Magical Girl's Knight Brother

Chapter 671 Shifting Stars and Changing Constellations

The conjunction of Neptune and Delphinus is far more complex than it sounds.

Even Tang Zijun, who doesn't know much about astrology, knows that Neptune changes signs every fourteen years, and it takes about 165 years to complete the cycle of all twelve zodiac signs. And that's just the twelve zodiac signs that people are familiar with.

If we were to choose the constellation Delphinus, which corresponds to the ocean, the astronomical spectacle would require even longer. Perhaps it wouldn't be as outrageous as Xiao Xiao described, but it would still take at least several hundred years.

On the nautical table, the parchment depicting the astronomical impasse and Blackbeard's insane solution weighed heavily on everyone's mind like a cold iron curtain.

"Neptune intersects with Delphinus..." Xiao Xiao's voice trembled slightly, as she subconsciously calculated. "Neptune's orbital period is 165 years, the right ascension of the ascending node... the circumpolar position of Delphinus is offset..."

Even if only a precise visual overlap is required, rather than a strict astronomical conjunction, the probability is so low that it is almost impossible for it to occur within a human lifespan.

Her pale face and furrowed brows were striking.

"Isn't there any other way?" Tang Cao clung to her last hope, her large eyes filled with resentment. "Like... using incredibly powerful magic? Or... finding other backdoors left by Poseidon? Or..."

Her little brain worked hard, but she couldn't think of any way to replace the wonder of the millennium. A deep gloom was also shrouded between Afran's elegant brows. She shook her head gently, her blue eyes filled with helplessness.

"This connection to the starry sky is a key forged by the gods themselves. To bypass it is tantamount to defying the fundamental law that connects the divine realm with this world."

As she spoke, she looked at Tang Zijun with a question in her eyes, but Tang Zijun's silent profile told her that even he could not change the trajectory of the stars out of thin air.

If it were just about destroying a planet, Tang Zijun might be almost certain of success. But changing the trajectory of a star would require a much higher level of technology. He couldn't be sure if the power of the God of Time and Space could be applied to this, since these were two different worlds.

A deathly silence fell over the captain's cabin, with only the eerie green light of the kerosene lamp casting flickering shadows on everyone's faces like mocking will-o'-the-wisps.

The old butler, Forsold, sighed silently as he refilled everyone's cups of long-cold red tea, the wisps of steam barely visible in the frigid air.

"Tsk."

Suddenly, an impatient click of the tongue broke the silence.

Everyone looked in the direction of the sound and saw Chang Lei with his arms crossed, his scarlet eyes staring at the astronomical description on the parchment. His face was no longer irritable or excited as before, but rather a... extremely rare expression, filled with uncertain struggle and eager anticipation.

"Hey...that..." Chang Lei's voice was a little dry, with an awkwardness that made him think, "You might not believe me if I told you." He glanced at Tang Zijun, then quickly looked away, staring at his toes. "I mean...if it's just about changing the celestial phenomena..."

He paused, seemingly organizing his thoughts, or perhaps weighing the limits of his abilities.

"...I might...maybe...perhaps...have...just a tiny...insignificant...solution?"

A single sentence resounded like a thunderclap in the deathly silent captain's cabin.

Everyone looked up abruptly, their gazes fixed on Chang Lei like searchlights.

Shock, doubt, disbelief, and a glimmer of... a faint hope rising from the brink of despair.

"Really, Uncle Chang! Changing the celestial phenomena?!" Tang Cao was the first to jump up, her big eyes wide with pure disbelief. "Can the stars be fooled? This, how is this possible?!"

Xiao Xiao also asked in a trembling voice, "Deputy Director Chang, are you saying that you used your deceptive power to make Neptune and Delphinus...look" or "appear" to be intersecting? Or are you saying that the celestial phenomenon of the gate has already occurred, but in fact the starry sky has not changed at all?"

Her voice trembled; the idea was beyond her comprehension. Afran gasped, her azure eyes filled with utter shock.

Faced with the shocked gazes of the crowd that seemed to want to burn him to a crisp, Chang Lei waved his hand irritably, crimson energy surging wildly at his fingertips, as if trying to conceal his inner uncertainty.

"I said maybe," "possibly," "a little bit," do you understand?"

He stiffened his neck, his tone slightly flustered, but deep in his eyes gleamed an almost obsessive confidence characteristic of a top-level fraudster.

Tang Zijun raised her head slightly and said softly, "Old Chang, I know your deception skills can manipulate perception and distort rules, but Xiao Xiao's question was very good. You can fool those who look at the stars," but you probably can't fool that door. That door only appears at the correct time when the star trails overlap, and since it hasn't appeared, how can you deceive it?"

Upon hearing this, Chang Lei pointed to the still-flashing crimson coordinates on the navigation table and picked up the notes he had just been reviewing. "Yes, that's why I never intended to use deception on a door that doesn't yet exist. What I wanted to do was mimic the power of the gods..."

'

"...Aren't you curious about the relationship between the gods and the stars?" Chang Lei shook the records in his hand and continued, "Why is Poseidon's divine realm related to planets and constellations? Why would two seemingly unrelated dimensions have this connection? Why must there be such stringent conditions?"

Chang Lei became more and more excited as he spoke, his scarlet pupils flashing with a crazy and precise calculation, like a mad scientist who was solving the ultimate mystery.

"I've read this record from the end of the mythological period. Although most of what's recorded is useless, some of the descriptions between the lines are quite interesting. For example... the Olympian gods possessed the ability to appoint constellations!"

"A constellation bestowed upon?" Tang Cao blinked, somewhat curious.

Xiao Xiao, standing beside him, explained, "In Greek mythology, people believed that the constellations in the sky were the work of the gods. For example, Aries was the transformation of a golden ram, Gemini was the transformation of the brothers Castor and Lydiux, and Cygnus was a memorial to Zeus transforming into a swan to pursue a beautiful woman... They are called constellations, but they are more like sentient beings."

"So that means that Delphinus is actually one of the constellations appointed by Poseidon, and its duty is to guard Poseidon's divine kingdom in his place. Whenever Poseidon needs it, Delphinus doesn't need to follow the original time and can directly interact with Neptune?" Tang Cao couldn't help but ask.

"Isn't it highly likely?" Chang Lei grinned.

Tang Zijun adjusted her glasses and said softly, "Speaking of which, throughout history and across the world, the relationship between stars and gods is indeed quite close. In our country, we also have the Twenty-Eight Mansions, the Sun and Moon Star Lords, the Big Dipper and Southern Dipper Star Lords, the Five Virtues Grand Duke Star Lords, the Ziwei Emperor, and Marshal Tianpeng, among other star deities."

"Yes, in addition, ancient Egyptian and Babylonian records also mention the gods possessing the ability to move stars and constellations," Avran nodded, adding. "Legend has it that the gods could use their power to alter celestial phenomena at will, thereby influencing the Earth's environment. Now it seems that the gods' alteration of celestial phenomena might not be as simple as just affecting the Earth's environment."

"From this perspective, for the gods, the stars seem to be an embodiment of their divine power, or even an extension of their laws. By keeping those laws that constantly corrode them in the ethereal stars, they can both loosen their constraints and keep this power in their own hands, achieving two goals at once."

"But if it's an extension of the laws, then during Ragnarok, they would probably be the most affected, right?"

At this point, Tang Zijun suddenly realized, "No wonder the first to fall after the Void Realm shattered were the various Star Gods. It seems that even in that world, the gods are experiencing the same war as before..."

"What Star God?" Afran, not understanding, looked at Tang Zijun.

"That's not important." Tang Zijun didn't want to explain too much about the dream world, especially since the Star God's corpse was now in the hands of the God of the Era.

So he looked at Chang Lei and continued, "The most crucial question now is, Lao Chang, how confident are you that you can accomplish this? It's not even certain if there are still living constellations beyond the heavens."

"They're still alive, they must still be alive." Chang Lei put down his book and pointed to the ceiling.

"Don't forget, it's true that the gods of Earth have declined, but they have properly guarded the gates and prevented those strange monsters from invading the real world. That's why the constellations that should have been the first to be affected were not impacted and are still in the sky."

"However, those guys must have been restricted by the gods. That's understandable, since constellations are supposed to stay obediently in the sky. So they can't descend to earth. For thousands of years after Ragnarok, they stayed in the sky, moving according to the established laws."

"Now that we can confirm their existence, we have more options. I can try to deceive the return of Poseidon of Delphinus, just like I deceived this ship, but the difficulty is quite different. Perhaps I can use a simpler method to make Delphinus think that the time has come and hurry to its destination."

Chang Lei looked at Tang Zijun one last time, his eyes filled with unprecedented seriousness and a hint of "Do you dare to gamble?"

"Of course! To accomplish this, an enormous amount of energy is needed as fuel for the deception, as well as precise simulation of the energy characteristics of overlapping star orbits, and a sufficiently powerful and chaotic amplifier to ensure the signal can penetrate space and shake the laws of the divine realm. The risks... are unknown, and the chances of success... I can't guarantee it either, but..."

Chang Lei's lips curled into a meaningful smile.

"This is the only method I can think of that doesn't require waiting thousands of years. It all depends on whether you... dare to go all out with me again!"

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