Chapter 229: Word-Spirit Disturbance Technique

Hayek and Youni each took a small, delicate silver badge from their pockets and handed them to Luo En.

Each badge was engraved with an exquisite personal crest; one side bore the school's emblem, while the other featured a unique combination of personal runes.

"This is our magical communication badge," Hayek explained, a rare trace of gentleness in his eyes:

"If you encounter any difficulties in the future, or require any information, you can contact us through it. Although we are stationed on the periphery, our insights and connections in certain fields might be able to provide you with some help."

Luo En took the two badges, sensing the complex structures contained within them.

This was a one-time alchemical device; it would automatically dissipate after being stored in his own magic badge.

This special means of communication, capable of transmitting information across considerable distances, was a common contact method between formal wizards and some high-level apprentices.

The exchange of badges was not just a means of communication, but a symbol of friendship and recognition.

"Thank you all for your witness and help."

Luo En performed a standard wizard's salute, his movements elegant and powerful: "If there are no other matters, I shall take my leave."

"Go," Hayek nodded slightly, his gaze carrying a hint of profound meaning: "I think Lady Ailan has been waiting impatiently to see you."

Luo En was slightly startled, then understood.

His relationship with Lady Ailan had long been no secret in the eyes of the school's high echelons.

Although Lady Ailan was stationed on the periphery, her former status and strength were clearly still respected by these older-generation wizards.

Before turning to leave, Luo En heard a whisper from Hayek behind him:

"The Black Fog School always welcomes your return, Formal Wizard Ralph."

The doors of the council chamber closed slowly behind him. Luo En stood in the corridor, feeling the warmth of the morning light spilling onto him through the stained glass.

Everything seemed brand new; colors were more vivid, sounds were clearer, and the flow of energy was more tangibly perceptible.

The first formal meeting after becoming a formal wizard had ended; next, it was time to see that mysterious witch who had guided him onto the path of true essence.

Luo En's figure disappeared quietly in the corridor, leaving only a faint ripple of energy that soon dissipated into the morning air.

………………

Sheng Pan stood at the edge of the Black Fog Jungle, feeling the rhythm of the "Wang Zuo Seed" within his body.

That blood-red bead seemed to have its own heartbeat, and every pulsation injected a shuddering power into his limbs and bones.

"The time has come," he murmured, the muscles on the distorted right side of his face writhing.

Eyes of different sizes blinked simultaneously, presenting a bizarre rhythm.

After being sent to the vicinity by the "Void Spider" Ma Genusi, he had been lurking around the school, carefully observing for the best opportunity.

Now, he had finally waited for that critical node.

Sheng Pan took a deep breath, his palm covering his chest, where the "Wang Zuo Seed" was located.

An ancient and obscure incantation was slowly spat out from his mouth, the sound like broken glass colliding.

As soon as the words fell, an unprecedented power erupted from within his body.

His body began to twist and deform, his size suddenly expanding to more than double its original state.

Veins bulged under his skin, presenting purple-black patterns, like some ancient runes drawn on a living creature.

His arms elongated and thickened, his fingertips turning into sharp bone blades; the skin on his back split, growing two pairs of bat-like wing membranes;

His head was completely distorted, with no traces of humanity left, looking more like an aggregate of some abyss creature.

"Power... this is the power of an apostle."

Sheng Pan let out a low roar, his voice filled with ecstasy.

The feeling at this moment was more wonderful than he had imagined, like standing on the clouds overlooking the firmament, or like the master of the abyss controlling the darkness.

"Now, it is time to visit the 'Bloodline Altar'."

He knew well that only in the state of "Apostle Power" could he possibly break through the protective array left by Wa Lun.

And the task of finding Luo En also required the help of the Bloodline Altar's nodes.

Spreading those deformed wing membranes, Sheng Pan soared into the air, cutting through the dawn sky, flying straight toward the peripheral area of the Black Fog School.

The air seemed to become thin before him, and space seemed to be deliberately making way for him.

This was the wonder of "Apostle Power."

Even in the surface world, it could trigger the faint influence of abyss rules, allowing Sheng Pan to gain all sorts of incredible conveniences.

In less than ten minutes, he arrived at the periphery of the Bloodline Altar control point.

This place was covered by a translucent array, on which complex runes and energy circuits flickered.

That was the protective measure reinforced by Wa Lun before leaving, intended to ensure that the abyss energy within the altar would not leak out.

Sheng Pan sneered, a look of contempt flashing in his seven eyes.

"A mere seal of a Dark Sun Wizard."

He raised his distorted right arm, which was no longer in the shape of a palm, but a deformed organ formed by the intersection of three thick bone blades.

Dark purple energy flowed on the surface of the bone blades, writhing slowly like a living thing.

"In the name of Lord Ma Genusi, I command you—open!"

The bone blades suddenly inserted into the surface of the array, and in an instant, the entire protective layer shattered like glass.

Countless cracks spread from the contact point to the surroundings, accompanied by the harsh sound of energy breaking, and the entire array collapsed with a boom.

Without the slightest hesitation, Sheng Pan crossed that boundary which had already failed, walking straight toward the control node of the Bloodline Altar.

With every step he took, he could feel the intensification of the surrounding abyss energy.

These energies were like old friends reunited after a long time, actively gathering toward him, surrounding him, forming a bizarre resonance.

"Bloodline Altar... this imprisoned 'mini-abyss'."

Sheng Pan whispered to himself, his voice carrying an emotion bordering on pity: "Today, I will grant you freedom."

Passing through several dilapidated corridors, he finally arrived at the core area of the control node—a huge circular space, with an ancient stone platform in the center, covered with complex runes and patterns.

The stone platform was surrounded by twelve tall crystal pillars, each emitting a blood-colored faint light, illuminating the entire space as eerily as hell.

Most striking was the huge red crystal suspended above the stone platform.

That was the core of the control node, and the key to sealing the abyss energy, established by the Great Wizard who had modified this small space for the Crystal Spire at the time.

Complex energy patterns flowed on the surface of the crystal, like some ancient and mysterious language, recording unknown secrets.

The distorted eyes stared greedily at that crystal, his tongue unconsciously licking his dry lips.

Just then, a slight ripple of magic power came from behind him.

The corners of Sheng Pan's mouth immediately curled into a cold, sinister smile.

He did not turn around immediately, but exhaled gently, letting the abyss energy in his body converge slightly.

There was no need to show all his power at the first moment—Apostle Power was like precious nectar, every drop was precious, and using one meant having one less.

"It seems the school's protection is tighter than I imagined," Sheng Pan calculated in his heart:

"That old fox Suo Lun is indeed still keeping alert at such a critical moment."

"Intruder, state your purpose." Suo Lun's voice came from the entrance, steady and vigilant.

Sheng Pan turned slowly, deliberately hiding his distorted right face in the shadows, revealing only the left half of his face that still retained human features.

This half-hidden way was easier to cause confusion and curiosity in the opponent than a completely distorted image.

"Suo Lun... long time no see."

Sheng Pan's voice deliberately maintained a certain familiar tone, with a familiar rhythm, yet subtly mixed with a hum unique to the abyss:

"You look more haggard than the last time we met."

Under the blessing of Apostle Power, he could clearly perceive Suo Lun's energy fluctuations—peak Morning Star level, not bad in strength, but still more than a level behind Wa Lun's Dark Sun level.

Most importantly, Suo Lun was clearly in a state of exhaustion at this moment, with a faint sense of disorder in his energy fluctuations, clearly having consumed too much recently and failing to fully recover.

"That voice... seems to be..."

Suo Lun's eyes became sharp: "Zuo Te? Impossible... aren't you already..."

"Dead?" Sheng Pan sneered, deliberately turning his face toward the light.

Letting Suo Lun see his face that was half familiar and half distorted:

"Missing, left, fallen... people always like to use these words to describe those colleagues who chose different paths."

Sheng Pan let out a sharp laugh, as harsh as fingernails scraping across glass.

He opened his arms, displaying his distorted body as if showing off some trophy:

"However, I have already obtained the favor of Lord Apostle, and have obtained the power sufficient to destroy your school!"

Suo Lun's face turned solemn instantly.

"Apostle... the Supreme Apostle of the Abyss Eye?"

As an experienced formal wizard, Mentor Suo Lun immediately realized the severity of the situation.

The Supreme Apostle was not an ordinary awakened one, but the highest leadership of that terrorist organization, each possessing terrifying power comparable to a Great Wizard.

Sheng Pan could see the shock and fear flashing in Suo Lun's eyes; that was exactly the effect he wanted.

In duels between wizards, psychological advantage was sometimes more critical than the strength of magic power.

And now, Suo Lun's emotional fluctuations had begun to affect his magic stability.

Sheng Pan keenly captured this wavering and continued his psychological offensive:

"Suo Lun, we have worked together for many years, aren't you curious? Curious why I chose the path of the abyss? Curious why more and more wizards are abandoning the so-called 'orthodoxy' and turning to the path of the awakened?"

Every time he spoke a sentence, he deliberately incorporated a special frequency fluctuation into his tone.

This was his specialty as a curse-type wizard—"Word-Spirit Disturbance Technique," which could interfere with the target's thinking coherence through specific verbal attacks.

"Enough, Zuo Te!" Suo Lun shouted to stop him, but inadvertently exposed his own emotional fluctuations:

"No matter who you once were, you have now fallen into a puppet of the abyss; there is no point in saying more."

While speaking, Suo Lun began to form seals; that was the starting move of the "Multi-layered Distortion Shield," a general defensive spell with quite good effects.

Sheng Pan knew that he could not give the opponent any more time.

"Multi-layered Distortion Shield? Tsk tsk, you still like flashy spells so much."

Sheng Pan's seven eyes turned simultaneously, a strange red light flashing in the depths of his pupils:

"Unfortunately, you are no longer in your prime state. The maintenance of the Bloodline Altar node has consumed too much of your energy, hasn't it?"

Suo Lun's movements paused slightly, and Sheng Pan knew he had hit the nail on the head.

Luo En's advancement had just occurred, and the entire high echelon of the Black Fog School had paid a great deal of energy for it.

Especially Suo Lun, as the person assigned to maintain the Bloodline Altar, his spiritual power must have been consumed enormously.

In this subtle hesitation, Sheng Pan quietly completed his most proficient curse spell—"First-Ring Death Gaze."

"Suo Lun, old friend, do you still remember the topic we studied together?"

Sheng Pan's voice suddenly became unusually gentle, as if narrating a beautiful memory:

"Research on human limits... the critical point between pain and pleasure... you said it was too dangerous at the time, but now, I think you should experience it yourself..."

As these words were spat out, a wave of invisible curse energy quietly spread, winding around Suo Lun's spiritual barrier like a poisonous snake.

This curse was not a simple confrontation of power, but a precise "lock," designed specifically for Suo Lun's spiritual structure, just like a key aimed at a keyhole.

He only felt the world spinning, and his "Multi-layered Distortion Shield" stopped abruptly halfway through construction.

His spiritual power seemed to be entangled by some invisible mucus, unable to flow freely.

"This is... a curse."

Suo Lun struggled to break this restraint, but he discovered with horror that the harder he tried, the more the curse's power seeped into the depths of his spirit:

"Zuo Te! You... how could you..."

"How could you release such a powerful curse?"

Sheng Pan chuckled:

"This is the place where you stick-in-the-mud wizards will never understand. The path of the abyss seems dangerous, but it has shortcuts you cannot imagine. The power that traditional wizards take decades to master, under the gift of the abyss, only takes an instant!"

While speaking, the distortion of his right arm was fully revealed, three intersecting bone blades shining with cold light, with strange purple-black energy flowing on them.

These energies were not simple abyss pollution, but carefully refined "Soul Corrosives," capable of eroding the foundation of the soul while damaging the flesh.

Suo Lun widened his eyes; he could feel his body gradually losing control, and the flow of spiritual power becoming slower and slower.

At the critical moment, he tried his best to break free from the curse's restraint.

But those once-familiar incantations were like sand blown away by the wind at this moment, unable to condense into shape.

Sheng Pan did not give him any chance, his figure blurring almost instantly, leaving only a purple-black afterimage in the air.

"Farewell, Suo Lun. I am curious, what will the Crystal Spire make with your soul..."

The bone blades pierced mercilessly into Suo Lun's chest.

At the moment of penetrating the heart, a wave of abyss energy was injected directly into it, causing the flesh around the wound to rapidly rot and deteriorate.

Suo Lun only had time to let out a muffled groan before falling like a puppet with cut strings.

A trace of morbid pleasure appeared on Sheng Pan's face.

He knew that even a Morning Star wizard, without any preparation, could not withstand such a precise fatal blow.

Not to mention, Suo Lun was already in a weakened state, with both spiritual power and magic power far from recovering to their peak.

"How boring..."

Sheng Pan muttered to himself, but his eyes flashed with the light of success.

He knew very well that in the confrontation just now, he had not used the full power of the "Wang Zuo Seed."

The energy of apostle-ization was like precious magic potion, every bit of which had to be calculated carefully.

Saying this, he coldly pulled the bone blades out of Suo Lun's chest, bringing out a heart that was still beating weakly.

That heart was covered with a thin layer of Morning Star magic crystal substance, and even after leaving the body, it still emitted a faint brilliance.

"A Morning Star wizard's heart... what a wonderful source of energy."

Sheng Pan examined the heart still beating in his hand, greed flashing in his seven eyes.

He opened that distorted big mouth, his sharp teeth shining with cold light, and swallowed the heart into his belly in one gulp.

Warm blood flowed down his jaw, the bright red liquid leaving shocking traces on his distorted skin.

"Delicious to the extreme." Sheng Pan licked the corners of his mouth with satisfaction:

"It's a pity that time is tight, and I cannot fully enjoy this body."

He turned toward Suo Lun, who had fallen to the ground, a mocking smile appearing on his face.

"However, I think with the strength of a Morning Star wizard, you shouldn't die so easily. Perhaps you can still struggle for a moment, but..."

Sheng Pan's seven eyes flashed with a cold light simultaneously.

"It doesn't matter, the pollution of the abyss has already entered your blood, and it will soon erode your spiritual world, completely destroying your consciousness. Death will be a mercy for you."

After finishing, Sheng Pan turned and walked toward the suspended red crystal, ignoring Suo Lun, who was dying behind him.

His goal was already very clear: use the "Apostle Power" to destroy the core seal of the Bloodline Altar.

Release the suppressed abyss energy inside and create greater chaos.

In such chaos, finding and approaching Luo En would become easier.

Walking under the crystal, Sheng Pan raised his hands, and a wave of purple-black energy surged from his palms, winding around the surface of the crystal like tentacles.

Cracks spread on the surface of the crystal, accompanied by harsh shattering sounds, and the entire space was trembling.

Crazy light flashed in Sheng Pan's seven eyes.

He could feel his power resonating with the abyss energy sealed in the crystal, strengthening each other, gradually breaking through the shackles of the seal.

"Continue... stronger... ah!"

With a scream, Sheng Pan exerted the power of the "Wang Zuo Seed" to the limit.

An unprecedented energy fluctuation erupted from within his body, directly impacting the core of the crystal.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 230 =====