The Demon King is unfathomable

Chapter 388 Arrogance
As night falls and all is quiet, only a few stars shine through the high window, casting a faint, indifferent glow into the secluded private study.

The air was filled with the scent of ancient parchment and herbs. A composed middle-aged scholar sat calmly in an armchair, his expression more focused than ever before.

Before him, on a special parchment treated with alchemical materials such as troll blood and mercury, ink shimmering with magical aura moved slowly like worms, arranging itself into lines of rigorous and neat text.

This is an encrypted, magical letter.

And its recipient was none other than Professor Arist Thorne, one of the powerful figures in this Great Sage's Tower, and the master to whom Mentor Merck was absolutely loyal.

The contents of the letter were enough to shock anyone who knew the secret of the 178th virtual realm, and Alistair himself was no exception.

[To Professor Arist Thorne:]

I feel deeply ashamed of the mistake made regarding the No. 178 virtual realm.

Due to my own dullness and incompetence, I failed to grasp the essence of your teachings, resulting in an irreversible failure of the experiment, and I have let you down. I am extremely grateful for your generosity in giving me this opportunity to make amends.

Thanks to His Highness Colin's generous permission, I had the privilege of observing his subsequent research on the illusory realm. To be honest, I must admit that His Highness Colin's theory on interfering with illusory realms is indeed remarkable, and it truly broadened my horizons!
He saved this dying illusion with an artful approach!
It wasn't any kind of magic or supernatural power, but a precise dissection of the fabric of civilization and the essence of the soul! Every step he took was like playing a grand symphony, transforming the weaknesses and contradictions of humanity into notes at his fingertips. I must confess, this insight is a chilling power that we, in our towers, often overlook.

We may have underestimated him...

】

Upon seeing this, Alistair's lips curled into a cold smile.

He knew very well that the reason Merk praised the prince so highly in the report was not so much to remind him not to underestimate the man, but rather to downplay his own responsibility for the failure, while cautiously testing his attitude.

However, as a pawn, Merck's caution is commendable.

He really has to be careful in his relationship with the prince, especially lately, as the school of thought he advocates seems to be gaining momentum.

Some professors have begun to grow impatient with that sensationalist doctrine and believe he should be lecturing on these convoluted things at the Royal Academy of Arts in the Holy City.

Alistair paid no heed to the loser's harmless scheming and continued reading with great interest.

In the latter part of the report, Merck finally stopped using those humble words and began to try to analyze the new virtual world No. 178, which had evolved for ninety-nine years, as presented by the "messenger of the gods" Jon, from the perspective of a scholar.

This is precisely what Alistair is most concerned about.

He had a high opinion of Merck's academic abilities.

"...Just as His Highness Colin judged, we were not truly separated from the 178th virtual world; the people of that world still harbored a glimmer of hope for our voices."

Through the acceleration behind the virtual realm, we successfully established a stable mental connection with a native named 'Jon'. According to his description, we learned that the timeline within the virtual realm has advanced ninety-nine years since the death of the previous 'Divine Messenger,' Kyle!

Ninety-nine years have completely changed the face of the entire virtual realm. If it weren't for the fact that the creatures active behind the virtual realm still looked the same as I did, I would almost suspect that this was a completely different world!
The Greys living on that land completely ended the wasteland; material poverty had ended with the changing of the times, but it was replaced by spiritual desolation.

Even so, they still created a truly magnificent miracle within a limited time. Even with just a fleeting glimpse, I witnessed a scene that left me utterly awestruck!
Towering mage towers dominated the land, constructed from materials I had never seen before. Moreover, their exterior walls shimmered with iridescent light, comparable to the spectral effects of high-level illusion magic!
If my guess is correct, it should be a highly dense "mage tower complex" that integrates illusion defense magic arrays!
Countless "horseless chariots" shuttled back and forth on the sky bridge between the mage towers. They were incredibly fast, even faster than the pterosaurs and griffins we kept in captivity!

In addition, according to the description of the new divine messenger 'Jon', their civilization has a peculiar magical device called 'Refrigerator'.

I speculate that this is another mineral similar to "magic crystal" that the Greys discovered after the disappearance of "Wraith Coke"!

If nothing unexpected happens, it may become a new renewable specialty of the No. 178 Void Realm after the 'Wraith Charcoal' disappears!

Most incredibly, attached to this 'magic crystal' is a miniature virtual realm they call "advertisement." It's said that intelligent beings only need to gaze at this 'magic crystal' for more than thirty seconds, and their consciousness will be briefly pulled into this independent virtual realm!

incredible!

In their world, the virtual realm is something that can be attached to a 'magic crystal', and everyone has the opportunity to observe and study it!

We don’t yet know how they did it, or whether they can use this technology to observe our world, but there’s no doubt that these Greys are far ahead of us in terms of material wealth!
Furthermore, this "messenger of the gods" chosen by His Highness Colin also mentioned concepts we had not previously observed, such as "corporations" and "bank loans." In their world, "corporations" are not simply business units like in our world; they are social organizations that transcend guilds and noble fiefdoms, possessing absolute power over individuals.

"Bank loans," on the other hand, are a harsh contract that allows individuals to advance their wealth, but requires them to pledge their future, or even their souls, as collateral! When discussing this concept, the gray individual's psychic energy fluctuations of fear even surpassed Kyle's reaction when discussing the Raiders!
This could be a very valuable insight for us.

Also, if you could persuade Prince Colin to help us mine some "Wraith Refrigerators," I'd really like to find out what those things are...

】

"Heh, how foolish."

Seeing Merck's curiosity and fascination with the refrigerator, Alistair smiled faintly, a hint of wise disdain flashing in his eyes.

Although he did not directly participate in the research on the No. 178 virtual realm, he deduced the general concept of "refrigerator" simply from the literal meaning and context.

If the charred remains of the vengeful spirits are the medium through which the gray people attach their faith and desires, then this refrigerator is naturally a magical device that "can collect cold resentment"!
It's not difficult to draw this conclusion from the analysis; the key question is what kind of magical device could collect the resentment component in spiritual power.

He had heard that Hell had similar technology, and that was probably why they were able to analyze this information through the Virtual Lens.

The existence of the virtual realm channel is predicated on "resonance," and information outside of cognition cannot evoke spiritual resonance, much less be transmitted through the virtual realm.

Silently noting down the important information about the "vengeful refrigerator," Alister's gaze continued downwards, landing on "company" and "bank loans."

Unlike Merck, who had only a superficial understanding, Alistair was no stranger to these concepts.

Although the Academy does not have such a thing, similar organizations exist in the commercial systems of the Empire and most of its vassal states.

As a scholar skilled in political maneuvering, Arist often dealt with the merchants and companies of the Kingdom of Rhodes, but he never imagined that they could be combined into such an efficient and perfect exploitation model.

Arist's lips curled into a genuinely interested smile.

What a subtle form of enslavement this is!

Through ingenious rule design, it requires no swords, no chains, and not even overseers. It only needs to make every soul believe that everything they do is for a "better tomorrow."

And as long as tomorrow never comes, this self-circulating and infinitely multiplying system will continue to expand indefinitely!

“Ah… what a beautiful work of art. I’m almost reluctant to let that prince break this wonderful tranquility.” Arist smiled and murmured to himself.

Compared to a well-organized corporation, the Thorne Society, which he maintained through economic and academic interests, was as crude as a child's sandcastle.

So this is how power plays can be done!
For him personally, this was probably a more valuable insight into the virtual world than the research reports on the vengeful spirit refrigerator and the Greys.

Feeling like he had discovered a treasure, Alistair read Merk's report to the end, studying it twice before putting it back on the table.

His movements were very gentle, as if he were handling a fragile work of art.

Merck's report was only a preliminary conclusion based on his brief glimpse of the virtual realm; a more detailed report on Virtual Realm 178 would have to wait until Corinta's paper was published.

Prince Colin has already had his students start writing papers, and optimistically, we should see them before All Souls' Day at the end of the month.

Before that, perhaps they can discover even more interesting things...

Merck is optimistic about this.

It's clear that this messenger named "Jon" is much more reliable than the "Kyle" he chose before.

Arist slowly got up and walked to the window of the study.

Looking down at the still brightly lit artisan street and snowfield in the dead of night, his face showed a mixture of admiration and envy, and it took him a long time to utter a reluctant compliment.

"genius……"

Even though he harbored considerable prejudice against the imperial nobility, he still had to admit that Prince Colin was a true genius!
As Merck mentioned in his letter, this ability to turn the ordinary into the extraordinary transcends mere supernatural power.

It's more like an art form.

An art belonging to the "gods" that manipulates civilization and people's hearts.

If only we could recruit such talents to our ranks!

Arist had felt this way more than once, but soon his sincere admiration was replaced by a faint chill.

If the success of the No. 440 virtual realm could be explained by chance, then the replication of the No. 178 virtual realm experiment will undoubtedly elevate this prince to a true divine status!
No one knows better than him how to develop virtual resources!
This achievement will not only allow him and his school to gain a foothold in the Tower of Great Sages, but will also attract countless magicians who yearn for the truth to follow them.

The name Colin will become a rising star!

And the light of this star will inevitably encroach upon and squeeze out the original positions of other stars!

Alistair's gaze fell upon the towering buildings of the Academy, his eyes growing complex and cold. It was as if what he saw was no longer a temple of knowledge, but a steel jungle where the strong prey on the weak.

Just like the steel forest that Merck saw in the virtual world!
“The tower of the Academy is very tall,” he murmured to himself in a voice only he could hear, “but it’s actually… very crowded.”

Especially the ecological niche below the top of the tower!

The most core power of the Academy is firmly held in the hands of the Thirteen Sages, and there are very few corners that the Sages' will cannot penetrate.

The "Thorne Society," which he had painstakingly cultivated for over a decade, was nothing more than a spider huddled in the shadows.

Now, someone has entered his territory and doesn't seem content to simply pass by quietly.

A sense of anxiety, as if a survival crisis were choking him, crept over Alistair's entire body. This was the first time since becoming a Diamond-level mage that he had felt such a palpable restlessness!
Just as his soul was being scorched by nameless fire, a soft and unfamiliar voice suddenly rang out from the depths of his soul.

"An interesting problem."

The sound appeared without warning, startling Alistair so much that he almost activated the defensive amulet on his body.

"Who?!"

Alistair turned around abruptly, and for the first time, a look of bewilderment and surprise appeared on his usually calm and composed face.

His powerful mental energy was like an invisible giant net, instantly sweeping across every corner and every shadow in the entire study!
however--

No one is empty.

Besides himself, the only things in the study were the moonlight streaming in from the window and the solitary shadow cast by the magic lamp on the table.

The sound seemed to be his own illusion.

Do not--

This is definitely not an illusion!

Alistair stretched out his withered hand, gripped the wand he had somehow produced, and his nerves were on high alert.

"When the rise of one genius inevitably overshadows the brilliance of another, you were once a rising star in the field of virtual reality research, but that was twenty years ago... Now you see your past self, what will you do? Will you stifle him, or... submit to him?"

The voice rang out again, with a hint of amusement, as if it were observing a game that had nothing to do with it.

A fine layer of cold sweat appeared on Alistair's forehead.

He was certain that his study and his spiritual world were shrouded in the highest level of protective array, and that nothing could intrude without alerting him.

unless--

This intruder is far stronger than him, even surpassing the Great Sage who sits at the top of the tower!
"who are you?"

Alistair lowered his voice and asked the question into the empty room. Although he tried his best to remain calm, he couldn't hide the slight tremor of surprise and uncertainty in his voice.

The mysterious whisper fell silent for a moment.

Then, in an intimate yet eerie tone, it gave an answer that chilled Alistair to the bone.

"I am you." "..."

That intimate whisper, like that of a lover, chilled Alistair to the bone more than the most vicious curse.

His mind went blank for a moment, but the steely willpower he had honed over decades allowed him to quickly recover from the shock that would have driven an ordinary mage insane.

You're fooling me!

Alistair's voice became sharp and shrill, his fear completely transforming into anger, utterly shattering his facade of elegance and composure.

His powerful mental energy stirred up an invisible storm in the study, making the pages of the books rustle.

However, the mysterious whisper remained unaffected, instead carrying a hint of a sigh-like smile.

"It's you who's fooling yourself. You won't admit your inner fears, your jealousy of that 'genius,' and you're even less willing to admit... that this innate arrogance is the real you beneath the mask. Why not accept yourself? It's not a bad thing."

"Get out of my head..."

Arist growled a threatening word, but the voice from the void merely chuckled softly.

“I’ve always been outside. Look in the mirror if you don’t believe me.”

Mirror?

Alistair turned sharply and looked at the huge ebony floor mirror on the study wall, which was used to tidy his appearance.

The next second, his pupils suddenly contracted, and the blood in his body seemed to freeze instantly.

The mirror was spotless, clearly reflecting the scene inside the study, as well as his own face, which was slightly distorted with shock.

Incredibly, right next to the "self" in the mirror, a cloud of gray mist was floating quietly, constantly changing shape!
The gray mist seemed to have a life of its own, sometimes gathering and sometimes dispersing, its surface constantly churning, and countless twisted and painful faces could be vaguely seen flashing by within it, as if they were making silent screams and wails.

It doesn't reflect any light; instead, it's like a miniature black hole, greedily devouring all the light around it, radiating a chaotic and insane aura.

Alister instinctively looked back at the real space beside him—it was completely empty.

But when he looked in the mirror again, the ominous gray mist still lingered beside his reflection, as if it were a part of him!

A fear that completely overturned his understanding of reality gripped his heart.

Even with his diamond-level magical skills, he couldn't explain what this power was or why it was here!
The only thing he could be certain of was that this was neither an illusion nor a mental attack...

"What on earth is this..."

Alistair's voice was hoarse. He instinctively raised his hand, and pale blue source energy began to gather at his fingertips, attempting to analyze every inch of the study once again.

He had to figure out what this strange gray fog was!
However, just as he was about to cast the spell, a clear and rhythmic sound of footsteps rang out in the corridor outside the study.

Immediately following was three respectful and restrained knocks on the door.

“Professor…it is me, Skyein, your most loyal servant.” A young and humble voice came from outside the door.

Seemingly worried about the weight of his voice, he hesitated for a moment before adding another sentence.

“I have made some discoveries about ‘Prince Colin’ that may be important enough to report to you… You told me before that I should report any new leads to you immediately.”

Alistair remained silent for a long time, the light from his fingertips fading away.

He took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the turmoil in his heart, and glanced quickly at the huge floor-to-ceiling mirror out of the corner of his eye.

The ominous gray mist in the mirror remained.

It seemed to sense the visitor outside the door, and rolled even more violently. Countless distorted faces seemed to be showing him a mocking and expectant smile through the mirror.

"The opportunity for verification has arrived... another version of myself."

"Shut up……"

Alistair squeezed out a sentence through gritted teeth, then closed his eyes.

When he opened his eyes again, all the horror on his face had disappeared, and he put on the mask that belonged to Professor Alistair again.

"Come in," he said in a calm, emotionless voice.

The door opened automatically.

Skean entered respectfully.

The young man kept his head down the entire time to avoid offending the capricious professor with his gaze.

He strode to the desk and spoke quickly and concisely.

“Professor, I’ve noticed that Prince Colin has recently become quite close to a prospective student named Ilana Octavia. Although there’s no direct evidence to suggest that anything beyond friendship has happened between them, His Highness seems to have a strong liking for this lady, not only giving her many important tasks but also providing her with considerable academic assistance in private… to the point that it has aroused jealousy among some people.”

Alister raised an eyebrow, signaling him to continue.

Sgain paused, then continued, "And what's even more interesting is that this Miss Ilana seems to have gotten herself into quite a bit of trouble lately."

"A lady named Rastina, out of jealousy, is gathering her clique to teach Miss Ilana a lesson in the upcoming 'All Souls' Day Labyrinth Trial'."

"While you may not be interested in such trivial matters, if we can help Prince Colin resolve this problem at a crucial moment, we can not only do him a favor but also win over Miss Ilana, who is closest to him..."

Sgein's words came to an abrupt end.

He was about to continue explaining the plan when he suddenly felt the professor's gaze, like a sharp needle, staring at him with unprecedented sharpness, as if to pierce his soul on the spot!

Skye's heart skipped a beat, and he felt a chill run down his spine.

He felt as if his throat was being gripped by a hand, unable to make a sound or get any air in.

Compared to a diamond-level expert, a mere bronze-level apprentice is as insignificant as an ant crawling under a spider web.

Just as Skye was about to feel suffocated, the pressure on him suddenly eased.

Alistair spoke.

"Skain, have you... seen anything next to me?"

His voice was somewhat dry, like a ghoul in a labyrinth, sending chills down one's spine.

“Things?” Skye responded hesitantly, then looked up blankly, following the professor’s gaze.

The professor was surrounded by nothing but an old tapestry on the wall, a bookshelf beside him, and dappled shadows cast by moonlight through the curtains.

“Professor, I don’t understand what you mean,” Skye replied nervously, his unease growing.

"nothing."

Alistair withdrew his gaze, the turmoil in his eyes instantly subsiding.

He confirmed it.

Skee could neither see the gray mist floating beside him nor hear the whispers that seemed to come from another dimension.

Alistair paused for a moment, as if his earlier lapse in composure had never occurred. He refocused his attention on the intelligence report from Skyein and calmly gave an order.

"Observe him first, and if necessary, you can do him a favor... but don't do it in my name, and don't do anything unnecessary."

“If you have the opportunity, you can use it as a way to get closer to Colin.”

"Yes!"

Sgein felt a huge weight lifted off his shoulders, and his tense nerves finally relaxed.

He respectfully accepted the order and quickly left the study, which made him feel extremely oppressed, as if he were escaping from there.

The heavy door slammed shut with a click, separating the inside from the outside into two separate worlds.

The calm mask on Alistair's face vanished instantly. He whirled around and stared intently at the huge floor-to-ceiling mirror on the wall.

“Interesting,” he said with a hint of amusement, “Only I can see you.”

The ominous gray mist in the mirror churned even more violently, as if enjoying his loss of composure and his gradually intensifying interest.

"of course."

The intimate yet eerie whisper rang out again, accompanied by a sinister laugh, "After all, I am a part of you, I live deep within your soul."

"Stop playing tricks on me. Who are you?" Alistair said, enunciating each word clearly. "I'm asking you one last time."

Just before Alistair was about to completely lose patience, the voice from the shadows finally gave the final answer.

"I am the pride in your heart."

"Or rather—your divinity."

godhead?

The anger in Alistair's eyes froze the moment he heard the word, then turned into utter astonishment and shock.

"godhead……"

He repeated the word in a low voice, as if savoring the sweetest honey in the world, and a morbid smile gradually appeared on the manic face in the mirror.

"That's really interesting... You mean to say I'm a god?"

"Yes, congratulations. Do you need me to present you with the award?" A mocking voice drifted out from the distorted gray mist, making it hard to tell whether it was ridicule or praise.

Alistair's smile faded.

"I don't need it, but I just want to know why it was me?"

He still harbored a sliver of wariness.

As a scholar who explores the void, he wouldn't be foolish enough to believe everything others say.

and--

He suspected that the voice actually came from somewhere else, perhaps from the void they had been gazing into.

The gray mist let out a soft laugh.

It spoke in a casual voice, seemingly unconcerned about his concerns.

"Actually... there's no particular reason."

"You're not the best choice. You weren't the first person I looked for either."

"But it could also be you."

(End of this chapter)