Vale accepted the key, his fingers tracing the intricate patterns etched into the metal.
He didn't have to enter his Phantasm State, and he could already tell that this was a Mystical Item.
"With that key, you can escape from the Tower anytime. However, it only works on the first and second floors. The floors above them have different escape routes if you no longer wish to continue and take a rest. Remember, you have two weeks to use this Dark Soul Tower. You don't have to rush." Headmaster Jean reminded.
Vale had also learned this from the three other professors, so he nodded without questions.
"Go ahead…" Headmaster Jean said as he gestured for Vale to enter the Dark Soul Tower.
Vale didn't hesitate as he had been waiting for this for several days.
He took the prepared torch near the door of the Tower before opening it with the key given to him.
As Vale stepped through the towering doors of the Dark Soul Tower, a chill wind greeted him, carrying whispers of Ancient Spirits and the faint scent of decay. The atmosphere was heavy, and the darkness seemed to swallow the feeble light that emanated from his torch.
Whom~
The first floor stretched before him, a labyrinth of winding corridors and hidden chambers. Shadows danced along the walls, and eerie noises echoed in the distance.
Vale took a deep breath, steeling himself for what lay ahead.
His Phantasm State was now activated.
"So it's like this…" Vale muttered.
As soon as the door closed, he realized that his Magic Zone was indeed restricted. He could only cover about 100 meters ahead of him, which was already quite impressive if compared to other students entering this Tower, according to Professor Zara.
She mentioned that most students could only use 10 meters of Magic Zone to scan their surroundings.
"It still has an advantage… Let's go."
Vale ventured further into the labyrinthine corridors of the first floor. The shadows seemed to twist and elongate as he moved, creating an ever-shifting maze that challenged his sense of direction.
The echoes of his footsteps reverberated through the stone walls, adding to the eerie ambiance.
Perhaps, if his Magic Zone only reaches 5 to 10 meters, he would be quite afraid inside this labyrinth.
As Vale explored, he discovered the first hidden chambers that were scattered throughout the first floor.
According to Professor Cyrus, each chamber held its own secrets and challenges. Some contained ancient tomes filled with forbidden knowledge or useless knowledge while others concealed traps and puzzles that tested his intellect and magical prowess.
Of course, Vale was repeatedly reminded that even if he gets to have a copy of a forbidden knowledge here, he wasn't allowed to practice it if he didn't want to be expelled from the Academy.
"Tsk…"
Vale tried to sense what was inside, but his Phantasm State couldn't reach past the door, so he had no other choice but to open it. Spirit Vision and Divine Sense don't work as well.
Creak…
Pushing open the heavy stone door, Vale found himself face-to-face with a horde of Unclean Zombies and Infested Zombies. The putrid stench of decay filled the air as they lurched towards him with outstretched arms, their vacant eyes fixed upon him.
They immediately sensed his presence and growled with their foul breath.
'This is the worst!' Vale thought to himself.
He didn't mind if he encountered a Slender Zombie or a Plump Zombie. Although they had the stench of death around them, it was bearable! It was unlike these two!
Drawing upon his dark energy, Vale unleashed the spells he prepared to combat the undead.
Spectral Hands materialized from the shadows, reaching out to grasp and immobilize the zombies.
Ghost Hands, ethereal and chilling, tore through the ranks of the undead, dispersing them into ashes. Since his Ghost Hands were already in the Advanced Realm, Vale didn't doubt that he'd crush these zombies.
'Hmm? They're not disappearing?' Vale thought as he noticed that the Zombies just kept spawning.
Aware of the potential danger, Vale quickly cast Arcane Armor, encasing himself in a barrier that provided protection against the zombies' attacks.
Crash! Crash!
Suddenly, he realized that his Spectral Hands were caught by one of the Unclean Zombies and were bitten so hard that they just crushed into nothingness.
His Spectral Hands couldn't be summoned for another 5 minutes, so he used a different spell for now.
Darkness Coil, a spell that summoned tendrils of darkness, entangled the zombies, rendering them helpless.
In the midst of battle, Vale spotted a group of Infested Zombies closing in on him.
This Infested Zombie was abnormal, if he would describe it. It could avoid his Ghost Hands and could actually think when was the best time to charge in and attack!
It wasn't just blindly throwing itself at him!
Thinking quickly, Vale released his fourth Spell, Corrupted Chains.
His current limit in his simultaneous spellcasting was only three… If he tries to use a fourth spell, his control with other spells would be unstable, and there's an extremely high chance that his Dark Energy would collapse, and all the spells would be canceled in the process.
In short, he shouldn't be doing this.
However, Vale was fearless. He had 70 points in his Strength and 68 Points in his Agility… Even without all these Spells with him, he was quite confident that he would survive this swarm of Zombies.
Soon, his Corrupted Chains bound the disgusting and smelly Infested Zombie.
Seeing how it was struggling and how he felt that his Spells were also about to collapse, Vale smiled.
With a thought, he triggered his Touchless Extraction!
One… Two… Three…
Within three seconds, Vale saw a notification from his system.
[ Undead Being has been discovered. Would you like to start the extraction? ]
Vale couldn't contain his excitement the moment he saw this message. There were so many undead within this chamber! Even if he only gets 1 Energy Point each, he would gladly accept them!
Without a doubt, he wouldn't say no to this question.
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