Diary of a Dead Wizard

Lokai couldn’t accept that he had just become Saul’s prisoner.

But he could tell that the two people surrounding him at least had the magic fluctuations of Third Rank apprentices.

Add to that Saul, who had suddenly grown mysterious, and—Byron, who had somehow appeared again!

Wasn’t Byron already dead? He had personally stitched that corpse and sent it out of the Wizard Tower under control.

So how was he alive now?

And Saul had even said something about “recovering.” Could it be that Byron hadn’t died at all?

Seeing Lokai’s eyes spinning in thought but his mouth staying shut, Ann frowned and urged him, “If you know, just say you know. If you don’t, say you don’t. Why do you even need to think about it?”

Indeed, many thoughts had flashed through Lokai’s mind. But just before speaking, he suddenly revealed that familiar smile again. “Jero should have been outside watching the show, but from the way you're talking, he must’ve slipped away early. In that case, he’s probably gone to the library. After all, to a wizard, the most important treasure is knowledge—and he’s always liked looting while others are distracted.”

There were two libraries in the Wizard Tower: one was the public library on the 5th floor, the other was the Tower Master's private library on the 19th floor.

At the moment, aside from Saul, no one here would be a match for Jero.

Byron nodded. “I’d like to make a few relief potions.”

Lokai, seeing that Saul was about to leave, lowered his head slightly, deep in thought.

But as Saul passed by Lokai, he suddenly reached out his hand—and a semi-transparent gray tendril instantly wrapped around Lokai’s neck.

They were close, and Saul’s move was sudden. Lokai, already restrained, had no time to react.

He instinctively tried to manipulate his silk threads to cut the tendril, only to find they passed right through a shadow—never touching the actual body of the tendril.

“A soul-body attack?” Lokai’s eyes widened, finally realizing something terrifying. “You’ve advanced to a True Wizard?!”

Saul didn’t answer—he simply acknowledged it. “Let’s go. First to the 19th floor. I’m in a hurry, so you’d better keep up. Otherwise… it’s going to be unpleasant.”

Before he even finished speaking, Saul had already dashed off.

Though Lokai hadn’t figured out how Saul’s attack worked or how dangerous it was, he wasn’t stupid. He immediately followed Saul, keeping their distance unchanged.

All along the way, Saul ran without looking back.

Lokai followed closely behind. At a glance, it looked like he could strike Saul from behind at any moment, but that thought was quickly suppressed.

He wasn’t a fool. And Saul was even less so.

The fact that Saul dared to use a single transparent tendril to control him meant he was absolutely confident in it.

“Now’s not the time,” Lokai reined in his emotions, though the corners of his mouth slowly curled upward. “So Saul is already a True Wizard. Then it’s likely that Master Anze is done for too. Sorry, Master. The plan’s changed—I’ve got to look out for myself now.”

The two soon reached the library on the 19th floor. The great doors remained tightly shut, undisturbed by the chaos in the in-between layer.

The various corpses lying on either side of the door made it clear that a fierce battle had taken place here.

Apparently, Jero wasn’t the only one who’d tried to exploit the chaos to get in.

Saul swept a glance over the bodies on the ground and immediately noticed the charred marks of electrical burns on several Third Rank apprentices.

“Jero’s been here. He must’ve tried several times to get in but failed, then left,” Saul said, turning and taking off again. Lokai had no choice but to follow quickly.

When they reached the ramp, Saul was about to descend when Lokai suddenly spoke behind him. “I don’t think someone as prideful as Jero would be interested in what’s on the 6th floor.”

Saul stopped, giving Lokai a cold glare.

Lokai grinned, as if he’d regained the upper hand.

Saul had long found that “hee-hee-hee” laugh of his irritating. With a slight flick of his mental strength, the transparent tendril around Lokai’s neck suddenly tightened.

Lokai instantly stopped laughing.

In that moment, his soul experienced a violent jolt—as if some powerful suction was trying to rip his soul right out through his pores!

“He probably went to the 21st floor.”

Lokai’s smile vanished instantly. His nostrils and lips trembled.

The feeling of being forcibly separated from one’s soul was completely different from doing it voluntarily.

“The 21st floor? Why?” Saul asked expressionlessly, not easing his grip on Lokai in the slightest.

People like this would bloom at the slightest hint of sunshine, and who knew what scheme he might already be brewing.

Lokai noticed that his face had begun to twitch—an early sign of numbness.

So he answered as fast as he could, “Master said the 21st floor is the most special place in the Wizard Tower. No one but the Tower Master has ever gone there. It might be the brain of the entire tower—where the key to controlling the tower is hidden.”

Jero wanted to steal the entire Wizard Tower?

When he left, he still didn’t know Anze and the others’ rebellion would ultimately fail. If he was bold enough, he might really take this chance to enter the 21st floor—the most mysterious part of the Wizard Tower.

Even if he couldn’t gain control of the tower, he’d at least want to see if the Tower Master had hidden anything good there.

Saul immediately recognized that what Lokai said made sense and turned to dash toward the 21st floor.

Lokai was in considerable pain by now, but he had no choice but to follow. Otherwise, if the gray transparent tentacle around his neck tightened again, it would feel even worse.

Saul had only been to the 21st floor once—and both times it was via teleportation by the Tower Master. He had only stayed inside that small dark room and had no idea what the true secret of the 21st floor was.

He had already decided—if he couldn’t find Jero soon, he’d bring Monica over. Even if her electrical magic was unstable, it was still better than nothing.

However, when they reached the 21st floor, both Saul and Lokai were stunned.

The mysterious 21st floor didn’t contain any complicated instruments, nor were there vaults full of rare materials—there weren’t even any books.

The 21st floor was the topmost level of the Wizard Tower—above it was only the rooftop.

This was the smallest floor of the entire tower, which widened as it went downward. But even so, it still spanned several hundred square meters.

And yet the entire 21st floor was completely empty. Around the edges were just nine candle lamps emitting a faint glow, barely illuminating the entire room.

In the very center of the room stood a single rectangular pillar.

About one meter wide and just over two meters long.

It supported the structure of this level of the tower.

Lokai didn’t pay much attention to the pillar at first—he looked around instead, trying to find the rumored core of the Wizard Tower.

But Saul’s gaze fell on that rectangular pillar, and he couldn’t look away.

He remembered that when he was brought to the 21st floor, he had been kept inside a very cramped room.

That room was about one meter wide and just over two meters long, but built quite tall.

“Could I have been inside that pillar with the Tower Master back then?”

Just as this thought surfaced in Saul’s mind, he saw a person emerge from behind the iron-black pillar.

Three people crossed paths.

It was none other than Jero!

And before Jero turned around from behind the black iron pillar, none of the three had noticed each other?

Could the black iron pillar have the ability to obscure magical fluctuations?

"No, not to obscure... it might also be absorbing." Before the other two could react, Saul immediately rushed forward, his palm shooting out a black tentacle.

Unlike Lokai, who hadn't seen how Saul suddenly struck and killed Kujin in the small garden, Jero saw it and he knew that Saul had officially become a wizard.

That gray, semi-transparent tentacle was likely a direct soul-attacking method—and a very powerful one!

"Kujin, though useless, was a Third Rank apprentice, and his soul strength had been honed. I must be careful to avoid Saul’s transparent tentacle."

Although the tentacle Saul was using to strike at Jero wasn't the transparent gray one, Jero didn't make the mistake of assuming the black tentacle wouldn't carry soul-attacking power.

In an instant, Jero took flight, leaping into the air. His body was enveloped by golden arcs of electricity, which immediately transformed into a massive electric net.

The net rapidly expanded, casting a shadow over Saul as it descended upon him.

Saul’s weakness was electrical attacks, something Lokai had told him about long ago!

Saul looked up at the descending electric net, unperturbed. His body, covered in Soul Resin, had low resistance to the lightning element, and after a strong electrical shock, he could easily melt. But that didn't mean he would shy away from facing off against the lightning element.

The black tentacles extended from his hands and neck, splitting into dozens of small tentacles in an instant, charging toward the electric net.

At the moment of contact, Little Algae and its clone emitted a layer of white smoke.

Jero laughed heartily, "Did you think earth element creatures don't conduct electricity?"

However, when several tentacles convulsed and fell to the ground, Jero was shocked to see that Saul was standing perfectly unharmed.

Instead, Lokai, who was standing aside, was immediately stiffened by the shock.

Jero’s smile froze on his face as he scanned around, stunned to find that the black tentacles that had originally been connected to Saul had somehow detached, the other end now hanging on the black iron pillar between the two!

Most of the electrical shock had been easily conducted into the pillar, and the remaining bit was easily blocked by Saul using his magic armor technique.

Lokai had also intended to cast a spell for defense, but his mental energy fluctuated violently. The transparent tentacle around his neck immediately tightened, preventing him from casting a defensive spell. With Jero going all out as soon as they met, Lokai was almost knocked out by the electrical shock.

While Saul was virtually unharmed, he could feel a layer of static electricity building up around him, his skin tingling.

"Such powerful magic..." Saul spoke up. "You've advanced to a true wizard? No wonder you dared to break into the 21st floor, trying to take advantage of the situation."

If he were still just a Third Rank apprentice, no matter how powerful he was, it would be impossible for him to covet the Tower Master's assets. At most, he would be dabbling in petty theft, skimming off the top.

But if Jero had truly become a true wizard, there was a real possibility that he could take the Wizard Tower while both sides were severely wounded.

However, with the turmoil in the intermediate layers suddenly ceasing, his plan was now at a crossroads.

To stay or to leave?

Ultimately, the adventure-loving Jero still entered the 21st floor.

But as soon as he entered, he was stunned to find it was completely empty, nothing there at all.

The candles around the room were nothing special, and the central pillar showed no signs of being unusual.

Jero had just circled the pillar and looked up, only to see Saul, who had come in along with Lokai, standing there, as though he hadn’t noticed anyone entering the 21st floor.

(End of this chapter)