bookbashuk Chapter 75 History and Ritual
Chapter 75 History and Ritual
"The Racial Cleansing Incident: In the 103rd year of the Holy Radiance Calendar, the four major churches were established. The remaining races, such as elves and dwarves, were unable to join the churches due to the lack of divine protection and were ultimately wiped out, with all traces of their culture and other remnants being erased."
Suren looked at the line of text and couldn't help but take a deep breath.
Since meeting the elven elder, Suren had learned of the existence of other races. He had assumed that the extinction of these races was due to the cataclysmic events of the Cataclysmic Era, but this text overturned his understanding.
Below this text was an excerpt from a confidential internal church document, which detailed the entire purge operation.
These groups lasted only a year before being completely wiped out. Over the next twenty years, wherever they left their mark, they were all erased.
Suren noted that only the "Libra Church" and the "Judgment Church" participated in the purge; the "Eternal Silence Church" and the "Shield of the Watchers Church" did not participate in the operation.
Suren couldn't help but gasp. Judging from the performance of the "elf elder" earlier, those races were not without power, yet they were still wiped out within a year. It seemed that the Church's true power was much greater than he had heard.
Suren shook his head, banishing the chaotic thoughts from his mind, and suppressing his shock, turned to the next page of the document.
Suren became increasingly alarmed as he flipped through the report. The entire report, arranged chronologically, recorded the history that had been hidden by the Church from the first year of the Holy Calendar to the present.
Horrifying events such as the "Battle of the White Tower," the "Great Silence," and the "Annihilation of the Oath of Freedom" appeared before Suren's eyes.
Below each of these events, without exception, are excerpts from internal church documents as evidence, their authenticity beyond doubt.
Suren's gaze slowly moved across the paper until she turned the last page.
Suren closed the file and tapped the table. The events recorded in this report seemed incomplete; for example, the Philosopher's Stone incident of 863 was not recorded.
Even so, the amount of information contained in this document is enormous.
According to the report, the church's internal direction for technological development seemed to be anchored to the "steam age" from the very beginning. It officially entered the steam age in 318 of the Holy Radiance Calendar, and then began to suppress electricity, internal combustion engines, and even free thought.
This also resolved Suren's doubts. He opened the Book of Secrets and recorded a new secret: [Secret: In order to maintain absolute rule, the Church has systematically eliminated alien races, locked down technology, and erased all historical traces that could shake divine authority since its establishment → Secret Level: B].
Only B-level? Suren shook his head. In his mind, it should at least be A-level.
Suren leaned back in her chair, staring at the dim ceiling, a thought popping into her mind: Should she tell Karl about these things?
Informing Carl of the risks would not only put herself in danger but also affect Carl's situation.
With that in mind, Suren gave up the idea.
Although it was late, he still reached out his slightly sore right hand and picked up the two ritual notebooks, preparing to study the ritual, since it was related to his promotion.
The two notebooks looked similar to the two fake ones Charles had made before, except that the paper smelled much older.
Based on the handwriting in the notebooks, Suren deduced that both notebooks were written by the same person, but unfortunately, the notebooks were unsigned.
The first notebook records the author's organization and analysis of various rituals. After years of summarizing, he divided the rituals into three main categories: promotion rituals, resonance rituals, and soul contract rituals.
This was the first time Suren had heard of the latter two rituals, and he eagerly turned to the next page.
Both of these rituals require specific extraordinary materials.
The so-called resonance ritual can leverage the power of the extraordinary individual, releasing greater power with less "source knowledge". The effects that the ritual can achieve require the extraordinary individual to fine-tune and create the ritual themselves. A powerful resonance ritual often requires the extraordinary individual to practice and optimize it continuously.
The notes also mentioned some special uses of resonance rituals. For example, by inscribing a ritual circle on a personal item, one could perform the resonance ritual anytime, anywhere. However, this would cause significant damage to the item, and repeated use could even render it unusable. Suren couldn't help but think of the magic circle on the "Frostblade Saint's" staff; perhaps that was also a kind of resonance ritual?
The Soul Pact ritual is relatively special; an extraordinary being can only perform a Soul Pact ritual once in their lifetime. The target of the ritual can be an ordinary object or a "blasphemous creation."
Once the Soul Pact ritual takes effect, the caster will form a soul bond with the item, making it a Soul Pact item. Afterwards, regardless of the item's location, it can be summoned to the caster's hands remotely. Even more powerfully, a Soul Pact item can be repaired using "Source Knowledge" if damaged, and even if it completely disappears, it can be summoned again through "Source Knowledge."
Thinking of the image of the white-haired girl summoning a dagger out of thin air, Su Lun now realized that it was a soul-bound item.
The remainder of the notebook records the author's analysis of the various steps of the ritual. Regardless of the type of ritual, the specific steps and principles are the same, with only slight differences in details.
The author's research spirit is evident from the notes; Suren can almost picture him sitting at his desk, writing diligently.
The second notebook was relatively less complicated, simply recording some folk promotion rituals with a relatively high success rate.
When Suren turned to the last page, she was stunned, because the contents were about the "Aksha Relics"!
Suren flipped through the book with some excitement, his eyes glued to the page. After finishing, he couldn't help but feel a pang of regret.
The notes detail the method for advancing the "Aksha Relic" to the second stage, and explicitly mention that advancement can resolve the relic's side effects, but also carries risks—the possibility of being consumed by those negative emotions. The specific principles behind this advancement are unknown even to the notes' author.
Suren sighed. Regardless, at least a solution to the potential dangers of "Ellie's Tears" had been provided.
He closed the two notebooks, and had to admit that the contents were more useful than he had expected.
Combining the contents of the notes with Suren's summaries over this period, Suren finally deciphered the basic structural principles of the ritual!
He quickly took out his notebook, flipped to a blank page, and began writing rapidly on it with a dip pen.
As he wrote faster, the corners of his mouth gradually turned up. After writing the last word, he suppressed the urge to burst out laughing, put away his notebook, and stood up excitedly, wishing he could hold the ceremony right now!
However, the soreness in his arms and back reminded Suren that now was not a good time for promotion. After all, promotion was extremely physically demanding and fraught with danger, and Suren needed to be in top condition.
He forced down his excitement, drank the last bottle of "medium-level healing potion" from the ring, and then went to the bathroom to take a shower and rest, planning to consider the ceremony tomorrow.
Suren didn't sleep well that night; the "evil spirit in the mirror" appeared in his dreams from time to time, and Ellie's whispers echoed in his mind from time to time.
After a grueling night, Suren got up, washed, and dressed.
Although he didn't sleep very soundly, thanks to the medication, Suren's body had almost fully recovered, and he should be more than capable of holding the ceremony.
However… Suren looked at his residence and felt that holding the ceremony here was too risky, after all, who knows what might happen during the advancement.
Suren pressed his temples, somewhat troubled about the location of the ritual. One idea after another appeared in Suren's mind, only to be rejected by him.
Just then, a person appeared in Suren's mind—William Miller.