Klein unscrewed the cap of the metallic bottle and brought it to his nose. He smelled a slightly pungent yet refreshing scent.
This was the «Holy Night Powder» concocted from herbs such as Deep Sleep, Dragon Blood Grass, Crimson Sandalwood, and mint. Since it was easy to make, Klein had already found an opportunity to prepare a bottle after replenishing the materials at the underground trading market. Now, it finally came in handy.
He poured some Holy Night Powder into his palm, then calmed his mind, letting his eyes turn deeper.
Then, Klein put away the metal bottle, picked up the powder, infused it with spirituality, and sprinkled it onto the ground.
He walked as he sprinkled, circling Syrus's corpse once.
Suddenly, an invisible wall rose up, isolating this area from the outside world.
Klein shook off the remaining Holy Night Powder and took out another metal bottle, dripping the liquid inside, such as «Amanda Hydrosol,» around him one by one.
The sequence of his ritual arrangement was different from
For example, Old Neil first sprinkled the liquid, then used the Holy Night Powder. This could create a serenity and sanctity second only to a formal altar. As for Klein, he used the Holy Night Powder first and then sprinkled the liquid, because his purpose was merely to prevent Syrus's residual spirituality from being disturbed by the surrounding things and to have an environment that barely met the requirements for the ritual.
—If he had used Old Neil's method, Syrus's residual spirituality would have been expelled, making communication impossible.
After doing all this, Klein put away the materials, maintained a state of meditation, and softly chanted the incantation written in
«I pray for the power of concealment;»
«I pray for the Lady’s blessing.»
«I pray that You allow me to communicate with the spirituality of the heretic within the altar.»
...
As the incantation echoed in the sealed environment, Klein suddenly felt a vast, terrifying, and concealed power descend.
His eyes turned completely black, seemingly losing his pupils and the whites of his eyes.
Seizing this opportunity, Klein muttered the «divination statement» in his heart: «The formula for the Clown potion.»
«The formula for the Clown potion.»
...
While reciting, he used meditation to briefly enter a dream, entering a dream while standing.
In the grayish world without sky or ground, Klein focused his attention on a transparent, illusory figure this time.
He extended his right hand, touching Syrus's residual spirit.
With a bang, the scene before his eyes suddenly changed.
It was a desk painted with dark red paint. On it stood a silver candlestick holding three candles, and a blank letter was placed there.
Syrus was holding a fountain pen, writing in common Ruen: «This is the second formula. The name recorded in the notes is ‘Clown’.»
«80 ml of pure water, 5 drops of mandrake juice, 7 grams of Black-edged Sun powder, 10 grams of Golden Cloak Grass powder, 3 drops of hemlock juice, these are the supplementary materials.»
«The primary, extraordinary materials are: one adult Hornacis
Syrus seemed to need no recollection; he scribbled down the formula for the Clown potion in a flurry.
At this moment, he paused for a moment, took a sip of coffee, then unfastened the silver pendant wrapped around his wrist.
He held the pendant, half-closed his eyes, and muttered words and sentences such as «Doomsday,» «Peace of Mind,» «May the Lord Protect,» «Confess to You.»
After Syrus finished his prayer, Klein finally saw the shape of that pendant clearly.
Below the silver bracelet that linked ring by ring hung a thumb-sized humanoid statue.
This statue had the unique vertical single eye of a giant, its head pointing downwards, its feet bound by chains connecting it to the top.
At that moment, a blood-red glimmer suddenly flashed in the giant's vertical single eye.
Crack!
The scene Klein saw instantly shattered. His legs gave way, and he nearly fell to the ground.
A pain in his head, as if struck hard by a stick, Klein's vision was blood-red, and his hands involuntarily propped themselves on his knees.
After a few seconds, he recovered, straightened up, and felt his spirituality was exceptionally weak. He seemed to hear the whispers that pierced his spirit again.
However, thanks to his progress in «digesting» the potion, the abnormal reactions quickly subsided.
«The Hanged
The Aurora Order was a secret organization that had only emerged in the last two or three hundred years. They worshipped the «True Creator» and used the Hanged Giant as the symbol of that existence. They believed that everyone possesses divinity. As long as their spirit was tough enough to withstand one test after another, they could accumulate abundant divinity and become angels.
According to the records within the Nighthawks, the Sequence 9 controlled by the Aurora Order is called the «Secret Supplicant.» These Beyonders can detect certain mysterious and terrifying existences and have mastered certain sacrificial knowledge and a small amount of ritualistic magic. There is sufficient evidence to show that experienced «Secret Supplicants» will, to varying degrees, develop distorted cognitive views and are prone to losing control.
The Sequence 7 controlled by the Aurora Order is unknown, and Sequence 8 is the «Listener.» This is a quite terrifying Beyonder «occupation»: Every «Listener» can directly hear the whispers of the corresponding hidden existence. Therefore, they can often gain many powerful, twisted, and unique abilities. Correspondingly, if a «Listener» cannot obtain a promotion, it is difficult for them to survive beyond five years. Additionally, the evaluation given by the internal records of the Nighthawks is that all «Listeners» are madmen. Even if they usually seem quite normal, they are inevitably hidden madmen.