"As expected, it’s all an act." Dox looked at Angel’s suddenly speeding back and couldn’t help but think to himself. Earlier, he was walking slowly, saying that moving quickly consud too much; now he’s suddenly running so fast, who’d believe your computing power is heavily consud.
Back in Princess Town, he already knew Angel’s mind was both cunning and complex, so his words should be t with skepticism.
Dox grumbled inwardly while following along.
He decided to question Angel properly, since obviously, the computing power wasn’t greatly consud, why did he put on such an act that they needed to start over from scratch?
Dox cared so much about Angel’s computing power consumption because previously, after touching the picture fra and "dying", he had to run the whole way again. Watching soone "run a corpse" is amusing, but when it’s yourself, it’s utterly embarrassing.
Especially since Vay and Kaier witnessed the scene of him running the corpse.
Vay is one thing, as he’s a hobody and rarely seen, but Kaier lives in Sandworm Market, so wouldn’t seeing Kaier always remind him of that disgraceful royal act... How could he face returning to the Cross Tavern?
Full of grievances, Dox caught up with Angel.
But just as he was about to speak, Angel stopped with a serious face, glanced back at the others, and then looked ahead with doubt.
What’s going on? Did he discover sothing?
Dox looked around in confusion, trying to see if anything was amiss, but with only his naked eyes, he saw nothing. His spiritual power couldn’t penetrate the Hanging Jail Stairway, so he could only direct his puzzled gaze at Angel.
Angel: "There’s a fork in the road here."
Dox looked in the direction Angel pointed, and indeed, there was a clearly distinct fork, leading in two different directions, but...
"Is there sothing unusual about the fork?"
Angel: "No unusualness."
Dox looked suspicious: "Why did you stop if there’s nothing unusual?"
Angel: "I’m thinking about which way to go first."
Dox: "..." Just thinking about which way to go needed such a solemn expression? And no matter which way they went first, they’d have to co back and take the other, right?
Angel turned his head: "Which way do you think is better to go first?"
Dox paused for a second, the question seed familiar sohow?
After two seconds, Dox hesitantly replied: "My inspiration talent hasn’t recovered yet."
Angel: "I’m just being lazy and don’t want to make a decision. Since you don’t want to decide, let fate decide."
Lazy? Let fate decide? Before Dox could figure out his intention, Angel casually tossed his staff into the air. The staff spun several tis in mid-air before landing upright in the middle of the fork.
After landing, the staff was briefly still, then it started spinning like a top around its base.
Seeing this, Dox roughly understood what Angel was trying to do... using the staff to ask for directions.
"Do you know Divination? Is this Star Guide, or one of those luck spells using the staff as a dium? Or is it Fate Guidance?"
Star Guide is a Level 3 Trick, a kind of stargazing technique from the Astrological Coordinate Axis school, requiring a staff as a dium for direction-seeking. Luck spells are tricks from the Bell of Inquiry school that use the staff as a catalyst for prophecies.
As for Fate Guidance, it’s a Level 2 Spell Technique from the Fate String school, which only Level 1 peak or True Knowledge Level Wizards would contact, for more advanced divination. Dox certainly didn’t believe Angel knew Fate Guidance. Including Fate Guidance was purely a tease.
Angel shook his head: "None of them, this is..."
Angel paused for a while before slowly uttering the word: "...fate."
Dox looked at the sincere Angel, stunned for a mont before understanding Angel’s aning: "You didn’t use divination? This is purely leaving it to fate?"
Angel pondered for a mont and then, with an insightful tone, said: "Not just fate, it’s also face-based decision-making."
"What do you an by face-based?" Vay also joined in, asking curiously.
"You’ll have to ask him." Angel looked at Dox pointedly.
Dox pointed at himself, opening his mouth silently: Ask ? How should I know?
Angel: "Didn’t you say earlier, perhaps the Wood Spirit recognizes ? If it turns out true, wouldn’t that be face-based?"
Dox: "...Are you serious?"
Angel smiled warmly: "Why don’t you guess?"
Dox really did think about it seriously for a second. Angel’s response sounded like a joke, and from others’ expressions, it seed they all thought Angel was joking. But strangely, Dox inexplicably felt Angel was serious, at least half-serious, only masking his true intentions with humor.
So, did Angel really think the Wood Spirit could recognize him?
But, is that possible? Even if the Wood Spirit recognized the staff, and the staff truly was Sanders’—that doesn’t an the Wood Spirit knows Angel. It might rember its forr master’s true body as Sanders, but how could it know Angel, who only erged as a rising star in recent years?
Dox felt it was unlikely, yet Angel was too calm and collected, could there be more unknowns hidden?
"I’m not sure if you’re serious, but let remind you—the staff’s head has fallen." Since the Wise Sovereign was nearby, Dox chose not to dwell on it, pretending he never contemplated the matter.
Everyone followed Dox’s hand and sure enough, the staff had fallen, pointing to the right path of the fork.
"Master, should we go to the right first?" Kaier asked at this mont.
Angel looked at the right path, pondering as he rubbed his chin, then finally said: "No, let’s go left first."
Everyone watched as Angel headed towards the left path, completely baffled by the sudden twist and turn. Wasn’t it left to fate? Fate pointed right, why go left?
The group was unsure why Angel suddenly beca so unpredictable, but they didn’t question him. After all, they hadn’t known Angel long enough to fully understand his personality, perhaps he was just such a capricious person?
And people like this were common in the Wizards’ Realm. According to the City of Truth’s Zhuguang Speaker, wizards who spend long years isolated in cramped rooms cultivating or conducting research can develop odd temperants, so being capricious is quite normal.
But, was Angel really such a capricious person?
Clearly not. Even the indecisiveness Angel showed before was fake.
The reason for stopping at this fork was that previously, Angel felt the staff warm up slightly, resonating with the left path. If the resonance source was the Wood Spirit, it seed to an the Wood Spirit was down the left path.
However, sothing strange occurred.
When Angel reached this fork in the road, the rod’s warmth suddenly vanished.
This left Angel puzzled. If there was already a resonance indicating leftwards, why did it suddenly cool down when he reached the fork where he could choose left or right?
Is it that the road has already been pointed out, and there’s no need to guide further ahead? Or has so kind of deceptive scenario been arranged on the right side?
Angel didn’t know the specifics, so he stopped at the fork in the road.
Choosing the left or the right path didn’t matter to Angel. He was just very curious; if the warmth of the wand earlier was the Wood Spirit secretly causing mischief, what is its intention? If it wasn’t the Wood Spirit, then who could it be? Is it... the Mirror Demon God?
To confirm so ideas in his mind, Angel took out the wand, using the wand’s fall direction to guide the way.
The wand’s staff ca from the Wood Spirit. When Angel previously threw the wand out, it was tantamount to abandoning his control over it. If the Wood Spirit was nearby, it would have full capability to take over the wand.
This ans, the wand falling to the right side has two possibilities: One, the genuine action of inertia, causing the wand to fall to the right; two, the Wood Spirit secretly manipulating the wand to fall to the right.
The forr has no outside influence, holds little value for discussion; the latter is worth discussing. If the Wood Spirit really secretly took over the wand, directing it to fall to the right, the situation becos very interesting.
Clearly, before, all actions by the Wood Spirit were telling Angel that it was on the left, why would it point to the right at this mont? This is contradictory.
What made the Wood Spirit change its mind? Is it intentionally diverting his attention, or does the Wood Spirit have other plans?
The above questions are all proposed by Angel under the assumption of the Wood Spirit’s intervention.
Of course, more likely, the Wood Spirit did not intervene, and Angel was purely concocting baseless scenarios in his mind.
But if the Wood Spirit indeed did not intervene, then who caused the wand to slightly heat up and secretly guide him in resonance direction? What’s the catch behind this?
With these questions, Angel walked down the left path.
Choosing the left path was sothing Angel had decided from the start. Since the initial resonance position with the wand was on the left, no matter what resonates with the wand, a clue should be found by going left, whereas going right is hard to say.
...
The left path was longer than Angel imagined, yet quite uneventful along the way.
They encountered three different room ruins, all drifting in the Void. Angel found these rooms a bit familiar, but matching them to rooms on the second floor was difficult, as they were terribly shattered. No discoveries were made within these three different room ruins.
Their current destination was the last room on this left path. According to Black Earl’s information, the preservation completeness of this last room was the best on the entire second floor.
When they actually saw this room, it was indeed as Black Earl said. This room not only retained the complete shell but also had a second floor and a very hidden attic.
However, despite the room’s good preservation state, no sign of the Wood Spirit was found.
The only noteworthy aspect of this room was a Shadow Ghost’s remains in the attic. Speaking of remains, presently, all that was left was just a circle of black dots on the wall.
This trait belongs to the Shadow Ghosts. After they perish, they gradually dissipate. Ultimately, they leave behind a human-form shadow in the place of death, which can be considered as the last mark the Shadow Ghosts leave in the world, or an unconventional gravestone.
The duration of the shadow left by a dead Shadow Ghost varies. Wizard-Level Shadow Ghosts can retain it for over a thousand years, whereas ordinary Shadow Ghosts last within a century.
As for the remains of this Shadow Ghost, its lifeti did not reach Wizard-Level. In other words, it died within the last hundred years.
From the traces left, the Shadow Ghost was killed in this house.
This is very intriguing; who killed the Shadow Ghost?
According to Cicia, over the last century, only their group had passed by this way. And before them, there was only the Wood Spirit.
This also implies, if it was an outsider, the only one capable of killing the Shadow Ghost would be the Wood Spirit.
Since the Other-dinsional Space where Cicia resides is the only way to the Hanging Jail Stairway. Other entries would inevitably pass through the Wise Sovereign’s hall.
If it wasn’t the Wood Spirit that killed the Shadow Ghost, then it would only leave the Wise Sovereign and the backroom person hidden in his shadow.
No one present was foolish; even Vay, who could be considered a near century-old "elder," was capable of analyzing the special feature of this Shadow Ghost with a little thought.
The Wise Sovereign noticed everyone’s gaze upon him. He thought for a mont and did not conceal anything, straightforwardly saying, "I don’t know who did it. Most likely it was the Wood Spirit, as it once hid here. Later at so point, it changed location, and after that, I never saw it return here."
"If it was the Wood Spirit that did it, then it seems not as timid as I imagined." Dox pondered, stroking his chin.
Angel: "Does the Wise Sovereign know if the Wood Spirit left before or after the Shadow Ghost’s death?"
The Wise Sovereign shook his head: "I don’t know."
Dox turned his puzzled face towards Angel: "Why ask that question? If the Wood Spirit killed the Shadow Ghost, it certainly left after killing it."
"Not necessarily." The Black Earl, who had remained silent, finally spoke, "The currently known information indicates, the Wood Spirit’s personality is timid, its stealth talent is strong, but its attack capabilities and thods are unknown at present."
"If the Wood Spirit excels in extrely long-range attacks, it can strike its enemies from afar in its comfort zone, thus circumventing its timid nature."
Dox showed a sudden understanding: "I see... But if Black’s assumption is correct, and the Wood Spirit’s attack is extrely long-range, then it also ans it possesses ultra-long-range sensing abilities. Otherwise, it’s hard to accurately hit the Shadow Ghost from a vast distance."
"So, if the Wood Spirit is on the second floor, it might have already discovered us by now?"
As Dox spoke to this point, he suddenly turned back to look at the Wise Sovereign.
The Wise Sovereign only gave a slight smile, offering no answer.
Although the Sage did not provide a direct answer, he did not refute their speculation.
The Wood Spirit certainly has attack thods.
Moreover, judging by the Wood Spirit’s timid character, any developed attack thod likely isn’t direct confrontation but rather super long-range attacks or in-shadow ambush ans.
"If this is the case... wouldn’t we already be in danger?" Vay said, stunned.
"You haven’t even entered, what’s dangerous?" Dox said irritably.
Vay paused for a mont, then hurriedly added: "I’m referring to the adults being in danger."
"Did you forget about ?" Kaier looked at Vay faintly.
Compared to Chaowei Master, he is indeed the one in more danger right now.
Vay looked at Kaier a bit awkwardly, scratched his head, unsure what to say.
Dox: "Don’t worry, we’re not in as such. If you die, I’ll definitely bring your soul back."
Kaier shot Dox a resentful glance, silently transferring his gaze to Angel.
"Everything is re speculation, nothing definitive. Moreover, if the Wood Spirit is truly timid, it would never actively provoke a battle." Angel patted Kaier’s shoulder, comforting him, "Let’s go, since there’s nothing here, let’s leave for now. Besides, I have sothing that needs your help."
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