Annan, of course, remembered that time.

His cheap uncle, whom he had never met, or even married, was killed by the hand of winter who rescued the hostages during that kidnapping. Later, Ivan's father died of depression because of this.

The Hand of Winter who decisively killed the hostages was the old man who followed Maria to the White Tower.

“…… What exactly is a worm? ”

Annan asked carefully, "Is there some kind of trap in this room?" ”

"[Worm] is not some real insect, but a representation, a symbol. It is the embodiment of the so-called 'non-serpent' in the ritual of the elves. According to current archaeological research, the prototype of the 'non-snake snake' seems to be some kind of giant parasite...... It is parasitic on the earth, like a serpent born on the earth. ”

In a more academic tone, Zhuoya explained: "It is generally represented by concepts such as [parasitism], [invisible pain], [self-devouring], [circulation], etc., and will be embodied in this type of ritual, just as rituals with the concept of [silence] will summon darkness, and rituals with the concept of [luck] will summon dice."

"The 'rustless blood' of the cup bearer is also the blood of the snake, and the blood of the snake here refers to the blood of the worm. Because the 'non-snake snake' is a parasite of the earth, it is also the blood of stones and trees. ”

…… Earth?

Does this refer to the mother-in-law who buried the bones?

Annan narrowed his eyes slightly.

Speaking of which, the "dark night" of that year took away part of its own power, and the mysterious lady was born. And when the mother-in-law was the "earth", did she become the current posture without losing any strength?

Since the existence of "pleasing blood" is associated with worms...... Is it understandable that worms have also stolen some of the power that belongs to the "earth"?

It's as if the mysterious lady has a part of the power that belongs to the night.

It's just that this is not a gift, but a steal - an "invisible pain".

And [self-devouring] and [circulation] ......

"What is the specific image of a worm?"

Annan asked.

"It has no physical form, and in ritual it is a self-devouring snake that forms the shape of a ring."

Zoya replied.

…… Uroboros?

Annan's eyes widened slightly.

Isn't this an Ouroboros?

Zoya continued.

"If a person has a black, intermittent ring pattern in front of their heart or at the end of their limb, it can be understood that they have been bitten by a 'worm'.

In other words, he had already died once...... But it was resurrected in this way. Even among the ritualists who are not afraid of heaven and earth, the worm ritual is a taboo among taboos. ”

"Why?"

"Because 'worms' are contagious."

Zoya replied.

"The worm ritual is not so much a resurrection ritual as a self-backup. The personality of the person resurrected by the worm ritual is not the original personality of the deceased, but a hybrid personality dominated by the solidified personality of the ritual master...... If they continue to kill people and continue to perform worm rituals, they can still pass on the original ritualist's personality intact.

"Because the 'parasited' who was resurrected by the worm ritual does not have the memory of the ritual master himself, only the personality of the moment when the ritual master performs the ritual - he knows what he is going to do, but because he does not have this experience, he can't search his memories through the soul snatching spell.

And those who are resurrected may continue to do so for thirteen days. After thirteen days, the corpse will decompose...... But during these thirteen days, as long as one more ritual is performed, the mission can be passed on.

"It may be slow at first, but once it spreads, it's going to be crazy - even the ritual master himself may not be able to stop it."

It's like a virus that multiplies on its own.

Annan was clear.

It's no wonder that the Winter Officials want to exterminate this comedian organization.

They are not harmful in themselves, but the forbidden ritual they have mastered is very dangerous - if it gets out of control, it will be a disaster.

“…… But is this really a ritual held by the elves? ”

Annan frowned slightly, skeptical: "I feel that this ritual is full of evil smells." ”

"Because...... This ritual was not originally used in this way. ”

Zhuoya shook her head: "Before Your Majesty was born, we had already investigated the Worm Sect......"

She was about to continue explaining when she was interrupted by Zorgen.

"You take Your Majesty back away first."

Zorgen didn't look back, but whispered to Zoya: "Ostov Dolgoruki is the identity that he has revealed. I suspect he may have prepared some trap in the room. ”

"Why don't I go in and have a look?"

Si Dark couldn't help but say, "I can be resurrected." ”

"Saboteur go to the other side, don't stand with Your Majesty."

Zorgen said unceremoniously: "I am very experienced, but you are a drag on me with me." ”

…… I feel like you're discriminating against us for destroying wizards.

Si secretly pursed his lips and didn't say anything more.

Annan held his scepter and retreated to the beginning of the corridor.

I could hear such a big movement on the second floor, and the wife and son of the viscount on the first floor still didn't make any movement.

The three players look at each other.

"I'll go down and keep an eye on it."

The wandering child whispered.

Citalopram shook his head: "You are not suitable...... Your weapon is too big to carry. I'll go...... I stopped by to talk to their mother and son. You guys remember to start a live broadcast to share your perspective with me, and I'll keep an eye on it from below. ”

"It's the same with you, you procrastinate when you're in danger. We'll be the first to go down. ”

The child whispered.

He also realized...... It didn't seem quite like what he had in mind at first.

This isn't a safe house, it's inside a dungeon.

If the custom of the Worm Cult is to imitate elves...... Something doesn't seem right with the whole town. Not to mention the two relatives who clearly gave people a sense of disobedience.

"I will."

Citalopram nodded and walked alone.

They watched as Zorgen pressed his right hand against the door, his shadow flowing like a living creature, flowing through the crack in the door—a scene that reminded Annan of Kaphne.

It's just that Zorgen's manipulation of the shadow doesn't seem to be the same as Kaphne's.

If the tentacles in Kaphni's shadow are like limbs, Zorgen's Yinzi reminds Annan of the element pool.

- It's like when the Spiritual Monk called for strength from the elements.

But Zorgen is silver now, and he shouldn't have awakened the elements yet......

"Elves don't develop worm rituals to perpetuate their personality - elves have many life-extension rituals, they have spells to use, and elves have a long lifespan. They don't need to use this way to 'replicate themselves' at all. ”

Zoya continued, "In the beginning, it was a ritual for research.

"Its purpose is to reproduce its own thoughts into multiple copies...... Use multiple 'individuals' to use the same idea and think synchronously. ”

…… Distributed computing?

Annan was immediately shocked.