Ritualistic Magic
Lumian gazed at the invisible spirit world creature and contemplated for a moment.
"How complicated can it get? How strong can it be?"
"Heh, I thought you'd ask how to summon or perform ritualistic magic, but you just want to know how to use it!" Aurore teased. "That might be a characteristic of the Hunter pathway. You don't need to fully understand the principles, only consider how to apply them."
Not waiting for Lumian's response, she pondered and said, "I've tried. Not too complicated means it can only perform one action. Not too powerful means it can't surpass a Mystery Pryer Sequence 7 Warlock's spell."
It's nice discussing this with Aurore. She has a habit of analyzing things both qualitatively and quantitatively, unlike someone who prefers vague descriptions… Lumian felt emotional hearing that.
As he mulled it over, he stood up and helped his sister bring the food to the dining table. As they ate, he asked, "But I remember your spells often require materials. You can't carry White Paper, right?"
"Yes, that's inconvenient." Aurore grabbed a piece of fried trout and stuffed it into her mouth. After chewing and swallowing, she said, "Moreover, a Warlock's spells can't be completed in one move. Even the simplest has three steps. First is concentrating spirituality, the second is outlining the symbol of the corresponding spell in the mind. This can also be replaced by reciting the incantation aloud. The third is using materials to cast the spell. The materials serve either as a medium or part of the spell."
This does sound a little complicated. It isn't something the single-celled White Paper can do… Lumian knew he couldn't do it anytime soon. He'd need extensive training before he could cast spells proficiently.
Aurore glanced at him.
"Don't even think about it. It's impossible for you to be like me. First, you're limited by your Sequence, and your spirituality is insufficient. Second, using materials to help cast spells is a unique ability only Warlocks have. Yes, perhaps certain Sequences of certain pathways can do it. I don't know enough to make a definite judgment.
"However, once a Hunter reaches Sequence 7 and becomes a Pyromaniac, they can use many fire-related spells. Furthermore, they don't need materials, nor do they need to outline symbols or recite incantations in their minds. In terms of actual combat, it's faster, more convenient, and might even be stronger. As for Warlocks, their main advantage lies in their versatility. The more knowledge they acquire, the more comprehensive and powerful they become."
Lumian said with anticipation, "I don't know when I can become a Pyromaniac…"
He planned to explore the dream ruins again tonight. Firstly, he wanted to use hunting to help digest the potion, and secondly, he wanted to find clues about the main ingredient of Sequence 8 Provoker.
As for the corresponding monsters of the Pyromaniac, he didn't dare think about them yet. He believed it would be like serving himself on a platter. After all, those creatures could definitely launch long-range attacks, rendering his "special" abilities useless.
He then asked, "Can White Paper withstand the Pyromaniac's one-movement spells?"
"Theoretically, yes, but I'm not sure if Pyromaniac's spells exceed a certain level." Aurore's reference standard was Warlock.
Upon hearing this, Lumian became excited.
"If I could, wouldn't I be able to simulate the Funnels1 you mentioned?"
"Huh?" Aurore was puzzled.
Lumian explained his idea in detail, "I can summon a group of White Papers and form a contract with them. Then, I can have each White Paper carry a fireball. They'll float in the air and attack the target together. Isn't that similar to the description of the Funnels?"
"Unfortunately, you can't have a group of White Papers at the same time," Aurore laughed. "After you form a contract with a White Paper, the next time you use the initial summoning description, the same White Paper will appear."
"Can I summon one first and hold off on the contract? Then, I'll summon another until I have a satisfactory number before forming a contract?" Lumian hadn't received a traditional education, but instead, a custom one that included Aurore's ideas. Combined with the "refinement" of years of pranks, he always had creative ideas.
"…" Aurore admitted she wasn't that cunning. She considered and said, "I've never tried it before, so I don't know if it'll work. You can try it yourself when you're at Sequence 7. However, I think having a White Paper beside you while summoning others might cause a conflict. It's unlikely to succeed. The only hope is to directly summon multiple White Papers, but there's a high chance that only Sequences skilled at summoning can do it."
Lumian decided to give it a try when the time came. After all, he had nothing to lose.
Aurore scooped up some mashed potatoes.
"Now, let's talk about how to summon creatures from the spirit world. This is an application of ritualistic magic.
"Ritualistic magic is magic cast by selecting the date and time, preparing the corresponding materials, and strictly following the format and process. It's often used in prayers and summonings."
Lumian nodded. "It's to achieve a certain supernatural effect through a ritual?"
He thought of the various rituals of the Church of the Eternal Blazing Sun, as well as the process of the Lent celebration.
"Yes," Aurore was very satisfied with her brother's comprehension ability. "To put it simply, ritualistic magic needs a target to pray to. It can be the seven orthodox gods, other hidden beings, or even evil gods or devils. It can even be you. When you pray to the orthodox gods, you need to check or choose the date and time they rule over. For example, Tuesday symbolizes the Eternal Blazing Sun, and there is a corresponding Sun hour every day. During these times, the probability of success will be greatly increased if you perform the ritualistic magic that targets the Eternal Blazing Sun.
"However, this isn't very useful. Those who aren't official Beyonders have a very low chance of successfully praying to the corresponding orthodox god. Even if you receive a response, don't be happy. This might mean that you have been noticed by that entity.
"Of course, we also have ways to bypass restrictions. For example, obtaining an item closely related to the target deity.
"There's no need to pick a date or time to pray to a hidden being or an evil god or devil, but I don't need to tell you how dangerous it is, right? 99% of people who do this don't end up well.
"Therefore, for wild Beyonders, the most commonly used ritualistic magic is to pray to themselves to mobilize their spirituality to complete some relatively complicated tasks.
"Create charms and Beyonder weapons?" Lumian recalled a point of knowledge that the lady had mentioned.
Aurore nodded.
"That's right. Some mystical concoctions also require ritualistic magic.
"You also missed something. Summoning a creature from the spirit world."
She ate some more food before saying, "The second step of ritualistic magic is to prepare the corresponding ingredients. If you wish to pray to an existence, prepare herbs, essential oils, powders, extracts, and so on from their domain to please them. Let's use the Eternal Blazing Sun as an example. If you pray to Him, you can use Sun essential oil, rosemary powder, Buddha's hand, and all kinds of sunflowers. As for praying to yourself, it won't be too troublesome. Although it's best to use the ingredients in your domain, someone like you can even put a cup of absinthe. It's fine even if you don't do so.
"The third step is to set up an altar. This can be determined by the environment. There's no need for a special holy solemnity. It's mainly because there can't be any miscellaneous items.
"The most important thing about the altar is the candles…"
Aurore picked up her knife and fork as she spoke.
She stretched out the two items and said, "Pretend that they are candles. If you pray to a deity, make them with the corresponding symbolic materials.
"As an example, the Eternal Blazing Sun has the Inextinguishable Light and the Embodiment of Order in His name." Out of caution, Aurore paused for a few seconds before continuing, "God of Deeds and Guardian of Businesses."
"There should be the honorific name 'Father of All Life,' right?" Lumian asked, familiar with the preaching.
Aurore shook her head.
"That's just a title used by the Eternal Blazing Sun Church when proselytizing. It's beyond Him in mysticism. If it was really part of His name, it would mean something big had happened."
She didn't give any more details, unsure herself.
She brought the conversation back on track.
"Anyway, if you want to exorcize the undead, you have to pray to the symbol of Inextinguishable Light. So, you need to make candles out of different sunflowers. For contracts, use the honorific title of the God of Deeds to make candles with Buddha's hand and other materials. Check my grimoire for more options."
"In ritualistic magic, we can only place two candles at the spot corresponding to the deity. This is because in mysticism, 0 represents the unknown or Chaos. It symbolizes the state of the world before it was born. If we don't place the candles, it means that there won't be any effect. 1 represents a beginning, the first Creator; it also accurately pinpoints a particular existence. 2 represents the world and various divinities that were produced from the Creator's body. Therefore, ritualistic magic can only have two candles to represent the deity. As for which candles to use, it depends on the desired effect.
"Three represent all things, so the third candle is for us. The two candles in the upper position represent the deity, and the candle in front is for myself, for a total of three candles. If you have an item related to a deity or a hidden existence, you can replace the two candles with that item for a dualistic ritual. If you pray to yourself, leave only the candle that represents yourself."
Lumian listened attentively, realizing that as a wild Hunter, he could only pray to himself in ritualistic magic before knowing the honorific name of the great existence. Where would he find items closely related to a deity?
"Let me show you the next few steps using summoning creatures from the spirit world," Aurore said, standing up as she saw her brother finish his dinner.
They quickly cleared the dining table.