World Occult Usage Guide

Chapter 228 Lin An's Condition

Lin An woke up to the sound of pages turning.

He sat up from a round, soft chair. The night air was filled with the hooting of owls, and the moonlight shone coolly on him through the arched window.

Looking around, Lin An found himself in a quaint study with oak wainscoting carved with thistles and thorns, a long Persian rug with silk tassels spread out beside the black marble fireplace, and olive wood bookshelves arranged at wide intervals.

Between each bookshelf was a marble bust. In front of Lin An was a small linden wood tea table with an expensive fountain pen and ink, and colorful bone china jars filled with vibrant tulips.

So simple and exquisite, it doesn't seem like the style one would expect from the United Kingdom.

"Brush it."

As the pages of a book were turned, a melodious female voice called out to Lin An.

"Sir, this is the first time I've seen your face."

The voice belonged to a girl who seemed to have stepped out of an ancient Greek poem. Her skin was fair and radiant, her crystal-clear blue eyes were like jewels, and her arrogant and noble temperament cascaded down like her black hair.

Lin An had seen such a flawless smile before; it appeared on his mother's lips when she did so unintentionally.

isn't it...

"Miss, may I ask your surname?"

"Adria Hughes".

The girl, around six years old, closed the book she was reading. The cover bore the French title "The Decameron" and was decorated with a gilded six-pointed star magic circle, a design chosen by Queen Margrethe.

How did my mother become so small?
With a strange and uncertain feeling, Lin An carefully observed the girl. Her fair face had a few bruises that were about to fade, and there were wounds on her lips that had been smeared with powder.

Unable to find a third person anywhere, Lin An could only continue talking to either a younger version of Adria or a girl with the same name.

"Miss Adria, what happened to your wound?"

“Oh, these?” Adria touched the scab at the corner of her mouth. “Just a debate about ideas. Do you know what mysticism is… or have you heard of the Stonemasons’ Guild or the Golden Dawn?”

"Have heard a little bit."

“I see. Sir, I attend a church school, but the teachers there are stubborn. When they hear me talking about spiritualism with my classmates, they call me a heretic, whip me, lock me in solitary confinement, and force me to repent.”

“Because of my stubbornness, their physical punishment was ineffective, so they gathered classmates to isolate me, mock and bully me. My father had no choice but to take me home to discipline me. These are the wounds left from that time, which have not yet healed.”

Speaking of the past in a calm tone, little Adria raised her beautiful face and gave Lin An an aggressive smile.

“But I’ve always believed in the existence of another fantastical world, sir. One day, I will find it, and then I will have everyone witness it with me.”

Lin An pondered for a moment and asked, "What's the point of you doing this?"

“I’m just dissatisfied with a future that looks like it has no end.” Adria tapped the Decameron with her fingers. “Don’t you think our daily lives, made up of tea, rice, oil, salt, eating, drinking, and relieving ourselves, are too boring, sir?”

Her words struck at the deepest loneliness in Lin An's heart, and this undeniable sense of alienation surged back into his mind, clearly declaring to him that he did not belong to this planet.

He is isolated here because his spirit comes from another dimension of the universe, but his body is made up of human cells. When the two worlds overlap, he does not belong to either of them.

Lin An looked out the window at the starry sky, the shadowy leaves, and above the chapel's spire, where something bright was rising, casting a large expanse of soft light.

moon……

It shimmered with a gentle light, its white halo adorning the dark gray feathers. The moon's shadow moved around Lin An, reminding him of the reality he needed to face.

In an instant, the hazy memories became clear, surfacing one after another in Lin An's mind.

His mother told him everything, and then, without further ado, decided to send him back to the planet "Comers".

During the ritual, his memories of the aliens from five thousand years ago merged, and he became lost in the chaotic river of time.

Despite Lin An’s efforts to maintain his individuality, his 22 years of life were far too thin and barren compared to the weight of five thousand years of history, and a few shocks left him in a daze.

He wandered through time and civilization, gazing at the past that had nothing to do with him, and could only remain silent.

Until a familiar voice interrupted Lin An's almost unconscious journey, accompanied by moonlight, Lin An regained himself from the memories of aliens surging in.

That fleeting ray of light...

Lin An vaguely recognized its identity, remained silent for a long time, and then touched the corner of his eye.

"So extraterrestrial spirits can also feel human sorrow."

Looking up at the girl in front of him again, Lin An guessed that she was just a phantom in his mind, stemming from the complicated emotions he had for Adria.

He and she were like a student and teacher locked in a never-ending struggle, sometimes yearning for approval, sometimes filled with utter hatred.

Touching the girl's face covered in wounds, Lin An felt no intensified anger, impulsiveness, or excitement, but rather a firm sense of relief.

From that moment on, Adria was no longer his mother, but merely an ambitious stranger.

"Wow..."

Just as Lin An was recalling everything and processing the facts with a relatively calm mind, Adria's phantom shattered like cold glass, replaced by a blond man who looked similar to her.

He was handsome and his age was hard to guess. He wore a low ponytail, and his beautiful eyes, set in brownish-red rims due to age, appeared even larger, more lively and spirited. He wore a monocle made of tortoiseshell, exuding an air of nobility.

"Lin An, it's wonderful that you've regained your senses."

Duke Vasilica Hughes's voice, like the system, was very pleasant to listen to.

He smiled at Lin An, revealing a set of neat teeth.

"It's good that you didn't fall for Adria's lies. Her ritual will only turn you into an interstellar orbit stuck between 'Comers' and Titan, a point of connection between the two planets, unable to reach the other planet, and unable to return to our planet."

"In other words, your essence will be stretched infinitely, becoming a medium connecting 'Comers' and Titan. Radiation will flow through you from one side and be transmitted to another planet, while your consciousness will dissipate in endless time, becoming a mere energy link."

"Fortunately, thanks to the efforts of many parties, the ceremony did not connect to the golden coordinates where the star orbits overlapped, and you maintained your thinking and cognitive abilities, thus avoiding a tragic ending."

"Brother Tongzi."

Lin An's words shattered the Duke's good manners, and his smile twitched slightly.

“I’m not a system, Lin An, and biologically I’m at least your great-grandfather…”

"Brother Tongzi, bring up my control panel."

"Ok."

The Duke had no choice but to pick up the pen beside him and quickly write various words in the air. The familiar green data displayed the panel that Lin An was used to.

[Name]: The Encyclopedia of Mystery
[Rating]: Source Grade A

Radiation level: 16.4%
[Pollution Level]: 23.2%
[Media]: Seeker of Knowledge [Inventory]: Seeker of Knowledge x3, God of Truth x4, Dreamer x3, Prophet x2, Chief Judge x4, Nature Priest x4, Mother of Desire x3, Emperor of War x2, Lord of the Earth x12, God of Agriculture x10, Lord of Dreams x4, Goddess of the Lamp x3
The level of pollution increased by about 5% due to the blessing of Asherah.

It seems I need to be more careful when using this mystical technique in the future.

But it is estimated that thanks to this 5% pollution level, the system's "humanity" has been enhanced, allowing it to recall more memories and thus act as a commentator at this moment.

After a moment's thought, Lin An launched his attack with a blank expression.

"I told you to bring up my control panel, not to bring up the 'Mysterious Encyclopedia.' Also, do you always handwrite your data?"

"No, it's just a visual representation; I don't really like using typewriters."

"You've really gone to a lot of trouble to pretend to be high-tech, you old-fashioned thing."

"As for your condition, Lin An," the Duke sighed, "I am temporarily unable to decipher the alien energy formula using human mathematics."

“So, what’s next?” Lin An looked around at the Victorian-style decor. “It seems you’ve locked my complete consciousness in a ‘safe house.’ And you didn’t mention Adria ‘failed,’ which means the ritual is at least halfway complete.”

"Ugh……"

"Isn't her plan going a little too smoothly?" Lin An pondered.

“From the moment she killed me, there were few people in the world who could stop her,” the Duke said helplessly. “She not only possessed the radiation source, but she could also manipulate ‘memories’.”

"An ability that only you and Aldrea possess?"

“That’s right. Adria can ‘modify’ and ‘extract’ a memory from anyone. The closer you are to her, the stronger the effect of this ability becomes, and the longer the memory fragment that can be affected.”

"Even the so-called 'demigods' can't resist it?" Lin An asked.

"They sensed something amiss, but couldn't completely eliminate the effects. As long as Adria remained in a region, she could rewrite the memories of anyone in that region. Numerous ancient dynasties... and noble families suffered greatly at her hands and dared not oppose her."

"In fact, Adria altered the memories of all humanity once, distorting the existence of 'Hughes,' to the point that very few people remember the entanglement between extraterrestrials and us over the past millennia. Even among the aristocratic families, most only know that Adria is dangerous."

"However, she cannot unconditionally modify memories on a large scale, and Hughes and Aldria's abilities cannot interact with each other, nor can they affect the original aliens. Therefore, your and my memories are the only two things in the world that she cannot freely rewrite."

Directly altering other people's memories...

This ability is terrifyingly powerful, almost defying the laws of nature.

Fortunately, the system mentioned that as Hughes, he also inherited an ability related to memory.

Lin An looked at the system, waiting for it to continue.

“And my ability is to ‘delete’ and ‘preserve’ memories.” The Duke clasped his hands together. “Similarly, I can currently only activate this ability through direct contact with the target, such as killing or engaging in intimate acts. Because I am not the complete Hughes.”

"Aren't you one?" Lin An was taken aback.

“That’s right. I lost a lot of my memories around the fourteenth century. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have allowed Adria to get close to the seal of Adria, allowing that half-blood who hates all of humanity to take advantage of the situation.”

Lin An frowned and memorized the date.

In the 14th century West Asia, it was not long before the Piercing Duke took the stage, and the reclusive Hughes family began to enter the public eye from that time.

“You haven’t answered my question yet,” Lin An said. “We can’t stay here forever.”

“Although Adria controls the source of Adria’s radiation, and can modify memories even without the overlap of ‘Commerx’, Titan is not without means of resistance. The fact that you grew up to be 18 in the Dragon Kingdom is the best proof that those people protected you from her.”

"Which people?"

The Duke solemnly raised his hand, and just as Lin An thought he was about to launch into a long speech, he gave a thumbs up.

"I forgot."

"..."

Lin An gestured for the system to come closer, then grabbed his low ponytail.

"Subconscious, right?"

"Uh."

"The gibberish is making those annoying ringing noises again, isn't it?"

"Great-grandson..."

"Dietrich has turned into a human, huh!"

“I wasn’t really lucid at the time.” The Duke smoothed out the braid that was almost detached from his scalp. “Through the increase and decrease of the pollution value and the improvement of the Encyclopedia of Magic, I should be able to recover some of my memories; I swear I will never lie to you again.”

Lin An remained noncommittal. The Duke tidied his appearance and spoke again.

"Back then, Adria led the families who supported the 'Commerx' radiation into my castle. Before I died, I could only preserve my memories in the books at hand. After they killed me, they burned my library, tore up the 'Complete Book of Magic,' and still wouldn't give up, they sent me to you."

“Because you, as an A-level statue, are the only one who can’t ‘include’ me, an S-level statue.” Lin An shrugged. “No wonder the ‘Complete Book of Magic’ has so many omissions.”

"Not only that, but I can only wake up when the orbits of 'Comers' overlap with the radiation source. Adria handed me over to you at the right time so that we could become unconscious matter together and float in the universe forever."

"How far has her ritual progressed?" Lin An asked. "Should I stop thinking about transforming into Kaz right now?"

"In three years... to be precise, two years and six months, at the moment when the orbits of 'Comers' and Titan perfectly overlap, we will still be part of the cycle of the circle."

Have you watched Puella Magi Madoka Magica?

“It was someone named 'Joshua' who saved it before.” The Duke winked playfully. “In order to get along with you, I extracted elements from his memories that are of interest to modern people, so as to become a more lively, uh, system.”

Lin An's lips twitched. It turned out that the system's lame jokes were all learned from Joshua.

Is this guy really that trendy?

If he could recover, Lin An decided to show Joshua Puella Magi Madoka Magica to see his reaction.

Pulling himself back to reality, Lin An glanced at the dignified system.

At least for now, their goals are aligned.

They must leave this ritual that is about to devour their consciousness and personality, lest they become a pile of "outer space junk".

“If there were no solution, you wouldn’t be so insistent on me staying true to myself.”

“My dear grandson,” the Duke adjusted his monocle, “you should remember that I mentioned the Mysterious Encyclopedia has a new feature called ‘Reincarnation’.”

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(End of this chapter)