Chapter 158
The magic recorded in Yangwan is inseparable from internal training, visualization, prayer, and rituals; in other words, it is white True Magic.
The White Deer Staff is a secret tradition that combines invocation, internal practice, meditation, and sacrifice.
To practice this secret technique, you first need to prepare a wooden staff that is between one foot and three feet six inches long.
The wooden staff must be taken from a living tree growing in the correct location, and it cannot be broken by hand or ordinary tools—so Hebe simply chopped it off with the [Void Cutter].
Once the wooden staff is ready, twelve bronze plaques inscribed with "Heavenly Consort's Secret Inscription" must be cast by hand and embedded into the staff in order of orientation. During this process, one must also continuously contemplate the image of "Azure Cliff White Deer".
Once the bronze plaque was embedded, the wooden staff did not become heavy, and the wondrous object, the White Deer Staff, was thus initially completed.
After that, you need to carry this cane with you at all times and constantly communicate with it spiritually.
In as little as seven days or as long as a month, the staff can transform into a white deer, lifting the person up so that they will not drown in water, will not burn in fire, and will travel on the wind.
The longer one carries the White Deer Staff, the more wondrous its properties become. Healing the sick and saving lives, exorcising evil spirits, and purifying influences... all these are included in the secret teachings of the White Deer Staff.
The ultimate goal of this secret transmission is the consistent ideal of the people of Cathay – "ascension".
"If a Daoist priest sincerely upholds the sacred incantation of the Empress, constantly performs good deeds, and accumulates merits daily, once the merits reach 36,000, he can place the staff in the coffin, silently recite the Empress's name, and then his body can transform into a white deer and leap into the Heavenly Gate... This is the most excellent method for overcoming the incantation. Future generations of Daoist practitioners should do their utmost and take heed of this teaching!"
From Hebe's perspective, the end of this secret tradition probably requires the ascendant to abandon their aged physical form, rely on the good deeds they do daily, and invoke the power of the June Archon Pearl to die in place of themselves with a wooden staff. Their spirit body then transforms into a white deer and enters the wasteland to continue their long cultivation.
For those apprentices who cannot achieve great things and become twilight, the spirits that remain in the wasteland also possess a long lifespan... How can this not be considered a kind of immortality?
In fact, this practice of shedding one's physical form, transforming into a spiritual body, and entering the wilderness was also considered a proper path in ancient Cathay.
After all, the people of Cathay have always prioritized practicality. As for gods... well, even if they are just spirits that can be summoned and dismissed at will, as long as they do good deeds and ensure peace, the people of Cathay have never hesitated to bestow upon them the honor of being a local deity or a city god.
Thinking about this, Hebe gradually understood why Pearl insisted on giving Yan Gong both the Yin method and the Yang book.
Encourage people to do good deeds and be rewarded, and open up avenues for upward mobility. In this way, hope is created.
This is the compassionate heart of the Pearl Empress, June Archon.
Hebe understood, and a smile appeared on his face.
She knew very well that with Celestial Flint and Zhen Zhu protecting them, Cathay didn't need her to prove anything. Besides, there was also the Private—he had already fought Cathay's most devastating war, rebuilding this ancient nation in flames.
The people of Cathay do not need the pity of others.
Even so, Hebe always had a good impression of this ancient yet new, strange yet familiar country.
The wooden staff at her waist suddenly transformed into a pure white deer, leaping to Hebe's front and obediently lowering its head.
Hebe smiled slightly and mounted the white deer's back.
The fawn spread its four hooves and rose into the air.
The electric scooter in 233 Blanckug did not have a license plate.
Azure Cliff White Deer, riding the wind and soaring through the void.
Anyone within the Cathay cultural sphere would inevitably have their own imagination about this style of art.
Flight has always been a human obsession.
Flying high, flying fast, and flying beautifully and gracefully is the goal of countless people's dreams.
However, in this modern world, it is impossible to fly continuously and for a long time without the assistance of flying machinery.
Even those who have reached the Twilight Rank and have ascended to the highest level cannot defy the gravity of a planet, nor can they contend with the physical laws of the present world for long.
This has become common knowledge.
But Hebe knew that, at least during the Third History, the Ascended could still "fly" very easily—though the style of the animation varied depending on the method used.
However, from the end of the 17th century onwards, all the secrets, artifacts, and rituals that had once helped humanity escape the earth simultaneously became ineffective.
Naturally, it was a spectacular sight: a human body fell from the sky, like an apple that had hit the ground, splattering juice and shattering flesh.
Because at that moment, the world changed permanently—Isaac Newton discovered the law of universal gravitation.
Celestial Flint was pleased with this outcome, and the Holy Grail rejoiced at the many sacrifices made.
From the late 17th century, when Newton discovered the law of universal gravitation, to the late 18th century, when the Montgolfier Brothers drew inspiration from the flames of casting and invented the hot air balloon that could carry people.
For over a century, the distance between humanity and the sky began to seem impossibly vast.
According to incomplete statistics from the Silent Bookstore House, at least 70% of secret societies were wiped out in this global disaster; and long-established religious groups such as the Sisters, the Progressive Society, the White Lotus Sect, and the Heavenly Principle Sect also suffered a decline in power and never recovered.
What followed was the Night Watch Era that lasted for more than two centuries—when the secret agencies of the nations began to suppress, purge, imprison, and secretly try associations and religious groups.
It was during that time that Blanckug became a haven for his apprentices, and from then on, he grew into a pivotal figure in the hidden world.
The concept that "humans cannot fly against gravity without external force" has thus become a "common sense" remembered by the world and a law recognized by all governments.
This is why Hebe was so excited to make the White Deer Staff; she couldn't wait to experience the feeling of flying in the real world.
Inside the Silent Bookstore, a white deer carried Hebe at a speed of about 15 kilometers per hour, 30 centimeters off the ground.
"No, this...?"
Hebe was greatly disappointed.
Whose electric scooter is that?
After taking several deep breaths, Hebe calmed down.
She discovered that the White Deer Staff could be infused with spiritual energy to adjust its speed and altitude.
Currently, it can reach a maximum height of three meters off the ground and a speed of forty kilometers per hour. It seems to have been upgraded from a low-power electric vehicle to a high-power electric vehicle.
Putting aside the disappointing speed and altitude, the White Deer Staff was generally satisfactory. Hebe quickly put this disappointment behind her and happily "speeded" around the Silent Bookstore.
When she passed Morgan's window for the third time, the Fallen Empress finally could not restrain herself any longer.
Morgan pushed open the window, stepped onto the windowsill, and leaped out, landing on the white deer and wrapping her arms around Hebe.
"Let me get in the car."
"Okay." Hebe twisted the antlers to lower the height.
The white deer carrying the two people slowed down slightly.
Shoko also stood by the window, his eyes filled with envy.
Her gaze fell on the gold ring on her chest that symbolized her role as a librarian.
Just as she turned away dejectedly, a knocking sound came from the window. Shoko turned around and saw Hebe, who was holding deer antlers, smiling and waving at her.
Sunlight fell on the girl's long, flaxen hair.
Hebe smiled and waved to Shoko, her face full of the joy of receiving something good and wanting to share it with her friends.
Shoko felt her heart skip a beat for no reason. She sensed Morgan looking in her direction from not far away, but she didn't want to care about anything anymore.
Toyokawa Shoko jumped onto the back of the white deer, and mimicking Morgan's earlier actions, she hugged Hebe tightly.
Hebe rode the white deer down the Wanghai Cliff of the Silent Bookstore, leaving a long trail on the sea.
Toyokawa Shoko's mind went blank, and she couldn't help but scream, while Hebe just laughed.
The gale lifted them up again, and the white deer nimbly climbed up the Wanghai Cliff, soon finding their feet firmly on solid ground once more.
Just as Toyokawa Shoko was about to say something, Hebe waved to them, twisted his antlers again, and sped off into the town.
She completed her conquest of the Atlantis Lostbelt, but this also led to subtle changes in history.
Hebe remembered that she had already recognized Mordred.
But as history unfolded, this detail also changed.
In Mordred's restaurant, Hebe met Presis with a green lynx.
Presis has clearly been resting poorly lately. Her messy hair is simply held in place with a headband, and her heavy dark circles and vacant eyes make her look like a student who has been studying late into the night for several days and nights before final exams.
"Do I look terrible?" Presis forced a smile.
"You're very self-aware," Hebe said. "But I'm more curious about how you got yourself into this state."
Presis just shook his head with a wry smile.
She didn't want to talk much about her failures with Hebe, but instead rallied her spirits and boasted about her achievements in the field of "life ascension," such as her confidence that she would soon be able to turn Kal'tsit into a human.
They are not low-level life forms like artificial humans, but rather "humans" with complete spirituality, qualified to embark on the Path of Ascension.
Hebe remained noncommittal.
After Presis finished speaking, she admonished him. "Creating life and taking life is the domain and power of the Holy Grail."
Just as the flames of the Celestial Flint fire can both create and destroy, and can easily set you ablaze if you're not careful, the power of the Holy Grail also carries a disturbingly negative quality.
However, matters involving the Celestial Flint and the Holy Grail always require utmost caution.
"... If necessary, you can come to the Silent Bookstore to conduct the ceremony," Hebe invited Presis.
In this way, if any abnormal phenomenon occurs out of control, it can be immediately suppressed and exorcised within the Silent Bookstore.
Presis did not refuse Hebe's invitation; she was not a pretentious madwoman.
After finalizing the terms of their collaboration, their conversation gradually veered off course, ranging from the eccentric goddess Ishtar of Mesopotamia to the ascetic yogis of the Far Eastern subcontinent.
"Recently, I received information that some monasteries along the Gaul border are holding some kind of suspicious Mass," Presis said, leaning on the table. "And it's not just one monastery doing this... They seem to be trying to summon a being that meets their needs through this Mass."
"Is it a secret cult?" Hebe asked.
"No, those are Orthodox Church monasteries," Presis replied, taking out a few more photos.
Hebe stared at the photos for a long time, then chuckled.
The Eris faction of the present world has already emerged.
How many members of the Orthodox Church today have been controlled by Eris? And who are they trying to summon by holding these collective Mass ceremonies?
234 Bishop, the ceremony is ready.
Gaul, Orleans Region, Domremy Church.
The church, which used to be sparsely populated, was now filled with people, including monks and nuns from monasteries all over Gaul, as well as cardinals from the Paris Cathedral, the capital of Gaul, who were in charge of the entire region.
The dome of the Church of Domremy has been removed, and sunlight is streaming directly through the hole.
At this point, it's difficult to call it a church anymore, and neither its architecture nor its Mass service format meets the standards of the Orthodox Church.
Indeed, some clergy members have doubts about this.
If removing the dome and changing the form of the Mass were merely for the purpose of holding a special ceremony, then replacing the original cross and erecting a new one made these priests want to ask Cardinal Pierre, who was presiding over the ceremony, about the practice.
But no matter how bizarre the reasons these priests gave, the cardinal was always able to provide just the right explanation with different justifications.
To those ordinary monks who know nothing of the hidden world, he would say, "The Messiah Church us to do righteous things. Truly I tell you, brothers and sisters!"
The Mass we celebrate is a prayer for power, in the name of Our Holy Mother, Our Holy Son, and the Holy Spirit, to call upon the lost seraphim on earth. In this process, it is impossible not to damage sacred objects.
Whether it's the forced demolition of a church dome or a special Mass method, the principle is the same. However, the former can be altered; relics inscribed with the Messiah's sacrifice should be preserved as much as possible, striving to restore everything to its former state by the end of the Mass... Do you understand?
For those who are familiar with the secrets and have already embarked on the Path of Ascension, he would say, "The Messiah Church us that the eyes are windows and the mouth is a doorway. The Holy Grail teaches us to strengthen our bodies, otherwise the desire to sustain life will wither."
I dismantled the church dome to invoke more divine power; and the sacrifice of these sacred relics also fulfills the requirements of the Holy Grail... These sacrifices are indeed worthwhile in order to summon the foremost 'Burning Saintess' in this world!
He speaks human language to humans and ghost language to ghosts, and somehow both languages work together perfectly.
This is because Pierre said was indeed the truth.
Even intelligent people who are keen to understand the situation might combine Pierre's two statements, analyze them thoroughly, and arrive at a conclusion they believe to be correct.
But that's not the truth.
Pierre, like Andon before him, was also a member of the Eris the Swarm.
Of course, due to the general suppression in the world, Pierre cannot ascend to the level of daylight, but the exchange of information among the Swarm is not restricted by rank.
The most powerful cardinal in Gaul squinted at the cross whose proportions were completely off.
After stripping away its spiritual radiance, it became more like an instrument of torture—an instrument for burning at the stake.
That's true, after all, the cross itself is an instrument of torture.
Pierre lowered his head, pretending to pray with his eyes closed.
He remembered Eris's teachings.