Chapter 422 - 325: Rebuilding the Altar

"Ian... you’re so good to me. I’ll definitely succeed, gaga."

"I believe in you."

Ian turned and walked into the Laboratory, with Gaga following behind him.

The man and his bird arrived on the third underground level. The area had been cleaned out; with the altar dismantled, only an empty stone chamber remained.

Ian activated the three-layered Isolation Witch Array. A faint silver Light Curtain rose from the corners of the walls, enveloping the entire space.

"Go over there." He pointed to the center of the chamber.

Gaga spread its wings slightly and obediently flew over.

Ian first took out the four Shadow Crystals and placed them in a square around Gaga, one on each side.

He didn’t take out the Tier Three crystals; it wasn’t suitable for Gaga to absorb them yet.

Then, he took out a bottle of Tier Two Blood Essence Powder. As he uncorked it, a dense life aura and Magic Power fluctuations instantly filled the air.

He poured the Blood Essence into a special small silver bowl and added a few Shadow Potion Materials.

With a light tap of his fingertip, a wisp of pale golden flame rose from his palm, enveloping the bottom of the bowl.

The liquid began to boil, its color changing from dark red to deep purple. Fine shadow patterns appeared on its surface, writhing like living things.

Three minutes later, the liquid solidified, once again forming a thumb-sized, deep purple crystal.

Ian handed the crystal over. "Here, swallow it."

Gaga took it and stuffed it into its mouth without hesitation.

The crystal melted the moment it entered its mouth, turning into a warm liquid that slid down its throat.

Instantly, its body trembled!

Fine shadow patterns appeared on the surface of its Dark Silver feathers. The patterns spread like living things, extending from its wings to its tail, and then to its chest.

Deep within its silver-gray pupils, a point of light ignited, growing brighter and brighter.

Gaga closed its eyes, and its body began to tremble slightly.

This was a natural reaction to its body becoming saturated after absorbing a large amount of Energy in a short time.

Ian spread his Spiritual Power, monitoring every minute change.

Time flowed by slowly.

The stone chamber was quiet, with only the low hum of the Isolation Witch Array.

Half an hour later, the shadow patterns on Gaga’s body were about three times denser than before, and its aura had completely stabilized.

Every pattern flowed slowly, like a natural Rune Array, emitting an obscure shadow fluctuation.

Gaga opened its eyes, revealing a deep Dark Silver in its pupils.

"Gaga..." Its voice was still childlike, just a bit hoarse.

"I feel... so much stronger, gaga."

Ian nodded. After entering Tier Two, every minor Realm advancement was a qualitative leap.

"Good. You’ve reached Tier Two Middle Stage."

Gaga stood up, and with a light flap of its wings, its entire body instantly faded, melting into the air and disappearing.

It had completely merged with the shadows, its aura entirely concealed.

Three seconds later, it reappeared in another corner of the chamber.

It was ten meters away from its original position, but there was no trace of movement. It had simply "jumped" out of the shadows.

’Shadow Jump... its activation is much faster than before. Its bloodline ability must have been further strengthened after advancing to Tier Two Middle Stage.’

Gaga excitedly flapped its wings, jumping around the stone chamber.

Each time it disappeared and reappeared, it was completely silent, like a true ghost.

"Ian! I can instantly merge with the shadows! And... I can even enter the Shadow World for a short time!"

"The Shadow World?" A glint flashed in Ian’s eyes. "How long do you think you can stay inside?"

The little creature landed on his shoulder and nuzzled his cheek with its head.

"Gaga? I feel like I can only stay in for about ten minutes before I’m pushed out. But I don’t dare go in... there’s a really scary aura inside."

"It’s okay. When you get stronger again, we’ll go in together."

Ian ruffled its head as a sudden thought occurred to him.

’Gaga’s Tier Three advancement resources might be found in the Shadow World, but I’d have to go in with it. If I want to enter, I’ll need Gaga’s help, and its strength will need to be at least Tier Two Late Stage.’

He temporarily set aside this tempting idea to deal with the matter at hand.

"Once the altar is built and we’ve contacted the projection... I’ll accompany you on a trip inside."

Gaga nodded vigorously. "I’ll always help you, gaga."

「That evening.」

Ian arrived at Titus Justice’s bedchamber.

It was still quiet here, with the faint scent of medicinal herbs lingering in the air.

Aidele stood by the bed, the hem of her deep purple Long Robe draping at her feet.

She looked at Ian, her eyes filled with inquiry.

"Have you made progress with the Magic Potion?"

"Yes."

Ian walked to the bedside and looked at the slumbering Titus.

The former Level Three Peak Wizard’s complexion had improved slightly.

The dark purple patterns flowing beneath his skin had faded considerably, but his aura remained dim.

"After I advanced to Level Three, I gained some new insights into the Purification Potion."

Ian took out a newly refined bottle of [Purification Potion]. He uncorked it and dripped the Potion onto Titus’s forehead, between his brows.

The moment the liquid touched his skin, it transformed into countless fine specks of starlight and seeped into his body.

Titus’s body trembled slightly, and the rise and fall of his chest became noticeably more pronounced.

The dark purple patterns under his skin faded another degree.

’Is it still not enough...? This Level Four Contamination is truly tenacious.’ Ian looked at Titus’s sleeping face and muttered to himself.

"Although this Abyssal contamination no longer has a source, its Level remains. I estimate... it will take at least a year for him to wake up."

Aidele stood beside him, her fingers clenched tightly.

"A year... as long as the contamination doesn’t worsen, I can wait."

She looked at Ian, the lamplight reflecting in her deep cyan pupils.

"Ian, thank you."

Ian shook his head. "There’s no need for pleasantries between us."

He packed up his tools, turned to leave, and paused at the door.

"The 4th Floor of the Secret Vault... do you know what’s inside?"

Aidele froze.

"The 4th Floor? That’s an area only the Clan Leader can enter. I’ve never been there."

Her expression changed. "Why do you ask?"

Ian pushed the door open, his figure disappearing down the end of the corridor, leaving a sentence echoing in the air.

"There’s... a contamination aura there similar to the one on your father."

Aidele’s pupils constricted. She stared blankly as Ian’s back disappeared from view.

「Late that night.」

No. 7 Wisteria Lane, third underground level.

Ian stood where the altar had been dismantled, tapping the ground with the tip of his foot.

"Let’s start right here."

He raised his right hand. Silver points of light surged in his palm as he activated the Gravity Rule.

The Stone Slab beneath his feet cracked open silently. The rubble, as if held and compressed by an invisible hand, floated to one side.

The earth turned over, revealing a deeper layer of rock.

Ian manipulated Gravity, digging downward layer by layer.

Every ten meters down, he would carve a Witch Array pattern into the rock wall to block Energy, distort detection, and stabilize the space.

Three layers were superimposed to isolate the altar’s fluctuations to the greatest extent possible.

Gaga perched on his shoulder, its silver eyes staring at the ever-deepening shaft.

"How deep are you going to dig, gaga?"

"At least two hundred meters," Ian replied, continuously applying Gravity.

The rock layers were cut as if by a sharp blade, extending neatly downward. The rubble and dirt automatically piled up on either side of the shaft, compacting into walls.

At fifty meters, the core Rune of the first Witch Array was carved.

The silver pattern lit up and merged into the rock, and the shaft trembled slightly.

He continued digging. One hundred meters.

The second Witch Array was carved, resonating with the first to form a two-layer barrier.

At this point, the Energy fluctuations in the air were completely cut off. Not even sound could escape.

One hundred fifty meters. The third Witch Array was carved.

Layer upon layer, the spatial structure was forcibly stabilized, rendering any detection methods useless.

At two hundred meters, Ian stopped the Witchcraft.

Below him was a spherical space one hundred meters in diameter. The rock walls were as smooth as a mirror, with three layers of silver Witch Array patterns flowing across their surface.

The patterns intertwined and overlapped, forming a perfect, sealed Barrier.

Even light was absorbed, leaving only the silver glow from his palm to illuminate a small area.

"This should do. It’s safe enough."

He turned and took out the materials that had been purified by the panel from his Dimension Ring.

Void Anchor Stones, Abyssal Rune Stones, Uncertain Iron, Flawless Magic Crystals... he embedded them into the frame one by one.

Half an hour later, a brand-new altar stood in the center of the space.

It was slightly smaller than the previous one, but its patterns were more refined and its Energy more contained.

Twenty-eight Void Anchor Stones flickered with a faint silver light, and the vortex in the center slowly spun.

Gaga asked in a small voice, "Is this... safe, gaga?"

"Don’t worry, it’s very safe." Ian nodded confidently.

’All the materials have been purified by the panel, so no Abyssal Aura will leak out. With my Spiritual Power, I can only probe about a hundred meters underground, and that’s without any shielding Witch Arrays.’

Finally, he raised his hand and activated the three-layered Witch Array.

With a HUM, three layers of silver light lit up simultaneously on the shaft walls.

They spread upward from the bottom, extending all the way to the entrance, completely isolating the entire space.

It was like a seed buried deep within the earth.

Ian stood before the altar, watching the black vortex spinning in the center.

Deep within his pupils, three rings of Star Orbits slowly rotated.

"Next... is to find a suitable Projection World."