Warlock Apprentice

Chapter 1459: Section 1460: Reserved Land Chapter 1459: Section 1460: Reserved Land “Resentment, jealousy, envy… These emotions have deeply infiltrated its soul.”

It was a completely different situation from when Baya first met Toby.

Moreover, Baya had some special discoveries.

Originally, Baya noticed Toby because Toby’s soul was very special. Despite looking like an inconspicuous little bird, housed within that small body was an extremely irregular colossal soul. Even though this soul was incomplete, Baya still felt its inherently oppressive nature at the soul level.

This was an innate difference in the level of the soul.

However, even if Baya couldn’t make out the exact shape of Toby’s soul at the time, his perception of the soul didn’t deceive him.

The current feedback from Toby’s soul was completely different from the last time.

Initially, Baya felt anger eroding Toby’s soul, giving him a sense of violence, shining bright like a fierce sun.

But when Baya sensed Toby’s soul now, that fiery sensation had been replaced by a chill.

Dark, damp, obscure, shivering, evil, mad… This chill wasn’t physical but a coldness of the spirit. It was as if a coolness seeped out from the spine, shooting straight to the brain, unconsciously causing one to tremble.

Even with his extensive knowledge, Baya still felt a sense of fear upon sensing Toby’s soul and couldn’t help but take several steps back.

This chilling soul was something Baya had never encountered in his thousand years of experiencing countless souls.

“What do you think?” Angel stared intently at Baya.

Baya’s face still displayed fear; only after a good while did he recover and said, “I can feel its soul being eroded, and this erosive force might be called a ‘poison’. Most parts of its soul have been lost, but this sinister poison has not yet completely taken root because there seems to be a sanctuary within its soul that is still resisting the sinister, resentment, and envy.”

“But if this sanctuary also gets rooted in darkness, perhaps…”

“Perhaps what?” Although Angel had some guesses, he was still somewhat reluctant.

“Perhaps it will never wake up again,” Baya paused. “And even if it truly woke up, would it still be itself?”

Angel fell silent.

The situation with Toby seemed worse than he had imagined. Facing the Extreme Resentment Tribulation, Toby appeared to be utterly defeated, with only the last stand in the sanctuary holding on desperately.

Angel couldn’t imagine just how precarious Toby’s situation was or how long it could last.

These questions were like swords piercing into Angel’s heart, causing him to bleed at the mere thought.

“Forgive my limited knowledge, what I can do is only some basic analysis; I’m unable to provide further help to you,” Baya said regretfully, bowing his head.

Angel didn’t expect to find a solution from Baya when he sought him out.

He shook his head: “That’s enough. Thank you for your analysis either way.”

After Baya left, Angel sat silently in the Centennial Hall. When West Pollock was covered by night, Angel finally sensed a familiar energy fluctuation coming from outside the door.

Isabella’s reply had finally arrived.

Angel opened the reply. There were no words written on it, but as the envelope was unsealed, a bright ribbon of light began to twist and form in the darkness, like a galaxy piercing through space, leading directly to the shadowy Holy Mountain in the distance.

This was a guiding reply. Even though Isabella wrote not a word, the message was very clear.

Angel confidently stepped onto this path of light, following the winding way until he finally arrived at the cliff behind the Holy Mountain.

When Angel stood firm on the mountain, he immediately sensed the Soul Source fluctuations emanating from the temple at the top of the Holy Mountain, wave after wave, like surging tides.

He deliberately took Toby out to see if there was any change in Toby’s situation.

However, Toby showed no response. It seemed this time the situation was indeed vastly different from the last.

Angel entered the cliff, following the long corridor that led to the heart of the Holy Mountain.

Passing through the dream-like belly of the spirit, Angel walked on the waves and reentered Isabella’s Wizard’s Tower. As Angel reentered the familiar hall, he sensed a strange atmosphere.

Around him seemed to be an “immobilized and pressing” air that locked like a shackle, causing a feeling of suffocation as soon as Angel entered the hall.

Yet, this tense atmosphere brought no noise; it was so quiet that even a heartbeat could be heard.

This extreme silence only intensified the stagnant mood, adding a sense of solemnity to the air.

Angel carefully observed and realized that the source of this atmosphere was the two Witches present.

One was Moriya, who had been turned back into a soul by Angel’s use of the Samsara Overture, and the other was… Isabella.

At some point, Isabella had also appeared here. She stood on the opposite side of the hall from Moriya; though there was no confrontation, Angel inexplicably felt that both of them seemed to be focusing on each other, creating a tense and stagnant atmosphere between them. It almost caused the illusion that the next moment would spark a fierce conflict.

Isabel sat on the couch in the middle, appearing to have no expression, but within those icy eyes, a storm seemed to be brewing.

Seeing this scene, Angel was almost certain that Isabella must have some dispute with Moriya, as they were clearly opposing each other at that moment.

However, Moriya had just been restored from her undead state, so what issue could she possibly have with Isabella?

Angel couldn’t help but recall the story Isabel had told him before.

The story about Moriya.

After ‘Soul Death Flame’ Kalafi left the Southern Domain, Moriya mysteriously vanished. At the time, Isabel thought that Moriya had followed Kalafi and left.

But to her surprise, a thousand years later, Moriya’s undead was encountered in Black Castle. This had always been the biggest question in Isabel’s heart: what exactly happened to Moriya a thousand years ago? Did she truly leave, or did some accident occur that left her in the Southern Domain?

Observing the confrontational atmosphere before him, Angel speculated whether Moriya’s disappearance was related to Isabella.

However, this was merely Angel’s guess, without any concrete evidence. Of course, he also had no intention of prying into the centuries-old past of Black Castle; it was better to let Black Castle handle its own affairs.

“Please, take a seat here.” Isabel, noticing Angel, pointed to the couch opposite hers.

Angel’s arrival helped ease the previously somber atmosphere slightly. Isabella remained silent. Moriya, curious, looked at herself, and when Angel glanced over, Moriya gave a faint smile and nodded gently, seemingly holding Angel in high regard.

“I received your Magical Letter. We can talk about the matter of the Infant Spirits later. You mentioned in the letter you need my assistance, may I know with what?” Isabel inquired, looking at Angel.

Without saying anything, Angel directly took out Toby and placed it on the table.

“I would like to ask Lady Isabella to see if there’s any way to save it.”

Isabella turned her attention to Toby. As a Soul Witch, what she first noticed was not one’s appearance or attire but the brilliance of their soul.

This dusty and dim-looking bird, while its appearance was dull, its soul made Isabella’s eyes light up.

That sense of connection she felt at first glance, over the past few years, aside from Toby, only Angel’s soul had evoked such a feeling in her.

“This bird, its soul is incomplete, but even so, it still possesses remarkable potential,” Isabella paused. “Unfortunately, its current condition doesn’t seem too optimistic.”

“If you don’t mind, could you tell me more about its situation?”

Angel nodded and provided a general description of Toby, omitting that its organs came from a Legendary Magical Creature and merely mentioning they were from a powerful one. Other than that, most of the information she revealed was quite comprehensive, including the fact that Toby had been afflicted with the Calamity Curse.

After hearing Angel’s account, Isabel was about to speak when Moriya softly interjected.

“Its dreams are filled with possessiveness towards you,” Moriya said with a scoff. “What a coincidence, someone else is also quite possessive.”

“There’s nothing wrong with being possessive, but it’s terrifying to have someone so narrow-minded that they would destroy anyone who gets close,” Moriya continued.

At first, Angel didn’t understand what Moriya was talking about. The conversation was about Toby, so how did it shift to discussing a person? But when Angel saw Isabella’s face darkening not far away, she began to understand.

Clearly, Moriya was taking the opportunity to mock Isabella.

Was this implying Isabella also had a strong sense of possessiveness?

But toward whom could Isabella be possessive? The obvious answer would be her Mentor, that is, Isabel.

Isabella, due to her possessiveness towards Isabel, would want to destroy anyone who got close… Could that have included Moriya as well?

Thinking this way, it seemed Angel’s speculation was not wrong—Moriya’s disappearance indeed had to do with Isabella?

While Angel’s thoughts were running wild, Isabel coughed once and said, “This unrelated matter doesn’t need to be argued over now.”

Although Moriya held resentment, with Isabel speaking out, she chose not to say more.

Isabella, from beginning to end, remained silent.

Isabel turned her gaze back to Angel. “I understand Toby’s condition now. Its soul is currently facing a unique confrontation between its grudge and its true self, engaged in an ongoing tug-of-war,” said Isabel.

Angel nodded in understanding, recognizing that what Isabel referred to as ‘true self’ must be the ‘private land’ that Baya had mentioned—the most authentic side of Toby, now under siege from external forces.

“Given the resilience of Toby’s true self, this struggle might continue for a while, but it is foreseeable that the outcome might not be favorable,” Isabel continued.