The blossoming lotus flower held within itself a symbol tied to the sun.
As energy manifested and the universe bloomed into flowers, they shone under the sun’s light, emitting the sun’s energy in a harmonious cycle. Furthermore, the purity and nobility inherent in the lotus amplified the efficacy of the human sacrifice ritual.
But that wasn’t all.
Keiyangchungman.
A lotus emerging from filthy, disgusting waters spreads its fragrance.
That scent was so potent and fragrant that it could cover all bad odors, akin to the sun that illuminates the world with its singular form.
Countless lotus flowers were like firewood falling into a blazing flame, or oil gushing into a towering pillar of fire. They embraced the sun from beneath, amplifying its power and enhancing the ceremony performed above.
However, simply amplifying it wouldn’t suffice; it would become uncontrollable.
Thus, Jinseong prepared something else.
With a surge of Samādhi True Fire from his hand, Jinseong ignited the lotus that blossomed in the muddy water. In an instant, the lotus was engulfed in flames born of Samādhi, radiating red and blue hues while consuming matter and immaterial sparks of the lotus’ weak sunlight, growing in size. And when it took the form of a pillar of fire, light began to emanate throughout the area near the ceiling.
The light was crimson.
As if a red cellulose film had been added to the cornea, the underground became stained red, its source a jewel.
Ruby.
A gemstone symbolizing the sun and beauty.
This precious gem was also known as the queen of jewels.
Premium pigeon blood rubies clung tightly to the ceiling like cubic stones, and the flames blazing from Samādhi transformed as they passed through the gems, dyeing the underground in striking red. That color was so vivid that no other shade of red brought forward could obscure this clarity.
Kwarururung!
“You’ve noticed, huh?”
—
“This isn’t just about the location or timing!”
The diviner muttered assertively as he adjusted the golden mask adorning his face.
“I’ve done this more than once; there’s no way I’d make such a mistake.”
Switching between a feminine and masculine tone, he spoke to himself in a hurried manner, visibly flustered.
“Could it be a site where a ritual was performed or intended?”
“Absolutely not! I was so meticulous about selecting this location!”
“True enough. There were no traces of any ritual in this forest. So it isn’t an astrological issue… ”
“If it were about geomancy, that wouldn’t hold either. Even if one is clueless about geomancy, they can’t be completely clueless about geographic oddities. So what on earth is the issue?”
“Yes. If this isn’t coincidence, then what is the actual problem?”
The eyes behind the golden mask turned feral.
“Wh-what could be the issue!”
He pulled out a card from his pocket.
The card depicted a naked woman clad in tattered rags, holding a lantern and a staff, her expression weary for some reason.
The Major Arcana card number nine, The Hermit.
The lantern illustrated on the Hermit card began to emit light as if it were a real lantern. The Star of David reflected in it slowly swayed, exuding soft light that sliced through the darkness and radiated outward.
Then, as if relinquishing itself to the grip of gravity, the light began to drop towards the ground, delving deeper into the earth.
Observing this, the diviner gritted his teeth and drew a card to cast a spell.
From the card engraved with a staff, a giant column descended, embedding itself into the ground.
As the spell took shape, a minor explosion erupted.
Ka-kwaaaang!
His assault was relentless.
It was as if the sole goal was to dig deep into the earth, constantly striking the same area, blasting, and breaking.
Finally, the results of his obsession revealed themselves.
The falling pillar vanished into thin air, unveiling a vast cavity in the ground alongside a colossal hole. As a small hole formed, the earth crumbled down, revealing the cavity as if a sinkhole had emerged in the forest.
The peculiar aspect was that only the edges around the altar crumbled, making it resemble a donut shape.
“Yooooou!”
Should we call it a cavity?
Or a structure erected in the netherworld?
The collapsed dirt was neatly piled at the edges, and in the center, muddy water formed a small pond. In that center floated countless lotus flowers, with the largest lotus burning in red and blue flames.
Rubies were embedded in the collapsed dirt, reflecting the light of Samādhi, the brilliance so red it could easily be mistaken for searchlights in brightness. Not only that, but the refracted light straightened up into the sky, reminiscent of the Cathedral of Light built during Nazi times.
However, the difference lay in that the red light emanating from the rubies evoked an eerie association with flames and blood, unlike the holy light cathedral that used white light.
As the earth collapsed, the coagulating blood poured down like a waterfall, amplifying that ominous feeling.
And all of this architecture was centered around the altar.
Indeed.
It was as if it was designed to be this way from the outset.
“What have you done?!”
The diviner screamed.
He glared as though he’d encountered a lifelong enemy.
“You! You! You monster!”
The diviner finally grasped what he was facing and the situation he found himself in.
After performing numerous human sacrifices, he’d accumulated so much knowledge that he couldn’t help but know.
Amplification of the symbol of the ‘Sun’.
A lotus that radiates light by itself.
Flames that burn fiercely, as if borrowed straight from the sun.
Pillars of light launching skyward, imbued with brilliant red hue.
The ruby, inherently possessing the symbol of the sun.
All of these fortified his human sacrifice ritual.
The scent emanating from the lotus filled the forest with the smell of blood, thriving amidst the pouring blood without a trace of filth, embodying a symbol of abundance. Considering that Crom Cruach symbolizes the sun and abundance, it was exceptionally perfect material.
Additionally, the red light emanating from it sparkled against the gold the diviner had prepared, growing stronger and even consuming the flames, coloring the entire forest blood red.
This was definitely not a small-scale ritual.
Though it was vastly insufficient for a large-scale magical ceremony, it required an absurd price to be paid to manage such a small scale.
High Risk, High Return.
As the scale of magic grew, so did the cost incurred.
And now, the diviner had unintentionally initiated a ritual that demanded an ‘unbearable’ price. It was beyond the extent of merely lying down one sacrifice on the altar—the stakes were exorbitant!
“Why isn’t this good? I enthusiastically helped with the ceremony, and yet you display such an attitude?”
Jinseong grinned at the crazed diviner.
“However, since the ceremony has gotten a bit larger, one offering won’t suffice. Something of greater value must be sacrificed to make it more worthwhile. Don’t you think someone like you should be a worthy contributor?”
He pulled out a handful of a white powder-like substance from his pocket.
Those tiny things, with short but stout bodies, wiggled in a bid to escape his grip, desperately trying to bite into his skin with their strong jaws.
Hoo…
Jinseong gently blew onto the squirming white ants in his hand. Suddenly, wings sprouted from the ants as they took to the skies, and from his pocket, white ants began to pour out endlessly, moving towards the altar.
“Do you really think doing this will save that child?”
Seeing this, the diviner shouted loudly, as if his throat would split, drawing the wooden axe he had wielded. Without a moment’s hesitation, he swung it down on his left wrist.
Chop!
Lightweight and not properly edged, the axe took multiple swings to sever his hand, yet the diviner chuckled softly as if immune to the pain from the madness.
He sheathed the axe again and picked up his severed left wrist, bringing it to his mouth.
Chiiick!
With the sound of skin and muscle tearing, his hand disappeared into his mouth, down his throat.
The scene was horrifically grotesque, yet Jinseong welcomed it with curiosity.
“Oh, so you have knowledge of human sacrifice in the Aztec Empire?”
In the Aztec Empire, there existed an aesthetic for human flesh.
They categorized the most delicious and precious parts of the flesh.
The thighs were deemed the most delicious and precious, for the emperor.
While hands and feet were reserved for priests and rulers.
“I… I can’t believe I’ve cut off my beautiful hand!”
“You filthy monster! Do you think I’ll just let this slide?!”
“I have to survive!”
“I’ll become a hero!”
The diviner reinforced the image of himself as a priest conducting the ceremony by devouring his own hand.
This was a desperate measure to regain control over a colossal ritual spiraled out of his reach.
However, if the diviner began regaining control of the ritual, then Jinseong’s efforts would be for naught.
He pulled out a bell from his robes and shook it.
Ding-dong.
As the clear sound resonated, the white ants sitting around the altar began to act in perfect unison.
The white ants began to trace large and small circles around the altar, reminiscent of fairy circles found in the desert.
Ding-dong.
When Jinseong shook the bell again, something odd occurred at Ella’s wrist.
The various colored beads she wore swiftly lost their color, transforming into completely white teeth.
Thud.
With a sound like breaking glass, the bracelet snapped as if this was how it was meant to be, spilling the teeth onto the ground, which began to roll as if them finding their places.
Each tooth found its spot in the formed circle, creating a pattern like eyeballs, and soon after, tiny fairies of dark shape popped out.
They were fairies commonly referred to as Tooth Fairies.
As the fairies appeared, Jinseong pulled out an MP3 player from his pocket and started playing music.
Sweet.
Exceedingly sweet melodies flowed out.
