Lord of Witnesses

"The core of the Knower, or what sets them apart from ordinary people, is 'Hidden Knowledge' and 'Inspiration.'"

The candlelight flickered across Vyadlin's face.

"Hidden Knowledge... Inspiration..." Fan Ning chewed over the two terms. Neither seemed particularly obscure, yet putting them together, he still found them difficult to understand.

"Hidden Knowledge is a concept opposed to explicit knowledge, rational knowledge, and experiential knowledge," Vyadlin explained.

"In other words: secret knowledge, intuitive and irrational knowledge, and transcendental knowledge."

"Could you give me some examples?" Fan Ning asked.

"Examples?" Vyadlin drew out the word slightly. "For instance, knowledge regarding the origins and mysteries of those mysterious, supreme, and dangerous beings."

"You mean gods? The deities worshiped by the three Orthodox Churches? The Undying Fire of the Church of the Sacred Sun? The Raven of the Order of Secluded Spirits? The Floral Poet of the Floral Temple?" Fan Ning recalled what should count as common knowledge among this world's natives.

"Gods... It seems ordinary people are indeed more accustomed to that title."

"What should we call them, then?"

"For us Knowers, they are generally called—" Vyadlin's pupils suddenly focused.

"Lords of Witnesses."

"Lords of Witnesses...?" Fan Ning was puzzled. "So they're the beings who created the world? Are there three of them?"

"No, no, no..."

"Although they are incomparably powerful, they are neither omniscient nor omnipotent, nor can they be understood in a personified manner. Each Lord of Witnesses governs a Phase of their own. Although the three Orthodox Churches praise their respective Lords of Witnesses, they never claim that those beings created the world, nor do they deny the existence of other Lords of Witnesses."

"Actually, based on my limited knowledge, there may already be more than twenty Lords of Witnesses..."

"That many?" Fan Ning exclaimed.

He had originally guessed that, besides the three Orthodox Churches, there might be several "evil gods."

But that number had far exceeded his expectations.

"Are there really that many more evil gods than the three Orthodox gods?"

"It's not impossible to distinguish them as Orthodox gods and evil gods, since humans need to seek benefits and avoid harm," Vyadlin said. "From a human perspective, there are indeed a small number of relatively gentle Lords of Witnesses, while others are extremely dangerous. But I think the reason for this distinction lies in just two words: 'randomness.'"

"Like how whether I toss candy or a cigarette butt into a colony of ants depends only on my mood?" Fan Ning tried to understand it that way.

"Replacing the ants with microorganisms would be more accurate. You wouldn't even notice them, much less intentionally grant them a reward or punishment," Vyadlin corrected him.

"So the warnings issued by the Orthodox Churches are worth taking seriously to some extent: only by praying to the Orthodox Lords is it possible to receive safe revelations or comfort. If you recite the names of other mysterious beings, or see or hear something you shouldn't, the result won't be insight into the truth. More likely, you'll be tainted by madness."

"Fine, but there's one thing I don't quite understand. What is the purpose of churches spreading their faith?" Fan Ning fell into thought. "Since the Lords of Witnesses aren't personified at all, do they still need people's worship? Do they care about it?"

"Needing to be worshiped and longing to be respected—aren't those characteristics of being 'personified'?"

"This question concerns the difference between schools and churches," Vyadlin said.

"In the eyes of the schools, the existence of a Lord of Witnesses represents the rules they govern. As long as one constructs a Mystic Ritual in accordance with those rules, one can gain insight into Hidden Knowledge and Inspiration. The only difference is that the rules of different Lords of Witnesses vary. Some may accord with common sense, while others may violate it."

"Therefore, the schools' attitude toward the Lords of Witnesses is study, obedience, communication, and feedback. They study not only the rules of the Lords of Witnesses worshiped by the three Orthodox Churches, but also the mysteries of other Lords of Witnesses."

"Like a lawyer studying all kinds of laws and policies solely to achieve their own aims." Fan Ning offered this assessment.

"You've understood it more accurately this time." Vyadlin's laughter buzzed.

"As for the churches' attitude toward the Lords of Witnesses, at least officially, it is worship, faith, prayer, and reverence. They obtain the revelations they desire through these means as well, and the Mystic Rituals they construct have likewise been proven effective."

"From the schools' perspective, that's because the few Lords of Witnesses in their camp just happened to be 'more personified' and 'more gentle' at random, allowing them to resonate with those beings through such methods."

"Although the churches follow only their own Lords of Witnesses, their research into them is exceptionally profound, so the revelations they gain are no weaker than those obtained by the schools."

"Perhaps this view of ours diminishes the sacredness of 'faith,' but I don't deny its positive effects. After all, the Orthodox Churches guide people to do good, distinguish right from wrong, and grant them confession and consolation."

"So 'faith' is a rule of those three Orthodox gods, but not necessarily a rule of other Lords of Witnesses." Fan Ning understood. "You just said that this Woodpecker Inquiry Office of yours is a school, right?"

"That's merely the name we use with outsiders. Our organization is called the Guidance School."

Seeing that Fan Ning was about to ask further questions, Vyadlin raised a hand and interrupted him. "You don't need to investigate the backgrounds of the various Knower organizations, or the relationships between them, just yet."

"This Mystic Ritual for protecting the mind has limited time."

"What we're discussing now is the Knowers themselves. That was an example explaining 'Hidden Knowledge.' Now let's discuss the other factor: 'Inspiration.'"

"There is a vast sea of literature on this subject, but regarding the origins of the Lords of Witnesses and the nature of Knower Inspiration, they all point toward the same underlying logic—"

"The Noah People's theory of 'Radiance' refraction."

Fan Ning's heart stirred when he heard this.

The Noah People? Noahic? The "Soundstream, Texture, and Dreams" acquired by Teacher Anton seemed to have been written in that language.

"History Three before the New Calendar ended with the fall of the Tulungalia Dynasty, which had existed for more than a thousand years. It was a period still shrouded in many unsolved mysteries. The earlier Noah Dynasty existed for an even shorter time, little more than a century, and was even more deeply concealed in fog."

"Most works written by Knowers in the New Calendar originated from ancient texts dating back to those two dynasties in History Three. They merely relied on their own Inspiration to translate and interpret them, making that high-level Hidden Knowledge slightly easier to understand."

As Vyadlin spoke, he took out a badly battered book. Most of its shell-patterned hard cover had been destroyed, while its scattered, curled yellow pages were held together by a leather folder.

"Ezekiel's Refraction Esoterica," written in Noahic by the astrologer and court musician Ezekiel during the early Tulungalia Dynasty. The author claimed that the book was a translation of the original Ancient Chanizi text, abridged to some extent so it could be used as lyrics for a certain mysterious opera."

"Of course, the Special Inspection Office calls ancient books of this sort forbidden books."

Fan Ning pondered inwardly: So, is the Special Inspection Office a church or a school? Judging from his tone, the Guidance School's relationship with the Special Inspection Office seems cooperative, but not entirely harmonious. And what kind of relationship do they have with the imperial authorities?

"Caloen, what do you think of this world?" Vyadlin asked, pressing both hands against the book's cover.

"Huh?" Fan Ning was somewhat taken aback. He felt the question was far too broad. "Are you discussing philosophy with me?"

"Your feelings or impressions—systematic or scattered, peaceful or extreme."

"All right..." Fan Ning began organizing his thoughts. The things that first came to mind included elegant, spotless university campuses; crowded, dilapidated homes for commoners; beautiful natural landscapes; a corner of the city where sewage ran unchecked; the youthful vigor of handsome men and beautiful women; the decaying bodies of the elderly... There was also the complexity of secular human nature, along with the magnificent and sublime halls of art built by those same humans.

"It might be contradictory, or rather, full of flaws..." He tried to speak. "Industry is flourishing, and prosperity is within reach, but pleasure is only the surface, while suffering is the essence. Life is too short. Art alone is eternal."

Relevant interest: music major. That last line was just my own addition... Fan Ning added inwardly.

Vyadlin neither agreed nor disagreed. He raised a hand, added more incense, and then said:

"Now I'll read out some of the Noahic passages that can be interpreted from Ezekiel's Refraction Esoterica."

"Convergence Point" lay at the highest point of the world. The world's first concepts and forms poured endlessly forth from it. Its original aspect was neither a person nor a rule. It could not be named or understood.

Some of the concepts and forms cast out by the "Convergence Point" descended to a relatively lower place and transformed into "Radiance."

"Radiance" was complete divinity, as well as the first Inspiration, but its status was still too high to be named or understood. Only the incomplete projections occasionally refracted by "Radiance" could be described with words.

The complete divinity from "Radiance" thus collapsed into all kinds of limited projections. We could never observe the original form of complete divinity. We could only witness portions of divinity's Phases through hidden revelations.

The first Phase of divinity was "Candle," the second was "Key," the third was "Ember," the fourth was "Wasteland," the fifth was "Cocoon," the sixth was "Pool," and the seventh was "Derivation."

Thus came the Lords of Witnesses who governed the Phases.

The original Inspiration from "Radiance" decomposed into Luminous Substance bearing the attributes of the various Phases. Its core condensed into "Radiance Towers," while its outer reaches diffused into "Migrant Surges."

This was the "Migrant Surge" explored by Knowers—the will of the world.

The "Migrant Surge" continuously drifted downward. At the very bottom, the mud-like colors lost their true form and congealed into a shell.

This was the dwelling place of the ignorant—the surface of the world.

Together, these formed the real world: the world that existed as both surface and will.

The candle flame continued to sway as Vyadlin closed the book.

His entire explanation had been only three or four hundred words, yet it left Fan Ning with endless food for thought.

"Caloen, do you understand what 'Hidden Knowledge' and 'Inspiration' mean now?"

"You just said that the world was full of flaws. That's precisely because its surface has accumulated filthy silt. We rely on the trace of the original sacred spark within our souls to become Knowers, struggling to explore the Migrant Surge, all so we can see the world's more genuine colors."