Warlock Apprentice

Chapter 2120: Chapter 2121: Light of Projection

Not long after Angel fell into contemplation, the wall beside him began to emit strands of light. When the light reached its peak, a figure slowly walked through the wall.

A naked man appeared cursing in front of Angel.

"Lord Tree Spirit." Angel respectfully greeted.

The visitor was indeed Tree Spirit, and upon seeing Angel, he exhaled a relaxed breath: "Thankfully, you didn’t rashly go in, otherwise, the consequences would have been the same as my previous avatar, directly killed by the nightmare after entering."

Killed directly by the nightmare? Could it be that even the stand-in method no longer works? Angel asked in confusion: "Lord Tree Spirit, might there be other dangers inside the room?"

Tree Spirit glanced at the deep corridor ahead, seeing no other movement, he reached out and touched the wall, causing a green vine to grow out of it. Tree Spirit sat on it as a chair and sighed: "The situation inside the room is basically the same as outside, with the red light everywhere, at least I didn’t see any other threats; but while saying it’s the same, upon close inspection, it’s not entirely the same..."

"The red light outside the door is like passing through several lenses, finally projected out as a small fraction, actually, it’s already diluted many times over. Whereas the red light inside the door is the real nightmare."

Even someone like Tree Spirit, who stands at the pinnacle of the Southern Domain Wizard World, couldn’t help but show a solemn expression when talking about this. It indicates how shocking the encounter inside the room was for him.

As Tree Spirit narrated, Angel gradually understood the situation within the room.

Just as Tree Spirit said, he encountered no other danger upon entering the room; the only threat remained the Nightmare Light. However, the Nightmare Light in the room was entirely different from outside, its color more intense, and entering it felt like stepping into a churning, thick swamp, where progress was impossible.

Using leaves as a stand-in to die was still effective. But, unlike the outside situation, after the stand-in died, Tree Spirit had no time gap at all and was immediately pulled into a second nightmare.

In a brief moment, four leaves as stand-ins were completely consumed, and eventually, Tree Spirit’s avatar was also killed in the nightmare.

"My avatar is still too weak; if it were my true form, there would be no accident." Tree Spirit said with a hint of emotion.

Tree Spirit wasn’t wrong; his true form’s strength stands at the peak, and the energy it holds is unmatched by anyone in the entire Southern Domain. Even if purely consuming energy foundations, it could roam unabated.

However, Tree Spirit’s true form cannot leave the Mirror World at will; only avatars can be sent out. The strength limit of these avatars at best reaches the level of a weak True Knowledge Wizard, whose real combat power is still inferior to Angel’s.

"Listening to this, the Nightmare Light inside the room is similar to that in the Star Pond Ruins. While the Nightmare Light outside the door is not only stable but also thin, more like a projection through a window." Angel said softly.

Tree Spirit also nodded in agreement, according to Reeves, the Nightmare Light he encountered in the Star Pond Ruins was layered, with varying density, chasing after all living beings, noticeably different from the Nightmare Light projected outside the door. It is, however, similar to the situation inside the door.

Angel: "In this case, there should be some special field in the room, binding the real Nightmare Light."

Tree Spirit: "That should be it, otherwise, the Nightmare Light would certainly not stay put in one place."

But again, even knowing this situation, it at most means there’s no need to worry too much about the Nightmare Light spreading, yet the core of the problem remains hidden in the mist.

"Lord Tree Spirit, did you see the general layout inside the room?" Angel asked after pondering for a moment.

Tree Spirit shook his head: "The color of the Nightmare Light is too deep, like thick black blood, making it hard to see the surroundings. The only object I saw was what seemed to be a black coat rack on the left side after entering the door, nothing else."

"A black coat rack... Generally, coat racks are placed in entrances and bedrooms; excluding the entrance, it seems this is indeed a bedroom." Angel rubbed his temples with some frustration: "But why would such dangerous Nightmare Light be in a bedroom?"

Tree Spirit: "Perhaps to the bedroom’s owner, the Nightmare Light is not dangerous."

Angel also realized this, just like the creatures under the Nightmare Realm below the Star Pond Ruins, for them, the Nightmare Light was a pursuit target, not a dreaded threat.

Tree Spirit glanced again at the dark corridor depths and patted Angel’s shoulder: "I’ve already left a message for Rhein. When he sees it, he’ll undoubtedly come over at the first instance. We should retreat for now, discovering a hidden room is good, but leaving our lives here would be bad."

Tree Spirit had hurried over so quickly just to convey this message.

The situation with the Nightmare Light was too complex. Even though his avatar was at the level of an Official Wizard, it was still instantly killed when faced with the Nightmare Light.

Those nightmares were fierce to the point of being utterly illogical.

Even a seasoned True Knowledge Wizard would find it challenging to guarantee a way to save their life.

Tree Spirit was even worried that Rhein might not be able to solve the Nightmare Light issue, but with Rhein’s foundation, surviving shouldn’t be a problem.

As for Angel, it’s best not to get caught up in this turmoil.

Angel remained silent for a moment: "I still want to give it a try."

Hearing Angel say this, Tree Spirit was somewhat surprised but didn’t immediately oppose Angel. Instead, he asked: "You can try, but if you plan to step into the light range without any protection, it’s undoubtedly courting death."

"How do you plan to try?"

Angel thought for a moment and said: "The Nightmare Realm creatures in the Star Pond Ruins, whether it’s the Boiling Gentleman or Minister Nuka, they are not afraid of the Nightmare Light; instead, they can use it to achieve their goals."

Tree Spirit frowned: "You mean using the Power of the Nightmare Realm’s methods?"

Angel nodded, indeed having such an idea.

Tree Spirit sank into deep thought. Although he didn’t fully understand the unique power of the Illusion Demon Island lineage, he knew part of it originated from the Nightmare Realm. Angel and Sanders could both manipulate the Power of the Nightmare Realm.

Angel’s reasoning had some validity; creatures from the Nightmare Realm didn’t seem to fear the Nightmare Light, possibly due to the Power of the Nightmare Realm?

Tree Spirit thought about it and nodded to Angel: "You can try it, but start with the more stable light range outside the door."

If Angel only fell into the Nightmare Light outside the door, Tree Spirit was confident he could save him, but once inside, he couldn’t guarantee it.

Angel: "Alright."

...

When they returned to the end of the corridor, Tree Spirit looked at the menacing, gaping mouth in the distance, remained silent for a moment, and asked: "How do you plan to proceed now?"

Angel: "I’ll use a Phantom Limb to probe again."

Tree Spirit’s eyes showed approval.

If Angel went directly, there would still be some risks with Tree Spirit nearby; however, using a Phantom Limb to probe, Tree Spirit could ensure absolute safety.

Tree Spirit: "Then prepare and begin."

Angel extended his hand, and a tentacle seemingly made of pure white mist slowly emerged from his sleeve; this tentacle was the Phantom Limb.

Once the Phantom Limb appeared, Angel began layering the Nightmare Realm aura around it until he was sure there were almost no blind spots. He then slowly extended the Phantom Limb toward the red light in the distance.

Ten meters, nine meters... The phantom limb moved swiftly and soon reached the nearest point of the red light. Angel took a deep breath and cautiously extended the phantom limb into the red light.

The moment the phantom limb entered the red light, Angel did not notice anything unusual around him. The walls did not melt, and no abyss emerged from the ground; everything was the same as before.

As he suspected that he had succeeded in one go, the Tree Spirit beside him suddenly turned its head.

The eyes of the Tree Spirit lost all color, turning pure white. Its exterior, including the facial skin and all exposed skin, began to peel away incessantly like old, mottled walls, revealing vague textures of flesh.

This was evidently wrong; the Tree Spirit was a spiritual body, and this was only its avatar, not a body of flesh and blood.

Angel could confirm that this terrifying figure before him was definitely not the real Tree Spirit.

Then, there was only one possibility... He had once again been pulled into the rhythm of a nightmare.

And the Tree Spirit before him was a monster in the nightmare.

Soon, the completely peeled Tree Spirit, with its mouth all covered in red and white muscles, still wore an eerie smile, as white, slimy maggots began crawling out of its eye sockets. As these maggots dropped, they instantly became monstrously huge, opening jaws lined with sharp fangs, aiming to bite Angel’s head...

Before the maggots could bite him, Angel felt everything around him change as if returning from a horrific scene to reality.

The maggots vanished, and the Tree Spirit returned to normal, the bizarre occurrences had ended.

"I saw your phantom limb suddenly stop, and your eyes lost focus, becoming strange. So, I severed your phantom limb," the Tree Spirit paused and looked at Angel: "You must have entered the nightmare, right?"

Angel nodded and recounted the scene he had just witnessed.

"I turned into a nightmare?" The Tree Spirit clicked its tongue: "The scenarios in nightmares really vary. The only constant is if you die in the nightmare, you truly die."

The Tree Spirit sighed again and said: "It seems that the power of the Nightmare Realm cannot ward off the erosion of the Nightmare Light. Do you still plan to continue trying?"

Angel nodded again: "I’ll try once more."

"Still using the phantom limb?"

Seeing Angel nod, the Tree Spirit did not dissuade him. As long as it was only the phantom limb, no matter how many times he tried, it could timely stop any loss, so there was no need to stop him.

Angel once again extended the phantom limb.

This time, however, Angel did not allow the phantom limb to face the red light alone. He also walked a short distance along with the phantom limb, stopping only on the verge of the glowing boundary.

Because this time, he intended to try something different.

Previously, he wrapped the aura of the Nightmare Realm around the phantom limb, already foreseeing the potential failure. The phantom limb itself already contained a hint of Nightmare Realm aura. The phantom limb itself couldn’t block the Nightmare Light, so adding a bit more aura wouldn’t significantly change the outcome.

But this time, Angel not only intended to attach the aura of the Nightmare Realm but also wanted to use it as an energy medium to pry the Material Realm.

Even Sanders could not accomplish this method of utilizing the Nightmare Realm aura. The necessary condition was the green pattern, which, currently, only Angel possessed and could use.

Angel focused on the tip of the phantom limb and gradually activated the green pattern in his right eye.

With his actions, the Tree Spirit on the other side looked over. Although the Tree Spirit was merely a weak avatar, its vision was not low, and it clearly sensed the intense change in the aura around Angel.

As Angel’s right eye began to emit a faint green glow, a sense of oppression started to spread around.

Even the Tree Spirit felt pressured under this sense of oppression.

When the luminous leap of the green pattern reached its peak, a Domain Field centered on Angel suddenly appeared around them.

The Domain Field fully encompassed the phantom limb.

Only then did the Tree Spirit speak: "Do you intend to use this power to send the phantom limb into the light’s boundary?"

"Yes." Angel was activating the "Domain Field" within the green pattern of his right eye, which had a defensive effect, capable of blocking attacks and isolating any negative energy intrusion, including curses.

Since the Domain Field was not extensive, Angel had to approach the Nightmare Light to keep the phantom limb continuously enveloped within the Domain Field.

Whether the Domain Field could block the Nightmare Light, Angel did not yet know, but it was his only means of defense that could be activated using the power of the Nightmare Realm. If this failed too, he had no other options.

The Tree Spirit did not ask for the specific reasons behind Angel’s power but nodded to him, indicating he could begin. He would monitor Angel’s state at all times and sever the phantom limb if anything seemed off.

Angel cautiously moved the phantom limb covered by the Domain Field closer to the red light.

When the phantom limb entered the red light, both the Tree Spirit and Angel attentively watched the changes around them.

One second, two seconds... As the phantom limb was illuminated by the red light, Angel felt his heart almost jump into his throat.

After ten seconds, the phantom limb writhed like a snake in the red light, yet Angel did not perceive any change around him. He turned to look at the Tree Spirit, who was watching him with focused eyes.

"Master Tree Spirit?" Angel tentatively called out.

The Tree Spirit was stunned for a moment and immediately snapped back, exclaiming: "You... you’re okay?! You haven’t been pulled into the nightmare? Or is it that you’re in a nightmare and unaware?"

Angel: "There’s no change around me, and I can still converse with Master Tree Spirit. As long as you are real, I shouldn’t be in a nightmare."

Though he said so, the Tree Spirit still found it unbelievable. He was prepared to provide support at any time, even planning to secretly rouse the meditating Rhein. Unexpectedly, Angel succeeded?

Saying it was a success might be premature, but at least the phantom limb, under the intervention of the Domain Field, wasn’t assaulted by the nightmare. This contrasted sharply with previous experiences.

Angel waited another thirty seconds.

In this half-minute, neither the Tree Spirit nor Angel spoke; they silently awaited the result.

After thirty seconds, nothing unexpected happened to Angel.

Angel pondered and then spoke to the Tree Spirit: "Perhaps the Domain Field truly works. I plan to step inside and try it out myself."

This time, the Tree Spirit did not deny Angel’s proposal, as it was already confirmed that the Domain Field could partially shield the Nightmare Light. Given such an effect, conducting further experiments seemed inevitable.

Angel took a deep breath and stepped into the illuminated area.