Mage Manual-Chapter 97 - 90: Vortex Secret Poison (Three Updates)

Chapter 97: Chapter 90: Vortex Secret Poison (Three Updates)

“Booty Item 221: Cylinder Maze”

“Source: The Emerald Cross Caravan”

“Process of Acquisition: The Holy Temple sent us to plunder a caravan from the Emerald Cross. Unlike most caravans, they carried no flags, which meant they were under no one’s protection. In this desert, that could only mean they were courting death, or that they had the strength to protect themselves.”

“They indeed were strong, and after losing three Silver Fire Knights, we, under the captain’s leadership, annihilated the caravan. I trust that with the escort of the three Silver Fire Knights, their souls will be purified in the flames, ascend the Stairs of the Sun, and find eternal peace.”

“When searching for spoils, I found a very delicate cylindrical object in one of the tents, small enough to hold in one hand. Just then, I noticed a child hiding in the shadows, staring intently at the cylinder in my hands.”

“Perhaps the tribulation had clouded my judgment. I asked him what it was, and he said it was a family heirloom that contained the secret to triggering the Vortex.”

...

“Before the captain came in, I had already purified the child, hoping his soul would forever escape this desolate land.”

“I hid the cylinder and after an investigation, I found it was a treasure named ‘Labyrinth,’ containing the essence of a Four-winged Technique Spirit. If not opened correctly, the safeguards left by the Four-winged Technique Spirit would automatically destroy the contents within.”

“My wisdom was insufficient to unlock this maze, so I sought out the most clever woman in the temple. After making an eternal vow of allegiance, I handed the cylinder to her, and after a month, she managed to open it and obtained the secrets within.”

“With this secret, our magic power advanced by leaps and bounds. Due to my own folly, I only triggered the Vortex once, while she managed to trigger it twice and fully unfurled her Silver Wings.”

“Until one day when I emerged from the Void Realm, I found the Holy Temple’s knights binding my body. She stood behind the knights, her face stern.”

“She accused me. Hidden in my clothes was a shattered Cylinder Maze. Now a Two-winged, she no longer needed this secret or me. What she needed was an opportunity recognized by the Holy Temple, a way to alleviate the Vortex Secret Poison.”

“For privately hiding and damaging vital spoils, I was sentenced to death, ineligible for purification in the flames but to sink in sewage into a nightmare. Until the very last second, I didn’t reveal the secret within the cylinder, because the vow of never betraying was still in effect. She, having ascended to Two-winged by miracle, unilaterally withdrew from the vow; yet it still bound me.”

“Actually, if I had used the Miracle ‘Burn the Remnants,’ I could have temporarily suppressed all the abnormal statuses on me, and naturally, I could have broken the vow and seen through her disguise.”

“But looking at her, for some reason, I gave up.”

“Perhaps the tribulation had clouded my judgment.”

“Final Disposition: Destroyed.”

Sonia, with her arms crossed, said, “Tribulation Holy Temple… I’ve never heard of this power.”

“Shouldn’t a normal person be commenting on this mage’s emotional journey?”

“Do you really want to hear it? I can’t lie right now.”

“Let’s forget it then.”

“What about the method to trigger the Vortex? Why did you skip over that just now?”

“I’m wondering if I should tell you.”

Sonia paused slightly, trying to hold her tongue, her expression struggling. Ash had never seen such a Sword Maiden and was almost about to laugh.

Hearing the laughter, Sonia could no longer hold it back and whispered, “You actually guard against me like this, wanting to monopolize it all yourself? Do I really hold such little value in your eyes compared to a Vortex Secret?”

Ash, somewhat surprised, said, “So are you mad that I’m guarding against your monopolizing it, or that you think you’re not as highly regarded in my eyes as you thought?”

Sonia’s eyes visibly blazed with anger: “I—”

“Sorry, don’t answer that. It was my fault,” Ash quickly said. “It’s not about guarding against you, but this secret is poisonous, being aware of it infects one. I’ve been affected already, and since we can enter the Vortex together anyway, I just felt there was no need for you to know.”

“A poisonous secret? I don’t believe it,” Sonia said. “I think you’re lying to me, big liar.”

“I must admit, dealing with you when you can only tell the truth is indeed easier,” Ash said. “So, I’ll tell you, but don’t blame me.”

“How could I? If I get afflicted, I’ll definitely blame you for not dissuading me; if I’m fine, I’ll think you lied on purpose,” Sonia spread her hands. “Either way, I won’t believe it’s my fault.”

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“…That’s really unreasonable,” Ash sighed. “But this poison isn’t too severe right now, and since it’s better to be in the same boat together, I feel it’s quite a loss to be the only one afflicted…”

“The method to trigger the Vortex is: find a Fish-dragon Species Knowledge creature, severely wound it, and chase it as it attempts to escape but do not kill it. Rather, let it naturally succumb to exhaustion. The location of its corpse will form a Vortex passage because…”

Sonia and Ash spoke in unison, “The Sea of Knowledge is embracing its sleeping child.”

After saying that, Sonia looked at Ash in surprise.

The statement had slipped out almost instinctively after listening to the knowledge that Ash had introduced, as if the knowledge he shared bred new insights within her mind, uncontrollably flooding her thoughts!

At the same time, Sonia felt an unusual sensation. Everything seemed unchanged, yet she felt as though the entire world was different!

She looked around, trying to pinpoint what had changed, and soon her gaze concentrated on the water outside. After staring at it for a moment, she felt a wave of nausea—

“The toxicity of this Secret Poison is that it makes us nauseated by water,” Ash said.

He opened the “Aurora’s Mage Manual”— “Operator Management” and saw that both “Final Observer” and “Death Mad Sword Maiden” had acquired an abnormal status.

“Vortex Secret Poison”

“Number of Infected: 131”

“Potency of Secret Poison: 131%”

“Current effects of Secret Poison: Aversion to water (Strength increased to 300% gains enhancement, reduced to 100% gains relief, reduced to 50% transitions to beneficial effect).”

This poison was peculiarly eerie, not harming the body but warping the soul. What was most dreadful was that the more people who knew of this secret, the more potent the poison became, implicating everyone who knew!

When Ash divulged the information about the Secret Poison to Sonia, she immediately scowled, “Why didn’t you resolutely refuse me just now, megaphone!”

Indeed, true to her word, she would blame me. Although dealing with such a Sword Maiden was simpler, it also made her much more annoying, resembling a blunt, hypocritical brat.

“Wait, you said earlier that if the number of infected falls below fifty people, this poison will transform into a beneficial effect?” Sonia suddenly asked. “Then we should just eliminate everyone else who knows the secret…”

She made a throat-slitting gesture, and Ash immediately backed away: “Are you the wife in the story who betrayed the Ax Mage?”

“Before you betray me, I won’t rashly betray you.”

“That honest statement isn’t exactly reassuring…” Ash muttered.

Through this conversation, they both understood why this secret was redundantly hidden in the cylindrical labyrinth, and they realized why the Ax Mage was betrayed— because even if you could ensure your own secrecy, you couldn’t ensure that others wouldn’t divulge it.

Once the secret spread and the poison reached a critical point, it could intensify into an almost fatal poison, such as being entirely unable to contact water, or even dying in shock upon touching it.

At that critical point, those without means of self-preservation would die, thus rapidly decreasing the number of people aware of the secret to a safe level.

Therefore, those in the know about the secret were natural enemies, each having to eliminate others in the know, to reduce their own chance of being killed. The wife of the Ax Mage, for this reason, unilaterally nullified her vow and then decisively reported her husband, reducing the number of infected.

But even if every keeper of the secret kept it actively, the secret would still be spread— like Ash and others, who could obtain similar information from the Mage’s Handbook.

The Void Realm was a Mage’s graveyard, and death couldn’t keep a secret.

Thus, upon knowing this secret, Ash had effectively consumed a fatal poison, embarking on a road of no return.

If he did nothing, the day might come when the number of infected suddenly soared, boosting the potency of the Secret Poison to an unbearable level for him, and he could only complain, ‘Why me? Why is this happening?’ before succumbing to agonizing death due to the deadly poison.

But unexpectedly, Ash was not very fearful.

Because he knew that every difficulty granted by the Void Realm could be overcome by one method.

Ultimately, Mages have only one way to survive.

“Then we should find a Fish Dragon Species Knowledge creature next,” Ash said. “Only by becoming stronger can we alleviate the power of Secret Poison or even eradicate it— like forcibly forgetting this piece of knowledge. In any case, we must make good use of this information gained in exchange for being poisoned, turning it into our strength to keep moving forward, never stopping!”

“That’s a given,” Sonia responded beside the boat. “Aren’t we Mages just such greedy creatures?”