Chapter 1397 Siblings Reunited <TOC> Chapter 1399 A Merging of Dead Souls
Translator: SumTLMan
Although the nature of this so-called “feast” remains ambiguous, one thing is clear: indeed, Gloria and Felicia both came because of the upheaval in Black Castle.
“Black Castle has nurtured the souls of the dead for millennia, and it’s very aura has transformed over time. Even if all the ghosts here were eradicated, the foreboding aura filled with resentment wouldn’t dissipate and would continue to attract more souls.” Sanders reflected, a deep sentiment flowing through the spiritual connection, “What Gloria and her team intend to do is address the root cause and change Black Castle fundamentally. From this perspective, Isabelle is indeed set on overturning Isabella’s millennia-old blood baptism plans.”
In other words, while Angel sought to cleanse the ghosts as a remedy, Gloria and her team aimed to eradicate the root cause of the affliction.
Upon hearing this, Angel felt a hint of solace.
As Sanders articulated, Isabelle is determined to alter the current state of Black Castle. Such a transformation might induce short-term turbulence. The castle’s formidable reputation in the past was, in part, due to the presence of ghosts. However, in the long run, this shift would undoubtedly benefit the castle’s evolution.
Angel’s quest to rid the ghosts was rooted in his own interests. Yet, if Black Castle could genuinely reform its state, preventing the needless slaughter of innocent women, it would undeniably be a noble cause.
Initially, assisting Black Castle due to Isabella’s involvement left Angel somewhat unsettled. But now, he’s come to terms with it.
“Although master and disciple, they are worlds apart.” Angel mused, recognizing Isabelle as the most dazzling witch from a thousand years ago. Her decisiveness and foresight far surpassed that of Isabella.
While Isabella, faced with Black Castle’s longstanding maladies, wasn’t looking to heal it. Instead, she turned her attention to potential wizards who could break through to true knowledge — Bogula, using a reverse approach, hoping to give Black Castle a brief respite. This was clearly a superficial solution.
Moreover, placing all hopes in someone else’s hands is never a wise strategy.
Angel was acutely aware that the way he now perceived things was influenced by the contrast with Isabelle. It made Isabella seem somewhat overshadowed. However, if he placed himself in Isabella’s shoes, he might see things differently. After all, Isabella had exhausted her potential, and there were no signs of her mentor returning to the Southern Region. Black Castle was teetering on the brink, and there was limited action she could take.
Regardless of the perspective one chooses, the root cause of all these issues could be traced back to Isabella. Had she not initiated the so-called “Blood Baptism” plan, there wouldn’t have been such complications that followed.
As Angel was immersed in his thoughts, he received a message from Sanders after a while, which read: “You’re right. Even though they’re master and disciple, they’re as different as chalk and cheese.”
Angel nodded in agreement but was taken aback shortly after: “…”
Even though the words Sanders spoke were identical to his, and not a single word was altered, why did it feel wrong to Angel?
Was he truly referring to Isabelle and Isabella?
Angel turned to look at Sanders, who was deadpan, with an air of stoicism and grace in his step.
“Perhaps I misunderstood?” Angel pondered as he turned back.
Under Natasha’s guidance, they meandered through the intricate corridors of the Soul Domain, finally arriving at a lavishly constructed hall.
The hall resembled a chapel more than anything else, and upon opening its doors, rows of seats greeted their eyes. Those seats were almost entirely occupied by witches dressed in witch robes. However, in this context, they bore a striking resemblance to nuns.
In between the rows of seats, a red carpet with dark patterns was laid, extending all the way to a podium at the forefront.
The podium housed a meticulously protected spatial node, surrounded by numerous witches attending to its maintenance and repairs.
“The platform ahead is the teleportation link to Black Forest node.” Natasha gestured towards the elevated stage, saying, “Given that the exit from Black Forest node is near the ghosts army, for safety reasons, it’s guarded by the greatest number of wizards.”
As Natasha explained, she guided them forward.
Walking down the corridor, all the female witches on either side set their gaze upon them. It was clear they already knew of Angel and Sanders’ identities. Their eyes sparkled with recognition upon seeing them.
Sanders naturally exuded a chilly, detached aura. Few witches dared to meet his gaze directly. However, the glances directed at Angel were far more frequent and ranged from the inquisitively curious to the flirtatiously enticing.
Angel kept his eyes forward, inwardly wishing he could command the kind of respect Sanders did, where few would dare lay their gaze upon him.
Under the watchful eyes of many, they ascended the stairs.
No sooner had they settled than they felt a surge of energy, emanating from… the spatial node.
Does that mean someone is coming from the other end of the spatial node? According to Natasha, the other side is near the ghosts army. Could this be a ghostly invasion?
Angel quickly dismissed this thought. Everyone, be it the seated witches below or Natasha and Sanders on the platform, remained calm, suggesting the newcomer was friend, not foe.
Indeed, following a halo of light, a silhouette, seemingly “heavy-headed and light-footed”, emerged. Kimberly, with her thick hair resembling a dense forest, stepped out from the glow.
“Lady Kimberly, what’s the situation outside?” An elderly witch from the node maintenance team inquired as she rose.
Kimberly’s expression was solemn, “The situation is quite dire. As per the earlier reports, she’s detected our location. The ghost activity near the node has intensified, and there are even several mergings of the ghosts present.”
Kimberly’s words instantly shattered the tranquility of the hall, filling it with a cacophony of hushed conversations. The witches below began to whisper among themselves. Even if these whispers started soft, the volume intensified with the growing number of attendees.
“Silence!” An esteemed witch rose, reprimanding the crowd sternly.
As the atmosphere hushed, Kimberly turned to Angel, advising, “For safety’s sake, when venturing out, it might be prudent to activate your bloodline for enhanced defensive capabilities. Once we step outside, we might be immediately faced with successive self-destructive onslaughts.”
Upon Kimberly’s clarification, Angel grasped her intent.
The ghosts were but a fraction of the issue. Beyond them lingered a merging of ghost entities. This collective, the chaotic origin birthed by the thirteenth daughter of King Guman, operates on a simplistic principle——by merging various ghosts, it overwhelms the negative energy within, forging an illusory equilibrium.
The slightest disturbance could offset the balance within these ghosts, triggering a cascading energy catastrophe.
Hearing this, Angel’s demeanor turned grave. He’d never regarded ghosts with much concern, given their power primarily affected the soul’s plane. Angel’s own soul, unique in nature, rendered him immune to the majority of spirit assaults. Hence, he had no inherent fear of confronting them.
However, this ghost merging was different. The devastation it wreaked impacted both energy and physical realms.
Even Angel’s exceptional soul couldn’t grant him immunity. As a result, he became more guarded.
“Besides the ghost merging, the chaotic origin harbors ghosts of various types and levels. Don’t underestimate them, and eliminate them from a safe distance,” Kimberly paused before adding, “I’ve already alerted Lady Isabella. She should arrive shortly; let’s wait for her here.”
While waiting, Angel pondered Kimberly’s warning.
Upon reflection, it made sense. If they were mere ghosts, even if they wreaked havoc, the scope of devastation wouldn’t be so expansive.
With Angel’s growing understanding of the phenomenon referred to as the source of chaos, a powerful curiosity bubbled up within him.
The thirteenth daughter of King Guman was harmless in life, but her death shocked everyone. Though she had never deeply delved into the Wizarding World, the ghost mergings she created, along with other kinds of ghosts, were astonishingly powerful. This hinted at her profound grasp of souls, not merely superficial but intrinsically deep.
Moreover, her strategic and tactical power was nothing short of breathtaking, which is why the denizens of Black Castle found themselves confined to the Soul Domain, too wary to venture out.
Such a talent, tragically born in the wrong era.
“What are you pondering?” Sanders’s voice echoed from the mental link.
Angel briefly shared his thoughts and then expressed his puzzlement, “It’s curious. She was hit by a white light bullet, so why hasn’t she dissipated?”
His mind wandered back to when he first tested the Prelude of Reincarnation, recalling the moment he aimed a shot at the thirteenth daughter of King Guman in Black Castle.
At that time, nothing seemed wrong. But revisiting that memory, Angel noticed certain peculiarities.
Outside Black Castle, Angel harvested ghosts for a while and finally conjured a white light bullet. Out of sheer curiosity about its purpose, he decided to randomly shoot a ghost on the roadside.
While Angel’s choice was spontaneous, the ghost acted oddly even before the shot. While other ghosts mournfully lingered near their remains, this one glared venomously at Black Castle, its eyes brimming with hatred…
Reflecting now, perhaps the thirteenth daughter of King Guman already possessed unique abilities back then, and her loathing for Black Castle, which tormented her in life, was immeasurable.
After Angel fired the shot, only then did he discern the identity of the ghost.
When she was struck by the white light bullet, her face revealed a juxtaposition of half ferocity and half astonishment. Angel attempted to communicate with her, but to no avail. Instead, she took to the sky, escaping in haste.
At first glance, this sequence of events seems unproblematic. However, when juxtaposed with his prior experiments on the Prelude of Reincarnation…
Angel extracted a notebook from his bracelet, turning to the records of the Prelude of Reincarnation experiment.
He meticulously reviewed his experimental records, and upon completion, promptly identified an anomaly.
The timing was Not the Same.
When Angel’s first bullet struck her, she instantaneously transformed into a ‘semi-ghost’ state, exhibiting both ferocity and calm. However, according to another set of data in the notebook, when Angel hit Archie with the white light bullet, Archie struggled on the ground for a good ten minutes before the chaotic energy within him gradually balanced out with the stable energy, turning him into a semi-ghost.
Comparing these two instances, the differences are stark.
Chapter 1397 Siblings Reunited <TOC> Chapter 1399 A Merging of Dead Souls