I loaded the Mysticism panel.

Chapter 134 Black Dog

She flipped through a few pages and then asked, "I saw in the booklet that the medium for casting the spell is a gargoyle."

"I bet it's not easy to find this kind of ready-made medium?"

Richard was prepared for this problem.

"Gargoyles are the best medium, but not the only one," he said.

"The original intention of the Mingshi Guild in creating this set of techniques was to standardize and authorize them."

Find a stone with a trace amount of ether impregnation as the substrate, carve the key activating inscription from the appendix onto it, and it can be used as a base medium.

"Is the requirement of 'etheric immersion' high?"

"Not high," Richard replied.

"Any stone that has been in an etherically active area for more than a few decades meets the criteria."

"Step stones salvaged from the old church, scraps from near the old seal, or even quarried from the waste rock piles in the mine will do."

"Once you're proficient, you can discard the medium itself."

Nemesis nodded after listening and didn't ask any further questions.

She also offered a few reminders:

"Silver needles are consumables. If you put them away after you're done practicing, one needle can last for about ten sessions."

"More sophisticated practitioners will use silver short blades, but short blades are more expensive and more difficult to control than silver needles."

"Beginners usually start with silver needles."

Richard put the Moon Nail's book into the hidden compartment.

In fact, he actually got a small advantage in this deal.

While Stone Armor is a universal spell, the medium itself remains a hurdle for buyers.

Even if he has just clearly explained the path to self-made media, the other party still has to find stones, carve inscriptions, and work through the process little by little.

It takes at least one or two weeks from receiving the booklet to being able to start practicing the spell.

On the other hand, the medium for casting the spell is just a silver needle, which can be used to start practicing as soon as it is in hand.

Richard then placed the last document on the table:

"Practical methodology for cracking seal reversal points, covering several mainstream methods for identifying reversal points, mechanical control when prying open reversal points, and the reverse process of sealing with wax after prying open."

Prometheus leaned forward.

He would normally be interested in this type of material, but after reading a few lines, he sat back down.

"Your methodology," he said, "is too basic."

"Yes," Richard readily admitted.

None of them seemed very interested, and Richard took the handbook back.

This item was originally the lowest risk and lowest value item on the list, so it didn't matter whether we could get anything in return.

The transactions on the table have temporarily come to an end.

Everyone was looking at the information they had exchanged, and Hecate, sitting in the main seat, didn't urge them on.

Richard seized this opportunity to speak.

"Everyone."

Several pairs of eyes turned towards us from the table.

"I have another question that I'd like to ask the table here."

Hecate nodded from her seat, indicating that he could continue.

Richard asked the question he had prepared.

"There is an elder in my family who damaged the etheric circuit when he was young."

"Hey everyone at the table, does anyone know of a way to heal damaged etheric circuits?"

Prometheus frowned.

"Circuit damage is divided into two categories."

"One type is circuit damage caused by physical injury, which is relatively easy to treat."

"The other type is circuit damage caused by a failed rank breakthrough, which is more difficult to handle."

What category do your elders fall into?

"Rank breakthrough failed," Richard replied.

"Which level are you breaking through to?"

"A minor expert".

Upon hearing this, Nemesis turned his head slightly.

Dionysus picked up his wine glass, took a sip, and made no comment.

Prometheus thought for a moment:

"It's much more difficult to repair a damaged circuit due to a failed ritual."

"It would require highly skilled techniques to fully cure it, and I don't have any good solutions."

Richard wasn't too disappointed when he heard this; he had already expected it.

If my mother's injury were so easy to treat, my maternal grandfather and aunt would have done it long ago.

They didn't move, most likely because the treatment was too costly, or rather... the family couldn't find a highly skilled expert willing to pay the price.

"However..." Prometheus flipped through the booklet he had just received.

"Even if it cannot be completely cured, there are some daily care methods."

"Daily care?"

"A massage at the etheric level."

Prometheus nodded to Hecate and then projected a small notebook over to her.

"This is a massage technique that uses ether to continuously nourish damaged circuits. It is widely circulated. I'm giving it to you as a way to make friends."

Richard took the notebook.

There is a set of manual therapy diagrams above, with each technique labeled with the specific breathing rhythm, compression location, and ether injection volume.

Prometheus gave a word of advice:

"This kind of massage may make the person feel 'comfortable' at best, but it is a far cry from healing."

"But if you persist with it, it can slow down further degeneration of the circuit and reduce daily discomfort."

"Understood."

"Also," Prometheus said, his gaze falling on the condensate bottle Richard had just received.

"Coagulation should not be used to treat circuit damage."

Richard's fingers paused for a moment; he had indeed had a similar thought.

"The coagulating effect is too strong," Prometheus said. "To treat such deep injuries, it may cause secondary damage."

"The main uses of the condensate..." He gestured.

"Used in rituals for breakthroughs, for extending life in battle, for temporarily strengthening the body, and for unleashing the power of spells."

"You can think of it as a kind of stimulant or catalyst."

Richard nodded: "Thank you for the reminder."

"It's nothing," Prometheus said, taking the book back.

The other two people at the table did not add anything.

Richard carefully folded the pages of the massage technique manual and put them into the hidden compartment along with the newly acquired Moon Nail booklet and the condensate bottle.

Dionysus's gaze swept over the two pamphlets almost imperceptibly.

When those two items were displayed, neither he nor Prometheus reached out to touch them.

Both of them have similar general surgical techniques.

Dionysus silently adjusted the newcomer's rank down one level in his mind.

Newcomers, or practitioners who have recently crossed the threshold of being officially recognized.

Prometheus also thought of the same thing.

However, the idea behind that reverse-engineering model was truly amazing.

The fact that a newcomer can pull off a reverse-engineering model to this extent shows that they are indeed very intelligent.

Dionysus took a sip of wine.

The few of us who are still sitting at the table today all jumped out of our own little ponds and swam towards the sea.

They wouldn't look down on newcomers because of this judgment.

Newcomers can sometimes advance much faster than veterans.

Hecate nodded slightly from her seat: "The deal is now complete."

"Intelligence gathering begins." She raised her hand and made a vague gesture above the table.

"The rules remain the same: the person who shares the most will be matched with the target resources in the next transaction, at my discretion."

As soon as she finished speaking, Dionysus put down his wine cup.

He sat up straight, pulling himself out of that nonchalant posture.

"I'll go first."

"In the past week, the Royal Society's Committee on Anomalies in the capital issued another internal notice."

"This announcement officially confirms the alert level for the abnormal event as Level 2."

Upon hearing this keyword, Prometheus's expression tightened immediately.

Dionysus glanced at the two newcomers and began to explain.

"After formal confirmation, the specific manifestation is that events involving curtain abnormalities will no longer follow normal procedures and will be directly treated as major events;

Hunters and stealth operators with authorized credentials are automatically added to a list that can be called upon at any time;

The maintenance cycle for the registered seals has been shortened to two-thirds.

"Two-thirds?"

"The seal, which was originally reinforced once a year, will be reinforced again within eight months this year."

Mr. Hutton's face immediately popped into Richard's mind.

Mr. Hutton actually defended more than just Greenwood.

He regularly inspects all the seals in Briston with local professionals, which is why he takes two days off each month.

"This is the intelligence," Dionysus continued.

"This confirms the conclusion we discussed last time: the barrier is weakening overall, and the rate of weakening is faster than previously estimated."

Prometheus then spoke.

"I have one here too."

"In the past two months, several ancient tombs at the southern end of the Heitu River basin have been opened one after another."

His voice remained hoarse.

"It was done by the Imperial Archaeological Team. Under the guise of cultural exchange, their real purpose was to transport the contents back to the capital."

"I don't know which specific tombs they are, but I have a rough summary of the list of artifacts that were brought back."

He pulled a folded piece of paper from his inner pocket.

"The summary is incomplete, but there are a few things worth noting..."

He unfolded the paper and read out a few names.

"A bronze sacrificial vessel, a set of funerary bronzes, twelve jade figurines, and a well-preserved priest's scepter."

"Is the scepter a strange object?" Nemesis asked curiously.

"Yes," said Prometheus.

"The priest's scepter of the Black Earth River Basin has always been a highly prized artifact."

"This piece is currently stored in a closed warehouse at the Imperial Capital Museum and is not on public display."

He pushed the paper back into the inner pocket.

That's all I can say.

Richard secretly made a mental note of it.

I wonder if the priest's scepter from the Black Soil River basin can compare to the pillars of the Fire God Temple.

Hecate's gaze shifted to Richard.

Hermes.

Richard took a small card from a hidden compartment under his chair.

"There's been a recent incident in the northern industrial area: in the last two weeks, there have been three reports of night shift workers fainting at the foundation of an old factory on the west side of Manchester."

"Manchester City again." Prometheus was somewhat surprised.

"There were no external injuries, no signs of poisoning, and the patient could not remember the circumstances before fainting after waking up."

Richard continued.

"The local branch office sent people to investigate, and the preliminary judgment is that there are spiritual entities remaining in the foundation, passively infiltrating the etheric layer."

However, their treatment was not very effective; the spirit was not completely purified.

"Is there a specific location?" Prometheus asked.

"The former site of the Pimlico textile mill in the western part of Manchester."

Richard told him the location.

This intelligence confirms the reports about raising the alert level; the actual situation in the northern industrial zone is indeed deteriorating.

On the other hand, it provided the attendees with a specific project they could participate in.

If someone wants to earn a commission for "cleansing away spirit remnants," this is a ready-made job.

Both Prometheus and Dionysus wrote this down.

Nemesis then spoke.

"I have one too."

"A hunting party in the northern Gale Highlands encountered a black dog near Lake Erin last month."

"Black dog," Richard's gaze sharpened; he had read similar information before.

This is a local specialty found only within the empire, and strictly speaking, it cannot be considered an evil object.

Each county has its own name for it; in the east it's called "Night Walker," in the north it's called "Funeral Gate," and in the western mining areas it's simply called "Coal Dog."

The black dog is neither an undead nor a creature corrupted by the ether.

It is more like a natural phenomenon.

Those who have seen a black dog often experience a major misfortune within three days to three months.

In rare cases, a black dog will follow someone directly for an entire night.

This is the most ominous sign; those who are followed by it all night rarely survive the month.

But the black dog itself doesn't make a move.

It never bites pedestrians, never barks, and never blocks the road.

It simply appears, follows, and then silently disappears.

This ominous sign was so ominous that just hearing its name made the people present feel rather uneasy.