World Occult Usage Guide

Chapter 61 "Candle"

Lin An was stunned when he heard this.

I originally thought that Mishi was the most "normal" person in the team, but now it seems that the person who attracted the divine medium at this point in time has a somewhat strange personality.

"Then you..." he hesitated, "Mishi, did the witch just let you go like that?"

“After I rejected her, a gust of wind brushed my cheek, and I fell into a hallucination,” Mishi recalled. “Oh! Before I completely lost consciousness, I vaguely heard the witch mutter something like, ‘It’s devouring my soul…’”

"Devouring souls?"

"Anyway, when I woke up, all the mysterious items in the exchange warehouse had been swept away. The witch left a message on the computer: 'Don't let them rot in the cold machines,'" Mishi said. "I think she probably came to collect the corpses of the mysterious ones?"

"I have a feeling it's not that simple," Lin An frowned.

Now, not a single official employee from the department has reported finding the witch. Could it be that she really just came to help her companion collect the body and, incidentally, to say hello to the Foundation?

Impossible, the witch isn't some brainless boss from a novel.

She didn't participate in the battle, not necessarily because she didn't want to; perhaps more likely, she couldn't stay where she was at the time.

Mishi mentioned the witch's last words, that something was devouring her soul.

If I remember correctly, Lin An saw something called "Invisible Candle" in the exchange warehouse item list last time. The description read:

The symbol of the underworld, fueled by souls.

So far, aside from its negative effects, the Foundation has not discovered any use for this item.

Did the witch know the purpose of this candle?
A candle that keeps devouring souls...

Lin An fell into deep thought.

In mysticism, candles are a type of light used to attract certain spirits and dispel others; they are associated with ghosts and the dead, divination of the future, and the discovery of buried treasures.

Ancient philosophers believed that burning flames revealed mysterious things. By gazing at the flames, people could enter a state of ethereal unconsciousness and see gods or the future.

From the 12th century onwards, candles became part of monotheistic rituals, and they were typically placed on the altar in churches for use in ceremonies of blessing, forgiveness, and exorcism.

During the Middle Ages and Renaissance, according to popular witch hunt legends, demons often appeared on the Sabbath with a lit candle between their horns, and witches used the demons' fire to light their candles.

The 18th-century magic book "Little Albert" records how to use "candles" made of human fat to find pirate treasure. These candles could not only provide light and pinpoint locations, but also summon the souls of the dead who guarded the treasure.

Westerners believed that candles made from fat contained life energy, and they were often used in 17th-century black masses and other black magic.

The magic used candles of different colors, each playing a different role in the ritual.

Black and white: exploring the spirit and truth, meditation, neutrality, breaking spells.

Pink: Emotional issues, harmony, entertainment, testing moral standards.

Red: Sex and love, physical health and vitality, fertility.

Brown: Communication, problem-solving, mutual assistance, and encouragement.

Yellow: Persuasion, confidence and charisma, leadership skills.

Green: Luck, curiosity, exploration, and the power of perseverance.

Cyan: peace of mind, exploration of the natural spirit, protection during sleep.

Purple: Unfettered imagination, intuition, and providing extra strength.

Gold: the power of revelation, judgment, and ruling; the ability to reverse curses.

Silver: Awakening, sealing, communicating with another world, and uncovering the secrets of the soul.

Brown: Protecting companions or pets, resolving family problems, attracting help from others.

Brown: Subconsciousness, accelerating healing from illness, exploring dreams, curses.

Of course, Lin An could not rule out the possibility that the witch had deliberately looted all the mysterious items in order to bury them, since those were indeed the "remains" of the mysterious individuals.

A strange woman...

Suppressing his doubts, Lin An continued to listen to Mi Xi's account.

"Anyway, I quickly shook Caroline awake outside the door. She was still a little delirious and could only rely on me."

She puffed out her chest with considerable pride.

"I have to inform the entire Foundation about the witch invasion! I was probably too hasty. Some kind of invisible energy descended, like a sixth sense. I suddenly split into several consciousnesses, which flew to various rooms along five or six routes."

"Congratulations on awakening your mystery, Mishi."

“Hey, I’ll give you a chance to demonstrate.” Mishi said cheerfully, “The research department couldn’t see the notification, but luckily the direct confrontation department accurately obtained my information and activated the alarm. I also dragged Caroline along to take the elevator and meet up with the others.”

Mishi's night was quite thrilling.

Lin An glanced at the dejected Caroline, then at the composed Mishi, and couldn't help but feel puzzled.

"Mishi, you've seen the witch with your own eyes and experienced so many bloody and bizarre things. Don't you feel like your understanding is being shattered?"

"You're still a college student, Lin, you don't understand that you'll always encounter difficulties at work. But like I told the interviewer, my strong ability to withstand pressure and my mental fortitude are my strengths. There are always more solutions than problems, so don't just run away!" Lin An's eye twitched.

To take back what I said earlier, Mishi is definitely a one-in-a-million "freak"!
She actually treated the foundation as just an ordinary job!
While they were talking, the group had already reached the second basement level via the backup staircase. Caroline kicked the lump of flesh of Shoggoth into the isolation room and straightened the file posted on the door.

Lin An also put the well-behaved Zomo into its private room.

The rabbit kicked its legs reluctantly, its eyes glued to Lin An until it was out of sight. Then it bared its front teeth and began to gnaw on the restraints.

Come find me again next time, 20 points.

Looking around, Lin An found that almost every isolation room was unrecognizable. Due to the rampage caused by the out-of-control mysterious individuals, the glass was shattered and all protective measures were gone.

Besides Shoggoth, three or four other controlled mystics were thrown into an unpartitioned room. Although the restraints restricted their movement, they struggled, writhed, and whimpered incessantly.

Taking a deep breath, Caroline spoke for the first time since they met.

"I'm sorry, you all had to see this. As a senior colleague, my reaction this time was really immature... I will reflect on it afterwards."

She shook her head vigorously, as if trying to completely shake off the memories of the witch.

"To prevent a second escape from loss of control, I plan to stay on the second basement level to guard these mysterious individuals. You all go to the ground level and meet up with Captain Reagan."

"Okay. See you later, Caroline."

When Lin An left home, he only wanted to return Zomo, but he didn't expect that he would not have brought any communication equipment with him in this big battle, so he had to rely on Mishi.

"Mishi, does Captain Reagan have any new instructions?"

"He told us to rush to ward 0-15, where we caught another out-of-control mysterious person and needed to be moved."

"We've become porters," Lin An teased.

"There's nothing we can do. Even the biggest companies have unexpected situations from time to time, like server crashes, public relations crises, or mysterious figures going out of control. It's quite common," Mishi said with a spirited smile. "On the bright side, our overtime pay tonight is sure to be high."

"..."

Stop trying to instill this "corporate slave" mentality in me!
As the group stepped off the stairs, a loud crash of glass rang out. The glass on the left side of the hall shattered, and a slender figure crashed in, rolling several times on the floor and leaving a trail of bright red blood.

"Dangdang!"

Black feathers scattered, and the person finally managed to steady himself against the wall, gritted his teeth and stood up from the ground, revealing a face completely devoid of color.

"Team, Captain?" Mishi exclaimed in surprise.

Simon turned around when he heard the sound and saw two people not far away. His pupils immediately contracted.

"Don't come any closer! Get downstairs! Get downstairs right now!"

A foul, fishy odor wafted over, and a cold wind, carrying undisguised malice, clung to Mi Xi and Lin An's legs like maggots.

The next moment, even more violent sounds exploded in their ears, and a huge creature followed closely behind, its head smashing through the load-bearing wall on the side of the Foundation's hall.

The entire room shook violently, as if it were in an old train carriage, making a rumbling noise.

Bricks shattered and piled up into a chaotic mess; wallpaper fluttered down, dust swirled, and it was impossible to tell which way was which.

"Oh my god, this place is going to collapse!"

"Let's go to the corner!"

Just as Lin An was about to grab Mi Xi's hand, a crack suddenly appeared beneath her feet, and caught off guard, she lost her footing and fell.

However, considering the sturdiness of the basement, it might actually be safer to fall down there.

Lin An dodged the steel bars that crashed down from the wall with a quick step and hid under the foundation's sturdy desk.

"Rumble..."

The foundation's building was indeed specially reinforced; the shaking lasted for less than a minute, and all the noise and commotion were replaced by an eerie silence.

Lin An tentatively peeked out halfway. The moonlight in the courtyard illuminated the collapsed ruins. The once exquisite hall was filled with construction debris, and a golden chandelier swayed back and forth in the aftershocks, creaking loudly.

Fortunately, the employees had already evacuated the dangerous combat zone, and no one was injured.

Only the stench of blood lingered, growing ever stronger.

I hope the captain wasn't crushed to death.

The moment the thought crossed Lin An's mind, the moonlight above his head suddenly brightened, and something lifted up the desk where he was hiding.

A chill permeated the air, like a giant beast ready to devour its prey.

"Hiss..."

Lin An turned around abruptly, and the serpent monster's rooster-like head was less than a meter away from him.

Thank you to Fengxun77, Ruantangya, and Shicidiandianlaolao for the monthly tickets, and thank you everyone for the recommendation tickets and for following the story!



(End of this chapter)