The Great Demon Holmes

Chapter 25: Consecration Ceremony (2)

The monastery was established no more than 100 years ago, but as Sherlock passed through the dark green portal, he could still sense the weight of history.

Unlike churches, monasteries were more like religious schools. Almost all believers who wanted to join the Church had to start from these monasteries, where they engaged in daily chanting, prayer, and seeking enlightenment from the divine light.

If it weren't for these tedious rituals, Sherlock probably wouldn't have reached his thirties without an ounce of devoutness towards the Church.

The courtyard was filled with flowers and plants, and occasionally, one could spot low-level monks in coarse robes. Passing through several wooden doors, the faint sound of chanting could be heard from inside. Finally, after traversing several corridors paved with blue bricks, Sherlock was led into the deepest tower of the monastery.

This surprised him a bit.

The consecration ceremony, even if not as grand as knighthood ceremonies, should still be solemn or mysterious, right? Could it be that they were just making do in this small tower?

In fact, half a century ago, the consecration of contractees was indeed a solemn and mysterious ritual that required a priest of the rank of High Priest to officiate. However, during the second demonic invasion, both the Church and the government needed a large number of warriors, so the consecration ceremonies were delegated to almost all the monasteries. Sometimes, seven or eight ceremonies would be held in a single day, regardless of talent. If you showed up, you would be tested. At that time, there were also many volunteers to undergo the experiment because becoming a contractee increased their chances of survival compared to remaining an ordinary person. This led to the normalization of the ceremony, and it is the reason why the number of contractees in the world has exceeded one million to date.

Pushing open the wooden door, the scent of incense immediately wafted over. Sunlight couldn't penetrate the tower, so the illumination came from the candles lining the walls.

In the center of the candles stood a massive lectern, holding a book over 30 centimeters thick, along with some tools that Sherlock couldn't comprehend.

The nun walked to the lectern and gestured for Sherlock to come forward.

"Is the ceremony starting now?" Sherlock asked in confusion. "Just the two of us?"

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The nun nodded with a smile. "Yes, Mr. Holmes. The basic consecration ceremony of the Church has become quite streamlined. We no longer require elaborate procedures. If you cooperate, it can be completed in just over ten minutes."

As she spoke, she opened the heavy book and held a disc in her hands.

The disc was made of brass, with a hollow center resembling a large lid. Complex symbols and characters were engraved on its surface. Then, the nun took out a needle.

"Please offer me one of your fingers," she said.

Sherlock, influenced by those criminal games, subconsciously thought that he had to chop off one of his fingers and give it to her. But he quickly realized that he probably only needed to extend his finger.

So, he extended the index finger of his right hand and held it over the brass disc. The nun pricked his fingertip with the needle.

A drop of blood slowly fell into the complex scriptures.

It seemed that everything was done

Because the nun made no further movements, she simply stared intently at the drop of blood in the disc...

Naturally, Sherlock followed suit and gazed at it as well.

After about a minute passed, the drop of blood suddenly slid into the container, transforming into a trace of bright red. This trace then moved slowly along the intricate patterns until it finally settled on a symbol that looked like '??'.

The nun immediately set down the brass disc and flipped through the book, seemingly searching for a matching symbol.

Finally...

"Found it," the nun whispered.

But Sherlock noticed a momentary complex expression on her face.

"Is something wrong?" he asked.

"N-No... nothing," the nun hesitated, giving such a response. Then she continued, "Mr. Holmes, we have found the corresponding contract creature for you. Please silently recite the following pronunciations and focus your gaze on a specific spot within your line of sight. Try to keep it closer to you. Opening the Void Crack for the first time may cause some damage to your consciousness if the distance is too far."

As she spoke, she directly recited several not too difficult pronunciations.

Sherlock felt that something might be wrong, but now was clearly not the time to dwell on it. He quickly followed along, reciting while fixing his gaze on a spot within reach...

And as he repeated the process... a strange sensation surged from his mind. It felt as if a part of his thoughts had been detached and transferred to the spot he was focusing on. With just a slight control, he felt a force pulling on the empty space as if tearing it apart on both sides.

This feeling intrigued Sherlock... So he continued to exert a gentle force in that direction.

Suddenly!

A spatial crack appeared!

"Is it that easy?!"

Sherlock was shocked. It was much easier than slitting someone's throat. After all, a person would struggle... Following this force, Sherlock attempted to widen the crack further.

However, when the crack reached a length of 30 centimeters, it could no longer expand.

Perhaps it was because his ability could only reach this extent, or maybe it was influenced by the divine light.

As Sherlock speculated on the reasons, something suddenly crawled out of the spatial crack.

A... worm.

Um... It was a bit strange, but yes, it was a worm. It had a grayish-green body and was about seven to eight centimeters long, resembling a banana that had been peeled and left to oxidize in the air for three days.

The small worm slowly crawled out of the crack, first peeking its head out, and then, as if afraid of the unfamiliar environment, shivering as it tried to retreat. However, it was too clumsy. While turning around, its soft body slipped out of the crack, and unfortunately, the void crack opened about half a meter above the ground. As a result, it made a pitiful 'ji ji' sound when it fell to the ground.

"...Silence."

Sherlock fell into silence.

He slightly opened his mouth, astonished as he looked at the caterpillar. Then he turned his head to the nun beside him and noticed that she was looking at him with a mixture of pity and embarrassment.

"What... what is this?"

"Ahem. According to the Church's records on Abyssal Creatures, it should be a worm that survives in hell."

"A... worm?" Sherlock unconsciously repeated the word. "So, this thing is my contract demon?"

"Yes." The nun no longer made eye contact with Sherlock, and she even lowered her head, looking at

her flowing robe.

Sherlock finally understood the meaning behind the peculiar expression on her face earlier.

This thing was his contract demon?

He looked at the caterpillar again. It had finally struggled to turn over but remained motionless, pretending to be dead on the ground.

"Does this... thing have any abilities?" Sherlock seemed to want to make a final attempt.

The nun turned back to the book, flipping through its pages. Finally, with some embarrassment, she said, "Um... I'm really sorry, but according to the Church's Abyssal Creature records, your contract demon belongs to the lowest tier, which means... it has no abilities whatsoever."