Chapter 2148 Feng and the Oil Painting <TOC> Chapter 2150 Spider Body with a Human Head
Translator: SumTLMan
Descending from the Treehouse Bar’s top level, he soon arrived at the lobby on the first floor.
Compared to the quietness of the top floor, this place was much livelier. Many of the idle residents would come here to have a few drinks, sit, and chat.
Angel’s gaze swept around for a moment, eventually locking onto a corner.
Before he even got there, he could already hear the continuous giggles.
Two beautiful ladies, one hand holding a freshly brewed flower wine and shaking it, the other holding a feather fan covering their constantly laughing mouths, their eyes closely following the grey-haired old man in the center.
Hearing the beauties’ laughter, the old man became even more excited, continuing to share his experiences, which were fantastic and fanciful, eliciting even more bashful laughter.
In Angel’s view, this scene was simply a sleazy old man deceiving naive young girls.
However, these two ‘young girls’ clearly had rich experiences, their eyes filled with astuteness. Even so, they were still amused by the old man’s tales, showing how skilled, albeit sleazy, the old man was.
Angel originally planned to wait until the old man finished talking before approaching. But the old man, like a tireless storytelling machine, kept unloading one glamorous story after another without end.
Angel thought for a moment and decided not to wait, walking forward and gently knocking on the table.
“Lord Nisi,” Angel nodded in greeting.
This grey-haired old man was Sanders’ close friend, the soul wizard Nisi Byron.
“Two beautiful ladies, I have something to ask Lord Nisi. May I take some of your time?” Angel paused and looked towards the ladies.
Although Angel’s identity had not been openly announced in Initial Heart City, private discussions were never prohibited. Recognizing Angel’s face, the ladies guessed his identity and did not hesitate, nodding: “Of course.”
With that, they walked hand in hand to another table.
Angel then sat next to Nisi, blinking: “Wizard Nisi, it seems you’ve been enjoying yourself lately?”
Nisi smiled modestly: “It’s been alright.”
Although his response was understated, there was a hint of pride in Nisi’s eyes, as if saying ‘ask more, and I’ll elaborate.’
Clearly, the topic Nisi wanted to ‘elaborate’ on was not related to exploration or research.
Angel ignored the topic Nisi wanted to talk about and directly stated his purpose: “I came here because I have a small question to ask Wizard Nisi.”
Nisi raised his head to look at Angel, indicating for him to continue.
“Has Wizard Nisi ever heard of a talent called the Near Spirit Body?”
Angel’s primary reason for entering the Wilderness of Dreams was to consult Nisi about the nature of the Near Spirit Body.
He had never heard of such a talent before.
Since this talent was termed ‘Near Spirit,’ Angel thought it might be related to the soul, so his first choice was to consult the Soul Wizard Nisi.
“Near Spirit Body?” Nisi’s expression suddenly became solemn, his previously relaxed demeanor turning serious: “Why do you suddenly ask about this?”
“I just happened to hear about the Near Spirit Body and was curious.”
Nisi carefully observed Angel’s expression for a while and then said with a dubious tone, “I’ve already heard from Tree Spirit that you left the Savage Grottoes. You didn’t encounter a person with a Near Spirit Body outside, did you?”
Angel smiled slightly: “I did encounter someone, but the Near Spirit Body within them is recessive.”
“Really encountered one?” Nisi was somewhat surprised: “Recessive… It seems that the bloodline concentration is insufficient. It’s a pity, if the Near Spirit Body could manifest, it would be a very good seedling.”
“Why do you say that?”
Nisi: “The Near Spirit Body is an extremely special soul talent. Souls with this talent are naturally the dominators of souls.”
With Nisi’s explanation, Angel also gained a concept of the Near Spirit Body.
As he had previously guessed, the Near Spirit Body indeed related to the soul. People with this talent naturally attract various kinds of souls and can influence them to some extent.
The effect may not seem much, but in fact, it contains immense power.
Firstly, the surroundings of a Near Spirit Body will naturally gather a large number of souls. These souls, being naturally close, would gradually become the best assistants to the Near Spirit Body, even without a contract.
Secondly, once a Near Spirit Body starts the cultivation of the soul, their own body is the purest source of the soul, continuously providing enhancement power to the soul, making it stronger. They might even attract or cultivate special souls.
Finally, when a Near Spirit Body cultivates to a certain stage, they can even manipulate to some extent the thoughts of ghosts that have become chaotic and only retain the consciousness of killing.
This talent can be said to be the top talent in the soul school.
Nisi: “However, as good as this talent is, most benefit only after cultivation. If one doesn’t embark on the path of a wizard, this talent is easily counterproductive to oneself.”
“Why would it backfire?” Angel asked, puzzled.
“If you have read —The Widow— written by the Twilight Queen Isabelle of Black Castle, you will understand what I mean. In this book, it is clearly stated why the Near Spirit Body is rare, not because of its scarcity, but because once their talent awakens, the mortality rate exceeds 90%.”
“They don’t die because of awakening, but rather, after awakening, they die from the influence of spiritual entities. The biggest cause of death is the attack of ghosts.”
The Near Spirit Body not only naturally attracts souls but also a large number of ghosts.
If the owner of a Near Spirit Body goes through cultivation, they can influence ghosts to some extent, even control them. But if they are just ordinary people who have awakened their talent and are found by a large number of ghosts… the consequences are imaginable.
“A Near Spirit Body attracts a large number of ghosts…” Upon hearing this, Angel couldn’t help but recall the situation at Star Lake Castle, where more than thirty ghosts densely surrounded the castle.
At that time, Angel was puzzled as to why there were so many ghosts.
Although Star Lake Castle is located on land heavy with Death Aura, attracting ghosts, it was once a summer retreat for the Saint Seim Family, which never attracted ghosts, indicating that the land was definitely not contaminated by Death Aura at that time.
This means that the current Star Lake Castle is most likely filled with Death Aura brought by the ghosts, not naturally occurring.
So why did so many ghosts gather at Star Lake Castle?
The answer now becomes clear.
In that inscription space, there is the bloodline of the Near Spirit Body extracted from Queen Lorraine.
Although the inscription space seems isolated from reality, it is actually not completely detached from it. Moreover, after so many years, the aura from the inscription space has begun to seep out, attracting ghosts.
“Alas, I thought you had encountered a Near Spirit Body, but it turns out the bloodline concentration is insufficient,” Nisi sighed. “However, this is beneficial for that person, as a recessive Near Spirit Body won’t attract ghosts.”
Angel said to him, “Why does Wizard Nisi sound full of regret?”
Nisi nodded, “Of course, it’s regrettable. This is a Near Spirit Body. As a soul wizard, if I could take such a disciple, in the future, I could just wait for the appearance of special souls instead of having to toil and travel.”
Angel, admiring Nisi’s sighs, eventually said slowly, “Although the child I met has a recessive Near Spirit Body. But at the same time, I also got a bottle of refined blood extracted from a person with the Near Spirit Body talent.”
Pausing, under Nisi’s astonished gaze, he continued, “Moreover, this bloodline has the same source as that child’s, and their compatibility is extremely high.”
Upon hearing this, Nisi stood up excitedly and said, “Are you serious?”
Angel nodded, “Yes.”
Then, Angel briefly described the events that happened after he met Little Seim.
“This story is indeed full of twists and turns,” said Nisi after listening, then his mouth began to turn up unconsciously, “Since Little Seim also wants to join the Savage Grottoes, isn’t it perfect? Bring him back for me to see!”
Angel did not refuse. He had planned to recommend Little Seim and with his soul talent, only Nisi could give him the best guidance.
Angel: “I will see how things go, first test his mental power value. If it exceeds 7, I will bring him back to the Savage Grottoes when I return.”
Nisi nodded, his expression already unable to contain his excitement, almost beaming with joy.
If he could really take a disciple with a Near Spirit Body, its significance was completely different from his other disciples. Other disciples didn’t contribute much to him, like Hookedick; Nisi wouldn’t be distressed by his death because it didn’t affect his interests much.
But taking Little Seim, with the benefits of the Near Spirit Body, was comparable to a small soul Wizard Garden. If lucky, he might even rise to great heights in the future.
This made Nisi very happy.
However, as the future was still uncertain, Nisi could still restrain his excitement. He even asked, “Speaking of which, you have been a wizard for some time now, when do you plan to take a disciple?”
Angel was noncommittal about this.
Nisi: “Didn’t Maya say on the Star Observing Day that soon a guide will return, bringing many talented people? You might want to pay attention then.”
Angel nodded, “I’ll see about that.”
Seeing Angel unwilling to discuss further, Nisi did not bring it up again but said, “Your luck seems good this time, encountering a painting left by the Magic Painter. Even if it’s just an ordinary oil painting, it’s highly sought after in auctions.”
Angel smiled and vaguely said, “Maybe, in a few days, I will encounter more things left by the Magic Painter.”
“Huh?” Nisi didn’t understand.
Angel did not explain but stood up, “Thank you for your answers today, Nisi. I have some things to do, I’ll return to reality now.”
After bidding farewell to Nisi, Angel did not stay in the Wilderness of Dreams but returned to reality.
Freud came in from outside at this time.
“Lord, I have arranged Little Seim properly; he is in a bedroom downstairs,” Freud said respectfully and then curiously asked, “Lord, did you take a guide mission this time?”
“Why would you think that?”
Freud was a bit embarrassed, “I thought Little Seim was a talent you found.”
“He is not a talent yet, but, in the future, who knows.” Angel did not hide the situation of Little Seim from Freud and introduced it to him.
After listening, Freud also felt deeply moved, but after the emotion, he seemed to recall something, a hint of realization in his eyes.
Angel: “By the way, I will give you the scroll for practicing Soul Trickery.”
Saying it was a scroll, in fact, Angel created an illusion, using illusion magic to materialize the scroll recorded in the illusion.
The knowledge of Soul Trickery was obtained from High Cloud Library, but it was still in the library, so he could only create a virtual scroll with illusion magic.
“Speaking of which, I originally planned to drag the books from High Cloud Library to the Wilderness of Dreams using the Dream Conch, but I was stopped.” Angel sighed regretfully. If he really did, he would have a portable library.
Unfortunately, both Tree Spirit Lord and Rhine rejected his proposal.
The librarian and owner of the library is Book Ancestor.
Without Book Ancestor’s approval, not to mention dragging the entire library into the Wilderness of Dreams, even the Soul Trickery knowledge scroll could not be done like this.
This is one of the reasons why Angel traveled the long distance with the scroll instead of letting Freud learn in the Wilderness of Dreams.
Upon receiving the scroll, Freud immediately opened it to read.
After a while, Freud put down the scroll contentedly. The Soul Trickery in it made it clear to him that the world of souls has such a strict system.
He also profoundly realized why soul wizards say: Death is the true beginning.
Angel: “How about it, when do you plan to start practicing?”
Freud thought for a moment: “I already have some understanding of the soul body, I guess I can start practicing in a few days. However, Alda and Sunny might need more time to understand.”
“Okay, call me when you start practicing.” Angel indicated that Freud could go study.
Freud nodded and hesitated as he turned to leave: “Lord, I just remembered something.”
“Hmm?”
“When I heard you talking about the Near Spirit Body, I felt vaguely familiar. Later, I realized that I had read about it in a travelogue by Fivenda.”
“—The Wondrous World— author, Fivenda?”
Freud nodded: “Yes. Fivenda loves writing travelogues. He records all the strange things he experiences in them. The travelogue I read didn’t detail the Near Spirit Body, but it mentioned a detail.”
“The person with the Near Spirit Body talent described by Fivenda, most people he killed turned into ghosts.”
Angel was startled: “You mean, the likelihood of people killed by someone with a Near Spirit Body turning into ghosts increases?”
Freud nodded: “I was thinking, Lord, you said Little Seim ran away after killing the farm owner. Could this farm owner have turned into a ghost?”
Angel shook his head: “Probably not, since Little Seim’s Near Spirit Body talent is recessive now.”
“Initially, Queen Lorraine also had a recessive Near Spirit Body talent, and she, as a queen, must have killed many. If there were ghosts, it would have erupted long ago.”
“However, although I don’t think the farm owner would become a ghost, the joint noble ritual of live human sacrifice needs attention.” Angel: “Since the Silvercloud Duchy is a vassal state of the Central Empire, send a message to Eniya of the Silver Heron Royal Family, and let her go check the situation.”
Chapter 2148 Feng and the Oil Painting <TOC> Chapter 2150 Spider Body with a Human Head