Leylin brought up the data the Chip had previously recorded.
Those three factions had at least been stirring up trouble in the outer perimeter for quite some time, and had managed to uncover some useful information.
According to Dormar's confession, the space within the entire Quicksand Castle was far larger than what it appeared from the outside — it was practically an enormous labyrinth.
And the countless rooms on the exterior served as the first layer of defense.
If one failed to leave in time, they would end up wandering endlessly through the countless rooms, eventually trapped inside to wither and die.
The second layer here had been marked from the very start as this Mirage Corridor.
Under the dim, yellowish light, Leylin examined the decorations along the corridor.
The walls on both sides were very white, adorned with peculiar floral patterns, yet there was not a single human portrait among them. The crimson carpet on the floor stretched all the way to the end of the corridor, without a speck of dust in sight.
"This kind of painting technique?" Leylin stroked his chin. "It has a very ancient style. It's now confirmed — this was a testing site of the Quicksand organization!"
Ancient Wizards had been far more powerful than the Wizards of the present era. Leylin even suspected that when the castle had been constructed, Wizards at the Star Rank or above must have lent their hands.
And the traps within this place — for a mere Tier 3 warlock like himself, a single misstep could prove fatal!
Leylin's eyes vigilantly studied the oil paintings lining the corridor as his feet began moving in a peculiar gait.
The floral patterns on both sides came alive with his movement, sprouting, blooming, and then quickly withering away, cycling through this process over and over.
"According to the accounts, the Mirage Corridor requires a unique walking rhythm to enter, and it possesses strange powers that can teleport the entrant to any place they wish to go!"
Leylin recalled a particular passage, and of course, the follow-up note: "If the entrant takes a wrong step, the entire Mirage Corridor will transform into the deadliest of traps, claiming the intruder's flesh and soul alike, keeping them here forever."
These specific steps had been bought with enormous costs by the Wizards on the outside — paid for with lives, even — and now all of that knowledge had fallen into Leylin's hands.
"What is it that I truly want?"
Leylin strolled along the corridor, continuously asking himself. This was another characteristic of the Mirage Corridor — if the entrant's desire was unclear, the corridor would stretch on without end.
After exceeding a certain amount of time, the same mechanism would activate.
"Eternity and power are far too abstract, and they exceed what the Mirage Corridor is capable of. I can only name places it can actually reach!"
Leylin pondered. "Directly stating the location of the Snake Woman's Hair would be extremely risky as well. If that material doesn't exist within, the Mirage Corridor would instantly classify me as an intruder!"
This was also a kind of entrance test. How could the true owner not know what lay beyond the corridor?
The true teleportation of the corridor only led to various locations within the castle. If Leylin named a place that didn't exist at all, not only would the teleportation fail, but it would also trigger the defensive formations.
Yet, giving up on the Snake Woman's Hair just like that — he simply couldn't accept that.
[[[lang:en]] "I want to go... somewhere that can help my bloodline grow!"
A moment later, Leylin made up his mind, repeating those words over and over in his heart.
In an instant, the corridor seemed to shrink, and the floral patterns on the walls changed even more rapidly, completing an entire cycle of growth in just a few seconds.
A point of light appeared at the end of the corridor, expanding continuously.
"Let's go!" Leylin gritted his teeth and strode forward with steady composure.
Whoosh! The weightlessness of teleportation lingered in Leylin's mind, leaving him feeling somewhat dizzy.
He shook his head vigorously and looked at his surroundings.
"This is... where...?"
Before him was a massive laboratory. Through the glass, he could see green plants outside, along with numerous glass vessels and instruments arranged neatly.
"It seems to be some kind of laboratory. Looks like I'm in luck — there really is something here that can help my bloodline grow!"
Leylin let out a long breath. He then recalled the rumors about the Quicksand Organisation. Since most of their members were various warlocks and the like, they must have had a very strong interest in bloodline experiments.
Finding something here that suited his bloodline growth didn't seem to be all that difficult after all.
Leylin walked up to a metal counter and pulled open the first drawer.
The contents inside were quite messy, but most of them were thick sheepskin parchments covered in experimental data recorded in the Byronian language.
Leylin opened the remaining drawers. The contents were more or less the same, with this type of experimental data being the most abundant — the documents practically stuffed the entire counter full.
"So much experimental data. What a pity — the most critical receptor and core materials are missing. There's no way to reverse-engineer the specific experimental process..."
Leylin felt somewhat regretful, but he still quickly used the Chip to store all of this information.
Even a pile of miscellaneous data had a certain value. Who knew — maybe someday he'd be able to find the core data and reconstruct the experiment!