Warlock Apprentice

Chapter 2373: Chapter 2374: Soul-Burning Black Flame

The chain slithered out from the black hole like a living snake, proudly raising its "head," carefully sniffing around its surroundings.

Nis squinted, quietly observing the pitch-black chain, seemingly contemplating something.

Suddenly, Nis extended a finger, a special ripple of soul force, like a wave, spread towards Nausicaa.

This soul ripple carried intense evil intent.

Seeing this, Angel frowned. He initially wanted to intervene but, after careful observation, withdrew his hand.

As the soul ripple spread around Nausicaa, she visibly paused, her clear eyes veiling under a layer of chaotic gray. Her previously lucid thoughts instantly turned bewildered.

In this state, feeling the evil intent in the soul ripple, Nausicaa subconsciously manipulated the chain, aiming it towards the source of the evil intent.

The pitch-black chain, after a brief hesitation, responded to Nausicaa’s inner command.

It rushed forward, swift as an arrow at dawn, completely undetectable by the naked eye, streaking straight towards Nis.

Nis did not dodge or evade, relying solely on the strength of his physical body to engage the chain. Each contact between the chain and Nis erupted with a thunderous boom.

Fortunately, Nis had previously set up a soundproof barrier, otherwise, it would surely have aroused outside suspicion.

The air currents from the collisions between Nis and the chain sent surrounding alchemy equipment, paper sheets, and various extraction liquids flying. In just a blink, half the area was a chaotic mess.

Seeing the range of air current clashes expanding, Angel lightly tapped his foot to avoid the entire alchemy room turning into ruins, and a head rose from the shadows.

Earl Mi transformed into a pitch-black shadow, confining the confrontation between Nis and the chain to a small area. The outer region, covered by Earl Mi’s shadow, became a domain of darkness.

Angel and Reynaud stood on the edge of the domain of darkness, observing the battle within.

Reynaud was initially worried, but he soon realized that Nis merely wanted to test the chain’s power and had consistently refrained from attacking Nausicaa. As for Nausicaa...she was still under the influence of the soul ripple, her gaze not yet clear, attacking the source of malice by instinct.

The chain’s prolonged failure to succeed clearly made Nausicaa, still in a state of chaos, increasingly agitated.

Suddenly, from the black hole in Nausicaa’s chest, emerged a purer and more powerful soul force. These soul forces adhered to the chain, causing noticeable changes visible to the naked eye.

Black flame, the pitch-black chain ignited with black fire.

These black flames bore no temperature but carried a terrifying aura of danger.

"This is Soulflame Fire!" Reynaud exclaimed incredulously, "This is a forbidden technique. Even when I wield this weapon, I need to use almost all my soul force to activate it!"

Nausicaa only temporarily borrowed this weapon, yet she could unleash it as well?!

While Reynaud was full of astonishment, the chain carrying Soulflame Fire sliced through the air like a black phantom, striking towards Nis.

As the chain was about to collide with Nis, Reynaud shouted, "Don’t touch that fire, it will burn the soul!"

Nis glanced at Reynaud out of the corner of his eye, not moving. Facing the incoming chain, he squinted his eyes into slits, his expression becoming more solemn.

Bang—

Amidst the scattering black flames, Nis’s hand still grasped the chain.

Upon contact, the Soulflame Fire emitted sizzling sounds, as if roasting something. For the first time in battle, Nis furrowed his brow.

He gently tugged on the chain, causing it to visibly tremble.

When the amplitude reached a certain extent, Nausicaa’s eyes, which were filled with chaos from afar, suddenly brightened. Her obscured thoughts regained clarity.

Seeing Nausicaa regaining self-awareness, Nis released the chain, allowing it to return to Nausicaa.

At this point, Nausicaa’s face had become pale, partly from fear, partly as a side effect of the massive depletion of soul force.

With the battle over, Angel and Reynaud finally stepped in.

Looking at the "battlefield," which had nearly become ruins, Angel sighed and snapped his fingers at the air, letting the surrounding debris be swallowed by darkness. After clearing the shattered equipment and various dust, Angel used some tricks to restore the damaged ground. With everything done, the surroundings finally looked much cleaner.

Reynaud approached Nausicaa and inquired about her condition in a low voice.

"I’m fine," Nausicaa said, her face pale but indeed not too uncomfortable. Although her soul force had been depleted excessively, it was still much better than when she fought Master Man previously.

Nausicaa herself found it somewhat surprising. Her consumption was much greater than during the battle with Master Man, yet she managed to endure.

Her soul didn’t feel exhausted, only a slight fatigue.

It was as if her soul source had expanded several times in a single day.

"I precisely controlled her consumption, and besides, she received my soul force, so how could she be in trouble?" Nis grumbled on the side, "What should be concerning is this old man, using my soul force to fuel those black flames, and getting burned instead."

As he spoke, Nis spread open the hand that had gripped the chain.

His hand still appeared white and flawless, yet this was merely a facade. Nis slowly revealed his soul hand.

On his soul hand, there was now a scorched black shell.

The injury to his soul didn’t seem severe, and with Nis’s understanding of the soul, he could quickly repair it. Yet the fact that the Soulflame Fire could inflict such damage on a mentor well-versed in soul manipulation was testament enough to its power.

If it were an official wizard of another discipline facing the Soulflame Fire, they would likely suffer significant harm if unfortunate enough to be hit.

Nausicaa felt a bit embarrassed by Nis’s comments, although she herself wasn’t fully aware of what had transpired earlier.

"Ignore him, he brought it upon himself, getting hands-on to test the chain’s power." Angel approached Nausicaa, his gaze fixed on the hovering chain.

By now, the chain no longer carried the Soulflame Fire, and Angel directly reached out to touch it.

The first sensation was of coldness, like grasping something both solid and akin to a chill wind—a peculiar texture. Carefully stroking it, Angel felt as if he touched some metallic texture.

Using the Eye of Nalda, he observed the chain, discovering that under its gaze, the chain appeared in a state of particle aggregation. Some particles seemed to have traces of material, but more of them displayed some sort of energy configuration.

For the moment, it was challenging to determine the essence of the chain.

Nis also approached then and asked Angel beside him, "Have you figured anything out?"

Angel shook his head: "There seem to be traces of material refining, but it’s not clear."

Nis: "Do you mean it could be an alchemical creation? Can you reconstruct the refining process?"

Angel: "Whether it’s truly an alchemical creation, I cannot ascertain. As for reconstruction, it’s practically impossible, unless there’s relevant documentation."

At this point, Angel looked at Reynaud.

Reynaud was taken aback for a moment and said, "Special... well, I might as well talk about Soul Arms. The research materials on Soul Arms have always been a laboratory focus. As for whether they have been fully researched, I, as an experimental subject, am not aware. The only thing I know is that the essence of Soul Arms comes from the ceremony, directly bestowed by the existence of that world, rather than synthesized in the laboratory."

Angel nodded, not asking further, but turned back to Nis: "You tested its power earlier, what’s your opinion on this Soul Arms?"

Nis pondered for a long time before uttering a sentence: "Very strong."

Angel: "And then?"

Nis: "If Soul Arms have universality and versatility, they will change the entire Wizards’ Realm’s understanding of souls."

In other words, Soul Arms could potentially spark a revolutionary transformation.

Reynaud also sensed Nis’s anticipation for Soul Arms and paused for a moment before saying: "It’s hard to make them universal, because Soul Arms mainly rely on bestowment, and the current laboratory cannot independently develop them."

"I figured that out too, because during the confrontation with the chains, I smelled the scent of Quest World," Nis said.

"What do you mean?"

"Perhaps the composition of Soul Arms depends on some kind of essence from Quest World," Nis said. "It’s hard to replicate it in the real world."

Nis paused for a moment, his eyes slightly brightened: "However, it doesn’t matter much, I will soon be able to decode the coordinates of Quest World... I will try to find this essence."

Thinking of this, Nis glanced at Reynaud a few more times: after all, the decoded Quest World coordinates still originated from the laboratory where Reynaud belonged.

It’s like receiving coordinates and future hope.

Reynaud didn’t understand why Nis’s eyes suddenly became a bit strange, he continued: "As for universality, I’m not sure. But at the time, many people in the laboratory were just like me as experimental subjects, and in the end, only a few remained..."

At this point, Reynaud’s eyes dimmed slightly, among those discarded experimental subjects, there were quite a few who grew up with him.

And they are now almost all resting underground.

Nis: "So, the early failure rate was high. What’s the success rate of recent experimental subjects?"

Reynaud nodded: "Not bad, I overheard a conversation between Number 21 and Number 17 saying that they could attempt small-scale contact with the Gray Market."

The Gray Market is the dark side of several Wizard Markets or the Extraordinary City, understandable as a black market. Things that are prohibited from trading openly, such as slaves smuggled from the Otherworld, can be found here.

Nis: "That indicates a certain universality, but the production rate might not be high."

Regardless, Nis felt that this visit was definitely worthwhile, Soul Arms... he saw the future here.

While Nis was contemplating, Angel gestured to Nausicaa to retract the chains, as maintaining their presence was a burden for her.

However, Nausicaa did not immediately withdraw the black hole above her chest but looked at Reynaud: "Since you’re here, I might as well return the chains to you."

Nausicaa did not have any reluctance, after all, the chains did not belong to her, and she couldn’t use them seamlessly. During the fight with Nis, there was a clear reaction delay.

Though Nausicaa was very interested in Soul Arms, she still hoped to obtain one that could resonate with her.

To acquire a compatible Soul Arms, she still needed to obtain the hands of that Night Butterfly Witch.

Reynaud hesitated for a few seconds and finally shook his head: "Although I can use the chains, purely as a soul, it’s difficult to cultivate the chains themselves, a physical body is also necessary."

The chains now handed to Reynaud wouldn’t have much significance.

Nausicaa didn’t insist, as it was only a matter of giving them sooner or later. With that in mind, she withdrew the chains back into her soul.

Although Reynaud refused to reclaim the chains currently, his words reminded everyone of a question.

Why was Reynaud’s soul separated from his body?

Angel asked Nis: "Is he still a living soul now?"

Nis nodded affirmatively.

So, Nis’s body hasn’t died yet. But where exactly is his body now?

Due to Reynaud’s memory gaps, Angel looked at Nausicaa, hoping she might know something.

Nausicaa shook her head: "My last memory is Reynaud handing me the chains, then I was swept away by the ocean currents. I don’t know why Reynaud’s body and soul separated afterward."

"Yet I can confirm that when I was swept away, Reynaud had not yet retreated from the laboratory."

Nis: "So, Reynaud’s body is more likely controlled by the laboratory. It makes sense, because if it truly sank to the seafloor, your body would have died long ago. However, if a living soul stays away from the body for too long, the body gradually steps into demise. Though you, as a Wizard Apprentice, can endure longer than mortals without a soul, it won’t last much longer."

"Your soul now has quite a lot of death aura, indicating that your body is nearing collapse."

Nausicaa: "What should be done now?"

"What else can be done, we must first find his body, and let the living soul rebind with the body," Nis said. "But even if your body dies, it’s no big deal, your soul remains. You could come with me, and I’ll find a few thousand wo..."

Before Nis finished speaking, Angel interrupted directly: "First focus on finding Reynaud’s body. Anyways, Wizard Nis’s goal is to go to the laboratory, we can search there."

Nausicaa worriedly said: "But what if Reynaud’s body isn’t at the laboratory?"

Though Reynaud’s body is most likely at the laboratory, the possibility Nausicaa raised isn’t impossible. Reynaud’s body might have been taken away or kept as reserve food by some sea monsters, who would try to maintain the body’s activity to ensure freshness.

Angel pondered for a moment: "Then there’s only one solution, we must take Reynaud to a Prophet Wizard."

"A Prophet Wizard?" Nausicaa was taken aback: "Is there a Prophet Wizard nearby?"

Angel: "I don’t know if there’s one nearby, but there’s one in the Wilderness of Dreams."

Angel said this and turned to Reynaud: "Let’s go for a trip."