Chapter 73: Watch Out
"Traditions are aspects of the Curtain.
The Curtain itself is a single, unified whole, but human perception is limited, incapable of comprehending everything behind it at once.
Traditions are the angles found by our predecessors, specific ways to observe, understand, and utilize the world behind the Curtain."
The document listed five great Traditions.
Richard read through them one by one, translating each entry into his notebook with a pencil.
The Sun Tradition, Solaris.
A Tradition associated with order, light, and healing, traceable to the innate worship of the sun in various ancient civilizations.
The document mentioned that Cultivators of the Sun Tradition can use Ether to replace organ functions.
Using the Ether Cycle to maintain blood flow or supply oxygen.
The Furnace Fire Tradition, Ignis.
A Tradition associated with forging, transformation, and Alchemy.
Cultivators of the Furnace Fire Tradition do not see Ether as pure power; they see it as a raw material.
The document specifically pointed out that creation and modification are the core tenets of the Furnace Fire Tradition.
"The Silver Bottom Engraving for Seals, the Holy Water for exorcism, the Crystal Ball for Divination... these things don’t just fall from the sky. They need to be made by someone."
The Abyss Tradition, Abyssi.
When it came to this entry, the writing style changed again.
The first two Traditions were described in a neutral, academic tone. With the Abyss Tradition, the author’s tone became somber.
"Deep behind the Curtain lies knowledge, truth, and countless things that existed long before human civilization was born.
Cultivators of the Abyss Tradition attempt to touch those things, to comprehend inhuman logic with the human mind."
"It is the most dangerous Tradition, and also the most alluring."
"The barrier to entry for the Abyss Tradition is extremely low. Anyone can gaze into its depths.
But the barrier to returning from those depths is extremely high. When you gaze into the Abyss, the Abyss also gazes into you."
The Moon-Hunting Tradition, Lunae Venatricis.
The orthodox lineage of Demon Hunters, directly related to hunting, purifying, and banishing.
The document’s wording was concise and to the point, perfectly in line with the character of the Moon-Hunting Tradition itself—less talk, more action.
"The Moon-Hunting Tradition doesn’t care what’s behind the Curtain, nor does it care about the fundamental nature of Ether.
It cares about only one thing: something from behind the Curtain has crossed over, so how do we send it back, or destroy it completely.
The more direct the method, the better. The more efficient, the better."
His maternal grandfather, Gerald, had mentioned in their conversation that three generations of the Ashford Clan had followed the path of the Hunter.
Combined with the description of the Moon-Hunting Tradition, it was highly likely the Ashford Family belonged to it.
The Weaving Net Tradition, Textrix.
A Tradition associated with Seals, Divination, and fate.
"Cultivators of the Weaving Net Tradition perceive the world behind the Curtain as a net.
A Seal is cutting a thread, Divination is tracing a thread, and weaving fate is rearranging the threads."
"Weavers do not stand on the stage; they manipulate everything from behind the scenes."
"By the time you realize you’ve been caught in the net, the threads have already tightened."
Richard drew a simple diagram of the five great Traditions in his notebook, arranging five circles around a sketch of the Curtain.
Each Tradition corresponded to one aspect of the Curtain, but even pieced together, the five aspects did not represent the Curtain in its entirety.
He wrote a line of his own understanding below the diagram:
"Human perception is finite. Traditions are the approximate cross-sections of the infinite Curtain as viewed through that finite perception."
The final section of the document described the conditions for advancing to Grand Mastery.
"To advance to Grand Mastery, a Cultivator must choose a Tradition and complete that Tradition’s ’Second Signature’ ritual. This time, it’s not as simple as just signing one’s name on a Marvel."
"The form of the Second Signature varies by Tradition and will not be elaborated upon in this text.
What must be emphasized is that the Second Signature means you are formally connecting to an entire lineage system.
Your signature will be recorded at the core of that Tradition, and from then on, your actions and reputation will be bound to the Tradition as a whole."
"You no longer represent only yourself."
The qualitative change was described in a single, yet extremely weighty, sentence:
"A Grand Master begins to be able to influence the surrounding Ether Field.
A Practitioner controls the Ether within their own body. One at Minor Mastery turns Ether into an extension of their body. A Grand Master’s Ether radiates outward, changing the environment itself."
Richard’s pencil paused to underline this line.
’Change the environment itself.’
He recalled the move Gerald had demonstrated—crushing him with his Ether Field, a pressure released only upon him, completely unfelt by those standing nearby.
’Ether radiating outward, changing the environment... what if it were magnified tenfold, a hundredfold?’
The document contained only an understated sentence: "A Grand Master no longer fears an army of ordinary men."
Richard rested his pencil on the spine of the notebook and continued reading.
He remembered that the last few lines of this section were written in a different shade of ink, lighter than the main text, likely added sometime later.
"The five great Traditions listed above are currently those with the largest number of followers, the most complete lineages, and the most systematic organizations."
"But the aspects of the Curtain are far more than five."
"Just as a mirror can reflect from countless angles, the world behind the Curtain is also being divided by countless methods of perception."
"Beyond the five great Traditions, there are many smaller lines of heritage scattered throughout the world.
Some are so ancient their origins can no longer be traced; some are so young their founders are still alive."
The narrative tone of the added paragraph shifted. The author had hesitated for a long time before putting pen to paper, but ultimately decided to finish what they had to say:
"You who are reading this have perhaps already begun to map out your own path of ascent."
"I must remind you of one thing."
"Whether it be the five great Traditions or any other lineage, the Tier system draws the same line at the level of Grand Mastery."
"Cultivators below this line, no matter how powerful, can still be understood by ordinary people."
"Their power is magnified human strength; their perception is extended human sense;
Although their lives are somewhat lengthened by Ether, aging and death remain their certain end."
"Beings above the line... I deliberately used the word ’beings’ here, not ’Cultivators’... have already begun to deviate from the category of human."
Richard’s pencil stilled on the paper.
He recalled the Tier sequence he had deciphered from the botany book he found on the third-floor bookshelf in Greenwood.
Expert, Master, Hidden Seat.
The three Tiers above Grand Mastery. Back then, the descriptions in the text grew more and more sparse the higher they went.
Expert was described with only a few words, Master with half a sentence, and Hidden Seat wasn’t even given a definition.
Now, he thought he understood why.
The wording in the document was extremely cautious, as if every word had been weighed before being put down.
"The Ether of a Grand Master is already deeply fused with their physical body, but the scale of this fusion is still within a controllable range.
They still need to eat and sleep, and they can still die from a dagger to the heart... although an ordinary dagger wouldn’t be able to pierce their skin in the first place."
"After crossing the line of Grand Mastery, things begin to change. Ether is no longer a tool or an extension that a Cultivator possesses."
"They themselves begin to become a part of the Ether."
"The boundary between the two dissolves, and the meaning of a physical body diminishes."
"At this stage, the meaning of the word ’alive’ becomes completely different from how ordinary people understand it."
The document did not elaborate further here, only offering a single passage to conclude the entire text.
"All power comes with a price."
"For every gift you receive, the Curtain will take something of equal value from you."
"At the Low Tiers, this debt is almost imperceptible.
The wax consumed by a burning candle is minuscule, and the light from the flame far outweighs the cost."
"But a candle is only so long."
"The brighter you burn, the shorter the remaining wax becomes."
"Some Cultivators choose to stop after ascending to a certain height.
Partly because they can climb no higher, and partly because they glance down and realize there isn’t much wax left beneath their feet."
"But others do not stop."
"They become something else—perhaps stronger than human, more enduring than human, but ultimately, they can no longer be called human."
"As for what that something else is..."
"Cave! (Beware!)"