The Wizard of Truth: Starting with Analyzing All Things

As night fell as black as ink, the unusual spatial fluctuations and fleeting aura of the abyss emanating from the abandoned teleportation hall in the western part of the Dark Moon Academy castle, though brief, were like a boulder thrown into a calm lake, instantly alarming many powerful beings deep within the academy.

Rowe, Barton, and Lilith, along with the still-shaken young apprentice Evan, rushed to the tower of Wizard Walter as quickly as possible. The senior apprentices on duty recognized them, especially Rowe and Barton, who had recently gained considerable fame, and dared not delay, immediately reporting their arrival.

A moment later, in a study in the tower filled with the smell of sulfur and ozone, and with the walls covered with various monster heads and weapons, they met the wizard Walter (a first-circle wizard, skilled in elemental combat and protective magic arrays), who had just finished an elemental smelting experiment and still had a hint of fatigue and impatience between his brows.

"Love? Barton? Lilith?" Walter frowned immediately upon seeing the four, especially their disheveled appearance and the barely concealed abyssal corruption emanating from Love. "What happened? What's that aura on you?!"

"Master!" Luo Wei suppressed the discomfort caused by the cold, corrosive feeling deep in his soul and quickly reported what he had seen and heard in the abandoned teleportation hall, emphasizing the behavior of the Gray Tower members Marco and others, the appearance of the Abyss projection, and the identity of the boy Evan as a "sacrifice".

As the wizard Walter listened, his expression shifted from confusion to solemnity, then to ashen anger, and finally to raging fury. The elemental energy around him, which had been stable, began to surge uncontrollably, the temperature in the study rose sharply, and the weapons hanging on the walls trembled slightly, emitting a low hum.

"Insolence!!" Walter slammed his hand on the table, leaving a charred handprint on the hard ironwood surface, with melted edges. "Grey Tower! Elena! They dare to collude with the Abyss?! On the territory of my Darkmoon Academy, they commit this blasphemous act of betrayal! Do they want to be completely purified?!"

Darkmoon Academy World Encyclopedia: The Abyss

In the understanding of the wizards of Chirva, the Abyss is not a specific plane, but a collective term for all negative energy dimensions in the universe filled with extreme chaos, evil, and destructive tendencies. These dimensions are usually composed of the remnants of ancient fallen gods or distorted aggregates of negative emotions and laws of the universe. Their environments are extremely harsh, giving rise to bizarre and powerful life forms that are extremely hostile to the established order. Any form of contact or transaction with the Abyss is listed as one of the highest taboos by the Wizarding Council and all major orthodox wizarding organizations. Once discovered, it is often met with the most severe punishment, including but not limited to soul annihilation. The power of the Abyss is known for its corruption, bewitching, and devouring of souls, making it the common enemy of almost all intelligent life.

After his initial rage, Walter quickly regained his composure, displaying the decisiveness expected of a first-ring wizard. He looked sharply at Evan: "Child, you said they mentioned 'pure souls' and 'compatibility'?"

Evan flinched under Walter's intimidating presence, but still nodded vigorously: "Yes...yes, Master. I heard you perfectly clearly."

"Compatibility... They're not simply sacrificing themselves, but engaging in some kind of targeted summoning or abyssal symbiote cultivation!" Walter instantly made an even more terrifying judgment, "They need specific soul traits as a catalyst or vessel... What exactly is Elena, that madwoman, trying to do?!"

He immediately stood up and said to Rowe and the others, "You did a great job, preventing a disaster in time and bringing back key witnesses and information. Rowe, you come with me to see Field immediately; your injuries need his help, and the Abyss pollution cannot be delayed. Barton, you take my token and immediately go to the Council of Elders to find Elder Anderson (a third-circle wizard, in charge of the academy's discipline and internal investigations), and report this matter directly, being careful to avoid others! Lilith, you take this child to the absolutely safe zone in the apothecary workshop and protect him; he is an important witness!"

The order was clear and swift. Everyone immediately split up and took action.

Walter, carrying Rowe, used a short-range spatial teleportation technique and appeared outside Master Field's laboratory in just a few breaths. Field (a first-ring wizard specializing in potion-making and energy refining) seemed to sense something as well, opening the door in advance. He smelled Rowe's scent, and his expression immediately changed.

"Abyssal Erosion?! What's going on?" Field ushered the two into the laboratory and immediately activated the strongest isolation array.

Walter quickly explained the situation. Master Field's expression also turned extremely grim. He immediately made Rowe sit down, placed his hands on the top of Rowe's head, and channeled a gentle and pure emerald green life energy mixed with powerful spiritual energy into Rowe's body to carefully examine his soul condition.

"What a vicious mark!" Field frowned. "It's not just contamination, it's more like a beacon mark. It's continuously and subtly attracting the Abyss's attention and marking your location. Fortunately, it was discovered early, and the Moonlit Amulet blocked most of it, otherwise the consequences would have been unimaginable. Walter, I need your 'Purifying Flame Rune' to help; life energy alone is not enough to eradicate this level of Abyssal mark."

Volt nodded, and pure, blazing white flame runes lit up his fingertips. The flames weren't scorching, but they radiated an aura of justice that purified all impurities. The two first-ring wizards joined forces, one nourishing and repairing, the other incinerating and purifying, to begin clearing the abyssal mark from Rowe.

This process was extremely painful, like having one's soul roasted on holy flames or pierced by countless needles. Luo Wei gritted his teeth, cold sweat instantly soaking his robes, but he remained silent, fully activating the "Heart of Analysis" and the Optimized Meditation Technique, working in conjunction with the power of the two masters to guide and decompose the cold, sinister mark.

[Book of Truth] Synchronizing... Analyzing the structure of the Abyssal Mark... Deciphering the mechanism of purifying energy... Database updates: 'Abyssal Whisper Resistance', 'Purifying Flame Rune Model (Incomplete)', 'Advanced Life Energy Channeling'...

Although painful, it was undoubtedly an extremely valuable opportunity for observation and learning, allowing him to experience firsthand the exquisite manipulation of energy and understanding of rules by a formal wizard.

Meanwhile, Patton encountered trouble.

Holding Walter's token, he arrived unimpeded at the "Tower of Discipline," where the council of elders resided, to request an audience with Elder Anderson. However, the deacon on duty (a stern-faced peak high apprentice) informed him: "Elder Anderson is presiding over an important meeting and is temporarily unable to receive guests. If you have any urgent matters to discuss, I will record and relay them."

Barton was anxious, but he knew he couldn't force his way into a place of strict discipline, so he could only emphasize that the matter involved the Abyss and the Grey Tower and was extremely urgent. When the deacon heard the word "Grey Tower," his eyes flickered almost imperceptibly, but he still insisted on following procedure and asked Barton to wait.

This wait lasted for nearly half an hour. It wasn't until Walter and Field had jointly suppressed the mark within Lowe's body and sent a message to inquire about the situation that Barton sensed something was wrong and insisted on seeing Elder Anderson or his deputy immediately.

Finally, he met one of Elder Anderson's lieutenants, a second-circle wizard. Barton reported this again, and the second-circle wizard's expression turned extremely grave. He immediately led a group to investigate the abandoned teleportation hall.

However, when the investigation team arrived, the teleportation hall was already deserted. The spatial rift had vanished, the exquisite silver anchor rune had been completely destroyed, leaving only some elusive remnants of shadow energy and spatial disturbances, as well as some deliberately abandoned, insignificant low-level magical materials. Marco and his group had clearly received word of Rowe's departure shortly after, quickly destroying the crucial evidence and evacuating.

Although the testimony of young Evan and the Abyss Mark on Rowe were enough to prove certain things, the most direct and conclusive physical evidence against the Gray Tower—the operational interdimensional teleportation point—had disappeared.

"A cunning viper!" Walter was furious upon hearing the news, but there was nothing he could do. Without solid evidence, relying solely on one-sided accounts and the soul imprint that was difficult to detect publicly (which involved Rowe's privacy and secrets), it was difficult to directly eliminate the deeply entrenched Grey Tower, which was guarded by a formal wizard (Master Elena, a second-circle wizard).

Master Field remained relatively calm. While prescribing some medicine to stabilize Rowe's soul and cleanse him of residual contamination, he said in a deep voice, "They received advance warning, which means there are Grey Tower members within or around the Discipline Elders. This incident has alerted them, and they will only hide even deeper. But we haven't come away empty-handed. At least we know some of their schemes and methods, and we've exposed Grey Tower to Elder Anderson's scrutiny. Their every move will be under stricter surveillance from now on. And..."

He looked at Luo Wei: "Luo Wei, you disrupted their important ritual, saved the key 'sacrifice,' and were marked by the Abyss. The Gray Tower and the Abyss forces behind it probably see you as a thorn in their side. Your situation will become even more dangerous in the future."

After taking the potion, Lowe felt the chill in his soul subside considerably. Although the mark wasn't completely eradicated (Field had warned of the need for long-term treatment and vigilance), his condition had improved significantly. His gaze was calm: "I understand, Master. But from the moment they targeted those around me, I had no way out."

Walter patted him on the shoulder: "Don't worry, the academy's higher-ups aren't a monolith, but maintaining order and cleaning up the abyss's pollution is a consensus among the vast majority of wizards. Now that we know about their deeds, we won't stand idly by. You've done a great service this time, and the academy won't treat you unfairly. Go back and rest well, and try not to act alone in the near future. We'll make arrangements in secret."

Leaving Field's lab, Rowe met up with Barton and Lilith. Evan had been safely taken care of. All three felt a heavy weight on their hearts; although they were safe for the time being, a sense of impending doom hung in the air.

Back in the dark room of the Seventh Laboratory, Rowe sat alone in silence. He reflected on everything that had happened that night, especially the process of the two formal wizards working together to purify his mark. Their exquisite manipulation of energy deepened his understanding of "fields" and "rules."

He took out the broken fragment of the Void Dust Foundation and seemed to be deep in thought.

"Grey Tower... Abyss... Compatibility..." he muttered to himself. "They need people with specific soul traits. Evan is one of them, but they will never prepare just one 'sacrifice.' Inside the academy, and even outside, there are probably many more qualified people in danger."

"Moreover, performing such a dangerous ritual would inevitably require a massive amount of resources and energy. That abandoned teleportation hall might not just be in a hidden location; it might contain some kind of... spatial weakness or residual ancient energy source that can be utilized?"

A plan gradually took shape in Rowe's mind. He couldn't passively wait for Gray Tower's next move.

He needs to take the initiative.

But not through brute force. Rather, it's through his greatest strength—analysis and creation.

He unfolded the design drawings again, his gaze falling on the unfinished layout of the "automated production plant for secondary energy aggregates".

"We need to speed things up." A sharp glint flashed in Lowe's eyes. "Not just for resources, but also for... tracking."

He envisioned that if he could mass-produce this pure energy aggregate, he might be able to design a special "energy beacon." He would then "gift" or "sell" extremely small quantities of this aggregate, which possesses a specific energy signature, to apprentices who might meet the Gray Tower's objectives and are in dangerous situations, through some imperceptible means, so that they could use it in their daily training.

Once these people are abducted by the Gray Tower, the special energy signatures left on them or carried by them might become a hidden tracking clue! As long as the Gray Tower's base needs energy to operate, and as long as they need energy to perform rituals, these trace amounts of signatures may be amplified by the environment and thus captured by specific large-scale detection arrays!

This is just a preliminary, bold idea, and its implementation faces numerous difficulties. How can we ensure that the signature is unique and undetectable? How can we ensure that it remains and functions? How can we mass-produce and distribute it silently? How can we build a detection network capable of capturing it?

Every step was full of challenges.

But Rowe saw a direction. This was far more in line with his style than directly confronting the Gray Tower's assassins head-on.

He refocused his attention on the design of the automated production facility. Only after solving the energy aggregation problem could he move on to the next step.

However, he was unaware that while he was deep in thought, in a completely secluded chamber deep underground within the academy, with walls made of Soul-Separating Stones, a secret conversation was taking place, this time with regard to him.

The candlelight flickered, illuminating two blurry faces.

A hoarse voice rang out: "...The plan has been disrupted. The 'container' is lost, the passageway is destroyed, and it has alerted Walter and Field, and may even have alarmed that old fogey Anderson."

Another voice, cold and somber, which, if Rowe were present, would have been recognized as belonging to Master Elena of the Gray Tower (a second-circle wizard): "...It's alright. There's more than one 'container.' The passage can be rebuilt. It's just that we didn't expect that little bug named Rowe to be even more troublesome than we anticipated. His strange ability can actually interfere with the stability of the abyss passage..."

"His very existence is a variable. His understanding of energy structures seems to touch upon certain... ancient realms. I suspect that he may have inadvertently obtained a fragmented inheritance from an ancient 'Truth Seeker'," the hoarse voice analyzed.

"A seeker of truth?" Elena's voice carried a hint of apprehension and...greed. "If that's the case, his value might be greater than that of a 'container'...Pass the word down to temporarily halt all actions targeting those around him. Change strategy: observe, guide, and if necessary...attempt to capture him. I want him alive."

"As you wish, Master. So, regarding the plan to acquire the next 'container'..."

"Proceed as usual, but in a more discreet manner. The location... will be changed to the ruins of the 'Sleeping Tower,' which is more remote, with more spatial folds, making it more suitable for the next 'welcoming' ceremony."

"yes!"

The candlelight went out, and the secret room returned to darkness and silence.