Considering that he wasn't sure what would ultimately be summoned—after all, it was difficult to divine the ritual's performer in advance—Klein first took out Azik's Copper Whistle and placed it on his chest, hoping this item from Mr. Azik could slightly deter those disobedient Spirit World creatures.
Amidst the scent of herbs and essential oils, illuminated by the dim candlelight, shadows flickered across his face, and the "Wheel of Fortune" card in his arms quietly glowed. As the ancient Hermes echoed, ripples spread in circles, undulating through the Spirit World.
Deep within the Spirit World, incomprehensible by common sense, in this chaotic realm, various pieces of information, apart from Spirit World creatures, exist as complex abstract symbols.
Even those symbolic figures have a certain possibility of coming alive, transforming into non-corporeal Monsters.
The silver ripples passed through the colorful, distorted color blocks and merged into a completely black, vine-covered, very Gothic-style castle.
Reinette Tinekerr instantly appeared at the top of the castle, her four golden-haired, red-eyed, strikingly beautiful heads, held by her drooping hands, simultaneously opened their eyes.
Reflected in her blood-red eyes was Klein, enveloped in a thin, hazy layer of grayish-white mist. At this moment, he was continuously trying different prayer incantations, and a flickering, rippling river vaguely appeared in his arms, extending its ripples deep into the Spirit World.
The ritual of the "Ancient Bane" involves cursing oneself with the ability of "Incantation" and using oneself as the source to infect a segment of history; the longer the infected history, the better the ritual's effect.
Even though Reinette Tinekerr was severely wounded, having revived from the infected history and reborn within the Spirit World, she still retained her angelic essence, making her particularly sensitive to the mists of history.
After only a few seconds of observation, this former leader of the Temperance Faction's body suddenly contracted.
Although distance and direction are chaotic within the Spirit World, as long as an accurate and clear location is provided, Reinette Tinekerr can instantly appear at the altar, no matter where she is in the Spirit World.
And the guidance of fate made her sense Klein's summoning; even if she hadn't fully recovered, she could easily pinpoint his location.
Backlund, Cherwood Borough, underground sewers.
Klein's mouth twitched slightly. After sending away a messenger who resembled a trash can, no matter how he changed the incantations, not a single Spirit World creature appeared again.
Unsure why this was happening, Klein stared blankly at the still burning candle flames, then took a deep breath, gritted his teeth, and decided to take a risk. He took a step back and finally said:
"I!"
"I summon in my name:"
"Spirits wandering in the void, friendly creatures that can be commanded, unique existences willing to be my messenger!"
Whoosh!
As his words fell, within the wall of spirituality, the wind suddenly intensified, and Klein's peaked cap nearly flew off.
The candlelight flickered, expanding to the size of a human head, so pale as if it had lost all warmth.
A translucent head slowly emerged as if breaking through a thin membrane. Its hair was light gold and smooth, its eyes blood-red, and its appearance strikingly beautiful and dignified.
What made Klein's heart pound was that the sense of oppression brought by this suddenly appearing Spirit World creature far exceeded that of the bone messenger.
More crucially, Azik's Copper Whistle, which had always been effective against Spirit World creatures, had no effect whatsoever this time. The blood-red eyes completely ignored the whistle and simply stared at him, as if confirming something.
"I just finished chanting, and there's a response already?"
"Could it be because of this fellow that no messenger came no matter how I changed the final directional incantation earlier...?"
His thoughts were a jumble, and Klein's Adam's apple bobbed as he watched the head fully emerge. But what followed was not a neck, but a phantom hand grasping her hair ends.
Beyond the hand was a sleeve with intricate but dark patterns.
The summoned Spirit World creature emerged faster and faster, soon fully appearing before Klein's eyes.
"Are..." "You..." "Summoning..." "Me?"
The headless woman, dressed in a somber, elaborate black gown, stood quietly. Her four hanging heads spoke one after another, using ancient Feynapotter.
Being able to communicate directly through language, this Spirit World creature's level is clearly not low... Looking at its bizarre appearance, Klein's face twitched slightly. After a moment of hesitation, he still asked:
"Yes, are you willing to sign a contract and become my messenger?"
Reinette Tinekerr's skirt moved slightly, and her four golden-haired, red-eyed heads nodded simultaneously:
"Can." "Each..." "One..." "Gold coin!"
Robbery? One gold coin for one letter delivery? Klein's mouth twitched, almost wanting to immediately dismiss the summoning, but remembering that payment could be made upon delivery, he ultimately held back.
Taking a deep breath, Klein took out the Necromancer's Contract he had prepared earlier. Under normal circumstances, the honorific name of Death must be used, but that Death had fallen long ago and no longer responded.
Therefore, he followed Mr. Azik's suggestion, using descriptions of high-level beings in the necromancy domain or the Underworld itself as substitutes, though the binding power would not be as strong.
Although he felt somewhat uneasy, unsure if this could bind this mysterious Spirit World creature, seeing the headless woman with no intention of leaving, her four pairs of eyes fixed on him, Klein still chose the Underworld, which was closely related to Azik:
"The ultimate destination of all Death, the hell hidden deep within the Spirit World, the witness to the decay of all things, the kingdom belonging solely to Death."
After these four descriptions were written, the ancient Hermes script on the yellowish-brown parchment ignited one by one with eerie green flames, casting a sinister glow all around.
Having completed the main text, Klein took out Azik's Copper Whistle, pressed it onto the parchment, and signed his current name:
"Sherlock Moriarty."
This doesn't necessarily require a true name, as one's aura will enter the contract, and the name's purpose is merely for summoning. As long as communication with the messenger is established, modifying the corresponding name is not troublesome and can effectively avoid reverse tracking by certain rituals.
Once Klein finished signing, the parchment floated up, carrying Azik's Copper Whistle and the dark red steel pen, and flew before the headless woman.
One of the golden-haired, red-eyed heads held by the headless woman bit the round-bellied steel pen and wrote down her name:
"Reinette Tinekerr."
The eerie green flames quickly merged into a single blaze, engulfing Azik's Copper Whistle and the yellowish-brown parchment.
A few seconds later, the parchment turned to ashes, and the copper whistle fell unchanged into Klein's outstretched palm.
The four heads held by the headless woman, Reinette, simultaneously blinked, and her figure rapidly blurred, shrinking back into the pale candlelight.
Reinette Tinekerr... I need to ask Arrodes about her origin later! This thought flashed through his mind, and Klein, coming back to his senses, realized that his back was already soaked with sweat.
North Borough, Backlund, 34 George Street.
Will Auceptin tossed the freshly folded paper crane onto the table. Bright sunlight streamed in, illuminating the "Backlund Morning Post" on the table through the paper crane:
"Allen Chris, a renowned practicing surgeon in Backlund, has been invited by the East Tucker Charity Foundation to open a charity clinic at 135 George Street, North Borough, on the 29th of this month. This is for..."
Jumping down from the chair, Will Auceptin muttered softly:
"If not for my imminent restart, after which I won't be able to interfere much with the outside world, I wouldn't have to be so circuitous."
"As long as that fellow isn't too reckless, even if Reinette Tinekerr is not in good condition, she should still be able to save his life at a critical moment."
"Fate is truly too harsh on me; I have to personally worry about everything. Damn Ouroboros..."
-----------------
Capital of East Tucker County, Underground Hall.
Red-haired, brown-eyed Varna Weil sat on a bronze chair deep within the hall, his eyes, flickering with fire and lightning, stared with interest at Astolfo, who stood beside Aaron. After a moment, he spoke:
"This is your messenger... truly extraordinary."
This was not the first time he had seen this messenger. When he hunted the "God of Weather" in Bansy Harbor, he already knew of Astolfo's existence.
But at that time, only his power projection had acted, and the main target was the "God of Weather" corrupted by the "City of Calamity," so he hadn't paid too much attention to Astolfo, who was barely a demigod at the time.
To his surprise, this Spirit World creature, who wasn't even a demigod to begin with and was merely captured by Gusman Weil and stored in the "Mask of Death," was actually related to the "Chained God" of the Southern Continent.
"I roughly understand your idea. I can also act if necessary, but you need to consider carefully the terror of that being. The previous 'Chained God' is the best example."
Varna Weil lightly tapped the back of the chair, speaking in a low voice. The person, the angel, and the Spirit World creature present all knew that "that being" referred to the "Mother Tree of Desire," the deity worshipped by the Indulgence Faction of the Rose School of Thought.
Although they were all unafraid of corruption from the Cosmos due to their unique natures, they weren't so foolish as to utter the name and needlessly attract attention.
Aaron mentally calculated the number of angels and Grade 0 Sealed Artifacts he could find at the moment, and carefully said:
"The barrier of the Astral World won't last much longer. Once that final barrier breaks, the 'Chained God' will be completely corrupted almost instantly."
"If we act, whether the seven in the Astral World are willing or not, they will not sit idly by and watch the one worshipped by the Rose School of Thought continue to erode the already battered Primordial One barrier."
"What we need to watch out for is whether that 'Abomination,' Suah, will arrive with certain things to obstruct us."
"Moreover, regardless of whether we succeed in the end, we cannot let the Seven Deities know that we were the ones who did those things in the Spirit World, so this must be done with the help of the Seven Lights of the Spirit World."
Varna immediately fell silent, weighing the feasibility of the matter. Seeing this, Astolfo instantly let out a cursing sound capable of making spirits tremble:
"The Seven Lights are of high standing, second only to deities. They cover the highest reaches of the Spirit World and are greatly connected to it."
"If we can persuade them, by leveraging their corresponding authorities, a combined effort can indeed temporarily shield the Spirit World from the gaze of other deities."
At this point, it paused before slowly adding:
"That's how I managed back then, not being discovered by the Seven Deities and other high-level existences peering into the Spirit World."
With Astolfo's firsthand account, Aaron no longer hesitated. In any case, he would have to meet the Seven Lights of the Spirit World eventually. At worst, he could sell Klein to them, right?
However, since he wasn't the "Great Ruler Above the Spirit World," and somewhat worried that the other Seven Lights might ignore him, the first one Aaron summoned was "Orange Light" Hillarion.
After all, they were old acquaintances. Whether in Bayam or the Fog Sea, their collaborations had been pleasant enough, so they wouldn't ignore him.
Accompanied by solemn ancient Hermes, the candlelight suddenly expanded, and light surged forth, revealing an old man in an orange robe.
The old man was plump, with a short white beard, and looked quite amiable.
He glanced at Aaron and Varna Weil on the bronze chair, finally looking at Astolfo, and chuckled, nodding:
"Your Highness, I can help you persuade the other Seven Lights, but I suggest you speak with 'Red Light' Aiur Moria personally."
You knew before I even said anything? Aaron raised an eyebrow slightly. Seeing the "Orange Light"'s gentle demeanor, he directly asked:
"You seem to know what I intend to do?"
"Orange Light" Hillarion did not hide it, and smiled candidly:
"The Spirit World itself is woven from various pieces of information, some from the past, some from the present, and some revealing certain futures."
"And whether it's divination or prophecy, most methods actually exploit the Spirit World, and only then rely on peeking into fate."
"Even if you haven't entered the Spirit World, as long as the actions you are about to undertake have a great connection with us, we will sense them and make a prophecy."
Somewhat similar to the Visionary's authority, but achieved through the special nature of the Spirit World, more like a "Mystical Ritual" exclusive to the Seven Lights.... Aaron nodded, signaling the "Orange Light" to continue.
"'Red Light' Aiur Moria's honorific name is 'The Never-Fading Light of the Spirit World, Incarnation of Endless Knowledge, Red of Authority and Will.'"
"He represents power and will. He was the one who primarily helped your messenger shield the Spirit World before. I think he should be able to provide you with some good experience."
Plan ahead, prepare emergency plans for various situations, ensure foolproof safety... Aaron almost instantly understood the meaning behind the "Orange Light"'s words. After seeing "Orange Light" Hillarion off, he rearranged the ritual.
Then, a step later, following the steps taught by the "Orange Light," he chanted in ancient Hermes:
"I!"
"I pray in my name," "I pray to communicate with 'The Never-Fading Light of the Spirit World, Incarnation of Endless Knowledge, Red of Authority and Will.'"
The biggest difference between this spirit-channeling ritual, reportedly from the "Pure Light Brotherhood," and those commonly used by the major churches, is that one cannot pray to deities.
Neither the "Evernight Goddess" nor the "Lord of Storms"' honorific names can appear in the ritual, otherwise, it will inevitably lead to failure.
From a mystical perspective, this means that the Seven Lights of the Spirit World do not belong to or serve any deity.
As words capable of communicating with nature spirits were uttered, a luminous Door seemed to open before Aaron.
The surroundings suddenly became silent, and pairs of inexplicable eyes from different places behind the Door simultaneously gazed over, but upon sensing the strong aura of iron and blood, they one by one shifted their gaze away.