World Occult Usage Guide

Chapter 303 The Hand of Lucifer
In the Engaliema district of Kinsasha, the most bustling commercial area, a 30-story building sits on a flat concrete floor, with two armed security guards standing at the entrance.

A man in a suit flashed his employee ID. The hot and humid weather had left him drenched in sweat, and his white shirt was covered in damp, dark stains under his armpits.

As he entered the building, the comfortable air conditioning made him breathe a sigh of relief.

"Ding dong."

The elevator doors opened to both sides, and the man uncomfortably loosened his tie, feeling for some reason as if someone was following him.

Is work too stressful lately?
Very few people can work in commercial buildings, let alone ordinary people like him with no political or military background. Even though he sensed something was wrong, the man could only swallow hard and brace himself as he stepped into the elevator.

In the narrow, confined space, the subtle feeling of being watched grew stronger, and he nervously pressed the floor button.

"Ding dong."

The moment the elevator doors closed, even though he was the only person there, a button for one of the floors suddenly lit up.

Ghosts, ghosts!

The man immediately pressed the button to open the door, but it was too late. He tried to frantically press the floor buttons from the second floor to salvage the situation, but then he felt someone place their hand on the back of his hand.

"Shhh."

The sound startled him so much that his brain went blank. He instinctively curled up in a corner, pressed against the wall, and stared blankly as the floors went from 1 to 12.

When the door opened, a bright, spacious, and minimalist office came into view, with a poppy pattern printed on the glass door of the reception desk and the company logo in a Francophone language.

Seeing the man's stiff body, the receptionist sat up in confusion.

"Sir, what brings you here?"

A faint breeze brushed past her ear, and an unseen aura emanated from the man's side, followed by an explosion of energy that lasted for less than twenty seconds.

"Plop, plop, plop."

Bloodstains flowed from the office, forming a path on the floor that led to the man. An invisible force blocked the elevator doors that were about to close automatically, then returned to his side.

"Ahhh!"

Before the elevator doors closed, the last thing the man saw was the receptionist's horrified face, the steaming blood flowing from the tidy office, and the scene of someone frantically smashing a window and jumping from the 16th floor.

He stood motionless, like a marble statue.

"Ding dong."

The elevator finally stopped at his workplace, and the man remained in the same position until someone kicked him out.

"Since you're already here, hurry up and get to work, don't be late."

The man stood there blankly as the elevator doors behind him closed. The company receptionist looked at him with a puzzled expression, then screamed after a long while.

"Why are you bleeding!"

…………

Lin An, remaining invisible, went down to the lobby, found a beanbag chair, and sorted through his haul while enjoying the cool air conditioning.

It was noon on the seventh day when we arrived in Kinsasha, and there were less than 12 hours until the next reset.

The countess died in the rainforest, and the mysterious figures currently stationed by the Chamber of Commerce are no match for Lin An. Unlike Kevin, who is a direct descendant, these people are just ordinary employees and do not have any mysterious items to protect them.

A powerful family is still a powerful family. Even in its branches, there are 3 legendary-level and 5 disaster-level officers stationed there.

Lin An didn't pay special attention to the number of supernatural beings. With "Commons" getting closer and closer, more people were about to awaken. For example, he felt that the man in the elevator had a hint of becoming a mystery.

Despite his conflict with the Red Poppy Merchant Guild, Lin An did not kill all the mystics. He only added one catastrophic entry called "Black Magic and the Contract," and incidentally killed two legendary ones.

"Black Magic and Contracts" was written by the famous poet and scholar Arthur Edward Waite, a member of a prominent occult group in the late 19th century and one of the founders of the Rider-Waite Tarot school.

This magic book, sometimes also known as The Book of Ceremonial Magic, was first published in 1898 and more widely distributed in 1910 under the title The Book of Ceremonial Magic.

It details famous magic books from all over the West, including the rituals and mysteries of Gotic magic, witchcraft, and hellish necromancy, and clarifies the history and legends behind them, providing a clear integration.

The ritual magic book also records some of the existing publicly available grimoire contents, such as the Key of Solomon, the Grimoire Verum, Cornelius Agrippa's pseudo-fourth book, and the Great Red Dragon, making it a veritable introductory encyclopedia of occultism from the last century.

Among the entries collected by Lin An, the method of lighting the contract candle is prominently featured.

He looked at the two legendary entries. In fact, their power more or less conflicted with the functions of the entries he had already mastered or the mysterious items he had obtained. He had only included them at the time to quickly replenish his medium.

Using the [Method for Lighting Contract Candles], Lin An reached out and held up the two burning candles.

The flickering light was just the right amount of bright, almost gray, and in the darkness it was a bright golden arc that slowly drifted across the entire spacious room, making the shape of each piece of furniture clearly discernible.

The tiny, baby-like flame emitted a steady stream of warmth, casting shifting shadows on Lin An's face.

This candlelight is exceptionally enchanting, incomparable to the cold incandescent bulb. It allows the eyes to both see and rest, serving as a perfect bridge between wakefulness and dreams.

Lin An watched for a while, and a thought suddenly flashed through his mind: I took action this time to protect the World Tree and my companions, not to kill for the sake of obtaining the entry. Will the captain still think that I am a formless ghost?

That's human nature... right?

Now, few rules can restrict Lin An from using the mystics as a medium for his journey. Most powerful families won't attack or kill him just because a Source-level expert killed a few low-level mystics. The only constraints on him are his past memories and his desire to become human.

Suppressing his thoughts, Lin An arranged the contract into a triangular formation according to the records in "The Great Red Dragon".

A surge of light connects three symbols that foreshadow bridges of protection and communication. An inverted six-pointed star emerges, rising like an imprint, and encircling Lin An at a vertical angle behind him.

It became.

This is the first step in making a pact with the devil—to protect yourself.

Lin An pulled the Countess's Impact Staff from the Philosopher's Stone. After more than a month of refinement, the burn marks had faded, and it was as smooth as new, like a short mahogany staff.

"Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu"

Before Lin An could even use the entries in the "Great Demon Codex," the sound of heavy footsteps and a loud siren blared as dozens of fully armed soldiers stormed into the hall.

"Listen up, everyone in the building, the police received a report ten minutes ago..."

Lin An put away the green data and walked away against their pace.

The second time I visited the Presidential Palace, the roars of tigers that had been echoing in my ears were pushed far away, and the tigers were nervously herded back to the president's private zoo by his servants.

Lin An did not encounter Tshisekedi, who was chatting and laughing with his confidants, on the same path.

It is estimated that he canceled his afternoon schedule after learning of the changes at the Red Poppy Chamber of Commerce office.

Having learned his lesson from being discovered by Qisekedi after activating the air defense mode, Lin An dared not act rashly and pulled up the map he had drawn a few days ago from his tablet.

Two red lines meander upwards, leading directly to the president's office and the women's rooms.

After finishing his preparations, Lin An looked up and saw the setting sun painting the deep blue sky a dreamy pink. It was six o'clock in the afternoon.

"System, search for methods to 'find the chief's hidden treasure'."

"Based on the entry 'Master of Hidden Knowledge I: The Great Grimoire,' a solution that meets the criteria has been found—[The Hand of Lucifer Lofocal]."

"Consume 'Emperor of War' x3, 'God of Truth' x1, and 'Lord of Dreams' x1 to use this?"

"Use it."

The demonic script flowed into Lin An's mind. He raised his hand and wrote a line of incantations on his impact staff that resembled Latin but were also extremely distorted.

"Reveal yourself, Prime Minister of Hell, Great Treasurer, Master of Life and Death, Seeker of Asylum, Faithful Supporter of Lucifer, Head of the Six Generals, Lucifuge Rofocale!"

According to the Great Book of Magic, Lucifer Lofolk is a demon who is ordered by Lucifer to take charge of the government of Hell. Satan has given him the power to control all the treasures of the world, and together with another demon, Mammon, he controls the treasury of Hell.

Lucifer had an almost fanatical and obsessive love for Lucifer. He faithfully carried out every command of Lucifer, even at the cost of killing other demons.

At the same time, He had an extreme fear of divine light, and the name "Lucifugus" comes from the Latin words lux (light) and fugio (escape), meaning "one who flees from the light".

As the phantom appeared along with the demonic runes, the contract triangle trembled, resisting the oncoming chilling wind.

Covered in an impenetrable net, the demon with three differently shaped horns on its head resembled a black mist. Its appearance was unclear and its form was indistinct, but it was clear that it was an ugly and strong monster.

"You actually summoned me! That's wonderful! I am Lucifer, remember that name!"

He roared and howled at Lin An, who was watching him with great interest.

It turned out to be a talking mass of "Commons" energy.

According to the generation pattern of the mysterious archetypes, legendary creatures such as demons and angels appeared during the first radiation. They are ancient mystics and also the original and purest reflection of "Comerth".

Human-created knowledge found a real carrier in the radiation. After the star orbits separated, it was passed down in the form of myths, and even retained some of the personality traits of the mystics of that time.

It does bear some resemblance to the ancestral spirits of Nanzhou.

Lucifer Lofocal is not a living being; he merely represents the rules governing the use of "Comerth" energy.

“I wish to enter into a contract with you so that I may immediately obtain the wealth I desire; otherwise, I will torment you with the powerful words of the grimoire,” Lin An replied.

"Unless you surrender yourself to me within twenty years and allow me to dispose of your body and soul according to my will, I cannot meet your demands."

The demon took a step forward, causing the contract triangle to spin wildly to protect Lin An, the summoner. The latter was engrossed in facing the demon face to face, showing no fear as he observed Lucifer Rofocal from top to bottom.

Only when the demon showed signs of impatience did Lin An continue speaking according to the instructions in the "Great Demon Codex".

“I cannot grant your request, but I assure the great Lucifer that if you lead me to the hidden treasure, I will give you a portion of every treasure I acquire.”

“Hmm…” the demon pondered for a moment, then replied, “Deal. The condition is that you must forever keep our secrets inviolable and be kind to the poor, or Lucifer will take your soul.”

Lin An repeated the sentence, and Lucifer's phantom trembled.

"The contract is made—remember your promise! Follow me to the location of the 'treasure'."

This entry is an advanced version of the "Golden Hen" search, allowing you to find things that are more hidden or even outside the real world.

Having said that, he strode into the presidential palace.

(End of this chapter)