Chapter 121: Nature's Baptism
Chapter 121: Nature's Baptism
It was clear that Liam was completely unfamiliar with the ritual's procedure. So Bettie quickly began to explain what he should do during the ceremony.
After Bettie's explanation, Liam understood that the offering had to be something he had obtained personally, and the process of obtaining it must not involve any evil actions.
Each person could only place one offering on the altar, so the choice of the offering had to be made with the utmost care.
Most importantly, the value of the offering was not as crucial as the process of obtaining it. Nature's Will would gather this information from the offering and then provide a fair response.
The ritual sounded very simple, and Liam was a bit surprised. He didn't understand why a ceremony so important to the Centaurs could be so straightforward. Aunt Bettie saw Liam's confusion and explained that Centaurs revered nature, thus opposing elaborate formalities. To them, the current ceremony was already quite grand and complex.
Indeed, different races had different values, and only mutual understanding could lead to better communication. Just like how Liam earned the recognition of the Centaur Tribe through gradually deepening interactions and fighting alongside them, the Ministry of Magic's approach of setting up a Centaur Office was a prime example of poor communication.
After resolving his doubts, Liam began to consider what to use as his offering. After a few minutes of thought, he opened the spatial door and started selecting items from the Multiverse General Store. After a thorough search, Liam finally chose what he wanted: a basilisk gallbladder, about the size of a backpack.
This was a Basilisk Gallbladder. Liam was concerned that if he used something from another world as an offering, the natural consciousness of this world might not recognize it. After careful consideration, Liam chose the best loot he had obtained in this world: the Basilisk Gallbladder.
When Liam took out the basilisk gallbladder, Aunt Bettie, who was standing beside him, suddenly narrowed her eyes and asked uncertainly, "Is this a snake gallbladder?"
"Yes, it's a millennium-old Basilisk Gallbladder. I had to give it my all to take it down", Liam said with a hint of pride.
"At least we Centaurs haven't had such a significant offering in the ceremony for the past few hundred years. I must say, you are more impressive than I imagined. Now that you have your offering, let's start the ceremony", Aunt Bettie said, signaling for the ritual to begin.
Liam followed the procedure, presenting the snake gallbladder to Aunt Bettie with both hands. Bettie took the gallbladder and walked through the archway to place it on the altar, then began to chant the incantation.
As the first part of the incantation was completed, Liam approached the archway, bowed his head, and placed his hands in a fist at his forehead, as required by the ritual, to communicate with the natural consciousness in the Emerald Dream.
As Aunt Bettie chanted the most crucial part of the incantation, the Emerald Dream was opened, and the snake gallbladder on the altar began to change. Unlike the offerings in previous ceremonies, which turned into specks of green light, the snake gallbladder on the altar glowed like a fluorescent light. It slowly shrank and eventually disappeared from the altar.
At this moment, the green light from the archway also enveloped Liam. A gentle energy slowly infused his body, and a portion of knowledge began to flow into his mind.
This must be the advanced Nature's Baptism Aunt Bettie mentioned earlier, which only a select few lucky individuals could experience. With this thought, Liam focused his attention, as Aunt Bettie had explained that this advanced baptism offered the chance for the recipient to gain some useful abilities.
Liam felt like a long time had passed before the green light in front of him finally faded. This marked the end of the coming-of-age ceremony. The Centaurs began to dance gracefully under the moonlight, celebrating the Foal's transition into adulthood. Amid the rapid drumbeats, Liam descended from the Altar and found a quiet corner to examine the changes in his body.
After a thorough inspection, Liam realized that he had gained a lot from the ceremony. Previously, his magic power was concentrated in his Mind Sea, located in his head, while his Spiritual Energy was stored in his Dantian, in his lower abdomen. These two energies had always been separate, like oil and water.
Liam had been quite anxious about this situation, as different energies in the body could easily cause problems. However, the natural baptism during the ceremony had created an energy circulation between his Mind Sea and Dantian, allowing the two energies to convert into one another. This was likely due to the fact that both energies he possessed were rooted in natural balance. Had he been practicing death or destructive magic, he might have exploded on the spot during the baptism.
In addition to forming this energy circulation, Nature's Baptism had also strengthened Liam's physical and magical abilities. However, the significant amount of energy used to establish the circulation meant that the improvements in his physical and magical capabilities were relatively limited, perhaps only half of what other Centaurs experienced.
Most importantly, during the ceremony, Liam's soul had directly faced the Nature's Will within the Emerald Dream. This further enhanced his affinity with nature. Fortunately, both his Life Magic and the Daoist techniques he practiced benefited from a higher Nature Affinity. This affinity also allowed Liam to better perceive the world around him and emulate the natural world to develop his own magic.
Of course, this came at a cost. In the future, Liam might find it extremely difficult to learn certain dark or malevolent spells. For example, he would likely never be able to master the Fiendfyre Curse or undergo permanent magical transformations like Voldemort. Learning Unforgivable Curses would also be far more challenging and less effective.
As the sky began to darken, Liam bid farewell to Aunt Bettie and prepared to return to the castle. Aunt Bettie had initially planned to have Wolf escort him, but Liam noticed that Wolf was enjoying himself and told her he didn't need an escort. The increased Nature Affinity from the ceremony made him feel as safe in the Forbidden Forest as he did at home.
Leaving the Centaur village and returning to the jungle, Liam gradually began to appreciate the effects of his Nature Affinity. In the Forbidden Forest, he felt a sense of security that dispelled the fear of walking alone at night. Even in complete darkness, he could sense the direction to go and avoid obstacles on the ground.
This made his journey less tiring than before. After a while, he even attached a grappling hook wrist guard to his arm and began swinging from branch to branch in the treetops.
He soon reached the path at the edge of the Forbidden Forest. When he emerged from the forest and checked his Pocket Watch, he was surprised to find that he had only taken half the time he had expected.
It seemed that the Nature Affinity held more mysteries than he had initially thought. He would have to study it further to explore its full potential and discover more uses.
(End of Chapter)
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