Chapter 2482 The Bargaining Chips <TOC> Chapter 2484 Origins of the Crisis
Translator: SumTLMan
Outside, Devil’s Sea, Sidro Island.
After enduring several days of ocean storms, the skies finally cleared. A famished and exhausted sand mouse scurried around the sandy terrain, attempting to locate some food.
Soon, the sand mouse emerged with a plump long-haired worm clutched in its mouth, excitedly dashing back toward its cave to savor the delicious find.
Its cave was situated on elevated ground near the coast, an area plagued by bothersome seagulls, but devoid of humans.
However, today, as the sand mouse raced up the mountain with its prize, it suddenly collided with a human.
Were there humans hiking up the mountain?
But just moments ago, there had been no sign of any human shadows.
The small brain of the sand mouse could not fathom how this sudden appearance of a dark-skinned human occurred. Yet, even with its limited intelligence, the sand mouse knew a vital survival rule, to avoid humans at all costs.
Without hesitation, it prepared to dash into the bushes, but before it could flee, it discovered that its legs seemed to have malfunctioned, utterly incapable of movement.
Looking down, it noticed its legs were charred black, including half of its body, as if it had been scorched by fire.
But it had never been close to any fire source; it had merely accidentally bumped into a human’s foot… or rather, a skirt?
The paralyzed little sand mouse lay on the ground, utilizing its scarce wit to ponder what had transpired. Before it could come to any conclusion, it felt its tail being pinched by two fingers adorned with sharp black nails.
The small sand mouse saw itself being lifted by a human who appeared gigantic from its perspective, and then this human shook it in front of their face, saying with a sharp and grating voice: “Mouse, I detest mice.”
A gentle female voice responded from behind her: “Why do you hate mice so much?”
“Because you deceived me; the festive mouse hole you promised doesn’t exist.” The woman, with black curly hair and a face covered with steel scales, turned to look at another woman behind her.
The woman behind her, gentle in speech, bore the same appearance except that she was entirely in white, white curly hair, white scales, and… a white steel puffed skirt, white skirt-powered furnace, and white steam.
“Don’t fuss over these trivial details; the mouse hole was merely a jest. How can you hate mice just because of that?” the white maid reasoned.
The black maid snorted disdainfully and stuffed the struggling sand mouse into her mouth, chewing it to a pulp.
Blood splattered, and fur stuck to the corners of her mouth.
The white maid, smiling sweetly, floated beside the black maid, extended her flawless cheek, and with her pink tongue, gently licked the remnants off the black maid’s mouth.
“The taste of the mice here is terrible,” the black maid stated.
“When did you install a stomach?” the white maid asked in confusion.
“Da Vichyssoise told me; I’m just borrowing his words.”
The white maid had a realization: “So it was the Adorable one who told you, huh? I thought Boil Gentleman had installed a new part for you.”
Mentioning “Boil Gentleman,” a flash of anger crossed the black maid’s face.
“Boil Gentleman has been absent for a long time, engrossed in his research on some cursed object, hardly appearing even when such significant events occur, leaving us no choice but to depart from the Land of Heart Sigh,” the black maid lamented.
The white maid replied, “Don’t be angry, compared to the Adorable one and Tentacle Monster, we’re luckier. We don’t have to face those human wizards.”
The black maid retorted, “Rather than chasing that stubborn dog, I’d prefer to tear those human wizards apart.”
The white maid grinned, “But as you said, Boil Gentleman hasn’t appeared for a long time, and our power furnace is running low on energy. Let’s not waste our efforts; leave that to the Adorable one and his team. Let’s go find the runaway good dog.”
“We must find it quickly; otherwise, Minister Dim’s arrival would also harm our respected lord,” the black maid muttered, nodding reluctantly.
Her dark eyes scanned the surroundings, finally settling on the northwest direction.
“There’s a familiar scent from that way.”
“I smell it too; it might be the good dog or some other strange creature. If it’s the latter, we should avoid it as much as possible,” the white maid suggested.
“Alright, I’ll follow your lead,” the black maid agreed.
The white maid smiled and straightened the black maid’s hair: “Let’s go.”
The black maid paused, “Wait, should we deal with them before we go?”
Turning her head, the black maid noticed three figures in gray robes that had appeared on the mountain path at some point.
“The trespassers from another world that the bishop mentioned are them!” One gray robe declared.
“Their aura feels very odd; which world are they from?”
“No matter where they’re from, as otherworldly trespassers, they deserve to die!” Another gray robe proclaimed boldly.
With those brash words left hanging, as the air cleared again, three charred bodies appeared on the ground.
“Some little bugs thought they could block our path,” the black maid scoffed, “Let’s go.”
Beneath the iron skirts of the Black and White Maids, a large amount of steam was released, and then, their figures vanished from the spot.
After the maids left, about fifteen minutes later, two humans appeared on the highlands.
One wore a black priest robe, and the other, a gray wizard’s robe.
The man in the gray robe crouched on the ground, his face calm as he examined the bodies of three peers, then looked up and said, “Your Eminence, Wizards Star, Moon, and Cloud have been completely annihilated; their souls have also ceased to exist.”
The man in the black robe looked towards the distance: “The work of otherworldly trespassers.”
“How could otherworldly trespassers capable of killing Star, Moon, and Cloud suddenly appear in the Wizarding World?” The man in the gray robe wondered. Such powerful beings crossing worlds would trigger alerts from the World Will to the Extreme Sect, not unnoticed like today.
The bishop in the black robe narrowed his eyes, a halo of True Sight appeared behind him. Under the scrutiny of the Eye of True Sight, he saw some past scenes from the surroundings.
Combining these with some vague hints from the World Will, the bishop seemed to think of something, his expression turning grim.
The man in the gray robe asked, “Your Eminence, have you discovered something?”
After a moment of silence, the bishop softly said, “The disaster originates from Sleepless City.”
Sleepless City… the Eternal Night Kingdom!
The man in the gray robe suddenly looked up, realizing something: “Is it that strange world?”
The bishop nodded.
The man in the gray robe said, “This is tricky… no wonder there was no sign. But why would a creature from that strange world appear here?”
“For that Mysterious Object, I suppose,” the bishop looked towards the direction of the Mist Zone.
“But didn’t the Pursuit of Light Chairman in the City of Truth say that the Mysterious Object is terrifyingly powerful, and even legends might fall?”
The bishop scoffed, “Saladin, you still don’t understand the composition of that world. In that world, the Mysterious Object is mundane. The beings there understand its properties better and are more adept at controlling it.”
“So… should we continue the pursuit?”
“Of course, don’t forget our creed… Let’s go, eliminating otherworldly trespassers is our duty.”
With those words, the bishop flew towards the direction of the Mist Zone, and the man in the gray robe, without hesitation, followed swiftly.
…
Inside the belly of the spotted puppy.
Angel comfortably finished the bread on the porcelain plate and drank a cup of milk, whose origin he did not know but strangely suited his taste, and contentedly belched.
After being tense for so long, he relished this rare moment of relaxation, feeling extremely at ease.
Of course, Angel would be happier if the milk cup would stop uttering phrases like “Ah, I’ve spilled milk again, come lick me.”
Having blocked out the strange utterances of the table utensils, Angel yawned, turning his gaze towards the secluded room’s door veiled by a curtain.
The Enforcer had been inside for nearly an hour; what plan could he possibly have devised by now?
As Angel was musing to himself, the door to the secluded room opened, and the Enforcer, with his white hair, emerged from within.
Angel promptly stood up, greeting him respectfully, “Lord Enforcer, have you conceived of any plans?”
The Enforcer glanced at Angel and nodded slightly, “I’ve outlined a few routes and several different plans, would you like to hear them?”
Angel quickly waved his hand, “Woof Woof can listen, I’d rather not.”
Angel gave Woof Woof a meaningful look, who then lightly floated over and followed the Enforcer back into the secluded room.
Watching the door close behind them, Angel’s gaze also returned.
He was quite curious about what plan the Enforcer might have for Woof Woof… This was the Opulent Nightmare Domain, where he could easily eavesdrop, yet Angel thought better of it and decided against eavesdropping.
He didn’t want to get involved in the affairs of the City of Phantasm; the less he knew, the safer he would be.
As for whether Magniticus De Pawel and Gruz De Weld’s split consciousness knowing his identity made him unsafe? That wasn’t a concern, he had already reached an agreement with Woof Woof and the spotted puppy that they would either die completely, burying Angel’s information in oblivion; or be neutralized, losing their memory of him.
Therefore, Angel didn’t need to worry about those two from the pure white chamber. Otherwise, how could he yawn so carelessly here?
“Full and sleepy,” Angel remarked, “that does remind me of my previous ordinary life.”
However, speaking of sleeping, Angel suddenly remembered that many days had passed in the outside world, and he hadn’t yet assured Sanders of his safety.
Why not take a stroll in the Wilderness of Dreams now that he was free?
But this was inside the spotted puppy’s belly; could he go to the Wilderness of Dreams?
After thinking it over, Angel picked up the spotted puppy, stroked its fur, and whispered in its ear, “My consciousness might shift elsewhere shortly, do not hinder me, understood?”
The spotted puppy looked at Angel in confusion: What are you talking about?
Angel couldn’t be bothered to explain again and didn’t want to keep playing a game of revealing true intentions, so he simply said, “I’ll take it as you understood.”
Angel didn’t put down the spotted puppy; instead, it snuggled in his arms pretending to sleep, while he gently tapped his forehead, entering the Dream Bridge——
Perhaps because he had forewarned the spotted puppy, or maybe because dreams inherently cannot be obstructed, Angel smoothly entered atop the Dream Bridge.
Angel did not directly venture into the Wilderness of Dreams; instead, he first connected with the Power Tree and perceived the general situation of the Wilderness through the “Gate of Dreams.”
In Initial Heart City, everything was tranquil with Freud present, and no incidents occurred.
In the New City as well, there seemed to be no issues, and the number of online users had even reached a new high, likely because many apprentices had obtained login devices and were now actively contributing to the city’s development.
However, when Angel looked closely, he noticed something slightly unusual about the New City.
The wizards who were usually online most of the time, including Tree Spirit, Iron Armor Granny, Liana, Wallace, and others, were rarely offline; particularly Liana, who was usually relentless in attending to the tea party construction. It was odd for Angel to see her offline this time.
The cause was unclear.
Notably, his brother Leon and his mentor Sanders were online.
Longing to see his brother after a long time, Angel decided to first meet Sanders to check in and then catch up with Leon.
He pinpointed Sanders’ location in a magical cottage just outside the New City.
Without hesitation, Angel descended directly.
By the serene lakeside, the stylish magical cottage stood quietly. Approaching, Angel was about to knock when the door automatically swung open.
Sanders, standing behind the door, looked down at Angel from a commanding height.
“You’ve finally arrived.”
Scratching his head, Angel responded, “There was a minor hiccup, but it’s resolved now.”
Sanders grunted affirmatively, stepped aside, and gestured for Angel to come in.
Finding a spot to sit, Angel was about to share his experiences in the Mist Belt, but Sanders interrupted him before he could start: “As long as you’re sure everything’s fine now, we can talk about your situation later. There’s something important I need to discuss with you.”
Startled, Angel nodded earnestly, “Everything’s safe on my end.”
Sanders revealed, “I’ve been staying online just to wait for you.”
“What happened?”
After a moment’s contemplation, Sanders slowly stated, “There’s been an incident at the Star Pool Ruins.”
Following Sanders’ account, Angel learned the full story.
Recently, the Star Pool Ruins had experienced disturbances, unleashing a swarm of creatures from the Nightmare Plane. Unlike the usual minor creatures, the beings that emerged this time were formidable.
At this time, a large number of wizards had already gathered at the Star Pool Ruins.
This is also why Angel discovered traces of wizards in the New City.
Even Rhine had opened a planar passage and returned to the Star Pool Ruins.
“However, by the time Lord Rhine returned to the ruins, two creatures from the Nightmare Plane had already broken through the barriers and left the ruins, their whereabouts unknown.”
“Who were they?”
“The Black and White Maids.”
After Angel returned from the Land of Heart Sigh descent, he disclosed the events that had occurred there, so the iconic figures within were recognizable to those privy to the internal details.
Hearing that it was the Black and White Maids who had left, Angel breathed a sigh of relief. Their power heavily relied on the dynamo, and once they left the Land of Heart Sigh descent, the Nightmare Plane’s aura could not cover them for long. Their abilities would gradually decrease, the consumption of the dynamo would accelerate, and the destruction they could cause in the outside world would likely not be severe.
“Besides the Black and White Maids, at this time, outside the ruins, powerful beings were confronting Lord Rhine and Iron Armor Granny.”
“One is Da Vichyssoise, and the other is Menavarro.”
Chapter 2482 The Bargaining Chips <TOC> Chapter 2484 Origins of the Crisis