Warlock Apprentice

Chapter 2410: Chapter 2411: Physical Isolation

”I always feel like you don’t have anything good to say,” Nis muttered, finally saying softly, ”Let’s hear the good news first.”

Angel: ”The good news is, the corridor leading to the fifth floor is filled with danger, the Magical Energy Array there is fully activated. With Wizard Nis’s capabilities, I’m afraid even entering wouldn’t bode well.”

Nis looked puzzled: ”How is that good news?”

Angel: ”Of course it is. You took the wrong path, so you didn’t enter that corridor. Isn’t that good news for you?”

Taking the wrong path, thus missing the dangerous corridor, and arriving at a safe one. Nis was momentarily at a loss, but it seemed like this could count as good news, however reluctant.

But the main part of this good news is... taking the wrong path.

Why did they take the wrong path? Because at one intersection, Reynaud had a momentary lapse in memory and led them the wrong way.

Nis turned to look at Reynaud, who still seemed a bit bewildered.

Earlier, he thought Reynaud had suddenly gone stupid, but it now seemed that perhaps it wasn’t stupidity, but rather Reynaud’s ”talent” coming into play.

The Lucky person’s wrong choice turned out to be a fortunate choice to avoid danger.

How to put it? Reynaud indeed lives up to being seen as a ”John’s Comeback” kind of figure.

Kanter was also watching Reynaud at this time. When he previously heard Nis mention Reynaud’s natural good luck, he thought it was just an unfounded compliment. Now, it seemed he might have misunderstood. Could Reynaud possibly have the ”Luck” bloodline flowing in him?

Reynaud didn’t know what Kanter and Nis were thinking. He just let out a long breath: ”Luckily, we didn’t take that path, otherwise we’d be in trouble. It seems our luck isn’t bad.”

Nis, Kanter: ...It’s not our luck that’s good, it’s your luck that’s very good.

Seeing that Reynaud was unaware, Nis didn’t point it out either, but continued to ask Angel: ”Uh, that kind of counts as good news, so, what’s the bad news?”

Angel: ”Before I talk about the bad news, aren’t you curious why the corridor to the fifth floor has the Magical Energy Array fully activated?”

Nis: ”Isn’t it obviously to deal with us?”

Angel: ”I’m sorry to tell you, it’s not.”

Under Nis’s puzzled gaze, Angel briefly explained what he had observed.

Through the main control node’s tracing and manipulation, he saw some situations occurring on the fourth floor. The reason the path leading to the fifth floor suddenly had all Magical Energy Arrays activated was because a Magical Creature ran in that direction.

Nis asked in astonishment: ”Magical Creature? Are you talking about that Fire Scale Summoned Demon that escaped from the experiment center earlier?”

Angel: ”Yes, that’s it. Its goal, like yours, seems to be the fifth floor. And evidently, for the lab personnel, the fifth floor is a forbidden zone. To stop it, the person manipulating the fourth floor’s Magical Energy Array activated all of that corridor’s arrays.”

”Oh, and the one controlling the fourth floor’s Magical Energy Array didn’t use the sub-control node but something else. I suspect it may be a tool left by the constructor of the Magical Energy Array. Its control effect cannot compare with directly manipulating the sub-control node, so it was relatively difficult for them to activate all the fourth floor’s arrays. This is also why they didn’t deal with you first; because that Magical Creature was first to rush towards the fifth floor, its threat was a higher priority than yours, and the manipulator had no time or ability to deal with you.”

Nis’s face lit up with realization: ”So that’s why?”

On the other side, as Kanter listened to Angel, a sense of foreboding rose in his mind: ”You’re saying all this to lay the groundwork for the bad news you’re going to tell us, right?”

Angel: ”Sort of.”

Angel paused for a moment without further ado, and said directly, ”That Magical Creature, the Fire Scale Summoned Demon, is very familiar with the layout of the fourth floor and moves extremely fast. Before the manipulator could fully deal with it, it successfully entered the passage to the fifth floor, and barring any unexpected events, it should have reached the fifth floor by now.”

”And the manipulator of the fourth floor’s Magical Energy Array certainly cannot control the fifth floor’s arrays. So...”

Kanter: ”So the bad news is, from here on, he’ll go all out against us?”

Angel: ”Master Kanter guessed correctly. He does plan to go all out against you, but that’s not the bad news. Because I am already able to suppress and limit part of the fourth floor’s Magical Energy Array via the main control node, trying to deal with you through the arrays will be extremely difficult for him... unless they can enter the sub-control node to manipulate the arrays from there.”

Even if they enter the sub-control node, the control over the fourth floor’s Magical Energy Array will only temporarily surpass Angel’s. With Angel’s proficiency in Magic Patterns, and the main control node’s authority far surpassing that of the sub-control node, Angel will soon be able to regain control.

Moreover, Angel doesn’t believe they have a way to enter the sub-control node. If they could, they would have done so already.

Upon hearing this, Kanter and Nis breathed a slight sigh of relief. They, too, did not want to face a massive Magical Energy Array backlash. Angel being able to suppress the fourth floor’s Magical Energy Array was already a big relief.

However, at this point, Angel still hadn’t mentioned what the bad news was, leaving them puzzled: ”So what exactly is this bad news you’re talking about?”

”The bad news is that the paths leading down and those extending upwards, ’tentacles’—the outer corridors of the lab—have all been abandoned, physically abandoned.”

In other words, the manipulators have entirely detached these outer corridors from the main structure, plunging them underground, cutting off all external passages.

”So, although the fourth floor is still part of the lab’s overall structure, without the ingress and egress routes, in essence, it has become an isolated island.”

Those outside cannot come in, nor can those inside get out. It has indeed become a true island.

Nis: ”But aren’t all the research personnel in the lab on the fourth floor? Doing this also traps themselves here.”

Angel: ”That’s true, but by severing external passages, they’ve also trapped you in here, and at the same time, trapped that Magical Creature on the fifth floor.”

Kanter, having understood by now, said softly: ”The one controlling the fourth floor’s Magical Energy Array is indeed bold.”

Preferring to sever all paths rather than allowing anyone to leave.

Nis: ”Boldness might be part of it, but more likely, they are unaware of Angel’s existence, thinking they can deal with us using the Magical Energy Array.”

The actual situation is as Nis thought; they have already begun using the Magical Energy Array against Nis and Kanter... However, Angel has already initiated a counteraction at the main control node, rendering their methods ineffective at this moment.

”Angel, are the outer corridors permanently detached? Without them, is there no way for us to leave?” Nis asked.

”If no one outside comes to dig up the outer corridors, it can be considered a permanent detachment. However, there are still ways for you to leave.”

”What method?”

Angel: ”Plane Corridor. I can suppress the Magical Energy Array’s restrictions on spatial abilities, making it almost negligible for a short time, allowing you to return to the outside world through the Plane Corridor.”

If the Magical Energy Array is not suppressed, forcibly using the Plane Corridor might also allow departure, though it involves certain risks.

Nis crumpled his entire old face upon hearing about the Plane Corridor.

The cost of using the Plane Corridor is not cheap! This time he used the Plane Corridor to come; inviting Kanter for escort, he needs to cover the expenses for the Plane Corridor; according to the contract with Kanter, all costs incurred by using the Plane Corridor during contract execution will be Nis’s responsibility, meaning if he uses the Plane Corridor to leave, he’ll need to pay three times today’s cost of the Plane Corridor materials.

This cost is alarmingly high, even the somewhat wealthy Nis couldn’t help but tremble with anxiety.

”No other options? Short-distance teleportation won’t work?” Nis spoke with a tremor, ”Isn’t there an alternative external corridor?”

”For now, there are no other methods; spatial energy for short-distance teleportation could be suppressed by the Magical Energy Array, making the Plane Corridor the best choice.”

”As for an alternative external corridor, the fourth floor originally had one, but even that was entirely stripped away by the Controller.” It must be said, that Controller acted decisively, leaving no room for retreat.

”So hateful!” Nis shouted angrily, ”My data!”

”I want to kill them, I must kill them!” Nis stormed furiously, ”Angel, can you pinpoint their location?”

”I can, but killing them now is pointless; they are also like ants on a hot pan now.” Through preliminary control of the fourth-floor Magical Energy Array, Angel could see through an Authority Eye, observing the general situation on the fourth floor, that group had already fallen into panic upon realizing the Magical Energy Array suddenly ’lost control.’

”I must teach them a lesson.” Clearly still unsettled, Nis had previously acted silently before a group of apprentices, only for this group to slap him in return, which he couldn’t easily dismiss.

Angel no longer tried to stop him and directly reported their location.

”Most people are in the research center, a small portion spread across different rooms, with the person controlling the Magical Energy Array in the Exhibition Room.”

”Exhibition Room? The fourth floor has an Exhibition Room?” Nis turned to Reynaud.

Reynaud hesitated, bowed his head, and softly replied, ”Yes.”

Nis: ”I remember the previous three floors didn’t have an Exhibition Room?”

Reynaud continued nodding, ”Correct, only the fourth and fifth floors have Exhibition Rooms. Similarly, Medical Center only exists on the third and fourth floors; the Magical Beast Garden is on the first floor; Demon Plant cultivation rooms are on both the first and second floors...”

Reynaud detailed the unique architecture of each experimental floor one by one.

”Why didn’t you mention the fourth floor had an Exhibition Room earlier?” Nis had no interest in Medical Centers or Magical Beast Gardens, but an Exhibition Room was of critical importance; he was there to research data.

Reynaud made a swallowing gesture: ”I forgot.”

Nis squinted, as a Wizard of the Soul Sect, Reynaud thoroughly understood the small actions of the soul as well as the guiding of external emotions affecting internal energy flow. Reynaud clearly had no ’saliva’ to swallow, he obviously wasn’t telling the truth.

Nis casually remarked, ”I remember you previously mentioned the fifth floor only has three rooms, corresponding to the first three sequences. Are you sure there’s an Exhibition Room there?”

Reynaud: ”Yes, each large room of the first three sequences contains a private Exhibition Room.”

Nis: ”The data you’re looking for about removing soul marks, which room is it in?”

Reynaud instinctively replied: ”Possibly in Room 01’s Exhibition Room.”

Nis gave Reynaud a deep look, having likely figured out his intentions. This was Reynaud’s personal interest; he was worried that if Nis found the research data in the fourth floor’s Exhibition Room, he wouldn’t go to the fifth floor at all. As such, instead of mentioning the Exhibition Room, he just stated the data was controlled by the first three sequences.

Nis ultimately didn’t say anything about Reynaud’s petty schemes.

Everyone has their self-interest; Nis can understand from Reynaud’s perspective. However, understanding doesn’t mean agreement; for Nis, the Exhibition Room is key content, and Reynaud overlooked this point, which naturally means Nis couldn’t be entirely unperturbed.

Yet, Reynaud is still useful, and his ’talent’ is also quite useful, so Nis temporarily subdued the emotions stirring within him.

Not looking at Reynaud, he turned to Angel’s Authority Eye: ”Can you restrict that person in the Exhibition Room?”

”What restriction?”

Nis: ”I’m afraid he’ll destroy important data in the Exhibition Room.”

Angel understood Nis’s meaning; he thought for a moment and said: ”I can restrict his actions, but even without restriction, it would be difficult for him to destroy the Exhibition Room’s data. Like the materials in the Exhibition Room, the data in the Exhibition Room is encompassed within the Magical Energy Array, with regulations for access.”

”The Exhibition Room also has regulations? Wouldn’t there again be a time limit, and you can only take away three items?” Nis’s head started to ache at the mention of regulations.

”There’s no time limit, but based on authority, one can take 3 to 10 pieces of books or research data at a time. One can continue to acquire new data only after returning those books and data.”

Therefore, even if the other side wants to destroy the Exhibition Room’s data, they could at most destroy 10 pieces of research data; without returning borrowed data, they cannot acquire new research data.

”Is that so... Can you change this regulation?”

Angel: ”Not currently, unless I completely control the Magical Energy Array, but it might take ten days to half a month or even longer.”

Nis sighed with disappointment. However, this regulation was within psychological expectation, at worst spending more time in the Exhibition Room examining each document one by one.

Nis: ”By the way, what’s the situation over at the Exhibition Room?”

Angel: ”No incidents, currently no one is near the Exhibition Room.”

Nis’s eyes sparkled, with no issues around the Exhibition Room, he might go there to continue searching for transplantable organs; even if specific research data isn’t found, through study of the Soul Arms, he could deduce some information.

Nis didn’t hesitate, directly heading towards the Exhibition Room with large strides.

If leaving is not an option for now, the benefits of the fourth floor should be seized first, starting with searching the Exhibition Room for data, then scavenging the Exhibition Room.