In the end, Xia De still accepted the [Cross of Profanity], but felt that Miss Swift had been looking at him with strange eyes after lunch.
After lunch, Shad left the auction house, and went to the Blind House in Luf Lane by himself in a carriage. Even though the weather has turned cold recently, Sister Devlin, who has been waiting, is still dressed in the dark gray silk nun gown.
According to the agreement between the two last Wednesday, Sister Daveline will take Xia De to the headquarters of the [Spiritual Practice Order] today, and tell him more information about the order and Chuhuo.
After confirming that Xia De was free all afternoon, the two boarded the carriage at the back door of the House of the Blind, and then drove out of the city.
Even Granny Cassandra didn't know exactly where the mission was located. She only knew that it was in the area from the old town in the south of Fort Midhill to the mountainous area. In the end, Sister Divelin brought Shad to the place in West Cal. The Snake Heart Hospital at the foot of the mountain.
"Snake Heart Hospital" is a long-established chain hospital in the Old Continent. It is very famous among the common people. It is especially good at pediatrics and gynecology. It even became the card face of Rhodes because of its semi-charitable profit method. Snake Heart Hospital], this Rhodes card is now in the hands of the owner of [Sin Mansion].
Ring Warlock organizations have their own ways of making profits. After all, even extraordinary people cannot print gold pounds out of thin air. The [Spiritual Church] relies on operating hospitals of a similar nature and cooperating with universities to obtain profitable income and policy funding.
Although it doesn't sound as profitable as the auction house and the like, it is more than enough to support a Ring Warlock organization that itself focuses on penance.
The Snake Heart Hospital in Fort Midhill is located on the edge of the slums in the old city south of the city. The hospital is a three-story building that occupies most of the street. The building itself is the same as the decaying old town. Although there are shadows of the glory of the old era, it is inconspicuous compared with the buildings in other parts of Miburg.
Although it is large in size, it has a low reputation because it is located in the old city and only treats a few types of patients. Before that, Shad didn't even know there was a hospital in Fort Midhill.
"Sister, if your residence is here, how could Granny Cassandra not know?"
When walking down from the carriage with an umbrella in hand, Xia De asked curiously. The old city in the rain looks even more decayed, as if the oil painting, which was already dirty, has been splashed with water. The air is moist and earthy, and there are almost no people on the street.
The nun wearing a silver blindfold shook her head slightly. Under the guidance of the nun who hurried out to greet her in the hospital, she led Shade up the steps and entered the hospital through two open wooden doors.
The gas lamps were dim, but barely illuminating the hospital corridors on a rainy cloudy day. There are wet marks on the floor, I don't know if it has just been mopped. Inside the hospital, there are poor people in the area wearing black or gray coarse clothes. When walking on the stairs, they can still hear the crying of babies, which heralds the arrival of new life.
So, while it might look spooky on a rainy day, there's no creepy vibe here.
The structure of the hospital is very interesting. If you want to reach the east of the first floor of the hospital, you cannot go directly from the first floor of the hospital. Instead, you need to reach the second floor, go to the east from the second floor and then go down the stairs.
Xia De observed the internal conditions of the hospital while walking, and then realized that he had not been sick since he came to this world.
On the way, a red bird flew from nowhere and landed on Sister Devlin's shoulder. On the delicate face under the nun's eyepatch, a rare smile appeared, and she greeted the little bird, and then it flew out of the window, towards the distant Mount Xikar.
Xia De looked hesitantly at the gold at the bottom of the crimson bird's wings, and asked in a low voice:
"Is this..."
"Yes, it has re-nirvana, and intends to stay by my side for the last hundred years. This is also a rebirth for it, and it needs my flame to restore its strength as soon as possible."
The final destination of the two was the basement of the Snake Heart Hospital, but the basement did not have a passage leading deeper underground. At the end of the basement, there is a small room hidden by illusion. The size of the room is about the same as the master bedroom where Shad lives now. It is empty with almost no furniture, but the ground and walls are covered with various styles of runes.
This is not a rune commonly used by ring warlocks in this era, it should be a transcendent system from an earlier era.
In the center of the room is a high platform with three steps. The iron frame on the high platform displays a huge oil painting. Even if Xia De's bed is erected, it is not as huge as that oil painting.
The oil painting was framed in a huge square metal frame, the thickness of which was more than Shad's waist. Viewed from one side, the width of the frame itself was about the size of Shad's palm. The metal surface was uneven, as if worms had penetrated into the metal, leaving raised marks on the surface.
As for the content of the oil painting, it is an ancient sacrificial site built with gray stone on the top of the mountains. The background is mountains and clouds, the background is very dark, it looks a little depressing.
"I feel the power of space."
said Shad, pausing and adding:
"But it's not a relic."
"Yes, please follow me."
The nun climbed the steps, reached out to touch the surface of the painting, and disappeared.
"Space movement? No, space movement in the physical world is very dangerous. This is not space movement, but two space anomalies that have already been connected together."
Shad found the answer from the knowledge he had learned in Saint Byrons, knowing that this kind of solidified space channel, equivalent to a top-level alchemy item, could no longer be reproduced in the modern Sixth Epoch. It's not that alchemy is lost, but that the space of the material world is very different from previous eras.
He followed up, touching the oil painting carefully, feeling as if his body had passed through a transparent water film, and then he realized that he was standing at the gate of the gray stone sacrificial site painted in the oil painting. The sky was a bit gloomy, but it was not rain. Looking outside, there is a steep and rugged rocky mountain road, only one artificial path can be walked up, and Xia De is standing at the end of the path.
Compared with the oil painting, the sacrificial field in front of me is not very dilapidated. The area is about the size of three or four squares of Saint Teresa, and one can tell at a glance that this is definitely not a building built in the sixth era.
This should be the peak of a high mountain somewhere. If you look further away, you can see the rolling mountains:
"This is... the depths of the Rommel Mountains?"
Shad can only roughly estimate that the Rommel Mountains are located in the central and eastern part of the Old World, and the Sika Mountains are only a part of the Mountains, but only in the northern periphery. The topography of the mountains in the mountains is extremely complicated. Even in the age of steam, civilization has not completely covered every corner of the mountains.
In other words, even in the age of steam, civilization still has not set foot in most of the mountains and forests. If the residence of the Spiritual Order is here, even if the Witch Council tries to find it, they may not be able to find it.
"Yes, this is the depths of the Rommel Mountains, which belong to the Principality of Set. If you walk here from Fort Midhill, even if you know the way, you will need at least three days and three nights without sleep. The religious order The illusion hides the nearby roads, and the nuns and monks of the order generally do not enter and leave here by walking. The most convenient way at present is through the painting. In addition, we can also go to a few places in the Old Continent It is a city, but complex rituals are required to activate the passages left over from the previous era inside the sacrificial field. Therefore, there is no problem in identifying the residence of the religious order as Fort Midhill.”
Sister Devlin said, and led Xia De into the ancient sacrificial field.
[Spiritual Religion] belongs to the ring warlock organization inherited from the fourth era, but the predecessor of the order was part of the ancient Death God Order, so the history of this sacrificial site may be even longer than the fourth era.
Although Shad saw only one building, apart from the sacrificial ground, there were towers, tombs, and abandoned ruins around. The ruins used to be the church of the ancient god, the ancient **** of death, but the church was completely destroyed in the earthquake in the fourth era.
The main body of the sacrificial site is constructed of gray stone materials and is divided into upper, middle and lower floors. The lower layer is inside the mountain, so the middle layer is entered from the door.
Although the religious order is active in the civilized world, there are still a quarter of its members stationed here for penance and study all the year round. Although it looks deserted, there are actually many people here.
Compared with the appearance of an ancient building at first glance, the interior of the sacrificial ground looks quite like the steam age. The floor is fairly flat, and the walls have been painted. There are even steam engines and gas storage tanks underground for the nuns and monks living here.
If Xia De had appeared inside the sacrificial field from the very beginning, he would never have guessed how ancient the place was.
"We also need to keep up with the times."
Sister Divelin, who led Shad through the corridor, or in other words, the corridor, said:
Xia De has already begun to imagine whether St. Byrence, who is also very wise, also looks like this combination of "modernization" and "occultism".
The outsider was very curious about this place. Strictly speaking, this was the first gathering place for ring magicians he visited formally—St. Byrence was not counted, he was only active in the library, and all he saw were bookshelves.
Sister Devlin introduced to Xia De as she walked, and after leading Xia De to turn around the corridor, a young nun came over immediately.
The spiritual order does not have a very precise hierarchy, but generally, those with normal eyes are the most common members, those with sackcloth blindfolded are full-fledged members, and those with silver blindfolds are the core members. At this time, two nuns with normal eyes who looked about the same age as Rezia came.
They greeted Sister Devlin in low voices, and then talked about some things that needed her to deal with.
Xia De, the high-ring warlock of the order, has seen most of them, especially the three high-ring nuns who helped him open the narrow path on Wednesday night. No one expressed doubts about Shad's presence here, and none of Sister Devlin's decisions would be questioned.
The interior of the sacrificial ground is divided into multiple areas, among which there are naturally many accommodations and libraries. Most of the other areas are related to the daily prayer, stargazing, moon worship, and ring magician research activities carried out by the religious group. Sister Daveline led Shad on a tour, and even used a crystal ball to divination for Shad, but she could only "see" a cloud of white mist.
There are many ancient murals on the stone walls of the corridors in various parts of the sacrificial ground, which are still clear because of maintenance. Through those murals, Xia De roughly knew the origin and development of the [Spiritual Practice Order]. He even saw a mural depicting the Battle of Mount Xical on the wall, which is also something worth recording during the development of the order.
What connects the upper, middle and lower floors of the sacrificial field is not stairs, but a huge stone elevator, powered by steam. After stepping on the elevator, it will run automatically, and the hinges will make a rattling sound, which makes Xia De very worried about the safety of this elevator.
Their destination was the library on the lower level of the Shrine, near the murals depicting the origins of the Order. Shad saw the symbol representing the "primordial fire" in it, which meant that the flame had been passed down in the order from a long time ago.
"It is said that in the early days of the Fifth Era, the size of the flame in my hand could cover the entire sacrificial ground."
The nun said, and then invited Xia De to go deeper into the sacrificial ground with her.
There is only one passage to enter there, which is also the real sacrificial place:
"Yes, this sacrificial ground was originally used to worship the first fire. But that was a matter of the ancient era. People at that time not only believed in gods, but also worshiped all things."
There is no door at the end of the corridor, and there are no lights inside. The nun stood there holding up the flame in her hands, and as the fire flowed into the dark space at the end, the flame was lit up bit by bit.
It was a real sacrificial place in a circle, with corridors running down to the bottom, and in the center was nothing but an old brazier. Surrounded by layers of stairs that spread upward, it shows that this is a space in the belly of the mountain. Looking at the style, this place is very similar to the [Witch Council], except that the center is not a round table.
Xia De told Sister Devlin about her thoughts, and the nun nodded slightly:
"Yes, I accepted the invitation last weekend and officially entered the Witch Council. It is indeed similar to this place, and such an architectural style should be popular in the ancient era."
The light of the fire burst into the central brazier, and the vigorous flame jumped in the brazier, and the fuel that ignited the first fire was some golden bones. There is also a long sword wrapped in gray stone in the brazier. It is an angel-level relic [Ash], and it is a weapon commonly used by Sister Divelin:
"Every generation of nuns who inherit the flame is guessing that the weakness of the first flame represents the decline of civilization and the world. Although the strength of this flame is not a key factor affecting the strength of civilization and the world, we believe that looking for more fire and Firewood can delay the end of the world."
The nun walked to the dancing flames, clasped her hands together and hung her hands in front of her body, lowering her head slightly to observe the flames. The firelight danced on her delicate silver eyepatch, reflecting a fiery red on her fair face.
Xia De also followed closely:
"Apart from Chuhuo's weakening, does the Spiritual Order hold other evidence that the world is coming to an end?"
"Not really. But there's always something to do."
The nun said softly, bent down and lifted the kerosene lamp obtained from the [Sin Mansion], which can accommodate any kind of fire, from the brazier:
"Only relying on our own strength to search for fire and firewood, the speed is not ideal, but it is really difficult to find ring warlocks who can afford the power of the first fire. Only by bathing in the power of fire can we know which fire is suitable and which items Enough to serve as firewood. Mr. Hamilton, the first flame is still in my hand, and I hope you can help me collect the flame."
The kerosene lamp was handed to Shad.
"Bring it to me. Find firewood..."
Pausing to add:
"It is more efficient to burn with the fire in my hand. Those ancient and powerful souls are the best fuel."
"I can help with all these things."
Xia De nodded:
"But regarding the end of the world, I would like more information."
Even Sister Divelin couldn't be sure if this thing would really happen, and when it would happen, so Xia De expressed doubts about it:
"We are the most unbreakable allies, especially on the issue of the elect. Therefore, I hope that you can find a way recently, using methods such as projection ceremonies, to communicate with my friend Luvia Anat, actually In fact, she knows the most about the chosen one, and I am just the executor."
"No problem. Please take this fire back and throw it into the fireplace or brazier, and we can meet in the fire."
The nun pointed to the portable kerosene lamp, and the flame from her fingertip lit the wick.
"Ten o'clock tonight."
Xia De made a reservation, then looked at the flames in front of the two and asked:
"In addition, you have invited me here many times, not just to show me the history of the sect and the situation of the first fire, right?"
"Grandma Cassandra said that you know many ancient texts."
Xia De nodded, this was probably what Miss Galina and the old witch mentioned:
"Yes~www.mtlnovel.com~ want me to help you interpret the text? No problem."
"The First Flame was split into many parts, and the Order has been working to reunite those split flames. We once found a stone tablet that recorded the situation when the First Fire split, but the writing on it is very old."
As the nun spoke, she led Xia De closer to the bottom of the rows of upward stairs. The passage in the dark leads to the bottom of the stairs from here, which is the space used by the order to store valuables.
Through the doorway, a huge stele was erected in the darkness, it was about as high as two Shads stacked on top of each other. Xia De picked up the kerosene lamp in his hand, and found that the upper left corner of the stele was missing, as if it had been broken by an external force, and there were many traces of sharp objects on the surface, but fortunately, the letters were still clear.
After reading it carefully, he asked suspiciously to Sister Devlin who was waiting behind her:
"Are you sure that this is really the stele recording the split of the first fire?"
"Yes, is there a problem?"
"If I'm not mistaken, the above records are clearly ancient fairy tales."