Chapter 379 Ciporak <TOC> Chapter 381 Isabelle
Translator: SumTLMan
A magic energy formation encompassing the entire Ciporak? When Angel heard this news, he wasn’t too surprised. When he heard from Shadow that the wizards of Black Castle had handed over the Wizard Garden to the Kulakuka tribe as their territory, he had his doubts, as such selflessness seemed inconceivable.
Black Castle’s plans were, in fact, even more ruthless and brutal than the Savage Grottoes, and from the perspective of apprentices, it was an organization teeming with “dark wizards.” Could such an organization engage in an act of unconditional love?
Angel remained skeptical.
It was not until now that he felt a reassuring sense of “I knew it.”
Angel inquired: “What kind of magic energy formation?”
Shadow’s voice carried a slightly awkward tone: “I haven’t studied magic energy formations, but based on my observations, it doesn’t seem to have any beneficial effects. Would you like to come over and take a look?”
Angel pondered for a moment and glanced at Toby, who was sleeping peacefully. This place seemed to hold a strong attraction for Toby, who even dreamt of flying here. But whether there were any specific benefits remained unclear.
Toby’s feelings towards the temple might be similar to his own, filled with a complex mixture of fear and a desire to explore. However, Toby was still unconscious and couldn’t be responsible for his own decisions. But Angel wasn’t; he was well aware of the balance between temptation and reason.
Making rash decisions before fully understanding the situation could be a fatal move.
With this in mind, Angel said to Shadow: “Hold on, I’ll come over and take a look.”
To avoid any uncontrollable situations with Toby, Angel placed him inside the bracelet. After entering the bracelet, Toby did not show any signs of struggle, so Angel finally felt at ease and walked down the mountain.
What Angel did not know was that shortly after he left, a man in the temple at the top of the mountain suddenly opened his eyes.
He was a bald, white-bearded elder of the Kulakuka tribe with a face full of wrinkles and age spots. His pupils were gray and clouded, unfocused, making him appear blind.
The old man, leaning on a wooden staff, shakily walked to the center of the temple.
In the very center of the temple, a swirling grayish-green aura filled the air, sending out strange waves in all directions. As the waves of energy emanated, the elder’s eyes grew even more dim, and the few remaining black strands of hair turned white.
The elder was visibly aging at an alarming rate. However, he did not retreat and remained standing in front of the grayish-green aura, his eyes filled with complex emotions—reminiscence, sorrow, and guilt…
At that moment, a white-robed, gold-edged priest entered.
“Your Holiness, the chosen singers from each village have arrived at the foot of the mountain. Would you like to go and inspect them?”
The elder, leaning on his cane, slowly turned around and shook his head with difficulty: “No, let the Chosen Ones of the Holy Castle choose for themselves when they arrive.”
“I understand.” The priest looked at the wrinkled face of the high priest, his eyes filled with concern: “Your Excellency, the damage from the Soul Source is too great. Why not let me replace you in overseeing it?”
The elder still shook his head: “I can hold on.”
“Or perhaps you should rest, as tomorrow you’ll be needed to preside over the ceremonies. I believe no one would cause trouble at this time.”
“No need, I am a bit tired. You may leave.” The elder still refused the priest’s request. The priest hesitated, finally sighed, and left the temple.
The elder walked to the balcony, looked at the bustling tribespeople below the mountain, and then at the vast and dense buildings of Ciporak in the distance. A sudden surge of indescribable sorrow filled his eyes.
Staggering back to the “Soul Source,” he remained silent for a long time.
“A human intruder in this place? If the gap doesn’t open, the torrent will never be released, and you… will be trapped here forever. It doesn’t matter, let’s consider it an inconsequential opportunity. After a thousand years, whether or not change can be leveraged no longer matters.”
After murmuring to himself, the elder slowly stepped into the shadows of the temple.
…
On the other hand, when Angel descended the mountain, he inadvertently sensed a familiar presence.
Upon looking, he discovered the intriguing thumb-sized girl Babaya, dressed in a pure-colored gossamer gown, standing near the altar at the foot of the mountain with a group of companions dressed similarly to her.
They swayed their heads to the hymns, and some sang softly.
Apparently, they were a choir.
Babaya stood among them, and although she didn’t stand out in appearance, her serene aura made her very unique within the choir.
The reason he noticed Babaya first was that he had left a trace of nightmare aura on her. After experiencing the illusion in Woodbud Village, Babaya had become much smarter and had not attempted to reveal their secrets in the past two days, and the nightmare aura had not been activated again.
Angel glanced at her and paid no further attention.
The city of Ciporak covered an area of nearly a thousand kilometers, with houses arranged in a dense and diverse fashion, but still exquisitely designed. Even the details of the street lamps carried the rich artistic style of the Kulakuka tribe.
“Have you arrived?” The shadow felt the magic consumption required to maintain the mental connection begin to decrease, indicating that the distance between him and Angel was shortening.
“Yes.” Angel did not enter Ciporak but walked along the outskirts of the city.
“I’m near the West Gate. There’s a landmark building here, a black spire that reaches my knees.”
The architecture of Ciporak was mostly two-story buildings, with only a few reaching the height of Angel’s knees. Angel quickly found the black spire mentioned by Shadow.
When they met up, Shadow joked: “Do we look like evil giants who have stumbled into a gnome’s kingdom in a fairy tale? If we stomp on a few houses, will there be a hero riding a dragon with a spear… oh, wait, there are only hummingbirds here. Would they ride hummingbirds to challenge us?”
Angel smiled noncommittally.
Shadow continued: “But honestly, looking at these neatly and beautifully built small houses, I really have the urge to crush them.”
Jokes aside, Shadow didn’t want to let things slide at this critical moment, so they quickly got down to business.
“Have you sensed the fluctuations of the magic energy formation?” Shadow asked.
Angel paused for a moment, scanning Ciporak slowly, as he had not sensed anything unusual when he was outside the city earlier.
After a while, when Angel’s gaze swept over a central square, he suddenly frowned: “Huh, that statue… seems to have something.”
When Shadow was sure Angel wasn’t faking his expression, he felt a sour feeling in his heart. He had only sensed something when he was flying in mid-air, using his mental energies to search up close. But Angel had discovered clues from so far away with his naked eyes, which made it hard for him to contain his feelings!
Although it is normal for wizards to have overlapping knowledge, Angel’s young age put a lot of invisible pressure on him. After all, he was considered an elite seedling of Sky Mechanical City.
Angel went to a high point and looked down: “As I thought, all the statues are nodes of the magic runes. These statues are scattered throughout the city… a total of 373 statues, forming twelve intricate and distinct magic runes, eventually creating this magic energy formation.”
“Have you seen this magic energy formation before? What is its effect?” Shadow asked.
“I haven’t seen it,” Angel pondered for a moment, then added: “I don’t know the effect yet, but I recognize the basic magic runes that make up the magic energy formation. As long as we determine the variables and combine some magic formulas, we should be able to deduce the effect based on the basic magic runes.”
Shadow was somewhat surprised: “Can you deduce it all by yourself?”
Shadow wasn’t ignorant of how to Reverse-Engineer the Magic Energy Formation; he had a rough idea of the algorithm. So he knew very well how massive the calculations involved were. For example, 1+1=2 is a simple equation, but can we deduce how the answer 2 is derived? If it’s limited to natural numbers and the operation symbol is fixed, then it’s not a problem. But what if the condition is not a natural number?
This was similar to the current deduction, with too many natural variables and no standard, making it impossible to deduce within a short period. Shadow even felt that one person could not complete it.
However, Shadow didn’t know that when Angel studied the —Singularity Scattering Meditation Method—, he used his “super-calculation” ability to calculate the coordinates. Even though he only calculated the first few coordinates, it was still much more difficult than the current calculations.
So, he didn’t bother explaining, and told Shadow: “Your knowledge is broader than mine. Go check the festival area and see if the source of the laws is in the temple. If it is, find out what kind of laws they are. As for me, I’ll stay here and reverse-engineer the effects of the magic energy formation.”
After making a decision, Angel did not give Shadow a chance to argue, and immediately found a concealed spot to take out paper and pen and began calculating quickly.
Shadow sighed and headed towards the sacred mountain where the temple was located.
Not long after Shadow left, Angel opened the holographic tablet, input several variables that required significant computation, and let the holographic tablet assist in the calculations.
He could calculate it himself, but it would take more time.
Although it had been a long time since he had activated the “super-calculation” mode, this ability for rapid calculation had already been imprinted in his soul.
When Angel looked up again, the entire Ciporak seemed to have turned into rows of data in his eyes. The most basic data at the bottom layer was constantly changing, while the middle layer had one variable appearing after another. The upper layer consisted of magic formulas, and the top layer contained partial answers calculated at the end.
Angel calculated and summarized one area after another, and time slowly passed.
The Wizard Garden was actually a small world. If the builder provided enough materials, it could also simulate the rise and fall of the sun and moon.
When night began to fall, Angel finally stopped calculating. Although the last bit of the magic rune had not been computed for its effect, by synthesizing the results of previous deductions, he had roughly guessed the effect of this magic energy formation…