Lifeblood and the Infection/Radiance. (THEORY)

[Amthyric]

It appears as though there are 6 fundamental powers in Hallownest.

1) Soul
2) Void
3) Infection (Radiant Light)
4) Essence
5) Lifeblood
6) Scarlet Flame

While some of these overlap, they are each distinct and do not always appear in all fights. The Collector yeilds void, Grimm releases red goo instead of orange, the loyal Mantises always yeild only soul splashes (no Infection). This implies that there is a definite system at play with these powers.

Lifeblood stands out in that it is never used by an enemy. That said, I see some similarities between it and the Infection. For example, both have nearly identical seed forms; I doubt this is laziness (this is fricking Hollow Knight, after all). Both seem to concentrate near the borders of the world (Crossroads is a mutual exception). Finally, both are taboo sorces of power. I base this off the fact that Joni, the pioneer of Lifeblood use as apparent by Joni's Blessing, was a heretic. On a bit more extreme stretch, the Hive, confirmed to be an old sympathizer of the Radiance as stated by the Hive's dream tree, appears to have special interactions with lifeblood. Joni's Blessing combo interacts with the Hiveblood charm to create hivelife masks, masks that can regen despite being lifeblood colored. I feel this list shows my logic in assuming a plausible connection between the two forces.

My theory is that Joni may have indirectly allowed for the rebirth of the Radiance in dreams through forbidden actions or thoughts (hence heretic). The now corrupted dream Radiance spread in physical form via lifeblood. I think this helps explain how the radiance gained a physical, infectious presence outside of dreams.

I don't know whether or not I believe this explaination, but it's cool.

[staffan7s]

That may be true, but the most popular theory regarding the origin of lifeblood is that it has something to do with the abyss creature that is hidden in the background of the room where you can find the lifeblood core. It has also been theorized that the creature might be a higher being that was locked away by the pale king and some think that it's the "blackwyrm" that is mentioned in the hunters notes for the white defender.

[Amthyric]

Originally posted by staffan7s:

That may be true, but the most popular theory regarding the origin of lifeblood is that it has something to do with the abyss creature that is hidden in the background of the room where you can find the lifeblood core. It has also been theorized that the creature might be a higher being that was locked away by the pale king and some think that it's the "blackwyrm" that is mentioned in the hunters notes for the white defender.

My theory is not to explain the origin of lifeblood but how it may have helped the spread of the Radiance. I do agree that the lifeblood monster may have created lifeblood, but I think Joni helped spread its popularity. The Radiance may have then taken advantage of the heretical power to create the infection.