Chapter 747: The Power of Nature
The altar was very simple and crude, with a wooden pillar erected in its center, narrow at the top and thick at the bottom. A simple portrait of an owl was depicted with a knife or the like in an abstract style, looking more like some terrible monster.
Its body was significantly widened, its eyes were large and out of proportion, and its feathers jumped like flames.
A very thick rope was tied to the post, forming a knot, on which hung a turquoise owl pendant.
Further down, on the ground were complex magical runes that Evan had never seen before. round patterns were interwoven with hexagonal patterns, creating wild shapes.
The runes were shining and a pale blue light flickered in it. Evan could feel a strange magical power, very peaceful, almost healing…
“Is this the Devil’s Altar?” He looked at the wooden post in a daze. “As long as I drop blood on it, I can get rid of the curse.”
But he always felt something was wrong. It was different from the demon altar he had seen in the depths of Hogwarts.
In front of Evan, the little owl flew over to the altar. As soon as it entered the runes range, its body changed rapidly.
Soon, it turned into a girl, about twenty years old. She was beautiful, with clear skin, and eyes as calm as the sea. Her nose was small and her mouth was slightly curved upward, with a sad smile. She was wearing a long classical dress, a scarf and a simple wooden headband on her forehead.
“Hello, stranger!”
“Who are you?” Evan paused and continued to ask, “Why did you bring me to this place?”
“As you can see, I am a dead soul.” The girl said slowly, with a touch of calmness in her voice. “As for my name when I was alive, you can call me Shukrya. I saw you use magic to restore that soul to its original appearance, and I heard what you said to it. I think you can help me escape this curse, so I brought you here. “
“The curse?” Evan gasped, gripping his wand tightly. “I’m here to help you, but only if I know what’s going on in this castle? First of all, what’s that pillar next to you? I can feel strong magical power on it. It’s a strange force to me. “
“This is a totem I made by myself. It is because of its power that all the souls wandering in this castle have become owls,” said Shukrya, looking at the pillar nearby. “I hang the sacred things of our tribe on it. It can communicate with an owl god, which is a very powerful natural force …”
“It’s you who turned all the souls here into owls, and that’s the curse …”
“No, this is not a curse, but a protection!” said Shukrya calmly, correcting Evan’s mistake.
Evan frowned, looking at the girl in front of him and the shining blue wooden pillar beside her, and the exaggerated owl above.
As the woman Ariane he saw in the mirror said before, it was this magic that turned all the souls in the castle into owls, but this thing did not seem to be a devil’s altar.
Evan could feel that this power was not so evil, but rather peaceful.
In fact, what Shukrya said of the totem reminded Evan of another special kind of magic, of how shamans used the forces of nature.
Different from wizards’ magic, shamans used the power of natural elements. They were very ancient and mysterious spellcasters. In those primitive tribes, they were also responsible for communicating with the spirits of their ancestors and treating patients.
In the past, shamanism was very popular, but since time entered the modern era, it had gradually become a relic.
Because the method of inheritance was very ancient and quite complex, it had higher requirements on the caster himself. The casting process with Shamanism was also very tedious, and the communication with the dead and the power of the elements was always necessary. Various restrictions had greatly reduced the number of shamans.
Evan had only read about Shamanism in introductory books about the history of magic, so he didn’t have much knowledge on the topic
The totem that the girl just talked about reminded him of this ancient craft. After all, this was not a very common casting item.
“This totem you made, did you make it in the methods of Shamanism?” Evan asked.
“In our tribe, it is called witchcraft, and those who use this power are called witchdoctors, and are the spiritual leaders of clans and tribes,” said Shukrya; the pale blue magic light slowly flowed through her hands. “We are responsible for communicating with our ancestors’ spirits and the gods of the natural world, guiding our people through all kinds of difficulties and maintaining the order of nature. Of course, in your country, this kind of practice is also called shamanism, but it’s just a different name!”
“A witchdoctor from Africa … then you should be the witch she talked about!” Evan thought for a moment, and continued to ask, “So, what about the protection you just said? Turning all souls into owls, so that they can never rest in peace … how is that protection?”
“It’s a kind of protection!” Shukrya slowly said. “There are very powerful evil forces in this castle. If I don’t provide shelter for these souls, they will be mercilessly devoured by the devil.”
“What on earth is going on? This is not what I’ve learned.”
“I’ll tell you the truth of everything, stranger, and then it’s up to you to decide,” said Shukrya, looking at Evan calmly. “A long time ago, I left my tribe for a journey alone. That was a test. Every witch-doctor in the clan had to undergo this process. The elders hoped that I could cleanse my soul during the trip, better communicate with the elements, and return to the tribe to become the new great witchdoctor. But on that long journey, I gradually lost track of my original purpose. I met a wizard… I met him and fell in love. He wanted to take me back to his family and prepare for us to get married…
We crossed the Mediterranean and were going to Paris, where his family was. We came to this place near the end of the journey. The hostess of this castle was his classmate. They used to study together in a wizarding school called Beauxbatons. At her request, the two of us agreed to stay for a few days before leaving.”
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