World Occult Usage Guide

Chapter 23 Alchemy and the Philosopher's Stone

"It's been five days... and he still hasn't followed me back!"

Doris fell back onto the bed, her hair fanning out like a brown cloud floating on the violet velvet sheets.

She raised her hands and stared intently at the phone screen.

The single "one-way following" on the following list is so glaringly obvious that it doesn't change no matter how many times you refresh.

"Wow."

Someone drew back the curtains, and natural light streamed in through the floor-to-ceiling windows on one side of the room. Doris turned her head, and the marble swimming pool outside the villa reflected the azure ripples.

"Pull it up, I don't want to get out of bed yet."

It's already 10 a.m.

“Yesterday I was so engrossed in romantic fantasies that I couldn’t sleep.” Doris rested her chin on her hand. “Is ten o’clock considered noon? It’s clearly just past one in the morning.”

“I never imagined you would fall in love, Miss Esther,” said the soft, feminine voice.

“Don’t think like that, my dear. Those who are heartless or love only once in their lives are the real shallow ones. They call themselves ruthless, loyal, and stubborn, but I call it habitual laziness and a lack of imagination.”

Doris stepped barefoot off the edge of the bed, smilingly grabbed the curtain on the other side, and pulled it out.

The fragrant breeze from the rose bushes lifted the semi-transparent nightgown, its lines vaguely outlining the female body.

"Love, like all beautiful things, is a privilege. We never regret the pleasures we enjoy; others simply never know what pleasure is."

The newcomer turned his head away, as if he wanted to close his eyes, and Doris lifted his chin with her finger.

"It's strange, you two come from the same land as my An'an, but you look completely different."

“No, I am from the Land of Hibiscus,” the effeminate man said hesitantly. “Please remove your hand a little, Miss Esther.”

"Okay."

Doris laughed as she moved her hand away, raised it high, and slapped it hard across the effeminate man's face.

"Snapped!"

"Why did I have to rush to ripen that fruit at the last minute? It ruined all my previous efforts, cost me an ally of the 'Mother of Desire,' and let the St. Anilov Foundation benefit from it."

The young man covered his swollen cheek and explained urgently.

"The foundation identified the girl through that photo. If I don't activate it beforehand and create chaos to divert their attention, aren't you afraid they'll take advantage of the situation?"

“Your words and actions are unpleasant, Kim.”

"Sorry……"

"Never mind, I don't need any extra help lately." Doris wiped her hands with a handkerchief in disgust. "That's all I wanted to say. Now get to work."

The effeminate man hesitated for a moment: "Then let's go down to the street..."

"Heh, it's those foundation's lackeys again. What a pity, I quite liked that singer," Doris said casually. "It's time to teach them a lesson."

"Should I teach them a lesson?"

"Don't get distracted, Jin. I'll teach them a lesson. You continue finishing up in Chinatown, the sooner the better. Don't let it interfere with your Chinese New Year celebrations."

"The Spring Festival is part of our culture!" the effeminate man said firmly.

"Ah? I remember that's an ancient tradition from the Dragon Kingdom... That's not important, you should go now, I have things to do."

“No problem, Miss Esther.”

...............

The song echoed monotonously, and all that could be seen was desolation.

Through the mirror, from the vast and deep ocean, a serene face appears, inspiring contemplation.

Twelve candles were placed in front of the shrine, casting a soft glow.

A voice called out in my ear.

"Ding dong!"

Lin An woke up suddenly, his whole body aching terribly.

Another inexplicable nightmare.

The imagery in all these nightmares seems to be very similar...

Memories fade in an instant. Lin An picked up his phone and saw a new message.

"Your final paper submission has been approved."

Because Doris's party involved a large number of students, the university made an exception and allowed these students to apply for "at-home exams" or "extended deadlines."

Just then, public opinion put Lin An in the spotlight, and he was too lazy to go back to university and experience the treatment of a celebrity, so he simply applied to take the exam at home.

Just now, the campus system showed that he had completed his last two papers for the semester.

Stretching, Lin An quickly washed up, picked up the ancient book he was about to finish reading, and continued his research from the previous night.

In the past few days, he has greatly reduced his use of electronic media, and the cell phone that he used to keep close to his body has been moved to another room by Lin An.

The reason is simple: he has been placed under surveillance by the foundation.

Not only could he search, browse, and view history, Lin An knew that the Foundation also controlled his phone's recording system through the cloud, constantly listening to his words to ensure that Lin An did not tell anyone else about the St. Anilov Foundation or the mysterious force.

Therefore, Lin An turned to paper books and took the opportunity to finish reading the second book, "The Complete Book of Magic".

"Whoosh." The system's mechanical voice echoed in my mind as I turned to the last page.

"The entry 'Encyclopedia of Magic II: Alchemy and the Philosopher's Stone - The Metal That Creates Life' has been added. You have obtained the media 'Seeker' x3, 'God of Truth' x2, 'Dreamer' x2, 'Mother of Desire' x1, 'Lord of the Earth' x1, 'Nature Priest' x1, and 'Emperor of War' x1."

It's another "unlocking gift pack".

The alchemical medium used was fewer in number than that used in Hittite rituals, but it was more diverse in variety.

Perhaps because alchemy has a longer history and spans more eras, the Hittites' future is forever frozen at the moment they were betrayed by the Canaanites.

Alchemy has a history of over 2000 years. Its origins are unknown, but it is known that the affix may come from the Arabic word alkimia, meaning "that," and the root word comes from the Greek word chyma, which refers to the melting and casting of metals.

Paracelsus coined the term "spagyric art," derived from the Greek words for "tear" and "gather," to describe alchemy.

Therefore, although alchemy is a technology related to metals, its core is spiritual, which is the pursuit of transforming, purifying and perfecting the individual to a state of "longevity or immortality".

Alchemy is documented all over the world, and Western alchemy is based on the Emerald Tablet, with the central principle being "what is above is below".

Hermes believed that humanity was a microcosm of heaven, and that there was a correspondence between the two.

In other words, Titan is merely a fragment of another "higher world," perhaps referring to "Comos," or a planet yet to be observed by humans.

One of the fundamental principles of alchemy is that the world was created from a chaotic substance called "Prima materia," and that everything can be reduced to Prima materia through dissolution and recombination, and transformed into something more ideal.

This is similar to the Gnosticism of Nautilus.

The entire alchemical process is based on the assumption that imperfect base metals will eventually turn into gold on their own, and alchemy merely accelerates the process.

The second principle of alchemy is that all things have two components, male and female.

Sulfur represents the masculine principle of the soul and fire; mercury represents the feminine principle of spirit and water.

The process of metamorphosis involves separating two elements and recombinating them into different forms, the ultimate and greatest result of which is called the "Philosopher's Stone".

It represents supreme perfection; the text states that the Philosopher's Stone will bring regeneration to all mankind.

In the Dragon Kingdom, the concepts of male and female are called "Yin and Yang".

In the history of world occultism, China not only had alchemists, but also a considerable number of them.

In the Dragon Kingdom, they are not called alchemists, but "fangshi" (方士).

Similar to Hermetic philosophy, according to the Book of Changes, the beginning of the universe gave rise to two forces, which in turn gave rise to four symbols, which in turn gave rise to eight trigrams, viewing humanity as a microcosm of the macrocosm.

In this way, the workings of nature correspond to the human body, with the concrete elements of wood, wind, fire, metal, earth, and water representing the various organs of the human body.

The way to achieve harmony with the "Tao" is through meditation, also known as "qi cultivation".

Using breathing techniques, the "qi" of cosmic life enters the body, circulates, and travels up and down the spine along the spiritual channels, from the top of the head to the abdomen, passing through the 12 centers along the meridians.

After multiple cycles, the Qi becomes refined.

It reaches the top in a highly concentrated state, where the three flowers gather at the top, and is then manipulated to return to the abdomen for storage and use. This gradual condensation process is called "foundation building".

As for the Philosopher's Stone, its corresponding concept in Chinese culture is the "elixir of immortality," a perfect and eternal symbol that maintains an eternal state of coexistence with the "Tao."

After quickly flipping through the alchemy records in "The Complete Book of Magic II", Lin An nodded in satisfaction.

After systematic analysis, this mystery was rated as "Legendary C-level".

Alchemy itself certainly deserves a higher evaluation, but the Encyclopedia of Magic only records a small part of it, and therefore only received this evaluation.

That's for the best; revealing too much mystery could attract unnecessary danger.

Especially when Lin An was still weak.

Who knows if other mystics—such as aristocratic families—have rituals to absorb mysticism and increase their radiation levels, or whether official institutions dissect high-level mystics for research purposes.

Legend has it that C-level is a suitable threshold.

Most importantly, alchemy can be linked to Taoism.

Today is the day the St. Anilof Foundation reports, and Lin An is preparing to awaken as a "Taoist alchemist".

Just like translating Chinese into English, or vice versa, adding it to one's own paper to avoid plagiarism controversies, the further the mysterious source is from the United States, the less the foundation's people can see through its secrets.

Moreover, Lin An is, after all, a Chinese citizen, and his awakening of the mysteries of other countries is bound to arouse suspicion.

This way, the system is prevented from being discovered, and the legendary C-level rating is taken seriously, making it easier for him to quickly infiltrate the foundation.

After retrieving the money sent by the foundation from his mailbox, Lin An generously hailed a ride-hailing car.

"Go to this address, thank you."

After about a three-hour drive, the surrounding scenery gradually changed from the city's high-rise buildings to a quiet and secluded path.

Opening the window, Lin An saw the Dietrich branch of St. Anilov.

The mansion stood there, its sturdy white walls adorned with large square windows, its roof covered with vermilion tiles, and the winter sun shone on the newly trimmed lawn, making it sparkle.

Its forecourt was planted with a huge old oak tree, and two stone statues stood guard at the entrance.

The taxi stopped in front of the iron gate. Peeking through the gaps, a well-maintained gravel road led to the building's automatic double doors. The spacious parking lot contained only a few brand-new luxury vehicles.

As soon as Lin An got out of the car, two guards stopped him.

They were dressed in Foundation uniforms, with sophisticated guns and ample ammunition at their waists, so well-equipped they looked like special forces soldiers.

"Sir, please show me your access pass. Unauthorized personnel are not allowed to linger here."

(End of this chapter)