Chapter 2603: Chapter 2604: Self-Doubt
After Angel finished speaking, he looked towards the Black Earl.
Black Earl: "Thatâs it?"
Angel: "Thatâs it, nothing more."
The Black Earl glanced at the child still urinating within the illusion and said coolly, "Alright, once this is over, you can have your friend come to the Noah Clan to find me."
As for what the Black Earl would do after he was found, he didnât say, and Angel didnât ask. This was simply a chance secured for Serum, whether Serum would go or not was another matter.
If indeed he decided to go, they could talk to Lord Reine then, to see if there was a way for Serum to both repair the Black Classic and leave the Noah Clan complete.
"So, what weâre looking for now is a building called the Hanging Jail Stairway?" Dox finally found an opportunity to ask.
Angelâs expression hesitated a bit, and he said softly, "If you want to say the Hanging Jail Stairway is a building, you... could."
"What do you mean?" Dox asked puzzledly, "Isnât the Hanging Jail Stairway a building?"
Angel: "Just by hearing the name, you should know, the Hanging Jail Stairway is a ladder. If you want to say a ladder is a building, I think you could."
Seeing that Dox seemed still confused, Angel quickly said, "Whether it is a building or not is not something to focus on, thereâs no need to delve into it."
"So should we go straight back to the maze now?" Dox looked a bit reluctant: "Shouldnât we explore the living area a bit?"
Angel: "If you want to stay here and explore, I wonât stop you."
After speaking, Angel turned directly around and walked towards the high walls of the maze behind him.
Everyone naturally followed, and although Dox really wanted to explore the living area a bit, after thinking about it carefully, it was so massive here that exploring thoroughly would never end. Also, given that the sword in the hands of the Goddessâs statue had been taken, it showed that this place had been looted countless times. He might not be able to sift gold from sand here, so he gave up.
After they re-entered the maze, everyone found that the air inside was even fresher than that in the living area outside. Outside, the air was thick with the smell of blood. If they werenât in the light and shadow illusionary realm, they might have been targeted by hidden magical creatures.
However, to say the air in the maze smelled fantastic would be an overstatement. At least, not on this stretch of road, because there were still many mutated carrion squirrels around...
"Sir, was there really no exploration value in that living area just now?" A questioning voice arose from beside him.
Angel didnât even need to look to know that it was Kaier speaking.
If it had been Dox asking, Angel would have been unwilling to respond, but since it was Kaier asking, Angel didnât mind elaborating.
After all, Dox and Kaierâs motivations for exploring the ruins were entirely different, the former was for profit, and the latter was just pure curiosity.
Angel: "There is exploration value, but our destination isnât there, so thereâs no need to waste time exploring, plus..."
"Plus what?"
"Plus, the atmosphere there was too quiet. The smell of blood in the air was indeed heavy, but there wasnât a sound around. Something seemed a little off." After Angel finished speaking, he shrugged, "Of course, maybe Iâm just overthinking."
"So thatâs why?" Kaier, hearing Angelâs words, recalled the previous situation. Indeed, while the air carried the scent of blood, there was not a rustle or stir to be heard. Maybe something was truly off.
Thinking this, Kaier turned to look at Dox, wanting to inquire about whether Doxâs inspiration offered any hints.
However, just as he was about to speak, Kaier remembered Angelâs earlier hint that it was better not to mention Doxâs inspiration in these ruins.
Kaier chose not to ask Dox, but Dox proactively approached.
"Did you really sense something was off?" Doxâs expression was peculiar.
Angel looked at him and immediately knew that Doxâs inspiration had not sounded an alarm just now; otherwise, Dox wouldnât have been so reluctant to part with the living area at the time.
"I didnât feel anything was off, I was just saying it casually, itâs more about reasoning and... caution," Angel spoke truthfully.
Dox pondered after listening, unsure what he was contemplating. After a while, for the first time, he actively approached the Black Earl.
"Did the Lord Earl notice anything amiss earlier?"
Doxâs question pricked everyoneâs ears, including Angelâs. Angel was also keen to know what the Black Earl thought of his reasoning.
The Black Earl said nonchalantly, "Are you worried because your inspiration didnât work?"
Dox remained silent, but his expression said it all.
The Black Earl: "There are three possibilities for your inspiration not working. First, inspiration doesnât constantly work, perhaps it simply wasnât active at the time; second, there was no danger there, so inspiration naturally didnât need to alert you; third, something truly strange was there, and its weirdness exceeded your inspiration detection limit, so it didnât work."
"Three possibilities, you choose one. As for the answer, donât ask me, Iâm just a nose, I donât know."
The Black Earl didnât state whether the living area indeed had something off, leaving everyone feeling somewhat disappointed.
Though Dox felt disappointed too, after hearing the Black Earlâs analysis, he also began speculating which scenario it could be?
While everyone was occupied with their thoughts, Angel resumed a "private chat" with the Black Earl.
"Lord, which of the three do you think it might be?" Angel asked directly.
The Black Earlâs lazy voice rang in Angelâs mind, "I told you, I donât know. I didnât lie to Dox, and I donât need to lie to you either."
"Do you think it must be just these three scenarios? Could there be a fourth possibility?"
"Oh? Whatâs your thought?" The voice from the Black Earl remained calm, but Angel could sense that the Black Earlâs emotions fluctuated.
This implied his guess might not be wrong. The Black Earl hadnât deceived Dox, but he hadnât spoken everything.
"Fourth, the inspiration deliberately concealed, not alerting Dox."
Black Earl: "Do you think inspiration is intelligent life? Deliberately concealing?"
Angel: "Whether inspiration is intelligent life, I canât answer, but since it exists within Doxâs sensory system, itâs not hard to veil Doxâs brain."
"Then why should it deliberately conceal? Itâs part of Dox, if there was danger in the living area, concealing would only expose Dox to risk."
Angel: "Dox isnât alone now, with the Black Earl around. If inspiration assessed that Dox would face risk but not die, then it might have opted to conceal."
Black Earl: "That reason I accept, but you still havenât directly answered why the inspiration would deliberately conceal from Dox?"
Angel actually, before asking, didnât know the answer.
But through discussing with Black Earl, or rather, under Black Earlâs guidance, an answer started to emerge.
And this answer had been vaguely hinted at by the Black Earl before.
"Dox has begun to doubt himself," Angel said softly.
The Mind Ribbon remained silent for a long time before Black Earlâs voice came through. This time, Black Earlâs voice carried a hint of laughter: "You sure are good at guessing."
"So, was I right?" Angel asked.
"I donât know either." Black Earl gave the same response, but then added meaningfully: "Inspiration is like divination; the more ambiguous it is, the harder it is to see through. So sometimes living a little muddled isnât such a bad thing."
Angel pondered for a moment, then laughed: "I think I get it. Unfortunately, my inspiration is hit or miss, and I really canât imagine what itâs like to have inspiration on the level of divination."
After a pause, Angel didnât dwell on Doxâs inspiration but asked instead: "Did you sense anything back in the residential area?"
This time, Black Earl answered normally: "I did smell a foul stench, lurking deeper underground. It doesnât feel too troublesome to deal with, but itâs not easy either. Probably a bit stronger than that demon creature of yours."
Black Earl spoke lightly, but being stronger than the Earl Mi... that would mean at least a Level 1 True Knowledge level.
If we encounter it, it might indeed pose a big problem. However, itâs basically impossible to kill us.
No wonder Doxâs inspiration didnât warn him.
While they were chatting, the group had already returned to the forked path.
No need to explore the right side now, only two options remain: left or center.
The left side has many mutated carrion squirrels, while the center has none. From this, it seems the left might be safer than the center.
After all, mutated carrion squirrels are also magical creatures, and magical creatures tend to seek good fortune and avoid danger. The absence of mutated carrion squirrels in the center might mean thereâs something even they wouldnât dare disturb.
"How about we go left?" Kaier said in a low voice.
"Youâre not the leader, let the leader decide." Vay immediately retorted: "I personally think voting would be better."
Vay still wanted to help Angel and continue to coax Dox.
However, Angel no longer needed Dox to help with the choice.
Because Dox had already entered a stage of self-doubt, and it was possible heâd purposely mislead, even deliberately give incorrect guidance.
So this time... or rather, until Dox has completely mastered his inspiration, they canât rely on his intuition anymore.
"No voting this time, weâre going down the center." Angel said calmly.
Vay was taken aback: "Sir, did you find a familiar path?"
Angel: "No, only when we see the statue of the peeing boy will we have found a familiar path."
Vay: "Then why do you want to..." choose the center?
Vay secretly hoped for a vote, preferably to go left, because the center clearly seemed dangerous.
Looking at Vayâs conflicted expression, Angel joked: "Didnât you just say let the leader decide? Now that Iâve decided to go down the center, why are you hesitating?"
Vayâs face flushed with warmth, scratching his head unsure of what to say. He had just opposed Kaier purely to push for a vote!
Since Vay is a junior of the Noah Clan, Angel didnât tease him too much, and he changed the subject: "Letâs go, after all, itâs just so many paths. Itâs normal for a maze to wind around. Who knows, maybe weâll end up looping back left."
"Donât jinx it..." Dox muttered softly.
Angel: "Iâm just speaking the truth. Havenât you ever played maze puzzles? Youâve missed a lot of childhood fun then."
While saying this, Angel started walking down the center path.
With no other choice, the others followed Angel.
Only Dox remained at the back, casting a hesitant glance toward the left path.
Since the ten-meter range of the Illusionary Realm was a safe zone, Angel stopped just outside of it, waiting for Dox to make a decision.
"What, do you have other thoughts? Feel free to share." Angel asked with a smile.
Seeing this, Vay was overjoyed; could it be that Doxâs intuition tells him to go left? Does it mean they might go left after all?
However, Vayâs excitement didnât last long. Dox stood at the forked path, silent for over ten seconds, before closing his eyes, saying nothing, and heading straight down the center path.
At that moment, neither Vay nor Kaier understood what Dox was going through.
But Angel and Black Earl knew well that Dox was likely at the final stage of self-doubt. Clearly, an intuition had emerged earlier, prompting him to go left, yet after pondering for a moment, Dox said nothing, and simply followed Angel down the center path.
This wasnât an easy decision.
Dox had evaded countless risks thanks to his intuition; it was his life-saving trump card. But now, Dox was contradicting his intuition, making a completely opposite choice, which was a decision of unimaginable difficulty.
"Letâs go." Dox said calmly as he reached Angelâs side.
The fact that Dox didnât say anything surprised Angel a lot. He had expected Dox to ramble a bit, but didnât anticipate that when making a significant decision, Dox would actually show a more serious side.
Since Dox didnât wish to say more, Angel didnât ask any questions. Amidst Vayâs disappointed expression and Doxâs complex thoughts, they silently continued onward.
Even without any mutated carrion squirrels around, Angel didnât dissolve the Illusionary Realm; it didnât consume much magic power anyway, and it provided an extra layer of safety.
The center path was getting wider and wider. Now, not only could it accommodate ten people walking side by side, but twenty would also be no problem. Plus, the path started to slope downward, and visibly, the walls on either side were getting higher.
Compared to the enormous maze and towering walls, they appeared truly insignificant.
This involuntarily instilled a sense of awe in them.
The small, revering the massive.
Of course, this was the feeling of the two apprentices. Angel and the other official wizards were entirely unaffected by this spatial disparity.
In fact, as the surroundings became broader and the walls grew taller, Angel grew increasingly certain that his choice of path might have been correct.
His initial decision to choose the center was simply because he thought they were not far from the Hanging Jail Stairway, which was an official institution of Naraku City, overseen by a dominant authority. Such official institutions wouldnât allow any mischievous magical creatures to intrude.
Hence, Angel chose the center path devoid of mutated carrion squirrels.
As this path expanded, and the walls rose, the burden on Angelâs mind, though not yet resolved, was drawing close.
Why else would such an extravagant effort be made to construct the path in this way? Itâs precisely to command respect.
Undeniably, this obvious spatial contrast did elicit feelings of smallness and insignificance.
A living area or other buildings wouldnât deliberately create such a sense of awe; only an official institution of Naraku City might do so.
It both inspires reverence and represents authority.
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