The solemn holy image radiated a sacred and grave aura. Under its gaze, even the frantic patient became quiet. For a moment, the room was filled only with hurried footsteps and the clinking of instruments.
The hexagram represented the divine. As Lady Nightingale struck the double-headed snake scepter heavily against the floor, a standard hexagram traced in golden light appeared out of thin air on the snow-white ground.
It shimmered with iridescent colors, and every glowing line emitted a holy radiance.
“The raiding bat steals the abilities of its prey through blood consumption. It possesses the strongest inclusivity. Using raiding bat blood as a base, we harmonize all conflicting factors to maintain stability and balance.”
Her cane pointed to one point of the hexagram, and that point began to glow brighter.
An assistant immediately stepped forward, opened a blood-red glass bottle, and poured the viscous red liquid inside.
The blood seemed to be pulled by some force, twisting and changing in the air. By the time it landed, it had formed a strange symbol outside the top point of the hexagram. Then, the golden light on the hexagram spread instantly, fusing the blood-formed rune with the hexagram.
“The spitting lizard has thick bodily fluids with the strongest adhesion in the present world. Using the blood of the spitting lizard as a cage, we bind the violent nature of the disease.”
Nightingale had already paced toward another point to light it up, and the assistant followed closely, opening the second blood-red glass bottle.
The tip of the scepter vibrated with a certain rhythm, pulling the blood in the air to twist and deform. Before it even touched the ground, another pattern exuding a tangled, sticky aura had already formed in mid-air before being carved into the floor.
“Huu...” The old woman stopped and stood in place, panting softly. Another assistant immediately approached to wipe the sweat seeping from outside the old woman’s mask. The assistant tried to offer support, but the old woman gently pushed them away.
The old woman bent her arm, making a gesture of strength, and then walked toward the third point.
“The Formless Ones are entirely colloidal, both soft and hard. Using the blood of the Formless Ones as a barrier, we dissolve the erosion of the disease’s authority.”
“The golden-winged griffin soars year-round and is naturally deterrent to all living things. Using the blood of the golden-winged griffin as a banner, we suppress the violent power of the disease.”
“The cold spider’s venom is as fierce as fire and has killed countless living things. Using the blood of the cold spider as an arrowhead, we destroy the impact of the disease head-on with its violent characteristics.”
The three consecutive chants were completed in one breath. Black, gold, and green runes twisted from the three bottles of blood occupied the other three positions.
At this moment, all five points outside the hexagram were occupied by blood runes. Under the illumination of the golden light, they felt like a unified whole.
Leaning on her scepter and panting for a while, the old woman straightened her back again and stood before the final point. But she did not chant immediately as before. Instead, she lowered her head and pondered for a long time before reaching out to take another glass bottle from the assistant and pouring it herself.
“The wasteland mammoth is heavy and stable, one with the earth. Using the blood of the mammoth as a foundation, we carry the soul of the suppressor to block all filthy powers.”
This time, the old woman’s movements became sluggish, as if the scepter had become incredibly heavy. The speed at which the bright red blood twisted and deformed in the air also became increasingly slow; every change seemed to radiate a massive, crushing pressure.
As the final rune gradually took shape, the light of the hexagram grew brighter and brighter. The moment the room became so bright it was blinding, the light suddenly retracted, and the entire hexagram returned to its dim state.
A fit of irrepressible coughing immediately erupted. The old woman clutched her mask, hunched over, and took a long time to catch her breath. Then, she turned to Lynch and pointed at the rune condensed from the mammoth’s blood.
Lynch understood. He stepped onto the rune. Whether it was his imagination or not, as soon as he stood on it, he felt an inner sense of security.
The assistants and Nightingale were also moving. They pushed the iron bed restraining the patient to a cage position one point away from Lynch. The point with the raiding bat blood faced the holy image on the wall, forming an equilateral triangle with the patient and Lynch.
The two assistants and the old woman stood on the other three points. The Ouroboros holy emblem hung high on the dome, directly facing the center of the hexagram.
Nightingale’s gaze finally turned to Lynch, asking him with her eyes. Lynch straightened the bird-mask on his face, which was stuffed with medicinal herbs, and nodded gently.
Then let us begin.
The two assistants each picked up a syringe. The one holding the tainted blood injected it into the very center of the hexagram first, and then Lynch’s blood was also injected. However, the two pools of blood did not merge; instead, they were incompatible and remained separated from each other.
Leaning on her scepter, the old woman began to chant a prayer. Her voice was low and powerful, and the scepter in her hand hovered over the two pools of blood, swaying gently. Following her chant, the two pools of blood soon began to move, rotating clockwise. The speed increased, looking very much like the yin-yang fish he had seen in his previous life.
“Stay conscious. Do not lose awareness. Persisting in clarity until the end is victory.”
Nightingale’s worried warning reached his ears, but Lynch did not respond. His eyes were fixed on the rotating blood. The blood was like a whirlpool, absorbing his entire consciousness.
BOOM.
The entire world jolted violently. Lynch regained his senses from the whirlpool’s attraction.
However, this did not help him understand his current situation, because he could not comprehend his current state at all.
Lynch did not see, nor did he hear, because at this very moment, sight and sound had lost all meaning.
Yet everything was fed back into his consciousness naturally, as if everything was meant to be perceived this way.
The place where he existed was an indescribable void. There was nothing comprehensible in existence.
There was no matter, no life, no animals, no humans.
Within the void, there were only countless twisted rays of light, writhing, flickering, and changing. In the twisted light, things were simple enough to see through at a glance, yet so complex that they were difficult to understand. The sense of contradiction within them was enough to drive one nearly insane.
BOOM.
Accompanied by the chaotic light streaking past, Lynch felt another violent jolt. His mind was in a daze, as if his consciousness were about to merge into this incomprehensible void.
What is going on?
The thought had barely surfaced when his mind experienced several more violent tremors. Each vibration stimulated his consciousness into a state of chaos, as if his soul could leave his body at any moment.
Damn it, is this the danger Lady Nightingale spoke of? Must I constantly endure such impact until everything ends?
Lynch was truly panicked.
He felt as if he had returned to before his transmigration, with only a shred of consciousness floating in the boundless red fog.
It was even more painful than back then. At that time, there was at least the red fog and the red moon hanging in the sky. Now, there was only an incomprehensible void and a deadly bombardment that showed no signs of stopping.
The impacts were so frequent and so intense that Lynch was on the verge of losing consciousness after just a few times. He could not determine how many more he could withstand.
What is bombarding me?
Neighbor, stop watching, what is happening?
【Do not have the intent to 'see'. In the conceptual horizon, seeing does not exist. Use your inspiration to understand, and only then will you understand this conceptualized world.】
The gentle female voice allowed Lynch’s panicked mood to calm instantly, and even the frequent bombardments became less jarring.
You were indeed here all along.
Following the guidance of the red moon, Lynch tried hard to calm his spirit amidst the repeated bombardments. It was very difficult, and the interference from the impacts was severe, but after several attempts, Lynch finally managed to disperse his will and use his inspiration to understand everything around him.
Amidst the twisted and chaotic light, he finally managed to understand his current state.
This was a void that existed only in concepts. The two masses of light in the void: one side was the protected suppressor, which was Lynch himself.
The light representing the six types of mysterious heteromorphs, under the control of Nightingale’s ritual, merged their respective characteristics to form a barrier, shielding Lynch’s will within.
The other side was the disease authority containing the residual consciousness of Mordiggian, the King of Ghouls. The twisted light in the void represented the manifestation of their respective wills. The light and shadows intertwined and devoured each other; this was the collision and confrontation between the two consciousnesses.
It was just that after countless collisions, the barrier formed by the mysterious heteromorphs had become riddled with holes, and more and more weaknesses were exposed. The bombardment Lynch felt was precisely the residual consciousness from the divine authority directly impacting Lynch’s consciousness through the gaps in the barrier.
The frequency was increasing, and the distance was closing. Clearly, the barrier could no longer hold.
Lynch knew that once the defense line collapsed, the disease would act upon his physical body. Just as Lady Luna said, it would be certain death.
Seemingly sensing Lynch’s observation, the light representing the disease authority suddenly stopped flickering and went quiet. It no longer flickered, but the pressure doubled.
From the light of the authority, a terrifying deterrence permeated through, almost materialized.
This was the suffocating silence before a storm.
I have to go all out!
He had reached a dead end just as he had regained his wits. Lynch gritted his teeth and, driven by instinct, merged his own will into the barrier. He became one with the tattered barrier and charged head-on to meet the incoming residual consciousness.
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