Chapter 385 Soul Source <TOC> Chapter 387 The Role of the Soul Beads
Previous page password is bold portion: Th@phEt9oS2
Translator: SumTLMan
Angel looked deeply at the High Priest: “Why would you think I’d be interested in the ‘Soul Source’ you’re talking about?”
The High Priest raised his head, staring at Angel with lifeless eyes.
Gazing into those dull, gray eyes, Angel felt that perhaps the High Priest was not really looking at him, but through his body, at something else.
“Your soul is very special. It’s like a gem that has just been unearthed and has not yet been polished.” The High Priest spoke slowly, but each syllable seemed to carry a power that touched the heart: “Even without refinement, your soul is still beautiful. If Lady Isabelle were here, she would be moved by you as well.”
“What are you trying to say?” Angel did not like this kind of back-and-forth conversation without any real information.
“I’m asking, don’t you want to make your soul more refined? The gray aura hidden deep within your soul also needs to experience a gentle rain, doesn’t it?” the High Priest said indifferently.
Angel fell silent, not only because the High Priest had mentioned his goal, but also because he was amazed at how this man, who was merely a mortal, had discovered the gray aura in his soul.
It should be noted that initially, when Nis wanted to find the gray aura, he had to devise an entire plan, ultimately using a spectroscope and spending a lot of time before discovering any clues. This mortal elder had just formally met him today, and he had already noticed the gravitational structure hidden in his soul? This was quite shocking to him.
“How did you know there was gray aura in my soul? Did the Soul Source tell you?” Angel asked calmly.
The High Priest shook his head: “Although my eyes cannot see people, they can see souls clearly.”
Angel sneered. If seeing souls meant perceiving the gravitational structure, then why did Nis bother so much? It was obvious that the High Priest was not telling the truth.
However, he and the High Priest had no connection, and mutual concealment was not unreasonable.
“As you said, I do want to purify my soul. But I came to West Belrock not for soul purification, but simply to help my companion.” Angel said: “Of course, if I can make my soul more refined, that would be a pleasant surprise.”
Angel deliberately referred to “soul purification” as a “pleasant surprise” to assume the identity of a wizard and lower the stakes of the negotiation.
“What price do you want me to pay if I want this pleasant surprise?”
However, the High Priest just smiled and shook his head: “No price.”
When you want to gain, you must first give. Angel did not believe in free lunches, so when the High Priest said “no price.” Angel became even more vigilant than before. That’s because sometimes, when there is no price, you end up paying even more.
“No price for soul purification? There’s no such good thing in the world.” Angel said with disbelief.
The High Priest: “I think you have misunderstood, sir. When I say there is no price, it’s because you have already paid the price.”
I’ve already paid the price?
“When you chose to modify the selection location, you already paid the price.”
“What do you mean?”
“Because the selection of the Sky Choir is actually for purifying souls.”
……
“If you need to find me, you can go to the nearby Lake of Souls. I will be there before the selection takes place in the evening.” The High Priest left these words and bid farewell.
After he left, Angel fell silent.
Initially, when he followed the Shadow to Kulakuka’s territory, he was merely seeking an opportunity.
Now that the opportunity had come, he was somewhat timid.
His fear was rooted in the worry of offending Black Castle. Although attacking Fiona had already somewhat offended them, Fiona was only an apprentice, and they had not truly harmed her. Moreover, the Shadow was mediating the situation, so Angel wasn’t too worried.
The matter of attacking Fiona could be temporarily set aside. However, if he were to change the location of the Sky Choir selection, it would mean that he would be altering the rules set by Isabelle a thousand years ago.
The High Priest’s words were clear: if he continued with his decision to change the selection location to the Centennial Hall, he would have the opportunity to refine his soul.
But if he made such a choice, the subsequent uncertainties were difficult to predict.
Would this action truly offend Black Castle?
Yet, it was difficult for him to abandon the opportunity in front of him.
After pondering for a long time, Angel decided to go to the Lake of Souls first. Previously, he was eager to purify his soul and had not carefully inquired about many things. He always felt that the High Priest held too many secrets. Now he needed to gather more information to help him make a decision.
The Lake of Souls was near the Centennial Hall.
When Angel arrived, the High Priest was standing by the lake, gazing intently at the surface of the water.
“You could have just kept it to yourself and let the selection take place in the Centennial Hall. I wouldn’t have to struggle with the decision.” Angel said.
The High Priest gave a faint smile: “Whether it’s you or the Holy Castle, I cannot afford to offend either.”
“You could have reported to the Holy Castle, and you wouldn’t have to worry about offending me. But you didn’t do that because you also want to try to change the tense situation.”
The High Priest remained silent.
“Why does the selection of the Sky Choir purify souls?” Angel asked the question that had been troubling him.
The High Priest paused for a moment, then turned to Angel and asked: “Do you know the name of this small world?”
Angel replied: “Soul Wizard Garden.”
The High Priest neither confirmed nor denied it. He simply looked lost in thought, as if recalling the past: “A long time ago, I served Lady Isabelle, who once told me that this place is actually called… Living Soul Garden.”
Living Soul Garden? Angel tried to recall if he had ever heard of the Living Soul Garden before. However, he suddenly remembered what the High Priest had just said and looked up with astonishment, asking: “You just said you served whom?”
“Lady Isabelle.”
“It’s rumored that Lady Isabelle left the Wizarding World a thousand years ago, didn’t she? Could it be that she never actually left?” Angel exclaimed in surprise.
The High Priest revealed a bitter smile on his face: “No, Lady Isabelle left a thousand years ago.”
“Then what you’re saying is…” An image of Totoro flashed through Angel’s mind: “Don’t tell me you’ve lived for a thousand years?”
The High Priest neither shook his head nor nodded, just spoke with a tone of resignation: “Since I took on the title of High Priest, I have lived for a thousand years using different bodies. When a body dies, I simply move to another one. So, what remains alive is just a soul with memories.”
“A soul can persist under special circumstances, but resurrection is not an easy matter.” Angel said.
“I am not resurrecting through borrowing a body; a thousand years ago, Lady Isabelle integrated me into the Soul Source. The core principle of the entire Living Soul Garden is the Soul Source. Therefore, as long as the owner of the Soul Source—Lady Isabelle—does not want me to die, it is impossible for me to die. My soul will never fall, and even if the body perishes, it will keep reincarnating in this world.” The High Priest paused: “This could be considered a form of immortality, but only as long as I cannot leave the Living Soul Garden.”
Angel began to understand. This kind of immortality, albeit unorthodox, could only be achieved in a Soul Wizard Garden…
“Speaking of the Living Soul Garden, you should know that different Magic Gardens have different principles. The effect of the Living Soul Garden is to ensure the absolute integrity of the soul.”
Surprise flashed in Angel’s eyes.
He had previously noticed that the old woman who died at the street corner in Ciporak had a very complete soul but did not think much of it at the time. Now, after hearing what the High Priest had said, he suddenly remembered what he had read in books.
Only extraordinary beings could possess an absolutely complete soul after death. When ordinary people died, they would generally only produce some dim light spots or soul fragments. Only those with strong obsessions or naturally high mental energy would have a low chance of maintaining a complete soul. That old woman had neither obsession nor high mental energy, so how could she have a complete soul?
Clearly, it was the effect of the Living Soul Garden!
What did this mean? For soul wizards, this place was simply a research paradise!
Moreover, the consumption of souls had always been high. Not only in soul magic but also in the golems of Alchemy, the malevolent potions of Potion Studies, and even in spell applications, complete souls were in great demand.
While Angel was still astonished, the High Priest continued: “Relying on the characteristics of the Living Soul Garden, the souls of our clan can be preserved intact after death.”
“But Lady Isabelle needs not a mortal soul filled with impurities. Therefore, Lady Isabelle placed a treasure inside the Soul Source. As long as the soul accumulates to a certain extent, it can be activated through a specific process and scale, and the impurities in the soul can be removed one by one.”
“You’re talking about the specific scale…”
“It is the ‘Fairy Epic.'”
Angel frowned: “Anyone can sing, so why choose singers specifically?”
“Not everyone’s singing can activate the mysterious treasure.” The High Priest paused: “Bloodline is the key. Our bloodline was modified by Isabelle a thousand years ago. Among our descendants, only a small number of females possess the bloodline that can activate that secret treasure. Therefore, we can only find the singers who can activate the mysterious treasure through selection.”
Hearing this, Angel had a slightly better understanding.
Purifying the soul was not the ability of the Living Soul Garden, but the ability of a certain treasure.
“But what is the necessary connection between this and my changing the selection location?”
The High Priest shook his head: “Originally, the selection location was near the ceremony, where the other half of the treasure was buried. When the treasure is combined, it is not purifying the soul, but removing all impurities from the soul, including emotions and memories… Eventually, all the souls that died in the Living Soul Garden within this year will be transformed into the purest energy bodies under the influence of the secret treasure. This energy body is called the Soul Bead.”
That is to say, if he changes the location, the Soul Bead will not appear. Is this the price he has to pay for choosing to purify the soul?
Angel pondered for a moment and asked: “What if I purify the soul first, then return it to the ceremony, and let it be combined with the other half of the secret treasure? Will that work?”
The High Priest shook his head: “No, after each activation of the treasure, there is a buffer period of 300 days and nights, and it is impossible to use it again in a short time.”
Chapter 385 Soul Source <TOC> Chapter 387 The Role of the Soul Beads