Warlock Apprentice

Chapter 2504: Chapter 2505: Desert Temple

It took them a day to arrive, but returning full-speed to the border of the Laksum Principality took less than three hours. It must be said, Dox played a great part in this due to his guidance, allowing Angel to avoid many detours.

After crossing one undulating yellow sand dune after another, a temple eroded by wind and sand appeared before them.

"Look, that is one of the twelve outposts of the Desert Temple, the one closest to the Gumman Kingdom."

Angel: "Desert Temple? An ancient faith of the Laksum Principality?"

Dox: "Not exactly, though it indeed originated from ancient times and went through interruptions and twists, there are still many desert dwellers who believe in it today. It’s said there’s also a Desert Temple that hasn’t been abandoned. However, nowadays, true believers are much fewer, and most simply go with the flow, offering lip service without genuine commitment."

It’s like someone finding money on the roadside would exclaim happily, "Thank the goddess of luck for watching over me."

They speak words of praise, but do they truly believe in the goddess of luck?

Angel nodded with understanding. He brought up the topic of faith because, with this type of deity worship, any wizard would be very cautious. This is because many so-called deities are likely impersonated by some wild gods, outer gods, demon gods, and evil gods who manipulate the lives of believers, steal their faith, and try to erode the Wizards’ Realm.

For a time, extreme sects had dealt a devastating blow to various religions. However, faith is not something that can be completely eradicated. For the upper class, it is a tool to delude the masses; for the lower class, it’s a solace for the soul.

After the extreme sects found they couldn’t completely root out major faiths, they began to regulate them. The effect has been considerable, at least significantly reducing the number of outer gods who infiltrate the Southern Domain through their followers.

Having already seen the dilapidated temple, reaching it at Speedy’s pace would take just a second or two.

Upon floating above the temple to look down, Angel immediately saw the statue missing an arm, lying on the ground outside the temple, just like Abulei had described in her sleep.

It seems this should be where Abulei is hiding.

"Which one are you looking for?" As Angel was staring at the fallen statue, Dox had already started using his spiritual power to observe the surroundings. To his surprise, he found: "There are at least twenty people around here, and they are all wizard apprentices."

Following Dox’s gaze, Angel indeed saw several moving small black dots around the temple. They wore uniform robes, with insignias of a crown and scepter intersecting on them, emanating faint magical power fluctuations.

"These are the Royal Knights of the Gumman Kingdom."

Upon hearing that they were the royal knights of the Gumman Kingdom, Dox’s expression instantly turned disdainful: "So, they are the tyrant’s hounds."

The King of Gumman has a poor reputation throughout the Southern Domain. They are not friendly to wandering wizards either, and Dox has heard rumors of wandering wizards disappearing mysteriously after visiting the Gumman Kingdom’s wizard market. Presumably, the King of Gumman is behind it.

"These hounds are no good either. They look like they are searching for something near this temple, even using perception-enabled hunting dogs," Dox sneered, "I bet your junior is the one forced to seek your help because of these people."

Angel indeed thought the same.

He and Abulei separated just over a day ago. By timing, Abulei should be waiting for the teleportation array to open at the Gumman Kingdom’s wizard market. Now, Abulei has hastily fled and used the Illusion Dream left by Angel to contact him, clearly because her enemies are entirely beyond her ability to handle.

And these twenty or so tyrant hounds quite fit the bill of those pursuing Abulei.

Seeing Angel’s lack of reaction, Dox said, "Shall I go down and take out this group?"

Angel: "Let’s wait a bit."

Angel, having already located Abulei’s hiding spot through the feedback of Nightmare Illusion power, thought if the opponents indeed found Abulei, then with evidence in hand, it would not be too late to act then.

Of course, Angel wasn’t someone who only acted based on evidence. Evidence was just one reason; another was sensing that Abulei was experiencing an illusion dream uncovering Gu Yina’s truth. He didn’t want Dox’s actions to disturb Abulei...

However, Angel’s wish that Abulei’s dream not be disturbed was soon disrupted.

Because, under the sniffing of two hunting dogs, Abulei, hidden somewhere in the yellow sand, was finally found.

All the royal knights of Gumman surrounded her, even though their robes covered their faces, the collective malice was palpable.

Without a doubt, their target was Abulei!

"It looks like they’ve found your junior. Do you want me to help you get rid of them?" Dox’s tone carried a slight excitement; to him, battle itself is a joy, though these are mere apprentices, just chickens to be slaughtered, lacking the passionate thrill of an evenly matched fight.

Angel shook his head: "Abulei is still in the dream; let her sleep a while longer. As for these people, leave them to me."

Angel had never seen Dox fight, but from the bloodlust emanating from him, Angel could tell he was someone who tore through obstacles. If he went down to fight, it might disturb Abulei.

Angel wanted to see if Abulei had changed after experiencing the truth illusion dream. So, dealing with those hounds himself was more appropriate.

Dox didn’t argue with this. In fact, he was quite interested to see what Lyon’s wizard had up his sleeve.

Dox stared intently at Angel, ready to watch the entire action process.

One minute, two minutes.

Dox’s eyes were filled with confusion; Angel hadn’t done anything.

Wasn’t he afraid of Abulei suffering harm?

Thinking this, Dox climbed over the edge of the gondola and looked down. When he saw the scene below, his pupils suddenly shrank.

Below, the group of hounds, initially moving collectively, suddenly started wandering aimlessly, as if trapped in a never-ending wall; each walked their path. Their emotions turned to panic, screaming incessantly, yet each could only hear their own cries, as if trapped in a closed loop.

From confusion to agitation, then to distress, finally all fainted.

In just a few seconds, everyone lay on the ground, including the hunting dogs.

Dox looked at Angel in shock and confusion: though he was watching closely, Angel indeed did nothing, emitting no energy fluctuations. How did he accomplish this?

Angel seemed to see through Dox’s bewilderment and said softly, "Now we can go down. You’ll get the answers you’re looking for once we do."

Angel gently lowered the gondola.

After landing, Dox gave Angel a glance and strode swiftly toward the unconscious group.

After a short while, Angel also strolled over at a leisurely pace.

"Again with the illusion," Dox turned to look at Angel, "Right?"

Angel ambiguously nodded.

"But I didn’t see you release any magic power, nor did any illusion nodes disperse from you. How did you do it?" Dox questioned.

Angel didn’t directly answer but hinted at it by saying, "Though the desert is scorching hot, it’s very suitable for certain things."

The desert’s weather? A flash of inspiration sparked in Dox’s mind as if he had figured it out.

"Mirage?"

Angel chuckled: "More or less."

Indeed, Angel had used a mirage. Although he hadn’t systematically studied mirages, he often used the "Celestial Alternation" authority to create various mirages while in the Wilderness of Dreams. In reality, with his current perspective and framework, silently invoking a mirage was quite effortless.

However, the mirage merely clouded the group’s vision, serving as a kind of disorienting illusionary realm. What truly made them faint was the sound illusion Angel created, riding the wind’s sound.

Obviously, Dox didn’t notice the illusion node hidden within the sound of the wind.

"What do you mean by ’almost’?" Dox muttered discontentedly.

"It means you got it right," Angel said casually. Without waiting for Dox to ask more questions, he took a step forward, bypassed the fainted people, and headed toward Abulei’s hiding place.

Abulei’s hiding spot had no markings; it was just a very ordinary-looking stretch of sand dunes.

Moreover, Abulei seemed to have set up something to block the vast majority of energy and aura from escaping.

However, because Abulei was currently in a dream of Nightmare Illusion, Angel could easily find her.

Angel gently brushed away the sand, layer by layer, until after more than ten meters, he finally saw the sleeping Abulei.

However, Angel’s focus wasn’t on Abulei but was instead on something surprising above her head. There, a crowned green parrot with a fleshy crown was staring wide-eyed at him.

"Oh no, we’ve been discovered!" the crowned parrot screeched.

"I’m going back to the original realm. But before that, let me help you one last time!" The crowned parrot stretched out its beak, pecking fiercely at Abulei’s forehead. After waking her, it intended to dash away, unconcerned about whether she could escape or not.

However, before the crowned parrot’s beak could reach Abulei’s head, a pale blue large hand grabbed the parrot and pulled it out from the deep pit below.

The crowned parrot realized something was amiss and prepared to return directly to the original realm.

Just then, Angel said, "You’re Abulei’s summoned creature, right? I didn’t expect after losing the Tricolor Deer, what Abulei could summon would be a..."

Angel didn’t recognize the crowned parrot and was pondering how to address it.

From the side, Dox interjected, "A stupid bird."

"How dare you call me a stupid bird!!!" The crowned parrot was instantly furious from Dox’s insult, aborted its return plan, and launched into a tirade: "You red-headed Weeble, you have the nerve to call me names! Even the Weeble clan would be ashamed of you, you’re so ugly that when kids use you as a toy, they’d rather pee on your head!"

Initially, Dox tried to retort, but the crowned parrot’s speech was like a barrage, leaving Dox dumbfounded by its verbal onslaught.

Dox wasn’t the type to take things lying down; since he couldn’t win with words, he prepared to resort to action.

However, Angel smilingly placed a shield on the crowned parrot.

The crowned parrot sensed the defensive field around it, noticed Angel’s friendly gesture, and ramped up its verbal assault with renewed vigor.

Angel had never heard such a high-explosive, high-endurance verbal barrage that wasn’t even repetitive.

The most remarkable thing was, the rapid-fire words were astonishingly clear despite the pace, pushing the boundaries of mental pollution to breaking point.

That is, for Dox.

While Dox was jumping in rage, Angel silently stepped aside, continuously reinforcing a shield for the crowned parrot.

This verbal tirade lasted a full hour.

Unable to do anything about the crowned parrot and unwilling to confront Angel, Dox ultimately withdrew into himself. Sitting on the ground with arms crossed, exuding a chilly aura, he warded off any approach.

When Angel saw that the crowned parrot had finished venting, he asked with a smile, "How should I address you?"

Perhaps due to the earlier shield, which garnered a little goodwill, the crowned parrot generously said, "Call me Master."

Veins instantly stood out on Angel’s forehead.

"I was asking about your species," Angel replied flatly, no longer smiling.

"What an ignorant lout, not knowing that your master is the noble crowned parrot—such impudence."

Angel raised an eyebrow, extended a finger, and tapped the crowned parrot between the eyes.

The crowned parrot didn’t expect Angel to suddenly make a move; it anxiously tried to return to the original realm, but Angel was faster.

A dot of light submerged into the crowned parrot’s forehead, causing it to pass out in the Hand of Magic.

"When it was insulting me, you stopped me from acting. But when it’s your turn, you’re pretty hands-on..." A faint voice sounded from behind.

Angel remained silent, having thought the crowned parrot amusing earlier and not wanting it hurt, but now he deemed it amusing enough to warrant a lesson.

"Well done! Is it dead? If not, let me add a thrust—I’ll stab through the rear and have it come out of its foul mouth!"

Dox laughed maniacally at just imagining this scenario.

Angel paid no attention, allowing the Hand of Magic to hold the unconscious crowned parrot, effectively protecting it from Dox’s wrath.

Ignoring the comatose crowned parrot, Angel turned his focus to Abulei at the bottom of the pit.

With a casual wave of his hand,

a glowing set of tendrils appeared under Abulei, intertwining to form a soft, radiant cushion.

The Illusionary Cushion lifted Abulei slowly upward.

After placing Abulei on the flat sand surface, the Illusionary Cushion gently dissolved.

On the other side, Dox, realizing he couldn’t deal with the crowned parrot, shifted his attention to Abulei. Upon seeing the Illusionary Cushion, he thought inwardly: another illusion.

To date, this Wizard Lyon had acted three times, each using illusions.

Could he be an Illusionist Wizard?

Illusionist Wizards are rare in the Southern Domain; who could he be?

While Dox pondered, Angel observed Abulei’s condition.

She remained asleep, but this time, she wasn’t continuously calling to Angel in her dreams—she was genuinely lost in her dreamscape.

Her cheeks showed clear traces of tears, with droplets at the corners of her eyes.

Her expression alternated between fear and pity, her chest rising and falling with faint sobs and gasps.

Anyone witnessing this scene would guess she was having a nightmare.

"You said earlier, let her sleep a while longer, and you meant let her have a nightmare?" Dox approached, eyeing Angel with a strange look. "Is that a kink of yours?"

Angel couldn’t be bothered with Dox’s nonsense.

He focused on Abulei, patiently waiting for her to awaken according to the progression of the Nightmare Illusion he crafted, estimating it was nearing the end, with Aniga and Chaila having died one after the other, Gu Yina having Feng Man skin them...

When all was settled, what choice would Abulei make?