If the previous bloodline was only Edda’s—a low-ranked Magus—then the current ball of blood had already reached the level of a Crystal Phase, and its aura was highly similar to Robin’s.
If Robin had installed this bloodline detector, then the key to it wouldn’t be as simple as the bloodline of a Giant Kemoyin Serpent. Otherwise, it’d be easy as pie for any Magus to uncover the secret here.
Surely, Robin would only use his own DNA as the key.
Therefore, Leylin was trying to generate a bloodline aura similar to that of Robin’s through that of his relative.
Though the DNA couldn’t be imitated, Leylin believed that it would be almost undetectable by the spells here given the supreme abilities of the A.I. Chip.
[Beep! Deduction completed for the removal of the spell!] The A.I. Chip alerted and Leylin’s face lit up as he sang the incantation.
[Beep! Wrong aura, starting automated matching!] The deep red ball of blood underwent some changes before changing into the aura of another Warlock.
“This is..” Leylin was confused for a moment. He quickly shook his head and sent the blood ball straight into the mural causing the two to fuse.
A layer of red started rippling on the surface of the mural and it was frightening. The characters in the mural, especially, took an eerie turn and started changing under the crimson light.
Thin scales and cysts started getting embedded their bodies and some of the cavalry even had horns growing on their heads and enormous wings on their backs. The mural had transformed into one of monsters.
The demon head, however, still had a sinister smile painted across his face that made Leylin’s hairs stand.
“There must be more to this mural, this seems foreboding…” Leyin muttered to himself and looked at the demon head again.
“A.I Chip, scan the mural! Find a similar specimen in the database!” Leylin ordered.
[Beep! Mission received, starting scan! Matching similar specimens in database…] The A.I. Chip replied almost immediately while scanning through the database furiously.
[Beep! Similar image found!] The A.I. Chip projected an oil painting in front of Leylin.
Within the painting was the huge image of a demon, its horns and eyes shockingly similar to the one in the mural.
“What is this?” Leylin looked into the information of that particular section almost immediately.
[The year 2315 of the Holy Calendar, a night where crows wept, the clone of Beelzebub arrived in Verdant City and cause a holocaust before being eliminated by an unknown Breaking Dawn Magus…]
The information presented by the A.I. Chip was very simplified. It was a mere few sentences and the image had a few missing portions on the edge.
These were the defects on the ancient book scanned earlier.
“Beelzebub, who represents gluttony?”
Leylin covered his mouth in shock, “Even if it’s just a clone, the only people who could eliminate it were Breaking Dawn Magi!”
Though details weren’t mentioned in the ancient book, the marked calendar system belonged to the ancient era where Morning Star Magi reigned, and there were definitely some in the Verdant City too.
“Amongst those who were injured, exactly how many were at Morning Star or even Breaking Dawn…” Leylin sighed.
And right at this moment, both the incantation and bloodline were stimulated and a crack split the mural from the centre, revealing a passageway that led underground.
The bloodline detector was broken by an outsider in a situation that did not alarm the owner.
WMW Chapter 482
Prison Cell
Cries and howls sounded.
Indescribable noises echoed past Leylin’s ears as he stepped foot into the passageway. The secret that Robin had kept so tightly was about to be revealed to him.
‘There must’ve been something more to that expedition we did.’ Leylin thought about other matters as he took note of his surroundings.
‘Robin was evidently impatient when we last explored the Quicksand pocket dimension. And the information he held about the dimension was definitely not possible for someone who only worked internally. He’d probably known all the secrets within Quicksand Castle long ago, and went there specifically for it…’
Leylin’s guess was confirmed by the mural.
‘Robin’s family clearly inherited something important, and it might even be linked to the Quicksand Organisation.’
As his journey in the long passageway came to an end, he found himself between two rows of small prison-like cells.
The walls in these cells were covered in complex runes—many of which were familiar to Leylin—that were identical to the bindings of his own Magus Tower.
“The number of cells is crazy,” Leylin sized up the rows of cells that seemed to have no end to them, and caught glimpses of shadows within.
‘Exactly how many people is he planning to imprison?’ he thought as he came in front of a cell.
“Outsider detected, warning dispatched! Destroy!”
A deep voice masculine voice sounded as Leylin entered Shadow Stealth mode, the man was a formation genie in charge of this area, holding a position similar to that of his own tower genie.
“A.I. Chip,” Leylin lightly called out.
[Spiritual force interface discovered, forcefully manipulating data!] The A.I. Chip replied mechanically, without an ounce of emotion.
The voice started to change in an instant, becoming hoarse.
“Invasion by outsider’s spiritual force! Activating first layer of defences!”
“Defence broken, activating level 2 firewall and alarms! Beginning self-destruction!”
“Invasion of outsider’s spiritual force into centre formation genie. Warning! Warning!”
“Destruction imminent in T minus 3, 2… Warning dispersed! Operation normal! Outsider’s spiritual force intercepted. No information has been leaked.”
Its voice that was initially submersed in fright and hoarseness became choppy. Light shone everywhere, illuminating the surroundings distinctly as it turned into a unique robotic one, that of the A.I. Chip.
An intelligence of this standard was nothing in front of Leylin’s A.I. Chip, it was only a matter of time before it was breached.
The administrator of this region had already changed from the formation genie to Leylin’s A.I. Chip.
After he successfully took it over, the place had become Leylin’s backyard. Even Robin would fail to detect him.
Of course, he had to thank his luck that he took care of the formation genie in a short time. Most formation genies would have self-destructed in time, and alerted their owners, landing Leylin in a heap of trouble.
Thankfully, Robin’s formation genie was of a lower rank. If it were a core formation genie set up by a Morning Star Magus, the A.I. Chip would have faced a lot of difficulties.
Now, Leylin was in control.
“Activate the observation window of cell 0023!” Following Leylin’s command, a white ray of light shone in the cell, ridding it of the darkness, the prisoner appearing in front of Leylin.
And the prisoner appeared in front of Leylin.
“Huh?! This is…” Leylin’s pupils dilated. “I’ve seen him somewhere…”
It was a Warlock; more accurately, a Giant Kemoyin Serpent Warlock.
This sense of familiarity between bloodlines was always accurate. The Warlock in front of him looked plaintive; not only was he almost naked—only clothed in pathetic rags—his whole body was riddled with large wounds.
Some granulation tissue could be seen squirming on the wounds, they were repairing themselves. It looked revolting.
“Don’t… Don’t come any nearer. You monster!” A low voice rumbled from the Warlock’s mouth.
“I’m not Robin!” Leylin cleared his throat and said.
“…” The Warlock raised his head and Leylin could see his goblin-like face. As if on cue, hope filled his eyes, replacing the dread and despair tha
t existed before he saw Leylin.
“Sa- Save me! Please save me, Lord Leylin!”
He was like a drowning man that was grasping at the last straw as he crawled to the middle of the cell,
It was then that Leylin realised that both the legs of the Warlock were missing. He was completely disabled.
Though it could be healed using limb regeneration spells or other high-grade potions, Robin wouldn’t have been so nice.
“Tell me, what happened? Why are you here?” Leylin looked dreadfully displeased, and his voice was low as ever.
“It’s Robin! He captured me, my wife and my children and caged us here right after he attacked my family! He- He’s a demon!”
He seemed to have undergone an overly traumatic experience that caused him to stumble over his words.
“Master! Master! Take me away please, I’m begging you!” He shouted himself hoarse as his eyes watered.
Leylin could only shake his head at this scene. Though the advancements of Warlock were largely a result of their bloodlines, making moving up the ranks easier, to see such low willpower from a Warlock was still very rare.
High-ranking Magi usually had tenacious spirits, and could compose themselves quickly even in huge events.
“Tell me, what exactly did he do?” Two rays of lights shot from Leylin’s eyes, and made the Warlock speechless.
“He- He-” The Warlock sobbed and hugged his knees close, coiling into himself as he trembled endlessly.
“He- How dare he eat my Gwen! Oh Lord, she was only 7…”
“And Hugo, and Ron…” He could not stop listing name after name and looked absent-minded. He ended up wrapping his arms around his head, refusing to think anymore.
“A drastic change in temperament, imprisoning people, rumours of cannibalism, a mural to Beelzebub, the prince of gluttony!” Leylin let out a long sigh. The pieces came together to form a complete picture in his head.
“Wow, this is…” He did not know what to say. Robin’s desire for power had already reached such sick levels.
Though Leylin didn’t label himself a good guy, he would never go as far as Robin had.
Just then, the A.I. Chip relayed a piece of information to Leylin.
[Beep! Scan of underground laboratory completed! 341 prisoners: 34 Giant Kemoyin Warlocks, 22 Rank 3 Warlocks…]
“Other matters aside, things will be over for Robin the moment he gets exposed…” As Leylin went further, he saw that the cells on both sides were full of all kinds of Warlocks. Most of them had portions of their bodies missing, and he even saw a few elders from Robin’s own family.
It seemed like the elders who disappeared were all captured by Robin and locked up here.
Upon seeing Leylin, all the Warlocks went mad; some were wailing, some were bellowing in fury demanding that Leylin punish Robin for his sins. Even the eyes of the elders from Robin’s own family were filled with hatred and rage; they had evidently given up on Robin long ago.
“These Warlocks, most of them should be from the families that Robin eliminated…” Leylin sighed. Who would know that Robin would have the guts to seize his enemies and lock them up in a secret cellar like this?
And judging from their faces, Leylin bet they would rather have died on the battlefield.
Though Leylin pitied them, he didn’t order the A.I. Chip to deactivate the defence in the cells and allow them out.
After all, there were still many prisoners here that could cause chaos if let out.
Furthermore, Leylin still had more tasks to be performed that needed to be hidden from Robin.
“The core cell! Who is the one imprisoned there?” At the end of the passageway was a large cell. A few sparks could be seen jumping along the blood red electrified cage every now and then, firmly caging a Magus inside.
[No information found within the formation genie’s data, this place is marked top secret!] The A.I. Chip sent back.
“Who are you?”
Standing beside the cage, Leylin was curious about the shadow inside. As the criminal who was under the tightest form of imprisonment in the entire cellar, this person could not be simple.
The prisoner raised his head after hearing Leylin’s voice, and Leylin’s pupils constricted in an instant before he broke out in cold sweat.
“Ro– Senior Robin?”
The person in the cage possessed a face that was bewitching, but malnourished beyond recognition. It was as though all flesh and blood had been drained from him. Robin could only force a smile before calling out for Leylin.
“Leylin, you’re here?”
“What is going on? Who is that ‘Robin’ out there?” Leylin’s expression was dark.
He felt an unusually familiar aura from this Robin who was in front of him, his smile unforgettable.
When he’d first entered Phosphorescence Swamp, Robin wore this exact same smile when welcoming Leylin as he stood by the entrance to the Ouroboros Clan headquarters.
“You should be able to guess by now,” Robin was very weak and had to pause after every other word.
All muscles seemed to have disappeared, leaving Robin a sack of bones.
If not for his features, Leylin would have thought the person in front of him was a skeleton.
WMW Chapter 483
Rescue
“How is he outside?” Robin lifted his head and asked Leylin, hope in his eyes.
Leylin was silent for a moment but still ended up speaking, “He has advanced to the peak of the Crystal Phase, and the curse marks have taken up over 60% of his face. He doesn’t seem to be in a good state of mind.”
“The initial phase has ended. He is now undergoing ‘Flesh Immolation’, but is still quite a distance from the final ‘Gluttony’s Monarch’.”
Robin sighed, “Can you let me out or bring me before him? There are some things that I want to tell him.”
“I’m sorry, but the situation is very dangerous…” Leylin’s expression was grim, “Shouldn’t you give me an answer now?”
“What answer? Haven’t you guessed everything already?”
“Just a part of it. Why are you here?” Leylin asked.
Robin glanced at Leylin and began to speak unhurriedly. “Hehe… our ancestors once obtained some information regarding the ‘gluttony imprint’ and knew that it was within the ancient Quicksand Castle in the Forgotten Land. That was why we were so eager in inviting you all there…”
The gluttony imprint was a fragment of the consciousness of the sin of gluttony, Beelzebub that remained in Verdant City. It was said that Magi who obtained the gluttony imprint would awaken with a terrifying appetite, but at the same time gain several unique abilities.
This gluttony imprint had once brought great suffering upon the regions surrounding Verdant City. There had even been a situation where a whole city had been devoured.
Only with the work of numerous Magi was this chaos suppressed. Countless imprints were destroyed, leaving behind a few to be used as samples in research.
“My ancestor was one of the lower class members of Quicksand, and there are records in his notes. The gluttony imprint was once collected by Quicksand and improved using large amounts of devouring-type bloodlines, achieving the effect of improving and purifying one’s own bloodline.”
The history of Giant Kemoyin Serpent Warlocks was of course long, and extended to the ancient era. However, the Ouroboros Clan had yet to be established then, which was why entering a Warlock organisation like Quicksand was very common.
Only after the end of the ancient era did the remaining Giant Kemoyin Serpent Warlocks set up the Ouroboros Clan, which had then lasted up to date.
“So you set your sights on that gluttony imprint?” Leylin’s voice was cold.
“Yes. As long as I have it, I’m confident that I can purify our bloodline till it is comparable to the ancient Giant Kemoyin Serpent, and even reach the Morning Star realm!” Robin’s eyes blazed for a moment before turning dulled once more.
�
��Looks like the one who initially obtained the gluttony imprint was indeed you, and the one who went up on the airship with us was you. If not, Mentor would definitely have noticed. The sudden change must have happened after our return…” Leylin continued on from Robin’s words.
“Yes. The spiritual contamination from the gluttony imprint is much too terrifying. In just a few short months, I could no longer control myself. I lost control of my emotions quite a few times…” Robin smiled wryly.
“So you decided to strip it off and look for a guinea pig to reduce this property, And you picked Noah.”
“No, Noah requested that I do that!” Robin roared, and collapsed spinelessly.
“He was such a good child! I still remember his gaze when we spoke, full of hope and resolution… At that moment, I’d thought that only Warlocks like him would be able to subdue the gluttony imprint…
“I now know the consequences.”
Leylin nodded. Whether it was the large change in personality after receiving the imprint or some hatred originally inside Noah, Leylin had no wish to pursue this further. The situation was clear.
Noah imprisoned his own uncle and many elders, holding his family in his grasp. He had even arrested high-grade pure-blood Warlocks and, by devouring their bloodline, purified his own.
Recently, he had even set his sights on Miranda, and was met with a fierce counterattack from her.
“The remains of high-energy beings like that all cause a lot of trouble!” Leylin knew this well. Whether it was the original spirit of the Lamia bone or the spiritual force contamination from his interplanar experiments, this was always the case.
Thankfully, Leylin’s will was strong and decisive, and he could thus eliminate these dangers. If not, he’d be no better off than Noah.
“Using the sin of gluttony to improve his own bloodline?” Leylin touched his chin. This was a rather interesting topic, and the fact that the Noah outside had, from a newly-advanced rank 3 Warlock, broken through both the Vapour Phase and the Hydro Phase to arrive at the Crystal Phase in one go, it was obvious that this had a high possibility of working. All he needed to do was settle the issue of the spiritual force contamination.
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