Chapter 56

Chapter 56: Temptation

“Hehe… Refreshing, Miss Meyshos, your demeanor is increasingly extraordinary.”

In the library, Audric cheerfully collected all the money that Dorothy handed over, while Dorothy, with a cold expression, thought to herself, ‘It’s pointless to haggle with you; how can I not be refreshing?’

“Please wait a moment; I will write down the divinatory knowledge worth this price,” Audric said as he put down the feather duster in his hand, slowly made his way to sit at the desk, took out a piece of paper, and began to write.

Audric wrote quickly, finishing in under ten minutes. Once the ink dried, he folded the paper neatly and placed it into an envelope he pulled out from his pocket, while Dorothy silently watched from the side.

“Divination… what is more important is not the technique but the materials. These simple divination techniques do not involve any profound mystical knowledge, so the poison recognition can be disregarded. You can look at it with peace of mind.”

As he spoke, Audric handed the envelope to Dorothy, who felt slightly disappointed upon receiving it.

‘No poison recognition… does that mean it’s not mysterious enough to stimulate spirituality?’

After several attempts, Dorothy roughly understood that she might be immune to the so-called poison recognition, so for her, the stronger the poison recognition in the knowledge, the better. After all, stronger poison recognition indicated more profound mysteries, which meant greater spirituality.

This time, the knowledge didn’t even include poison recognition; this was really terrible. It’s really just a cheap item worth less than 100 pounds.

As Dorothy complained inwardly, she carefully put away the envelope Audric handed her, then after a moment of thought, she continued to ask him a question.

“By the way, sir, I would like to ask you another question. In the realm of mysticism, how can one ‘corrupt’ a person?”

Dorothy inquired, recalling the information she had managed to pry from the Holy Communion, where she learned they intended to corrupt her and use her to corrupt Gregor. Therefore, she felt it was necessary to clarify the meaning of “corruption.”

“Corruption…” Hearing Dorothy’s words, Audric pondered for a moment before replying.

“10 pounds consultation fee…”

Without further thought, Dorothy continued to pull out money and placed it in front of Audric. After accepting the payment, he explained.

“The so-called corruption… has a broad meaning in mysticism. It generally refers to the process by which one thing is influenced by another or by a different environment, resulting in psychological and physiological changes. Depending on the influencer, the terminology can also change; for example, some folks find the word corruption unpleasant, so they call it sanctification or purification… But regardless of the name, the core concept is the same. Personally, I prefer to call it pollution. In the Secret World, different societies often use various methods to corrupt those they wish to control into becoming part of their own.”

After Audric finished speaking, Dorothy pondered for a moment before continuing to ask.

“So, what means of corruption does the ‘Cup’ society employ?”

Dorothy continued her inquiry, and as expected, Audric responded again.

“10 pounds…”

Dorothy quietly took out more money. After Audric received it, he continued.

“For large societies like the Placenta Sect, they have many means of corruption, usually involving profound mystical practices. I’m not too clear on the specifics, but smaller societies generally have limited tricks. They usually employ two main methods: one is drug control, and the other is poison recognition temptation.”

“Drug control… poison recognition temptation…” Dorothy muttered as she listened to Audric, who nodded to affirm.

“Yes… First, there’s drug control. All attributes of spirituality have multiple meanings, both on a material level as well as on a mental and conceptual level. The ‘Cup’ on a material level symbolizes the vital flesh and bl**d, while on a spiritual level, it also represents the insatiable desires that stem from biological instincts, with appetite being one of the important aspects.

“Utilizing this characteristic of the spirit of the ‘Cup,’ some ‘Cup’ societies can produce addictive drugs from trace amounts of spirituality. When ordinary people consume them, they will be hit with an intense craving, becoming dependent on that drug and will go to great lengths to reconsume it. The more they consume, the stronger the dependency becomes, and if taken over a long period, even extraordinary beings can’t withstand it. Some ‘Cup’ societies mix such drugs into regular food to be consumed by unsuspecting individuals, then gradually gain control through providing the substance. Those under control must obey the one supplying the drugs to satisfy their cravings.”

Audric spoke slowly, and upon hearing his words, Dorothy was taken aback.

‘This, this is drug dealing, right? So these ‘Cup’ societies not only eat people but also engage in drug trafficking? No wonder they top the An Yin Bureau’s blacklist.’

“So… what about poison recognition temptation?”

After pondering briefly, Dorothy asked Audric again, and he continued to explain.

“Regarding poison recognition temptation, this method of corruption isn’t exclusive to the ‘Cup’ societies. You know that poison recognition is a toxic element found within all secret knowledge transmissions, and it can cause varying degrees of mental harm to the reader. Often, lighter damages manifest as an insatiable curiosity for that particular spiritual mystical knowledge. You’ve felt this, haven’t you? Even after taking sufficient precautions when reading secret transmissions, once you finish, there’s a morbid desire to obtain more knowledge about that spirituality.

“This is actually a manifestation of being eroded by poison recognition. A damaged mind makes one crave even more extensive and deeper mystical knowledge corresponding to the spirituality. Gradually, the victim becomes tormented by the poison recognition, spiraling into madness yet unable to stop until ultimately driven insane, even to the point of d*ath.”

With a strangely emotional expression, Audric spoke slowly, and Dorothy murmured in response.

“Poison recognition… is also alluring?”

“Yes, and often more terrifying than the allure of drugs. Many high-level extraordinary beings can resist drugs but cannot withstand the lure of poison recognition. It can ignite an infinite curiosity for mystical knowledge about the mysteries, but once it pulls one into the path of exploration, it gradually torments them to madness. The temptation of poison recognition often causes seasoned high-level extraordinary beings to inadvertently fall into an abyss.

“For instance, a profound secret transmission, according to the proper reading process to counteract poison recognition, should be read slowly page by page over three years, with appropriate intake, all while gradually clearing away poison recognition while absorbing the accompanying knowledge. However, if at any point one cannot suppress the temptation of poison recognition and hastily reads through the transmission, the reader will go mad from the rapid accumulation of poison recognition.

“Heh… I’ve lost count of how many gifted extraordinary beings have met their demise because of this.”

As he said this, Audric gazed somewhat melancholically out of the window into the sky, seemingly lost in thought.

Seeing Audric’s demeanor, Dorothy suddenly felt a sense.

‘This old man… seems more formidable than he previously claimed…’