21st Century Necromancer

"Finally finished!" Kyuuzai Ryousen looked at the ritual site before him, excited and at the same time couldn't help but feel relieved that it was finally over.

"Finally finished!" Tsuchimikado Yoshiharu, standing by, was just as thrilled, yet as he looked at an utterly exhausted Kyuuzai Ryousen, who seemed as if he had pulled several all-nighters, he could understand the sense of relief brought by the conclusion. Nevertheless, he still inquired, "Ryousen, are all the parts completed?"

Upon hearing Tsuchimikado Yoshiharu's question, although mentally tired to the point that Kyuuzai Ryousen wished he could crash for three straight days and nights, he still forced his fighting-spirit-laden eyelids open to explain to Tsuchimikado Yoshiharu: "Every part has been completed strictly according to the manual provided by the professor, I have carved the runes with magic power as required on each piece, and verified it three times—there won't be any problems!

The manual is right here if you want to double-check."

"I apologize." Tsuchimikado Yoshiharu took the manual, and although he trusted Kyuuzai Ryousen, considering the importance of constructing the ritual site, he decided to go through it once more: "It's not that I don't trust you, Ryousen, but as you know, the master did say that once this task is completed, he will prepare the Promotion Ceremony for both of us. I don't dare to make any mistakes."

"Don't worry; I understand what you mean, and it puts my mind at ease to check again," Ryousen did not take any offense at Yoshiharu's desire to inspect everything once more. In fact, if he weren't so exhausted, he would have wanted to go over it again himself.

Arranging the ceremonial site according to Chen Yu's booklet might not seem like a very challenging task. Initially, Ryousen and Yoshiharu also thought so, but once they started setting up the site according to the specifications in the booklet, they suddenly realized that the job was even more complicated and intricate than they had imagined.

Not only do you need to follow strict guidelines for the layout of the ceremonial site, but you also have to draw a magic circle, and every obsidian stone used to construct the ritual platform must be carved with magic runes... Your next chapter awaits on empire

Each of these tasks required Kyuuzai Ryousen, who was responsible for constructing the site, to verify repeatedly because any error could cause the ceremony to fail, necessitating a complete do-over.

If that were the only issue, it might have been manageable, but the obsidian Tsuchimikado Yoshiharu had acquired was all in the form of small raw stones that had to be processed before use, adding many extra tasks for Kyuuzai Ryousen.

Obsidian is a natural glass that forms when volcanic lava quickly cools after emerging. During its formation, the outer shell of the lava flow rapidly loses heat, cooling the fastest, causing the silica-laden lava to quickly solidify into chunks, and that's how obsidian comes to be.

Throughout this process, obsidian crystals do not have sufficient time to grow, which means that large pieces of it naturally do not exist.

Moreover, due to its crystalline properties, it easily shatters during mining, making it necessary for Tsuchimikado Yoshiharu to use a special technique to bond the small pieces of obsidian together before they can be used as construction materials for the ceremonial platform.

This so-called special technique is also very troublesome; you need to first sand the bonding surfaces of the two obsidian stones to the right smoothness and then carefully use magic power to resonate and communicate the energies contained within the stones to link them as one. Only after this can you use the spell from Chen Yu's booklet to bond them.

This is a very energy-consuming and meticulous task.Nôv(el)B\\jnn

The spell was originally intended for use after the construction of the ritual platform was complete, to merge the platform into a single entity. Although it can also be used to bond the small obsidian pieces, it certainly increased the workload for Kyuuzai Ryousen.

Furthermore, among the two, Tsuchimikado Yoshiharu was not adept at such tasks—he could only be responsible for labor-intensive tasks and material gathering.

Although there were over a thousand pieces of obsidian that needed to be adhered, at last, Kyuuzai Ryousen, through his arduous efforts, had completed them all. They now formed the ceremonial altar before them, a half-meter high, and three meters in diameter, in the shape of a round platform, currently being inspected by Tsuchimikado Yoshiharu.

Engraved on the floor beneath the altar was a gigantic magic circle, several times larger than the one Chen Yu had used during his promotion ceremony. Together with the runes on the ceremonial altar, the entire platform seemed to exude a sense of mystery.

At the very top of the altar was an offering table that had taken Kyuuzai Ryousen a great deal of effort to piece together. This was the most crucial part of the whole ritual site's construction process, as all the magic runes ultimately directed their power here.

Although he didn't quite understand what it was all for, Kyuuzai Ryousen still completed it with utmost seriousness. When working for a big shot, it was best not to pry too deeply, a crucial survival tactic Kyuuzai Ryousen had summed up.

"No problems! All the magic runes and the drawing of the magic circle are just like what's required in the manual! Truly perfect work!" Having checked everything once again, Tsuchimikado Yoshiharu looked up, smiled excitedly at Kyuuzai Ryousen, "Ryousen, your work is outstanding! I'll go inform the master that the ritual site is ready!"

Brisk with excitement, Tsuchimikado Yoshiharu was about to leave when he reached the doorway, suddenly remembered something, and quickly turned back to Kyuuzai Ryousen, "Ryousen, take some rest, you've worked hard over this period!"

Watching Tsuchimikado Yoshiharu hurry off after speaking, Kyuuzai Ryousen's face could not hide his fatigue, yet his eyes were exceptionally bright. This job had been a form of tempering for him, not only honing his control over magic power but also forging his spirit through exhaustion.

Raising his finger, he let a raven that had flown down from the roof alight upon it. Gazing at its red eyes and pitch-black feathers, Kyuuzai Ryousen couldn't help but look forward to the promotion Chen Yu had promised him and Tsuchimikado Yoshiharu.

The more familiar Kyuuzai Ryousen became with the power he now wielded, the more he indulged in it.

The power of a Crow Feather Mage seemed very strong to Kyuuzai Ryousen. Despite not being suited for head-on combat, their methods were unpredictable, and with specially cultivated Cursed Ravens, if used properly, they represented a terrifying force.

But even this power inheritance, which seemed so potent to Kyuuzai Ryousen, was merely something casually given by Chen Yu. This made Kyuuzai Ryousen all the more aware of Chen Yu's fearsomeness and inscrutability, and it solidified his determination to serve him. Because Kyuuzai Ryousen knew very well that to gain more, he must offer up his loyalty in exchange.

With this in mind, Kyuuzai Ryousen flicked his finger, and the Cursed Raven perched there immediately took flight, flapping its wings and scattering black feathers. And when the feathers had cleared, the figure of Kyuuzai Ryousen had also vanished...