However, this was no problem for Wu Heng. He only needed to extract the layer of ink that had later covered the original, according to the historical timeline.
His finger lightly tapped the page. From the faded ink, the layer covering it rose and dispersed like mist, revealing the faded writing beneath:
"Today, I completed the final preparations.
I will divide 'myself' into three parts!
The body will be buried in the family graveyard, humanity sealed within a lead box, and divinity entrusted to a portrait;
When the ritual is complete and the correct time arrives, 'I' will merge once more. Then, I will transcend death.
Hannah does not understand, so she must become the first sacrifice.
Forgive me, dear sister, but the family needs eternal prosperity. Fine, you are right, sister, but I am the symbol of the family!"
Wu Heng's fingertip paused over the name 'Hannah.'
Over time, he had gathered enough memories of the original owner within this old mansion.
The family history in those memories recorded that this ancestor named Vidal had indeed had a younger sister, who had "suddenly fallen gravely ill and died" at the age of twenty-eight.
Now it seemed that this Miss Hannah had likely been the first family member sacrificed to the ritual.
This also meant that Vidal had begun preparing the ritual far earlier than imagined, rather than when he was over a hundred years old, as his final records suggested.
"What a century-long plan. Looks like he worked pretty hard."
Wu Heng continued reading. The records that followed had turned into experimental logs so calm they were terrifying.
Vidal had meticulously documented the process of using a specific ritual to convert the life force of family members into a power of protection.
Every child born into the Morik Family,