World Occult Usage Guide

Chapter 157 The Dark Wind
Witches frequently appear in legends around the world, and their history, like the subject itself, is turbulent and diverse, essentially undefined.

Generally speaking, witchcraft refers to the manipulation of magical arts through spells or rituals. Although it can be improved through learning, this power is different from magic and originates from the innate talent or bloodline of witches.

The earliest record of witchcraft and sorcery can be found in the Book of Exodus:
The woman who poisoned him must not be allowed to live.

It is worth mentioning that, apart from this statement, the Old Testament does not mention the relationship between witches and Satan.

In ancient Greece, there were many legends about "women who used poison." For example, the crooked-necked bird of Evensia was a sorceress, and mythological figures such as Hecate, Circe, and Lamia were all given the title of witch.

Rome continued the tradition of the previous dynasty, defining witches in the Twelve Tables as "women who make potions".

In the Middle Ages, the Papacy expanded the ancient concept, labeling witches as heretics and devil's servants, thus giving rise to the modern image of the "witch."

For the next two centuries, witches were defined as heretics who worshipped the devil, and witch hunts became a profitable form of persecution.

The Protestant Reformation continued the movement against witches, whom Martin Luther called "the devil's mistresses," a theory that influenced mainstream Western culture.

By the end of the 18th century, this phenomenon had gradually disappeared, but prejudice and fear of witches remained.

Lin An deliberately switched the "Black Witch, White Witch, Red Witch and their Allies" section of the Magic Encyclopedia to the system's default language, which is the original language of the ancient book, and translated it according to his mother's English alphabet.

Its title is actually "Veneficium, Wicca, Obeah and Gu", each of which has a source far beyond its literal translation.

Veneficium, a Latin word for "poisoning," was a common medieval term used to describe witchcraft.

It is widely believed in the West that witches use poisons they concoct or that are provided by the devil to cause highly deadly epidemics such as plagues or the Black Death. They are also considered the culprits behind common diseases such as tuberculosis, leprosy, and epilepsy.

In the description by Protestant priest Martin Del Rio, witches were the opposite of female fertility; they could produce poison in their breasts instead of milk, and even their breath was poisonous.

Therefore, Veneficium is systematically translated as "Black Witch," a general term for a series of poisoning mystical arts.

In many cultures outside of the Saviour Bishop, "witchcraft" was often one of the ways locals tried to explain strange natural phenomena.

Some cultures are not afraid of witches, but rather hold an attitude of curiosity, awe, and harmonious coexistence.

For example, in the Erlan and Gairlan Highlands, witchcraft comes from the gifts of fairies and goblins. Blessed witches can travel between the fairy kingdom and the human kingdom and use their witchcraft to help the local people communicate with the fairies.

Unfortunately, like the native inhabitants of the Upper East, this civilization suffered brutal slaughter, expulsion, and destruction at the hands of the Lion Kingdom, and its original beliefs were lost to the annals of history.

Until the 20th century, a generation of nostalgic Lion Country mystics, theosophists, and spiritualists romanticized the image of these witches, creating a new religious culture.

They call it Wicca, an Old English term for "witch," and it belongs to the modern secondary adaptation of the pursuit of spiritual liberation, along with plastic shamanism and Druidic resurrection.

A key figure in the revival of this culture was the enthusiastic folklorist Sir James Fraser, who created his own concept of "magic" based on past beliefs and practices.

Thus, the "White Witch" was born.

Wicka's motto is "The Law of Witchcraft Worshippers," therefore white witchcraft is benevolent, encompassing a great deal of knowledge on healing and detoxification, intended to benefit humanity like the witches of Elran.

Besides the West, witchcraft was also prevalent in the South.

Beginning in the 16th century, the prevalence of colonialism resulted in 90% of the population of Southern societies being permanently enslaved, while Western continents plundered vast amounts of wealth from them.

During their rule, the colonists who remained in the Southern Continent often experienced fear of unfamiliar civilizations.

In the records kept by the authorities, the West Islanders mentioned that the locals would retaliate against them with a profound, terrifying, and bloody spiritual knowledge.

In the culture of the Southern Continent, the dead remain in the world as ancestors and souls, and need to be cared for and respected. Living people with professional knowledge can also use means to request the protection of these "ancestral spirits" or to make them attack others.

The word chosen by the West to describe this spiritual knowledge is "Obeah," an Igbo term meaning "witchcraft," literally "to strike with poison."

The system refers to her as the "Red Witch".

The colonists could not understand the origin of ancestral spirits. In the logic of the West, after death, people either go to heaven or hell and cannot remain in the world.

Therefore, they speculated that the witchcraft of the Southern Continent involved poisoning, since poisoning is always associated with witchcraft.

However, there is a subtle difference between the "Red Witch" and the "Black Witch." The Red Witch is more like a shamanic poison that will cast an inescapable evil curse on the target.

The witchcraft entry contains only one arcane spell linked to the Scarlet Witch. Unlike the close-range restrictions of the Black Witch and White Witch, it only requires knowing the other party's name and appearance to unleash a curse that causes them to suffer from insomnia for five days and five nights.

"A Southern Continent version of Death Note," Lin An thought.

As for the "Gu" at the end of the title, it is a Chinese character – "蛊".

Thinking of the legends of witchcraft and black magic, Lin An understood why the system translated it as "the witch's ally".

This was the first time he had read about the mysticism of Central Continent in the Encyclopedia of Magic, but unfortunately it was only mentioned briefly and no entry was included for Gu magic.

After gathering his thoughts, Lin An closed the ancient book and put it back on the bookshelf.

The real title of this magic encyclopedia should be "A Compendium of Poisoning Techniques Around the World".

The system rates witchcraft as "disaster".

The further you go, the more fragmented the magic encyclopedia seems to become.

However, Lin An understood its potential; the entry on witchcraft was truly all-encompassing. After a brief recollection, he tried to trace back to the previously included "The Concept of Witches and Evil III: The Hand of Glory," and the system surprisingly notified him that he had succeeded.

The two arcane spells included in the Hand of Glory, [Listen to the Invisible Breath] and [Fall into Panic], have both been upgraded to Cataclysmic level, but unfortunately the Encyclopedia of Magic itself has not been upgraded.

After carefully reading the entries, Lin An discovered that each spell required a "Seeker of Knowledge" and a "Mother of Desire" as a base.

This medium's mystical power is closely related to manipulating emotions, causing temporary or permanent psychological trauma, such as "panic attacks," which can amplify the deep-seated fears within an individual to a certain extent.

Hittite rituals are associated with the god of truth, alchemy with seekers of knowledge, Druidic priesthood with nature rituals, and sorcery with the mother of desire.

Arranged in this way, there are a total of 12 magic encyclopedias...

Is there a book that records an entry for "The Lady with the Lamp"?
"Ding dong."

The doorbell rang; the pizza delivery had arrived.

Lin An glanced at the alarm clock hanging on the wall. It was already 7:30 pm. There was still no news of his mother. He guessed that she had long since stopped living in the apartment.

After all, this environment doesn't look like someone lives here.

I suspect my mother only uses my rented room as a storage room, and she regularly hires a cleaning lady to clean it.

Lin An suppressed his indescribable feelings, put the extra pizza in the refrigerator, slumped on the sofa, and ate dinner while scrolling through his phone.

The pinned post on Green Bubble didn't have a red dot. Lin An glanced at his junior's profile picture and realized that the last time they chatted was during the Spring Festival.

So he took the initiative to send a message to Ruan Ruyun.

Cabin in the Woods: Junior Ruan, I'm back in Dietrich! Want to get together at Senior Zhou's restaurant?

A cabin in the woods: or you can choose a location.

A good ten minutes later, the junior student, who always replied instantly, finally sent a message.

A cloud made of rain: We'll see. I've been very busy lately, mostly in the lab.

Cabin in the Woods: Let's make an appointment when you have time.

A cloud made of rain: Okay, senior.

Lin An closed the chat window and noticed that Ruan Ruyun's attitude seemed a bit strange.

Could it be!

Has she recently been stimulated and is about to awaken her mystique?
I should find some time to meet my junior in person. Lin An thought, I can use the [Tree Diagram] to check the medium and prototype that she can awaken.

…………

In the morning, Lin An took a car to the university campus.

His mother sent him the class schedule to his email early on. Today at 10:30, she has a lecture at the School of Humanities.

In spring, the University of Ann Arbor is lush with green grass and blooming flowers, and the air is moist and warm.

The biting cold wind has subsided, and the number of tourists taking photos has nearly tripled compared to winter. Parents who hope their children will succeed bring their kids along, listening attentively to volunteers explaining the glorious and long history of the University of Ann Arbor, and taking family photos in front of the various main buildings.

On the large lawn, students sat leisurely in twos and threes. Some were reading, some were sunbathing, and some were kissing passionately and rolling around in the shade of the trees.

Following the road lined with yellow school flags, Lin An entered the lecture hall right on time.

This is a room decorated like a warehouse, with modern chairs filled with students who have come from far and wide.

The lecture had already begun, and he crouched down to take a seat in the back row.

"Folklore is passed down from person to person. In an ancient sense, it enables dialogue between generations of people and, unlike written materials, develops in an active and flexible way, constantly adapting to its audience and context."

Adria, dressed in a long women's trench coat and an elegant silk scarf, looked completely out of place in the simple university classroom of the Eagle Kingdom.

Lin An noticed that many students weren't paying attention in class and were secretly taking pictures of her with their phones and uploading them to a photo album.

Clearly, Adria fulfilled all the college students' fantasies about Western aristocrats.

It's nothing to be surprised about...

Lin An held up the computer screen to block his mother's seemingly aware gaze.

Although it had been three years since they last met, she was still the same as Lin An remembered. Time had not left any trace of aging on her; in fact, she seemed to have become even younger.

Lin An pulled his hoodie tighter and entered a state of mental relaxation.

He wanted to see if his mother was truly a mystic.

Thank you to Huiyuanzi, Xiaofei de Daozi, Neihan de Zhangrenmou, Book Friend 20210301106605444250, Book Friend 20220528132552420, Haoran Zhengqi, and Book Friend 20211115145552200 for the monthly tickets, and thank you all for the recommendation tickets and subscriptions.



(End of this chapter)