Warlock Apprentice

Chapter 2043: Chapter 2044: Expanded Space

”Mad Lord.” Angel softly murmured this name.

Besides Bee Blair, Misty Goldlady, and Lord Nuka, this was the fourth named creature he had heard of since arriving at Duling Garden.

And from the tone of these mushrooms, it could be inferred that this Mad Lord was likely a superior of Bee Blair. What wasn’t clear was the connection between it and Misty Goldlady.

Could it be that to leave Duling Garden, he not only had to pass the hurdle of Misty Goldlady but also that of this so-called Mad Lord?

If that’s really the case, Angel suddenly felt the way ahead looked bleak.

Angel sighed, deciding not to overthink it. Facing danger head-on, even if the unknown path was filled with traps, was better than frightening oneself from a distance.

With that thought, Angel continued to browse the Mushroom Forum as he flew towards Misty Goldlady’s castle.

After flying at low altitude for about ten minutes, Angel finally left the area of Fire Mushrooms. In front of him was a forest of ”normal” mushrooms.

This ”normal” was only because Angel had gotten used to the mushroom forest; for anyone else, these mushrooms would be anything but gentle, likely revealing sharp teeth, waiting to devour.

After returning to the normal mushroom forest, Angel flew another ten minutes yet still hadn’t exited the forest.

This reminded Angel of something Reeves had mentioned previously.

”After being captured by those terrifying magical creatures, I was taken to this Duling Garden. Initially, the garden was small, just like how the ruin itself appears, maybe transformed from the material vault of the relic. But later, the space size changed.”

Though Reeves was controlled by Misty Goldlady, it was more like his consciousness was suppressed and replaced; his eyes, nose, and ears could still perceive the surroundings, though he couldn’t act through his main consciousness. It was a bit like a parallel suppressed personality in someone with dissociative identity disorder.

Therefore, even though Reeves was in an out-of-control state, he still sensed changes in Duling Garden.

Initially small, about the size of the material vault in the ruins where Angel currently stayed, but eventually, the spatial boundaries markedly changed, continually expanding, now possibly as large as a city.

For this space transmutation, Angel first thought of expansion-type Magic Patterns. However, he quickly dismissed this notion, as expansion Magic Patterns, while they could extend space, did not alter the total internal energy, and the surrounding dense energy did not resemble the handiwork of expansion Magic Patterns.

Moreover, spaces with expansion Magic Patterns weren’t very stable; any excessive force could cause a rupture in the space Magic Patterns.

The space within Duling Garden is remarkably stable, suggesting it isn’t from expansion Magic Patterns.

Though Angel couldn’t be sure, he knew that during spatial changes, there would definitely be fluctuations in Spatial Energy, so he decided to consult Reeves to see how he perceived Spatial Energy, to gauge the situation in Duling Garden.

However, the answer Reeves provided was peculiar: ”When my thoughts were out of control, because I was continuously outputting flame energy, I was actually sensitive to changes in surrounding energy. During this time, I sensed no spatial fluctuations!”

No spatial fluctuations, yet space expanded? Angel was surprised.

”It’s as if this garden possesses a consciousness of its own, growing new areas by itself.” Reeves, not being a Space Wizard, couldn’t fully comprehend it: ”The only change was a certain bizarre aura Misty Goldlady seemed to like, which is continually rising. I’m sure this odd aura has nothing to do with Spatial Energy.”

Although Reeves only mentioned a ”strange aura,” Angel immediately speculated that this aura might be related to the Nightmare Realm.

With the aura of the Nightmare Realm rising yet no spatial fluctuations, Angel became even more curious about Duling Garden.

Especially as he confirmed himself, the vastness of Duling Garden was entirely different from Reeves’ initial description of it.

What is the significance of this transmutation in space? Angel recalled that Witch Maya mentioned during the Star Gazing Day, Tuvalule saw, in the ruins, many magical creatures transporting space-series demonic materials, could this be related?

Are the Nightmare Realm’s creatures attempting to expand and transform this ruin into a fortress for a full-scale assault on the Southern Domain Wizard World?

Angel wasn’t sure, but the actions of the Nightmare Realm’s creatures were so peculiar, Angel couldn’t help but speculate about their intentions.

Of course, it wasn’t just the Nightmare Realm’s creatures that were odd—this ruin itself was equally strange.

Simply recalling the events that unfolded when Reeves first entered the ruins felt outright eerie to Angel...

Just as Angel was preparing to delve deeper into the ruins’ mystery, he was abruptly interrupted by a piece of music. Despite its initially soothing sound, the music inexplicably gave a chilling sensation.

”Moonlight shines upon the devout believers, who pray to find beauty.”

”The devout believers tread on the carpet of moonlight, heading towards the direction guided by the moon.”

”However, there are only humans living happily there, without bones, darkness, or wasteland.”

”As it turns out, the moonlight didn’t shine, it was fabricating lies.”

Like a dark nursery rhyme, even if the singer hummed the lyrics almost inaudibly, the terrifying undertones still pierced directly into the souls of its listeners.

”Who’s singing?” Such an unconventional song was anything but ordinary. Angel immediately became alert, deploying his Phantom Limb to swiftly knit an armor with it, and his spiritual power lurked around, sensing danger.

He didn’t sense danger in the end but did find the source of the sound, thanks to his spiritual power.

It was a tall mushroom located less than twenty meters from Angel.

The sound originated from behind the mushroom.

Was there a creature behind the mushroom singing, or was the mushroom itself the singer?

Angel hesitated briefly, then decided to approach. Although he knew it was risky, being in a place filled with unknown terrors, seeking a way out required neither recklessness nor cowardice.

Angel stepped toward the large, pure white mushroom.

With his spiritual power, he couldn’t detect emotions from the large mushroom. The surrounding Mushroom Forum was silent, giving this place an indescribable eeriness.

When Angel was about ten meters from the large mushroom, he sensed through the air’s vibrations that there were no other creatures nearby.

In other words, the large mushroom was likely singing to itself.

When he was five meters away, the song suddenly stopped. Initially, Angel thought the mushroom had noticed him and stopped singing, but a bizarre conversation ensued the next moment.

”What you’re expressing is guilt, and guilt isn’t something that criticizing the moon can solve.” This was a coarse, raspy voice.

After a moment of silence, a ghostly female voice replied, ”Then what should I do? Should I admire the moon or tear it apart?”

”Why are you fixated on the moon? The moon has nothing to do with this!”