continue to call myself Meg, no one will think I am the past Meg. From this perspective, ‘Meg’ has died socially.”
Little Meg pondered. “Old death, new life… what should the reborn me be called?”
She thought for a moment, then gave up. “Forget it. I haven’t thought about such things in a long time.
“Little fox, you’re still young—help me think of a name.”
“Me?”
Eivass was somewhat surprised.
“You completed the ritual for me and bestowed this body upon me. You absolutely can give me a name; it’s completely reasonable.”
Little Meg crossed her arms and nodded gladly.
…But now that you mention it, I really can’t think of a good name.
However, resurrection, old death and new life, the desire for survival, strong willpower…
Eivass recalled a short story by Edgar Allan Poe.
“How about Ligeia?”
Eivass asked.
“Then my name will be Ligeia Dane. Dane was my maiden name—”
The newborn little Ligeia said with a smile. “Nice to meet you all.
“—From now on, I am Ligeia.”
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