Although Oqiliâs real purpose for using the Baisec Magic Mirror was to push the limits through reckless experimentation and thereby enhance his locatorâ
During the experiments, Saul discovered that this magic mirror was indeed surprisingly useful.
At the very least, it offered a great deal of help in improving his reaction speed.
Of course, what concerned him more was that he seemed to have accidentally uncovered something strange about the Old Witch!
While many wizards tend to ignore their outward appearance in pursuit of truth and power, many female wizards still prefer to avoid becoming overly horrifying or hideous.
Was the person in the mirror the Old Witch herself? Or was it a reflection formed by some other reason?
Unfortunately, that image only appeared once. Afterward, no matter how Saul secretly observed the Old Witch in the mirror, he never saw that alluring, sharp-eyed young woman again.
Five days later, Saul completed the fusion of four different bodies. Drawing on his experience from resurrection experiments, he managed to temporarily suppress the rejection reactions between the bodies of different races.
The moment the experiment was completed, the Old Witch, as if sensing something, rushed forward and shoved Saul aside.
âThis is the new body formed by the fusion of four races?â
Lying on the experimental table was a pale, fleshy lump. Tiny fleshy tumors kept sprouting from its surface, only to be burned off repeatedly by the electric discharge devices next to the table.
âStrictly speaking, itâs three and a half races,â Saul stepped aside to explain to the Old Witch. âIt currently has the strength of dwarves, the toughness of giants and the adaptability of barbarians. But Iâm not sure if it will possess the beauty of elves once it solidifies into a fixed form. After all, the elven materials you gave me were far too little. I canât even identify what part of the elf body they came from.â
The Old Witch rolled her eyes at Saul. âI donât want to disappear like the elves. What I gave you was powder made from a wind elfâs remains. Rare, yes, and safer too, though the amount was small.â
Wind elf remains?
Saul didnât even have time to be shocked when he heard Oqili shouting from the side, âPowder from a wind elfâs remains? Old Witch, donât tell me you stole it from the Wind Spriteâs lab?â
The Old Witch was stunned for a moment, then looked slightly confused.
But Oqili continued rambling on, âThose remains are the Wind Sprite Peiâerâs most prized treasure! You actually dared steal it and still remain in the Borderland?â
Smack!
The Old Witch slapped Oqili hard, sending him flying just as he was about to say more.
By the time he climbed up from the ground, half of his face had been peeled back from the slap.
âIâll go wherever I damn well please.â The confusion in the Old Witchâs eyes faded, replaced by cold malice. She glared at Saul. âAny other questions?â
âNo. If its powdered remains, then the efficacy should be sufficient.â Saul immediately replied.
âGood. Then letâs prepare the final ingredient.â The Old Witch left the laboratory without a trace of emotion.
Saul hurried over to help Oqili up. âAre you okay?â
Oqili gritted through the pain, pressing his half-detached face back in place. He had no strength to speak and could only shake his head at Saul.
Saul retrieved materials from the experimental table and quickly concocted a healing potion, applying it to Oqiliâs face.
Soon after, the burning pain in Oqiliâs face gave way to numbness.
âNot dead,â Oqili murmured, holding his face. When he looked up, his gaze was full of resentment. âHowâs your mirror coming along?â
After four days of using the mirror himself, Oqili had let Saul take over its use.
âThe locator is still a bit unstable. IâŠâ
âUnstable means change!â Even with half his face numb, Oqiliâs slurred voice was still understandable to Saul.
Unstable meant transformation.
But what Oqili didnât know was that Saulâs locator had shown no signs of change at all.
The Dead Wizardâs Diary still floated quietly in his mental realm, just as it always had.
Given Saulâs current strength, even if the Baisec Magic Mirror twisted his body into something grotesque, it still wouldnât affect the diary in the slightest.
And when Saul tried using the mirror, the soul fragments stored in his skin began to stir restlesslyâas if they wanted to break free and enter the mirror.
It was only because his time in front of the mirror was short that this agitation hadnât turned into action.
Still, Saul took the opportunity to roughly understand the Baisec Magic Mirrorâs operating principles.
The Baisec Magic Mirror could accelerate the reaction of elemental particles. But prolonged exposure would start to distort their trajectories. If left even longer, it could completely disrupt their behavior.
However, Saul had yet to identify how this connected to the mirrorâs replication ability.
Could it be that by disrupting particle movement, one could then redirect them to reconstruct a target exactly, achieving a one-to-one copy?
This was the only plausible theory Saul could formulate for now.
At the same time, he also understood why the mirror housed so many wraiths.
They were the mirrorâs source of operating energy.
If this mirror ever fell into the hands of ordinary people, it would surely become the source of countless terrifying legends.
âYou need to pick up the pace. If you donât speak, Iâll just make a run for it myself.â
âI knowâŠâ Saul muttered unwillingly.
Just then, the Old Witch returned, bringing another imprisoned wizard with her.
That wizardâs eyes were full of fear, but his back remained straight. He seemed to have accepted his fate, unwilling to lose dignity even in death.
But his composure didnât last long.
When Oqili approached with a huge syringe aimed at his spine, the sheer terror of death and becoming an experimental subject finally broke him.
Having left the cage that suppressed his magic and spiritual energy, he was quickly regaining control over his spells.
He waited until Saul had pinned him to the experimental tableâand finally, he was able to cast a spell.
A beam of Light Arrow silently formed and shot straight at Saulâs face.
Saul didnât move at all, as if stunned by the sudden attack.
But before the arrow could touch him, a single finger intercepted and stopped itâ
It was the Old Witchâs severed finger, always tied into her braid!
âYouâre truly a theorist, huh? Canât even dodge an attack,â the severed finger gently tapped, and the hastily conjured Light Arrow vanished into nothingness.
The Old Witch retracted her finger, standing coldly behind Saul and Oqili. âContinue!â
The experiment had to go on.
The wizard, whose name was never even known, died right there on the table.
Yet his death wasnât enough to put an end to this life-consuming experiment.
When Saul extracted a portion of the âflesh lumpâ and injected it along the wizardâs spine, at first, there were signs of positive physiological change.
His muscle density increased. His bone structure experienced a qualitative leap. Even the cut-open skin for bone observation began rapidly regenerating.
Even his once-narrow facial features appeared to soften and spread slightly.
But just as these positive signs were beginning to showâbefore reaching the theoretical values Saul had calculatedâred rashes suddenly broke out all over the wizardâs face.
Saul and the Old Witch both frowned at the same time, while Oqili secretly let out a sigh of relief.
He knew that unlike Saul, regardless of whether the experiment succeeded or failed, he was doomed.
So the longer the experiment dragged on, the more time he had to prepare his escape plan.
âWhatâs going on?â The Old Witch was clearly unhappy, though she was still trying to restrain herself.
For wizards, a failed experiment was nothing unusual.
If not for her own dangerous predicament, the Old Witch wouldnât even blink at one or two failures.
âI thinkâŠâ
Just a few seconds after the red rashes appeared, the subject lost all signs of life. Saul picked up a knife and once again sliced open the arm to observe the bone beneath.
To his surprise, the bones also bore large patches of red rash!
âI think⊠he mightâve had an allergic reaction.â
(End of Chapter)
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