Warlock Apprentice

Skipping over the topic of fusing new authorities, Angel and Frode continued their conversation. However, it was mostly Frode speaking, while Angel played the role of a listener.

While Frode was chattering away, Angel kept his attention on Sanders. Time flew by and three hours later, Sanders’ previously calm expression suddenly changed ever so slightly.

His brows furrowed deeply, and his complexion turned pale.

Angel’s focused gaze prompted Frode to follow his line of sight to Sanders.

”Lord Illusion Demon’s expression seems a bit off?” A trace of worry flashed in Frode’s eyes.

Seeing the beads of sweat on Sanders’ forehead, Angel inferred from past experiences: ”Perhaps he’s reached a crucial point in the fusion of authorities, and under the massive influx of information, it must be quite uncomfortable.”

”Could it be...” Failure?

Angel understood Frode’s unfinished question. He shook his head: ”Having reached this final step, the likelihood of failure is very low. If it were to fail, it would have happened long before, like when you were fusing with the Tree Civilization and an unknown variable erupted swiftly and forcefully, giving you no time to react.”

Frode thought back on it and found truth in Angel’s words. If there really was an unknown variable, it would have acted much earlier, and with that thought, he felt more at ease.

Angel observed Frode’s changing expressions with a slight smile. When he previously mentioned Frode’s failure with the Tree Civilization, Frode’s expression and gaze would dramatically change even if he said nothing. But now, he showed no such reaction, indicating Frode was gradually moving beyond the shadow of his failed fusion with the Tree Civilization authority.

This was exactly why Angel often brought up the Tree Civilization, and now it seemed like it was having a positive effect.

Time passed quietly for another hour. During this hour, Sanders’ complexion became increasingly pale, sweat pouring off him, yet with his eyes closed, one could see the rapid movement of his eyeballs, indicating he had not yet reached the breaking point.

”It should be about time,” Angel said softly.

Frode looked at Angel in confusion: ”What do you mean by about time?”

”The torrent of information has been washing over the mentor’s Mind Space for over an hour. Ordinary authority should already be at its concluding phase...” As Angel was speaking, an inexplicable wind blew through, rustling the leaves on the trees.

”Isn’t this place completely sealed? How can there be a wind blowing in?” Frode murmured in confusion.

Angel looked somewhat dumbfounded at the trembling leaves, and after a moment, as if he realized something, his eyes suddenly brightened: ”...It’s not wind! It’s some kind of unknown energy, stirring the inert elements.”

Unknown energy? Stirring inert elements? Frode mulled over these words, suddenly turning his head to look at the still somewhat pale Sanders: ”Could it be, Lord Illusion Demon has succeeded?”

Angel didn’t answer Frode because he had already gathered his external thoughts and immersed his entire mind into his Mind Space.

In the deep, dark Mind Space, the only thing standing was the Ability Tree, glowing faintly in the void.

Angel’s attention was now also focused on this dreamlike tree suspended in the darkness.

Like the tree outside, it was swaying too. However, its swaying wasn’t due to any wind, but because on a newly grown branch, a previously dim light spot was now rapidly brightening.

Just like reigniting an old flame, the sudden burst not only swayed the branch even more but also outshone the other six points of light on the Ability Tree.

And the moment it stayed lit, the Ability Tree trembled slightly, sending a mysterious sense of joy through to Angel’s heart.

This was the Ability Tree’s way of telling Angel that a new authority had been born.

This also meant that Sanders had successfully borne the authority!

Even though Angel had predicted the success of this authority bearing, when the moment actually arrived, he still felt very excited. Unless something unexpected happened, this authority should be related to the construction of the Energy System. When humans could wield energy in the Wilderness of Dreams, it would be equivalent to injecting a soul into the Wilderness of Dreams.

Angel was eager to know what this new authority was.

He didn’t open his eyes to ask Sanders; instead, he let his consciousness dive into the newly brightened light spot on the Ability Tree.

As Angel’s thoughts sank in, he also felt a surging torrent of information washing over him.

This torrent of information represented the new authority’s data. Angel wasn’t planning on delving deeply into the new authority’s powers just yet, so he filtered out most of the information, focusing only on what interested him the most.

First was the name of the new authority—”Energy Selection.”

The name was somewhat similar to Sanders’ previous authority fusion ”Energy Level Limitation,” but the scope of the authority, judging by the name, was evidently different.

”Energy Selection: Allows the construction of a corresponding virtual energy system in the Wilderness of Dreams.”

The introduction was simple, the effect covered in just one sentence. Also, judging by the content, its impact wouldn’t be as world-shaking as the previous ”Tree Civilization” was with Fuyi’s appearance, but it was more crucial for shaping the Wilderness of Dreams compared to the Tree Civilization.

If they could construct a ”Magic Power” energy system in the Wilderness of Dreams, it would mean they could bring their real-world powers into the Wilderness of Dreams!

At that time, Angel’s concept of Infinite Alchemy could also be realized!

However, Angel also noted that the introduction clearly pointed out that the energy system was ”virtual,” which was understandable, given that the Wilderness of Dreams exists between the Dream Realm and the Nightmare Realm, with the Dream Realm having a greater influence. In the Dream Realm, nothing is truly real, so the Wilderness of Dreams inherited this trait. Only their manipulation of authority made the Wilderness of Dreams appear slightly more real.

But only ”appear” real.

In essence, the core of the Wilderness of Dreams remains more aligned with the Dream Realm.

But it doesn’t matter, as long as they can achieve their goals, virtuality would suffice. Moreover, the most apparent flaw of the virtual energy system is that cultivating within the Wilderness of Dreams can’t feed back to the individual’s physical self.

Simply put, the energy of the Wilderness of Dreams cannot aid the cultivation of Transcendents.

This isn’t a major setback for them, as the Wilderness of Dreams serves merely as a supportive medium for strengthening, with their foundation still rooted in reality.

However, Angel was curious if the new inhabitants of the Dream Realm could cultivate there. It should be possible to retain it since they won’t be leaving the Wilderness of Dreams.

But whether or not his suspicions are correct would have to wait for future experimentation to confirm.