Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
The space-time gate toward “Jungle of Demons” was still near the valley. Bizarre-looking trees could be vaguely seen.
The young man wearing a black magic robe was directing Danisos, Dracula, Lucien, and the other legends to approach it in panic.
“After Natravos closed the top floor of his magic tower, did anything unusual happen, or was there any visitor?” Ogre asked Natravos’ student while he walked.
The young man recalled carefully and shook his head. “It was the same as usual. There were neither guests nor weird stuff.”
Pausing for a moment, he gnashed his teeth. “In fact… In fact, because my teacher was too ‘rigorous’, I often kept as far away from his magic tower as possible after it was closed…”
A student speaking evil of his teacher behind his teacher’s back was punishable by death in the Magic Empire. Even in the Congress of Magic today, it was still not a likable behavior. However, it was of great significance and might concern the real cause of his teacher’s death. Therefore, the student still confessed about the real conditions truthfully.
The black cape covered Ogre’s face in the shadow, revealing only two spots of greet light that seemed to be from his eyes.
He observed the young man with his green, emotionless eyes, making the young man sweat in panic, before he opened his mouth. “Natravos was a lunatic. He could’ve modified himself into anything that was better than the senseless and brainless demons.”
It was because his legendary class was “Lord of Abyss” and modifying his body into a Demon Lord had the best prospect. The young man defended his teacher in his heart, but he did not object to the conclusion that Natravos was insane.
On their way toward the space-time gate, Ogre, the Elder Mind, Dubenal, Danisos, and the other experts asked the young man every once in a while to confirm the results that they achieved by astrology, prophecy, superpowers, and deduction. Fitia was left behind in the Valley of Fiery Stone to watch over the headquarters of the Dark Congress.
The short journey took such a long time for the experts, who could arrive in a blink, because it was a process of communication, but however slow they were, they reached the space-time gate very soon. Danisos, who was flying in midair, flapped his gigantic gray wings and raised his skull while roaring.
The time and space around immediately quaked, and the illusionary gate was suddenly expanded. Then, Danisos’ enormous body dived into it as if he were swimming in the ocean.
At this moment, Lucien, who had been quiet the whole time, suddenly asked, “What’s your name?”
“Me?” The young man pointed at himself and replied respectfully, “You can call me David, Your Excellency.”
It was a common name that could be heard anywhere.
The other legendary experts looked at Lucien in confusion, wondering why he raised the unimportant question. Was it the courtesy before the real question? After all, the Atom Controller used to be a musician, and he was the queen’s husband. It was not strange that he appreciated manners.
Lucien, however, merely nodded his head and said, “David, lead the way.” Then, he became as silent as before.
The unusual question was only a brief episode, but most experts on the spot were too sophisticated to let it go. Their magnificent willpower and weird spells all fell upon David to make sure that there was nothing wrong with him. Otherwise, it would be the greatest humiliation if they were tricked by the sorcerer who hadn’t even reached the senior rank yet.
After a few seconds, they looked at each other and slightly nodded, suggesting that there was nothing wrong. Then, they stepped into the space-time gate with David, reaching the Jungle of Demons.
Space and time changed, and the fuzzy scene before him turned clear. A weird jungle was unfolded before Lucien.
The trees in the jungle were only in two colors. Some were as dark as ink, and the others were as red as blood. However, they were in an assortment of appearances. Some were in the shape of humans, some had eyes all over the trunk, some had mouths baring the sharp fangs as their leaves, and some were upside down, with the crown at the bottom and the root extending into the dark clouds. There was even a gigantic leaf floating in the wind, with veins stretching out to all directions as the trunk, branches, and fruits…
Natravos’ demiplane was even more chaotic than the abyss. All the creatures seemed to have been randomly jumbled together.
However, those creatures were only relatively terrible. In the eyes of the investigators, they were too weak to be bothered. The real things that called for attention were the “chaos” spreading in the mud, the air, and the water. They were the cores of the demiplane and the origin that caused everything. Even a legendary expert might be affected if they did not pay enough attention.
David cast a spell and paved a broad path in the jungle. At the end of the jungle was a pointy magic tower with a top that rose into the clouds. It was pitch black and twisted, exactly like the trees in the jungle.
Danisos swooped at the magic tower from the sky, blowing invisible wind that scattered all the chaos. The other legendary experts were not stopped either, and they entered the magic tower in their own ways.
The hall at the bottom floor of the magic tower had a black carpet but not any lamps. The only sources of light were the silver candlesticks on the wall. The red fire in them did not drive away the darkness in the room at all.
Every candlestick was surrounded by different things, including thorny whips, sticks with rising steel stings, and little creepy silver needles. All in all, everything that shouldn’t have appeared in the house of a legendary sorcerer was there.
“Those were the tools that Natravos used for his self-brutalization a long time ago. They cannot satisfy him right now…” Ogre, who was relatively familiar with Natravos, introduced them to the legends who had never been here with a coarse and helpless voice.
Nobody said anything, because they really did not know how they should comment on it.
Lucien shook his head in amusement and turned to the front side of the hall where a painting was hanging. On the painting was a middle-aged man with a special look.
The man had a solemn face, with a pair of demon horns full of patterns on his forehead. His pupils were crimson, his nose collapsed, and his cheekbones were rising, full of the feeling of disunity.
“It’s Natravos’ self-portrait…” Noticing Lucien’s eyes, Stanis introduced it for him.
As I expected… Lucien guessed that it was Natravos. He chuckled and thought that it was probably his last picture…
“Dear sirs, the four destroyed levels in this magic tower start from level nine.” David directed the legends to the top. “We’ll go to the scene now.”
Although this magic tower did not have many levels, every level was extremely broad and high. Danisos had only reduced the size of his body, and it was already spacious enough for him to pass.
“There’s no need to rush. Let’s investigate floor by floor. We may find other leads,” Ogre interrupted David. That way, they might be able to find a lot of good stuff.
The other legendary experts, particularly Stanis who had come for Natravos’ books and notes, certainly wouldn’t let go of the opportunity either. So, the investigators pressed forward rather slowly and only approached the “crime scene” after several hours.
In the process, Lucien and Stanis had both obtained a lot of trophies. They copied and recorded many useful files. Although they were not the core of Natravos’ current research, they were still the distinguished results of the bloodline synthesis studies in the Magic Empire.
“It will be the ninth level in the next…” David stood on the stairs, and it was a chaotic, gray stone gate before him.
Dracula covered his nose with a pair of white gloves and said, “Open it.”
As the stone gate was slowly opened, the gory view inside was exposed before everyone. All the floors and ceilings from the ninth level to the thirteenth level had little left now.
Halls, anatomy rooms, synthesis rooms, alchemy rooms, binding rooms, and libraries were no longer distinguishable. Dilapidated walls were everywhere. The central part had been completely shattered and almost vaporized.
“I’m afraid that the files have been destroyed…” Stanis sighed with a low voice.
Thanks to the protection of the magic tower, the window on the outer wall was still intact. However, different from the fashion nowadays, it was narrow and emitted the feeling of rigidity.
Through the window, the Jungle of Demons outside could be clearly seen. The clouds corrupted by the air of the abyss seemed even dimmer and darker now.
“Let’s walk together in case anyone destroys the clues,” Ogre said, as if he were not scared of Danisos and Dracula.
Danisos said emotionlessly, “Then, we should examine Natravos’ phylactery first.”
Nobody objected to the proposal, because it was indeed the object that most likely contained clues.
Natravos’ phylactery was kept in a hidden interlayer between the twelfth level and the thirteen level, but it had completely collapsed under the storm of destruction and was no longer hidden.
“The explosion took place from inside to outside…” The Elder Mind’s withered hands picked up a deep black object, on which gems seemed to have been embedded. However, the gems couldn’t be found anywhere now. “This is also the place of the initial destruction.”
It was not hard to imagine how hard the phylactery of a legendary sorcerer could be. So, there were still remains in this place even though it was the center of the explosion.
“Either Natravos blew it up himself, or somebody affected the phylactery with weird spells through the soul…” Dubenal reached a conclusion.
Nothing that we do not know. The other legendary experts secretly thought to themselves. Among them, Danisos and Dracula kept away from the place where the pieces of the phylactery were gathered, as if they were trying to avoid suspicion.
Lucien looked out of the window. Chaotic and dark clouds were surging there.
