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If one were to listen closely, they would notice his breathing was faint, and his chest still rose and fell slightly, indicating that Apollon Joy had not died but merely fallen unconscious.

Witnessing this scene, Dean Bruce naturally wouldn\'t allow the pink mist to get anywhere near him. With a slight movement of his mind, he cast the "The Compassion of Heaven and Earth" spell. The wooden bed beneath him seemed to come to life, with branches and leaves sprouting and wrapping around him, forming a protective barrier.

The faint green light shimmered, and the vitality-infused branches shielded him from the pink mist outside.

Dean Bruce\'s gaze was fixed on Nicholas William, watching as he slowly rose to his feet, eyes closed, and walked towards the door as if sleepwalking. He opened it and began to head outside.

After confirming that Nicholas William\'s aura had not changed significantly and that there was no immediate danger, Dean Bruce did not attempt to break him out of this state. Instead, he quietly got up and followed him.

Trailing Nicholas William, Dean Bruce soon descended the stairs and left the inn, making his way slowly under the moonlight towards the outskirts of the city.

As they approached the city gate, the guards heard the sound of footsteps and hurriedly rushed out, weapons in hand, eyes full of alertness as they stared at Nicholas William.

But before they could ask any questions, the purple mist had already spread around them, causing them to collapse to the ground in an instant, falling unconscious.

Seeing this scene, Dean Bruce immediately understood—someone was controlling Nicholas William\'s body. He wasn\'t just sleepwalking.

However, while that person could control Nicholas William, they didn\'t seem to have the ability to observe the surroundings, or rather, the one in the shadows could only gather information through Nicholas William\'s eyes.

Dean Bruce had been following directly behind Nicholas William the entire time, so the one in the shadows hadn\'t noticed him.

With this realization, Dean Bruce moved even more lightly, creating more distance between himself and Nicholas William, not giving the one in the shadows any chance of detecting his presence.

The city guards fell unconscious, saving Dean Bruce the trouble of dealing with them. He continued to follow behind Nicholas William at a slow pace, leaving the imperial capital and weaving through the dense forest.

He had no idea how much time had passed when Nicholas William, still in his sleepwalking state, finally arrived at a secluded lake. The moonlight poured onto the water, casting a silver glow. Two moons reflected on the lake\'s surface, illuminating the woman floating on the water, making her look like an ethereal angel.

Hiding in the woods, Dean Bruce peered out, his brows furrowing involuntarily.

The woman floating on the lake wore a mask and was draped in a loose, white robe that completely concealed her figure. It was impossible to discern her identity. If it weren\'t for the cascade of her long hair and the faint rise and fall of her chest, it would have been hard even to determine her gender!

As the woman\'s white robe fluttered, her body emitted a pure white radiance, which drifted toward Nicholas William.

Immediately, Dean Bruce noticed that Nicholas William\'s soul and body were beginning to separate. A hazy, ethereal figure slowly floated out from within him.

Dean Bruce\'s eyes darted around, but he didn\'t continue watching. Instead, he crept out from his hiding spot, fully prepared to cast his spells.

If Nicholas William hadn\'t been his apprentice, he would have allowed the woman to continue her spell, just to see its specific effects.

But alas, Nicholas William was his disciple!

Moreover, though Nicholas William might appear simple and naive, his ability to comprehend magic was exceptional. Dean Bruce still wanted him to master more spells so that he himself could benefit from it. How could he just stand there and watch his apprentice die?

However, just as Dean Bruce was about to intervene, Nicholas William\'s soul was suddenly pulled back into his body in an instant.

The woman\'s spell was interrupted, causing her to stumble backward several steps.

Buzz—

A strange purple light surged, and an elderly apparition materialized from within Nicholas William\'s body. A powerful force burst forth, instantly enveloping the entire area.

A crisp gasp escaped the woman\'s lips, and Dean Bruce\'s eyes lit up at the sight. Immediately, a smile spread across his face.

As expected, he had been right!

A guy like Nicholas William was too similar to the protagonist of a novel. Now that he\'d seen the elderly figure residing within Nicholas William, Dean Bruce was even more convinced—Nicholas William was definitely the protagonist!

Having confirmed that Nicholas William was indeed the protagonist, Dean Bruce no longer had to worry. After all, it would be incredibly difficult for him to truly die. This allowed Dean Bruce to offload as many spells as he wanted onto Nicholas, letting him grasp their essence as quickly as possible.

Shelly William\'s gaze swept over the woman and a cold sneer formed on his lips. "A mere puppet dares to harm my descendant?"

"…"

Without the slightest hesitation, the woman\'s feet emitted a burst of light, and her body soared straight into the air.

Shelly William shouted coldly, "Trying to flee now? Too late! O darkness of the night, unleash an endless storm, disturb this domain, and tear every enemy to shreds!"

As he chanted, dark light surged in from all directions, carrying with it a sense of immense pressure. It formed a barrier, directly bouncing the woman back to the ground.

In the next moment, the dark light converged and took the form of hundreds of ravens. They let out a series of harsh "caw-caw" cries and darted towards the woman with extreme speed.

Sensing the power emanating from the ravens, the woman barely managed to stabilize her posture before pulling a staff from within her voluminous magical robe. Her hand, now exposed, was small and delicate, appearing exceptionally beautiful under the moonlight.

However, Shelly William was an old man who had lived for thousands of years. He had long since become indifferent to a woman\'s beauty. No matter how attractive she might be, the moment she raised her staff, his body flickered, and he instantly teleported to her side.

The next moment, he threw his head back and let out a long howl, causing all the dark ravens to scream in unison. The sound waves seemed to solidify, brimming with immense power, and blasted the woman away, sending her crashing into the nearby cliff.

Bang!

Splash!

It wasn\'t until the woman splashed into the lake below that Shelly William flew over and fished her out. He threw her directly onto the shore.

At this time, Nicholas William was still in a deep sleep.

Shelly William did not remove the woman\'s magical robe. Instead, he looked towards the place where Dean Bruce was hiding and said softly, "Mr. Dean, I am merely an elder of the Nicholas family. Due to my spirit form, I have been residing within his body. If I have caused any offense, I sincerely apologize and beg your forgiveness."

Hearing these words, Dean Bruce saw no reason to hide any longer. He stepped out and replied with a smile, "There\'s no need to apologize. I\'ve sensed your presence for quite some time now. Otherwise, I wouldn\'t have followed Nicholas all the way here. Knowing you were around, I knew he wouldn\'t be harmed."

"But if you hadn\'t shown yourself sooner, I might have assumed I was wrong and intervened directly."

As he spoke, Dean Bruce\'s gaze fell on Shelly William, scrutinizing him closely.

Even though Shelly William was in his spirit form and couldn\'t exert much power, and even though they were likely allies, Dean Bruce remained vigilant, carefully examining him to prepare for any possible scenario.

"Oh?" Shelly William\'s expression shifted subtly. He hadn\'t expected that, despite his efforts to remain concealed, he could still be discovered. His respect for Dean Bruce grew even deeper. He spoke up, "I can sense it. This is nothing more than a puppet. Would you like to take a closer look?"

Without any hesitation, Dean Bruce walked up to the woman. He gently removed the robe covering her, revealing an exquisitely beautiful face.

With a slight probe of his senses, Dean Bruce noticed that the woman was still breathing. He reached out and pulled open her eyelids, revealing pupils that were completely white, with no sign of consciousness.

"Hmm? She\'s actually a living person?"

Shelly William was equally taken aback. "Earlier, I couldn\'t feel any signs of life at all. I could only detect the presence of a soul\'s energy clinging to this body. I thought it was just a puppet, but I didn\'t expect her to be an actual person!"

Dean Bruce replied calmly, "What you said isn\'t entirely wrong. Although she\'s still alive, her soul has already left her body. Now that the soul of the one controlling her has retreated, it\'s not incorrect to call her a puppet."

Pausing for a moment, Dean Bruce glanced at the still-slumbering Nicholas William and said softly, "If you hadn\'t acted earlier, that person in the shadows would likely have stripped Nicholas\'s soul from his body as well. At that point, his body would have turned into a puppet too!"

At this point, Dean Bruce suddenly understood the principle behind how that group of people disappeared without a trace.

The method was straightforward: using that particular spell, people were placed into a unique state, emitting the pink mist from within their bodies. Anyone who approached would fall unconscious, likely with their memories wiped clean as well.

Once their souls were extracted, couldn\'t their bodies be disposed of at will?

The only question that remained was the medium through which the spell was cast.

The person in the shadows was far away from Nicholas William. To cast a spell from such a distance, there must be some sort of medium involved. Moreover, both Dean Bruce and Apollon Joy were in the room as well. If it had been an area-effect spell, they would have certainly been affected too.

With these thoughts running through his mind, Dean Bruce fell into deep contemplation. What exactly had Nicholas William done to fall into such a trap?