Chapter 2277 Encounter <TOC> Chapter 2279 Navigating Through the Storm of Hope
Translator: SumTLMan
Feeling the familiar fluctuations received by his mental tendrils, Angel softly said, “It’s really you.”
Angel’s act of speaking made the nearby Void Travelers unconsciously floated back a few paces.
Angel frowned, choosing not to speak further.
Only when the Void Travelers around him returned to calm did he continue, “Shall we talk inside?”
With that, Angel pushed open the door of the vine-covered room, intending to have a private conversation with that particular Void Traveler. However, his action of opening the door, along with the creaking sound it made, caused some of the Void Travelers to retreat in fear.
These Void Travelers were more cautious and timid than Angel had anticipated.
Only the larger version of the Void Traveler seemed relatively calm.
Angel said, “Or do you plan to talk here?”
After a moment of contemplation, the larger Void Traveler sent out a fluctuation of mental energy: “Okay, I’ll go in with you.”
Just as Angel was about to say something, he felt as if a breeze had passed by him. Turning around, he discovered that the Special Void Traveler had already appeared inside the vine-covered room.
Angel kept a composed exterior, but internally he was astounded. He had always known that Void Travelers were fast, given that even ordinary ones could escape in front of Rhine and Iron Armor Granny, let alone this Special Void Traveler. Yet, even with a prior impression, seeing it in action still startled Angel.
The speed was terrifyingly fast.
Taking a deep breath, Angel nodded gently to it and then said to Toby in the distance, “Stay outside, don’t scare them.”
Toby seemed to understand the nature of Void Travelers and did not respond with a chirp as usual but nodded gently to Angel. Even such a slight movement made the Void Travelers in the cloud garden somewhat timid.
Believing Toby to understand the situation, Angel said no more to avoid frightening these timid creatures.
He then closed the door of the vine-covered room.
Angel and the Special Void Traveler sat facing each other.
Initially, Angel planned to create a barrier to prevent sound from escaping, but considering that Void Travelers do not speak and communicate entirely through mental fluctuations, he decided against it.
“Before we talk, let’s introduce ourselves.” Angel said, “My name is Angel Pat. How should I address you?”
“Names are not important in our tribe; we always know who is who and never mistake one for another.”
Angel raised an eyebrow slightly: “But I am not one of your tribe.”
After a moment of silence, a slightly hesitant mental fluctuation came through: “Well, if you must have a name for me, you can call me… Woof Woof.”
Woof Woof? This word has no meaning in the universal language of the Wizarding World; it’s an onomatopoeia, generally referring to the sound of a dog barking.
“That’s a good name,” Angel praised insincerely.
Although Woof Woof did not convey any information, Angel somehow felt that his praise made the other party very happy.
“Mr. or Ms. Woof Woof, can you tell me why you are called Woof Woof?” Angel asked softly, because Woof Woof generally referred to the sound of a dog barking, which made Angel quite curious.
There shouldn’t be any dogs in the void… well, there shouldn’t be.
How did it come up with this name? Angel actually had a guess in his mind that needed confirmation.
“We do not differentiate between male and female; if you must add a suffix, you can call me ‘Ms.’ or ‘Mr.’,” Woof Woof paused, then continued to convey its thoughts through mental power: “This name was given to me by that person, so if you want to know my name, you might as well call me this.”
“That person?” Angel narrowed his eyes and pointed into the air, creating an illusion out of nowhere between them.
It was a cute and clumsy-looking spotted puppy. However, its cuteness was just a disguise; in reality, it was a mysterious creature of unknown level, with a danger level that was not low.
And the spotted puppy’s owner was none other than Dim, the famous Minister of Arms in the Nightmare Plane.
“Is it this one?” Angel asked.
Woof Woof nodded: “Yes.”
Angel pursed his lips, although he had speculated, getting the truth still made him somewhat amused. He wondered whether to tell it that the name was not actually a term of endearment from the spotted puppy, but just a meaningless dog bark.
Seeing Woof Woof’s identification and pride in the name, Angel ultimately decided to let it be; ignorance is indeed a form of bliss.
After exchanging names, Angel finally brought up the main topic.
“The one who has been peering at me continuously in the void, was it you? Why do you do that?” Although Angel was curious about the relationship between Woof Woof and the spotted puppy, he thought it over and decided to start with the main topic.
“We just wanted to find you.”
According to Woof Woof, they peered at Angel from the void just to find his location. However, since Angel was always on the move, they had to spy on him multiple times to confirm his location.
“How were you able to determine my location?” Angel was curious. Did he carry some kind of mark that allowed these Void Travelers to lock onto his position across the vast void?
“We can sense the general direction of other creatures through their scent. This is also how we manage to escape from the predatory Liani Magic Whales in the void. I remembered your scent from our first meeting,” Woof Woof paused, then continued, “However, sensing through scent only gives us a vague direction and cannot pinpoint the exact location. The reason we were able to lock onto your position is because we got this.”
As it spoke, Woof Woof spat out a small object from its mouth.
Upon closer inspection, Angel realized it was a golden hair.
Almost immediately upon seeing it, Angel was certain that the golden hair must be his own.
To find his own hair in Woof Woof’s possession furrowed Angel’s brow, revealing his confusion.
It’s known that after embarking on the path of a wizard, Sanders had warned him that to survive well in the Wizarding World, the first thing to do was to exercise self-discipline, because sometimes a piece of your fingernail or a strand of your hair could become a medium for other wizards to curse you.
Angel took Sanders’ warning to heart, being very strict with his physiological management. Not to mention body fluids or hairs, even the pheromones he emitted were cleaned up by Angel unless there were special circumstances.
Therefore, Angel was very concerned about this strand of golden hair found in Woof Woof’s mouth.
Angel remembered the last time he lost hair was when he was an apprentice, and his hair was burned by a fire elemental sprite at Silent Hill. Moreover, being targeted by a pervert obsessed with “golden hair,” Angel decided to shave his head.
The hair Angel shaved off at that time was also dealt with and shouldn’t have been left behind.
So, when and where did Woof Woof get this strand of golden hair?
Before Angel could ask, Woof Woof gave the answer himself: “This hair is yours, given to me by the lord.”
When Woof Woof mentioned “the lord,” he pointed to the illusion of the spotted puppy in the air.
“The spotted puppy gave my hair to you?” Angel confirmed again.
“Yes,” Woof Woof nodded.
Angel was baffled. If the spotted puppy had given it to Woof Woof, then where did the spotted puppy get his hair from?
Angel didn’t remember the spotted puppy ever pulling his hair… Wait, that’s not right.
Suddenly, Angel remembered something. Although in his memory, the spotted puppy had never pulled his hair, during his time in the Sleepless City, the spotted puppy had swallowed Angel.
Inside the spotted puppy’s stomach, Angel saw various mysterious signs, which later became the premise for his research on mysterious objects.
During the period he was inside the spotted puppy’s stomach, Angel had been unconscious.
If the spotted puppy took advantage of his unconsciousness to pull out his hair, then Angel really wouldn’t know.
Moreover, Angel couldn’t even be sure if the spotted puppy had only taken his hair or if it had also obtained his body fluids.
Thinking this, Angel recalled the last time Minister Nooka held a banquet in the mushroom garden in the Land of Heart Sigh, and the spotted puppy appeared from the Nightmare Plane without any warning. Angel was puzzled at the time why the spotted puppy suddenly appeared.
Could it be because his body hair was in the possession of the spotted puppy, and it sensed his presence, which is why it descended?
Although this was just Angel’s speculation, accompanied by a mysterious self-confidence that seemed almost like boasting, the undeniable fact was that his own body hair was found in the hands of the spotted puppy. Perhaps, his speculation wasn’t entirely without merit.
“Damn it, taking advantage of someone’s predicament!” Angel couldn’t help but curse inwardly… Although somewhat annoyed, thinking about how the spotted puppy had helped him several times, which was an indisputable fact, he still calmed down.
Woof Woof, unaware of Angel’s inner thoughts, continued on his own: “After obtaining your hair, we were able to sense your location much more clearly, following your trail, we quickly found this place.”
Angel: “I want to know, when did the spotted puppy give my hair to you. Was it the last time at the gentleman’s place, when you were let go?”
Woof Woof shook his head: “No.”
“Not that time?” Angel’s voice involuntarily rose: “You met again after that? Didn’t it already return to the Nightmare Plane?”
Could it be that the spotted puppy sneaked out from the Nightmare Plane again?
While Angel was puzzled, Woof Woof provided an answer: “The lord called me over, so I went.”
However, this answer only made Angel even more confused.
“You can go to the Nightmare Plane?” Angel asked in surprise.
“If the Nightmare Plane is that strange world where the lord lives, then indeed I can go,” Woof Woof earnestly said.
Angel: “Since you’ve been to the spotted puppy’s world, can you describe it to me? What kind of world is it?”
Woof Woof thought for a moment and did not refuse.
With Woof Woof’s description, a series of bizarre images appeared before Angel’s eyes.
Because of the spotted puppy’s call, Woof Woof directly arrived at the spotted puppy’s territory. Although he did not visit other realms, just the castle where the spotted puppy lived, Woof Woof saw many wonderful things.
Air that turns one into a puppet when inhaled, clouds that cry and rain down plush toys, statues whose heads turn on their own, headless cat ladies that dance…
In Woof Woof’s view, these seemingly absurd things actually each possessed a very terrifying energy fluctuation. Especially the dancing headless cat lady, whose casual aura was so intimidating that it rendered him immobile.
It’s worth noting that even when facing the pressure released by Rhine and Iron Armor Granny, a Void Traveler would usually remain disdainful. When facing Boil Gentleman, that group of Void Travelers could even unite to resist.
Moreover, Woof Woof, being an even stronger member among the Void Travelers, had an even more formidable immunity to pressure. However, even he was so intimidated by the dancing headless cat lady that he couldn’t move, which indicates how terrifying the opponent’s strength might be.
Perhaps, at the legendary peak? Or even… higher.
In a realm where the headless cat lady and other bizarre creatures roam freely, the territory of the spotted puppy is far from devoid of such oddities. Woof Woof, though never having laid eyes on them, sensed their presence.
Despite being somewhat braver than other Void Travelers, Woof Woof was not significantly more so. Confronted with such terrifying entities, it dared not act rashly. After meeting with the spotted puppy, it hastily departed from that strange world.
Listening to Woof Woof’s account, Angel could ascertain that it had ventured into the Nightmare Plane. That eerie world, Angel could think of no other place.
“How did you go…” Angel began, looking up to continue the inquiry, only to see Woof Woof trembling incessantly, its soft “snot-like body” also shaking.
“What are you doing?”
Angel learned upon asking that Woof Woof was frightened… Merely recalling the scene filled it with dread.
Woof Woof: “That dancing headless cat lady was simply terrifying…”
Angel fell silent for a moment: “Actually, it might not have been the most terrifying aspect. Perhaps consider whose territory you were in.”
Woof Woof paused, then after a while, realized: “…Right, the most terrifying thing was actually, that lord.”
Woof Woof looked up towards the half-disappeared illusion of the spotted puppy in the sky, slightly lost in thought.
“Stop thinking about it, let’s continue.” Angel woke Woof Woof from its daze: “Can you tell me how you got to the Nightmare Plane? Was it your ability or some other method?”
After pondering for quite some time, Woof Woof finally sent a mental fluctuation in response: “I can follow the scent to pinpoint the target location, traversing through the void.”
Void Traversal?! Angel was not unfamiliar with such abilities, but they were typically exclusive to terrifying void creatures with mountainous bodies and unimaginably thick shells, enabling them to shuttle through the void. Otherwise, the void is filled with too many uncertainties and disasters for ordinary flesh to achieve spatial traversal.
And yet, Woof Woof, not particularly strong, possessed this ability?!
“Is this your own ability, or do all Void Travelers possess something similar?”
Chapter 2277 Encounter <TOC> Chapter 2279 Navigating Through the Storm of Hope