Chapter 2160 Falling into Corruption <TOC> Chapter 2162 Absorbing
Translator: SumTLMan
Angel watched in amazement: “95%? Is this a regression?”
As he was thinking this, Freud’s fall into corruption continued to regress at a rapid pace, dropping to around 90%.
Then, after pausing at this point for about ten minutes, it began to plummet again.
This time, the descent was much faster, from 90% to 80% to 70%… It was like a vertical drop. Before Angel could react, it had hit rock bottom.
When the digitized view showed 0%, all of Freud’s corruption disappeared, and his soul returned to its normal state.
Seeing this, Angel was almost certain: it was stable.
After the corruption disappeared, there were no more difficulties; what remained was a matter of perseverance, slowly consuming the Death Aura in the body until the first Soul Trickery was formed.
A day later, Freud had almost depleted the Death Aura in his body, but he had not yet awakened.
“Haven’t the Soul Trickery been cultivated even after all the Death Aura is consumed?” Angel was somewhat surprised. Normally, learning the first Soul Trickery would probably only consume seventy to eighty percent of the Death Aura.
But on second thought, it seemed reasonable. After all, Freud’s first Soul Trickery was derived from Lady Sheila, so it was normal for this special Soul Trickery to consume more Death Aura.
“I remember Alda previously told me that in this situation, Freud himself couldn’t handle it and it must be done by a protector… The first step is to remove the mental power barrier.” Angel murmured to himself as he waved his hand, dispelling the mental power barrier around Freud.
“The second step is to allow Freud to absorb the external Death Aura to support the consumption within his body, otherwise, Freud would start consuming the power of the soul, ultimately draining himself.”
As the mental power barrier was removed, swarms of Death Aura immediately engulfed Freud’s surroundings.
However, now that Freud’s soul was flawless, the Death Aura merely hovered around him without being absorbed.
“The third step is to open Freud’s soul.”
Angel took a step forward, appearing beside Freud. He lightly traced his finger across Freud’s forehead, creating a wound that reached the core of the soul. This wound instantly became the entry point for the surrounding Death Aura into Freud’s body. A large amount of Death Aura began to be absorbed by Freud.
Once Angel confirmed the influx of Death Aura and Freud’s halted cultivation resumed, he breathed a sigh of relief.
This method of opening the soul seemed simple and crude but actually tested the trust between the soul opener and the protector. If either party hesitated, the result would inevitably be failure.
Fortunately, there was complete trust between him and Freud. It probably wouldn’t work with anyone else.
After Freud resumed his cultivation, half a day passed before he stopped absorbing the external Death Aura, indicating that he had gathered enough to cultivate the Soul Trickery.
Angel then re-established the mental power barrier to prevent an excess of Death Aura, avoiding any accidents.
Having done all this, Angel, as the protector, finally completed his great task. All that was left was to wait for Freud to awaken.
Two hours later, as the dawn of a new day arrived, Freud’s tightly closed eyes slowly opened.
In that instant, Angel seemed to see two green flames dancing in Freud’s eyes. However, Freud quickly subdued his unusual gaze and returned to calm.
Freud, now, looked no different from three days ago, and his soul had not undergone any qualitative change.
However, the Death Aura that had previously hovered around Freud had completely disappeared.
Upon Freud’s previously gloomy and silent expression, there was a transformation towards brightness——a peculiar description for a ghost, but that’s how it felt to Angel.
Furthermore, without the shackles of Death Aura, Freud’s soul core’s potential was broadened. This meant Freud’s bottleneck was broken, and continued cultivation would face no obstacles in the near future.
After ensuring Freud’s wellbeing, Angel’s curiosity turned to what Soul Trickery Freud had inherited from Lady Sheila.
Angel speculated it was likely Ghostly Obfuscation. Previously, Lady Sheila used this against Little Seim in Star Lake Castle.
Even if it was Ghostly Obfuscation, it probably differed from the usual kind.
However, the specific difference was unknown to Angel. Lady Sheila, in her encounter with Little Seim, merely toyed with him, not revealing the trickery’s unique aspects.
This question would wait for Freud’s explanation.
Half an hour later, Freud, having fully healed the wound on Angel’s forehead, approached respectfully and bowed: “Thank you, my lord, for your protection.”
Angel waved his hand indifferently and eagerly asked his burning question: “What Soul Trickery did you acquire?”
“Ghostly Obfuscation.”
The answer was as expected, but Angel was more interested in how this version differed from the standard.
Before Freud could explain, Angel interrupted, “Don’t explain, use it on me. I’ll feel it for myself.”
Freud nodded, activating the trickery within his soul core.
In Angel’s view, strange soul ripples appeared around Freud. As these nearly imperceptible ripples passed through Angel, he felt a slight fluctuation in the surrounding space.
Angel looked around. He was still on the altar, with Freud by his side, and everything seemed unchanged.
Thinking, Angel walked towards the altar’s steps. As he began descending, he noticed the steps endlessly extending… suggesting he would never reach the bottom under these circumstances.
Thanks to the Radiance of Light above, Angel could clearly see the steps’ transformation. In complete darkness, obscuring the subject’s senses, one might forever be lost.
This was the essence of Ghostly Obfuscation.
If described in Freud’s words, it would be akin to walking in circles.
Being a wizard skilled in illusions, Angel almost instantly saw through Ghostly Obfuscation’s reality. Dispelling it was simple for him.
Yet, Angel didn’t break the illusion, choosing to experience Ghostly Obfuscation, as he hadn’t noticed anything special yet.
Despite careful observation, no particularity was evident.
Then, Freud’s voice came from behind, “My lord, perhaps continue down the steps.”
Angel understood this as a hint from Freud.
Without obstinance, Angel heeded Freud’s suggestion and continued. Without dispelling Ghostly Obfuscation, the original thirty-six steps felt like an endless loop to Angel.
After about a hundred steps, Angel vaguely sensed a change, though not pronounced.
Another hundred steps later, Angel stopped. A disturbance in his soul finally revealed something wrong.
“Is it possible to influence the Land of Souls just by being trapped in Ghostly Obfuscation?” Angel walked two hundred steps in the Ghostly Obfuscation and clearly felt the souls in the Land of Souls stirring.
Without active intervention, the soul would be involuntarily pulled out of the body.
Is this the special aspect of Freud’s Ghostly Obfuscation?
Angel looked at Freud, who nodded: “Yes, as long as the person under the spell cannot break the Ghostly Obfuscation and keeps looping within it, they will unknowingly leave their body in soul form and continue to be trapped in the Ghostly Obfuscation.”
Freud paused: “However, this only targets low to mid-level apprentices and ordinary people. For advanced apprentices, the effect is average. They can feel the disturbance in the Land of Souls and won’t continue to walk in the Ghostly Obfuscation. For formal wizards, it is completely useless.”
“It silently leads one to death by soul separation, kind of like an illusionary death spell,” Angel pondered. “It seems Little Seim was really lucky. If Lady Sheila hadn’t been intent on toying with and killing him, just the soul separation effect alone would have been unbearable for him.”
Angel personally thought that this effect was quite good, essentially equivalent to a third level trick combining control, disengagement, and attack.
If truly used, although it couldn’t make a third level apprentice leave their soul, trapping them and preventing their escape would be easy.
With this trick, Freud was already comparable to his once titled “Dream Reader.”
Indeed, a special ghost’s ability.
As Angel thought this, Freud said, “Soul separation is just the first special aspect of this trickery.”
Angel looked over in surprise: “You mean, Ghostly Obfuscation has a second special ability?”
Seeing Freud nod, Angel didn’t ask further, sensing the surrounding Ghostly Obfuscation again… However, he felt nothing special.
With Angel’s current ability, not sensing anything special meant only one explanation.
“The second special ability, is it triggered after soul separation?”
Freud nodded and stated directly: “Yes, in my Ghostly Obfuscation, if a person’s soul leaves, I can, attach to their body.”
Angel abruptly raised his head: “Possession? Soul separation and possession?”
Freud nodded: “Yes, possession. However, it’s significantly different from typical soul-possession tricks. Since the original soul has already left, the body I possess is essentially half-dead. My possession is more like a living dead. In the short term, there’s no significant difference from a normal person, but over time, as the soul weakens, the body will die, and once it rots, I can only leave.”
Freud shrugged: “I actually don’t see much advantage in this kind of possession. The only benefit is that before the body dies, I can experience the pleasures of living, like tasting human food again.”
Despite the significant limitations of this possession explained by Freud, it’s still a special aspect.
One Ghostly Obfuscation possessing two subsequent abilities; broadly speaking, this is almost equivalent to three Soul Trickeries. The effects of soul separation and possession are also quite good. Despite Freud currently finding possession useless, sometimes things achievable by the living can’t be done by the dead. So, even if possession only offers a brief period of living experience, it’s much better than being entirely ghosts.
And, if one could share a soul, like Gloria occupying another’s body as dual souls, then the body probably wouldn’t decay and die. However, finding someone willing to share souls is difficult, and Freud doesn’t have a powerful soul like Gloria’s to forcibly take over.
Angel: “Regardless, this is already a very perfect Soul Trickery. It greatly enhances your strength.”
Freud nodded, understanding that he had indeed gained a great advantage this time and would certainly need to make it up to Little Seim.
Angel said, “Now that you’ve learned the Soul Trickery, it’s time for us to leave. These past few days, Star Lake Castle has been quite lively…”
Freud didn’t know what Angel meant by ‘lively,’ but he didn’t ask and decided to see for himself later.
After dispelling the Ghostly Obfuscation, Freud followed Angel out of the cave.
Standing at the entrance of the cave, Freud paused for a moment and looked back at the altar, still shrouded in chilling winds, “The Death Aura here is like an ocean, my consumption is almost unable to affect the total amount of Death Aura…”
“Yes, later Alda and Sunny can also come here to practice Soul Trickery, but they will be under your protection,” Angel said.
Freud nodded, “I understand.”
Alda and Sunny would definitely learn Soul Trickery step by step, and him being their protector was sufficient, without troubling Angel.
“Let’s go,” Angel said softly, his figure disappearing into the dark tunnel.
Freud followed.
…
Upon returning to Star Lake Castle, Freud finally understood what Angel meant by the place being ‘lively.’
It was because Eniya had brought two young people, a boy and a girl with an obviously noble demeanor, to Star Lake Castle.
Eniya was currently urging them to clean Star Lake Castle while also taking care of Little Seim’s meals, as he was recovering from damage to his life energy.
After inquiring with Eniya, Freud learned that these two were the newly ascended young king and the future queen of the Silver Heron Royal Family.
The reason they were here doing hard work was mainly because Eniya wanted to resolve the grudge with Little Seim’s family.
Eniya had already learned from Freud about the entire process of Little Seim taking down Lady Sheila. Little Seim’s decisiveness and wisdom greatly impressed Eniya.
Moreover, Eniya could see that Angel thought highly of Little Seim.
Little Seim was bound to join the Savage Grottoes in the future. He was already very intelligent and valued by Angel. If he could gain some opportunities from Angel, there might be a chance for him to become a wizard.
Such a potential seed of greatness, from the same lineage of Saint Seim but harboring hatred towards the current royal family due to past incidents, troubled Eniya.
Eniya couldn’t possibly eliminate Little Seim under the protection of Angel and Freud, so the only solution was to win him over and resolve the grudge.
These two youths, both currently esteemed members of the royal family, had a good relationship with Little Seim since their childhood.
Therefore, Eniya brought them here.
Freud had nothing to say about Eniya’s actions. As this was a matter concerning the descendants of Saint Seim, he felt it wasn’t his place to interfere.
However, he did owe Little Seim a favor. After some thought, he said to Eniya, “Your family’s feud is not something I should comment on as an outsider. But consider Little Seim’s perspective, do you really think that just by using sweet words and invoking childhood connections, and offering to clean the castle as a gesture of sympathy, you can resolve a longstanding family hatred? Do you believe the world works that easily?”
“Even if Little Seim agrees now, when he becomes more rational and mature in the future, and reflects on today’s events, do you think he won’t feel that he was merely deceived by your words?”
Freud’s underlying message was clear: merely using words and emotional manipulation, without offering any tangible benefits, was not enough to earn Little Seim’s forgiveness.
Freud simply wanted to help Little Seim gain more advantages. Although Eniya was a wizard apprentice and a member of the royal family, secretly controlling the entire Revelation Continent, she undoubtedly had substantial resources at her disposal.
Offering a portion of these could be more than enough for Little Seim’s initial needs.
Of course, whether Little Seim chose to forgive was his own decision. Even if he didn’t, it wouldn’t prevent him from receiving benefits, which he rightfully deserved.
After expressing his thoughts, Freud no longer paid attention to Eniya and returned to his room. He hadn’t visited the Wilderness of Dreams for several days and had a pile of tasks awaiting him.
Chapter 2160 Falling into Corruption <TOC> Chapter 2162 Absorbing