Warlock Apprentice

Chapter 1379: Section 1380 The Oddity of Black Castle

As they crossed the plains, they glimpsed a chasm as if a rift from the heavens, stretching from a distant end into the unknown darkness beyond. It was like a line that could cut dawn from dusk, splitting the earth in two.

Angel looked at this bottomless dark chasm, a flicker of confusion crossing his eyes.

In the Fairy Tale World’s structure with its three layers—surface, middle, and inner—the terrain was actually the same. He clearly remembered that at this location in the surface world there should be a vast basin, so why did such a deep pit appear in the Inner Layer World?

“This is the Sunbird’s fall pit,” Sanders explained to Angel, “It is said to have been created by a Legendary Wizard during the original Fusion of the worlds.”

The so-called Sunbird, in fact, is the ancestral form of the fierce molten bird.

Angel had once seen the sky teeming with fierce molten birds in the middle world, their numbers astonishingly vast. Each of these molten birds was of Half-Step Wizard level Magical Creature, and when they flew over like clouds of fire, even Wizards would deliberately make way.

However, the molten birds could only survive in the middle world, where the concentration of Magic Power was enough to sustain them. Sunbirds, on the other hand, could only live in the Inner Layer World, just like the mountain giants.

“Whether it’s because the Sunbird was too powerful or simply out of a desire to covet the Sunbird’s physical body, in the end, it was slain by a Legendary Wizard. This pit is the remnant of that time,” Sanders paused, pointing at the chasm, “However, due to its proximity to the Black Castle, it was later exploited.”

Exploited? Angel looked at Sanders, confused.

Sanders gazed into the dark and profound chasm, speaking lightly, “When you visited the Black Castle, what did you mostly see around it?”

After recalling for a moment, Angel replied with certainty, “Undead.”

Sanders said, “Where there are undead, there must be corpses. How many corpses did you see at the Black Castle?”

Indeed, Angel had seen many corpses at the Black Castle, even several Mass Burial Pits; Hua Que was even found in a graveyard.

However, the total number of these corpses paled in comparison to the amount of undead there.

It’s known that Angel almost succeeded in creating the Mysterious Object at the Black Castle because of the endless hordes of undead there. It was because he had all the right conditions—time and place—that his alchemy that time took shape.

The large number of undead must correspond to a number of corpses. Although the vicinity of the Black Castle was densely packed with corpses, it indeed didn’t match the number of undead.

Angel furrowed his brow, “Does Mentor mean to say that this chasm is filled with corpses?”

Sanders nodded, “Yes, even though the Sunbird’s bones are no longer there, the lingering aura of its flames has not yet dissipated. So, initially, Black Castle used this place to dispose of those corpses.”

“Moreover, beneath lies a network of conduits that lead directly into the Black Castle. These conduits are used to transport bodies. Over six hundred years ago, a Transcendent ventured here to seek his missing lover, infiltrating Black Castle through these pipes… Regardless of the outcome, it was confirmed that there were indeed bodies down there.”

“However, as time passed, the overabundance of bodies eventually quelled the aura of the Sunbird’s flames, leading to the current state of the pit.”

After a pause, with a skeptical look towards the chasm, Sanders added, “Speaking of which, it’s odd. Normally, there are undead roaming around here, so why is it that none are to be seen now?”

Surveying their surroundings, everything was pitch-black, devoid of any presence of the undead.

“Could it be that the people of Black Castle have dealt with them?” Angel suggested, “After all, the Twilight King has returned, and there must be some difference between her and Isabella, right?”

Angel had once encountered Isabel. Although she was a female witch of the Soul Sect, her temperament was entirely different from Isabella’s. At least, Angel did not see any senseless killing or “bathing in the blood of innocent maidens” in Isabel.

“Perhaps,” Sanders pondered, “After all, Isabel is a figure from a millennium ago. In the records, it is indeed stated that she was not a bloodthirsty person. Later, the eerie specter of Black Castle, teeming with undead, was the work of Isabella.”

“Let’s move on. Once we pass this pit, we’re essentially at Black Castle’s territory.”

The chasm was deep, but its width was just a few hundred meters. They quickly flew over it. As they soared above the pit, Angel could distinctly feel a thick, almost tangible, deathly aura rising from below, along with the smell of widespread decay.

If a lesser Transcendent were here amidst this intense miasma of death, they might suffer hallucinations. If there were undead lurking nearby, the consequences would certainly be dire.

Just this deathly aura alone revealed the magnitude of slaughter carried out by Black Castle.

Angel’s expression was somber. As he passed over the pit, it was as if he could hear countless people weeping, lowly whispering their innocence, anger, hatred, and madness.

Though he had been shaken on his previous visit to Black Castle, the sensation was still unsettling.

He knew that killing was commonplace in the world of Wizards, but to slaughter so many innocents and create such extensive carnage, Black Castle might be the only one that had done so openly. Such actions would also be scorned by other Wizards.

And indeed, before Isabel’s return, the Black Castle’s situation was dire. Isabella even sought to ally with Bogura, hoping to become his consort to save the then precarious Black Castle.

…

After passing the pit of the Sunbird, they arrived at a thicket.

However, most of the trees here were withered, a dark mass devoid of leaves and vitality. As they swayed in the wind, they resembled terrifying monsters, brandishing their strangely twisted branches at you.

Walking in such an environment brought with it an oppressive atmosphere.

Moreover, at this time, the sky also gathered a mass of dark clouds; with a loud boom of thunder, lightning flashed, preceding the roar.

In such a familiar setting, Angel didn’t need Sanders to say anything; he had already understood that they had entered the domain of Black Castle.

After all, having entered someone else’s domain, they no longer continued to fly but instead landed and slowly made their way deeper into the thicket.

“It’s a bit strange, we should have been detected by the people of Black Castle by now since we are within their alert area. But, I don’t feel like any eyes are on us,” Sanders said, frowning.

Their arrival wasn’t concealed, and indeed, by all accounts, they should have been discovered.

But now, everything seemed ominously quiet?

Angel also felt something was amiss and said in a soft voice, “It seems too quiet here.”

Sanders understood what Angel meant. The vicinity of Black Castle was filled with a multitude of undead, which would normally disperse in the surroundings when there was no sign of the living; the undead were never entirely quiet—they would either wail or whisper. But now, they had been walking in the thicket for several minutes without hearing any sound of the undead, only the thunder from the sky and the rustling noise they made as they stepped on dry branches.

“Could the situation here be related to the unusual changes within Black Castle?” Angel asked.

It was precisely because of the unknown changes in Black Castle that the outpost of the Sky Mechanical City was unable to contact headquarters, prompting them to come unannounced.

However, they didn’t actually know what the so-called changes entailed.

‘Mechanical Beast Emperor’ Rosen seemed to know something, since Sanders had once heard a piece of news from him that Isabel had contacted him a month ago. But Rosen had not revealed the real situation.

Therefore, they had to come to Black Castle in person to discover the truth.

Sanders said after pondering, “It’s hard to say, it might indeed be as you previously guessed, that Isabella cleansed these undead.”

Though Sanders spoke thus, a question lingered in his mind: Even if the undead were cleansed, wouldn’t it be too thorough…?

They continued to walk.

After about half an hour, crossing several ridges along the way, they saw many bones and highly decayed bodies, but still no sign of any undead.

Now, they were standing in a graveyard.

“We’re not far from Black Castle now, but still, we haven’t sensed anyone from the castle,” Sanders paused, his feet halting: “Indeed, something is very wrong. Let’s stop for a while; I will try to perceive the current situation of Black Castle.”

Having said that, Sanders directly spread his spiritual power to sense the condition of this area.

He could actually have sensed it much earlier, but out of caution while being within someone else’s domain, he held back. However, as of now, since the people of Black Castle had not yet detected them, it indicated that something was definitely amiss.

While Sanders was perceiving the situation, Angel turned his spiritual power to his own bracelet.

At this moment, inside the bracelet, Popota was in front of a mirror, fussing over his attire.

After looking it over several times, Popota finally lost the spirit, touched his ugly face, and his eyes filled with distress.

“If you’re not satisfied, I can cast a Disguise Technique on you.”

The voice of Angel reached Popota’s ears. His body stiffened, the smooth movements suddenly becoming sluggish, as if he were a marionette, each motion jerking awkwardly and uncomfortably.

“Angel, you, you… how did you suddenly come here?” After Popota spoke, he remembered that he was inside the other’s bracelet and felt it strange to ask such a question; he coughed to cover his embarrassment and added, “What I mean is, did you come to me suddenly because…”

Popota’s voice trailed off, quieter.

Even though Angel didn’t hear the rest of what Popota was trying to say, he could guess the gist of it.

“You’re right; we have arrived at Black Castle,” Angel said, and immediately Popota struck a posture of acute attentiveness: “However, we have yet to reach the location of Hua Que.”