Chapter 2668 Order of Entry <TOC> Chapter 2670 Origin of Personality
Translator: SumTLMan
After the Black Count entered the Hanging Prison Stairs, the door at the base of the little statue of the peeing boy did not close. In fact, even their mental connection was not severed.
“Did he do this on purpose?” Daus asked within the mental connection.
The Wise One could have completely shut off the passage between the Hanging Prison Stairs and the outside world, but he did not. He even left a special channel of communication open. In Daus’ eyes, that definitely was not normal behavior.
Angel did not speak. He merely glanced at the Wise One and discovered that the Wise One was also looking at him, a slight smirk tugging at his lips, the eye at his brow narrowed into a seam.
Noticing Angel had caught him staring, the Wise One showed no hint of embarrassment. Instead, he nodded slightly at Angel. Then, right in front of Angel, he slowly produced a pair of triangularly arranged three-lens spectacles.
The spectacles had golden rims, with a golden chain dangling from each side of the frames.
If it weren’t for the third-lens piece, the look would be rather normal. But now, it seemed rather odd… and when paired with the Wise One’s youthful appearance, there was even a hint of endearing whimsy?
While Angel silently lampooned this in his mind, a sudden sensation of being seen through, down to his very core, washed over him.
Alarmed, Angel did not hesitate to set up a Nightmare Illusion barrier around himself, regardless of whether that might expose anything.
Under the shroud of the Nightmare Illusion, that sensation of being seen through gradually faded.
Confirming there was no other sign of danger, Angel then raised his head and looked at the Wise One opposite him.
There was no doubt this was the Wise One’s doing.
The Wise One did not intend to deny it. In fact, with a faint smile, he said: “The secrets you carry are quite interesting… Are you really a descendant of Noah?”
Angel remained silent, staring coldly at the Wise One, his expression demanding to know the meaning behind the Wise One’s actions.
Taking in Angel’s wary look, the Wise One realized that if he moved any further, Angel and his group would likely leave immediately.
That wasn’t something the Wise One wished to see, at least not at the moment. They still couldn’t leave yet.
Hence, for once, the Wise One offered an explanation: “There is no need to be so on guard against me. If I truly intended to strike, I could have done so before he reinforced the Earth Rampart. There’s no reason to wait until now. Even now, if I wanted to break through this Earth Rampart, it wouldn’t be much trouble.”
“Is that so?” Angel whispered softly. Then, under the Wise One’s watchful eye, he quietly moved aside.
Behind him, where he had been standing, there were dozens of finely engraved rune scrolls, suspended and whirling in the air. They appeared unconnected, each drifting on its own, yet an invisible energy chain linked them all together.
If that energy chain was triggered, all the rune scrolls would be activated in an instant.
Even though the Wise One couldn’t immediately discern what categories these rune scrolls belonged to, he could see from appearance alone that they were all middle-rank and above, each one of great value. Furthermore, at the center of these swirling rune scrolls, there was a particularly unique-looking scroll with a very unusual aura.
This special rune scroll hung quietly without moving, but the powerful energy fluctuations emanating from it were impossible to hide.
It was undoubtedly a high-rank rune scroll, harboring thick and radiant energy, highly likely of the defensive variety.
So many rune scrolls were linked together, complemented by the high-rank scroll in the middle and the Earth Rampart outside placed by the Black Count. If they were all activated at once, they could easily open and close a planar passage without hindrance.
This was Angel’s way of telling the Wise One that if they really wanted to leave, the Wise One wouldn’t be able to stop them.
Regarding Angel’s display of a giant cluster of rune scrolls, the Wise One, apart from lamenting the hefty reserves the other side seemed to have, held no other reaction. He had not intended to attack them here in the first place.
The Wise One was more intrigued by something else hidden among those rune scrolls.
An external Formation Disc.
Earlier, the Wise One had said he could easily breach the eightfold Earth Rampart. He wasn’t referring to relying on his own powers, but rather to controlling the magic formation and using its power to counter the Earth Rampart.
Though it was somewhat underhanded, that was the basis for the Wise One’s confidence.
However, when Angel revealed those swirling rune scrolls, the Wise One realized he could no longer control the portion of the magic formation covered by the Earth Rampart.
It felt as though the formation there had vanished entirely. This feeling was exactly like the one he had sensed at the Goddess’ location.
And in the place left behind by Augustine, the person who arranged it was Margaret. The reason that area was beyond the magic formation’s control was an external Formation Disc crafted with a rare magic material known as Sage Eternal Crystal.
The illusionist standing opposite him now had clearly used the same principle, temporarily sealing off the portion of the magic formation in which he and his group stood.
Even if that Formation Disc was inferior to a Sage Eternal Crystal in quality, accomplishing such a feat in a short time frame already demonstrated one key point:
This illusionist wizard was absolutely proficient in runic arts.
The underground sewers’ formation was massive and intricate, with intersecting energy conduits and variables constantly arising and vanishing. To isolate a pocket of free space in such a colossal magic formation, adjusting everything on the spot, was a significant achievement.
He possessed strength, wealth, a one-of-a-kind mastery of illusions, and, despite his youth, a formidable command of runic arts.
Combining all these factors, the Wise One had almost fleshed out a rough profile of Angel in his mind.
He couldn’t possibly be a wandering wizard, nor from some ordinary wizard family. Most likely, he was cultivated within a large wizard organization or a top-notch wizard family, a supernova nurtured with utmost care.
The Wise One felt a slight regret that he rarely paid attention to young wizards in the Southern Region. Otherwise, from these clues alone, he might have directly deduced Angel’s real identity.
Even so, though the Wise One couldn’t confirm Angel’s identity, he was less convinced now that Angel was from the Noah family.
Though the Noah family was a top wizard family, they were known for their use of earth elemental powers and specialized in a single branch. Would they truly have raised a pure illusionist as extraordinary as this? That would be highly unusual.
If Angel were from the Noah family but not so talented, his focus on illusions might be plausible.
But given how exceptional Angel appeared in every regard, it seemed strange for the Noah family, famed for earth elemental arts, to have raised such a genius of an entirely different specialty. It wasn’t a matter of skepticism, but of the family’s underlying foundation.
Although the Wise One had begun to doubt Angel’s background, he didn’t dare to dismiss the possibility entirely, given that Angel was evidently the core and, indeed, the leader of this small group.
They were entering Augustine’s legacy, and by rights, the one in charge ought to be someone of the Noah family.
Because of that, the Wise One wouldn’t label Angel’s identity definitively just yet.
“I merely noticed something unusual about you and decided to take a closer look. There’s no need to be so ready to draw your sword against me.” The Wise One said, smiling as he looked at Angel’s severe expression.
“Then, Sovereign of Wisdom, did you see what you were looking for?” Angel asked, his tone cool.
The Wise One replied: “You possess many anomalies, but those aren’t the reason I observed you. It’s that,” He pointed at Angel’s shadow.
“The Demon from the Panic World.” The Wise One spoke with great interest: “I never expected anyone could tame such a creature. How did you manage it?”
Angel remained silent.
The Wise One continued: “You needn’t answer if you don’t want to. However, since I’ve discovered it, you should understand what I’m implying… You can’t bring that thing with you into the Hanging Prison Stairs.”
Earlier, the Wise One had stated that at most two people would be allowed to enter, and one of them had to be a weaker apprentice. This was to avoid frightening that timid Wood Spirit.
The demon hidden in Angel’s shadow was almost as powerful as the nose he had seen before.
Hence, if Angel intended to go inside, he would have to leave the demon behind.
Angel didn’t argue. Although he suspected that the Wood Spirit might not even sense Eremy, since the Wise One had already set that rule, there was no issue in letting Eremy remain outside.
In any case, if Angel really did enter the Hanging Prison Stairs, he would come out swiftly. He didn’t plan to linger long inside, merely wanting to confirm that Sanders’ mementos hadn’t attracted unwanted attention. Then he would leave.
Seeing Angel acquiesce, the Wise One said no more and simply shifted his gaze aside.
Meanwhile, the glow of the Wise One’s glasses flickered ceaselessly.
Angel could clearly sense that the three-lens spectacles the Wise One wore were exchanging information with the magic formation in the vicinity, directly passing through the doorway into the Hanging Prison Stairs.
In other words, barring any surprises, the Wise One was now observing the situation inside the Hanging Prison Stairs.
…
“Gold, can you hear me?”
Just as Angel was studying the changing magic formation around them, a stream of thoughts came through the mental connection.
Angel turned quizzically toward Daus. In the mental connection, he replied: “I’m right beside you. How could I not hear?”
Hearing Angel’s voice, Daus let out a long sigh: “I’ve been talking here for a while, but no one was replying. I thought maybe you all couldn’t hear me.”
Angel said: “I could hear you. I just didn’t want to answer. It’s self-evident.”
Daus asked in confusion: “What do you mean?”
Angel replied: “If you realized that ‘Black’ hasn’t spoken until now, don’t you find that odd?”
Daus said: “Not really. He doesn’t talk to me much anyway.”
Angel looked at Daus, exasperation apparent on his face: “That may be true normally, but these circumstances are different. Black is inside searching for the Wood Spirit. Whether he finds traces of it or not, he ought to say something, at least. But up until now, he’s been silent. Doesn’t that point to only one possibility?”
Daus still didn’t get it: “Only one possibility? And that is…?”
Angel rubbed his brow, suddenly feeling less inclined to explain.
At that moment, the Black Count’s voice finally sounded in the mental connection: “I’ve more or less finished scouring the first level. No discoveries.”
After a pause, the Black Count went on: “Sovereign of Wisdom, the second level has been shattered to this extent. Isn’t the Wood Spirit worried about being torn apart by spatial distortion?”
Daus looked confused: “Sovereign of Wisdom? Black, what are you talking about?”
While Daus was still lost, an unfamiliar voice sounded through the mental connection: “Sigh. I was hoping not to get found out. I didn’t expect one of you to deduce it right away, and another to place a monitor on his mental connection from the start. A lapse in my judgment…”
When Daus heard that voice in the mental connection, he finally understood what Angel had meant before by “There is only one possibility.”
The Wise One had been eavesdropping on their mental connection.
A complicated expression crossed Daus’ face, part regret, part grievance. He felt regretful that Angel had seen through it from the outset and that the Black Count had sensed it directly, while he himself had been cluelessly prattling away like a foolish goose. Fortunately, they had used code names earlier, or their identities might have been exposed.
And he felt aggrieved because… the Black Count had said that if he sensed the mental connection being probed, he’d cut it off right away.
Why didn’t he cut it off this time?
Of course, that was a private gripe of Daus’. He understood the Black Count’s reasons for keeping the mental connection active.
Though the Wise One was eavesdropping, they could still receive the Black Count’s updates in real time via the mental connection.
Weighing the two choices, the Black Count opted not to cut the connection. So what if someone was listening in? As long as they could exchange valuable information and prepare in advance, it was worth it. Moreover, the Black Count could glean whether they were safe by way of the mental connection.
“Leaving the internal and external communication lines unsealed is already quite magnanimous of the Sovereign of Wisdom. Letting him eavesdrop is no big deal,” said the Black Count drily. Though his words favored the Wise One, his mockery was obvious.
The Wise One did not mind the Black Count’s barbs, acting as though he hadn’t heard them. He changed the subject back to the earlier question: “You’re talking about the second level? The situation there hasn’t deteriorated to the point of uninhabitability yet. If it really becomes uninhabitable, I wouldn’t need to say anything, my disciple would leave on his own.”
The Black Count paused in thought: “So, Sovereign of Wisdom, are you suggesting that the Wood Spirit has some Danger Perception talent?”
“Whether it has danger perception, I can’t say for sure. But every time I’ve wanted to investigate the interior of the Hanging Prison Stairs, even if I don’t physically enter, it senses that something’s off before I do.” The Wise One was being particularly accommodating, answering readily and with considerable detail.
“It’s either highly sensitive to energy shifts within the magic formation, or it truly has some ability to sense danger,” Angel said, then paused before asking: “Has the Sovereign of Wisdom ever taught the Wood Spirit runic arts?”
“No. What I teach it, focuses mainly on understanding the world. If it requests to learn anything, I will teach it. But sadly, it seems scared of me. The only subjects it’s asked to learn on its own are methods of self-preservation and how to escape,” the Wise One replied with a sigh.
“Then it really might have some kind of danger sensing ability… And from the content it’s chosen to learn, that does align well with how Miss Cecia described it,” Angel thought silently. Timid and faint-hearted.
Such a peculiar Wood Spirit, putting all its talents into self-preservation, seems rather reasonable, doesn’t it?
Chapter 2668 Order of Entry <TOC> Chapter 2670 Origin of Personality