Warlock Apprentice

Chapter 2584: Chapter 2585: Star Color Stone

A lone Mind Ribbon connected Angel and the Black Earl.

”I’m going up first.” After Angel spoke, he gently nodded to the Black Earl, then stepped lightly, accompanied by the perfectly timed Wind’s Force brought by Speedy, and slowly flew high into the air.

Soon, Angel reached the top of the Underground Church.

Although the church is underground, its top still follows the spire design of conventional churches, with three spires, two small arches and one large. On one of the small spires, there hangs an inverted statue of the Goddess. This statue is the filth accumulated over the years by the Inscription Card ”Purification of the Goddess.”

Angel glanced at it, then moved his gaze away.

From the energy pillar projected by the main control Magic Pattern, it can be inferred that its connection point is the large spire. That should be where the Magic Patterns are most concentrated.

After flying to the large spire, Angel did not speak to the Black Earl immediately but observed his surroundings.

The large spire, like the small spires, is also shaped like a cone, without sharply defined cut surfaces.

The whole thing is pure white, without a trace of filth, even after all these years.

Upon touching it, it’s smooth and warm. Angel probed a bit and knew that the material used at the spire is a type of Star Color Stone.

Star Color Stone is considered a major category of Transcendent stone material, much like Magic Blood Ore, and it also has different subclasses. The differences among subclasses are significant, but regardless of the differences, Star Color Stone is just ordinary Transcendent stone material, unlike Magic Blood Ore, where the differences between God-stained Magic Blood Ore and a Minor Demonic Blood-stained Magic Blood Ore are like an impassable gulf.

The reason is simple: although Star Color Stone is a Transcendent stone, its use is very singular, which is its ease of being colored.

After being polished, Star Color Stone has a porcelain-like texture, making it very easy to color. If maintained well, the coloration can last over ten thousand years, so it’s often used on murals.

For this reason, assessing the quality of a particular Star Color Stone involves its color depth and the duration the color can be retained.

Since this spire is made from Star Color Stone, it indicates that the spire back then was definitely not as bland as it is now. There must have been richly colored religious murals, but time has passed long enough that even the Star Color Stone can no longer maintain the colors.

For Angel, this comes with both regret and delight.

The regret is not being able to witness the murals’ appearance. All religious murals are symbolic. This Mirror Demon God is a completely unknown sect, even unknown to the Black Earl. If murals were left behind, they might have provided some insight. After all, an unknown ’Demon God’ and an unknown sect could also mean potential unknown dangers.

The delight, however, is that Star Color Stone is quite a common Transcendent stone, and although it can be used to carve Magic Patterns, they will definitely not be overly complex.

If the Magic Patterns are overly complex, just the energy orientation alone would be enough to burst the Star Color Stone.

Simple Magic Patterns, even if there are really errors, won’t be too difficult to repair.

Having roughly understood this, Angel turned to look at Dangross.

Dangross was standing on Angel’s shoulder, using his ring finger and middle finger as legs, while his little finger and index finger rubbed together quickly, and the expression on the face in his palm was solemn and grave.

There was an inexplicable sense of solemnity and preparedness.

”Is it okay?” Angel asked softly.

Dangross, without a moment’s hesitation, firmly replied, ”Yes, it is.”

Angel smiled and patted Dangross’s wrist: ”Don’t be too nervous; perhaps there won’t be any unexpected issues. Even if there are, just do as I say, just like how you cooperated with me before.”

This was not the first time Angel and Dangross had worked together, but it was the first time that there might be a ’race against time’ in carving Magic Patterns, which requires a very high level of coordination to succeed.

Angel did not put too much pressure on Dangross, but Dangross seemed to sense the importance of this matter on his own, so he was more tense than usual. Even Angel’s reassurance didn’t relax him.

It was the first time Angel saw Dangross in such a vigilant state.

Angel thought for a moment and decided not to continue trying to relax Dangross. Perhaps in this state, he might perform even better?

Moreover, Angel did not place all his hopes on Dangross. Relying on others to decide anything, even someone very close, can lead to variables.

If Dangross succeeded in cooperating, it would reduce his strain; but if Dangross made a mistake, Angel himself would step up, and in his Super Brain State, he should be able to manipulate four to five Hands of Magic for delicate work simultaneously without much trouble.

With contingency plans in place and confirmed, Angel finally spoke to the Black Earl through the Mind Ribbon: ”My lord, you can activate the main control Magic Pattern now.”

Black Earl: ”Alright, at first I will input Magic Power at a regular speed... By the way, do you need my help in calculating the time to reach the top?”

”No need.” Angel was familiar with various energy formulas, and with his current computing power, finding the answer wouldn’t take much time.

”Alright, I will start the main control Magic Pattern in three seconds.”

This statement was no longer a private conversation between Angel and Black Earl, but instead informed everyone.

Even though Dox had made a joke beforehand, the outcome after activation was unknown, so it was better to be cautious. Should there be an actual collapse or other situations, even if they don’t care about ordinary lives, they still need to beware of interference from the Merchant Organization.

Everyone, except for Dox, began to prepare earnestly.

The activation of the main control Magic Pattern had no flashy special effects; the only visible element was a faint glow on the desktop.

This was the glow of energy moving within the Magic Pattern.

”Activate and energize response...” Angel silently muttered the current state of the main control Magic Pattern in his heart, while calculating the time needed.

”There it is, energy pillar recoil!” Angel’s eyes firmly locked onto the pillar of energy, filled with the power of Magic Patterns, shooting from below to the sky.

The energy pillar reached the top in an instant, merging directly into the tip of the large spire.

One second, two seconds, three seconds...

Until the fifth second, a burst of light erupted from the top, and numerous light beams began to spread out from the central point.

The gradually spreading light beams drew glowing patterns on the Star Color Stone.

Without a doubt, these were Magic Patterns!

”The concealed Magic Patterns have truly appeared!” Seeing this scene, even Dox, who had been slacking off, couldn’t help but tightly focus on the changes happening at the top.

The speed of light patterns spreading was very slow and smooth, a normal phenomenon after long dormancy, and was also the result of Black Earl’s deliberate control, which provided Angel more time to deal with any variables.

Even after ten thousand years, these Magic Patterns, now reawakened, thrilled everyone, even though they were simple.

The smooth curves, the elegant magic tattoo horns, and the increasingly starry like energy nodes, were like a lady awakening gracefully, stretching the languor of a long sleep.

But just when everyone was thrilled, this ’lady’ suddenly yawned.

The first fracture in the Magic Pattern appeared.

The fact that Magic Patterns could have issues over such a long time was something everyone had considered, but under Angel’s deliberate guidance, they had gradually buried this possibility.

Unexpectedly, there really was a problem.

Don’t mention Dox, even Kaier noticed the problem at this moment, and he asked Dox worriedly: ”What, what should we do about this?”

”You’re asking me? How would I know?” Dox was also taken aback at this moment.

”Didn’t you say there wouldn’t be any problems?”

”Let me say it again, I’m not a Prophet Wizard; it’s normal for my inspiration to be off!” Dox solemnly declared aloud, while worriedly looking at the faulty Magic Pattern above.

I hope this faulty Magic Pattern doesn’t affect the main framework... Some Magical Energy Arrays can still function even if there’s a fault in the Magic Pattern. As long as the main trunk isn’t damaged, at most, the effectiveness will be slightly reduced.

However, Dox’s hopes did not materialize. After the first fault in the Magic Pattern appeared, other gradually spreading light patterns began to dim as well.

The second fault in the Magic Pattern emerged.

Shortly afterward, the third fault in the Magic Pattern appeared adjacent to the second, directly manifesting.

Three consecutive faults in the Magic Pattern, along with issues in adjacent ones, might likely affect the main framework of the Magical Energy Array.

”Did we fail this time?” Dox muttered to himself and then looked towards the Black Earl.

He saw that the Black Earl’s nose didn’t show any signs of disturbance, and the surrounding atmosphere was calm, as if the output of Magic Power hadn’t changed.

It seemed as though the Black Earl hadn’t noticed the faults above.

This was clearly impossible.

A flash of insight crossed Dox’s mind: ”Could it be that my inspiration wasn’t actually wrong, and there’s a twist in the situation?”

Otherwise, the Black Earl wouldn’t remain so composed.

While Dox was pondering this, Kaier exclaimed beside him: ”Lord Chaowei is moving, and so is his elemental partner!”

Dox quickly looked up and saw Angel, as Kaier had said, moving with the Wind’s Force, heading towards the first location where the Magic Pattern fault appeared.

Upon reaching the first fault in the Magic Pattern, Angel immediately retrieved a pre-made semi-finished External Array Disk from his bracelet, carving with an engraving pen while signaling Dangross to control the temperature so the disk could slowly melt onto the original Star Color Stone.

Within almost two seconds, the patch was applied to the first faulty Magic Pattern location.

Though it looked like a patch, the effect had no discount. The Magic Power the Black Earl supplied smoothly passed through the patch and entered the following Magic Pattern channel.

After fixing the first faulty Magic Pattern, Angel discussed the rate of Magic Power transmission with the Black Earl while rushing to the locations of the second and third faulty Magic Patterns.

In the eyes of others, these two faulty Magic Patterns were extremely dangerous because they were stuck together, which might affect the main route of the Magical Energy Array.

But for Angel, these two faulty Magic Patterns actually saved him effort.

He only needed to take out a slightly larger External Array Disk to cover the two faulty Magic Patterns at once.

Just like before, Angel collaborated with Dangross and quickly patched the new faults.

However, it wasn’t over; more Magic Patterns displayed signs of faults.

What was initially a ”brilliant starry sky” now at least dimmed by half.

This situation, which could almost certainly result in the failure of activating the Magical Energy Array, was gradually turning around under Angel’s repeated repairs, reigniting the starry sky.

Angel’s actions amazed everyone.

Even the Black Earl was a bit surprised. He thought that even if there were faults in the Magic Pattern, there might be just one or two, and with Angel’s skills, although difficult to fix, there was still a chance.

But he hadn’t anticipated the greatness of time’s power.

Within a brief period, numerous faults appeared in the Magic Pattern.

And it wasn’t over yet; more surprising to the Black Earl was that he expected Angel’s skill level might make repairs challenging, especially since repairs had to be done quickly midway through activation.

Yet Angel’s speed was astonishing, and the Magic Patterns he engraved were incredibly stable.

It seemed like he and Dangross were advancing together, but in fact, Dangross was chasing after Angel, its melting speed unable to match Angel’s engraving speed.

”Still underestimated him.” The Black Earl pondered inwardly. With such remarkable skill, it’s no wonder Rhein protects him so completely.

Miraculous operations bring miraculous results.

The dim stars each reignite.

More beams of light spread towards the surroundings, and under their very eyes, a huge Magical Energy Array hovering over the apex began to take shape.

”He can even patch it up this way...” Kaier was stunned. Is this the sheer strength of a Research and Development Institute member?

Terrifying, truly terrifying.

Dox’s expression wasn’t much better than Kaier’s; his mouth instinctively widened in awe.

However, inside, he was thinking about something else:

He’s going to latch onto this big leg! No, he’s going to form a friendship! They will definitely become the best of friends!

...

When the Magical Energy Array fully emerged, Angel wiped the slight sweat off his forehead and looked towards Dangross, smiling.

Compared to simply fixing the Magical Energy Array issue, Angel was actually happier that Dangross didn’t mess up.

Even though Dangross was trailing behind his pace from beginning to end, Angel deliberately slowed down to sync with Dangross.

But this didn’t affect Angel’s evaluation of Dangross.

After all, Dangross was just a Fire Elemental, not yet fully matured. Being able to keep up with Angel and achieve this level without making any mistakes shows it has considerable potential.

Bear in mind, when Angel initially learned the Thermal Melting Technique, he would accidentally fuse adjacent Magic Patterns, whereas Dangross didn’t damage any nearby Magic Patterns despite such intricate operations! It proves its control is no less than the power of fire!

”You’ve done very well, no, extraordinarily well!” Angel couldn’t help but give Dangross a high-five.

Though it seemed like Angel slapped Dangross’s face, Dangross didn’t mind at all and chuckled. Its eyes looked at Angel with even more closeness.

After praising Dangross, Angel didn’t forget the main task.

Now that the Magical Energy Array is visible, next is to fully activate the Magical Energy Array and see if there exists a pathway into the Underground Labyrinth!

```