Warlock Apprentice

Chapter 1380: Section 1381 The Trace of the Undead

They were actually not far from the graveyard where Hua Que was located. Angel gave Popota a heads-up so that he could prepare himself in advance.

Popota nodded gratefully, “I understand, and… thank you.”

Whether it was bringing the news of Hua Que, or the support Angel had provided him during this period, as well as purchasing Soul Material for him especially, Popota kept all these acts of kindness in mind.

But Angel replied with indifferences, “You needn’t thank me. It was a promise I made to you earlier, and I naturally wouldn’t go back on it.”

Despite this, Popota was still very grateful to Angel, not just for keeping his promise, but also for the help he had provided to Hua Que in the past.

Popota wanted to express his thanks again, but just then, he suddenly clutched at his mouth with both hands, crouched halfway, curled up, and kept coughing.

After a series of coughs, a striking, crimson red covered his palms.

All of it was fresh blood he had coughed up.

Because of this, Popota’s already pale and defeated complexion took on an even more sickly and ghastly pallor.

As if nothing had happened, Popota wiped the blood from his hands with practiced ease, drank down a vial of medicine he had prepared, and then said to Angel, “Regardless, I truly thank you. At least you’ve allowed me to see Hua Que before I die.”

Angel watched Popota silently, his condition had become irreversible. Although this was something Popota had brought upon himself—after all, he had accepted the temptation of the Demon God and recklessly depleted his physical body—this outcome was inevitable.

The previous assessment was that he could barely survive another one or two years. But now, it seemed that Popota’s physical collapse was accelerating.

Angel’s gaze slowly moved to the other side of the room, where there was a table and chair, an oil lamp that was still burning faintly, a nest of worms, and a journal filled with text.

“Given your current condition, I advise you to put off studying Pliant Worms for now. At least that way, you may live another year,” said Angel. Popota’s rapid physical decline was likely because he had devoted all his energy to studying Pliant Worms. The excessive expenditure of energy, along with his dwindling mana, had led to this backlash.

Popota shook his head, “There’s little else I can do to repay you. This is what I must do, and also, what I want to do.”

Angel watched Popota quietly, noticing the determination in his eyes.

“As you wish,” Angel said flatly, “But speaking of which, your complexion doesn’t look good. Are you sure you want to meet your sister looking like this? I can use the Disguise Technique to change your appearance, for instance, to how you used to look.”

Popota picked up a mirror, and his face was reflected in the delicate round glass.

Because his physical body had transformed into an alien form and then collapsed, his appearance was completely destroyed, making him extremely ugly. With the added sickly pallor, he looked even more sinister.

The way I used to be?

Looking at his hideous reflection in the mirror, Popota had almost forgotten what he had once looked like.

It must have been not so bad, right?

So, should he use his former appearance to meet Hua Que? That way, he could leave her with the best memory before his body collapsed and his soul dissipated.

Popota’s mouth opened as if to agree with Angel, but in the end, he shook his head.

“No matter what I become, I am me,” Popota said, “I will honestly tell Hua Que how a distorted self, a mad obsession, and a paranoid dream can make me look so ugly. I can no longer serve as a positive example, but at least, I can use myself as a negative case to serve as a warning.”

Popota’s choice clearly indicated his readiness to confront his past self and reconcile once and for all.

Angel could see that Popota had made up his mind and no longer tried to persuade him. Good or bad, Popota had the right to make his own decisions.

After informing Popota of their location, Angel was ready to leave.

However, just at that moment, Popota suddenly asked, “Now that we have reached Black Castle, can I go out now?”

“Not yet, something seems to have changed in Black Castle. After meeting Hua Que, I’ll take you out,” replied Angel.

“Changed?” Popota grew anxious, fearing that the expected reality would crumble, and quickly pressed for details, “What happened?”

Angel thought for a moment and briefly explained the situation at Black Castle.

“All the undead near Black Castle have disappeared?” Popota frowned. “Although my sister is not undead, she is also a kind of Undead, so could that also affect her?”

Angel could not provide a definitive answer, and they would only know the specifics once they reached the graveyard.

Popota’s heart, which had been fluttering with the thought of finally seeing Hua Que, suddenly filled with worry and unease after Angel’s words. As Popota experienced these fluctuations in his emotions, Angel was withdrawing his spiritual power from the bracelet.

Because Sanders, who had been sent to sense the situation at Black Castle, had now opened his eyes.

Angel noticed that after Sanders opened his eyes, his gaze carried some subtle emotions. It was a mix of contemplation, confusion, surprise, and notably devoid of the relief that comes with understanding the truth; in fact, his brow furrowed even more deeply.

“Mentor, what is the situation at Black Castle like now?”

Sanders pondered for a moment, “It’s very complicated, and there are some puzzling points, some difficult to unravel. The specific circumstances are hard to describe; you should see for yourself.”

Sanders stretched out his finger and pointed into the void, immediately setting off ripples in the space. As the ripples diffused to Angel, his vision filled with illusions—

Dark clouds hung low, churning ominously. Within the clouds, Lightning Serpents occasionally revealed their fearsome heads.

Beneath the dark clouds stretched a line of undulating hills. Between these rolling hills stood a multitude of bizarre and jagged rocks, akin to what mortals might imagine as the terrifying hell where magic arrays trap demons and ghosts.

At the peak of these rock formations, there stood a large, eerie castle, isolated and towering alone.

It resembled the abode of a strange Earl out of a fairy tale.

Having been to Black Castle before, Angel recognized it at a glance—it was indeed Black Castle.

However, unlike his last visit, the surroundings of Black Castle were now covered with a multitude of light spots, densely packed like stars, reflecting off the endless flickers of Thunder Serpent lightning in the background.

From a distance, it even had a certain alternative beauty to it.

But as the illusion drew closer, Angel realized that these light spots densely populating Black Castle, layer upon layer without any omission, were all dimly glowing… undead!

The undead they had been unable to find were all gathered near Black Castle!

At a glance, one couldn’t begin to count their number. Ten thousand, twenty thousand… one hundred thousand, or even more?!

And Angel could see, more undead continually emerging from the ground.

The castle was thoroughly enveloped, from the sky to the ground, even down below!

“Is this the true face of the change at Black Castle?” Shock flashed through Angel’s eyes; even just viewing through the illusion, he could feel the spine-chilling sensation of being surrounded by countless undead.

“Perhaps.” Sanders saw more than just these surface-level undead: “There must also be problems inside Black Castle. With such a multitude of undead, no one appears to be clearing them out.”

These undead were indeed frightening; the sheer number was so terrifying that even Sanders might not dare to challenge them head-on. However, it was possible to disperse them on a small scale, rather than clearing them instantly. Yet no one from Black Castle was doing so; on closer inspection, Black Castle seemed like a true castle of deathly stillness with not a breath of life to be found.

“Indeed, and it’s strange that all the undead have converged here,” Angel pointed out a spot in the illusion. “Although it’s not very clear, it’s certain that the magical energy array that blocks undead at Black Castle is still operational. Normally, undead wouldn’t dare or be able to approach Black Castle.”

“The current situation is clearly amiss. Defying the innate behavior of the undead and gathering them in one place, I can only think of one possibility,” Angel said slowly: “Perhaps someone is controlling these undead.”

Sanders nodded in agreement, having reached the same conclusion: “To control so many undead, at least a Half-step Legend would be capable.”

And it had to be someone from the Soul Sect.

However, the “Twilight King” Isabel was indeed a Wizard of the Soul Sect.

So, faced with these undead that could be said to be besieging the castle, it was unlikely she would do nothing.

“Or perhaps these undead are under Isabel’s control in the first place?” Angel offered another possibility.

Perhaps Isabel was testing her Spell Techniques, or maybe she needed a large number of undead for experiments?

“These are all needless speculations; we’ll know once we go there,” Sanders cast an Art of Nightmare Illusion over him and Angel.

Angel briefly sensed the surrounding Illusion Nodes and immediately understood the function of this Art of Nightmare Illusion.

It created a peculiar force field around them, using illusions to conceal all information emitted by their bodies, including smell, body heat, sound, energy, external hormones, etc…

The means by which undead detect humans generally rely on body heat, light perception, sound, movement, and energy. This illusion now concealed all of these.

One could say it was the pinnacle of the Art of Illusion that Angel had seen.

With this Spell Technique, they could avoid being discovered by the undead.

After casting the spell, Sanders immediately flew up into the sky. Since Black Castle was manifesting such unusual signs, they didn’t need to adhere strictly to meaningless formalities. They simply flew directly towards Black Castle.

After flying for a short while, having rounded over a towering hill covered in shrubs, Angel saw the Black Castle covered in “starlight” dots from afar.