Astartes of the Bear School

Chapter 1851, page 1823: The Problem with the Prayer Book
After reading and understanding the entire "Prayer Book of Flame Martial Arts Cultivators," Lan En actually had a certain understanding of the border military organization of this Golden Dynasty.

From their responsibilities and origins to their current development.

A prayer book is a scripture that spreads faith, so it will naturally clarify and present the context of faith.

The spells in the entire prayer book are actually divided into three levels of difficulty.

The simplest one is 【Blessed by Flames!】. This is a spell that the warriors of the Golden Dynasty spontaneously developed on the battlefield against the fire giants, before the organization of the Flame Watchers was even formed.

Simple, original, and effective.

Then there are mostly spells that shape fire, and [the healing power of fire!].

This is a normal-level spell, developed after the establishment of the Flame Watchers. It is not difficult to practice and is not particularly difficult in terms of theological exploration and research.

The final spell Lann practiced, "O Flame, grant me power!", is a high-level spell. Even within the Flame Watchers, not everyone knows or can comprehend it.

And given Lan En's extraordinary comprehension and learning abilities, as well as the efficient learning methods cultivated under Mentos's guidance.

When Lan En was flipping through this prayer book, he had already roughly sorted out the thought process of the Flame Watchers in the book.

Then, using this framework as the main structure and central idea, after grasping the main structure, you can learn and imitate the specific prayer techniques that are developed in a divergent manner.

His learning efficiency far surpassed that of ordinary people in the normal world, not to mention the generally lazy and slow-paced Golden Dynasty, which was characterized by longevity and the immortality of the soul.

Therefore, as early as during the reading, Lan En already had a general idea of ​​what the Flame Watchers' prayers should normally be like.

They are the watchers of fire, using the power of fire primarily to fulfill their duty of surveillance.

Therefore, the higher the level of their internal prayers, the more they should alert the watchers and remind them of their responsibilities.

【Blessed by the Flames!】When used, there is no sensation at all.

【The healing power of fire!】After a successful cast, you will feel a slight burning sensation inside your body.

The progressive relationship between the two stems from this guiding principle.

As the prayer book describes the spell "Healing Flames!": The pain of being burned is a warning to those who watch over the flames.

Even when using the power of fire, one must remember how terrible that power is, and the threat it poses to the Golden Tree.

Following this progressive line of reasoning, even though Lann had not yet successfully simulated the prayer "O Flame, grant me strength!", he had no doubt that performing this prayer would be far more painful than those simpler ones!
Because the higher the level of the fire prayer, the more it requires the use of suffering to awaken the practitioner.

This is the central idea of ​​the entire prayer book! How could something written in a scripture contradict the main theme of the scripture?
But once Lann truly mastered and trained the skill of "O Flame, grant me power!"... how could it not feel any pain at all?
Lan En quickly realized that this painless situation must mean something!
The basic and elementary spells performed as intended in the prayer book, but the advanced spells suddenly took a drastic turn? A complete 180-degree reversal?

Who would believe that there's no problem with this?

The magical fire in Lan En's hand gradually died down, and he began to examine the open prayer book with both hands, having previously held it with one hand.

The power of the prayer book is real and undeniable; the golden emblem of the law, established by Queen Mary, shines brightly on the cover. This truly testifies to the stance and loyalty represented by this prayer book.

The contents of the book were true and accurate, and Lan En successfully cast all three prayer spells he had devoted his efforts to simulating and researching.

So what exactly is it...?
“If we go by your feelings, then this prayer book has irreconcilable contradictions in its fundamental structure.” Mentos, whose thoughts were connected to Lann’s, reacted instantly, following the main body’s line of thought.

"If there are such great contradictions in its fundamental structure, then it cannot be called a qualified prayer book at all, sir."

But the reality is: this is not only a prayer book, but also a prayer book sent from Aganti, the "head of the Watchers," and written by him personally!
There is no more authoritative scripture among the Flame Watchers than this prayer book.

“There’s something wrong with the prayer book,” Mentos said decisively, “but Aganti dared to hand it to you in person… Perhaps he doesn’t think you’ll be interested in the prayers of the Flame Watchers. Or perhaps he simply doesn’t believe you can understand it within a week.”

One week was the deadline Lann gave Yagang. Any tricks or schemes should be done within this timeframe.

For a whole week, he only had a prayer book in his hand, and there was no preacher or teacher around him.

Through her own efficient learning methods and comprehension, she clearly grasped the main ideas of the entire prayer book and successfully progressed to the advanced prayer, "O Flame, grant me strength!" and put it into practice.

This was something that Aganti considered completely impossible. That's why he could hand over a prayer book that was problematic at its core but could outwardly prove loyalty to Lann.

But the question now is, how did Aganti manage to cover up the problem with the prayer book that should have been the most sincere and devout?
The golden law emblem on the book cover is real!
Can you fool others and yourself by using this to preach?

What can one possibly learn by deceiving oneself in a process that should prioritize faith, sincerity, and steadfastness, such as practicing prayer and magic?
Secondly...why?
Why did Aganti and his Flame Watchers do this?
Risking deceiving the Faded Ones, the Two Fingers, and the Golden Dynasty, they still want to get involved in the murky waters of Lienia. What are they after? This armed religious group, whose origins and development have been entirely based in the northern snow-capped mountains.

They have no historical connection whatsoever with the local forces in Lienia. Why would they suddenly be willing to take such a huge risk to help?
In that instant, Lann never failed to feel the pain he was supposed to experience during the moment of shouting, "O flames, grant me power!"

He and Mentos quickly realized many problems.

“The history of the Lienia region is too long,” Lann realized the key point the moment he realized the problem.

He snapped the prayer book shut, his face solemn.

"Given the current complex situation, if I cannot untangle the intricate relationships in this region, I will have no way of knowing the answers to many questions."

There is a universal connection between things. Many of the problems in Lienia that seem obscure now could not have suddenly appeared out of thin air. There must have been a process of accumulation and formation, which is why it is necessary to record history.

However, it is clear that Sir Hundred's collection of books is not truly all-encompassing in some aspects.

After all, his collection of books, if piled up, would only occupy a few rooms in the round table hall. But the history of this world is so ancient that it is difficult to trace.

"It's troublesome."

Lan En closed his eyes, pinched the bridge of his nose, and muttered something under his breath.

He had thought that he was only to be doing an auditing and monitoring task, at most to be resisted by the Flame Watchers, a border armed cult, because of some of his dirty secrets or ambitions.

But right now, the clues reveal... that this border armed religious group's doctrines, foundations, and stance are all questionable?!
Is this a task that can be covered by mere auditing and supervision?
This 'small task' that Gideon Ofnir casually tossed to Lann to prove his abilities now seems to have suddenly become incredibly problematic!

"How did things turn out like this?" Mentos complained. "A small nail that could be easily pulled out has turned into a huge landmine?"

“But we unlucky souls have already gotten involved.” Lann put his hand down. “The most likely way to find out what happened now is to find someone who knows about Lienia’s history and situation, or to consult the local chronicler.”

Mentos, however, was not optimistic: "This is not easy. The history of Lienia is long enough, even for people in this world who live long lives, let alone the wisdom to see through the fog of history."

“There’s nothing we can do about it.” Lan En shook his head. “This matter is already too big just from what we’ve seen so far. If all else fails, we can only rely on the Qilin’s incredible speed to return to Rodel and throw the trouble back to Bai Zhi.”

As he spoke, Lan En shook his head and smiled, "He could not care before, but now that things have blown up, there is no way he can not care."

"Anyway, the Golden Dynasty has a lot of tall guys, so the sky can't possibly fall down, can it?"

When Lan replied to Mentos, he still displayed a rather optimistic spirit.

But the bio-engineered AI knew the main body was just joking around. Once it took on a task, it generally wouldn't allow itself to mess it up.

And just as Lann was putting the fiery red prayer book back into the alchemy bag...

"Wow~"

The Witcher suddenly looked down at the roaring bear head pendant hanging around his neck.

At this moment, the Witcher's badge, sensing the chaotic energy, began to twitch slightly along with its chain.

Lan En put down the large prayer book he had been carrying behind his back, and then picked up something else.

It was a cone-shaped crystal that shimmered.

The Witcher frowned and channeled his chaotic magic into it, thus transmitting some information into his mind through telepathy.

"The velvet ball wants help? Why here?"

(End of this chapter)