The Wise Sovereign realized it was his own carelessness, and couldn’t help but reflect on it. Having spent years in the Underground Aqueduct, isolated from outsiders and lacking the stimulation of intellectual exchange, he hadn’t noticed how stagnant his thoughts had become.
This time was no different. Although the main reason for his oversight was the information gap between him and Angel, his own lack of caution was also a contributing factor.
Just like Angel, he too had a gap in his information, yet Angel’s performance was seamless. The information he disclosed was minimal, and the Wise Sovereign even suspected that, even the information disclosed might have been intentionally or unintentionally leaked by Angel himself.
When intelligent people cross swords, they are never stingy about revealing their cards. They compete to see who can manage their hand the best, whose hidden cards are most surprising, and sometimes revealing cards can be a trap itself.
Currently, the understanding between him and Angel was limited, hence, they couldn’t quite engage in open card strategies for attack and defense. However, it must be said that Angel, as a newcomer, performed remarkably well.
Even the Wise Sovereign couldn’t help but secretly praise in his heart.
"The person you want to ask about, hidden in the mirror, it can enter my dwelling, but dares not enter my main dwelling." The Wise Sovereign spoke paradoxically, leaving others confused.
But Angel, upon hearing this, was moved: "Do you mean, it can enter through the mirror, but its main body cannot?"
The Wise Sovereign nodded: "Exactly."
The Wise Sovereign had already begun to adapt to Angel’s superb reaction speed and unpredictable logic. To put it bluntly, as long as you don’t treat Angel as a fledgling cub, communication flows smoothly. In fact, even with his habit of speaking half-truths, it posed no issue for Angel, who didn’t even need an explanation to understand the underlying meaning of his words.
This effortless exchange was not something the Wise Sovereign disliked.
Contender of equals, waste not breath on fools. This was perhaps the Sage’s mentality at the moment.
Angel: "What kind of help would it give those Trackers?"
Angel bypassed the question of whether the Mirror Entity bypassed Cicia to let the Merchant Organization through Other-dimensional Space by directly asking about the kind of help the Mirror Entity would give to the Merchant Organization. From this, it can be seen that Angel was already convinced that the Mirror Entity was behind this series of events.
The Wise Sovereign didn’t mind whether Angel was using it to test him or had actually guessed correctly, he didn’t argue.
Because if they decided to stay here, eventually they would meet that entity. Denying now that it’s the work of the Mirror Entity might bring about ridicule later.
So, the Wise Sovereign didn’t hide anything and followed Angel’s words: "Hiding in the mirror, besides being able to influence the Magical Energy Array to a limited extent, it has no other means. Therefore, it won’t give the Merchant Organization much help."
Dox, who was actually listening to their conversation, was a bit confused, feeling his thoughts lagging behind.
However, at this moment, he understood.
"Even if it can’t help the Merchant Organization’s Trackers, if it can influence the Magical Energy Array, it’s still disadvantageous to us," Dox frowned and said.
Dox’s words didn’t cause even the slightest ripple in the Wise Sovereign, who didn’t even bother to look towards him.
Instead, Angel, as the leader, dutifully explained: "If its influence on the Magical Energy Array were significant, why would it need to lure the Merchant Organization to deal with us? It could just directly use the Magical Energy Array against us."
"Moreover, all it can do is influence the Magical Energy Array, while here there is someone who can directly control it."
After Angel spoke, he gestured towards the Wise Sovereign.
Dox thought about it and agreed. The Wise Sovereign had complete control of all the Magical Energy Arrays in the Underground Labyrinth, while the so-called Mirror Entity could only influence them to a limited extent. In comparison, it seemed quite lacking.
Dox: "If that’s the case, then the Wise Sovereign can completely change it back every time it modifies the Magical Energy Array. Wouldn’t that save trouble?"
Angel actually thought Dox’s suggestion was feasible, but he believed the Wise Sovereign must have his reasons for not taking action.
Just like when they first met the Wise Sovereign, he made it clear that he was reluctant to stop them.
This implied that there was someone behind the Wise Sovereign. And that person was almost certainly the Mirror Entity.
The Mirror Entity could even influence the Wise Sovereign’s decisions. There must be some kind of connection between them. Under such circumstances, the Wise Sovereign probably wouldn’t openly oppose the Mirror Entity.
That’s why he said earlier: "If you choose to stay here, there may be a little incident, and you will need to resolve this little incident yourselves."
From this sentence, it can be hinted that the Wise Sovereign has his own stance and is not in a position to resolve this "little incident." He could only let these outsiders handle it.
This was indeed the case; the Wise Sovereign responded: "Firstly, I won’t be hostile to it, at least not before achieving my goals, I can’t be hostile to it."
"Secondly, I’m not a good person, but I won’t kill those who have made contributions. The Merchant Organization has made great contributions to maintaining the energy balance of the Underground Aqueduct. In view of this, I won’t take action against them either."
"Thirdly, I have limited knowledge of the Magical Energy Array. Although I control it, if there’s a real problem, I would need it to fix it."
Pausing for a moment, the Wise Sovereign added: "I can give you an extra piece of information; its understanding of the Magical Energy Array is far superior to mine."
Dox: "In that case, why hasn’t it taken control of the Magical Energy Array?"
Wise Sovereign: "It’s a secret."
While Dox furrowed his brow, the Wise Sovereign glanced at Angel, contemplated, and said: "It might be a secret to you, but to him, he might have already guessed the answer."
Dox was stunned for a moment, followed Dox’s pointing hand, and looked at Angel.
Angel: "..."
"The Wise Sovereign using this method to sow discord is a bit childish," Angel looked speechlessly.
Wise Sovereign: "Sow discord? No. He doesn’t seem to have systematically studied the Magical Energy Array, not knowing the inside story is understandable. But your understanding of the Magical Energy Array should be quite good; you deciphered the murals it left in the Hanging Jail Stairway; also, you found the outpost it left on the second level of the Hanging Jail Stairway. All this implies your proficiency in the Magical Energy Array, so I assume you might have guessed the answer."
Angel wasn’t sure whether the Wise Sovereign was speaking the truth or lying, but he roughly guessed why the Mirror Entity hadn’t taken control of the Magical Energy Array: "The core area of the Magical Energy Array, only you can enter?"
The Wise Sovereign nodded: "Precisely, but that is not the only answer."
Angel pondered for a moment, probing as he spoke: "Its true form cannot enter the Magical Energy Array?"
When Angel finished speaking, the Wise Sovereign fell silent. After a long time, he spoke softly: "It seems I have more and more questions to ask you."
The Wise Sovereign’s reaction indicated that Angel... was right again.
Although Angel acted as if it was a coincidence and a guess, the Wise Sovereign just couldn’t convince himself that everything along the way was purely coincidental.
The Wise Sovereign believed Angel must know something. His reason for coming here was definitely not simple.