Warlock Apprentice

Chapter 2820: Chapter 2821: Flowers and Infant Spirits

Having been fooled by Angel once, Dox didn’t want to pursue who Olao was paying attention to anymore.

After all, it’s not him or Kaier.

As for which of the remaining three it was, Dox couldn’t be bothered to think about it. But his intuition told him that Angel was the most likely, even though Angel denied it, Dox still didn’t rule out his suspicion.

”By the way, Olao and Adanis seemed to mention... Infant Spirits earlier.” Dox: ”It seems that the information Angel received was correct, it really is an Infant Spirit. Moreover, judging by their tone, this Infant Spirit might indeed be as difficult to deal with as Angel said.”

Vay also nodded: ”And before Olao left, he mentioned it was a flower-holding Infant Spirit?”

Dox: ”Flower-holding... a flower? Generally speaking, shouldn’t flowers have a scent?”

”That’s obvious. If a flower has no scent, why call it a flower...” Vay initially responded with irritation, but halfway through, he seemed to realize something: ”You mean the scent the Lord is smelling is floral?”

Dox nodded lightly.

As everyone thought about it, it seemed to make sense, and they all looked towards the Black Earl for an answer.

The Black Earl had been pondering this question since Olao mentioned ’flower-holding’, but he still had no clue: ”It’s hard to determine for now. However, this hypothesis is reasonable.”

”If the ’flower-holding Infant Spirit’ is indeed the source of the scent, we should be cautious.”

As for what to be cautious about, Black Earl didn’t need to elaborate; everyone understood. As undead beings of chaotic will, it’s impossible for Infant Spirits to hold flowers for no reason. Since Olao used ”flower-holding” as a prefix for the Infant Spirit, it’s very likely that the flower it holds is of utmost importance.

In the Wizards’ Realm, there is no shortage of plant-type magical creatures. In the Wunong Duchy, known as the ’Fairy Kingdom’ by wizards, there are many plant-type magical creatures. Among them, in the Evernight Forest, there are many flower-type magical creatures nurtured by the Forest of Night Whisper.

The characteristics of flower-type magical creatures often involve poison and vines. The ’poison’ generally refers to the scent of the flower.

The floral scent permeating the air is very likely a form of attack by the Infant Spirit.

Although up to now, the Black Earl has felt nothing special from the scent, who knows if it’s a lure tactic? Once engaged in battle, the scent might immediately transform into a weapon of attack.

Thinking of this, both the Black Earl and the others turned their gaze towards Angel.

Angel, when manipulating the Moving Mirage earlier, also created a Purifying Field, which proved very useful at this time.

Angel understood what everyone meant, so he directly called out Earl Mi and constructed the Moving Mirage again with Earl Mi as the core.

Although Angel could directly release the Purifying Field, he decided to construct it together with the Moving Mirage. Since the Infant Spirit is also an undead, and part of the Mirage, which mainly isolates energy, can affect the undead, perhaps the Moving Mirage might also work against the Infant Spirit?

When everyone was once again bathed within the Moving Mirage, the Black Earl appeared to be the most relieved.

Even though this journey held no foul odors, the musty smell from dampness wasn’t pleasant either. With the Purifying Field acting as a barrier, the air instantly became incredibly fresh.

However, the Black Earl didn’t forget to show concern for Angel: ”If anything goes wrong, don’t force it.”

The issue the Black Earl mentioned wasn’t about the Moving Mirage or the Purifying Field.

It was about Earl Mi.

While the Black Earl didn’t know all the specifics about Earl Mi’s situation, he did hear Laplace’s words. Furthermore, Angel’s attitude towards Earl Mi has subtly changed since the beginning.

Angel nodded: ”I understand.”

Earl Mi indeed had some anomalies, but they were still manageable, and Angel could feel that Earl Mi seemed to have grown closer to him. Conversely, Angel was cautious about getting too close to Earl Mi.

However, at least for now, there’s no immediate concern regarding Earl Mi.

After setting up the Moving Mirage, they didn’t delay further and continued on their journey.

Soon, they reached the previously split path for ascending and descending.

At this point, the downward path had disappeared, leaving only an upward slope, and this slope showed no signs of collapse. But when one looked ahead, it was pitch black, with no end in sight.

”Let’s continue. According to Olao and Adanis, they probably won’t appear again until we reach the Qingkong Poetry Room... We should have only one last test left,” Angel said.

Everyone nodded, at least now they didn’t have to worry about suddenly stumbling into the Mirror.

While looking from below, the pitch-black slope seemed endless, stepping onto the slope revealed it wasn’t as straightforward as they imagined, but rather wound around many bends.

It was like traversing through steep mountain paths, sometimes high, sometimes low, sometimes wide, sometimes narrow, and occasionally a sharp turn.

During this ascent, they also saw several collapses, but it seemed someone had cleared the way, leaving passages despite the signs of collapse.

After such a ”twisting and turning” upward journey, they finally understood why they hadn’t smelled the scent the Black Earl mentioned. The scent’s path was even longer and more ”arduous” than they imagined.

The fact the Black Earl could smell it only demonstrated... the Black Earl’s level is indeed different from theirs.

Finally, when they emerged from a side path slightly larger than a dog hole, the road ahead was no longer sloped but was replaced by a normal, wide passageway.

After experiencing the narrow and oppressive slopes, seeing the wide road again seemed to open up their mood significantly.

Only Angel and the Black Earl remained less optimistic.

Angel felt uneasy and slightly curious because he recognized the familiar path and knew they were close to ”that wall.”

But the Black Earl’s attention differed from Angel’s. Though he had constantly been within the Purifying Field, he was still fixated on the scent, calculating its distance from them throughout the journey.

Now, the Black Earl could basically confirm that the source of the scent was within a hundred meters or so of their location.

Perhaps, at the next turn, they would uncover the source of the scent.

If the source of the scent truly comes from the Infant Spirit holding the flower, then they are very, very close to it...

The Black Earl pondered and shared his findings with everyone.

”...Under normal circumstances, if the opponent is truly powerful, they might have already discovered us. However, we’ve been here for a while now, and they still haven’t appeared, which indicates that Angel’s Illusionary Realm has had a certain effect on this Infant Spirit.” Black Earl: ”It probably hasn’t noticed us yet, but if we continue forward, getting within a hundred meters of it, that’s another story.”

Of course, it’s also possible that the source of the scent isn’t the flower in the hands of the Infant Spirit, which is why the opponent hasn’t appeared. But, this possibility is minimal... because Angel knows that this place is not far from that wall, which is the door to the Qingkong Poetry Room.

If there is indeed an Infant Spirit blocking the way, it should be nearby. This almost coincides with the position of the scent’s source mentioned by the Black Earl.

Dox: ”If the Black Earl is correct, then shouldn’t we be able to smell the scent now?”

After Dox spoke, a look of eager anticipation appeared on his face.

Vay said, exasperatedly: ”The issue now isn’t the scent; it’s how to deal with this Infant Spirit! Moreover, we’ve brainstormed the entire way, trying to figure out what strong flower-holding creature this could be, and we’re still clueless. Not knowing its original form, dealing with its undead form—if careless, it could lead to significant trouble.”

Dox wasn’t as worried as Vay: ”Though the undead are affected by their abilities from when they were alive, the influence isn’t significant, at most making their Soul Force more surging.”

”The abilities of the undead are just a few types; prepare the defenses in the Land of the Soul, don’t let your mental tendrils recklessly extend outside, then you and Kaier stay obediently within Angel’s Illusionary Realm, ensuring that you won’t get hurt.”

Dox blinked: ”Even if things go south, can’t I still use the Plane Corridor?”

In the past, mentioning the Plane Corridor wasn’t this relaxed for Dox. But now, having decided to follow Angel, everything aligns with Angel. For example, are the Plane Corridor materials expensive? Just trivial.

Vay didn’t care why Dox suddenly became generous; he was more worried about the ”Infant Spirit.”

If the Infant Spirit is indeed like Dox said, just an enhanced version of the ”undead,” then there wouldn’t be much to worry about. But is it truly that simple?

The obstacle set personally by Adanis, plus the direct statement that they couldn’t defeat the Infant Spirit.

Saying all this and then just sending out a big undead?

Vay still believes that this Infant Spirit might be different this time. It’s important to know that the undead lack Spirit Intelligence, and Infant Spirits, as the lowest form of undead, are even more so. Yet this Infant Spirit can obey Adanis’s command to intercept the group, which is quite unusual.

Vay expressed his thoughts, but Dox remained indifferent; after all, he is now carefree, having received satisfying rewards from the Wise Sovereign, and with the Plane Corridor as a fallback, no matter its strength, he’ll just charge. If charging doesn’t work, he’ll retreat, as the Qingkong Poetry Room is irrelevant to him.

On the other hand, Kaier seriously contemplated Vay’s words.

”Red Sword’s reasoning actually has merit, and Vay’s considerations are valid too. The Infant Spirit indeed might not be very strong, but the attitudes of Olao and Adanis are somewhat unusual. I’m wondering if there’s another possibility.” Kaier paused, gently uttering a word: ”...Parasite.”

Vay: ”You think the point isn’t the Infant Spirit, but—the flower?”

Kaier nodded.

Vay followed Kaier’s thoughts: ”If the Infant Spirit is parasitized by the flower? Then it implies the flower should be our focus. And the flower might have high intelligence, explaining its obedience to Adanis.”

The more Vay spoke, the more it made sense, perhaps Kaier’s conjecture was correct.

”What the Chaowei Master mentioned regarding the Otherworldly monster might not be the Infant Spirit, but the flower! And there are indeed strong magical flowers.”

”Now we know this flower can parasitize the Infant Spirit, using undead energy as food, and is strong on its own, originating from the Otherworld; thinking like this, the range seems considerably narrowed.”

Saying this, Vay looked at several Wizards present.

He could deduce these conditions, but couldn’t determine what kind of flower. There are too many Otherworldly flowers, and Vay isn’t someone fond of appreciating flowers.

Vay first looked at Dox, but Dox responded simply: shrugging, spreading his hands, looking clueless.

Then, Vay looked at Angel and the Black Earl.

Only then did Vay notice Angel and his lord privately communicating through a Mind Ribbon, seemingly oblivious to the conversation here.

Vay felt a bit disappointed, thinking his deductions were useful, yet seemingly unappreciated.

Vay didn’t dare make a fuss, instead quietly waiting for Angel and the Black Earl to finish their discussion.

About half a minute later, Angel and the Black Earl’s Mind Ribbon disconnected.

Angel turned back and immediately sensed Vay’s low spirits. Although he was discussing with the Black Earl, he kept an ear on others’ talks, and with a slight thought, understood why Vay was feeling down.

Angel: ”I also agree with Vay’s conjecture; perhaps the Infant Spirit is not important, but the flower is. It’s just that, given my limited knowledge, I can’t determine the specific type of flower.”

Angel’s reply surprised Vay, but he quickly realized Angel was addressing his deduction.

Initially disappointed, Vay’s dismay was suddenly dispelled, continuing from Angel’s words: ”Could it be some Abyssal demon flower? I’ve heard there are many powerful demon flowers on the Myriad Abyss Plains.”

Angel: ”I’m not sure about that either, but after discussing with the Black Earl, since the opponent hasn’t appeared, maybe we can temporarily hold back and conduct some research and experiments.”

The object of study now is naturally the scent outside the Purifying Field.

By analyzing the composition of these scents, perhaps we can roughly determine their source.

Of course, most of this research will be conducted by Angel. Though not very familiar with Fragrance Studies, Angel, as an Alchemist, knows Potionology, whose foundation is Alchemy, involving demon plants, compositions, materials, and energy.

Through deconstructing the scent, studying its most basic components, and energy essence, one might infer where this scent originates from.

Identifying which world it comes from narrows it further, making it easier to locate its true origin.

And indeed, this was one of the topics Angel and the Black Earl discussed earlier.