Warlock of the Magus World

by Stayrr

What happens when a scientist from a futuristic world reincarnates in a World of Magic and Knights? An awesome MC is what happens! A scientist’s goal is to explore the secrets of the universe, and this is exactly what Leylin sets out to do when he is reincarnated. Dark, cold and calculating, he makes use of all his resources as he sets off on his adventures to meet his goal. Face?

15. 428

Read Warlock of the Magus World - Chapter 428 – The Last Supper online free - Light Novel Full

The Last Supper

Leylin recognised a few items in the golden nest.

First was a crimson gemstone. This was a bloodline crystal, a very precious material for Warlocks. It could even slightly increase the purity of a bloodline.

Though this was practically useless for Giant Kemoyin Serpent Warlocks like Leylin, whose bloodline had been purified to the limit, it was definitely something that could cause most other Warlocks to go all out. As long as news about bloodline crystals was spread, the two female Warlocks, Freya and Miranda, would definitely pounce over like lunatics, willing to pay any price in order to obtain it!

The Dragon Root Fruit was also a very special plant, with a very durable outer layer that even surpassed the strength of Magus alloys. It could be preserved for over a hundred years, and Magi that ate it could increase the durability of their bodies. Rumours had it that there was a chance of inheriting a trace of a bloodline from within the fruit.

This would mean the beginning of a Warlock family!

Of course, for Leylin and all the others who already had a bloodline, they could no longer change it. However, if traded outside, it would go for a sky-high price. Such a resource could not be measured by price, and could be exchanged between Morning Star Magi.

The other few things included some skeletons that were each the size of a human femur, and the remains of a powerful creature above rank 3. Even after so many years, there was no erosion, and he could still sense some remaining suppression from a bloodline.

These remains were actually what were most useful to Leylin. The blood of most bloodline creatures came from the bones, and these specific remains came from powerful rank 3 creatures. With them on hand, he could refine an ancient bloodline out of it.

Besides these few items, there were also other bloodline items within the little golden Blood Vulture nests. Even Leylin, who was very learned and had gathered a terrifying amount of knowledge, could not identify everything.

There was no question that these were all bloodline items, and every single one was enough to make any Warlock go crazy!

"I see…" Leylin glanced at the pile of bloodline items, a look of understanding flashing in his eyes.

It was obvious that the growth of a Blood Vulture was inseparable from these items. Though they could be used directly, long-term contact with them increased its rate of maturation. It could also increase its strength and awaken its mysterious bloodline ability!

This was also why the Blood Vulture was so enthusiastic about gathering bloodline items.

Glancing at all these, Leylin had to expend a lot of effort to suppress the desire within his body.

"Though these are good, they aren't as important as the Lamia Hair. Also…"

Leylin glanced towards the Blood Vulture outside the cave.

He was currently in stealth, and with the added bonus from darkness techniques, he had not been discovered by the bird.

Though Shadow Stealth was great, there was one flaw. If Leylin wanted to take these items away, he would need to dispel his Shadow Stealth.

In that case, he would definitely be discovered the Blood Vulture, and the whole group might be attracted here. On top of that, with a terrifying King Blood Vulture, Leylin would need more than nine lives to survive!

This would definitely raise the guard of many other Blood Vultures, which would not be beneficial to Leylin's future plans.

'A regular Blood Vulture nest has so many great items inside. Within the King Blood Vulture's nest, there should be even better things!' A fire began to blaze in Leylin's eyes.

'The place with the highest probability of having the Lamia Hair should be the King Blood Vulture's nest!' Leylin immediately recalled the giant cave he had merely shot a glance at earlier, with very profound, horrifying energy waves hidden within.

'Looks like I'll be stuck here for a period of time. I'll have to find out the behavioural patterns of the Blood Vultures…'

……

"Uncle, are you sure this is the place?" Noah glanced at Robin who was beside him. They were now in front of a large door, intricate and complicated patterns on the frame.

The three remaining Black Horrall Snake Warlocks were like little followers as they gathered closely behind them.

"If we activate anything wrongly, we'll lose our way even more thoroughly and be stuck here till we die!"

"Don't worry. Based on the information I received, it can't be wrong. Besides, that item is too important to us!" Robin looked grim, yet there was a fiery look in his eyes.

"I need some time to confirm this. Have all the issues at the back been taken care of?" Robin did not even turn back as he asked.

"I've already set up five spells of abduction, as well as created a body substitute!" A sinister expression appeared on Noah's face.

"The moment they catch up to us, they will definitely be teleported to various areas within the maze and then be trapped in the Boundless Room till death. Barbarian Bears are such stupid creatures." He spoke confidently.

Boom!* At this moment, a giant howl travelled from a short distance away, accompanied with the breaking of a spell formation and a roar, "Little worms, I've found you!"

Ka-cha!* A pink crystal necklace was split open while Noah looked on in disbelief.

"Never underestimate your opponents!" Robin's eyes were still fixed on the giant door, but his voice was transmitted over, "They've only broken through our first defensive spell formation. We still have some time."

"Take care of the spell formations and try your best to buy me more time!" Robin commanded, and the other three Black Horrall Snake Warlocks bowed, before leaving immediately.

Rumbling sounds were heard constantly, and a large bear monster could vaguely be seen roaring in the spell formation, causing beads of cold sweat to roll down Noah's face.

Ka-cha!* *Ka-cha!* Crystals shattered one after another, every time being followed by the voices of the subordinates.

"Second defensive spell formation destroyed!"

"The main body of the defensive formation is damaged. We can hold for less than a minute—AAHHH" The short conversation ended, followed by the abrupt blood-curdling shrieks, signifying the end of these Warlocks.

Noah clenched his fists. All of them were from his family, but they had all fallen in this exploration.

Now, only he and his uncle were left.

"I'll go and stall for more time." Noah exclaimed.

"No need for that." Robin interrupted his words and, raising his finger, tapped on the door a few times. Using some strange rule, he drew a circle.

A hum rang out as, in an instant, multiple water ripples appeared on the surface of the giant door. The tide surged, and then rushed into a brass keyhole.

Like a castle of blocks collapsing, the door rapidly broke apart into countless fragments, the two sides springing open and revealing a mystical luster within.

"Wretched maggots, I'll tear you apart!"

Boom!* With a loud sound, the last spell formation hindering the Barbarian Bear Shaman shattered, revealing a giant Barbarian Bear with firm muscles all over. After seeing Robin, its eyes immediately turned red.

"Don't mind it. Let's enter." Robin pulled Noah through the door.

"If you want revenge, then come in!" The sound of Robin's taunts travelled over.

"Ahhh!"

Its eyes completely red, the Barbarian Bear Shaman chased them in.

Magnificent rays flashed, and the scene suddenly changed.

By the time Noah came back to his senses, he was already sitting at a dining table. On the large white tablecloth was not even a speck of dust, while the silver lampstand had candles burning above it.

"Hm?" After which, Noah found that he was unable to get up. Even the spiritual force and magic power that he had been so proud of as a rank 3 Magus could not be used at all.

He looked towards his uncle, fear and terror apparent in his expression.

At the other end of the table, the Barbarian Bear Magus was sitting in a daze. Though the muscles that were bulging displayed the fury of its owner, it could not move an inch.

"This is 'The Last Supper, which is the most impartial and bloody duel. Between us, only one side can live, while the loser shall lose everything and turn into the meal of the victor. In addition, the victor will even be awarded with the judge's horn."

Robin said matter-of-factly, seemingly very familiar with all that was happening.

The moment his words sounded, black figures suddenly appeared in seats that had initially been empty. There were no energy undulations from their bodies, their eyes completely red.

For some reason, the moment he saw them, Noah felt cold sweat running down his back.

He counted carefully. There were thirteen seats at this long table, but there was one empty.

"Now, for the first dish. The Bloody Mary Desert…"

An indescribable voice resounded in Noah's mind, sending a shiver down his spine.

……

"What the hell is this!"

At another area in Quicksand Castle, Kesha was quickly fleeing along a corridor, a Green-skinned Barbarian with a strange appearance escaping shoulder to shoulder with her.

These two were originally hunter and the hunted, but for some reason, they had formed an alliance, and were both looking pale in panic.

"All offensive spells of the four great elements are useless against it. Try special attacks! I'll cover you!" The Green-skinned Barbarian looked to be in pain as he flung a gemstone necklace behind him.

Bang!* Terrifyingly chilly air exploded, covering the ground with a layer of frost as numerous runic chains appeared.

Crack! Crack!!* What followed was the sound of ice shattering, and footsteps drawing closer.

A black figure materialised from the icy mist. It was a monster that looked like a middle-aged man wearing a trenchcoat. He donned a hood, and it was hard to tell what he looked like. The fingers on his two palms had disappeared, and in place of them were many scissors that were glinting with light.

The numerous runic chains did not stand a chance against the man's scissors, and were easily snipped at and broken.

"Eye of Petrification!" Many crimson runes appeared on Kesha's body as she bit her finger and drew a strange rune on her forehead.

Following that, her eyes turned into a pair of amber vertical pupils.

With the amplification from the blood rune, her innate spell had reached a frightful degree of power. A circle of petrification began to spread with Kesha at its center.

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Spirit Body

In the face of the Eye of Petrification, the man in the trenchcoat suddenly froze and an ash grey coat of stone formed across the surface of his body.

Ka-cha! Ka-cha!* His entire being turned into a giant statue and particles of dust fell endlessly from him.

"Icy Blades!" Under the manipulation of the Green-skinned Barbarian, numerous blades formed a tornado, enclosing the statue within as eerie noises rang constantly.

Moments later, the blades dispersed and the statue that once stood there had vanished, leaving behind a bed of fragmented rocks.

"It's finally over…" The Green-skinned Barbarian heaved a sigh of relief.

"No, not yet!" Kesha laughed bitterly instead.

Soon after, to his terror, the Green-skinned Barbarian saw the fragmented rocks explode, exposing pieces of flesh within.

Many of them grew tentacles and started amalgamating to reform the man in the black trenchcoat from before. Even a single tear could not be seen on his clothes.

"Goddammit!" The Green-skinned Barbarian cursed, "Where in the world did you infuriate this darned thing? Not only is it immune to spells, even physical attacks are useless!"

"I have no idea!" Kesha's face spelled despair.

After entering Quicksand Castle, she had only charged through a few levels before the man in the black trenchcoat set his sights on her. With her subordinates being lost one by one, the current situation seemed to bode ill.

Under the immense threat of death, the last Green-skinned Barbarian in pursuit was compelled to join forces with Kesha to defeat this creature together. But by the looks of it, they were at their wits' end.

……

Chirp chirp!* A piercing sound sliced through the air. Violent whirls of wind were brought about as the earth was engulfed in darkness and shadows.

With a wing-spread wide enough to envelop the land in darkness, a Blood Vulture descended in the heart of an enormous mountain range that bore the appearance of a honeycomb, landing in the highest and largest cave.

Somewhere in the mountains, Leylin's eyes sparkled with a blue glint.

"Left at 4.47pm, and returned again after an interval of 23 minutes and 45 seconds!"

He was currently recording the King Blood Vulture's travel statistics with great detail. Over the past few days of observation, he had managed to reap some returns.

This King Blood Vulture had at least the strength of the Crystal Phase. The bulky physique of the creature and the terrifying spiritual force on it was sufficient to completely destroy Leylin's plans of seizing anything.

Besides, the King Blood Vulture had no need to leave its nest to hunt. It received sacrifices from the entire pack of Blood Vultures. Every day, numerous Blood Vultures would return with food and deliver them into the cave.

Hence, it rarely left the cave throughout the day, unlike the average Blood Vulture Leylin had seen earlier, which usually spent half its day flying around outside.

However, every afternoon, at this particular time of the day, the King Blood Vulture would leave the cave for a period of time, likely to patrol its territory.

This was the very chance that Leylin had been waiting for.

"The Blood Vulture is indeed a creature from the ancient era gifted with the bizarre ability to sense any bloodline treasures…." Leylin exclaimed.

Apart from the King Blood Vulture's cave which he had not dared to pry into, he had explored the lairs of the other average Blood Vultures and discovered many bloodline treasures which would be useful to Warlocks.

The accumulated value of these items were enough to make even Duke Gilbert lose his mind.

"Everything will hinge on tomorrow!"

Leylin watched the cave at the highest point with caution, and slipped into the darkness.

……

The next day, in the afternoon.

Following a cry, the gigantic King Blood Vulture stepped out of its cave once again, casting a shadow upon the earth. Terrifying vibrations swept the area, intimidating the other formidable creatures that watched over the region.

"The time is now!" Leylin's glance froze.

"Shadow Stealth!" "Darkness technique!" In a split second, his physical being vanished and was concealed within the shadows, surrounded by thick fog.

With the help of the concealing effects of the spell, Leylin fumbled his way to the cave right into the central cave.

'The King Blood Vulture's lair is guarded by two Blood Vultures that are already at the Hydro Phase! Whenever the King Blood Vulture is out on patrol, they are responsible for guarding his lair'

Leylin crawled onto the protruding top of a black rock and watched the two huge blood-red silhouettes in the cave closely. He furrowed his brows.

"According to my current abilities, I might barely be able to handle a single Blood Vulture at the Hydro Phase, but it would definitely cause a ruckus! There's a high possibility that the entire pack might surround and annihilate me, or that the King Blood Vulture might even return unexpectedly!"

Leylin took a glance at the silhouettes of the two guards, gritted his teeth, and passed through to the other side while hidden.

Two Blood Vultures at the Hydro Phase would be too much for him to handle with his current abilities, but the detection abilities of the powerful creatures might not be as acute as that of a human Magus. This was his chance.

Having already wasted too much time here, Leylin did not dare to continue waiting.

Even if it was risky, he wanted to give it a try!

In the shadows, everything outside was overcast. It was as if the world had been soaked in thick glue and every step he took, Leylin had to expend a great amount of energy and magic power, while at the same time taking note of how the two Blood Vulture guards reacted, making it a terribly tiring job for him.

Just when Leylin carefully arrived at the entrance, and was about to walk past one of the Blood Vulture guards…

"Chirp chirp!" The guard seemed to have discovered something and became alert, glancing around its surroundings with vigilance.

'Even for a powerful creature, once it has passed rank 3, no matter how dumb it was originally, it would evolve to have the intelligence of a human!' Leylin exclaimed.

He immediately commanded in his head: "A.I. chip! Begin the plan B!"

[Beep! Command received. Starting plan B.] The chip responded faithfully.

At the halfway mark of the mountain, a miniature model of a spell formation suddenly exploded, revealing a shadow servant within.

The shadow servant zoomed into a cave that was guarded by an adolescent Blood Vulture and grabbed a few pieces of bloodline crystals before escaping swiftly.

"Chirp chirp!!!" The Blood Vultures were left enraged, and numerous blood red figures flew out too, circling in the sky.

Before the shadow servant could run out of the perimeter of the huge mountain, it was torn to pieces by the explosive might of the Blood Vultures.

Although the two Blood Vulture guards did not take action, their attention was obviously taken away by the scene there. Seizing the chance, Leylin immediately took out a black crown.

This crown was very small and exquisite, and the design was not too flamboyant, as though it was specially made for females.

"Dark Elven Crown!"

This was Leylin's war trophy. After completely defeating the dark elves, they who submitted to him offered the crown along with their powerful meditation techniques.

This crown was also the first magic equipment that Leylin had obtained, and was at a higher rank than his Meteor Sword.

The Dark Elven Crown was a sacred legendary weapon, which possessed the strong ability to mask auras. The then-queen of the Dark Elves, Anya, used it to enter the core of central Twilight Zone in a single motion. If not for Leylin's secret interference, she might have emerged victorious over the humans and unified the entirety of Twilight Zone.

As a piece of magic equipment, the Dark Elven Crown had no doubt a hidden function, but as it had been used once recently, it took decades for it to be available for use again.

After getting hold of this magic equipm, Leylin had been constantly analyzing it using the A.I. chip, and had learnt many useful techniques and spells.

What made him especially interested was that the A.I. chip could forcefully stimulate a portion of the functions of the Dark Elven Crown when charged with a certain amount of magic crystals!

Although it only possessed a portion of its full powers, the Dark Elven Crown was still a piece of magic equipment! Its effect was limited only to Leylin himself. The scary thing was that it could even escape the perception of a Morning Star Magus.

This went without saying for the two Blood Vulture guards.

With the shadow servant outside holding their attention, along with the protection of the Crown of the Dark Elves, Leylin successfully infiltrated the lair of the King Blood Vulture.

Although the lighting in the cave was poor, it did not pose a problem to Leylin.

The floor was covered in dark red blood stains and the remains of other creatures which had varying degrees of decomposition; likely the food that the King Blood Vulture had consumed recently.

The entire cave felt eerie to Leylin, as though he was being watched closely by something.

Leylin reached out his hand and felt the wall which was black and studded with metal grains.

When his hand came into contact with the black wall, countless tentacles extended from above, but were quickly burnt his black flames.

"By the looks of it, this pack of Blood Vultures has been living here for a long time; even the mountains have been affected by the radiation and have come to life!" Leylin exclaimed.

Such materials that had been given life were very precious. Not only could they be added to self-defense spells, they could also confer the ability to heal oneself. Architecture that was built mainly with these materials usually could last for more than a thousand years without collapsing.

If such materials could be added to Leylin's Magus tower, its degree of stability would definitely go up a notch.

"What a pity that plans to exploit this area would certainly be too unrealistic!"

Leylin continued walking, deeper and deeper, until he reached the end of the cave, where laid a gigantic Blood Vulture nest.

Gold animal fur and the metal itself were laid out to form a sturdy mat, upon which there was a depression from years of use. Yet, there wasn't a single thing on the mat.

"Hmm?" Leylin was shocked, but followed with a bitter laugh.

"The bloodline items are only effective for the young of the Blood Vultures. It looks like the King Blood Vulture hasn't laid any eggs, so naturally there would be no need to collect these items…"

'I have to evacuate as soon as possible, and ransack all the other Blood Vulture lairs before that!' Leylin was determined.

He made a prompt decision on the spot; if there weren't any new discoveries, he would choose to leave immediately, and hardly did a sloppy job.

"Who would have thought that I would meet a comrade here!"

An exclamation sounded from a distance, causing Leylin to freeze in his steps.

He turned and firmly stared at a corner.

There, an illusory figure slowly came into view.

"A soul?! No! An even more powerful being!"

Leylin watched the figure that had suddenly appeared, as though he was about to face an enemy.

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Activation

The illusion that surfaced was that of an astonishingly beautiful young woman. Her hair was like a sea of emerald green with light curls, flying in the wind like it had a life of its own.

She possessed a pair of mesmerising eyes, coupled with a delicate yet puzzling charm to her face. To Leylin's surprise, she gave him a baffling sense of familiarity.

Especially after the complete materialisation of the illusion, Leylin's blood vessels generated a sense of fear, as if he had met a natural enemy. Yet, he felt an amiability within her that tempted him to throw himself into the arms of the woman regardless of everything.

"Lamia?" There were agony and bitterness in Leylin's tone. From how called out to him just now, he managed to guess some things.

The similarity in temperament and looks between her and the Snake Dowager was especially striking.

The Lamia shared the same bloodline as the Snake Dowager. In fact, it had an even more direct line of descent compared to the Giant Kemoyin Serpent. Thus, on the whole, they could be considered siblings with blood relations.

"My brother! Tell me, why are you here, what are you looking for?" The green haired Lamia asked, her voice strangely charming, compelling him to answer.

[Warning! Warning! Instability detected in host bloodline, possibility of an emotional outburst!] The A.I. Chip sounded the reminder, snapping Leylin out from the confusion he was in.

This made him unwilling to look at the opposity party, particularly at the Lamia's eyes.

"Rumor has it that the ancient Lamia has the ability to manipulate any kind of snakes she desires. It seems like this is true indeed…"

It was merely a remnant soul, yet it almost got to Leylin. If the Lamia were to be at the Morning Star Realm, Leylin was afraid he might have to bow down to her.

"Your bloodline, it seems to be extremely pure, and you have a special power enveloping your whole body…." The virtual image of the Lamia bit her finger.

"Who are you, really?" Leylin spoke in a deep tone.

"I was a human once, I had a few names, but I have forgotten them all….." The virtual image smiled, as if she was narrating a story unrelated to her.

"Are you the soul of the ancient Lamia Warlock?" Leylin made a guess.

According to his intelligence, the ancient Quicksand Organisation once had a Lamia Warlock. And apparently, after her atavism, she became a true Lamia possessing terrifying power that even average Radiant Moon Magi could not match.

"No! She had perished completely. I am just a phantom image formed by the scattered fragments of memories that have evolved together after a very long period of time…" A sense of loneliness could be felt from the green haired woman's face.

"Even so, for your soul to take such shape, I am sure there is a source of radiation nearby!" Leylin's eyes lit up and he reached out and grabbed at the fur cushion.

Huge black claws appeared, splitting the fur and metal within and revealing what was underneath the surface.

It was a layer of white fur. Brush that aside and immediately a rich and heavy scent of undulating bloodline spreaded out.

"You can even resist the radiation undulation and the aura of the bloodline!" Leylin kept the white feathers in a flash and thereafter eyed the hollow area intensely.

It was the broken section of a bone, it must have been a part of some bloodline creature.

Although it might have been a long time ago, the horrifying threat and undulations emitting from the bone made Leylin have an impulse to kneel down.

"You are truly the adult form of a rank 5 bloodline creature; even though it is a broken section of a bone, it could still radiate even after your death. Moreover you can induce such a thing!" Leylin looked at the green haired Lamia in amazement.

For Blood Vultures, the remains of a rank 5 bloodline creature was a precious item to that was dearly cherished. No wonder the Blood Vulture had safeguarded it under so many layers, even going so far as to mask its energy with the feather.

"What do you intend to do here, my brother?" she asked again.

Leylin muttered under his breath and finally replied, "I want to acquire something that will speed up the maturation of my bloodline, for instance Lamia Hair or some such thing."

"Compared to Lamia Hair, this can help you more!" The Snake Woman smiled and the broken bone was flung out and landed on Leylin's hand.

"You…. Why are you helping me?"

Feeling the ecstatic joy boiling in his bloodline, Leylin knew the broken Lamia bone in his hands were the real deal. He could already feel the transcendence.

However he did not immediately accept it and instead asked some questions.

"I have been in existence for far too long…. It might be a few hundred years or even thousands. I can never leave the designated finger bone's radiation area……"

The Lamia shot a glance at Leylin, "Do you know how it feels?"

Leylin fell silent. Such pain, it did indeed have the ability to drive a Magus crazy to the verge of seeking death.

"If you take the finger bone, there will be a shortage of such a radiation environment and I will gradually fade away….." The young woman's silhouette became more and more illusionary with a smile of relief on her face.

"Wait. How can I resolve the shackles on the Giant Kemoyin Serpent Warlock bloodline?

Watching the young woman's illusionary image gradually fading out until the wall behind her could be seen, Leylin quickly blurted out the question.

"This problem, can only be solved by the Grand Matriarch….."

Accompanying the fading image, the Snake Woman's grew softer and softer until she dissipated into thin air.

"Grand Matriarch? Snake Dowager?" Leylin stroked the finger bone he was holding in his hands, his face a sea of infinite obscurity.

"Regardless of that, I better make a move fast!"

With lightning speed, Leylin kept the finger bone well, swept his eyes over the surroundings and launched the Dark Elven Crown.

Thick, black darkness enveloped Leylin completely, and coupled with his magic power he was able to pass through the gate which was guarded by the two Blood Vultures unharmed.

After he reached the foot of the mountain, Leylin looked back at the huge black form of the mountain and its innumerable caves. He looked hesitant.

This was practically a Warlock's treasure trove, but without a strength at the Morning Star realm, there was no way the entirety of the Blood Vulture could be subdued.

"I have, at most, five more minutes before the King Blood Vulture is back from his patrol. When he realises that the finger bone is gone, I am sure he will definitely launch an investigation into the matter…"

Leylin stroked his chin. He had been hiding up here for so long, the backup plans had to be more than these. But now, the biggest harvest was already in his hand. Whether to continue or not, he had not yet made up his mind.

Since ancient times, it was a common occurrence for an individual to place himself in danger for personal benefits. Leylin did not want to become one of them.

"Forget it! Let's go!"

With some regret, Leylin turned his head and left the place.

……

"Huh?! You are finally out."

Not too far away, a temporary underground cave opened up. A female Magus in pursuit ran in with a crystal ball in her hand. On the surface of the crystal ball, a blood-red layer appeared, getting brighter and brighter.

"If you had kept hiding in the nest of the Blood Vultures, I might not have been able to find you. But what about now?"

The female Magus flashed a smile.

She was in pursuit of Leylin all the way and had even used a spell to use a trace of Leylin's energy to build a tracking item. But after reaching this place, she realised Leylin had hidden in the nest of the Blood Vultures!

The King Blood Vulture there was at the peak of the Crystal Phase! Other than that, there was a big group of rank 3 followers. If she chased in after Leylin and a commotion was created, it would definitely alert the many Blood Vultures to join in for the kill.

Therefore, this female Magus chose to hibernate and wait. To her, Leylin would come for collection of resources, it was just a matter of time. As long as she waited with patience, regardless of success or failure, he would leave and an opportunity would present itself.

"All thanks to you, I was able to discover this treasure place. In return, I shall grant you a quick death…" The female Magus shook her robes and immediately disappeared underground.

[Beep! Warning! Warning! High energy force field undulations detected. Distance 15 kilometers away. Approaching quickly!]

The A.I. Chip gave out this sudden warning, shocking Leylin.

This was the advantage of having the A.I. Chip. Not only did Leylin possess the Magus' special abilities of consciousness scanning, he also had the A.I. Chip for exploration, probing and throwing necessary warnings.

Moreover, the range of probing by the A.I. Chip was much wider compared to Leylin's own ability.

"Begin imaging!" Leylin gave the order immediately. Soon after, a red-hued motion picture was sent in front of him.

It was an image of a living creature. There were only heat and radiation readings, without any signs of the gender, however the bright colours were a giveaway. It was a rank 3 Magus, one that had attained the Crystal Phase.

"Ah, the pursuers are finally here!" Leylin had expected this would happen.

Hoot!* At this moment, from a distance, a high-pitched sound pierced forth, turning Leylin's face pale white.

"The King Blood Vulture is back! If I turn back now, all that awaits me is death!" As it is, at this point in time, Leylin curled his lips into a smile and commanded his A.I. Chip, "A.I. Chip! Prepare to activate all programs!"

[Command received! Activated!] The A.I. Chip alerted without any emotion.

Hoot!* Immediately after the King Blood Vulture had entered its cave in the mountain, a violent cry rang out.

Two Hydro Phase Blood Vultures were pinned to the ground by its claw. Feathers and blood were smeared all over the ground. The King Blood Vulture snarled, creating a whole world of uproar in the Blood Vultures' mountain.

But that was not all.

Bang! Bang! Bang!* Following Leylin's order, in a secret corner of the Blood Vultures' mountain, hidden spells were activated in series.

One after another, shadow servants manifested themselves at lightning speed, so much so that they appeared right next to the Blood Vultures' nests. They grasped at many of the bloodline treasures, with some even clasping onto huge Blood Vulture eggs, fleeing the grounds.

Basically, except for the area around the King Blood Vulture's cave, the rest of the mountain in its entirety was under attack. There were at least fifty such spells placed!

Corresponding with the loud snarl of the King Blood Vulture, multiple shadows of darkness bore through to the center of it all and immediately the whole of the Blood Vultures' mountain became a huge field of upheaval.

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The Hunt

Chu!* The King Blood Vulture used its wings and fanned the two Blood Condors in its path away, flying into the sky.

A crimson beam of light struck down, and a shadow servant who could not dodge in time was shattered, scattering multiple bloodline treasures everywhere.

With the commanding high-pitched squawk, the flock of Blood Vultures now had a leader and their formation immediately changed. Many of them flew high into the sky and, like a web, began to circle the shadow servants, occasionally dropping down in attack.

Though this method was effective at killing many shadow servants, the remaining servants' movements in looting them were much too quick. After paying the price of a large number of casualties, a portion of them still broke out.

Chu!* The King Blood Vulture roared, bringing with it multiple Blood Vultures as it gave chase.

"Found you!" Leylin met with the person who were chasing after him.

It was a ginger female Magus. Her body was curvy, a golden headband rested on her forehead, and her pair of long and narrow eyes were fixed on Leylin.

"My name is Leylin. May I know yours?" In the face of her gaze that was ready to shoot flames, Leylin smiled slightly and performed a noble's bow, his movements so precise there was nothing to criticise.

"Tanasha!" This female Magus had not expected Leylin to feel so relaxed. Though her chest was bouncing in her anger, she still had a lot of self-restraint as she announced her name.

"Are you prepared to admit to your sins?" Tanasha glanced at the handsome young man in front of her. Captives could be ransomed in the central continent. In addition, he had not caused too many casualties to her organisation, and was also a human backed by the Ouroboros Clan. Hence, it was not too surprising that he was still calm in this situation.

"Oh, no, you've misunderstood," Leylin's smile was dazzling, "I just want to ask you this. Do you… like Blood Vultures?"

"What do you mean?" Tanasha's mind could not process this fast enough. But looking at the numerous crimson figures appearing on the horizon, she suddenly had a bad premonition.

Leylin acted before she could do anything, "Eye of Petrification!"

His eyes turned amber and the pupils became vertical slits, shooting out mysterious, unmeasurable rays of petrification.

Though it was only a rank 1 innate spell, with the addition of his Vapour Phase spiritual force and the strength of his bloodline, its power could not be underestimated.

At the same time, Leylin quickly chanted some incantations, and numerous shadows emerged from all directions, forming a giant cage that trapped her inside temporarily.

Tanasha's reaction was extremely quick. "Storm!" Almost at the same instant the rays of petrification appeared, her eyes turned silver-white, releasing dazzling light that blocked them.

Meanwhile, a giant storm appeared from behind her, forming a tremendous tornado that stirred up and created chaos in the interior of the cage.

However, Leylin's sudden attack made her falter. "Lance of Corrosion!"

A dark green lance, tip white, appeared in Leylin's hand. It shot towards Tanasha, accompanied by a burst of air.

"How confident are you that a mere Vapour Phase Magus dares provoke a Crystal Phase Magus?" Tanasha was expressionless, but her fury was evident.

Snap!* Tanasha extended her delicate, pale arms and a translucent layer appeared on top of her smooth skin.

Leylin had used all his might when he shot this Lance of Corrosion forth, and yet, she'd caught it just like that.

Boom!* She viciously crushed the Lance into powder, while Leylin paled as he took several steps back.

However, his smile now was as if he had gotten away with something.

"Hm?" Tanasha's brows furrowed. Only then did she notice that after the Lance of Corrosion had been destroyed, a white feather had appeared.

Pu!* The white feather had exploded into powder and lightly stuck to Tanasha's body.

"This aura? And with a powerful lock-on spell formation…" Tanasha's brows furrowed and she immediately sneered, "I just need two minutes to-"

However, her expression completely changed.

Leylin, who was opposite her, waved his arms towards her and activated the Dark Elven Crown, and immediately turned invisible.

Sou! Sou! Sou!*

Numerous black figures appeared. The shadow servants from before quickly pounced towards her, only to be killed by her while heading in her direction.

However, with this opportunity, they threw some bloodline crystals, bones and the like at her legs. There was an especially large egg that had been knocked so hard that it broke, revealing the egg yolk and whites within.

Chu chu!* Numerous Blood Condors hurried over under the lead of the king, and upon seeing Tanasha, their eyes instantly turned red.

This was especially so for the the King Blood Vulture. It smelt its feather on Tanasha's body. It was a feather used specifically to protect the Lamia fingerbone and was extremely precious. The smell was extremely unique, and there was no way it could recognise it wrongly!

It now looked like the person who had infiltrated its mountain and looted the area as they wished, was also the thief who had stolen its treasure!

The King Blood Vulture was furious, crimson lightning materialising around it.

"I- I- I!" Tanasha was momentarily stunned. No matter how stupid she might be, she knew what Leylin had planned.

"Wait, O King!" Tanasha was now sending spiritual force waves to the mind of the King Blood Vulture, her final attempt at saving herself.

However, would the enraged King Blood Vulture listen to her explanations? Though it had the intelligence of an adult, it was now in an angered state. Usually, in its territory, it would have what it wanted. Why would it listen to the explanations of a human?

Numerous bolts of crimson lightning struck down, drowning her…

Meanwhile, Leylin had made use of the Dark Elven Crown, and was sneakingly heading back.

Boom!* Soil upended at an area, revealing numerous bloodline items within. Red gems and white bones were scattered, giving off a dazzling luster.

"There's even a Blood Vulture egg here! It looks like a pretty good harvest."

Holding a giant egg in his hands, Leylin looked elated. This was a few times larger than an ostrich egg, and it even had blood-red patterns on the surface, powerful life energy radiating from within. Leylin could even feel a throbbing from the shell.

Blood Vulture chicks could not be tamed, but one still in its egg could.

Not only did it have the ability to find bloodline treasures, it was also very popular for its ability to reach rank 3 after it had matured.

Of course, Leylin had no plans of selling it off. Rather, he wanted to subdue it.

The central continent was vast and boundless. There were many places that even Magi were yet to explore, and the Blood Vulture's ability to fly was very useful in this area. In the future, he could gain a steady flow of bloodline treasures, which was the best advantage!

"The harvest is quite good!" Leylin quickly kept everything properly.

He had long since ordered the shadow servants to place whatever they had stolen on the road here. Whatever had been flung at Tanasha's feet was just a small portion. The real treasures had long since been moved away and were all with Leylin.

After checking all his gains, Leylin looked back towards the Blood Vultures' mountain, sinking into deep thought.

'The King Blood Vulture has brought all its main forces to annihilate Tanasha. She is a Crystal Phase Magus after all, and it is possible for her to hold them off for some time. Should I go back and rummage through the Blood Vultures' nests?'

Leylin immediately shook his head, throwing these enticing thoughts out of his mind.

"Forget it. What I now have is more than enough. I shouldn't take such a risk at the end like this."

"Besides, my real target is that rank 3 Crystal Phase Magus, not the rest of those bloodline treasures."

Leylin's eyes flashed ruthlessly…

"Damn it! Damn it! Damn it! I want to slaughter that wretched Magus and turn his flesh and blood into powder and feed it to a Carnivorous Flower!"

Tanasha was in a tropical rain forest, sprinting hard.

However, she was evidently not in a very good condition. Not only were her clothes in tatters making her seem like a beggar, her entire right arm had disappeared. Her face was pale, with green veins visible on top.

This flock of Blood Vultures was truly relentless. In order to break away from them, Tanasha had to employ a few secret methods that would stimulate the potential in her body in succession. She had even discarded a clone that she had nurtured for a long period of time before she could successfully draw the King Blood Vulture away.

Tanasha was definitely fuming at the mouth, wishing she could eat Leylin alive.

"Tsk tsk, Ms Tanasha, you don't seem to be in good health. Do you need treatment?" In the quiet rainforest, a voice suddenly sounded, causing Tanasha's body to stiffen.

She then looked at the young man she would never be able to forget, blocking her path.

"How- how did you get here? I already destroyed all auras and smells that would identify me!" Tanasha gaped, disbelieving.

"You don't need to know. Right now, you can only answer a question of mine."

Leylin produced an ink-black cross blade and pointed it at her. "Submit to me, or die."

He had naturally used the A.I. Chip to scan the surroundings and hunt her down. Though Tanasha had concealed her aura very well, and destroyed all the localizing marks that Leylin had shot out, nothing could be hidden in the face of the A.I. Chip.

Not considering anything else, just the signs of a human passing through on the road would not be able to escape the A.I. Chip's nanoscopic scanning, no matter how hard Tanasha tried to cover her tracks.

It was only after Leylin confirmed that she was heavily injured that he chased up to her.

Tanasha was at the Crystal Phase, and was multiple levels higher than Leylin. In the past, it would have been a joke if a Vapour Phase Magus had announced his wish to kill a Crystal Phase Magus.

However, a hint of fear had already appeared on Tanasha's pale face. She had no choice but to admit that Leylin had the strength and ability to kill the current her.

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Subjugation

Rank 3 Magi were categorised into several stages. Leylin, at the Vapour Phase, could compress his spiritual force into a physical, observable fog.

On the other hand, Magi at the Crystal Phase could solidify their spiritual force, even preserving it to sell.

Spiritual force at the Crystal Phase had an unimaginable advantage against Vapour Phase spiritual force.

In other words, even if Leylin, Robin and Kesha had teamed up against Lucian, they wouldn't be his match.

However, Tanasha's spiritual force was exhausted long ago, including her Crystal Phase spiritual force crystals.

He wouldn't be Leylin if he let such a good chance slip out of his hand.

Not only were Crystal Phase Magi powerful, they were considered nobles in the central continent due to their status as the reserve forces of Morning Star Magi.

Under usual circumstances, it was out of the question for Leylin to defeat Magi of this rank. Perhaps only Duke Gilbert, his mentor, would be able to.

But with Tanasha as she was, it would be easy.

"You…" Tanasha's pale complexion flushed in anger, her fingers trembling, "How dare a lowly Vapour Phase Magus talk to me like that?"

"Looks like I'll have to help you snap back to reality!" Leylin sighed in disappointment upon seeing her demeanour. His figure transformed into a ray of light and flashed in front of her.

Thump!* He planted a fist on Tanasha's cheek.

Buzz!* A barrier of light was created around Tanasha as a brilliant ruby ring shone. It was, however, too feeble to deter Leylin as he easily broke through.

In the blink of an eye, Tanasha was sent flying, a large red patch on her cheek.

The Meteor Sword has already reached her neck before she could react.

"Now choose… Surrender, or die!" There was a change in Leylin's tone. Now he demanded with utter disdain, every word pricking with a bone-chilling vibe. He had decided to kill were she to choose it.

He certainly did not wish to leave behind a Crystal Phase opponent.

Tanasha wisely chose to be silent in front of the cold-hearted Leylin.

This feeling of impending death was familiar to her. She felt as if she had returned to times of frailty and weakness, as old memories surfaced and she momentarily became distraught.

"What is with this woman's mental state?!" Leylin shook his head, Tanasha's reaction was nothing out of the ordinary since he was aware of the common psychological instability of Magi. There was also her injuries to consider. Moreover, all who entered the Forgotten Land would certainly have a dark past of own.

"I'm only giving you three minutes! Be quick!" Leylin tightened his grip on the sword and brought it closer to Tanasha's neck.

Other Crystal Phase Magi would probably have a sense of dignity and pride, but things were different in the Forgotten Land. Those human Magi who entered here were mostly those who had reached an impasse, willing to forgo everything for a means of sustenance. It was easy for the mto capitulate.

Leylin's cold voice caught Tanasha's attention. The angry flush on her face had already dissipated by then, leaving behind a canvas of ivory.

"I… surrender!" She replied so softly Leylin could barely hear a thing.

As if on cue, Tanasha fell limp to the ground, her backbone losing support the moment she agreed. Her tears were uncontrollable.

The Meteor Sword remained on her neck in spite of everything.

"Make an oath! Also, relinquish your spirit source!" His voice was cold as ice.

"I… Tanasha…" Hesitance crossed Tanasha's eyes as she fought an internal battle. However, she ended up choosing to surrender.

A sparkling strand of spirit source was released from her forehead and landed on Leylin's palm.

That was a Magus' lifeline. Were it not voluntary, it would be completely impossible to offer it to another person. Rules were even stricter in the central continent, to prevent the dominance of one over another. Of course, this didn't stop people with influence and power from committing it but similarly, it had to be done in secret or they would be boycotted by all Magi.

This was no issue at all for Leylin since he didn't plan for Tanasha to be seen by others.

"Master…" Tanasha called out in a deep voice and got up to her feet. She resembled a broken puppet, someone that had lost her soul.

"Being forced into the Forgotten Land, you must have your own dark past. But rest assured, I am not going to compel you to do things that are disgraceful to Magi. Instead, I can give you hope. A hope for revenge."

There was a bewitching tone to Leylin's offer and Tanasha's eyes lit up a little as the word 'revenge' rang in her ears and a hint of anger rushed through her.

"That's right! Revenge!" Leylin made eye contact with Tanasha and lowered his voice. "I promise, when I'm strong enough to take revenge for you and not worry about the possible repercussions and retaliation, I will aid you in accomplishing your dream. That is, if you work for me wholeheartedly till then.

"I'm not trying to patronise you. You see, I've reached the Vapour Phase at less than a hundred years of age. Moreover, there will be no problems with advancing to the Morning Star realm because of my Kemoyin bloodline!"

Deep down, Leylin was aware that with his method, Tanasha would only be willing to become a puppet to him. To milk her for everything she was worth, Leylin needed to ignite her battle spirit by fuelling her with hope.

And instead of empty promises, he promoted his skills to Tanasha, proving his capability to help her in her revenge.

"One hundred years old! Vapour Phase!" Tanasha gazed at Leylin with a heightened intensity.

A hundred years of age was definitely old for humans. But for Magi, especially those who were at rank 3 and above, it wouldn't even be considered as puberty.

For Leylin who have both the talent and bloodline of the Giant Kemoyin Serpent, his status in the Ouroboros Clan could not be overlooked. All this pointed to one thing: There was a substantial chance for him to become a Morning Star Magus.

Even someone with the capability to escape a rank 3 Crystal Phase Magus would crumble like paper in the face of a rank 4 Morning Star Magus.

"I am at your beck and call, Master! I, Tanasha, will be your most loyal servant as long as my revenge is assured!" Tanasha knelt on a knee and gritted her teeth, a little more willing this time.

Although it was a mere promise without a covenant, what more could a captive like her bargain for?

"Haha…" Leylin cackled.

The addition of Tanasha was definitely a reinforcement to Leylin, given her strength which was more than his.

Plus, she would be hidden from the public since this assistance would be carried out in secret.

That was Leylin's plan all along, to gather as much of an underground force as he could in case anything unexpected occurred.

"Take these potions quickly and recover!" Leylin showed generosity to the newly-recruited Tanasha and presented her with three tubes of differing colours.

"High-grade healing potion! High-grade spiritual force recovery potion! Sacred regeneration potion!" Tanasha's face was painted with surprise as she recognised these three potions. Apart from their heavenly price, these potions were heavily utilised by large-scale organisations as their war reserves and could not even be bought with money.

This was especially true for the sacred regeneration potion which could stimulate the regrowth of limbs that were as good as the original with absolutely no side-effects. It was unfamiliar, even to a rank 3 Magus like Tanasha.

"Thank you, Master!" Tanasha bowed and sighed in relief,

"Don't mention it, it's just something I made!" Leylin added to his credibility.

Sure enough, Tanasha's eyes widened at his sentence. She was beyond impressed, advancing to Vapour Phase before the age of a hundred was amazing enough, she did not at all expect that Leylin would be a Potions Grandmaster as well. This was genius at its best and would be considered rare even in the central continent. As long as there were no mishaps along the way, success was pretty much guaranteed.

Hints of hope filled Tanasha's eyes as she watched Leylin…

Simultaneously, in a clandestine area, Noah was staring at his dish, face drained of colour.

There was an indistinct bloody liver-like substance lying on the white china, emitting a chalky fog.

"Eugh…" Noah slapped a palm over his mouth, resisting the urge to gag.

In his vision, the Barbarian Bear Shaman's stomach was cut open, and a large amount of yellow grease flowed out from it. There were also visible traces of the skeleton inside.

"Uncle, I can't do this any longer!" Noah cried through the spaces of his fingers.

Robin didn't look good either, his body was missing huge chunks of flesh and he was covered in terrifying wounds.

"It was rumoured that this place is dominated by the sin of gluttony, we will be attacked if we stop partaking! We have to keep going, success will be ours if they fail first."

Robin persisted to his best abilities whereas Noah's hand trembled as he picked his cutlery. Ultimately, he put them down again. All the food here was created from the sin of gluttony and due to it, all spells would be rendered useless; only their own tenacity could help them withstand the 'feast'. *Ring ring ring!* The melodious bell rang from afar, but to the trio it seemed like it came from the depths of hell…

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Rescue

Noah made several attempts to reach for the knife and fork but he gave up halfway, letting out an expression of intense suffering.

He collapsed on the dining table with a bang, his teeth clenched tightly.

Similarly, Robin had a pained look on his face as he endured the nausea and swallowed a bloody piece of meat.

Within 30 seconds, the ringing of the bells came to an end, lasting only for a short duration.

Ka-cha!* Out of nowhere, it seemed as if a huge invisible mouth took a bite. At this moment, Noah let out a deep cry.

A large portion of his flesh was missing on the right side of his head, his ear having completely disappeared. From the side, his ghastly white teeth could be seen. It was a horrifying sight.

Suddenly, a streak of light flashed across. A bloodied ear, still twitching unconsciously, appeared before a dark figure.

"Ew……."

After a few rounds, Robin and Noah had paled, now resembling corpses. However, the Barbarian Bear Shaman on the other end had finally reached its limit and collapsed onto the table.

Buzz!* As if a signal was given, the Barbarian Bear Shaman was immediately moved to the 13th chair, which was unoccupied. When this was done, numerous dark figures pounced on it.

"Ah……" The Barbarian Bear Shaman shrieked continuously. Soon after, fur and skin started disappearing piece by piece, followed by flesh, veins and even bones.

Hoo…* The Crystal Phase Barbarian Bear Shaman no longer had any power to fight back and vanished within the dark figures.

Even up till the very last moment of its life, the Barbarian Bear Shaman was still very much conscious, as could be seen from the expression in its eyes.

After they engulfed the Barbarian Bear Shaman, the many dark figures dispersed and vanished into thin air one after another. At the same time, Noah could feel the strong imprisonment fading..

"It's finally over…" he sighed, plopping to the ground shortly after. He began to vomit, almost to the point of spewing out bile.

"I swear. I won't be able to eat anything for at least three months…" Despite his bitter expression, Noah's bodily wounds were in fact healing quickly.

However, Robin's fervent eyes were fixed on a particular part of the void. From Noah's perspective, a presence had already arrived somewhere.

"What reward do you wish for?" An inexplicable voice rang within the hearts of the two men.

"I want…" Robin answered. His voice was deep, but even more so, it carried his unrestrainable excitement…….

At this point in time, Leylin walked out of the ecological garden with Tanasha and they returned to the illusory corridor.

"Master… According to our research, we will be able to get out after passing 3 more spatial points." Tanasha's condition seemed to have improved greatly, and even her missing arm was able to grow out again with the help of the potions.

"Yes," Leylin nodded.

"After we get out, stay in the Forgotten Land for the time being. Wait for an opportunity to sneak out and join me! Do you have any restrictions in your organisation?"

"No! I am one of the leaders in the Alliance of the Exiled, I didn't agree to any sort of soul-binding contract!" Tanasha responded quickly. It wasn't surprising given her Crystal Phase strength.

"That's good…" Leylin nodded. He was about to say something else but all of a sudden, his expression changed and he gave Tanasha a look.

Tanasha acknowledged with a nod before disappearing into a wave of water.

Based on the readings on the A.I. Chip, Magus energy waves were detected ahead. Since Tanasha was a backup plan arranged by Leylin, she could not show herself easily in front of outsiders.

Leylin smiled at Tanasha, who was now concealed behind the water, and walked past a corner.

Then, he saw a warlock dressed in a black robe, slumped on the ground. A puddle of black blood was growing beside him. Leylin knew this warlock well – he was one of Kesha's men, named Arcus.

"Wake up, Arcus!" Leylin flipped Arcus over and immediately noticed the criss-crossed wounds on his chest as dark blood gushed out continuously.

"Curse power!" Leylin's expression hardened as he felt an enormous power from the long, narrow cuts.

As a Magus, Leylin was knowledgeable in curses, especially those in the Book of Giant Serpent, left behind by Great Magus Serholm. They inspired him greatly and even led him to develop many new ones of his own. This knowledge helped him to a great extent when he was at the south coast.

However, the deeper his knowledge, the more he understood about the strangeness and difficulty in coping with such power.

In particular, the curses from ancient times were those that Leylin was unwilling to make contact with even now.

It seemed like Quicksand Castle also contained a terrifying curse power, and this power had already found its way to Kesha and her group.

To the unconscious Arcus, whose face was faintly branded with a spell made of dark fumes, Leylin looked at him and said, "Today is your lucky day!" He then smiled and pulled out a tube filled with a green solution from his leather pouch.

Leylin applied the thick, green fluid onto Arcus' wounds drop by drop.

Sizzle!* The green fluid immediately went through a strange transformation as it condensed into many tiny green worms, which remained on Arcus' skin. It was a rather disgusting sight.

After that, the numerous green worms aimed at the dark fumes and pounced on them. They engulfed the dark curse power as if they were having a meal.

As time went by, the dark fumes on Arcus' face slowly faded away and he opened his eyes.

"M…Master Leylin! Thank you for saving me!" Arcus had realised the situation he was in. He struggled to bow but was stopped by Leylin.

"Did something happen to sister Kesha and the others?" Leylin's voice was calm and full of wisdom.

"Yes, yes! After we entered Quicksand Castle, we were attacked!" Arcus answered with his pale, dry lips, sounding a little frightened.

"It's a terrifying monster in human form! Not only are spells and physical attacks ineffective, the wounds inflicted by its scissors cannot heal! It also possesses a frightening ability to enter the void and heal itself!"

"Sir! Please save my master!" Arcus pleaded sincerely.

"Don't worry! We are an organisation of bloodline brothers and Kesha is also my sister. I will not leave her in the lurch!"

"Rather than that, you……"

"I'm fine! I can leave by myself!" Arcus knew for sure that his presence was a burden thus he made a sensible decision.

"Alright! We are already near the exit, all you have to do is avoid the Magi outside, then leave this pocket dimension!"

Leylin nodded and watched Arcus as he limped out of the place.

"Master, are you going to save them?" A wave swept past the empty space and Tanasha, who had been concealed all these time, appeared again.

"Yes!" Leylin nodded.

Kesha had been good to him and they were relatively close. He had to save her.

Of course, more importantly, through his analysis of Arcus, Leylin had already prepared himself for said curse . At the very least, he could ensure his own safety.

If it was like that, there was no reason to refuse to rescue them while he was here.

"You don't have to involve yourself with this matter anymore, you may leave first!" Leylin ordered Tanasha.

After that, he immediately handed a large black box to her.

"You have to guard the contents of this box carefully. Do not open it, return it to me when we meet again later!"

"Yes, Master!" Tanasha bowed. After receiving the box from Leylin, a bright light flashed and the item disappeared.

Although rare, spatial artifacts could be found even on the south coast and Twilight Zone, leave alone the central continent.

Tanasha had long since entered the Crystal Phase. A storage artifact was no big deal.

As he watched Tanasha's silhouette moving away, Leylin turned in the opposite direction and disappeared into the corridor.

……

"Huff……"

Kesha hid behind a large shelf, and her tall chest moved up and down unsteadily as she breathed.

"How is it? Has the trap succeeded?"

She asked a Green-skinned Barbarian beside her. Both Kesha and the Green-skinned Barbarian had long, narrow wounds on their bodies. A pool of dark gas circled above those wounds.

These two Magi were almost entirely drained of their energies and they were at their worst condition.

"The Fogbound Labyrinth can only trap it for 3 minutes!" The Green-skinned Barbarian said bitterly.

"Damn it! That amount of time isn't even enough for us to recover, not to mention getting past the illusory corridor!" Kesha looked despair.

Being pursued by the man in black, especially after sustaining such injuries, the illusory corridor had refused to transport a cursed person like her several times. They were practically trapped in there while still alive.

By now, both Magi were already at the their limits. They had no more strength to fight back.

"I'd never expected that I would die here, and with a green-skinned dwarf beside me!" Kesha let out a faint sigh.

"What did you say, woman?" Angered after being called a dwarf, the Green-skinned Barbarian jumped up and pointed his staff at Kesha's nose. "If you guys hadn't intruded and killed many of our clan members, we wouldn't have chased after you and we wouldn't have run into that thing!"

"You…" Kesha wanted to refute further but her expression suddenly changed. She and the Green-skinned Barbarian dodged in opposite directions.

Ka-cha! A brilliant, silver-white light streaked across and the large shelf was split into two. It exposed the silhouette of a man in a black trenchcoat who held a pair of scissors emitting a sharp radiance.

"Oh no! It broke through earlier than expected!" The Green-skinned Barbarian turned pale, looking even greener than usual, and it began to shiver.

"Fuck! I knew it, you green-skinned dwarves can't be trusted!" Out of her despair, Kesha burst out swearing.

The man in black made an ambiguous howl. The sounds of the scissors echoed as his footsteps slowly drew near.

With her sea of consciousness now dried up, a bitter smile emerged on Kesha's face. However, the man in black was evidently not one to show mercy even towards a female as he raised his hand and pierced at Kesha's eyes with the scissors.

"Explosive Fireball!" A massive explosion sounded.

Numerous dark figures gathered to form a cage and bound the man in black.

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Escape

Kesha felt giddy, her head was spinning, but she soon fell into a strong embrace.

"Ley…Leylin!" She was taken aback and called out his name.

"Sister, it looks like you're in a difficult situation!" Leylin rubbed his nose and gently laid Kesha down. He then tossed a potion at her.

"This is a purifying potion, it can eliminate the curse energy from your body! Use it as soon as possible!"

"Thank you!" Kesha's face glowed with a lovely smile. Having just escaped from death, she was especially touched.

"Wait up! That… Can you also give me one…?" The huge Green-skinned Barbarian Magus rolled over like a ball, and he was eager to please.

"Huh?" Leylin looked at Kesha.

"Give it to him! After all, we fought alongside each other!" Kesha nodded her head.

At this moment, countless black shadows exploded forth with a bang. Trenchcoat stood in the center, completely unharmed. He made eye contact with Leylin and started roaring.

"This kind of feeling, it isn't a common hybrid curse. It's a gene curse!" Leylin's face grew absolutely serious.

The so-called gene curse was a high-grade curse. It had the ability to materialise itself which was extremely difficult to cure.

Leylin himself had mastered a few curses. However, even he was not too sure about these gene curses.

"I'll take care of him. You two, use the potions and leave as quickly as possible!" he said in a deep voice.

As with any curse, there were limitations on the scope of the effect. As for Trenchcoat's gene curse, it most likely prevented him from leaving the confines of Quicksand Castle. In fact, he might not even make it through the illusory corridor in the outer layer.

Kesha and the Green-skinned Barbarian nodded their heads in agreement and opened the test tubes.

"Right, for such a high-grade curse to make an appearance is fortunate. I have long wanted to study them!" Leylin's eyes lit up like a spark of fire. He threw out a large number of potions.

Boom* A flash of jade-green flames ignited and blazed fiercely.

"dkjsklgmnsklm……"

Trenchcoat seemed to have some apprehensions with regards to these flames and muttered some senseless words.

"A.I. Chip! "Leylin ordered, "Compare with every language in the database!" However, the A.I.Chip had not recorded Trenchcoat's words and so was unable to find an answer.

"Let's go!" Kesha and the Green-skinned Barbarian yelled. Both had the black cursed energies from their body expelled successfully by the purifying potions.

As he watched Leylin and his two companions leaving, Trenchcoat standing opposite bellowed loudly and charged at them.

Crackle!* A copious amount of jade green flames were blazing on his body ferociously. Big patches of black clothing were flaking off onto the ground, revealing the badly scarred skin beneath.

A long hideous wound extended all the way down from his right shoulder blade. It looked like a huge black centipede, a sinister and horrifying sight.

What made Leylin frown was the fact that the profound and brutal power of the curse seemed more pronounced and vigorous on Trenchcoat's body.

"Run, now!" Leylin waved the Meteor Sword in his hand, bringing forth horrifying poisons and the sharp radiant sword shadows, causing the surrounding structures to collapse one by one.

"Use this!" The Green-skinned Barbarian held out a glittering crystal ball that was radiating beautiful, brilliant rays.

"This is an escape crystal ball. It consists of at least 5 escape charms, enough to get us out of here!" The Green-skinned Barbarian Magus met Leylin's eyes and explained it to him, seemingly trying to win his favour.

"Good job!" The blue light in his eyes sparkled and the A.I. Chip affirmed the authenticity of the crystal ball and its favourable functions.

He immediately stimulated the crystal ball and the three of them vanished in a blinding flash.

A black shadow whizzed past and Trenchcoat's pair of scissors slashed across empty space as it produced senseless, incoherent roars.

Inside the illusory corridor, the surrounding walls were filled with images of many plants and flowers. Many of the plants were in a continuous loop of life — from germination, to growth, then blossoming and finally withering.

Bang! Bang! Bang!* Loud thuds of heavy objects falling were heard. Leylin and the rest were in the middle of the corridor.

"Alright! I can no longer feel the power of the curse at this location. You are all safe!" He shut his eyes and exclaimed.

Hearing his words, Kesha and the Green-skinned Barbarian broke into smiles of relief and joy.

"So, it is now time to discuss how we should 'handle' this!" Leylin pointed his finger at the Green-skinned Barbarian, revealing a sinister and calculative grin.

"Oh! No! You can't do this to me. I saved your companion's life! And we even fought alongside in battle!" The Green-skinned Barbarian raised both his arms, pleading innocently.

It didn't adopt any form of resistance as its spiritual force had been drained a few days ago when it was in pursuit. It even needed Leylin to stimulate the escape crystal ball as it wasn't able to do it on its own.

"But the fact is, you came here to capture us, no?" Leylin saw through his clumsy trickery. Thus, he held up the cross blade and aimed for the Green-skinned Barbarian's brains.

"Seeing how things have turned out, you have paid the price accordingly. I will spare your life this time!" At that moment, Leylin revealed his true intentions.

Having heard what he said, Kesha, who was initially displeased, suddenly snapped out of her emotional state.

"But…. I do not possess any other good stuff!" The Green-skinned Barbarian Magus pleaded pitifully, but secretly slipped an odd bracelet out of his right hand.

Leylin refused to believe that. Being a Crystal Phase Magus, how could it not have a few aces up its sleeve?

Looking at the current situation, although both parties were seriously injured, they could have mustered up their remaining strength for another fight. Yet, Leylin only wanted compensation and did not want to test the opposite party's threshold which would have inevitably caused them both to suffer.

"Hand over the compensation! Or do you want to start a fight here?" Leylin's tone was harsh and intense.

"Sister Kesha! When the compensation is presented, I'll share 50 percent with you!" Once these words were spoken, Kesha immediately inched closer to Leylin's side, showing her support.

For this exploration, Kesha had ended up losing her life savings and there was no way she could ever step foot into Quicksand Castle again. She had also lost three capable assistants, who were all feared dead, so now she thirsted for compensation for her losses.

Seeing how Kesha reacted, the Green-skinned Barbarian let out a bitter smile, "All of you human Magi are shrewd and greedy, worse than the devil!"

It resigned itself to its fate, crouched down, and handed a black pouch to Leylin.

"Go ahead and take a look! My treasures are all in there!"

Leylin reached out to received the pouch that seemed to be made from animal fur. Upon further probing, many useful items of brilliant lights and vibrant colours could be seen.

Crystal Phase Magi in the Forgotten Land were not as wealthy as Crystal Phase Magi elsewhere, but it was enough to please the two Vapour Phase Magi.

There were so many precious materials inside that Kesha was dazzled by its extraordinary splendor as she let out a thrilling cry.

Leylin chose some of the most precious ones, including a few copies of notes and thereafter handed the pouch to Kesha.

Kesha showered her delicate charm on Leylin in appreciation, then started choosing gems from the pouch without restraint. When she finally passed the pouch to the Green-skinned Barbarian, it was obvious the pouch was shrivelled and light, with lots of missing items. The Green-skinned Barbarian was heartbroken.

"Alright! Since the ransom has been paid, we shall take our leave!"

Leylin bowed slightly, his lips curled in a slight smile as he walked quickly along the corridor with Kesha. They disappeared at the end, leaving the Green-skinned Barbarian speechless and bitter.

A few days later, at the desert surrounding the Quicksand Castle, in a dim and gloomy underground area.

A wave of bright red brilliant rays flashed past, and the silhouettes of the uncle-nephew pair — Robin and Noah — appeared out of thin air.

"You are both finally here, Leylin and I have been waiting for a long time!"

Kesha stood up, a tone of dissatisfaction in her voice. Soon after, she gazed attentively at Robin: "You…… what happened?"

Using her aura detection abilities, it seemed that Robin had changed greatly, yet she couldn't tell exactly what changed.

"Huh?" Leylin scrutinized Robin's face intently.

There was no change in his outer appearance, with an unusually bewitching handsome outlook, but in the space between his eyebrows, there was an additional black symbol imprinted. Multiple blood vessel lookalikes covered his entire forehead.

What amazed Leylin more was that the Giant Kemoyin Serpent bloodline on Robin's body seemed to be strengthening continuously, with the tendency to purify gradually.

If it weren't for the extremely pure and concise bloodline in Leylin's own body, together with the probing of the A.I. Chip, he wouldn't have noticed such changes.

"It's nothing. On the contrary, I have never felt better!" Robin chuckled, rational as ever as he whipped out a huge foreleg and started gnawing on it.

There were scales covering the whole animal foreleg and purple-black blood was still dripping from the severed site. It was clearly a high-energy creature from the vicinity.

Robin wolfed down his food with gusto and finished it up with just a few mouthfuls, meat and bones.

He felt like he could be wrong, but after eating the meat, Robin's bloodline seemed to have strengthened slightly again.

"Eww…" Noah's face turned ash-white after witnessing Robin feasting on his food. He turned away, not daring to take another look.

"And what happened to you?" Leylin had a premonition. He was sure Robin had acquired some rare resources from Quicksand Castle.

Of course, he had his own fortuitous encounter and the benefits were not small. Luck wouldn't shine on only one person, and Leylin understood this theory.

"No…Nothing, it was just a traumatic experience. I might fast for a period, I do not even want to see anybody eating anything.…"

Noah waved his hand weakly. The horrible memories from the previous dinner left a deep horrifying impression on him.

"Noah has experienced too little, let him be! We need to leave the Quicksand pocket dimension immediately! Any objections?"

()

Robin was evidently clear-headed and wise, not mentioning anything about his experiences in the castle. Leylin and Kesha, as well, were too tactful to ask.

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Demon Hunter

"No matter the profits or losses, it is time to leave."

Leylin nodded, approving of Robin's suggestion.

He had gained quite a lot this time, and had long since had the inclination to leave. More importantly, his pursuer, Tanasha, had surrendered into his service. The Green-skinned Barbarian Magus was also heavily injured, and only after being extorted precious materials from was he released. As for the road that Robin had taken, it was evident that it had been disastrous.

These were Crystal Phase Magi! The three powers outside would probably be stamping their feet in anxiety.

By the time they reacted to the situation, Leylin and the others would probably be met with the joint attack from the three powers.

On Leylin's end, the Black Horrall Snake Warlocks that Robin and Roya had brought were all dead, and those following Kesha were probably in a similar situation. Arcus, who Leylin had rescued, had not met with them here. This would only have happened if he had other plans, or he had met with some unexpected situation, causing his strength to be greatly diminished.

If they did not choose to escape now, were they going to wait to be killed?

"Alright, I agree as well." Kesha sounded helpless. Out of everyone here, she had gained the least, and it was not even enough to make up for the loss of the three Warlocks from her family. When she returned, this would be a huge blow to them.

Anxiety was apparent in Kesha's eyes.

"As for the way out, it's definitely impossible to go through the entrance of the pocket dimension. We should use our original plan and look for the weaker areas of the pocket dimension, and use escape runes to tear through the space and exit!" Robin exclaimed.

The entrance of the secret realm had probably been placed under heavy military guard long ago by the three organisations. Leylin and Kesha would not suggest leaving that way, and they all nodded in agreement.

……

Under the scorching rays of the sun, the moisture in the ground evaporated, cracks appearing within.

Somewhere, many cracks converged and caused a terrifying explosion. A hole opened up in the void, and a few pitiful figures dashed out of a tunnel.

"Based on these energy particles, it looks like we've successfully escaped and reached the Forgotten Land!" Leylin commented after sensing the energy particles that were so sparse that they could be overlooked around him as well as the desolate surroundings.

"That's right! This must be the Tuck Barren Lands close to the Forgotten Land, which is very close to the city of sins, Nefas!"

Robin checked the surroundings, and he looked elated, "Leylin, I didn't expect your abilities at calculating the areas where space is weak to be so impressive!"

"Yes! Not only did you use the shortest time possible and find the place where space was weak, you also evaded space storms and chose a place that is closest to Nefas City!"

It was no simple task to find the weakest spatial node in a pocket dimension. For Magi, this would require a very precise and meticulous probing ability, and the requirements when it came to calculation were even more terrifying.

"Hehe… What are you saying, that's only a coincidence!" Leylin rubbed his nose.

All these may seem difficult to a regular Magus, but for the A.I. Chip, it was just a walk in the park. He had even especially chosen a spatial node closest to Nefas City, all so he could leave that place as soon as possible.

He had reaped marvelous gains this time, and he had a bad feeling about this. It was this feeling that prompted him to leave without hesitation, even so going so far as to expose some of his abilities.

"It's best that we leave as soon as possible. Something feels off." Leylin furrowed his brows. The resources in the Quicksand pocket dimension were far too plentiful, and just the highly valued pocket dimension, Quicksand Castle, was enough to arouse the interest and greed of Morning Star Magi. A Morning Star Magus was not something any of them could handle.

"I have a bad feeling about this too." Robin looked grim as he agreed as well.

Hearing this, Noah and Kesha could feel the seriousness of the situation. The premonitions or feelings that Magi had, especially that of high-ranked Magi like Leylin and Robin, were usually accurate. It did nothing to reassure them, causing them to tremble in fear.

"Have the organisations in the Forgotten Land contacted the external world? Or is there any supporter of theirs?" Leylin asked Robin as the group of Magi hurried along lightning-quick.

"Contact? They're a bunch of vicious criminals, or those who can no longer stay in the central continent. How could there be any communication between them?" Robin scoffed at the idea.

"They can't even leave the Forgotten Land, and can at most conceal their identities in Nefas City."

At this point, his expression changed and he immediately halted his footsteps. "You mean…"

Leylin's expression was grim as he nodded.

"What's going on?" Noah was baffled, while Kesha seemed to have some thoughts on this, "The organisations within the Forgotten Land and Nefas City have contact with each other? Or…"

She did not dare speak further, but the heavy atmosphere lingered in their hearts.

"But what can we do if we don't go to Nefas City? The airship station there is the most convenient way to communicate with the external world." Kesha bit her lips.

"Let's take the long route." Leylin let out a long breath.

"This will take more effort. I've seen the map, and we'll pass through a few dangerous areas with rank 3 Magi. However, as long as we're careful, there's a large possibility of us passing through, though it might take a bit more time…"

Robin nodded, agreeing with Leylin. Though it was very troublesome to divert their route all based on a conjecture, Kesha and Noah exchanged a few glances and did not object.

The Magus World was filled with danger, and any carelessness could lead to the misfortune of death.

Those who could become high-ranked Magi were very confident in their premonitions, and would prefer to avoid any trouble even if it would cause them to expend more effort.

The moment this group was about to turn around, there was an unexpected situation.

Ka-cha!* A huge hole opened up in the sky, and countless black streaks of lightning appeared with a thunderous sound..

An incredibly mighty pressure suddenly descended, causing Leylin and the others to stand in a daze.

Suddenly, Leylin felt this whole region being isolated from the surroundings, and the air suddenly becoming heavier, to the point that he could not even move a finger.

"This is… the domain of a Morning Star Magus! I've felt it before at my mentor's. I can't be wrong!"

Robin turned back, face so pale it was like a corpse's.

"Found you!" A hoarse voice was transmitted from the black hole in the sky, cold, unfeeling and condescending. It was as if Leylin and his group were a bunch of insignificant little ants.

Numerous black streaks of lightning twined around each other to form a black, giant palm, grabbing at Leylin and the rest.

"Ah-!" Leylin wanted to retaliate, only to find that not only was it difficult to use the spiritual force in his body, even the sparse elemental particles in the external world had disappeared, as if they had become insulators of elemental particles.

[Host body affected by unknown force field. Spiritual force suppressed by 80%. Stats in all areas decreasing.]

The A.I. Chip's voice sounded, being distorted as if it was being interfered with.

In terms of Leylin's own stats, there was a large decrease in all of his abilities, and he had been suppressed to about as strong as a rank 1 Magus.

"The suppression from a Morning Star domain, and its influence, has turned us into elemental insulators!"

A wry smile appeared at the corner of Leylin's lips, "The terror of Morning Star Magi is something I can only hope to achieve!"

Honestly speaking, he was still in a good condition. Kesha and Noah had already collapsed, leaving Robin and him somewhat able to stay standing. However, in front of the giant black-lightning palm, they were helpless.

"Hmph! Cyril, it's not up to you to give my students a lesson!" Just as even Leylin gave up all hope, a voice suddenly rang from beside him, a familiar sound immediately perking him up.

"Mentor Gilbert!" Robin and Kesha exclaimed, delighted.

Following that, Gilbert appeared by Robin in loose white robes, his two eyes turning into dangerous vertical pupils.

Ka-cha! Ka-cha!* Ash gray stone skin extended on the black lightning hand, and it eventually collapsed in mid-air, turning into a pile of powder as it sprayed downwards.

Po!* Like a soap bubble that had been pierced through, Leylin felt his body become lighter, the region he was in returning to the world. That feeling of being shrouded in a tight membrane disappeared.

The numbers on the A.I. Chip were returning to normal, as was his contact with the elemental particles.

[Beep! Detected reactions from two unknown force fields, resulting in a neutralizing effect.]

The A.I. Chip prompted, and a look of comprehension flashed in Leylin's eyes. 'This is mentor's Morning Star domain, cancelling out the other party's force field!'

He had also gained a deeper understanding of how formidable Morning Star Magi were.

Without reaching the Morning Star realm, just a Morning Star domain was a torture to many low-ranked Magi. In the face of Morning Star Magi, the concept of strength in numbers was just a joke.

"Giant Serpent Duke Gilbert!" A figure appeared in the sky suddenly, and though he was just standing there, Leylin felt that he was like a high mountain.

"Demon Hunter Cyril!"

Leylin lowered his head, taking a few secret peeks at the sky.

Cyril's face was gaunt, and his lips were very thin. He had a pair of silver eyes that could inspire fear and the Magus robes he wore, with black threads that formed demonic images and the many chains, axes and torture instruments along with, made him look frightening.

"Wait here. I'll go have a good talk with him." Gilbert placed his arms at his back. Wrapped in dense crimson rays, he floated above and, with Cyril, transformed into two shooting stars that disappeared into the horizon.

"Hah…" Robin let out a long breath and dropped to the ground. He no longer cared about his image.

The situation just now could be said to be extremely dangerous. If Gilbert had not reached in time, they would probably be in a terrible state.

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Private Airship

"What exactly is going on?" Noah shook his head, still feeling slightly giddy.

"Demon Hunter Cyril tried to hinder us, but Mentor showed up in time to save us, as simple as that!" Kesha laughed bitterly.

The great name of Demon Hunter Cyril struck his ears like a peal of thunder. Rumour had it that this infamous, ferocious being would make even the most cunning devil burst out in tears, regretting that they were ever born into this world.

Simply thinking about falling into the hands of such a person had her breaking out in cold sweat.

"I should've thought of it earlier. Nefas, the city of sins, and the Forgotten Land are in close proximity and there are frequent interactions between their people. It is impossible that the forces in the Forgotten Land are not in contact with the Demon Hunter." Robin's face was full of remorse.

In actual fact, what he meant was that those forces were the other party's lackeys. When they saw that they could not handle their group, they immediately informed their master.

However, there was no conclusive evidence. In addition to that, the Demon Hunter was also a Morning Star Magus, which was why Robin spoke obscurely.

"If Mentor Gilbert hadn't arrived in time, we would've been in grave danger. Oh yes, why did Mentor come here?" Robin asked with a doubtful expression.

"It was me!" Leylin stood out and gave a bitter laugh.

"Before I left, I'd already had a bad premonition. Thus, I gave Parker a letter. If I failed to return within the time limit, he would hand it over to Lucian immediately, who would then pass it on to Mentor… Thank goodness! Brother Lucian is indeed trustworthy. Mentor also didn't get caught up in a high-level experiment……"

His words were only partly true. As a matter of fact, it was the Coin of Destiny which allowed Leylin to predict the interference of a force at the Morning Star realm. However, he could not bear to give up on the Lamia Hair, hence he adopted such a compromising measure.

From the looks of it, it wasn't a bad result.

"Sorry! I acted on my own!" Leylin admitted and apologised immediately.

"No! It's nothing! We still have to thank you for your vigilance!" Robin waved.

"That's right! Who would've known that the Demon Hunter was actually so treacherous? He even tried to snatch away small fries like us!" Kesha spoke with a face full of indignation.

"Silence!" Leylin and Robin shouted simultaneously to stop her.

"Towards Morning Star Magi, even if we are enemies, respect must be given no matter what! This is to respect the truth!" Kesha flushed red from embarrassment and lowered her head.

Rumble!* At this time, a large wave was transmitted from afar. Leylin looked towards that direction in concern.

"No need to worry! The Demon Hunter may be famed for his strength, but you have to believe in our Mentor. He is also very powerful!" Robin noticed the worries on Leylin's mind and gave him a comforting smile.

"Let's hope things will be as such!" Leylin replied a little forcefully.

Getting Duke Gilbert out was already his last resort. Apart from this mentor, he could no longer think of any other ways to make the Demon Hunter give up.

Should their mentor be defeated, the students themselves would not have a good ending as well.

"Strength! It still comes down to strength!" Leylin could not help but clench his fists together as his yearning for the Morning Star realm grew.

Whoosh!* A scarlet ray of light streaked across the horizon and Gilbert's silhouette emerged before Leylin and the others.

"Mentor!" Robin and Leylin rushed to bow.

"You rascals, look what trouble you've gotten yourselves into, you even provoked Cyril!" Gilbert swept his eyes over before a smile surfaced on his bald, bare face. It seems, that in the battle between him and the Demon Hunter, he was not on the losing end.

After realising that, Leylin heaved a sigh of relief in his heart. At least the worst case scenario no longer had a chance of occurring.

"Alright! You must be exhausted after the expedition, just take a trip back on my airship!"

Smiling, Gilbert waved his hand and a small airship appeared on the spot.

Although it was smaller in size than the public airships, it was evidently more luxurious and ornate. The spell formations drafted on it were also more intricate and powerful.

"This is…" Leylin's mouth opened wide.

Despite its small size, it was still a proper airship! With enough space to fit an airship of this size, surely Duke Gilbert's space artifacts must have been at the level of magic equipment at least!

But Robin thought Leylin had lost his senses because of the airship. "This is the 'Black Scale,' Mentor's ship. When he advanced to become a Morning Star Magus, the Fayle clan sent it as a gift. It can use any network of channels and will be treated as an honoured guest at maintenance and rest stops!" he explained with a smile.

"What a lavish clan!" Leylin gasped. The family which had control over the central continent's airship channels, had a lot of inside information as expected.

"Will they send a gift for every Morning Star Magus after they are promoted?" Leylin suddenly remembered and asked.

"That's right! Basically, after a Magus is promoted, the Fayle clan will definitely send a private airship as a gift!" Robin nodded.

"What a great scale of spending!" Of course, Leylin knew very well that it was probably not the intention of the Fayles. Instead, the Monarch of the Skies was using the chance to get on the good sides of the Morning Star Magi.

The Black Scale's interior was very luxurious. Comprising a master room, guest room, kitchen, meditation room and a customized living room, the airship was big enough to accommodate dozens of people without seeming crowded. For a private airship, this was enough.

Gilbert sat on a sofa in the middle of the living room while Leylin and the other 3 stood respectfully at one side. A few clear-winged elves carried the teapot and cups and swiftly poured a cup of red tea for everyone.

"Sit!" Gilbert chuckled. "I am also rather interested in your experiences this time round!"

Leylin's heart stirred. He knew that whatever was to come could not be avoided, but he showed no dissatisfaction about it.

By the sole fact that Gilbert saved him, it was only right to share a large portion of the reward.

"Tiny energy waves are detected! Identified as Bloodline artifacts' detection technology! Space artifacts are unable to cut them off!"

By this time, the prompting sounds of the A.I. chip had reached Leylin's mind. In his vision, he distinctly saw a scanning wave sweep past the 4 of them, not even sparing Noah.

The wave was so obscure that even Robin could not feel it scanning his body, it even went on to scan Leylin's spatial pouch and ring. Despite that, Leylin's face remained unchanged.

The few people remained silent for a while before Robin took the lead and spoke up, "Mentor, It's like this…"

"……." After listening to his narration, Gilbert looked at the imprint of the spell on Robin's forehead and took a deep sigh, "I didn't expect that you would ultimately choose this path!"

"This is my choice!" Robin bowed and replied, "If not for this, I'm afraid I wouldn't even get the chance to look at the realm of the Morning Star!" He spoke resolutely.

"As your mentor, I can only guide and advise you in your pursuit of the truth and the power of the bloodline. As for your final choice, I will not interfere any further."

Gilbert shook his head and said, "Since you are insistent on doing this, then so be it!"

"Mentor……" On the other side, Kesha was acting like a little girl, on the verge of crying. She spoke about her encounter extremely miserably.

"Arcus and the other two are all dead…… That's half the strength of my clan…… Mentor……."

Towards the end, Kesha's eyes flushed red and she started crying. Tears flowed out like a waterfall. She spoke nothing about her earnings from the extortion of the Green-skinned Barbarian, which was done in collaboration with Leylin.

"Alright! Alright!" Gilbert said helplessly. "After this, I will give orders for your clan to be taken care of!"

"Thank you Mentor!" Kesha's face brightened up instantaneously, with such speed that it created a pang of admiration in Leylin.

"Leylin, how about you?" Gilbert finally directed his attention to Leylin, with a slight smile of interest in his eyes.

'What the hell. Amongst you, one is his former student, while the other is a woman. I, the newcomer, am at the greatest disadvantage!' In his mind, Leylin rolled his eyes but he kept a calm expression on his face. He patted the space pouch respectfully and a few items appeared on the desk.

"A bloodline crystal!" Kesha covered her mouth and let out a gasp as she saw the blood-red stone.

However, Robin's focus was on the long-root fruit and a few pieces of large, milky white bones.

As for Gilbert, he looked engrossingly at a large egg which sat in the middle of the desk. As he looked at the blood-red runes on it, he appeared to be deep in thought.

"Leylin, you've struck it big this time in the pocket dimensions!" Kesha leaned forward, almost squeezing her whole body into Leylin's embrace. "This sister's clan is already so pitiful, shouldn't you help me out?"

"Haha…" Gilbert, however, made a carefree laugh.

"This is the egg of a Blood Vulture! Blood Vultures in the ancient times were originally well-known for searching for bloodline artifacts. Leylin, I suppose you got lucky and found a nest of Blood Vultures?"

"Yes!" Leylin scratched his head, looking a little embarrassed. "After I found the nest, I hid there for a few days before I finally seized the chance and snuck these things out……"

Upon hearing that, a hint of jealousy appeared on everyone's face, even Robin's. Why didn't such good luck descend on him?

"These items, I'm willing to offer them all to Mentor!" What Leylin said thereafter turned Robin and Kesha's minds blank.

"It's not even possible not to offer…" Leylin gave a sincere look, but he was utterly bitter inside.

After discovering that Leylin possessed these items and did not hand them over, Gilbert would not feel good about it. If that was the case, Leylin's future life in the Ouroboros Clan would be difficult.

"Haha… Good!"

Gilbert laughed out loud…

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Completing The Project

Upon hearing Leylin's words, Gilbert stared blankly at him for a while, and then started laughing heartily. "I will accept your gift then!"

"Thank you, mentor!" Gratitude was apparent on Leylin's face as he bowed.

"Sure! Of course, I wouldn't simply just want to have your things for no reason; after all, Blood Vulture eggs from the ancient times are still very precious!" Gilbert lowered his head in thought.

"How about this? Aren't you currently accumulating contribution points to buy the scroll that can inject life into constructs? I'll make an exchange with you directly then; a sealed fourth-grade magic scroll would be sufficient to make up for these items!"

Gilbert swept his hand across the table top. The numerous bloodline treasures vanished, and a grey scroll covered in simple floral designs appeared.

"Thank you, Mentor!" Leylin received the scroll and expressed his thanks again, this time with more sincerity.

"Besides…" Gilbert glanced at Leylin's ring and smiled.

Leylin scratched his head and displayed his embarrassment, knowing that Gilbert had discovered the items he had hidden in his spatial ring.

……

After nightfall, Leylin lay on his bed and examined the scroll in his hands, satisfaction written on his face. "Exchanging those items for a fourth-grade scroll is indeed a fair trade, I didn't suffer!"

He then looked at the ring on his hand and collapsed onto the bed, looking as though he would fall into deep sleep soon enough.

Bu in actual fact, he was sneering secretly. What Gilbert had discovered was actually what Leylin purposely wanted him to.

Inside the ring, there was only a single Bloodline crystal and a few remains from ancient times. Gilbert did not value them exactly because there were only a few items, thus he silently agreed to Leylin's secret stash.

In actual fact, what Leylin had handed over today was not even ten percent of his real loot, much less the fingerbone left behind by the fifth-grade Lamia from ancient times.

The temptation of such an item was too huge, and even Leylin was not willing to take it out. If not, it would be hard to pass Gilbert's checkpoint.

No matter what happened then, it would not be a situation that he would want to see. After all, Gilbert was rather nice to him, and he didn't want to fall out with his mentor and the Ouroboros Clan.

Benefits are the greatest reason why people are divided, and Leylin did not want to use the fingerbone to put the bond between master and disciple to the test. Might as well avoid it for the better good.

Yes, the real loot, including the Lamia's fingerbone, were not on Leylin himself! Therefore, no matter how strict Gilbert was with his inspection, there was no use at all!

"However, although this journey was dangerous, I finally attained the items I wanted, and the other loot is not bad…" Leylin thought as he lay in bed, quickly falling into deep sleep for real.

The Black Scale travelled at high speeds. Initially, Leylin and company took more than a month to travel from the Ouroboros Clan to Nefas City, but the return journey only required about ten days or so.

After returning to headquarters, Leylin, his mentor and a few seniors gathered together and returned to Onyx Castle to check on the Magus Tower in his territory.

"Welcome, Lord Leylin!" Parker stood in front of the black Magus Tower and saluted respectfully to Leylin. His voice still sounded old as usual, and was strangely mismatched with his youthful face.

"How is the construction of my Magus Tower going?" Leylin stepped forth and gently caressed the black tower, admiring the exquisite runes on it and the faint but powerful energy waves it emitted. A smile spread across his face.

"The entire structure of the Magus Tower has been completed, we're just left with a few cores and most importantly, the activation of the spirit of the Tower! These are awaiting your completion, Master!"

Parker's response made Leylin satisfactory. He was serious when working too; the previous task that Leylin had given him was performed well. He had successfully delivered a letter to Duke Gilbert and helped Leylin avert his misfortune.

"Excellent! Leylin nodded, "Bring Snoopy to my lab someday. I haven't taught him anything new in a long while too!"

He, of course, knew that age was catching up to Parker and he had no ambition, so he placed all his hopes on his grandson Snoopy, whose importance surpassed any reward.

Of course, after hearing what Leylin said, Parker was slightly excited and his bow almost reached a right angle, "Thank you on his behalf, Master!"

"On my way back from this trip, I obtained the Scroll of Life. Under my orders, prepare to begin work. I would like my Magus Tower to be completed immediately!" Leylin gave his orders indifferently.

"Your wish will be executed!" Parker replied. All the preparations for construction were already complete, and the other core materials had already been prepared too. All was left was to wait for Leylin to return and take the lead.

Wandering in his own Magus Tower, Leylin examined every corner carefully.

The interior of the Magus Tower was very spacious. Leylin created all of it according to the highest standards, with a complete set of facilities that looked refined and luxurious.

Leylin looked at level after level, especially the positive and negative energy reactive pools, along with other places such as the laboratory, the binding room, and the ecological garden.

"A.I. Chip! What are the results of the scan?" While looking around his tower, Leylin did not forget to let the A.I. Chip fully scan and record the decorations and spell formations that he saw before conducting an inspection.

1 The A.I. Chip sent feedback faithfully.

As the blueprint of the structure was originally done by Leylin himself, using the A.I. Chip's perfect deductions, the decorations of the entire Magus Tower were perfect, almost to the point that no fault could be found.

The remaining areas that could be further optimized were only small problems that resulted from improper construction and other reasons. No matter how perfect his plan was, as long as it was executed by humans, accidents were bound to happen. Leylin had long prepared for this.

'The rest is alright, but the previous ecological garden can be altered a little by adding in the data I collected about the environment in the ancient times while at Quicksand Castle!' Leylin stroked his chin.

Since the Magus Tower was yet to be completed, he could still take the chance to amend it now. If he waited until the defensive spell formations were activated, especially after the tower genie had been awakened, then he wouldn't be able to amend anything even if he wanted to.

"A.I. Chip! Design an improved version of the blueprint according to what I said earlier!"

Leylin had always liked to put the A.I. Chip in charge of the nitty-gritty things, while he himself was responsible for directing the big picture.

[Task established, adjusting original blueprint! Adding in simulated environment parameters from ancient times, beginning formation of the blueprint…]

The A.I. Chip operated swiftly and projected a new blueprint in front of Leylin within a few minutes.

Leylin scanned the blueprint many times, satisfied with the blueprint made by the A.I. Chip. "Yes! To maximize the use of the original resources and set-up, I just have to add a few items and spell formations! This will do!"

He now had numerous subordinates and a huge number of Stone tribe slaves. Once he handed down the task of amending the place, it would only take a small number of people working in shifts day and night for ten days to complete it.

Leylin stood at the side of the negative energy reactive pool on the lowest level, and examined the complicated spell designs. At the radiance of the pure gold, silver and other precious materials, his face showed no signs of sadness or joy, maintaining tranquility.

[Simulation of the spell formations of the entire Magus Tower complete, 341 dummy runs, number of malfunctions: 0!]

The blue glow of the A.I. Chip flashed in the depths of Leylin's eyes.

"Begin!" Leylin exhaled gently, and placed a piece of compressed energy crystal that was emitting immense light rays and heat, much like a miniature sun, into a groove at the heart of the spell formation.

Brr!* The entire spell formation started to shake, and ring after ring of runes appeared out of thin air. Traces of light circulated on the spell formation.

"Start!" Leylin's spiritual force extended and connected with the spell formation.

In the instant when the spiritual force came into contact with the spell formation, Leylin felt as though he had opened a valve, causing a multitude of energy particles to be frantically absorbed by the spell formation, before passing through a complex conversion channel and flowing into the negative energy reactive pool.

Meanwhile, outside the Magus Tower, Parker, Kubler, Snoopy and Leylin's other subordinates had all gathered to watch this scene, their eyes all brightly lit.

A huge elemental wave seemed to form a vortex that was absorbed by the black Magus Tower.

One by one, the magical runes on the body of the Tower lit up, bringing about frightening and yet stable waves, firmly connecting to one another.

Only Leylin was in the Magus Tower at that moment. He ran to the top of the Magus Tower at the speed of lightning and saw that the external appearance was almost the same, but the spell formation and storage pool gave off an entirely different vibe.

"Next, the positive energy reactive pool!" Leylin pushed the same high energy crystal into the groove, and the same activation spell appeared from Leylin's hands, merging into the four walls.

Boom!* At the top of the Magus Tower, a huge elemental wave practically condensed into a physical substance, energy particles of various colours emitting brilliant lights and vibrant colours.They quickly subsided into two rainbows, one bright and one dark.

Soon after, the bright rainbow was absorbed by the peak of the Tower, while the rainbow with a hint of gold submerged into the ground.

The positive energy reactive pool buzzed continuously, the elemental liquids within accumulating further and further until it finally reached the middle mark.

Two spheres of light that resembled stars emitted from the peak and underground of the Tower, spreading continually across the structure. Numerous runes lit up one by one, and finally converged at its centre.

[Magus Tower spell formation fully activated! Currently operating well!] the A.I. Chip pointed out.

At that point, Leylin was standing on the point of intersection of the positive and negative energy reactive pools. An unadorned scroll covered in bizarre floral designs appeared in his hands.

"Fourth-grade magic— the Scroll of Life!"

"A.I. Chip, prepare to inject knowledge into the being!"

Leylin ripped open the grey scroll, and rays of light burst out. Suddenly, a terrifying attractive force was transmitted from the scroll. The Vapour Phase spiritual force of his consciousness was consumed in huge quantities, and the process only came to a gradual stop when it was close to being exhausted.

1. 8% of the main structure of the Magus Tower has been scanned. Defence spell formation operation intact, areas that can still be further optimized: 2!

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Tower Genie #1

Of course, with how much of his wealth Leylin had expended on this, the power of the activation spell was not to be belittled.

A circle of sparkling starlight shrouded the tower. Numerous runes flickered in sync and breathed at the same rate, as if having lives of their own.

A faint blue figure began to form in front of Leylin. "Master, this tower genie is here to serve you!"

This tower genie had been branded by Leylin's spiritual force upon its birth.

In addition, it was one with the Magus Tower, and could help Leylin take care of any minute details that might be difficult to find.

"Alright. Here's my first mission. Accept this and fuse with it!" A blue seed shot out from between Leylin's eyebrows and quickly entered the blue tower genie's figure.

A multitude of data flowed across the tower genie's eyes, and a tremendous amount of complicated information even caused the newly-formed tower genie's figure to flicker, as it eventually turned into a ball of light.

By the time everything had stabilised, the A.I. Chip's robotic voice was produced from within the blue ball of light, [Digitization complete. The A.I. Chip system is now serving you. Please choose the exterior appearance.]

"A tree elf!" Leylin had never had anything against humanoid managers.

The blue ball of light shook, and eventually formed a blue elf the size of a human head, with a pair of wings formed of starlight.

"I'll call you Number 1 in the future." Leylin nodded, very satisfied with this intellectual body's external appearance.

"Understood. Number 1 greets Master!" The blue elf bowed, though its facial expression looked mechanical.

[Beginning networking.] Such an expression actually pleased Leylin more. What he needed was an absolutely rational manager, and from the very beginning, he had not built in any emotional functions.

With this command, a data interface connected Leylin's A.I. Chip with the elf using a stream of spiritual force.

[Beginning synchronizing of data. In the midst of tidying up] The A.I. Chip's voice sounded.

[Discovery of inharmonious spiritual force waves at three areas. Beginning elimination.] [Fusion with tower genie completed. Activation of anti-probing spell formation at full force.]

One after another, these prompts popped up, and the smile at the corner of Leylin's mouth grew wider.

Regular tower genies definitely lacked the terrifying calculation abilities of the A.I. Chip. The area that it could manage would only include the interior of the Magus Tower.

However, with what he was doing, not only could he control the interior of the Magus Tower from a distance away, he could even completely eliminate any damages that would otherwise have been hidden.

After fusing with the program that the A.I. Chip had duplicated, the tower genie had now become more intelligent, able to autonomously search for holes and repair them, and even take care of a few flaws or defects that had originally been there.

It could be said that even if Grand Duke Gilbert had done anything to the rank 4 scroll, it would have been pointless.

This was because Leylin had already modified the tower genie's structure with things of his own.

"Hah…" Leylin took in a long breath.

The construction of the Magus Tower, particularly the completion of the positive and negative energy reactive pools, now allowed the interior of the Magus Tower to have ten times the elemental particle concentration as outside.

The concentrated energy particles could even be seen with the naked eye, and for Magus eyes this was even more apparent. Leylin felt like he was surrounded by an elemental ocean.

The particle concentration in the central continent had already been very high, and that of this Magus Tower far surpassed that..

It could be said that in this environment, Leylin's progress in his meditation technique would not be too slow even if he did not use any potions. What was more frightening was that even trashy acolytes with a level 1 or 2 aptitude could break through their own limits and become official Magi if they studied and meditated here!

After recognising this, Leylin immediately made a choice. Unless there was anything terribly important, he would stay and settle down in the Magus Tower.

Outside the tower.

Parker and the others could not feel all this as keenly as Leylin, but after there was a rumble from the entire Magus Tower and it started emanating faint light, everyone still began to cheer. Even Kubler had shining tears at the corner of his eye.

A Magus Tower was a representation of strength in the central continent.

With a Magus Tower, and a Magus like Leylin who was viewed highly, regular Magi with Crystal phase spiritual force would not dare trespass in this area. In addition, with the large-scaled monitoring abilities of the Magus Tower, the rate of crime would definitely be lowered.

This signified that Leylin's power was secured, whether among mortals or Magi.

As a result, all the vassals who depended on Leylin were extremely moved.

Boom!* At this moment, with the sound from a power switch, the entrance to the Magus Tower opened up, revealing Leylin's figure.

"It's finally done. Come in and take a look!"

"Many thanks, Master!" A few Warlocks immediately bowed. They had contributed to the construction of the Magus Tower, and naturally wished to take a look at it.

"Ah! The concentration of the particles!" Upon entering through the entrance, they were immediately shocked by the terrifying concentration of particles in the Magus Tower.

"As expected of the Magus Tower that my lord personally constructed. If I had studied in this place from my youth, I might have been able to break through to the Hydro Phase spiritual force stage by this time…" Parker carressed the cold and rigid walls, almost feeling like sobbing.

"Based on your contributions, I will give you different amounts of authority within the Magus Tower, as well as assign you your own bedrooms, laboratory and the like." Seeing all his subordinates, Leylin immediately made a promise to reward them.

"Many thanks, Master!" Numerous Warlocks were immediately touched. They had never even dreamed of having a place in such a high-grade Magus Tower.

This was especially so for Parker. Though he had little hope of advancing, all he wanted was to pave the way for Snoopy. He had never expected this treatment at any point in his life, and was immensely grateful.

Leylin thought nothing of it. These Warlocks were all his subordinates, and ought to be given rewards. With the tower genie supervising, they wouldn't be able to do anything anyway.

He would only open up the guestrooms, living areas and a few laboratories to them. The core areas, the positive and negative energy reactive pool as well as control room were safely in his control.

As it was very likely that they would live and perform research here, Kubler and the others had a different reaction and emotion to this.

Leylin brought them to look at the few levels in the middle, passing by the living room, bedrooms, library, and all the way to the Magus Garden.

Leylin had set up this Magus Garden like those of ancient times. Though he had yet to transplant any plants here, some vegetation and precious plants were already growing lushly.

A green light shone down. All this was the accumulated life energy that had come from activating the Magus Tower, giving the vegetation a huge boost in nutrition and vitality.

"With the positive energy pool, the entire Magus Tower's water circulation uses the purest water elemental particles and turns them into water that is purified to the highest degree. The yield from this Magus Garden would be enough to provide for thousands of people if the incoming energy stays at its peak," Leylin introduced, sounding a little proud.

With the bonus from the Magus Tower, he could obtain a strength comparable to a Magus with Crystal Phase spiritual force, and even provide for over five thousand people in the tower!

With this ability and self-sufficiency, it would be considered an extremely frightful large fort in times of war.

The Magus Tower was a terrifying war machine, and its amazing strength was enough to obstruct any attempts at spying on them.

"This is my future base!" Leylin sighed in his heart, but a smile then appeared on his face. "To celebrate the completion of the Magus Tower, I will hold a feast in Onyx Castle tonight. Let us all revel!"

An intoxicating clamour spread throughout the room.

……

Night fell and Onyx Castle was filled with scenes of jubilation, with many female singers, dancers and entertainers presenting their art with all the energy they could muster. Waves of delicacies and fine liquor were constantly sent to the feast like running water.

As this was in the form of a family banquet, the rules were lax, and even regular nobles were invited.

Though the Warlocks had formed a circle of their own, they were not repelled by the clamour outside. All faces were brimming with smiles, full of hope for the future of their territory.

With Leylin's status, nobody dared disturb him. He drank a few glasses and encouraged his subordinates with a few words, and then secretly left the castle.

The moon hung high in the sky, silver moonlight spilling down. The night air held a chill to it and was just right for those who had consumed alcohol.

Of course, with Leylin's body, there were few wines that could get him drunk.

He came to the side of the Magus Tower. Here, due the superb detection abilities of the tower genie, the original guards had all been transferred out.

A ring-shaped rune suddenly brightened on Leylin's hand. "I'm here. Come over!" Leylin said, his tone holding within a command that was difficult to ignore.

A black figure appeared from the air, and came to stand silently beside Leylin. "Come with me."

The entrance to the Magus Tower opened up with a rumble, welcoming its master.

They went all the way to the reception room, and only then did Leylin's facial muscles relax as he took a seat on the sofa.

"Sit! You don't need to conceal yourself anymore here. My Magus Tower has powerful detection spell formations. Even the spying of Morning Star Magi can be recognised!"

The person in black robes hesitated, and then threw back her hood, revealing a pretty female face with a golden headband on her forehead.

"Master!" She exclaimed in a low voice. This female Magus was the fugitive Magus leader that Leylin had subdued, Tanasha!

Watching Tanasha taking a seat, Leylin asked slowly, "I hope there weren't any troubles on the way here."

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Deceit Seen Through

The Forgotten Land was very infertile and could be said to be a desert of the Magus world. Magi who travelled there were all fugitives who had been driven to desperation in the central continent.

Of course, Tanasha was no different. If her identity was exposed, it was not just her, but also Leylin who would be in deep trouble.

"No, I have been very careful so far. I didn't leave behind any information about my appearance or scent, and I did not use an airship!" she stated.

"Very well!" Leylin nodded. "Where are my things?"

"Right here!" A large black box appeared on the table with a swish of her hand.

Seeing the seal still perfectly untouched, Leylin gave a look of satisfaction. He opened the box, in which was a thick layer of soft white fur.

This was the King Blood Vulture's feathers. It contained the miraculous ability to conceal a bloodline's aura, and it had even fooled Leylin previously.

After brushing these white feathers aside, the energy waves of many bloodline treasures radiated out, surprising Tanasha.

A mountain of bloodline crystals and many strange bones, as well as fruits, rhizomes and such containing the power of bloodlines, were piled up messily, as if they were not of any monetary worth.

However, deep inside, Tanasha knew that once these items were revealed, it would greatly impact the Ouroboros Clan. Every single item in there could make a high-ranked Warlock go crazy!

Although she brought them over as per Leylin's orders, it was also by his order that she did not open the box. It was only then that she became aware of the contents of the box.

This was obviously Leylin's plan. When he acquired the loot in the pocket dimensions, he had already considered ways to get them past Gilbert.

After all, as the person who had sent out the information, he had already known long ago about Gilbert's arrival. How could he not have prepared for it?

Morning Star Warlocks' ability in detecting bloodline treasures was far exceeded Leylin's expectations. He had no confidence in hiding them at all. Hence, Leylin chose not to bring them with him.

Even if Gilbert monitored Leylin's spatial pouch and ring, he could only find some of the things that Leylin left behind intentionally. The real loot was all moved away by Tanasha.

With regards to this set up, it certainly was a decision that Leylin had made with determination.

Firstly, Tanasha had not only sworn her loyalty to him, but also allowed a part of her spirit source to be held by Leylin.

For a Magus, this kind of restriction was practically fatal. If Leylin destroyed that part of her spirit source, Tanasha would lose her mind even if she did not lose her life! On top of that, he deliberately won her over previously and agreed to take revenge for her. The assigned mission was just to transport an item. Leylin had some confidence in her.

For safety's sake, not only did he cast a sealing spell on the black box, but he also used the King Blood Vulture's feathers as a cover in order to conceal the bloodline energy waves of the treasures.

It seemed like the plan had succeeded.

Leylin looked at the pile of bloodline treasures, nearly laughing. Among the many bloodline energy waves, a fingerbone lay there quietly, yet majestically like a king. It made the other treasures seem less appealing.

Tanasha stared at the fingerbone as if she had seen her enemy, "What is this thing?"

Evidently, the aura of the fingerbone made her uncomfortable. This was unfathomable for a Crystal Phase Magus.

Even though it was just the remains of a creature, it had the power to make her so uncomfortable. How powerful could the living creature have been?

Tanasha fixed her eyes on Leylin. Now, she began to find this young Magus increasingly unpredictable.

"The Lamia fingerbone!" Surprisingly, Leylin answered the question directly.

"Tower genie, keep these items safely!" Leylin picked up the fingerbone and ordered the small blue elf beside him.

"Yes, my master!" The small elf held its chest and bowed. After that, a mechanical puppet walked over and took the black box to be stored in the treasury.

"Tanasha, come with me. I might need you later on!" Leylin called out to Tanasha with a downcast face.

Subsequently, he brought Tanasha all the way down to the room binding room before he came to a stop.

Powerful binding runes, energy-isolating runes, the power of corrosion, the weeping of vengeful spirits, gravity runes…

Tanasha looked at the runes on the walls as her expression darkened. With so many binding spells, even Tanasha, a Crystal Phase Magus, would have difficulties struggling her way out.

This led to an even deeper understanding of Leylin's financial capabilities.

"You set up such strict bindings. Do you intend to summon the great devil?" Tanasha asked, with a slightly provocative tone.

"No! This is only set up in case of an emergency. You know it— the astral plane is filled with all kinds of strange creatures. A little more preparation never hurts!"

Leylin's face carried an odd smile, "But never did I expect that the first subject that it would be used on, would actually be this!"

As a light shone from his right hand, the Lamia fingerbone in Leylin's hand immediately appeared at the center of the bindings. A strong sluice gate made of reinforced glass dropped and the many runes began to flicker.

The Lamia fingerbone lay there silently like a dead creature.

Tanasha held her breath. She knew that Leylin was probably going to show her something unusual.

"Tower genie, begin first-level operations of the bindings!"

Following Leylin's orders, the circle of lights in the binding room lit up all at once. An invisible power lifted the Lamia fingerbone.

"Start purification!" As per the tower genie's emotionless command, two small lightning clouds grew above the bone, streaks of lightning crackling as they burst towards it.

"I know you're still there. There's no need for the pretense! Come out!" Under the lightning, the white fingerbone appeared to be unaffected. However, Leylin had a straight face, with an expression as cold as ice.

After a few minutes, there was still no sign of any anomaly, causing Leylin to sigh deeply.

"Begin the next level of purification!"

"Authorisation verified! Inputting energy!" Upon hearing the tower genie's voice, the original two clouds began to transform immediately.

Dark, black clouds suddenly soared above the area, and the lightning acquired a subtle red hue. Thick bolts swept across the bone mercilessly, causing narrow cracks to surface on it.

"If you continue doing that, you'll destroy the fingerbone!" Tanasha looked at Leylin, but his expression did not stop, indicating he had no intentions of stopping.

Under the lightning that had been strengthened tens of times, the bone began to vibrate, as if it was going to explode into dust anytime.

Ring!* Just when Tanasha thought the fingerbone was about to explode, a strange scene suddenly appeared. A ring of green light burst out violently, with such a strong power radiating that it split the dark clouds apart in a second.

Hiss!* A touch of green light emerged. It then transformed into a phantom of a young, green-haired woman, now lunging towards Leylin.

Compared to what Leylin had seen previously, the image of the young woman was not only more illusory, but her face had also become a lot more complex, with rhomboidal scales. Her eyes were a sea of green and her pupils had become vertical slits.

As the Lamia's phantom swept her glance across with her pupils, Leylin's entire body became a little sluggish.

"Begin binding!" This time, the tower genie responded swiftly and gave an order.

Bang!* A loud sound echoed as the young woman's phantom crashed into the clear reinforced glass, causing the runes to flash.

Soon after, an enormous gravitational strength emerged and pinned the woman to the ground.

Ka-cha! Ka-cha!* A chain of runes appeared one after another, binding the green-haired Lamia's phantom.

After coming back to his senses, Leylin, who had broken out in cold sweat, could not help but draw a deep breath. "That was really close!"

Although he tried his best to overestimate the opponent, the terrifying feeling of having his mind being snatched had given him a fright all of a sudden.

This was the definite control that a high-ranked bloodline had over a low-ranked one. In face of the great gap between the ranks, all efforts were to no avail.

"You dare oppose me? The Grand Matriarch will not let you off, bloodline traitor!" The green tongue of the Lamia's phantom forked as she spoke.

"Sorry! I don't have the habit of obeying orders that'll cause me to lose my life!" Though Leylin apologised, he showed no sign of remorse on his face.

"The Giant Kemoyin Serpent is a rank 4 creature. It needs to obey the Lamia's bloodline, which is of a higher rank. This is branded deep into the inheritance of the bloodline and is not able to be changed!" The Lamia's phantom glared at Leylin and asked, "How did you escape?"

"How would I know?" Leylin swished his hands.

In actual fact, he had guessed that it might have a connection with his bloodline. Not only was the Giant Kemoyin Serpent's bloodline in him extremely pure, there was a great possibility that through the A.I. chip's purification, his bloodline differed from the original.

"What is this?" Tanasha stared at the Lamia with a look of curiosity surfaced on her face.

"The owner of the fingerbone. Just a projection of a destroyed, shattered and unwanted memory fragment!" Leylin spoke with disdain.

"When did you find out?" After seeing Leylin like that, the Lamia calmed down.

"I knew from the beginning!" Leylin said calmly.

"I am not someone who would sit and wait for rewards. I only believe in achieving things through my own efforts. Seeing how you took the initiative to come to me, there's no way I could let my guard down!"

Frankly speaking, Leylin basically believed the part about the other party being tired of staying in the King Blood Vulture's nest, but he could not believe that it would be so boring and despair-inducing that one would seek death.

Ancient Magi had strong mental endurance, and on top of that, she was an extremely powerful Warlock. How could she possibly be cowed by a long period of solitude?

Perhaps her true intention was to get out, or to seize a corporeal body with the help of Leylin!

A Giant Kemoyin Serpent Warlock which is suppressed by the ancient Lamia, was definitely a first-rate target to seize control of!

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Destroy

The moment Leylin used the Lamia fingerbone and fused with it, her remaining memory fragments would also fuse into his Giant Kemoyin Serpent bloodline, secretly lurking within.

When the time was right, the Lamia's sea of consciousness would burst forth. How could Leylin be a match for her?

It was not just the large gap between them in terms of their knowledge and experience. The inborn control in terms of his bloodline, as well as issues of how she would try to gain dominance over him would definitely put Leylin at death's door.

Having thought this through, Leylin's murderous intent towards the Lamia was at its boiling point.

However, he had not flared up but instead, pretended that he knew nothing. He waited till the Magus Tower was built, and once his most capable subordinate, Tanasha was at his side and increased his power to the maximum, he then lashed out on his home ground.

It looked like it had been a good idea to be so meticulous. If not, his opponent could have easily taken care of him.

"Shall we make a trade?" The scales on the Lamia phantom's face faded, returning her face to that of a young girl. Her delicate and pretty face even enchanted Tanasha, who was also female.

"What trade?" Leylin's voice was low.

"Help me find a flesh body. Anything is fine as long as they have the Giant Kemoyin Serpent bloodline, and it's best if it's a female Warlock. In return, I can give you all my knowledge. Though you'll only obtain a portion of the knowledge that my main body possesses, she is a rank 5 pure-blooded Warlock. Just a small bit of her memories is enough to make you strike gold…"

Calm words rang from the mouth of the phantom Lamia, causing Tanasha's breath to become rough.

Inheritance from an ancient rank 5 Warlock? Perhaps even Morning Star Magi would go crazy in want over this.

The price he had to pay was a mere female Warlock, and with just a bit of effort, he could find them easily in the Ouroboros Clan.

Clap! Clap! Clap!!*Leylin applauded, a slight smile on his face. "Good suggestion! What a great suggestion! Even I am tempted."

"Good! You can first—" The Lamia phantom's words stopped halfway, and a look of fury suddenly appeared on her face. "You!"

Countless chains tightened, binding her to the spot.

"Tower genie, use all stored energy and prioritise the bindings. The aim is to exterminate this person!"

"Tanasha, help me!" Leylin's face suddenly changed, and he made to deal the fatal blow.

Great amounts of thunder clouds were produced, lightning washing over the phantom time after time, causing her figure to become even more illusory.

Tanasha obeyed Leylin's order subconsciously, and her Crystal Phase spiritual force emanated, reinforcing the runes of binding.

"Traitor! The Grand Matriarch will not let you off! Hiss…" The phantom image eventually turned into a half-human, half-snake and hissed, her expression incomparably fierce.

"Let's talk about it when she finds me." Leylin's expression was resolute, constantly urging on the runes and spell formation of binding.

The inheritance from an ancient rank 5 Warlock was indeed very tempting, but Leylin had his own considerations.

The other party was merely a remnant spirit, and might even be the combination of a few memory fragments. How much could she remember?

And just for this, he would bring her around and let her scheme against him?

Though he was somewhat confident in his scheming abilities, Leylin was not certain that he could win over this ancient freak, especially when she could suppress his bloodline and was so enticing.

The ancient Lamia had started out enticing various giant serpent species, and Leylin did not want to unknowingly let her suggestions affect his mind.

For him, it was most practical to be able to take in harmless things. Everything else was an illusion!

"If you don't die, I can never be at peace." Leylin stared at the Lamia phantom behind the glass, a determined look in his eyes. "Maximise power!"

[Runes of binding operating at excess of 120% capacity. This is the most powerful attack.]

Along with the tower genie's voice, a streak of thick red lightning struck the phantom.

Rumble!* The Magus Tower began to tremble, and fine cracks began to appear in the binding area.

The phantom image of the Lamia seemed to have given up all hope as she dissipated to nothingness under the red lightning.

Pak!* A fingerbone with cracks all over its surface fell to the ground.

"It's over." Tanasha heaved a sigh of relief and glanced at Leylin as if she was looking at a freak, "That's inheritance from an ancient rank 5 Warlock! You actually…"

"I was, of course, tempted!" Leylin shook his head, "But it wasn't to the point that I would become muddle-headed in the face of it. Ancient Magi have too many methods. I wouldn't dare bring a disaster waiting to happen along with me at all times."

As he spoke, the tower genie constantly scanned the fingerbone in the binding room, streams of electric light moving across its surface.

[Level 1 scanning complete. No remnant spiritual force found.] [Level 2 scanning complete. No abnormal reactions found.] [Level 3 scanning complete. Confirmed total extermination of remnant spirit of Lamia.]

Red, green and blue rays shot out and scanned the fingerbone to and fro, not missing any spots.

A streak of blue flashed in Leylin's eyes, and he waited till the A.I. Chip gave the final confirmation before he issued the command, "Open up the protective layer!"

Shoo!* The tempered glass split apart. Bathed in milky-white light, the slightly cracked fingerbone floated to Leylin's hand.

Though it looked like a mere fragmented bone, the rejoicing of his Giant Kemoyin Serpent bloodline told Leylin that the moment he digested this bone, his bloodline would become so pure it would be unimaginable, and might even be able to help him advance!

'If Mentor Gilbert were to know about this, he would immediately fall out with me in order to obtain it. What ties we have as part of the same clan, our mentor-student relationship or ethics would mean nothing at all.' Leylin sighed inside. If not for the isolation by his Magus Tower, he would not dare take it out now.

'Though it's best if I use it right now, it has too much research value! Besides…' Leylin glanced at the data recorded by the A.I. Chip.

[Activity of Host Body's bloodline increasing. Maturation period of bloodline estimated to be in 124 years, 4 months.]

Though it was just some physical contact with his skin and the waves and energy radiation from the fingerbone, it had the legendary effect of Lamia Hair, allowing Leylin's bloodline to mature by a large amount.

"Based on the situation, I don't even need to absorb the bone. I can make use of the radiation to increase the rate of my bloodline's maturation by nearly tenfold!'

"Looks like I'll need to stay in the Magus Tower as much as possible from now on…' Leylin touched his chin and ordered the tower genie, "Keep the Lamia fingerbone well. Store it based on all procedures for special grade 1 materials."

[Understood, master.]

The little elf quickly took the Lamia fingerbone and vanished.

There was no other way around it. Bloodline Warlocks were extremely sensitive to this type of item. If Leylin brought it with him, not counting Lucian and the others, Gilbert would definitely sense it.

The only way was to make use of the powerful energy isolation abilities of the Magus Tower and conceal the undulations from its aura.

After taking care of all these matters, Leylin looked back and revealed a kind smile to Tanasha, "Alright. Tanasha, welcome!"

After going through such a secret matter together, he evidently had a better relationship with Tanasha.

Making use of this opportunity, Leylin invited Tanasha to have a look around his Magus Tower. Glancing at Tanasha, who was immersed while glancing at the Magus Tower constructed with top-grade materials, the corner of Leylin's lips quirked up in a smile.

"Can I know more about your past?"

Leylin asked after the tour of the living room, where the tower genie had a few puppets deliver hot cocoa and desserts to them.

"Since I am now with Master, I have nothing to hide…" Tanasha held her mug with both hands and looked pained, as if immersed in some memory.

"I am of the Madie Lands, in the Dark Lunar Forest at the western region of the central continent."

Leylin listened closely. It was just another story about profits, women and other things that gave rise to blood and hatred, which he was familiar with. He learned the name of Tanasha's enemy.

"Some large family in the Crescent Moon Zither Alliance?"

"Yes! If Master could take revenge on my behalf and extinguish the Swaine family, my body, spirit and everything will belong to Master!" Tanasha promised, looking determined as she delivered her oath.

After hearing Tanasha's story, Leylin did not agree immediately, but sank into deep thought.

Crescent Moon Zither Alliance was a small organisation in the central continent, but since he had heard of it before, there was definitely a Morning Star Magus in charge. However, that Magus was not of the Swaine family, so there was a way to interfere in this.

"I can agree to this, but it might be a long time till then. You need to be prepared." Leylin watched Tanasha's eyes attentively and spoke slowly.

Tanasha ran her fingers through her hair behind her ear, a wry smile about her lips, "I understand! I am already very happy that Master agreed."

Leylin was surprised. It looked like this was her only wish.

"Alright! As for your identity, I have no way to solve that issue yet. I'm afraid you'll need to stay out of sight or return to the Forgotten Land. Do you have any plans?" he asked.

She lowered her head and pondered over it, "I still have a few things to take care of in the Forgotten Land."

"Alright." Leylin nodded.

"One more thing. In the Forgotten Land, there is a Kobold tribe. I'll need the blood essence from the stronger ones, meaning rank 3 or above!" The Kobolds were rumoured to have the great giant dragon bloodline, and Leylin was very interested in this.

"That's not a problem. There are many powers with conflicts amongst each other within the Forgotten Land. Battles are common!" Tanasha nodded and agreed.

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Guest

Leylin holed himself inside the Magus Tower after its completion.

This was because the elemental particle concentration here far surpassed that of the outside, allowing his spiritual force to grow much. Furthermore, there were many high-level experiments that could only be done in the Magus Tower. Many of his previous theories could finally be put to the test.

More importantly, the Magus Tower could block out the probing of high-ranked Magi, turning into an elusive location which could hide Leylin's many secrets.

With those factors coming into play, it was natural that Leylin almost never left the tower, and had neglected both sleep and food to focus on his meditation practice and research.

Many top-notch results had been actualised with the A.I Chip's assistance, which had increased Leylin's own knowledge reserves.

In the gigantic library, Snoopy was trying his best to chain up a hysterical, screaming copper-coloured book that had pages filled with fangs, and properly settled it on a bookshelf made of black pinewood.

The library of a Magus was naturally extremely enriching, and represented the accumulation of its owner's knowledge.

Even though Leylin had the A.I Chip, he had previously collected many books from the south coast and Twilight Zone; the books were so plentiful that all the space was practically filled up. Now, they would have to tidy the books up and sort them out according to their different genres.

Other than that, the central continent was vast as well. Its accumulated knowledge was even more shocking. Leylin had always been actively purchasing books related to magic and a steady flow of such books were sent to the Magus Tower, which further enriched his collection.

His apprentice Snoopy was sent here to sort out and manage the conservation of the books.

Even if it was tough, he cherished this opportunity. Not to mention the stiflingly high concentration of energy particles in the tower, the chance to read so many books freely made him so happy that he could die.

Even if he had his head buried in books day in and day out, he would only have covered an insignificant portion of Leylin's collection.

Only now did he realise the depth of his Mentor's knowledge. Just the terrifying accumulation of information was enough for him to look up to Leylin.

At this time, in a room within the library, Leylin was sitting before a giant study desk, quill in hand, as he wrote with lightning speed.

Every second, tens of characters were jotted down, one after the other.

His astonishing speed as well as the coordination of spells allowed Leylin to perform a miracle unthinkable in his previous life.

A blue light glowed in his eyes as rows of words appeared unceasingly. He was actually trying to replicate all the information the A.I. Chip had recorded.

"All done!" Leylin looked at the messy yet seemingly organised documents on his desk, and his face revealed a satisfied expression.

"The entirety of the ecological garden's experimental data has been replicated. As for these…" Within the Quicksand Castle, Leylin's biggest gains were what he'd appropriated from the Blood Vultures. However, he had also found large amounts of miscellaneous data in the laboratory.

Due to the lack of the core information and the receptor model, the data could not be replicated at all.

But the other gains thereafter had allowed Leylin to see a glimmer of hope. In the spatial pouch of the Green-skinned Barbarian Magus whom Leylin had saved from a curse, Leylin had found some flawed research data and notes. From the looks of it, the forces in the outer circle had also obtained some data from their explorations.

Even though the other party had not managed to analyse any information, Leylin's deductive ability was very strong with the support of the A.I. Chip. He had instantly realised the connections between the data and the experimental information he had collected.

If he was not wrong, the torn and tattered journal he obtained from the Green-skinned Barbarian Magus was the core data that was missing in the laboratory!

Even though the Green-skinned Barbarian's collections were not complete, as long as Leylin had some form of data, albeit flawed, he would be able to derive the other information through deductions and simulations. It was only a matter of time.

After interactions with Tanasha, he had further improved the core data.

With his research, he gradually deciphered the experiments that were conducted in the gigantic laboratory.

"Studies on transferring and combining bloodlines?" Leylin held out a part of the deciphered content and muttered to himself.

Quicksand was undoubtedly an alliance of various Warlock organisations, and their research on bloodlines had never ceased.

Their experimental data was actually more in-depth and concrete than the research of the Ouroboros Clan, which had allowed Leylin to reach a whole new level.

'I have a premonition that if I finish analysing the experimental results and add them into my own A.I Chip's system, my research in bloodlines would advance to an unimaginable stage, even to the extent that I can directly extract genes from rank 1 and 2 bloodline creatures and assemble them into an ancient bloodline!' Excitement flashed across Leylin's eyes.

Bloodline shackles were the greatest pains to a Warlock. Those that had advanced to the peak of what their bloodlines would allow and reached a dead-end would normally choose to turn their attention to research on bloodline modulation and combination.

That was also the main direction of the research of the Ouroboros Clan.

While the three elders were looking for the Purgatory World, they were also trying to manufacture an even stronger bloodline by building upon the foundations of the Giant Kemoyin Serpent's bloodline, and from there onwards, break their own bloodline shackles.

Of course, until now, the experiments had made no progress to speak of, not to mention any hopes for success.

"From the looks of it, in this area, the ancient Warlocks have greatly surpassed us…" Leyin sighed as he held the data tighter in his hands.

If he did not experience a breakthrough after being promoted to a Morning Star Magus, or if his search for the Purgatory World were to fail, this would perhaps be his last hope.

"Tower genie! Store the bloodline research data well, at level 1 confidentiality!" Leylin issued the command.

Nowadays, he felt that it had been extremely worth it to construct the Magus Tower. If he didn't have one, let alone experimentation and information storage, how would he hide such a valuable object?

Just after Leylin had consumed some food and was about to start research, the tower genie suddenly appeared before him.

"Master! A strong radiation has been sensed south-east of the Magus Tower, about 200 kilometres away. Estimated to be a Magus of rank 3 or above!"

In terms of range of detection, the Magus Tower far surpassed the A.I. Chip. That was also one of the reasons why many Magi liked to construct a Magus Tower in their territory. The feeling one got when in complete control of their territory and that nothing could escape their eyes was extremely desirable. More importantly, they were able to protect their own interests.

Of course, in terms of accuracy, the Magus Tower could not measure up to the A.I. Chip. Currently, it could only scan for energy spikes, and could not concretely tell him how many people there were or even their genders.

Leylin was not too worried about that. Even when compared to all other Morning Star Magi, his Magus Tower was one of the best in the entire central continent.

As the enemies inched closer, the accuracy of the Magus Tower's scans would increase until it could project a proper image.

"It's them! I'm afraid I'll have to go out for a while." Leylin looked at the two silhouettes in the image and stood up, feeling a headache coming on.

At the same time, Kesha had arrived at Onyx Castle with another female Warlock.

Kubler, who was in a butler uniform, lowered his head, "Distinguished Marquis Kesha, my Master is currently conducting experiments in the Magus Tower. If you could rest here for a while, I'll inform him immediately!"

As a Mankestre Bloodline Warlock, his position in the Ouroboros Clan was very low, and he could only admire the highly-ranked Magi like Kesha. If he wasn't Leylin's vassal, he would not even have a chance to speak to her.

"There's no need for that. He's already here!" Kesha waved her hands, and a shadow from afar waved back.

"Hehe… How did Senior find the time to visit me here?" Leylin landed on the floor, his robes flowing in the wind. He nodded to Kesha as a form of respect, and looked at the other female Warlock.

The Warlock had jet-black hair that gushed like a waterfall until her waist. This was an effect of the darkness elemental energy particles in the Giant Kemoyin Serpent bloodline, but it matched Leylin's standard of beauty very well.

Her fair skin, gentle facial features and voluptuous body were what made many men find her unforgettable, but what left a deep impression on Leylin was her wild and reckless personality.

"Welcome to my castle as well, Marquis Freya!" Leylin's smile was a bit forced. Kesha, however, disregarded all societal expectations and came forward, giving Leylin a passionate hug.

"Leylin, I haven't thanked you for saving my life the other time! Originally, I had wanted to subsidise the construction of your Magus Tower, but from the looks of it now, you are so much richer than I am…" she remotely sighed, and appeared to be jealous as she stared at the splendor of the Magus Tower not far away.

"Keke… That's only some savings from a lifetime of risks!" Leylin touched his nose and said unabashedly.

"Alright. Freya and I came here today specifically to see you. Aren't you going to show us around?" Kesha curled her mouth. In front of close friends, she behaved in a feminine manner, and was sometimes even childish.

"Of course, of course, it'll be my pleasure. Please!" Leylin wryly stretched out his hands and locked arms with Kesha.

Inviting close Magi to take a look at one's Magus Tower, or even to reside and perform research there, was something many Magi used to strengthen their bonds with them. Leylin, of course, was not an exception.

Thanks to the manipulation abilities of his tower genie, things that he did not want found would be hard to discover while inside the tower, even for Morning Star Magi. Hence, there was no need to fear his secrets being exposed.

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The Trade

Leylin led Kesha and Freya around his Magus Tower.

Kesha oohed and aahed at everything, while Freya was much quieter, as though there was something on her mind.

"Whew… Junior Leylin, I take back what I said earlier. You're not only much richer than me, you're a lot richer than even Senior Lucian!" Kesha said, pleased. She was half-lying on the sofa in the living room without the slightest care about her wardrobe malfunction.

"In my opinion, even Lucian's Magus Tower might not be as luxurious as yours, Leylin! I'm afraid that only a handful in the entire central continent would be as fancy!"

"Senior! Don't say such things!" Leylin laughed wryly as he raised his arms in defeat, "Why are you here today?"

Seeing his mentor conversing with guests, Snoopy served refreshments and quickly retreated, behaving like a waiter that had been groomed with utmost care.

"We are here to thank you, junior, for your care in the pocket dimension. We'd initially planned to compensate you with resources, but by the looks of it, you aren't short on them, so we'll have to make it up to you through other means…" Kesha licked her lips, "How about letting me keep you company for few nights? Any position works…"

"Hmm! Let's talk about this another time…" Leylin laughed and changed the topic.

"Hmph! You're still as boring as ever!" Kesha shook her head regretfully, "On Freya's end, she's here to ask a favour of you, hoping to make a trade with you!"

"A trade?" Leylin had his doubts, and instantly recalled the previous incident at the trading hall.

"Not that kind of trade! Of course, if Lord Leylin is willing to sell his seed, I will offer a high price!" Freya giggled with her hand over her mouth.

"I don't have any plans in this area just yet!" Leylin said with a straight face, realising that speaking to these women was indeed very tiring.

As though afraid to anger Leylin and cause the trade to fall through later, Freya was very obedient and didn't dare tease him.

"Actually, I'm offering a high price for a certain material that you possess."

"Which material?" Leylin put his guard up in a split second.

"Bloodline crystals!" Freya took a deep breath and looked at Leylin expectantly.

"Oh, that!" A look of understanding flashed in Leylin's eyes. Bloodline crystals had the potential to strengthen bloodlines, and even had the powerful effect of purifying them. Although they did not have much effect on Leylin, a Warlock whose bloodline was already purified to its limit, it was a priceless treasure to Freya whose family's bloodline was showing signs of degradation.

"But… how did you know about them?" Although the question was posed to Freya, Leylin's eyes were fixated on Kesha.

Under Leylin's gaze, Kesha couldn't help but feel uncomfortable, before sitting up and saying arrogantly, "That's right! I told her. You still have leftover bloodline crystals from the time when you performed the exchange with Mentor, right? You don't have any family, so you don't need them urgently. On the other hand, Freya is a good friend of mine, and the price she's willing to pay will definitely satisfy you!"

Leylin stroked his chin. What he handed out on the Black Scale previously was only a portion of his possessions. He still had a secret stash of a few pieces in his spatial ring.

Of course, this was done on purpose for Gilbert to see. Otherwise, even a regular human would be suspicious of such a generous student.

There was no way sly old Duke Gilbert would believe him to be without a trace of selfishness, especially as a Magus.

Thankfully, everything went as Leylin had expected. Although Gilbert knew that Leylin had a stash in his spatial ring, he didn't pursue the matter, and instead was more assured.

Leylin's secret stash was not tempting enough for Gilbert.

From the looks of it, Gilbert didn't care about it, but that didn't mean that other high-rank Warlocks didn't. He must have been spreading the news, or else Kesha would not have known either.

"Bloodline crystals… I still have one remaining piece, but you should be very clear of its value. How much can you pay for it?" Leylin muttered, tapping his finger on the table rhythmically, as though struggling with the thought.

In actual fact, he had already decided to sell off all the materials he had shown, or else many people would have their eye on these items.

This time, it was Kesha and Freya, who were close to him. In the future, however, if crazier people like Miranda or Senior Lucian came over, what should he do?

Freya and Kesha exchanged looks of joy.

As long as they were willing to offer a price, everything would be settled. Their families had profound backgrounds and possessed much that was enticing to Leylin. Since Freya had made special preparations before coming, the items must be even more tempting.

"A set of the Hydro and Crystal Phase spell formations that have been passed down the generations in our family. They can increase the success rate when compressing your spiritual force by 10%!" Freya's first sentence made Leylin's eyes light up.

The compression spell formations inherited by such high-ranked Warlocks could not be compared to the normal goods exchanged in the Trading Hall of the Ouroboros Clan.

Furthermore, the other party was also a Giant Kemoyin Serpent Warlock, so the spell formations developed would be even more appropriate for bloodline Warlocks.

"That's not enough!" Leylin kept a straight face.

"And this!" Freya pushed a red box before Leylin.

The box was small and had a grainy wooden texture, likely made from some bark. A loop of fiery red energy particles surfaced on the box, forming multiple seal patterns.

"What?!" Leylin furrowed his brows and blew lightly on the box.

Whoosh!* Powerful yet fine black darkness elemental energy particles whizzed by, and the seal on the box started to disintegrate, tearing apart inch by inch.

"As strong as a Crystal Phase Magus!" Kesha gasped in awe, "The amplification from your Magus Tower is really terrifying!"

Freya was also shocked. She had purposely left the seal on the box as it was, with the intention of testing the waters, but it looked like Leylin's abilities in his Magus Tower were far beyond her expectations.

As a matter of fact, within the amplification boundaries of the Magus Tower, Leylin could not only display strength comparable to a Crystal Phase Magus, but could even manipulate the energy particles in the positive and negative energy reactive pools to replenish what had been depleted. His magic power was endless.

If any average Crystal Phase Magus were to enter, they would waste all their spiritual force against him.

It could be said that within the range of his own Magus Tower, the only ones that struck fear in Leylin were Morning Star Magi.

In response to the exclamations made by the two women, Leylin's expression did not change, as he opened the box.

At the bottom of the box was a thick layer of soft, pure white velvet.

And right in the centre of the velvet cloth was a red octagonal gemstone. A few intricate gold runes were swirling around in the jewel, much like tadpoles.

[Hall's Jewel. Rarity: One of the three ancient wondrous items. Has the ability to greatly boost the compression of a bloodline Warlock's spiritual force, and can increase the success rate of advancement to the Hydro Phase by 50%.]

The A.I. Chip swiftly transmitted the corresponding information to Leylin's brain.

'It's actually Hall's Jewel!' Leylin was unable to mask his excitement. 'Haven't these materials been lost since ancient times?'

With this gemstone, coupled with the Hydro Phase spell formation, his spiritual force would naturally enter the Hydro Phase without a bottleneck once he had sufficient spiritual force.

It was obvious how important this object would be to him.

Leylin took a glance at his condition that was presented in his consciousness.

[Leylin Farlier. Rank 3 Warlock (Vapour Phase). Bloodline: Giant Kemoyin Serpent. Strength: 23.6, Agility: 20.1, Vitality: 39.1, Spiritual force, 251.7; Magic power: 251(Magic Power synchronized with spiritual force)]

'The minimum spiritual force required to enter the Hydro Phase is estimated to be around 300!' Leylin recalled the statistics he had obtained from many simulated experiments through the A.I. Chip.

'And with the Lamia fingerbone, if I artificially strengthen my bloodline, the rate of increase of my spiritual force wouldn't be too slow either, and I may attain it in a few decades!'

The two obstacles in a Magus' progress would be accumulating spiritual force and breaking through the bottleneck.

Now that the problem of a bottleneck had already been solved by Freya, what's left was to slowly accumulate spiritual force. How could this not be a cause for joy?

Although Leylin tried to keep a straight face, Freya managed to catch a glimpse of happiness flicker across his face.

"It seems that Sir Leylin has taken a great liking to this item!" she smiled sweetly.

"Yes, the Hall's Jewel is enough to make any Vapour Phase Magus go crazy!" Leylin nodded.

"If it's appropriate to ask, may I know where you found it? The Hall's Jewel should have been wiped out with the extinction of the Sea of Gemstones!" Leylin stated his doubts.

"The Sea of Gemstones did vanish a long time ago, but it still existed in ancient times!" Freya smiled in response, "As long as you find more ruins from ancient times, it is still possible to find these gemstones."

'So this was the aim of their previous expedition…' Thinking about how they returned full of severe injuries previously, and how even the Second Elder was forced to take action, Leylin felt his scalp go numb, and the gemstone even heated up.

"I initially wanted to give it to you without any conditions, but…" Freya expressed her regret, but Leylin was secretly afraid.

Thankfully, he owned something that she wanted, or else he would have a hard time deciding if he should accept the Hall's Jewel should she have really sent it over as a present.

Once he took the bait, the other party would tempt him with more benefits in the future, landing him in a trap until he willingly married into her family.

Sadly, in the history of Magi, many with shockingly excellent inherent skills but yet without a background or much status were enticed into marrying into other families in this manner.

Although both parties would be satisfied in the end, Leylin was different from them.

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Living in Seclusion

Compared to those warlocks who were talented but had no background, Leylin was much more extravagant.

With the A.I. Chip in his hands, his learning and operating abilities were far better than other common Magi.

These in turn resulted in increased productivity, allowing him to earn sufficient resources for his practice and research.

Hence, he did not need to look for support from a large clan like other Magi did in order to obtain the required supplies, academic knowledge and so on. However, due to the many secrets he had, he had no choice but to stay alone as much as possible and conceal his secrets in the darkness.

As such, until now, he had never once thought of finding a partner. Those times when he slept with women were only to have fun, or to satiate his needs. If Freya used the Hall's jewel to seduce him, that would be a headache for him.

Luckily, he now had in his hands something that she needed urgently, and things would not get so complicated.

Moreover, although the bloodline crystal could not eradicate the issue of the other clan's bloodline weakening, there was still hope to delay it for a period of time. This would give Leylin some time.

"How is it? Are you satisfied with the exchange?" Kesha curled her lips out of what seemed to be injustice and said, "If this is still not enough, then count the two of us in. In order to obtain the bloodline crystal, Freya is ready to put everything at stake anyway……."

"That's enough!" Leylin nodded, pretending that he had not heard the other part of Kesha's words.

"The two of you, please wait a moment!" He rose and turned into another corridor.

After Leylin left, the two female Magi relaxed at once. They knew that the entire Magus Tower and especially the interior, was all under Leylin's control. However, it felt different when he wasn't around.

The two women even seemed to have a faint hope that their words would reach Leylin through the tower genie.

"How is it? Are you reassured now?" Kesha fell lazily onto the soft couch, the slit in the lower part of her gown vaguely exposing her snow-white thighs.

"Yes!" Freya heaved a sigh of relief, but it seemed as if she was disappointed.

"Actually, the bloodline crystal can only relieve the deterioration of the bloodline for at most a century. When the time comes, what is to happen is inevitable. Moreover, using the bloodline crystal repeatedly will cause its effects to weaken sharply, ultimately making it completely ineffective!"

It seemed as if Kesha was bewitching Freya, "Hence, the safest method is still to absorb fresh blood! With the degree of pureness of Leylin's bloodline, your clan will not have to worry about this for the next few centuries!"

"Then why aren't you doing that?" Freya blushed slightly as she threw a question back at Kesha without backing down.

"Of course I want to, but it's not like you haven't seen it. This method doesn't work on him. What else can I do?" Kesha sighed, took a few steps forward and raised Freya's chin with her finger, "Such a beautiful and pure female Magus, and that guy isn't even tempted. Is he really made of stone?"

"Sister Kesha isn't lacking either……" An indistinct smile flashed across Freya's eyes as she clasped both hands around Kesha's waist.

"It seems that I've got to teach you a lesson this time……" Kesha grinned and gave Freya a kiss on the lips.

"……"

Leylin, who saw the scene through the tower genie, could not help but be a little dumbstruck. These women were indeed wild and playful, and were even completely unscrupulous in trying to tempt him.

Unfortunately, Leylin could see but could not touch them. He had to control his bloodline, which made him feel slightly depressed.

"However……" Leylin smirked slyly.

Previously, he did not dare to sleep with women because he was afraid that they would use techniques and spells to steal his bloodline. However, ever since he'd obtained the research data regarding the composition of bloodlines from Quicksand Castle, his knowledge of bloodlines had deepened.

If he was given a little more time, he could definitely develop a technique that would not leak out his seed and keep the source of his bloodline. If it were to be combined with the A.I. Chip, even if those women coveted his bloodline, they would not have a chance of getting anything out of him.

When that time came, the expressions of those women who had suffered a loss in order to obtain the bloodline, would surely be very interesting.

As for now?

Watching the sexy scene on the screen made a faint anger rise in Leylin. It seemed that he would have to order Kubler to buy some beautiful female slaves to extinguish the fire within him.

Leylin was always unwilling to make things unfair for himself. Everything he had must be the best, regardless of the aspect.

After all, what's the point in having eternal life if he could not enjoy the pleasures of the world?

Although he wanted to join in, Leylin still waited in a gentlemanly manner for more than ten minutes before entering the living room.

The living room had already been tidied and cleaned, and the clothes on the two women were extremely neat without a speck of dust. Their expressions were very calm, as if they had done nothing but wait for him during this entire time.

Leylin smiled as his nose twitched slightly. He noticed a very special scent in the air, which carried a slight aroma and an even more unique flavour he was familiar with.

While watching his movements, Kesha and Freya could not help but blush.

It was only when Leylin saw Kesha almost jumping in anger that he laughed, putting an end to his silent provocation. He then placed a silver tray on the round table.

"This bloodline crystal is the last in my inventory. If I had a family, I would never have brought it out to exchange…"

As he spoke, the two women's gazes were attracted to the rich, scarlet radiance that was emitted from the bloodline crystal.

"We are very grateful for your generosity! Hopefully, our friendship will be able to continue on forever!" When it came to business, Freya's face no longer had the shyness from before. What replaced it was an extremely solemn expression.

"Yes, yes!" Kesha nodded in agreement beside her, along with a hopeful gaze towards Leylin, "I heard from Mentor Gilbert that you were very dishonest that time and even hid some of the precious remains of ancient creatures. Come on, share them with us too…"

As Leylin watched this senior of his whose eyes were almost sparkling with radiance, he could not help but shake his head and laugh wryly.

……

"Leylin, Mentor told me to inform you to be more cautious these days. If there's nothing going on, do not exit the Ouroboros Clan's boundaries." At the time of parting, Kesha whispered into Leylin's ear.

"What?!" Leylin was startled, but he swiftly gathered his thoughts and asked, "Is it because of Demon Hunter Cyril?"

"That's right. He's a Morning Star Magus after all, and just by revealing his intentions of attacking, many Magi wanting to get into his good books would do all the work on his behalf without him even lifting a finger. This is especially so for Magi of Nefas. They are rather insane…"

A wry smile emerged on the corner of Kesha's lips, "It's not just you. Robin and I were also given the same order by Mentor!"

After a long silence, Leylin nodded with a smile. "I understand. It just so happens that I've been wanting to take a break for a while now. The Magus Tower has also just been built, and I have yet to begin any experiments as of yet… For the next few decades, I can't leave this place!"

"That's good then!" What Kesha was most afraid of was that this junior of hers, with his youthful vigour, would get himself in trouble outside. However, it seemed like Leylin was acting very rationally. She could not help but feel gratified.

She hugged Leylin before leaving with Freya.

As he watched the silhouette of the two women disappear before his eyes, Leylin's smile slowly faded into a dark, gloomy expression.

"Morning Star Magus, Cyril……" He was already an adult before he crossed over to his world, and his experiences were far richer than any other Magus. Naturally, he would not venture out and land himself in danger due to momentary rage. That was something only a fool would do.

When it was time to withdraw, Leylin did not mind hiding in a tortoise shell.

As for his reputation, honour and such? With his life in jeopardy, none of those mattered.

However, Leylin was still unhappy about the Morning Star Magus' pettiness and grudge-holding attitude, especially when he recalled the time when the other party attacked without considering his reputation. If he had not prepared in advance and gotten Mentor Gilbert's reinforcements, Leylin would have died there.

"The Great Morning Star Magus is just like a star in the sky, bright and radiant, as if everlasting…" Leylin glance in the direction of Nefas as a sneer emerged on his face.

"However, even if it is a star, it's bound to be extinguished one day, what more Demon Hunter Cyril. I look forward to the moment you fall from the sky…" In his heart, Leylin had already decided that when his skills surpassed the other party, he would definitely fulfil Cyril's destiny of death.

……

Of course, on the surface, Leylin had not exposed his intentions at all. After Kesha's warning, Leylin had been keeping a low-profile and hid in his Magus Tower. He even avoided going to the headquarters as much as possible.

On one hand, there were a lot of experiments and tasks to work on. But a larger reason was that he actually had problems with the materials.

The Magi who coveted what he had numbered far more than just Freya.

Fortunately, he was now a Vapour Phase Magus and was considered a high-level Magus in the organisation. Furthermore, after building the Magus Tower, he was comparable to a Crystal Phase Magus in his territory and could not be trifled with.

In addition, many Magi would reconsider and wonder if it was worth it to offend a promising young man like him just for material items of lesser significance than Leylin's potential.

As such, his days went by relatively peacefully.

Of course, this was all possible since the fact that he had secretly ordered Tanasha to carry the resources had not been divulged. If not, there was no need to think about the effects this would have on the Magi's relationship would Leylin. Even Morning Star Magi would get involved!

He obviously hoped to sell those items as soon as possible to avoid others having their eye on them. After all, this bit of his harvest was only a drop in the ocean for him. However, if he sold them too easily, it would very likely attract suspicion. This was why the whole process had been delayed.

After a year of waiting, Leylin finally had the opportunity to sell off the rest of the remains of high-energy creatures in his possession at a high price, by commissioning the Ouroboros Clan to auction it. These items were ultimately bought by Lucian.

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Century

After settling the troublesome matters, Leylin's life sank into complete serenity.

Everyday, other than meditating at fixed times and using the Lamia fingerbone's radiation to mature his own bloodline, he was cooped up in the laboratory. He had already completely recovered the information on bloodline combinations. Besides that, he would patrol his territory and mentor Snoopy on occasion.

Such peaceful days were hard to come by. With the passage of time, his strength was slowly increasing, and was something worthy of rejoicing over.

Before anyone knew it, Leylin's authority had been firmly set in place in his territory. The gigantic Onyx Castle towered on this piece of land, becoming the nucleus of power in this world. With the years rolling by, it left its mark on history.

Apart from being indestructible, the castle now had some history to it, which was something only the castles of true nobility could accumulate.

The only constant was the huge Magus Tower nearby, its everlasting glow seemingly eternal.

Inside the tower, Leylin lay on a huge experimental desk half-naked, his firm muscles visible. A few robotic arms were holding a translucent crystal ball above him, releasing blood-red rays that swept across his body. His eyes were closed, as if trying to sense something.

If one looked through the surface of the crystal ball, they could faintly see a milky-white fingerbone suspended at the center of the crystal ball, emanating a mysterious light.

The entire process lasted for a total of two hours before the robotic arms retreated back into their valves. Leylin then opened his eyes.

However, his pupils had now turned amber, still containing an ominous glint.

The moment he opened his eyes, the tools in front of him all became ash-grey, turning into stone. The alarms from various apparatus began to ring unceasingly.

Leylin lowered his head, deep in thought, 'The bloodline is too rich… that can be a problem as well.'

When he raised his head once more, the amber in his eyes had faded, instead replaced by a pair of bottomless black pupils.Yellow skin rustled as he tore a layer of his body and threw it aside.

The skin still had fluids and traces left behind by the scales.

Leylin continued to tear off his dead skin, as though he was a molting like a snake.

"This is already the third time I'm undergoing molting!" Leylin looked at the molted skin as helplessness flashed across his face.

Warlocks' advancement was done through meditation and transforming the body, progressing towards becoming ancient creatures.

It could be said that the higher-ranked the Warlock was, the less human they would be. The same held true for Warlocks of the Ouroboros Clan.

Since Leylin's bloodline was that of a Giant Kemoyin Serpent, he naturally would undergo molting periods in his growth. However, under the radiation of the Lamia fingerbone, the molting process had been greatly expedited.

"Tower genie, prepare warm water for my bath." The tower genie acted quickly under Leylin's order. Before he'd even reached the designated bathroom, steaming hot water had been prepared.

Water elemental particles had been condensed into a pure liquid, and had been made extremely suitable for the bodies and skin of Warlocks through specialised proportions.

Leylin lay contentedly in the bathing pool made of black marble. As he looked at his fair and smooth skin, his eyes faintly phased out.

Every single time he molted, his strength would see a rapid increase. The rate of his advancements recently had been truly terrifying.

Leylin looked at his palm. Who would have thought that these ordinary slender hands could hide such extraordinary power?

'How time flies. This leisurely life of mine has gone on for a century now?' Leylin sank into deep thought.

Indeed, nearly a hundred years had passed since his foray into the Forgotten Land.

Such a long period of time was enough for commoner families to have passed between four to five generations, yet all this did for Leylin was make him look more mature. Given his life expectancy as a high-ranked Warlock, he could be said to still be in his teens.

In this last century, Leylin had maintained a low-profile lifestyle, immersing himself in research and drawing links between his own knowledge base and that of the central continent. He had even reached the boundary in multiple areas.

The A.I. Chip's data had also been updated several times.

[Leylin Farlier: Rank 3 (Hydro Phase) Warlock. Bloodline: Giant Kemoyin Serpent; Strength: 30, Agility: 30, Vitality: 45.5, Spiritual force: 315.6, Magic Power: 315 (Magic power in synchronization with spiritual force)]

Through the Lamia fingerbone's maturation of his bloodline, even without the consumption of spiritual force potions, Leylin's spiritual force increased day by day, up to the point where he fulfilled the requirements to advance to the Hydro Phase.

20 years ago, Leylin had used the Hall's Jewel and Hydro Phase spell formation to finally condense his spiritual force, breaking out of Hydro Phase.

There were, even more, merits to the maturation of his bloodline. His strength and agility, which had stagnated for a long time, experienced an exponential growth, while his vitality steadily increased as well.

Once both strength and agility reached 30, Leylin knew that even the Kemoyin Giant Serpent bloodline could not lead to an indefinite increase in these areas. This was probably his current limit.

Similarly, the increase in vitality from every consecutive molting was diminishing. It seemed like it, too, would slow to a crawl.

Leylin clenched his fists, feeling the surge of strength within. 'Just the radiation from the Lamia fingerbone could bring about so many benefits,' he muttered to himself as he felt the increase in power from the molting, his blood bursting with vitality.

Outside the bathroom, two pleasant voices similar to that of an oriole sounded, "Master, it's time for lunch!"

Leylin smiled and exited the bathroom.

Two teenage girls in maid costumes were kneeling on the two sides of the bathroom. They showed not a tinge of bashfulness when he walked out stark naked, using a large white towel to dry him and dressing him in a loose robe.

It was clear that these two emitted energy waves unique to rank 1 Magi, and they possessed a special charm.

They were actually Warlocks! Even though they were only rank 1 and did not have a pure bloodline, they were still hard to come by.

They were Warlocks under Leylin's guidance. The two were actually sisters who came from the same family tribe of Giant Mankestre Snake Warlocks. Due to the restrictions of their bloodlines, their position in the Ouroboros Clan was very low. Once Leylin had released news that he was hiring, the family had immediately sent these two sisters to serve him in his tower.

The Magus Tower was extremely dangerous. Even its living quarters had large amounts of radiation, and commoners would not be able to live on the premises. Only Magi were suited to stay within.

Leylin's Magus Tower was naturally only open to a few of his acolytes and subordinates. Even though they were only given access to the living areas and a few laboratories, it was more than enough for them to be moved to tears.

"Mentor!"

In the dining hall, Leylin saw Snoopy. That kid had already advanced to become a rank 2 Warlock. For his Black Horrall Snake bloodline and meager natural aptitude, it was considered a great feat.

"Mmm!" Leylin nodded his head lightly and sat at the head of the table. The two twin sisters immediately served delicious food.

"How's the cleanup of the library going?" Leylin asked Snoopy while eating.

During the organisation and influx of books into the library, Leylin had noticed Snoopy's passion for them and decided to just hand the entire place over for him to manage.

"It's going well! Only area B-3 has experienced some mild oxidation, but I've already asked the tower genie to isolate the region and deal with it." he humbly answered.

"Also, the captives locked up in the experimental areas have become more irritable, and the rate of energy consumption of the binding rooms has risen by 1.9%…" This next bit caught Leylin's attention.

After lunch, he went to the basement of the Magus Tower.

Boom! Pow!* The intermittent noises he heard after entering the area caused him to frown.

He came to the area outside the binding room. Through the reinforced glass, he could see a large red-eyed Kobold. Large amounts of drool were dripping from his mouth as he rammed his head into the walls repeatedly.

Every time he did that, a thick blue electric current would shoot at the Kobold's body, burning its reddish-beige scaly exterior to a charred black.

Leylin frowned and ordered, "Retrieve its information!"

The tower genie projected a screen in front of Leylin's eyes. The densely-packed words and figures of the surgical journal and surveillance footage were laid out in front of him.

'After the initial bloodline strengthening experiment, symptoms of hysteria appeared on the eighth day?' Leylin stroked his chin.

"This Kobold has no more observational value. Get rid of it and send its carcass to the dissection room!"

"Authority verified! Getting rid of the Kobold!" The tower genie answered without emotion. After all, it had been programmed to put Leylin's orders as the first priority.

Swish!* A black light streaked across the sky, and the hysterical Kobold that was confined immediately fell to the ground.

In the blink of an eye, this terrifying Kobold, who had been so close to reaching rank 3, completely perished, without being able to put up a fight at all.

The prison gates then opened, and a few adamantine puppets carried the lifeless Kobold carcass out on a stretcher.

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Precipitation And Strength

After seeing what happened, the Kobolds bound in the center huddled up together, fearful of the demonic Leylin.

Looking at the fear in their eyes, Leylin nodded his head, "The rest of the experiments look alright!"

The fear represented sanity, which meant they were still worth keeping alive. These Kobolds being here was naturally Tanasha's handiwork.

After receiving Leylin's order, not only had she collected a large amount of high-grade Kobold blood, she had even captured a group of captives and sent them to Leylin.

In the midst of working on Quicksand's bloodline experiments, Leylin gladly accepted these gifts with pleasure and used them in his research.

Right now, the results were rather positive.

Leylin looked at the rest who were bound in the center. Their general was well-built at over two metres of solid muscle covered with a dense layer of scales. The horn on his head was also thick and bulky.

"I did not expect the rumors about the Kobolds possessing the giant dragon bloodline to be true after all…" Leylin took out a tube of golden blood from his pouch.

The tube of blood carried a powerful aura. Even the cowering Kobolds who were covering their heads in the corner raised their head unanimously and looked at the tube in his hands, their eyes filled with desire.

"The quintessential bloodline of the Ancient Red Dragon!" Leylin gasped. As long as he was willing to give up this ancient bloodline, with the high-grade meditation technique of Dragon King's Mystic Might that he'd obtained in the subterranean world, he could have turned any of the Kobolds into a terrifying first generation Dragon bloodline Warlock in a flash.

But before he'd conducted more research on methods of restriction, such a thing would be equivalent to Leylin creating unnecessary trouble for himself, which he didn't want.

Even though his bloodline was already finalized, the experiments of the ancient Quicksand Organisation did inspire him tremendously.

For instance, one of the fields he was interested in was the ignition of another bloodline to strengthen himself. He had constantly paid attention to that area of research.

Upon confirming that all the hubbub was raised by that one crazed Kobold, Leylin soon left the place and reached the experimental area for spells.

After molting, he urgently needed to train his control of his powers.

The Magus Tower's spell experimental area was built with the strongest alloy, and had specialized registers and targets for testing. The strength and durability was high enough to withstand any spell at rank 3 or below.

"Beginning with rank 1 innate spell, Kemoyin's Scales…" Leylin's entire body was soon covered with exquisite black scales, this time slightly differing from before. Multiple decorative designs extended across them to form a symbol. The outer layer had another bright membrane on top, forming a second layer of defense.

This was the advantage of an innate spell. When a Magus attained enough power, their innate spell would improve with them and become stronger, displaying the power and effects of higher-grade spells.

The same went for the bloodline inherited spells of Warlocks. The stronger the bloodline, the greater the amplification of the innate spell's power.

"Initiation of test!" The tower genie hovered next to Leylin

Ever since he had the tower genie, Leylin had allocated most of the A.I Chip's tasks to the tower genie instead. The freed-up processing power of the A.I Chip were then accumulated and used by Leylin to be spent on deducing more important tasks.

The elemental rays dazzled. Numerous elemental particles appeared and coagulated, ready for attack.

It started with the commonly seen earth, fire, and water elemental attacks. After which, there were attacks by special light and darkness elemental particles, followed by various fused spells.

Lightning, hail, blades of wind, and balls of fire all burst onto Leylin's body, their power unceasingly rising.

Buzz buzz!* A black radiance emitted from the Kemoyin scales and formed a layer of defence around Leylin's body, which had repelled those frightening attacks.

The violent energy particles had a sustained attack of ten minutes or so. After which, the tower genie's voice intonated once again, "Spell resistance test completed. Physical defense test initiated."

The moment the words were spoken, the attacking spells vanished and the ground crackled as it split apart to reveal an entry valve. Adamantine puppets appeared from within, wielding huge steel swords, hatchets, heavy hammers, and other large weapons. They started attacking Leylin.

For the next half hour, an unceasing rumbling could be heard.

The tower genie flapped its invisible wings as it flew towards Leylin and reported, "Kemoyin's Scales defense test completed!"

A numerical report was then clearly projected forth.

[Giant Kemoyin Serpent Warlock rank 1 innate spell — Kemoyin's Scales (Augmented: Rank 3) Spell Resistance: 160 degrees. Physical Resistance: 175 degrees.]

"With this sort of resistance, I'm basically immune to the common rank 2 spells," Leylin nodded with extreme pleasure.

Next was the testing for the Eye of Petrification and Toxic Bile. After comparison, the degree of power of the Eye of Petrification had reached the apex of rank 2, although there wasn't any other strengthening of the foundation.

On the other hand, Toxic Bile's terrifying poison attack had quietly crept passed its boundary and reached the rank 3 realm.

"This bloodline strengthening has benefitted me so much!" Witnessing his own innate spells getting more powerful, Leylin couldn't help but sigh in pleasure.

For an average Warlock, they depended on their own bloodline to spur on their advancements to the next level, whereas for him, he had advanced too soon in the past and his Giant Kemoyin Serpent bloodline couldn't keep pace with his strength. This had resulted in a lack of advancements in his rank 1 and 2 spells.

And now? He had finally caught up with the other Warlocks who had progressed over many years, enabling his innate spells to match, if not exceed, theirs!

After testing several of his own innate spells, Leylin asked in silence, "A.I. Chip, how did the simulation go?"

[Rank 3 spell derivation progress currently at 98.9%!]

The A.I. Chip's response was swift and got Leylin smiling, "It's almost done! At the current rate of progress, it'll only take a short while to completely derive the spell!"

Although rank 3 spell models were very valuable, Leylin had gotten his hands on quite a few. As he recalled his previous battles, he realised the same problem recurring.

Although he had many tricks up his sleeve, the majority of his battles had him dependent on a combination of potions, spells and the Meteor Sword to successfully defeat his opponent.

It may have seemed straightforward, but in reality, if the other party had surpassed him in any one of those factors, he would've found it difficult to succeed.

To put it simply, he lacked a sure-fire killing move.

Such a strategy could arise from a huge demonic weapon, an earth-shatteringly powerful spell or a deadly potion. However, Leylin realised, he had no such thing on hand.

Manufacturing a huge demonic weapon would be way too troublesome. The same went for a deadly potion. There were material costs and they had limitations to them. As such, after much deliberation, he decided to bring forward the A.I. Chip's derivation of a powerful spell, which was tailored for him.

In order to see this matter to completion, Leylin gave his full attention and had stopped himself from many other missions. He even had the tower genie share the burden of the A.I. Chip. He wanted to maximize the use of the the A.I. Chip's processing power.

As such, everything had progressed smoothly.

"According to the latest estimates, this new spell will have at least 300 degrees of power. Common Crystal Phase Magi will not dare underestimate me, and it'll be useful enough below the Morning Star realm…" At this juncture, the light faded from Leylin's eyes and was replaced by a hint of gloom.

In his previous expedition to the Forgotten Land, they had offended the Morning Star Magus, Demon Hunter Cyril. Although Cyril didn't declare any intentions to seek revenge, there were many rank 3 Magi who wanted to get in his good books, and quite a few of them were at the Hydro and even Crystal Phases.

Therefore, under such tremendous pressure, Leylin had withdrawn and holed himself in his territory for a long time, coming out only when necessary.

Every once in while, there would be a few ignorant trespassers who would gallantly cross the border. They were almost always discovered immediately and brought to Leylin. Under the amplification of his strength by the Magi Tower, Leylin had powers parallel to that of rank 3 Magi. As a result, he managed to defeat the few trespassing Magi easily, the deaths of those Magi affording him some bit of reputation.

Over time, fewer and fewer Magi tried to trespass.

Additionally, with the ability to deduce spells, Leylin's confidence soared. Relying on those trump cards, he could fight on par with Crystal Phase Magi without relying on the tower. He felt that the time was right.

Truth be told, it was frustrating for Leylin to be cooped up for close to a hundred years in a single territory.

'Before this, I'm afraid I would still have to make a trip to the Ouroboros Clan to see if there's anything profitable for me. Phew, astral stone…' Leylin plotted in his mind, and could not help but sigh again.

Normally, once one had their own Magus Tower and had been promoted to Hydro phase, they would have the ability to conduct early-stage experiments on the astral gates independently. Unfortunately, Leylin had not taken any actions for a long time to come. The only reason behind that was because he lacked the key ingredient, the astral stone.

It was the base material for the construction of an astral gate, and at the same time a core battling resource held by Morning Star Magi. They were rarely circulated in public, and required a trade with other rare or valuable items.

At the moment, Leylin did not have the connections to carry out such exchanges. In fact, Leylin could not even make up his mind even for the trading of mundane objects.

It was not due to the fact that he did not have enough enticing treasures to put forth, but that many of the objects he possessed were better off not being exposed to others. For instance, the essence of the ancient red dragon bloodline and the yield from the Blood Vulture's Nest.

He could have easily exchanged any of these objects for astral stones. However, he could also have attracted unnecessary attention from other Morning Star Magi. Leylin had enough trouble from provoking the Demon Hunter, he certainly did not want any more eyes on him.

On the other hand, Kesha had secretly been in touch with Leylin and had informed him on an arrangement for astral stones. He looked forward to it eagerly.

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Azure Mountain Auction

"Sister Kesha, you've grown prettier again!"

Within Phosphorescence Swamp, the headquarters of the Ouroboros Clan was bustling as usual, with many bloodline Warlocks shuttling to and fro.

Below the Giant Kemoyin Snake statue, Leylin had recognised Kesha instantly.

He walked up to her with a big smile and hugged her tightly as both his hands groped Kesha's body impolitely.

"Alright! Alright! We're still on the way, let's talk when we get back!" Kesha's breathing became heavy but she had a depressed look on her face.

"You got me there!"

"Haha……" Seeing the sister who made him concede defeat repeatedly become like that, Leylin could not help but laugh out loud. His face carried an unconcealable smugness.

After going through the restoration of Quicksand's bloodline experiment, Leylin's knowledge in this area had advanced greatly, reaching the peak of the central continent.

Under his control and with the help of the A.I. Chip, the spell to protect his own bloodline had already been developed a long time ago.

After numerous "real-life combat tests" with Kesha, this female Magus had no choice but to admit that even if the female Warlocks from the Ouroboros Clan were to come forth all at once, exposing all of their secret techniques, they would not obtain Leylin's seed.

Leylin, who had now let go of this matter, enjoyed himself without any apprehension. However, Kesha and the others were growing a little intolerant of him.

……

The pink cotton quilt was covered in traces of their lovemaking, as a strong fragrance wrapped the entire room.

Leylin flexed his upper body, exposing his firm but sleek muscles. He was half reclined on the couch, listening attentively to Kesha's accounts.

Kesha looked more miserable, with her body full of scars from the havoc, but she had a look of satisfaction. The cotton clothes could not conceal her delicate body at all, it even exposed more than what others could bargain for.

Despite her miserable look, this was actually nothing but child's play for female Magi. It could only be considered as a more intense game as they would be able to recover within minutes.

For instance, the current Kesha's breathing did not have the slightest heaviness from before; it even seemed calm.

"Leylin, the speed at which you're improving, you're one of the best talents in the Ouroboros Clan. Only Robin can surpass you!"

With serious matters being brought up, Leylin no longer had the cavalier attitude from before and was now listening optimistically.

"Brother Robin's success is due to him being well prepared, how can I compare to him?" Opposed to Kesha's flattery, Leylin shook his head with a faint smile instead.

He had advanced to the Hydro Phase very quickly, and it was supposed to create a big fuss in the Ouroboros Clan. After all, only an extreme talent could perform so well.

But Robin had stolen his thunder. Just around when Leylin had advanced to the Hydro Phase, news had spread that Robin had actually become a Crystal Phase Magus.

Hydro Phase Magi were not very rare in the central continent, but it was a different scenario with Crystal Phase Magi. Be it their individual strengths or the difficulty of the breakthrough, the two levels were not on the same platform.

Naturally, Leylin's limelight was stolen by Robin.

Deep in his heart, Leylin was a little glad that Robin attracted a lot of attention to himself. He had always enjoyed reaping his rewards in the dark and did not want to show off like that.

At the same time, he remembered the trace of the black mark on Robin's forehead.

It seems that the other party's breakthrough was deeply connected to his encounter in the Quicksand pocket dimension.

Duke Gilbert seemed to know some of this information but of course, he would not tell Leylin about it. Leylin could only guess.

"Both of you are perverts!" Kesha's expression was a little gloomy and she seemed to be full of indignance. Leylin and Robin had obviously benefitted a lot from the previous expedition, and only she ended up empty-handed. She even lost many of the powerful members of her clan.

What was worse was that when they were hunted down as fugitives, the responsibility was on all three of them.

Chivalrously, Leylin wrapped his arm around Kesha's slim waist and began to comfort her in a soft voice, "Alright alright! It's already been over a hundred years, those people must have already lost their patience…"

After a while of tenderness, Leylin finally asked the question regarding his main purpose of this journey. "By the way, you'd mentioned an astral stone previously. What's that about?"

He had always drawn a clear line between work and pleasure.

Of course, Kesha knew that her relationship with this talented brother was just an insignificant link, and only the entanglement of benefits would allow her to bind him into her clan's war chariot, making him at least a part of their camp. Hence she quickly gave an account of the whole story.

"Auction?" Leylin's eyebrows knitted when he heard the news.

"Yes!" Kesha did not brush away Leylin's unconsciously playful hands, she only glared. "An auction hosted by a Morning Star Magus in Azure Mountain City!" As if she knew that Leylin had not understood her, Kesha began explaining to Leylin again in detail.

It turned out that after Magi entered the Morning Star realm, ordinary materials and resources were already far from sufficient to satisfy them. What Morning Star Magi needed had always been items that were highly cherished in ancient times, and even those that had long since been lost. These treasures were evidently not purchasable by magic crystals. Thus, organising some exchanges in private and barter trade became mainstream.

The founder of Azure Mountain City, the Azure Mountain King, was a neutral Morning Star Magus. His clan controlled of almost half of the auctions that took place in the region.

Every ten or so years, a grand auction would be held in the headquarters of Azure Mountain City. When that time came, many rare treasures would appear, attracting numerous Magi who intended to pursue them.

And behind the auction, the distinguished Azure Mountain King would also organise a small-scaled private exchange meeting.

This secret meeting had a very high bar for attendance. Ordinary rank 3 Magi could not enter, and even Morning Star Magi of all sides snuck in to see if they could get things they needed.

"The next Azure Mountain auction is commencing soon, I have received information that there is someone there who wishes to sell an astral stone the size of a fist…" Kesha explained the matter thoroughly.

"Also, Leylin, even if you come back from the auction empty-handed, you can still try your luck at the exchange meeting later on. With so many highly ranked Magi there, surely there will be those who have astral stones on hand. Of course, the prerequisite will be for you to have an item that is attractive enough for the other party……"

"What time does the exchange meeting start? How do I obtain the authority to enter? What restrictions are there?" Evidently, Leylin's interest in the exchange meeting was piqued.

And he had indeed accumulated a large quantity of items, which he had intended to sell in exchange for magic crystals or other raw materials.

"The exchange meeting will commence after the auction ends. As long as you are located within the borders of Azure Mountain City, highly ranked Magi who have fulfilled the requirements will be invited. Besides, rest assured that the entire exchange meeting will be conducted in anonymity. The distinguished Azure Mountain King is willing to vouch that there will be no trouble in the future!"

A neutral Morning Star Magus' word had a definite reputation in the entire central continent, putting Leylin at ease.

It seemed that the issue of materials that was perplexing him had a very high chance of being resolved in Azure Mountain City.

Moreover, after being low-profile and living in seclusion for such a long time, it was about time he went out to roam around.

Leylin, who was in high spirits, pulled Kesha into a new round of war once again.

"Marquis Leylin…"

"Good afternoon, Marquis Leylin!"

On the way to the headquarters, a smile hung on the corner of Leylin's lips as he greeted the surrounding royal warlocks who passed by from time to time. Occasionally, he nodded in response, which got the low-ranked warlocks overwhelmed.

As of now, he was considered slightly famous in the Ouroboros Clan. On the contrary, being Gilbert's disciple and having the talent to break through to becoming a Hydro Phase Magus was secondary. The primary reason he became famous was still the technique of protecting his seed.

Ever since the test with Kesha and warlock Miranda, the crazy women in the Ouroboros Clan rarely bothered Leylin anymore.

If they solely wanted pleasure, there were many boy-toys in their clans. There were all sorts of males—rough ones, weak ones, and also uniquely delicate boys. They did not have to bother Leylin.

Furthermore, there were also many male warlocks who came to Leylin with attractive conditions, in hope of acquiring the results of his research.

Undoubtedly, these were all rejected by Leylin.

The mere consequence of offending the warlocks in the Ouroboros Clan made Leylin somewhat eager to avoid it, not to mention the possibility of his bloodline research results being spied on through those techniques.

He could use it for himself but once he spread it, he would be provoking all the women in the Ouroboros Clan. Leylin was not such a fool.

From afar, Leylin spotted someone familiar and he immediately went up to greet her, "Good day, Miss Miranda!"

"It's Sir Leylin! Haha… Today's weather is great… Oh! I just remembered that I still have an experiment to conduct, please excuse me!"

Miranda laughed casually and left quickly with an excuse.

Watching her enticing back, Leylin rubbed his fingers as if he remembered the alluring scent she had while in bed. He could not help but let out a smirk.

Previously, he had left her in an extremely miserable state. Now, it seems, Miranda had developed a slight fear of him.

Leylin came before Gilbert's villa along his stroll.

He was about to knock when the door suddenly swung opened and a figure walked out of the villa, almost bumping into Leylin.

"Brother Robin!"

Leylin scrutinized the current Robin carefully. The Crystal Phase energy waves on his body were very obvious. It seemed that he had completely stabilised at that level. In addition, the veins on Robin's forehead seemed thicker and more distinct, and the black mark flashed with a strange luster.

"Leylin!" Robin smiled. His facial muscles seemed rather stiff, as if he had not smiled for a long time.

"I still have some matters, I'll be leaving first! Mentor is inside!"

Robin exchanged a few words with Leylin and left in a hurry.

As he watched Robin leave, Leylin's entered a moment of deep thought.

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Arm of Vengeance

In the past Robin, being one of Gilbert's students, was very popular. He was very patient, meticulous and was capable of making people feel comfortable with his presence alone. Hence, he was able to hold a high position, somewhat alike to a supervisor, in the clan.

He had changed ever since he entered the Crystal Phase, though. His temper went foul and he lost his position and did nothing but idle all day long. Upon recalling this matter, Leylin couldn't help but feel saddened at the thought.

Leylin entered the villa, and met Duke Gilbert in the study.

Gilbert's face did not change at all, not a strange of facial hair nor visible pores which made him look as smart as ever. With all these combined with his shiny and smooth head, he did look a little sly and terrifying.

Yet to Leylin, Gilbert was a good mentor who strived his hardest to teach him. Hence, he bowed to the man respectfully and told him the reason for his arrival.

"It'll be nice to take a trip outside!" Gilbert leaned against the couch, beverage in hand. Leylin could occasionally spot little mermaid-like creatures appearing in the drink.

"With the passing of a century, I'm sure Cyril has forgotten all about you. Even those fugitives aren't that patient. You really ought to travel outside."

"But…" Gilbert paused for a while.

"If mentor needs anything, feel free to ask!" Leylin felt excited as he knew that Gilbert might have some tasks for him to carry out.

"Since you're leaving, why not just take up this task!" Gilbert flung out a scroll, "The Warlocks of the Ouroboros Clan have to periodically finish tasks for the organisation as a form of contribution. Even though you are my disciple, you can't keep idling around. While you're traveling, you should just finish this task."

"Yes, Mentor!" Leylin bowed as he obediently agreed and left.

He unfurled the scroll in his hand after he walked out of the villa.

[Spiritual force data interface detected, accept?] A prompt immediately popped up from the A.I. Chip.

"Yes!" Following Leylin's order, a string of messages immediately entered his brain, and were imprinted directly into his memory so that he wouldn't forget them easily.

"This is actually an extermination task?" Phosphorescent green flames lit up in Leylin's hand, burning the scroll to ashes. Yet, he was expressionless.

The task was actually very simple. He had to go and exterminate a base of people rebelling against the Ouroboros Clan.

Even though they reigned supreme in this area, they had eliminated many influential clans and even commoners when they first set foot here.

The surviving members of those clans held the desire to conquer. Additionally, as with all regimes, there were also clashes with the interests of the indigenous population, creating friction. All these led to the rise of opposition parties.

Even though such organisations were weak, having not a single Morning Star Magus, they often concealed themselves well and it was difficult to identify their locations.

Yet, once they were found, they couldn't escape their destiny of extermination.

Gilbert's task for Leylin was simply to eliminate the most recently found base.

'This is basically a dirt job!' Leylin sighed but he knew that this was inevitable. Having joined the Ouroboros Clan, he knew that it was necessary for him to do some of the things he did in order for him to gain trust from the organisation. Furthermore, through applying such pressure, they would be able to keep the new Warlocks involved in the war.

In reality, one of the advantages of being Gilbert's student was that he was given such a simple task. Leylin was considered to have been given preferential treatment to have been assigned tasks of just moderate difficulty level.

'The location of the mission is Doroy Forest, en route to Azure Mountain City. Just as well. I'll take care of them en route, then head to the auction!' Leylin decided.

……

There limestone pavement was dotted with litter, creating a messy and chaotic environment. From time to time, one would be able to see, on the streets, traces of the domesticated livestock such as cows and horses that had been moving about on the pavement.

A strong odour emanated from the overflowing groundwater which had formed water puddles on the roads.

This was a quite normal scene in a city of commoners.

The advancements of the Magus world did not spill over into the world of mortals. The only improvements on that front were that one could now earn enough food to feed their whole family.

Leylin was strolling along. As soon as he'd accepted the task, he left the general headquarters without hesitation and headed to his current location.

If the directions weren't wrong, this was where the Ouroboros Clan had set up a secret division, and also where their agent had found the rebels.

After using a Transfiguration Spell, Leylin's aura was equivalent to that of a rank 1 or 2 Magus.

Despite Gilbert mentioning that Cyril would not care about him, Leylin still wanted to be as cautious as he could.

After all, Cyril's subordinates were Crystal Phase Magi who may be keeping an eye on them. Leylin had to make some preparations to butter him up.

According to the house number, Leylin came to a house that looked like a normal bar and knocked on the door.

Knock! Knock!*

After ten minutes or so, an impatient voice called out.

"Who is it? We don't open in the day!"

"I'm looking for Tamansi." Leylin's voice was deep and low.

"You're looking for our boss? What's the matter?" A golden-haired brawny man opened the door as he stared at Leylin with caution.

Yet, Leylin could only feel a weak wave of energy going through the man, marking him an acolyte.

"Look at this!" Leylin let out a small smile as he took out a badge.

The ancient symbol of a black serpent eating its own tail contrasted greatly with the golden background. To others, this symbol made of runes, might appear to form a mere odd circle at the base of the badge.

However, since this man was an acolyte of theirs, he would definitely recognise the symbol of the Ouroboros Clan.

As expected, the man's eyes widened. He relaxed, lowering his precaution towards Leylin.

"I'll go and ask…" This time, the man's reaction became quicker and within a minute he brought out a light brown-haired man of a smaller build.

It was obvious to Leylin that this man was a mere Rank 2 Magus.

These were the lowest level of Warlocks found in the Ouroboros Clan. Due to the fact that their skills were low and their families were in decline, they could only do miscellaneous jobs and silently accumulate credit, hoping that one day a bloodline genius would be born into their family or even a chance for them return to the general headquarters.

"My Lord!" With just one look, Tamansi recognised Leylin. As far as Warlocks were concerned, the aura of bloodlines that couldn't be faked. The intimate and dreadful feeling it exuded was etched deeply in Tamansi's memory.

'This concentration of the bloodline seems to be that of a particular bloodline regal…' The dwarf thought as he respectfully bowed. "My name is Tamansi, my Lord."

"I see," Leylin nodded as he made his way into the bar.

As he walked past the counter, he came to a room located underground that was even more concealed and complex.

"Tell me everything that you have found out, and don't withhold any information from me…" Leylin took off his cloak, inadvertently emitting an imposing aura in his every move, which had caused Tamansi to regard him with more revere.

Upon seeing the documents that Leylin produced, Tamansi did not dare to hide the truth, and immediately reported to Leylin, "That was three days ago. At that time, I was here…"

Numerous days later in the gloomy dark forest.

The chirps of the cicada drowned out the hushed conversation between the two Magi.

That was Doroy Forest, a large prehistoric forest where Tamansi had found the enemy base.

"Are you sure it's here?" Leylin wore a black Magus cloak with golden rims. Ironically, his appropriate dressing, together with his slender build, as well as his pure bloodline temperament, made it seem like he wasn't here to kill but instead to travel.

"Yes, my Lord!" At this point, Tamansi felt nothing but respect for Leylin.

As a royal Warlock of the organisation, Leylin held a high position and was in control of the life and death of the expatriates.

"After a few months of investigation, we finally found out that the Arm of Vengeance has been hiding here!"

"According to the traces nearby, there are indeed hidden spell formations set up around here as well as trails of Warlocks in this area." Leylin nodded his head.

"These rascals sure can hide! Rest assured My Lord, my subordinates have already rounded them up. Once My Lord gives his command, we will definitely be able to break through their spells, along with the men you brought along." The dwarfish Magus slapped his chest and guaranteed.

To Tamansi, it seemed that Leylin, who was dispatched by headquarters, only had the weak aura of a rank 1 or 2 Magus, and seemed especially amicable. Thus, he probably wasn't particularly powerful. However, since he was already out on a mission, there would definitely be numerous people to make up for his evident weakness.

For such royal bloodlines, wouldn't his family have dispatched a huge number of people to protect him whenever he was out?

"Whoever said that I brought manpower?" Leylin turned back to look at Tamansi.

"No… No one?" Tamansi wanted to laugh, but he couldn't, "My Lord, please don't make such a joke. Inside this camp is Toram from the Arm of Vengeance. Apart from their leader, she is the strongest in their organisation, having reached the Hydro Phase two centuries ago…"

"Oh! So Toram is the most capable member here? That's a rather good chance!" Leylin clapped his hands as he looked through the prompts given by the A.I. Chip.

[Rank 3 spell complete. Number of simulation runs: 42912. Number of errors: 0]

"Looks like I can test this spell on site," Leylin muttered to himself.

One of Leylin's plan to create commonly used formidable rank 3 spells had came from heavy utilisation of the A.I. Chip's operational capabilities. It had customised a rank 3 spell for Leylin, and had just finished its simulation.

Moreover, this new enemy was perfect for Leylin to test his new spell.

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Toram

"Master! You may have overestimated my ability. Even with all of my men added up, we wouldn't be a match for Toram…" Tamansi forced a smile.

He believed it necessary to clear things up with Leylin. Even if he was a royal and a special agent from the clan, he couldn't just sacrifice himself for him.

"Your men?" Leylin was rendered speechless. With such weak Magi and acolytes, they wouldn't even be able to break through the spell formation.

It was of no consequence, though. Tamansi was in charge of intelligence, he did not have high hopes regarding their fighting strength.

"Just look after your men, I'll take care of the rest!" he replied coldly before floating up.

Suddenly, a powerful and chilling surge of mountainous energy filled the entire place.

"Th- Th- This!" Tamansi stared hard at Leylin, eyes bulging. The energy he'd felt from Leylin before was similar to his own, but he had suddenly burst forth like a ferocious creature.

The terrifying undulations of Leylin's energy rose endlessly. In the blink of an eye, it broke through rank 3 and skyrocketed to an unpredictable level.

"My Lord, it seems like you're not one of those royals who only fool around, but instead a person with influence." Tamansi's eyes lit up. If he were to be affiliated to Leylin, he'd have an unimaginable future and could even fulfil his dream of revitalizing his family.

"Marquis! My Lord, you must be a Marquis that holds authority in the clan!" Tamansi balled up his fists, his face flushed.

The moment Leylin stopped repressing his aura, he'd actually felt a desire to kneel.

Tamansi had never felt such a sense of majesty from other Marquis similar to Leylin.

Leylin, on the other hand, did not care about how others felt about him.

Because he had given up suppressing his aura, he had been discovered by Tamansi. Presently, he was suddenly engulfed by a sudden fog that had appeared in the forest which evidently, was the work of Tamansi.

"Which Magus is out there? We are a secret guild that rejects all visitors and transactions!" A large quantity of light was emitted, forming a giant defence shield covered in flickering runes. By the looks of it, the Magus isn't someone to be trifled with. Additionally, with the decisive tone of the Magus, most people would have backed off if they had stumbled upon this Magus by accident.

Still, Leylin was not like most people. Besides, his mission here was to exterminate them.

"Is it the Arm of Vengeance?" Leylin towered over the spell formation, his voice piercing through. He had wanted to make a final confirmation in order to prevent any unwanted mishaps.

"A Warlock from the Ouroboros Clan?!" A probing light shone down, and the tone turned menacing. The pure hatred dripping in that voice had even Leylin shuddering.

Nevertheless, it gave Leylin the confirmation he needed. Things would now be a lot easier.

Leylin's pupils reflected his indifference. To him, the war for resources and benefits was never a question of right or wrong. It was the mere determination of a winner and a loser.

Meanwhile, at the top of a group of buildings inside the spell formation.

The face of the female Magus who had spoken earlier was distorted as she stared at a crimson crystal in her hand.

A female Magus who looked to be in her teens, cheeks still chubby, arrived at the side of her Mentor and asked, "Mentor, what's wrong?"

"It's the Ouroboros Clan. Those damned Warlocks have managed to track us here!" The woman appeared to be in her thirties, with a voluptuous body. She would be a stunning beauty were it not for the huge cross-shaped scar across her face.

"Ouroboros Clan?" The youth inhaled sharply. That name brought about images of demons, of a monster dens and other terrifying creatures. To her, Warlocks from the Ouroboros Clan were menacing demons that could swallow someone whole in a matter of seconds.

"I'm afraid the situation is borderline threatening now that they've managed to track this place down. When the inevitable arrives, you have to run off while I try my best to delay their path," the scar-faced Magus turned and ordered with a wistful expression.

"You want me to run? What about Hulk and Fanny, what about the rest?" The teen Magus was startled upon hearing those words from her mentor.

"This is a life or death situation, we can't afford to care about them!" The scar-faced Magus smiled bitterly as she watched the chaotic situation of the crowd below.

"I can't believe they're here!" A white-headed elder male Magus exclaimed as he floated up along with a few other Magi.

"We'll go all out then! There's nothing to be afraid of!" a muscular middle aged Magus said. He had an eye missing and his head was adorned with a tiger skull.

Boom!* The spell formation trembled and the defensive shield started vibrated vigorously.

It was a sight akin to that of the heaven and earth cracking apart. It swept across the small encampment almost immediately, causing the faces of many Magi to darken.

……

Outside the shield, Leylin was looking at the powerful defensive spell formation from a vantage point. 'The spiritual force of a Magus could also represent the limitations of their abilities…'

With a spell formation like this, given his previous level of strength, he would've taken some time to completely demolish it.

'If it's less than 20 degrees it would be at an acolyte's level. Rank 1 Magi if it's between 20 to 80 degrees, rank 2 if it's between 80 to 200 degrees and rank 3 if it's more than 200…'

'But once the spell surpasses 300 degrees, even Crystal Phase Magi will have to be careful.'

Leylin mumbled to himself and played around with the complicated spell model that was sent to his sea of consciousness by the A.I. Chip.

The many individual runes came together perfectly in this model and gave off an exquisite feel.

Leylin had practised the manipulation of this spell very well through his A.I. Chip previously. The way he was using it now was as if he's tried it umpteen times, and it was beyond just proficient.

Boom!* Numerous elemental tides were formed, and due to the impressive strength of this spell, the darkness and fire elemental particles of this region were instantaneously sucked away, as if encountering an elemental black hole.

The energy exhaustion of a rank 3 spell was, of course, not something rank 1 or rank 2 spells could compared to. But the current situation was one that even Leylin felt uncomfortable in.

The terrifying energy did not in the least dissipate but instead agglomerated in Leylin's palm, forming black rays.

The space caved in and was seemingly absorbed by the black rays.

"Fatality's Tip!" Leylin flicked his finger, and a black ray met the defensive spell formation with a loud bang.

[Fatality's Tip: Rank 3 Spell. Elements: Darkness and Fire. Concentrates all energy into one piercing point. Side effects: Corrosion and Burns. Power: 330 – 360 degrees!]

Leylin had named this spell himself. By giving up on area of effect and condensing all of his power into one finger, it could grant death to any creature below the Morning Star realm, hence the name.

Of course, there was a tinge of self-mockery at the fragility of his previous life.

Pop!* Just like a soap bubble that was pricked, the powerful defence shield fell short in the face of the deadly attack, and lost all of its strength before instantly shattering apart.

The fog faded, revealing the buildings behind and the Magi whose faces were drained of colour.

"Toram?!" Leylin's looked at his target. The scar on her face left an exceptional impression.

Her scar was left behind during the massacre, and as a woman she could obviously remove the scar for vanity's sake. But for the memory of her hatred, she had kept it on her face as a reminder.

More often than not, people like these were extremely heartless and were people whom Leylin had to pay more attention to.

"Only one? A rank 3 Hydro Phase Kemoyin Warlock? " Seeing Leylin coming to them alone, Toram's expression differed from those of her happy peers. She turned even more gloomy, and gave off a sense of hopelessness.

In the Magus world, someone who dared to move alone was a lot stronger than a collective.

And if Leylin dared to arrive singlehandedly, he must have had the utmost confidence in killing them all right here

"This is life or death, we don't have to hold back any longer. Ensuring the escape of our seeds is the highest priority!" Toram commanded.

"Of course, I've been wanting to take the lives of Kemoyin Warlocks since long ago. I'll skin him alive and use him as a carpet!" The tiger-skull Magus remarked with hate, shooting a dirty glance at Leylin.

'Other than Toram who is a Hydro Phase, there are still two other rank 3 Magi?' Leylin's eyes glistened as the A.I. Chip began collecting the data on his enemies and predicting the possible outcomes.

As for those acolytes? They were like specks of dust to him.

"Since you're a Kemoyin Warlock, if you lose your life here, I'm sure those higher-ups would mourn this loss!" Toram's eyes turned bloodshot, and she covered herself in a liquid-like armour.

"Similarly, after all of you perish, the Arm of Vengeance won't be any trouble for a period of time!" Leylin retorted.

"But before I finish you, I should do some clean-up!"

"Clean-up? Oh no! He is planning to—" Toram's expression fell instantly but it was too late.

A horrifying projection of the Giant Kemoyin Serpent emerged behind Leylin, "Toxic Bile!"

With the maturation of his bloodline, this innate spell of his had also grown exponentially, and it had even exceeded 200 degrees of power, reaching the strength of a rank 3 spell. Even with preventive measures, it would be difficult for the rank 1 and rank 2 Magi to survive it.

On top of that, the effect of the spell would be even more amplified now that the defensive shield was down.

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A Test

An incorporeal 'death-god' had solemnly descended on the rebel camp.

On the ground, innumerable rank 1 and 2 Magi started collapsing with their acolytes in tow, dying despite multiple layers of protection, potions, magic artifacts and other defenses.

Even the surrounding buildings were not spared. They creaked and swayed as they crumbled down like sand faced with water.

Formless toxic ripples took aim at the three rank 3 Magi in the air and started attacking them, leaving them helpless as they watched their apprentices and the other members of their organisations fall.

With a single attack, except for a handful of Magi who managed to escape using their secret treasures, the rest had been turned into corpses that decayed rapidly.

"YOU!" Toram roared as she rushed ahead.

The terrifying power of a Kemoyin Warlock's toxic attacks was common knowledge. However, Leylin's ability had reached a level that allowed him to exterminate nearly everything on the ground, which was abnormal.

This attack of his was sudden and unexpected, which resulted in huge losses. Witnessing the deaths of their own apprentices, friends, and even families at Leylin's hands, the two other rank 3 Magi hardened their gazes and dashed forward with tearful eyes.

"Phantom Hologram!" Multiple phantoms of gigantic creatures started appearing from behind an old rank 3 Magus. They surrounded Leylin and opened their huge, ferocious, and menacing mouths to trap him in their midst.

"Crimson Throne!" An illusory image of a bloody red throne appeared behind Toram, emanating a strong stench of blood.

The throne was simple and unadorned dull gold with marks on it from various swords and hatchets. It seemed as if it had gone through a lot of trials and tribulations, giving it an almost lifelike appearance of cruelty.

Under the illusory throne, the three of them donned a red armour, their auras having been raised to a level.

"Hmm! Aura amplification and removal of suppression… so such spell models exist!" Leylin's blue eyes sparkled with excitement. He diligently recorded the opposite party's domain into the A.I. Chip, intending to research it further.

This was the characteristic of the incomplete domain of a rank 3 Magus. Once Toram completely comprehended the strength of this domain, she would step into the Morning Star realm.

Of course, the current Crimson Throne only provided a limited amplification to Toram and the rest. It could not compare to Leylin's own Intimidating Gaze.

However, under the brilliant glow of the throne, the eyes of the huge phantoms became bloodshot, and they dashed towards Leylin with full force, not an ounce of hesitation in them.

"Such a weak retaliation! Toram, I'll be utterly disappointed if this is all you have…" Leylin sighed. The terrifying energy undulations from his body overflowed as the terrifying innate spell of a rank 3 Kemoyin Warlock, Intimidating Gaze, enveloped the region.

Hiss Hiss!* It seemed as though an ancient Giant Kemoyin Serpent had been reborn in all its savagery. A tyrannical surge of dark energy descended on the ground, bringing with it a rather unusual and wild aura.

The force field immediately took over the territory previously under the Crimson Throne, almost instantly countering its effects.

Even though Leylin had suppressed the energy on his body, his abilities had been exposed to the huge phantoms and they went absolutely crazy, as if they had seen something horrifyingly bizarre. They roared in confusion, brutally attacking one another and even sprinting towards their original owner.

"Oh! A nice chance to witness the effects of the confusion!" Watching the opposing Magi fumbling about, Leylin smiled indifferently.

His innate domain had been steadily strengthened by the Lamia fingerbone, something that extended to the regions of energy amplification and suppression. If not for the fact that he'd experienced the bending of rules by a true Morning Star Magus' domain, he would've thought that his had already been formed.

Still, even if it was a mere force field, its effects were already unimaginable.

The phantom image of the Crimson Throne started to retreat in defeat, as if stripped of its previous glory. And before the two other rank 3 Magi could retaliate, their force fields had been suppressed and defeated.

Toram was the only one who qualified to match Leylin in a collision of force fields.

As for those lower-level force fields used by the others, they could certainly not match those of these Hydro Phase Magi.

Due to the differing depth of understanding of a domain at different levels, there was a vast difference in their strengths. Thus, the force fields of Magi below the Hydro Phase were considered effectively useless.

The Magus with the tiger skull wore a look of defeat. He understood and admitted the huge disparity between Leylin and himself.

Yet, he roared ferociously, the muscles in his body tensing and swelling up as his gorgeous fur shone with a colourful radiance.

The joints on his bones popped loudly and soon his body swelled and expanded from a normal figure to a hulking three meters.

"You punk! I'm going to kill you! I will break your bones one by one, inch by inch without mercy!" He roared thunderously and delivered a high intensity punch, as strong gusts of wind hit him right in his face. The surrounding air seemed to have been so compressed by this punch that it became a substantial crystal body which surged towards Leylin like a projectile.

"A human Magus with a reinforced body, what a rare sight!"

Leylin became serious, growing cautious of the man. Magi with reinforced bodies were known to belong to the barbarian beast clan. As for other types of Magi, they would generally be glad to use spells for the destructions of enemies.

As such, seeing how the tiger skull Magus transformed himself into such a powerful creature, he was sure there were some in the central continent that could do it, although it would be rare.

Generally speaking, Magi did not place much emphasis on strength and agility. Instead valuing the quality of the physical form more, as the corporeal body was the part that bore the foundations of any magic power.

Also, different Warlocks inherited different abilities from their elders, hence it highly depended on which area each ancestor placed their emphasis on. Leylin understood this and strived to polish all factors of strength and agility in himself to the maximum.

"Heh!" In a rush of excitement, Leylin drew his Meteor Sword and skillfully exhibited his cross blade techniques.

"Cross-blade Slash!" A big black cross shone and sliced through the sky, carrying with it terrifying Kemoyin toxins. The projectile shattered to tiny bits in the air, even as the aftermath traveled towards the enraged tiger skull Magus.

"Awooooo!" The tiger skull Magus covered his head with both hands and dashed forward.

Crackle !* The sound of breaking glass could be heard as the gorgeous colourful shine from the tiger skull Magus burst forth in a flash and collided head on with the black cruciform, smashing it into a million pieces.

Zzzz!* A slight tear appeared on his arm, and from it one could hear faint sounds of something decaying as white smoke arose.

Without hesitation, the tiger skull Magus dashed towards Leylin in a moment.

"Very high vitality indeed!" To be able to withstand the Giant Kemoyin Serpent's poison, other than possessing excellent spell resistance, one's vitality needed to be at least a hundred points and above.

In addition, the opposite side's strength and agility had exceeded his own value of 30 by leaps and bounds. Seeing how he was able to use simple techniques to deal deadly blows, Leylin's eyes brightened.

"Die now!" The right arm of the tiger skull Magus had morphed into a huge tiger claw, striking down on Leylin.

The huge tiger claw looked like a small millstone. The shiny sharp claw was glossy and menacing, with spell runes visible in the brilliant light it emitted.

Bang!* The tiger claw was stopped abruptly mid-air by a palm.

Although Leylin's build was tall and lanky, when compared to the tiger-headed creature, he was rather petite and his palm was equivalent to that of a baby.

Yet, it was this insignificant palm which had managed to tame the sharp tiger claw, disabling his ability to advance forward.

"How can that be?" The old man yelped in surprise. He had just defeated his phantoms a distance away.

He was absolutely certain of his friend's strength.

The tiger skull Magus had mercilessly killed a rank 3 creature in this beastly state.

Even when he recalled it now, it had been shocking. Yet, a full attack from his friend had been blocked by a single palm, something that made no sense. What's more, looking at the opposite party, it seemed to be effortless.

"Even for a Warlock, it is not possible to possess such terrifying power, unless you are a also a Magus who practices body reinforcement techniques?" The old man scrutinized Leylin, trying to analyze but unable to read him.

"How… How is that possible ?" Other than the shocked old man, the tiger skull Magus was speechless himself.

He had been extremely confident in his ability. Even in the face of several magic alloys put up by other Magi, he only needed to use his claw and they would have cracked and crumbled like soft sand. But now…

"There is nothing that is not possible!" Leylin tightened his grip, and cracking sounds rang out as the tiger skull Magus' arm twisted abruptly into an odd, distorted curve.

"The difference between humans and animals lies in the usage of your strengths, be it for exploitation or as a tool. If you do not even know this, regardless of how strong you are, you are just a fool!" Leylin looked at the whimpering tiger skull Magus and he felt a tinge of pity.

Behind him, the black shadows of two arms appeared, attaching to his right hand and injecting a steady flow of energy into it.

Although Leylin's strength was only thirty degrees of power, he could use his spells to break through that limit and massively increase his strength for a short period of time.

After all, his innate character was that of a Magus, not a competitive knight.

"Those who cannot keep up with the times, you will be abandoned like trash!" Leylin heaved a sigh, grabbed the tiger skull Magus' arms, and raised him up.

"This is bad! We have to save Borgin!" The clash had happened too quickly. After all, both Leylin and the tiger skull Magus were agile, with at least 30 degrees of ability in that respect. From the initial assault, to Leylin drawing his sword, to the retaliation and counter-attack, everything had happened in a matter of seconds.

Even Toram did not have the chance to react, nor would she have expected Leylin to so easily defeat a rank 3 Magus.

"Shadowflame Plague!" Leylin was not going to show any mercy. He was completely ready to take everyone out.

A scarlet-black wall of fire appeared and, in a flash, the two rank 3 Magi that had charged forward were drowned in its blaze.

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Seal of the Dark Corrosion

The corrosive black flames were like a chasm which separated Toram from the rest.

As for the other rank 3 Magus? The flames had inflicted him with heavy injuries, and he had escaped to the side while letting out blood-curdling screams.

"What… What are you trying to do?" At that moment, the tiger skull Magus was truly terrified. He felt the increasingly horrifying strength emitting from both of Leylin's hands, and the savage spiritual force which had sealed his sea of consciousness. For the first time, he felt terror from the bottom of his heart.

He began to regret not escaping immediately upon Leylin's arrival. Because of that, he had landed himself in his current circumstances.

"What I'm trying to do?" Leylin's lips curled up. Shadow arms emerged from his back in rapid succession. Enormous muscles emerged indistinctively, and fused onto both of Leylin's hands.

Creak! Creak!* First, the skin ruptured, then the muscles, then the bones.

The tiger skull Magus had a twisted expression, and was in so much pain that he could not even make a sound. His entire being seemed to have been stretched apart by Leylin.

"Let him go! Wait! NOOOOO…." Amidst Toram's blood-curdling screams, the tiger skull Magus was ripped into two. Large amounts of bloodshed could be seen everywhere.

"Don't you think it's too late to say these things only now?" Leylin expertly avoided the blood, a skill he'd acquired from experience. His body had not even been tainted by a smidgen of it.

As if tossing out the garbage, he threw away the two segments of the corpse before turning towards Toram, his face emotionless. "You should have come to your senses before you decided to rebel against the Ouroboros Clan!"

"You'll perish here today! This is my promise to Borgin!" Toram's face instantly calmed down. Still, Leylin could very distinctively see the desire for vengeance in her eyes.

This was not a hot-blooded vengeance that arose merely from this one incident. It was rather a collective response to the extended period during which they were hunted down like prey. Many of Toram's friends and family presumably died amidst the massacres conducted by the Ouroboros Clan, and Leylin's actions earlier had fully evoked her wrath.

"Even now, you refuse to learn!" Leylin shook his head.

"Currently, you don't seem to be fit to be my opponent. Let me give you a hand!" Just as he finished these words, a Magus dressed in a black robe, who looked identical to Leylin, suddenly emerged before the rank 3 Magus who had been seriously injured by the Arm of Vengeance.

A few multi-coloured potions were thrown out by "Leylin", as he kept a straight face. They collided in mid-air and emitted terrifying energy ripples.

"Rank 3 potion combination spell— Divine Prairie Flames!"

The endless flames instantly swallowed the rank 3 Magus, even spreading so far as to include the "Leylin" in the area of effect.

"Leylin" who was surrounded by the many flames suddenly laughed hysterically, and morphed into many shadow chains that confined the rank 3 Magus in the flames.

"Master Toram! Save me!" The rank 3 Magus' face was full of dejection. He did all he could to seek help, and him looking to Toram for help was his last hope.

But Leylin had blocked Toram's path, and mercilessly dashed that last hope.

"You must be the only high-ranked Magus left in the stronghold now?" Leylin looked to Toram after the rank 3 Magus' life aura had completely dissipated in the sea of fire.

"If you don't use your remaining time to make me happy during our battle, I'm afraid I'll continue to hunt down and kill all the other Magi below!"

"That female Magus must be your apprentice? The two of you might even be related by blood. Don't even think about lying to me. Both the bloodline ripples on your bodies and the spiritual force frequency have revealed your relationship…" Leylin shot a glance at one of the corpses lying around, and what he said caused Toram's facial expression to change.

Just when Leylin's gaze shot across the area, the female Magus with a childlike face who had been lying behind the remains felt as if she was stared at by a fierce ancient creature. Her limbs began to shake uncontrollably.

"It's… It's too terrifying!" Upon realising that she had been discovered, the female Magus tried to escape.

A light green wind dissipated from her body and carried her to the depths of Doray Forest.

"Other than Nina, even Master Borgin has…." As she started to sprint, tears streamed down her face.

At the instant when Leylin had released his deadly attack, the low-ranked Magi were all exterminated. Other than the three rank 3 Magi, almost everyone else had instantly perished.

No antidotes or defensive runes had any effect on the attack. Before the terrifying toxins of the Giant Kemoyin Serpent, everyone else was feeble and weak.

Toram's innate defensive spells had not in the least bit affected Leylin's attack. If not for the protective charm she'd obtained from her mentor, she would have perished as well.

The female Magus that was lucky enough to survive had hidden herself behind a wall, witnessing Leylin's cruelty and terror. The two powerful rank 3 Magi had perished at his hands one by one, and from the looks of it, Leylin had not even unleashed his full power. Now, he was even using her life to threaten her mentor!

After hearing her mentor's hurried whisper, the female Magus could not take it anymore, and started sobbing out loud.

Even so, the energy particles below her feet had not once stopped shining, as if escaping from that area was instinctive.

In the depths of her subconscious, she did not want to return to face the horrifying monster anymore.

"That's not too bad of a suggestion! Looks like you care for her a lot!" Leylin watched as the rank 1 Magus escaped, with no intentions of giving chase.

On the contrary, he turned to Toram who was ahead of him, and a taunting expression flashed across his face. "However, I'm afraid you'll have to try to buy time. If not, she won't be able to make much headway…"

"Lunatic! Monster!" Toram cursed. A majority of Warlocks had anger management issues, something that was only exacerbated by battle.

Compared to Magi, Warlocks prefered to ruin their opponents or even vent their desires upon them.

Toram had previously witnessed similar scenarios. It was painful to see dead Magi, and many female Magi subjected to horrible violations.

And now, she thought of Leylin in the same light as those crazy Warlocks.

"Even if I have to put everything on the line, I will stop you at all costs!" Toram announced as she ripped the silver necklace off her neck with eyes full of determination.

"Haha! Excellent! That's the mindset!" At that instant, Leylin felt like the big villain from the movies of his previous life.

"Seal of Dark Corrosion! Release!" Toram performed some gestures and, in that instant, the silver necklace exploded.

In a flash, the energy waves on her body strengthened significantly. Drops of blood even started seeping out of her pores.

The detailed black runes instantly crawled all over her body. Coupled with the scar on her face, she looked even more terrifying.

Leylin could sense that she'd already reached the peak of the Hydro Phase. In fact, some of her spiritual force had already formed traces of crystals from repeated attempts at compression.

Once completely solidified, Toram would reach the Crystal Phase.

Of course, her rash actions put her in grave danger. However, right before her body completely fell apart, she'd stepped one foot into the Crystal Phase realm!

This was definitely her trump card, some sort of mysterious spell that would put everything at stake.

Strangely, Leylin did not try to stop Toram's actions, instead allowing the aura on her body to rise slowly as he let out a hearty laugh, "Haha… Good! Indeed, with this sort of mysterious spell, you won't disappoint me!"

From the very beginning, the entire reason why Leylin had adopted such abusive methods was to force Toram to use a spell that would exhaust her vitality and allow her to temporarily increase her strength.

Although he'd accepted it as a task from the organisation, he also intended to experiment with his newly developed rank 3 spell— Fatality's Tip.

Even though its ability to break through the defensive spell formation spoke volumes of its formidability, he ultimately lacked the physical data to affirm its full capability. Especially with regards to its ability to clash with Crystal Phase Magi, something that engendered his resentment.

He had discovered that with his strength, he was the best of the best among Hydro Phase Magi, and even a peak Hydro Phase Magus like Toram could do nothing to him. Only a Crystal Phase opponent would cause him trouble.

And the A.I. Chip lacked data specifically regarding Crystal Phase Magi. Given the fact that Leylin would have to deal with Magi of that rank, he desperately needed a standard to measure his own capabilities.

And now, Toram had become such a standard.

When he'd probed her during the previous battle, the A.I. Chip had detected that not only had her strength become feeble, she had even seemed to be injured, something that resulted in her not performing to her fullest potential.

And so Leylin took such drastic measures to compel his opponent, to incite her her will to live on so as to battle him.

And from the looks of it, he'd achieved his goal.

Originally a peak Hydro Phase Magus, Toram indeed possessed the formidable ability to partially crystallise her spiritual force using this mysterious spell, even if she'd pay for it with her life.

It was rare to experience a fight against a Crystal Phase Magus. After all, the Crystal Phase Magi he'd previously come across were mostly his seniors, and he could not fight them.

Magi like Toram, who had a probability of losing control when they forcefully entered the Crystal Phase, were even more scarce.

Leylin immediately ordered: "A.I Chip, record this battle in detail!"

[Orders received! Scan scheduled!] The A.I Chip intoned.

A pale blue screen was projected ahead of Leylin's eyes, and Toram who was in the screen was engulfed by strong radiation.

The mysteries of Crystal Phase spiritual force were also slowly being uncovered by the A.I. Chip and presented to Leylin.

"The madmen of the Ouroboros Clan should not even exist in this world!" Having advanced to the Crystal Phase, Toram's strength now was a far cry from what it was before.

Just the suppression of the aura in the atmosphere caused Leylin to feel discomfort.

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Fatality's Tip

'Rumour has it that after a rank 3 Magus enters the Crystal Phase, they undergo a phenomenal change and experience an exponential increase in strength. From the looks of it, that might just be true!' Leylin stared at the Crimson Throne behind Toram, a solemn expression on his face.

Originally, his own force field had enveloped hers and suppressed it to the point of near destruction. Now, though, it had expanded greatly, especially the huge crimson throne. It seemed almost corporeal, and the power it was emitting had somewhat exceeded that of his terrifying force field.

"Haha, this is great. Just the kind of opponent I wanted!" This was the first time Leylin had felt pressure on the battlefield yet he was smiling, evidently pleased.

The opponent he'd wanted to go up against was precisely Toram, who'd experienced a huge increase in her spiritual force and had broken through to the Crystal Phase.

"Alright! Let's see the real strength of a Magus in the Crystal Phase!" Leylin felt feverish as a layer of fine black scales formed on his body. Multiple runes appeared on the surface that formed a black membrane, an additional layer of defense.

In the face of a Crystal Phase Magus, he did not dare hold back any longer.

"If that's what you wish!" Toram said. Two streaks of red liquid flowed down from the corners of her eyes, like tears of blood. It gave her a sinister aura.

Swish!* The two human silhouettes morphed into black shadows that collided with each other. A loud ear-piercing boom was heard and a frightfully huge amount of energy rippled out in all directions.

"Lord… Lord Leylin is actually this strong?" Tamansi saw the entire horrifying scenario play out from outside the camp and his jaw dropped.

Toram was indeed the second strongest in the Arm of Vengeance, a rumoured peak Hydro Phase Magus!

Not only had she been a strong opponent for years, there had even been rumours that this person who was wanted by the Ouroboros Clan had advanced to the Crystal Phase.

What's more surprising was that Leylin actually had the upper hand in this fight, and could fight her to a standstill! What kind of strength was that?

Only one thought was left in Tamansi's mind. He would grasp at Leylin's coattails without hesitation.

[Crystal Phase force field record completed! Beginning analysing opponent's perimeter of attack!]

At this juncture, Leylin who had been battling with Toram did not look like he had it easy.

Although she'd used a secret technique to enter the Crystal Phase, Toram's strength far surpassed Leylin's expectations.

Not only had she formed an armour of spiritual force, that had fully advanced to the Crystal Phase, on her body, the rest of her spells had been greatly amplified as well. From the looks of it, the rumours regarding the massive transformations after advancing the Crystal Phase were true.

Besides, Toram had steeled her will and was fighting like a madman to end up in mutual destruction with Leylin. She cared not one whit about herself, which gave him a lot of trouble.

Whatever the case may be, there were still limits imposed on someone who entered the Crystal Phase using a secret technique.

The blood dripping from Toram's body dyed the ground a bright crimson. Nearly half the blood present in the human body had already flowed out, and a normal person would have already died from such a serious injury. Even if she were a Magus, she was not in a good state either.

How could there be no price to pay when one forcibly compressed their spiritual force to enter the Crystal Phase, akin to cheating?

Leylin would not be surprised even if she suddenly burst into pieces.

"Shadowflame Plague!" Dark red flames blazed and Leylin used the opportunity to get a headstart from her opponent

Leylin smiled as he scrutinized the data recorded by the A.I. Chip. He turned to look at Toram, whilst still dripping blood. His face pale, he muttered "You were a worthy opponent. It's a pity…"

Feeling Toram's life force ebbing away and that she was about to drop down from the Crystal Phase, Leylin did not continue to hold back.

"Initiate the experiment and gather the data!" the A.I chip strictly carried out Leylin's command.

The horrifying spell that had breached the defensive spell formation, that the Arm of Vengeance had been unable to react to in time, had once again begun forming at Leylin's hand.

Horrifying amounts of energy particles condensed and formed a black spot that rested on Leylin's fingertip.

Leylin sighed gently, and pointed at Toram. "Rank 3 spell— Fatality's Tip!"

"Secret technique— Crystal Shield!" Even though Toram knew of Leylin's plans, her survival instincts and hatred towards the Ouroboros Clan urged her to accept the battle.

Many sparkling spiritual force shields appeared before her, glowing with runes.

Bang!* The black ray of death arrived before Toram in a near instant, and collided with the first Crystal Phase spiritual force shield.

Crack!* A hole about the size of a finger immediately formed on the shield. Many cracks extended from the hole like a spider web.

The shields rippled as they were torn apart by the ray of death, as if they were sheets of paper, on its way to Toram.

"Is this the taste of death?" A momentary distraction emerged in Toram's eyes, but it was replaced almost instantly by the ever more terrifying flames of hatred.

"Even if I die, I will not die in such a humiliating way without even causing damage to my opponent!" She roared as blood-red flames started burning her body.

"Soul sacrifice! The flames of hatred have indeed clouded her judgement!" Leylin's face sank. Magi knew that death was not an end. The souls of many departed high-ranking Magi would return to the astral plane, awaiting reincarnation.

A soul sacrifice was a secret technique that traded away their soul. To obtain temporary strength, the very soul was burnt away! What a great idea!

She had basically destroyed her last hope. From the looks of it, the Magus who was called Toram had an immense hatred towards the Ouroboros Clan.

A strange aura spread across the whole venue in the amount of time it took for the blood-red flames to combust.

A crimson gem appeared on Toram's forehead and exploded, bringing with it a shower of blood. It was at this moment that Fatality's Tip appeared in front of her.

The two collided.

Space suddenly shook, after which it seemed like nothing had happened.

Leylin was startled for a while before his face changed. He realised that things were not right and swiftly escaped.

Like the sound of glass being smashed, in the area where the blood-red gem and Fatality's Tip came into contact, a black hole had seemingly appeared, which had sucked in all of the objects in the area.

In an instant, even the air looked distorted. After a sudden contraction, a terrifying eruption occurred!

Boom!* A large mushroom cloud rose to the sky with the point of impact as the core. Large waves swept across the floor and swept away everything.

Tamansi who was watching outside was engulfed by the giant waves before he even had time to scream.

After the explosion, the sky itself started to crack apart. Anything that came into contact with these rifts suddenly disappeared from its original position.

At that moment, the sky was roaring, the ground trembling. It was only after 10 minutes or so that the remaining radiation from the explosion dissipated.

Boom!* A light shone in the void as Leylin appeared again

Currently, Leylin did not look too good. Even he was affected by the aftermath of that terrifying collision, and the injuries he'd suffered were not mild.

As for his opponent Toram? Being in the middle of the eruption, she had been torn to pieces.

Let alone the soul sacrifice, just because of the secret technique Toram had used to step into the Crystal Phase, combined with the damage at the end, even if she hadn't used a soul sacrifice she would not have much longer to live.

"What a pity…" Leylin sighed, but yet his face did not register depression. To him, he had already accomplished his objectives this time round. Even though the ending was a bit abrupt, everything was still within his control.

He landed on the ground, his feet stepping on a rock that had been burnt black. "Tamansi, come out!"

"Master, do you have any commands?" The soil became looser and Tamansi crawled out from underground.

During the explosion, coupled with luck and his abilities as a Magus, he had managed to keep his life. However, he had still suffered severe injuries.

From Leylin's point of view, Tamansi looked terrifying, with his clothes tattered and his skin scorched.

"For what happened this time round, write a report to be sent in! I still have other matters to attend to, so I won't be returning to the headquarters for now," he ordered.

Since they had accomplished the task, they would need another set of people to validate it.

"As you wish, Master!" Those were originally matters Tamansi had to do as an intelligence officer, and he swiftly replied.

"Also, for that female Magus, how should we handle her?"

"That small fry? Send out a warrant for her!" Leylin thought of Toram's apprentice, and yet did not pay too much attention to it.

It would take 500 years for a mere low-ranked Magus like that to cause a threat to the current him! Needless to say, after that amount of time, Leylin would have advanced to a more powerful state. It would be hard to say whether the other party would even survive to that period.

"Alright then…"

Even though Tamansi wanted to seek refuge from Leylin, he actually started trembling when he came face to face with Leylin, and was unable to speak his mind.

Currently, Leylin's aura was immensely strong after killing Toram, and even an ordinary rank 3 Magus would feel uncomfortable in his presence.

Moreover, even though his injuries weren't serious, they were still a hassle, and had to be resolved as soon as possible.

"I'll leave it to you to tie up the loose ends!"

Leylin faintly thought about it, before he disappeared into thin air, only leaving behind Tamansi who looked glum and regretful…

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Azure Mountain and the Couple

Azure Mountain City, situated beside the Andius mountains, was the ancestral territory of the Oakheart Clan.

The Andius mountains were rich in natural minerals, something that made the alloy produced by Azure Mountain City, with its superior quality, one of the most desirable in the entire continent.

In fact, Leylin had even visited this place himself once to source the materials for his own Magus Tower.

With excellent smelting techniques coupled with rich and plentiful natural resources, the Oakheart Clan had superior control over auctions, accumulating an outrageous amount of wealth.

The original name of the progenitor of the Oakheart Clan had long fallen out of the public mind, but his title still remained to this date. He was the powerful and brilliant Azure Mountain King!

Indeed, the progenitor of the Oakheart Clan was the well-known Azure Mountain King, the famed and almighty Morning Star Magus.

The intimidating nature of this Morning Star Magus served as a warning to other vicious and hateful Magi not to have any designs on the Oakheart Clan. Otherwise, it would have long been overtaken and ruled by those fugitive human magicians.

And now, the time had come for the decennial large-scale auction..

As the event venue of the auction was in Azure Mountain City, the entire place was filled to the brim with people. The prices of the airship tickets heading there had also risen sharply due to this event.

However it was not a deterrent, as Magi from everywhere continued to flow into the city.

Some among them were powerful and well known. Others had masked themselves, cherishing anonymity.

Regardless of their varying powers, all the Magi present would generally be disciplined enough to control and maintain themselves. After all, they would lose as well if the auction were to not proceed smoothly.

In fact, they would risk losing much needed materials to an arch-enemy, as well as materials that were hard to obtain through normal means.

With the auction event approaching, the crime rates in the neighbouring areas also increased substantially!

Many fugitive Magi on the wanted list came forth to the event sneakily and had daringly looted many people. But as long as they weren't caught red-handed, the Oakheart Clan, the main organiser, would not excessively pursue the matter.

The otherwise orderly Azure Mountain City had suddenly turned chaotic. A small group of Magi were pushing forward with their own secretive agendas behind the scenes.

As such, even under the watchful eyes of the Morning Star Magus, the Clan had to face a mounting number of incidents hindering their move forward. They were kept busy and anxious.

"Such a bustling scene!" Leylin was at a local inn along a stretch of shops, viewing the hurried crowd through a transparent glass flooring.

In front of him were served colourful glasses of juices, along with some freshly baked cookies and snacks.

He had been in Azure Mountain City for 3 days. The wounds from the clash with Toram had already mostly healed with his liberal use of potions.

As he had arrived early, Leylin was able to find lodging at an inn in the city, unlike the situation now where many Magi were struggling to find a room and had to search throughout the city and risk getting into conflicts with one another.

Leylin stroked his chin, looking at the busy street that was bustling with activity.

Many of the commoners wore grey, black and white apparel. Among the crowd, there were many Magi and some other races discreetly mingling about.

In the central continent, humans were not the only race. Many different species of humans had mingled together producing offspring of mixed bloodlines.

Leylin had personally met some of them on the streets and had witnessed their odd characteristics.

Walking among the pedestrians were patrol Knights from the host's city. Many of these knights wore barbed armor. Under the guidance of senior Knights and acolytes, they regularly combed through every corner of the city.

Although their abilities were insignificant to Magi, the fact that their uniforms bore the emblem of the Oakheart Clan was enough to deter any impetuous Magi.

"It's him!" At this moment, cries from a skylark sounded near Leylin. It perched itself outside the inn.

He found the tone of the cries familiar, and smiled and walked towards the entrance of the inn.

At this moment, a young couple stepped foot into the inn. The lady took one look at Leylin and was shocked.

"Oh! It's been a long time, Nolan, Jessia." Leylin noticed that Jessia wore the look of a young woman instead of a young girl and exclaimed, "Also, a blissful marriage to you!"

This couple from the Rolithe Family had left a deep impression on Leylin, especially the defiant young girl.

"Ley… Sir Leylin!" Nolan whined bitterly in his heart. He had heard about the delicious treats being served here and hence brought his wife along. Little did he expect he would bump into Leylin.

Nolan's knees grew weak thinking about how he was chided and taught a lesson mercilessly by this rank 3 Magus in the past.

As for Jessia, she looked as if she relied heavily on Nolan and had her arms around him. Leylin couldn't help but sense the hatred and detestation deep in her eyes. It made him speechless.

'Just because I had the ability to, but did not save you, you hate me so much?' Leylin stroked his chin. Coincidences happened all the time in this world. Maybe a word, an action, or even an exchange of glances, it might all result in an inexplicable hatred against someone else. It was something unfathomable.

He had not expected such matters to happen to him.

"Both of you look happily married now, although it does gives me a troubled heart!" Leylin was rather amused and called out to them to take a seat,"Shall we sit together? The food here is decent, I found this place after a long search!"

"Oh! No need! We do not want to impose on you, Sir!" Nolan gave a bitter smile and bowed politely. He grabbed Jessia's hand and left the place hastily.

Dining with Leylin? Nolan could feel immense pressure. In fact, the aura he felt this time was much more powerful than during their previous meeting. He certainly do not want to cross paths with Leylin again.

"What are you doing?" Jessia blurted out in anger after crossing a few streets with Nolan pulling her along.

"He is just a rank 3 Magus, what is the big deal? Your grandfather is also a famed Hydro Phase Magus… Furthermore, as long as we can gather sufficient materials this time, he can also attempt to enter the Crystal Phase!" Jessia pouted her lips with displeasure, profound resentment in her eyes.

After the wedding, Nolan had been good to Jessia, and she too, had gradually accepted her fate. However, her hatred towards Leylin from their initial meeting had not ceased one bit.

She hated how Leylin had disrupted her plans and how he had treated her, even till the end. There was no hint of nobility and no demeanor of a gentleman at all!

"That was after all a rank 3 Lord. Even if he hasn't reached the Vapour Phase, we cannot afford to offend him… Moreover, he had the support of the Ouroboros Clan…" Nolan smiled bitterly. Sadly, he was not up to date with the latest information. He was unaware of Leylin's true position and abilities in the Ouroboros Clan.

Plus, Leylin himself had been low-key all this while.

"I do not care, you have to take revenge on my behalf…" Jessia tugged at Nolan's arm with a look of dissatisfaction.

"Alright alright alright!" Nolan tamed her with verbal promises. However, from the bottom of his heart, he had zero intentions of doing so.

Of course, he couldn't speak his mind freely. Otherwise, knowing Jessia, she wouldn't let him have her when the night fell, and he would certainly dread it.

"Hmph! Leylin, since you are here, you will definitely not miss the auction. We'll see!" Her scheming plans were reflected in her eyes as they shined brightly.

Inside the inn, watching Nolan and Jessia leave, Leylin was deep in thought.

The hatred in the past was apparent and obvious to him. And up till now, she certainly had not given it up. The only difference was her attempt to conceal her feelings.

Leylin could have crushed such insignificant characters easily in the past. But he did not do so then. Other than his fear of offending someone who had a strong family as support, there was another reason.

After the couple left the inn, Leylin went back to his seat and sat down. In his palm, a dull gold coin appeared and he toyed with it.

"I can feel it, looks like they can present something valuable to me this time!" Leylin grinned as he slid the Coin of Destiny back into his pocket, his eyes twinkling a deep black.

The river of destiny could not be fathomed. It would constantly drift about without a permanent resting place. However, at some specific times and places, minute details of it would intersect, something that a few Magi could sense.

It had happened to Leylin previously. He had, with the help of the Coin of Destiny, felt that there were some unresolved matters.

In the near future, he knew he would cross paths with the couple again. And that time, they would voluntarily present him with an item of importance.

This current location seemed to be the confluence point where their destinies met.

"Boss, bill please!" Leylin smiled and stood up. The owner sprang up from behind the counter and stepped forward…

The Azure Mountain auction company was situated at the center of Azure Mountain City. Its land was extensive, surrounded by an encampment of the Oakheart Clan. Standing there, a simple and unadorned majestic Magus Tower could be seen radiating horrifying levels of energy. It seemed to have an unknown connection with the skies and the entire region.

This Magus Tower built by a Morning Star Magus was Leylin's current destination, as well as something he looked up to.

It was the symbol of the Oakheart Clan's power, and a guarantee.

Once he stepped foot into the auction hall, a female servant in uniforms stepped up swiftly and greeted him warmly, clearly well trained. "Welcome, how can I be of service to you?"

"I would like to sell some things in this auction!" The present Leylin was unrecognisable. He had altered his facial features and worn a hood over his head. He'd also added another outer layer of cotton shawl that draped down from the top, covering his face.

Fortunately, at this point of time, there were countless Magi in Azure Mountain City dressed exactly like Leylin, hence the servant was not baffled at all.

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The Auction House and Serene

"As long as it is verified by our appraiser, any items estimated to be worth over a hundred thousand magic crystals can be sold in the auction! May I ask if you need appraisal services?" The servant blurted out, almost as if by reflex. It was obvious that she'd said this multiple times before. It seemed like he was not the first person coming up to host something for auction.

"Bring me there!" Leylin answered concisely. Soon after, he followed the servant and came before a few customized cubicles.

As he was passing through, he even sensed the spell formation that was buried under the ground as well as the concealed runes on the wall. The security in here was much tighter than the outside, with even a rank 3 Magus keeping watch.

They came up to a room that was a reception area, and the servant respectfully invited Leylin to take a seat. "Customer, please wait a moment, I will get the appraiser here immediately to serve you!"

"Alright!" Leylin nodded, his eyes following the young woman as she exited.

After a short period of time, the door opened and an elderly man with a headful of silver hair and a face that had seen the vicissitudes of life entered.

"Honourable guest, I am a rank 2 appraiser, Norta!" the old man bowed.

"Hello!" Leylin smiled faintly in response. He pointed to the seat in front of him and invited the appraiser to sit.

In the central continent, appraisers also had ranks. This rank 2 appraiser was already a rank 2 Magus as well, and still maintained such respectful conduct. This was considered rare.

Furthermore, his hands were covered with all sorts of scars, making him seem extremely experienced.

After Norta sat down, he looked at Leylin with a hint of amazement.

Now that Azure Mountain City's auction was about to begin, it was not odd that various kinds of customers had shown up. However, just by the smell and appearance, he was able to judge that the Magus before him was very young. Yet, his body carried a dense fog that even he could not see through, which seldom occurred.

It was hard to say, maybe this customer had in his possession unique treasures that were hard to come by.

The appraiser stroked a ring on his hand as he was unable to repress the slight anticipation that flashed in his heart.

"I am a Potions Master. I'm thinking of selling some potions here!" Leylin spoke straightforwardly.

Of course, he had with him many more items that were more valuable than potions, but those were to be saved as exchange items for the barter later on. Only these potions that were made during his free time happened to be available to be offered for sale.

With his Potioneering talents, in the a span of 100 years—which was about half of Leylin's age—Leylin had amassed a large number of completed potions as a Potions Grandmaster.

"How unexpected, for you to be a Potions Master as well!" Norta's eyes sparkled. No matter where, proficient Potions Masters and alchemists always enjoyed preferential treatment.

After some thought, Norta still informed him beforehand about the matters that needed to be taken note of. "However, I would like to explain the rules of the auction to you first. In our auction, only high-grade potions and above are sold, if it is a middle-grade potion that is not very valuable, it will have to meet a certain quantity…"

"Don't worry, I know that!" Leylin smiled, reaching his hand out and sweeping it across the table.

A silver radiance shone. After spatial energy waves passed, the red table was filled with test tubes of all kinds of colour.

"So…… So many!"

Norta's eyes widened instantly in surprise. He then lost that last bit of calmness in his expression of his after he recognised a few of the potions. "And they are all high-grade potions!"

"Hoho……" As he watched the old man lose his composure, Leylin smiled kindly. In fact, these were only a small portion of his achievements over the last few centuries, but it was enough to scare the other party.

"This is already all my gains over hundreds of years…" On the surface, Leylin laughed proudly but he still sighed.

"Sir you are actually a Potions Grandmaster!" This time, Norta's voice contained a slight tremor.

Potions Grandmasters were always given special treatment even among strong organisations. The scarcity of such masters in the central continent was actually very scary. This was clearly evident from the sole fact that even in the Ouroboros Clan, which had 3 Morning Star Magi and was regarded as one of the top forces of the central continent, there were not more than five.

"This…These…" Drops of cold sweat slid down the appraiser's forehead and even more so, he had an embarrassed look on his face.

"My apologies, honourable guest! This deal is beyond my abilities, please wait a moment……" Even if he was at the Azure Mountain auction house. An ordinary appraiser like him did not stand a chance to serve such a Potions Grandmaster.

"Then I hope you can hurry!" Leylin spoke indifferently with a straight face, concealing his discontentment.

"Yes sir!" Towards a Potions Grandmaster of unknown origins, this appraiser dared not be tardy and he immediately withdrew.

'It seems that the identity of a Potions Grandmaster is pretty useful in the central continent!' Leylin smiled while stroking his chin.

This time, the other party did not make him wait for long. Almost within a minute after the old man left, a polite knock sounded again, "Honourable guest, may I enter?"

"Please do!" Leylin smiled, and shortly after he saw the previous appraiser pulling open the door respectfully, inviting a middle-aged western lady in.

"Let me introduce myself. My name is Serene, Serene Oakheart! The administrative matters of the Azure Mountain auction house, as well as Mister's business, will be fully handled by me!"

This beautiful lady named Serene was like a ripe peach, there was not a part of her body that did not emit an alluring scent. Furthermore, her surname made Leylin raise his eyebrow.

Not only that, although she had used some sort of technique to cover up her aura, the A.I. Chip was still able to detect that she was actually a strong Magus who had attained rank 3 as well!

Ka-cha!* Norta made a bow and exited the room respectfully. Before he left, he even shut the door, as if he was only a doorman.

"Sir, how may I address you?" Serene looked at Leylin whose face was covered, especially curious at the deeply concealed aura of the other party.

"Just 'Blood Rogue' will do!" Leylin immodestly used one of his old names.

"Hoho… Lord Blood Rogue, how are you planning to sell these potions!" Serene swayed her slender waist, waving her sleeves as she sat down in front of Leylin languidly. Every single movement of hers seemed to be of the highest quality, with a polite scent that yet stirred up men's burning desires even more.

'This woman is a temptress, comparable to Celine from Twilight Zone!' Leylin sighed in his heart but he spoke without a tremor, "Tell me about your plans!"

Serene''s eyebrows furrowed, but they relaxed shortly after. "Since sir is interested, Serene will first explain the rules of our auction. For ordinary customers, we have two methods of auctioning!"

"Firstly," Serene stretched out a spotless jade-white finger, "These potions, can all be auctioned here. No matter what price they are dealt for, our Azure Mountain auction house will have to take out a part of it as a commission fee! Of course, if the auction fails, you will have to pay us a guarantee fee as well!"

"Secondly, our auction house can purchase these potions from you directly. Price wise, it will be calculated according to the market price! What we do with them afterwards will not be of your concern anymore. If you need magic crystals urgently, you may opt for this method!"

Leylin nodded, this second method was evidently prepared for those Magi who were planning to accumulate large funds to bid for certain items during the auction.

The only thing was that the auction house would definitely buy items priced lower than market price. Unfortunately, the other party was willing to purchase at market prices, not only because these potions were rare, but even more so because of their interest in a Potions Grandmaster's identity.

"I certainly hope that I can get my hands off these items as soon as possible, so that I can obtain enough magic crystals to use during the auction! Since you are so sincere, of course I'll go with the second method!" Leylin said. Although he might be able gain more by auctioning them, it was definite that he could only receive the payment after the auction. He did not want that.

"That's great! Purchasing so many high-grade potions is also very helpful for my sales record, Thank you, Sir." Serene chuckled, as if she could not see the many precious potions piled up in front of her.

"I estimate the total price of the potions to be around 98 million magic crystals! Sir, do you have any objections?" The words that Serene said after that slightly shocked Leylin.

However, his shock immediately relieved. He was in the other party's territory and the potions had already been piled up on the table for a long time. Estimating their worth based on detecting techniques was not something hard.

No wonder she did not look much at the table after entering. This was why.

"A very reasonable price!" Leylin nodded. Of course, he already had an estimate of the value of his items. This price was obviously based on the current market rate, and might even have a little bit higher.

"Ordinary customers automatically become VIPs once their transactions involve a total of over 50 million magic crystals in our Azure Mountain auction house, making things much more convenient for them… But for someone to enter the VIP rank in the first transaction like you, Sir, is very rare!"

Serene smiled, her blue eyes gleamed with a charming radiance. It was as if she wanted to see through the veil and take a look at Leylin's real face.

She clapped, and the door opened for a moment before a servant walked in, holding a tray.

On the red tray lay a purple-gold card as well as a black pouch.

"This is the payment and the VIP certificate! Please verify and accept this, customer!" When it came down to business, Serene regained her serious expression.

Without any trace of politeness, Leylin walked up to check on the items, especially the magic crystals. Using the A.I. Chip, he scanned continuously to check for their purity and quantity, before giving a nod upon confirming that nothing was overlooked.

When the transaction ended, Leylin did not leave immediately. Serene also accompanied him, beaming with a smile without a trace of annoyance.

The two beat about the bush for a long time before Leylin spoke up. "Actually, I still have two more matters to ask for your help!"

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The Commencement of the Auction

"What does Sir need?" Serene beamed while asking.

A Potions Grandmaster was hard to come by, and even the Azure Mountain auction house would spare no effort to entice him.

If the other party had any requests, that would be easy to handle! In the central continent, there were few things a Morning Star Magus could not do.

"The reason why I came to the Azure Mountain auction this time round was because I want to acquire a precious resource. My sources tell me that said resource is going to be sold here…" Leylin said without a hurry.

"Is Sir trying to ask about the details of the seller before completing the transactions?" Serene's face revealed her dilemma, "What is it? If it's about the few rare items, we, the Azure Mountain auction committee is unable to make any decisions!"

Leylin laughed and whispered a few words into Serene's ears.

"You actually want… " Serene's pupils widened, before she instantly smiled wryly.

"Those things are too hard to come by. Even my grandfather would not sell it. I'll not keep it from you. Previously, a few batches of people have came to me wanting to obtain some information, but we have not revealed any of the information because the high-ranked Masters have already noticed the auction pieces…"

"Ah, I see…" Leylin seemed slightly disappointed. From the looks of it, the astral stone was indeed very precious. Just its appearance here had already aroused attention.

For Serene to call them Masters, they had to be Morning Star Magi; there was no other possibility.

At the same time, Serene also looked at Leylin with astonishment.

Astral gate research and experiments could only be conducted and hosted by Morning Star Magi. Even preliminary research had a high requirement, needing one to be a Hydro Phase Magus with a high-ranked Magus Tower.

This customer's strengths seemed to be very robust.

"Let's put this matter aside and talk about another matter, the private gathering after the auction. What are the prerequisites to entering the venue?" Leylin asked casually after quickly collecting his feelings when he was not able to obtain a reply from Serene.

'This question!' Serene lightly let out a sigh of relief.

This was within her purview. If it hadn't been, she would have failed at satisfying either of her guest's questions, which was equivalent to stepping on his feet.

"The private gathering will be held within 3 days of the closure of the auction. We will announce the actual venue later. With regards to entrance requirements, sir is already a VIP of the Azure Mountain auction, and hence you fully qualify for the private gathering. I'll send someone to inform you closer to the event date…"

"Excellent!" Despite a few flirtatious invites from Serene urging him to stay, Leylin left behind a few methods of contact and got up to leave for the auction.

Even though she was rejected, Serene did not feel an ounce of anger. She smiled until Leylin had left before returning to the auction.

"How was it? Did you verify his identity?" In her office quarters, a golden-haired middle-aged man with a walking stick asked casually, and seemed to be very aware of Leylin's actions.

"Nope. He was very cautious!" Serene smiled wryly.

"I looked through the details of all the Potions Grandmasters in the vicinity, and none of them match his personality. Is he from a different region?"

Even though the Azure Mountain's auction had a great reputation, but they only attracted Magi below the Morning Star realm. Moreover, the list only contained Magi residing in this region.

"Perhaps he's someone with a lot of experience, someone worth recruiting. After all, we can involve him in the matter that we are currently plotting, which would fit Grandfather's requests…"

The middle-aged man's tone was very neutral, but having heard his words, Serene's eyes lit up, "Do you mean…"

……

With growing anticipation and the many conspiracies in the shadows, time ticked by, until it was finally the first day of the auction.

This was a festival for Azure Mountain City. Not only did the residents carry lit lanterns and played with fireworks, but the streets were also bustling with activities.

It wasn't uncommon for Magi to make underground exchanges and interactions.

And the Oakheart Clan, as the regional power, had sent out many elite units to suppress the situation and maintain order.

'Speaking of which, this is a festive event for many of us magi who are below the Morning Star rank!' Leylin snuck into the crowd and walked along, occasionally glancing from side to side.

The A.I. Chip gave out warning after warning.

The crowd that Leylin was in mainly consisted of Magi. Ranks 1 and 2 were common, and even rank 3 Magi were not rare, with some who were on par with Leylin himself.

Those Magi were all like Leylin. They were in disguise, and had concealed themselves further with thick cloaks or veils, appearing to be very cautious.

'Whether major powers or fugitives, no vengeance can be had here. This rule has been carried down from previous auctions, eh.' Leylin smiled and pressed his cap down further, as his continued to inconspicuously scan through the dangerous people identified by the A.I Chip.

At that moment, the Azure Mountain auction's gates were opened at the city center. Numerous hosts and Magi came forth, welcoming the incoming Magi in the most glamourous gowns.

The normal entrance had already been filled to the brim with Magi, and the rest had no choice but to line up behind them.

Why were they so obedient? The welcoming committee was the greatest deterrent.

They were elite Magi of the Oakheart Clan. Not only did many of them possess powerful spells, they even had some methods of combined attacks. Even Crystal Phase Magi would be hard-pressed to even flee were they to attack in large numbers.

The VIP entrance, on the other hand, was vastly different. Magi entered from time to time, and they would immediately be given looks of respect.

VIP membership in the Azure Mountain auction represented not only identity, but also status. To take out 50 million magic crystals for a business deal was not just a matter of being wealthy. This was the Magus world; were they to not have enough power to keep their wealth, all the riches in the world would not prevent their being robbed.

As a result, the status of a VIP represented a certain amount of power.

Of course, Leylin would not choose to queue with those low-ranked Magi for a seat, and so he took a turn and walked towards the VIP entrance.

After Leylin left the crowd, he realised that a huge bunch of people had the same intentions as him, and he even knew them.

"I'm sorry, but according to our regulations, a VIP card can only allow for the entrance of two more Magi!" Serene bowed in apology, but the young married woman in front of her still refused to budge.

"Who do you think you are? We are the Rolithe Family…" Jessia became red in the face, but Nolan pulled her to the side, face plastered with a bitter smile.

The two bodyguards at the side had a solemn look on their faces, and did not seem to be intimidated by the reputation of the Rolithe Family.

The other party was a small clan without even a Morning Star Magus. If they were to give in to them, the Oakheart Clan would be treated as a joke!

Nolan obviously knew this point, and he muttered a few words to Jessia.

Beside them were two Magi, both at rank 3. One caught his eye—"That old man?"

Leylin looked at the Magus standing at the front. His face was sunken and he wore on his ear a red ruby pendant that seemed to have some symbolic meaning.

"He must be the clan leader of the Rolithe family, the one who is rumoured to have reached the peak of the Hydro Phase!" Leylin calmly walked over. He had managed to subdue Toram who used a secret technique to break through to the Crystal Phase. He naturally didn't consider the old man a threat.

"Jessia, I thought you didn't want to take part in auctions like these?" Nolan helplessly persuaded. This wife of his had originally said that she wanted to come here just for fun and would not partake in the auction. However, something had come over her today and she had insisted on coming.

However, their family still had an elder at rank 3 who'd come along this time as well, and hence the quota had already been filled.

With their feeble strength as a small family clan, the Oakheart Clan would not make a special exception for them and allow them to exceed the quota for the VIP entrance.

Leylin could not help but notice that after marriage, Nolan had indeed matured a lot.

"I just want to go in to have a look. Grandpa Vance, can't you just let me in?" Jessia tugged at the old Magus' arms, and started to act coquettishly.

Vance, who was bothered to no end by her could only smile wryly as he glanced at Serene, "Look…"

"I'm extremely sorry, Mister Vance! Even though I'm an old friend of yours, rules are rules. If this lady would really like to enter, she can only enter through the normal passageway!" Serene had a professional smile on her face. Even though her tone sounded sincere, it seemed to have a tinge of hypocrisy within.

It's only a small family clan and she need not put in so much effort.

"No! I refuse to walk through that passageway!" This turn of events had attracted the attention of many Magi. Jessia's refusal to agree had caused them much embarrassment.

"Excuse me, please make way! There are other VIPs on the way!"

At that time, Serene's eyes lit up as she quickly walked to welcome the incoming VIP, "Lord Blood Rogue, it's been a long time since we met!" As compared to the response before, Serene seemed much more enthusiastic.

Having seen such an attitude, Jessia and even Nolan looked dispirited.

"What's the matter?" Leylin asked, even though he already knew the answer.

"Oh, there's nothing much! The guest quota of this customer is already full, but this lady insists on entering!" Serene summarised the event.

"Put it on my quota, then! I'm not bringing anyone anyway!" Leylin shook his head.

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The Watcher and The Ladybird

"Since that is what Sir Blood Rogue wants, of course it's possible!" This was a small matter, and the rules were flexible enough to accommodate it. Furthermore, Serene wanted to attempt roping in Leylin, so naturally she would give him due respect.

In actual fact, even if Leylin's quota was full but he still wanted to bring more people, Serene would agree to it.

After all, in her eyes, a Potions Grandmaster was of a much higher status than the Rolithe Family, which only had a single Hydro Phase Magus.

"Really? Thank you so much, Sir!" Nolan immediately expressed his delight. He, of course, did not recognise Leylin who had changed his disguise, and bowed with Jessia.

"Many thanks…" Jessia was slightly reluctant, but she bowed anyway, still feeling wronged.

"Alright!" Leylin nodded in a reserved manner, and was about to enter the auction venue.

"Hold on! Dear friend, my name is Vance Rolithe! Thank you so much for this!" The old man by the name of Vance had been standing by the side, waiting for Leylin to start walking so that he could enter the auction venue with him side by side. The wine red carpet extended continuously under their feet.

"Nothing much, just a bit of help while I'm here!" Leylin replied, but god knew what expression he had under his hood.

He reached out and stroked the round coin on his chest.

'The reaction is getting stronger! Perhaps what I need is with the other party, hehe… Jessia, you've given me a large present!'

Leylin shot a glance at Jessia, who was walking with her head held low. This woman still seemed rather fiery.

The scene outside the auction venue had completely stripped her of her vanity, making her aware of how inferior and helpless she really was.

She did not show the slightest amount of gratitude to Leylin who had given her a hand earlier.

Of course, she didn't recognise Leylin as well, and was instead cursing and grumbling inside, "Wretched Leylin! If not for you, I wouldn't be here and suffer such humiliation… You'll see. Don't let me bump into you tonight, or else…"

A sinister look flashed across Jessia's eyes, but was quickly masked. As her head was partially lowered, her expression was not discovered by anyone.

That's right. The main reason for her being here was Leylin. Ever since she saw Leylin at Azure Mountain City, revenge was all that was on her mind.

Plus, according to the elder that had seen Leylin with them, he was only in the initial phase of a rank 3 back then and hadn't even entered the Vapour Phase.

As long as they could find him, Grandfather—whose strength had already reached the peak of the Hydro Phase—would definitely be able to help them seek revenge!

But what disappointed Jessia was that no matter how hard she searched Azure Mountain City, even going so far as to stand guard at the pastry shop they had met in, he was nowhere to be found.

Leylin had long since changed his identity to Blood Rogue, and even if they were to meet face to face on the streets, Jessia would definitely be unable to recognise him.

After countless futile attempts, Jessia could only grudgingly give up further plans to continue the search. Instead, she turned to other ideas.

She would strike at the auction!

She was extremely certain that Leylin would appear here, attracted by the auction. Therefore, even if she hadn't found him for the time being, she would find him at the venue!

As such, her trip here was to relieve her of her troubles. It was why Jessia, who didn't have even the slightest bit of interest in the auction, had pestered Nolan to bring her here.

However, she seemed to have forgotten something. Not only would there be a huge number of Magi attending the auction, making it impossible to comb through everyone, there was also another problem that would be highly difficult to solve: as long as he was an official Magus, he would definitely have the ability to change his appearance! Once Leylin was in disguise, even if she wandered around the entire venue, it would be impossible to find him.

Jessia might have thought about this were she not filled with rage and fuelled by hatred, making her lose her ability to think rationally.

At this moment, Leylin and Vance had reached a crossroad.

"Haha, it has been a pleasant conversation with you, Blood Rogue. I shall head to my room. Maybe we can each leave our secret imprints behind, and meet again to chat another time…" Vance was deliberately trying to get close to Leylin; after all, he evidently was holding a high position at the Azure Mountain auction.

The more people of high-standing that they knew, the more benefits their family stood to gain.

"Sure!" From under the hood came a laugh that been altered by the A.I. Chip. At the same time, a secret imprint emerged.

After saying their goodbyes, Leylin followed the maid to his room. The room was decorated very luxuriously, but it was rather small, and could only accommodate a maximum of three chairs placed side by side without squeezing them close to each other.

'No wonder they only allowed two other people to enter, I'm afraid that Jessia will have to stand at the side—oh, no, maybe Nolan will stand at the side, while Jessia takes his seat…' Leylin let his thoughts run wild.

At the same time, he was sizing up the whole cubicle. The most captivating part of the entire room was the huge screen in the centre, where numerous auction items would appear.

Leylin fiddled with the bidding machine and communication equipment for a while and quickly got the hang of it.

The quality of the sound-proofing between cubicles was excellent, and the entire booth immediately went quiet when the maid left.

"Something doesn't feel right! A.I. Chip, scan!"

Leylin leaned against the top of the chair and stroked his chin, seemingly meditating out of boredom or deep in thought, but yet a faint blue glow flashed across under his eyes.

[Starting scan, no abnormalities!] A few moments later, the A.I. Chip's conclusion alarmed Leylin.

"What?! That can't be true, as an owner of the auction, how is it possible that a basic intelligence-gathering spell formation has not even been set up? Scan again, activate combined tri-unit operation, mobilize atomic microscope!" Leylin immediately realized the root of the problem.

How could such Magi be at ease at an auction? Even though on the surface they said it was for protection, the necessary surveillance was still required.

Perhaps some Morning Star Magi could avoid such treatment, but Leylin clearly did not qualify.

[Beep! Orders received! Mobilizing atomic microscope, starting in-depth scan!] The A.I. Chip immediately began operating again.

This time, a discovery was made within 3 seconds.

[Beep! Discovered traces of microscopic beings, no similar image found in database!]

The A.I. Chip sent the report loyally, and projected an image into Leylin's brain.

The image was clearly a magnified version of the image from the atomic microscope. In an environment made up of numerous cell-like objects, living creatures similar to ladybirds that were the size of fine particles were patrolling around the cracks. Together, they even formed a spell rune.

"This is…" Leylin's pupils contracted, "Manlar's Eavesdropping Rune! And what is this creature? It is actually so tiny that an atomic microscope is needed to examine it…"

A chill ran down his spine as he ordered the A.I. Chip to scan his self. After confirming that these ladybirds only stayed on the floor of the room and that there were none in contact with his body, he heaved a sigh of relief.

'Although I don't know what other purpose this creature serves, its mere ability to spy by forming runes is extremely hard to deal with and dreadful…' Leylin's heart was heavy, but he maintained a drowsy appearance, so no one thought that something was wrong.

'Looks like the entire auction venue has been covered with these tiny bugs. Also, someone is using their characteristics to build a spell formation… Such a thing can only be done by the Azure Mountain King!'

Leylin was very certain. Although he was well-equipped with knowledge and experience, he had never heard about such a ladybird before, so it was likely to be a creature from a different world that had been captured and made use of by the Azure Mountain King to form a strange spell formation.

A spell formation deployed with utmost care by a Morning Star Magus would not be discovered even by a rank 3 Crystal Phase Magus.

Leylin even suspected that even other rank 4 Magi would not find out easily.

This would also explain why this secret had never been revealed, and why the Azure Mountain auction had been having such good business void of any nasty incidents.

Under the watch of the ladybirds, no matter what plans one had, they would be hard to implement.

'He is indeed worthy of being a Morning Star Magus!' Leylin gasped without saying anything else, acting as though he hadn't discovered anything.

However, this also explained why VIPs were given such tiny rooms. Judging by the strength of the Oakheart Clan, even if they built a spacious and luxurious cubicle for every single VIP, they wouldn't face any financial pressure. The only possibility why they didn't was because of such a spell formation.

A surveillance spell formation that was able to cover the entire auction venue was incredibly expensive.

After all, the entire venue accommodated a huge number of Magi! The current surface area that it occupied was the maximum, and could not be expanded further.

As the boundaries of the spell formation ended there, if the compound was further expanded, there would be blind spots in the surveillance, which would obviously not be permitted by the Azure Mountain King.

At this moment, a voice sounded, as though it came from right in front of Leylin. "Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Azure Mountain City. We thank you for being here at this distinguished event. I am honoured to be your humble host, Leo Oakheart…"

Soon after, many images appeared on three of the walls, revealing a humongous platform on which a gold-haired middle-aged nobleman wearing a swallow-tailed coat was making a speech.

'A 3D hologram technique?!' Leylin almost yelled, but immediately came to his senses; it was only an effect achieved by spells.

It seemed as though Leylin was sitting in the best spot, directly facing the host of the auction. Certainly, the Magi in the other cubicles felt the same.

A row of words appeared on the screen in the centre of the room. "The first auction item will now be presented, a Fiery Gemstone…"

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Wing of the Sun

Behind the introductions were several other rows, each describing the items following the first.

"…… Now, please allow me to present the first item of this year's auction: a treasure produced from the Fiery World, the Fiery Gemstone!" The host announced loudly, lifting the gauze from the tray behind him at the same time.

Boom!* In a flash, 3 pieces of translucent crystal emerged before Leylin's eyes. An unceasing flame seemed to be burning in the cores of the crystals.

"Treasures from another plane!"

Numerous Magi gasped. In order to start off the auction successfully, the Azure Mountain auction house had indeed put in much effort. Evidently, the first auction item was unexpected for many of them.

"The Fiery Gemstone is rumoured to be a treasure of the central Blazing World. Containing heavily compressed fire elemental particles, it can help break through and upgrade a fire-attributed Magus' spiritual endowments, and is even an essential item the advancements of many high-grade fire elemental meditation techniques…" the host continued.

However, very few spared the attention to listen to him anymore. They had all averted their rapacious gazes to the Fiery Gemstone on stage.

Even Leylin was slightly tempted by this item, leave alone the other Magi.

Resources from other planes, could only be obtained by Morning Star Magi due to the requirement for an astral gate. For rank 2 and rank 3 Magi like them, they were an inaccessible existence.

It's small-degree spiritual endowment enhancing effects especially drove many of them crazy.

"Alright. Now we will begin the auction for the compressed blazing gemstones, with the starting bid at 5 million magic crystals!" The host reported a figure, which was soon drowned amongst a cacophony of bids.

Huge figures appeared on the screen, which was refreshed again and again with the highest quoted price.

Leylin speechlessly watched the numbers spike on the corner of the screen, exceeding ten million in a flash and going all the way up to around 50 million before slowing down. He could not help but smile bitterly.

"I originally thought that the more than 90 million magic crystals from the Azure Mountain auction house was already a large fund. Now it seems it will be really difficult to win the bid for the astral stone…"

Leylin extinguished all thoughts of pressing the bid button. Although he had many items that he could use as payment and winning the bid for the compressed blazing gemstone was not hard, it was too ostentatious. Furthermore, his funds were limited, they had to be saved for later and were not to be wasted on this.

Because he had already decided to give up, Leylin was able to relax and engrossedly watch the group of high-ranked Magi fight furiously over these treasures.

The value of otherworldly treasures still exceeded Leylin's expectations. Not only were the VIPs in the VIP lounge going all out, even Magi seated at the regular auditorium began quoting prices to fight for the items as well.

"Possessing the financial ability to compete for the Fiery Gemstone yet withdrawn within the regular auditorium crammed with all those low-ranked Magi, he is also a rascal pretending to be weak!" Leylin looked at a red-haired youth and assessed monotonously.

"Bidding closed, the three people who quoted the highest price will obtain the rights of attribution to the Fiery Gemstone!" The host, who stood on the central elevated platform with a slightly flushed face, spoke with an obvious excitement.

Now, on the screen, the large figures stopped in a moment. The highest bid had reached a shocking 85 million magic crystals! The second and third highest bid merely differed from the first by not more than 1 million magic crystals.

"This is crazy!" Leylin shook his head.

Clearly, the quoted price this time had been overshot by a lot, even exceeding the original expectations of the auction house. The host calmed down and began introducing the next auction item, "Magic equipment – Aphopis' Scepter! Starting bid: 38 million magic crystals or resources of equivalent worth…"

An entirely golden, magnificently crafted scepter instantly appeared within Leylin's sight. At the head of the scepter, many gold tassels and decorations formed the shape of a sun's corona, emitting light and heat continuously.

"40 million magic crystals!"

"50 million magic crystals, and 3 moonstones on top of that!"

Evidently, this piece of magic equipment was already renowned among this group of Magi. Even before the host finished speaking, the Magi below had already begun quoting prices.

Leylin rested his chin on his hands and as he watched, he suddenly felt that he was actually considered poor.

Compared to these central continent Magi who took possession of rich resources and had long-spanning inheritances, even if he plundered the entire Twilight Zone, he would still only be considered slightly rich.

If not for those few incidents of huge profit, and if he was not a Potions Grandmaster, he definitely would not have dared to participate in the auction for the astral stone.

Shortly after, the piece of magic equipment, Aphopis' scepter, was bought by a Magus in the VIP lounge at a high price of 90 million magic crystals. Many Magi could not help but take note of the VIP lounge number.

The Azure Mountain auction was no doubt the top power in this area. What followed next was a large quantity of rare Magus treasures, information on high-grade meditation techniques, and also a great amount of valuable resources appearing on the stage one after another, something which many Magi pursued.

The high-grade potions that Leylin initially sold were in there too. Although there were only a part of it, they were still sold at sky-high prices. The desires of Magi for high-grade potions could never be satisfied.

This made Leylin rather happy but at the same time, he secretly rolled his eyes.

He originally thought that the Azure Mountain auction house undertook a definite loss when they purchased his potions, but now it seems this transaction greatly profited the other party instead.

"Ladies and gentlemen, today's auction is approaching an end, our Azure Mountain auction house has specially decided that the biggest treasures of this time's auction will be up for auction at the last moment!" The host's words piqued Leylin's interest uncontrollably as he fixed his gleaming eyes on the stage.

"This time's auction will continue on for 3 days, which means to say, there are 3 extremely valuable items to auction! There are few opportunities!" The host's voice carried a hint of temptation.

"Next, please allow me to grandly introduce the first treasure: the ancient advanced meditation technique—Wing of the Sun!"

Following his words, the curtains on both ends of the stage were drawn, exposing the precious object behind it. It looked no different from the common large swords. Its model was full of antiquity and the middle section of its blade had obvious cracks on it, with the tip of the sword missing.

Even more so, what caused Leylin to slightly lose his spirit was the drop of golden blood on the blade of the broken sword, which looked as if it contained a life of its own. It took the form of a spiral and shone with radiance continuously.

"As you all know, once a Magus surpasses the Morning Star realm, reaching an even scarier and more unpredictable state, their lives will begin to sublime. Even the smallest cell of their blood will contain a deep secret about themselves, so much so that they may achieve blood reincarnation…"

The host's voice carried a slight excitement, "And this broken sword, had once been in contact with a little bit of the blood of the ancient Sun's child! Through our appraiser's verification, although the blood on the broken sword has completely lost its life energy, this sole drop of blood holds the information about the meditation technique of the Sun's child from that time!"

"Sun's child!!!"

As soon as the host spoke, Leylin somewhat lost his cool.

It wasn't rare for the relic of such a powerful person from ancient times to contain some fragments of information. Even the Lamia fingerbone could forcibly catalyse the formation of a soul by the means of its own radiation. But to contain the complete information about the meditation technique was extremely rare.

Based on Leylin's conjecture, the Sun's child must have had a premonition about his death when he was facing his enemy and thus deliberately left a legacy behind.

Only, what amazed Leylin was that he had never expected to see a relic of that Sun's child, who was amongst the ranks of Quicksand, in this place.

Somewhere, he had a feeling that maybe, his fate with the ancient bloodline Warlocks—the Quicksand Organisation, was not so short-lived.

"We can guarantee that the meditation technique—Wing of the Sun—is absolutely complete! The ancient top meditation technique is still a great reference for us even if we are unable to practise it! Moreover, although the bloodline of the Sun's child on the sword has completely lost its life energy, you never know, there may still be certain spells that can restore its vitality. If it's like that, I'm afraid the Warlock structure of the entire central continent will be revised……"

The host was trying his best to delude them, "For this auction item, the starting bid—200 million magic crystals, or other equivalent resources!"

After the host finished his sentence, the scene became calm and actually fell into a short, temporary awkward silence.

The numerous Magi, all stared at the broken sword and its golden spiral which was on the elevated platform, with unknown thoughts.

"Huff…" Leylin gave a long sigh, "If Mentor Gilbert was here, he'd buy this at all costs…"

Of course, Leylin was sure of one thing—the auction would be conducted for three days and a valuable item would be revealed every day at the last moment; this advanced meditation technique was only the cheapest among the three precious treasures.

The advanced meditation technique, Wing of the Sun, was similar to Kemoyin's pupil—a technique specially customised for individual Warlocks. The criteria to practise it was to possess the bloodline of the ancient Sun's child. According to Leylin's intelligence and knowledge, ever since the ancient Sun's child of Quicksand died, there had not been any news of the birth of similar bloodlines in the entire central continent.

Hence, the Wing of the Sun meditation technique was at most useful for Magi as a reference, causing its worth to plummet.

Also, the blood on the sword had lost its life energy and could not be used as a bloodline to be introduced into Magus bodies and passed down. Even though it looked very precious, its real worth was in fact not much.

Of course, the relatively low worth of this item was only when compared to the other two treasures. To Leylin, the price of this treasure was still too high to afford.

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Despicable

"What a pity…" Leylin sighed. If he was willing to use up all of his magic crystals, and sell a few more precious materials on top of that, he would stand a chance in bidding for the Wing of the Sun. Even though that was good, it did not quite fit his requirements as his main intentions were still to obtain the astral stone.

However, if Duke Gilbert was here, he would be willing to offer a sky-high price for the Wing of the Sun, even if was only going to be useful for research!

A higher-ranked bloodline as well as a top-notch meditation technique! These were temptations that a Warlock would easily succumb to.

Upon getting hold of this precious object, they must have exhausted all possible methods until it was no longer possible to exploit the bloodline of the Sun's Child, before reluctantly putting it up for auction. If not, they would never have minded transforming into a Warlock family.

As far as Leylin was aware, there wasn't a single Warlock Family on the central continent that could reach rank 6. In other words, if one was really able to combine the blood of the Sun's Child together with the meditation technique, a Breaking Dawn bloodline Warlock would be able to gradually rise to power in the central continent!

"A loss in such a bloodline is totally impossible to recreate in the present central continent!" Leylin remembered that he had received data on fusion and modification of bloodlines from Quicksand Castle.

"If I were to make use of the modification technique, together with the genetic reformation function of my A.I. Chip, there might just be a possibility of success…." However, even if it succeeded, this would only produce yet another ancient bloodline treasure for Leylin.

He already had a pure ancient red dragon bloodline on hand. However, it was a pity that after a long period of research, he had realised that he was still unable to transform his own bloodline. All the research on synthesising and modifying bloodlines had gone down the drain.

A Warlock's bloodline did not only exist within his body, it was also merged with his spirit. Even Leylin was at a loss for how to deal with this.

Ultimately, it is only when one has advanced to the Morning Star realm, and when their spiritual force has undergone continuous advancements, then can they come into contact with the spirit itself.

As a result, even if Leylin was able to restore the bloodline of the Sun's Child, he would not have the desire to bid for this treasure.

As a matter of fact, his interest in Wing of the Sun far exceeded his interest in the Sun's Child bloodline.

"It's an advanced ancient meditation technique!" It was indeed a higher level bloodline meditation technique as compared to Kemoyin's Pupil. Even though they were both bloodline meditation techniques, the Wing of the Sun was evidently at a much higher level.

Kemoyin's Pupil only had a total of four levels due to the origin of the Giant Kemoyin Serpent Bloodline. The Giant Kemoyin Serpent was originally a rank 4 creature, limiting the progress of a Warlock who would partake in this technique. Since no Kemoyin Warlock could cross rank 4, there was no method to attain a higher-ranked meditation technique.

On the other hand, the Sun's Child was different. It was originally a Rank 6 creature, hence allowing a Warlock of its bloodline to reach rank 6 as well, thus engendering the highest level of meditation techniques.

Customarily, in the central continent, a meditation technique with four levels that could let its practitioner attain the Morning Star realm, to be called a high-grade meditation technique.

Furthermore, an advanced meditation technique of at least level 6 was needed for a Magus to peek at the path to the Breaking Dawn realm.

Naturally, Leylin would not be contented with just a mere rank 4 Kemoyin's Pupil. His ultimate goal was to reach Breaking Dawn and higher levels to reach immortality! Hence, the Wing of the Sun was attractive. At least it could serve as a model upon which the Kemoyin's Pupil could be improved on.

Yet… Would it really be worth it to pay such a high price for a meditation technique that would merely work as a reference?

Leylin shook his head, attempting to erase the thought from his mind.

'Meditation techniques are not tangible, but only information made up of words and pictures. Since the Azure Mountain clan is certain that the meditation technique is complete, they're bound to have a copy of the information as well as the bloodline of the Sun's Child. Perhaps I can start working from that area…'

Leylin placed his hand on his chin as his thoughts wandered away.

After moments of silence, the Magi below finally responded.

"Two hundred and ten million magic crystals!" An aged voice called out from the VIP lounge.

As if it was a signal, the crowd immediately quoted their prices, practically flooding the screen.

This was after all an advanced meditation technique coupled with an ancient bloodline, thus it was priceless. Even though there was not much use for it, the value of this precious object for collection purposes had way exceeded its base price.

In addition, the vastness and mystery of spells were not something that current Magi could explore completely.

Perhaps, in one of the hidden corners of the central continent, there lay a powerful technique that was capable of activating the Sun's Child bloodline. If that was the case, by buying this precious object at a low price today, one could earn a fortune in the future!

This was clearly what the majority of the Magi here thought.

This definitely included those Morning Star Magi who were rich and imposing, willing to buy this just for their own research.

Even though the Azure Mountain auction house was unlikely to attract Magi of such levels, there were bound to be some exceptions.

One such exception was within a VIP lounge that was distinctly larger than the room that Leylin was in. The Magus inside had an emaciated face and silver eyes. He was wearing the Devil's Cry robe and smiled, "I didn't expect to come across such a precious object!"

He didn't use the device to quote his price and instead said softly, "One billion magic stones!"

Strangely, even though his voice was soft, his comment was heard by the Magi in the entire auction venue, leading to a halt in the quoting of prices.

Alas, one that could quote such a high price was obviously a Morning Star Magus. Who else would dare to compete with him?

On the other hand, when Leylin heard this voice, his entire body suddenly stiffened.

'Demon Hunter Cyril!' Even though the tone of the voice was different, Cyril had left a deep impression in Leylin's mind. His voice was recorded in his A.I. Chip and hence he recognised the other party immediately.

'I can't believe that even he is here.' After calming himself, Leylin placed his hand on his chin and smiled bitterly, 'In order to get such cheap auction prices, you can even scare the Magi in this venue. Demon Hunter Cyril, you are still as braven as before.'

Even so, he did not intend to stand out to make a complaint.

Leylin understood that he should keep a low profile when he was at a disadvantage.

A Morning Star Magi was indeed a great deterrent. Once Cyril quoted his price, the entire auction house became silent.

"…. Okay! Since no one is increasing the price, I'll announce that this top-notch meditation technique will belong to the Lord in the first VIP lounge!" The host laughed dryly, as he started to mediate the scene.

In reality, his heart ached. According to him, this precious object should not only be worth one billion magic crystals but instead, it should at least worth more than two billion magic crystals. It was definitely possible to sell it at such a high price judging from the attendance of high level Magi in this venue.

Now? Even the Oakheart Clan was willing to offer more than one billion magic crystals for this meditation technique. This was definitely a loss.

"My dear lord, your loot is here, please follow me to make the transaction. Also, the guardian of our clan would like to see you."

At this moment, in the first lounge, Serene bowed respectfully and even her voice became a little shaky.

"Okay, I will go." Cyril waved his hand.

Even a Morning Star Magi was required to follow the rules. His rash behaviour would only lead to the Morning Star Magi of the Oakheart Clan warning him.

In actual fact, he only had this one chance to do such a thing. If he dared to do it again, the Azure Mountain King would definitely become hostile.

But it was clear that deep in his heart he did not feel remorseful at all.

What was reputation worth to him? Tangible benefits were the most important. Once he complied and guaranteed that he would not do such a thing again, he could easily obtain such top-notch meditation technique. So why not do it?

Demon Hunter Cyril was originally more crafty and despicable than demons. This was also the exact reason why other Magi feared him.

As a result of Cyril's actions, the day's auction ended on a bad note.

Adding on that the attendance of Demon Hunter Cyril spread like wildfire, if the Azure Mountain auction house did not guarantee that such a thing would not happen again, they would even incur more losses.

After all, who dared to compete with a Morning Star Magus? If such a thing happened in each auction then the Azure Mountain auction house should just sell the items off to them instead.

As a result of the guarantee of the Azure Mountain Clan, the second day of auction went on as usual.

Leylin, too, came to the venue and watched emotionlessly as each precious object was bought by others.

The day before, Serene had hinted at the appearance of the astral stone.

This was the exact reason why Leylin merely watched in silence throughout the entire auction.

Towards the end of the auction, the host then announced, "This is today's most precious item: astral stone!"

Finally, Leylin was able to see his ultimate goal at this auction on stage—the astral stone.

The existence of the astral stone was widely known in the Magus World, but not many had laid eyes on it.

A shiny black stone that resembled any other was brought on stage. Upon close inspection, the surface of the stone reflected soft rays of blue light, as if it was starlight.

"The astral stone is a necessity for interplanar experiments! This stone weighs 1582 grams and its density is very high. This is known to be the highest quality stone within this century. It has an abundance of energy and is definitely the best choice for astral gate experiments!" The host rambled on about the astral stone non-stop.

While the astral stone was indeed worth less than the top-notch meditation technique from the day before, the application of this stone was widely known, hence the popular demand.

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Blood Duchess

"This is an astral stone, the base price is set at 200 million magic crystals, and every increment set at a minimum of 1 million. You may use resources of equal value to make up any difference! Let the auction begin"

The presenter waved his hand and the huge screen in front of Leylin lit up immediately in bright colors.

Watching the numbers on the screen clambering up bit by bit, Leylin's mouth curved into a bitter smile.

His guess had come true, this astral stone was one of the three most valuable items up for auction. The price had soared to an outrageous amount.

It looked like he did not have enough magic crystals at the moment and would need to sell some of his resources.

Leylin was glad that he had no lack of good materials on him. Were he to sell them all, he would still qualify to join the bid.

"One billion magic crystals!" Leylin immediately yelled his bid with an announcement device in the hopes of scaring off the rest.

"Eleven billion magic crystals!" Another bid was heard immediately. It came from VIP lounge 1. Although no other announcements were made after the first, who didn't know that the occupant of the VIP lounge was the Morning Star Magus Demon Hunter Cyril?

Leylin stroked his chin and his eyes gleamed with traces of caution.

"Ha ha! Cyril, aren't you embarrassed to bid so low?"

Another voice was heard from VIP lounge 2. Soon after, the screen refreshed to reflect a new price, "Twenty billion magic crystals!"

"Huh? This conduct, another Morning Star Magus?"

Leylin's mouth twitched in a bitter smile, "Trouble is brewing….."

Even though he was confident in his wealth, he was not egotistical enough to compare himself to someone at the Morning Star realm.

Moreover, with these two Morning Star Magi nipping at each other, wouldn't he be courting death if he were to get involved any further?

Yes, the astral stone was truly valuable and losing the opportunity of acquiring it was extremely unfortunate, but compared to his own mortal life, Leylin knew exactly which was more important. He sensibly gave up on contending for it.

On the other hand, Leylin did not lose all hope. There was still the anonymous barter that he was looking forward to after the auction was completed.

In VIP lounge 1, Cyril's face hardened the moment he head the voice of the other party. "This voice… It must be Emma, that bitch!"

He may have been swearing at her, but his face was actually filled with endless fear.

Blood Duchess Emma, was well-known for her crazy and savage ways. The other party was too a Morning Star Magus, how could she not show him respect?

"Thirty billion magic crystals!" The astral stone was an important element in the current stage of his astral gate experiments. In the near future, there was a possibility that he could uncover the coordinates of the devils, hence his dire need for it. He knew he had to bid successfully for it, even if it meant paying a sky-high price.

As such, Cyril yelled his bid reluctantly, as if his heart was bleeding.

"Haha… Cyril, your pocket is as poor as your city of sins, I bid forty billion!" Emma, who was seated at the opposite side, had clearly received some unknown information, hence she was determined to not give in.

The price for this astral stone clearly surpassed its actual value, which made him reluctant to bid. Yet, he was evidently embarrassed by Emma's mockery a moment ago.

"Forty five billion magic crystals!" Cyril immediately shouted out. Deep in his heart, he made up his mind that if the opposite party dared to bid further, he would give up. He would let her pay the unnecessary magic crystals for it.

"Haha… Cyril, do you think I am going to bid further? Wrong, this astral stone is not such a special item after all. It is no big deal if I were to let go and let you have it."

Unexpectedly, Emma withdrew and stopped bidding, causing him to feel a rush of anger.

"Honestly, to spend forty five billion magic crystals on an astral stone… Cyril, where has your astuteness gone to?" she ridiculed sarcastically, adding salt into his wound.

"This bitch! One day… ONE day…" Cyril clenched his teeth in rage, wisps of blood clouding his silver pupils.

The horrifying ripples had caused the other guests in other VIP lounges to feel uneasy.

"Emma, just you wait and see…" after tossing these last words at her, Cyril stood up and left in a hurry, not wanting to linger for another second.

Leylin, on the other hand, upon hearing the name, was slightly taken aback. 'Blood Duchess? Isn't that Freya's mentor?'

Blood Duchess Emma was a Morning Star Warlock, the second elder of the Ouroboros Clan.

'If it's her, it's no wonder she couldn't see eye to eye with Cyril…'

Leylin drew a deep breath. 'I didn't expect someone of such status to be present here. I am sure she has just arrived, otherwise, the Sun's child bloodline would not have been acquired by him…'

After the favourable harvest from the Quicksand pocket dimension some time back, Leylin and company had immediately relayed all specific details to Duke Gilbert.

Especially Leylin. With the presence of Cyril, they were sure they would never have the chance to step foot in the Forgotten Land again. Therefore, he laid out the route map clearly and specifically, paying special attention to the possibility that Quicksand Castle was the core of the pocket dimension.

His scheme was for the Ouroboros Clan to hanker after the Quicksand pocket dimension. In fact, if they were to successfully seize it from the hands of Cyril, Leylin would then have the opportunity to conduct deeper exploration.

One single pocket dimension would fail to stir the greed of the Ouroboros Clan. However, what if the location in question was an ancient pocket dimension with another pocket dimension in within?

Especially since this pocket dimension was built by Ancient Warlocks at a time where rare natural resources were scarce.

Other than the useful information, Leylin's bloodline crystals and Blood Vulture egg, as well as Robin's own harvest, had left Duke Gilbert delighted.

As such, upon his return, Gilbert immediately invited the other two elders in the hope of joining together to go up against Cyril.

According to rumors, after the showing of Ouroboros Clan's power, not only had they shamed Cyril thoroughly, they also managed to be allocated a share of the pocket dimension, as well as priority purchasing power, amongst other benefits.

Hence, from here on, the relationship between Cyril and the three Giant Kemoyin Serpent Warlocks would naturally deteriorate.

In the past, when the 3 allied against Cyril, they almost defeated him.

Due to this same reason, Cyril had never forgotten about Leylin or the other two Warlocks. In fact, he had even covertly issued warrants for their arrest.

This was one reason why Leylin had holed up in his territory bitterly for almost a century.

Learning of the positive outcome of the situation at the higher level, Leylin was truly relieved that he could attend the auction held the next day, plus the anonymous barter thereafter.

Otherwise, he would have given up on the idea of attending the exchange.

The frightening probing abilities of a Morning Star Magus could not be underestimated. If Cyril had been present throughout, there was no way Leylin could stay anonymous for long.

And once he was discovered by Cyril, he knew his life would be as insignificant as an ant, being crushed by with just a single finger.

Now, armed with the knowledge that Emma was here, Leylin did not have the slightest amount of intentions of acknowledging her.

If it were Duke Gilbert, he would have stepped up with warm greetings, in the hopes that he might, in a way or two, help Leylin to acquire some astral stones or such, but Emma? Forget it.

She might have been an elder of the Ouroboros Clan, but they were from different factions, which might make the meeting awkward.

His thoughts of Emma naturally led to those of Freya.

This female Warlock was indeed lucky. After the positive transaction of bloodline crystals with Leylin, she had successfully managed to save her family. And thereafter, there were rumors of her research in seclusion. It was as if she was attempting to break through the bottleneck to advance.

It was known that, once a Giant Kemoyin Serpent Warlock was promoted to the rank of the Morning Star realm, their bloodlines would be purified. This method was naturally preferred compared to that of obtaining it through the easier method of having a pure-blooded Warlock join the family.

What was worth mentioning was the fact that, among the female Warlocks of the Ouroboros Clan, Freya was considered to be one with discipline and self-respect. The only negative characteristic was her eagerness to be first.

Leylin stroked his jaw and pondered over the rumors about her decision enter seclusion. It was as if she was trying to stimulate and break through the Hydro Phase.

Due to this reason, Leylin was even more adamant about not revealing himself to Emma. He dreaded thinking about the possibilities of her forcing him to become a part of the family for the purpose of her advancement. How awful would that be?

On the other hand, if he had been discovered by Cyril first, by hook or by crook, he would definitely seek Emma out and ask for help. Any terms and conditions then would have been agreed upon, as it was all worth keeping his life.

You could only have one life. Once that was lost, nothing else mattered. In such cases, Leylin's integrity was relegated to the back seat.

With such misgivings, Leylin went low-profile once again. He made sure his spiritual force compression technique and transfiguration spells were in full operation, and made sure his energies were not discovered by the other two Magi.

Luckily, that fateful night, Leylin felt enormous energy undulations transmitted from far beyond Azure Mountain City. It was not only him, many Magi were distracted by it.

Although they were very far away, the energy undulations were frightening and caused Leylin to feel somewhat suffocated.

The lower ranked Magi felt nothing. Only those who were close to the Morning Star realm could notice and be mindful of that terror.

Soon after, Leylin received news of Demon Hunter Cyril and Blood Duchess Emma's departure from Azure Mountain City. He secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

With such volatile elements, the fewer there were in his life, the better.

This was probably the similar mindset of the other Magi. Under such circumstances, in the presence of multiple Morning Star Magi, there was no way they could have acquired their desired treasures with their limited magic crystals.

What were they to do if one of the two-eyed what they wanted?

A stifled atmosphere had hung over the auction these past two days. The most dissatisfied of them all was the Oakheart Clan. With the intrusion of the law-breaking Cyril, their revenue had suffered a steep decline.

The third day, the auction erupted in full force, as if finally free of suppression and mounting pressures. The degree of liveliness far exceeded Leylin's expectations.

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Peeping

The third day of the auction commenced with much flair. The lower ranked Magi had been suppressing their enthusiasm and saving their magic crystals to the best extent of their abilities, hence once the pressure was diffused they had exploded into action.

Every item was sold for a high price, so much so that Leylin was quite surprised by the number of wealthy Magi that had emerged. Some were in the VIP lounges, but there were others amongst the crowd. It seemed like although he was very rich, he did not belong to the group of the most wealthy.

Leylin witnessed one of the Magi in the crowd buy a treasure for more than 100 million magic crystals nonchalantly. And the cause for this transaction was the ever-so-common jealousy of a love rival!

And when he began socialising with others, Leylin learnt that this young kid was the direct descendant of a Morning Star Magus who possessed a lot of resources and influence. It was naturally for there to be a lot of magic crystals at his disposal.

However, he hadn't dared to be arrogant in the face of the two Morning Star Magi present, and had hence only revealed himself now.

Leylin also saw Vance, the patriarch of the Rolithe Family, successfully buy a spell formation that was optimized to increase the chance of advancing to the Crystal Phase by 20%. At the same time, he'd also bought a lot of other supplementary materials for the process. It seemed like he'd reached the bottleneck and was ready to advance.

Leylin stole a glance at their party. According to the Coin of Destiny's guidance, the item he needed to acquire now was probably in the possession of their possession.

The last great treasure up for auction was top-grade magic equipment— the Tri-Python Ring!

It was rumoured that the bodies and souls of three ancient cold pythons were extracted to cast this piece of magic equipment. Not only was its spatial storage boundless, it could even withstand three full attacks of a Morning Star Magus!

A full-power attack from an ancient Morning Star Maguse was known to be able to kill anything under that level. Such spells had the ability to blot out all light; they could crush mountains and destroy rivers!

To possess the ability to withstand up to three such attacks, this Tri-Python Ring was undoubtedly the most precious treasure up for auction this time.

Even Morning Star Magi would be envious of its ability. This piece of top-grade magic equipment would be a great advantage in a battle between Magi of the same rank. It could flip the heavens and the earth for its user's sake.

Its value climbed up steadily upto the last bid of 860 million by a Magus from a VIP lounge.

According to Leylin's estimates, that party could be a Morning Star Magus, in fact, it could even turn out to be the Azure Mountain King.

In spite of the hiccups along the way, this Azure Mountain auction had concluded successfully. The emergence of the Tri-Python Ring had created strong waves that continuously spread, even to the surrounding areas.

Some lower ranked Magi began to leave the city, heading back home to continue with their own research or embarking on another journey. With the decreasing number of Magi, the city seemed to have regained some order. The original chaos had considerably eased up, and the situation became peaceful.

Leylin and some other high ranked Magi, on the other hand, were waiting in silence.

To them, this auction was similar to an appetizer. The actual main course was yet to be presented.

On the surface, it looked like the Oakheart Clan had recalled their elite patrol. However, the actual fact was that the level of caution had increased threefold. It was only that the security concerns were now internal.

Everything was set up for the anonymous barter. The anonymity of the event meant that many Magi were now disposing of stolen goods. Hence, there were going to be many precious high-quality treasures offered for an attractively low price.

The Oakheart Clan would guarantee safety and confidentiality of both parties. On the other hand, they would not be held responsible for the consequences and disputes that would arise after a successful transaction.

In a room in a small hotel, Leylin who was in the midst of meditation opened his eyes. A flower-shaped secret imprint emerged from his contact book, bringing with it the voice of Serene. "Sir Blood Rogue! The anonymous barter will take place tonight. As for the venue…"

This woman had been attempting to rope Leylin into the Oakheart Clan, and had kept a close tab on his whereabouts. Still, Leylin would not let her have her way. Not only had his past been hidden flawlessly, his attitude towards her left him neither close nor distant, causing her great distress.

Finally, he had even changed his accommodations. The only way to contact him now was via secret imprint, which left her helpless.

When night fell, Leylin changed his outward appearance once again. Following the directions he was given, he arrived at a spot outside Azure Mountain City.

Unexpected incidences were not rare at such private events. Even under the watchful eyes of the Azure Mountain King, the Oakheart Clan did not dare to hold the event within the city, choosing an outside venue instead.

As such, even if anything were to happen, the damages would be reduced to a minimum.

'Huh? There are other Magi too?' After his descent, Leylin noticed another Magus who had also just arrived a step ahead of him, walking towards an unremarkable cave.

"Welcome!" Two old men wearing the Oakheart Clan uniform emerged. Without any questions, they handed over a black mask.

The Magus nodded his head without replying, accepted the mask, and headed in.

Without the need for a number, command, or even an invitation card, as long as any Magus knew of this entrance, they would be granted access. In addition, they would be given items to help conceal their identities. It was this persistent and tight secrecy that allowed the anonymous barter to be successful for so long.

According to Serene, the entire location had been masked by a cover-up spell formation. With these matching face masks and their own identity concealment, even their genders were difficult to make out. Even Morning Star Magi could not see through these disguises.

Leylin's mouth curved into a bitter smile.

"In reality…" He stopped mid-sentence, and stepped over to take the mask from the old man before proceeding to head inside.

Both these old men were at the Crystal Phase, and yet were stationed to guard the entrance. The Oakheart Clan indeed had invested heavily into this event.

'A.I. Chip! Mobilize the atomic microscope and begin scanning!' Leylin commanded in silence.

[Beginning Scanning! Microscope engaged… *Beep!* Abnormality detected!]

The reply from the A.I. Chip was swift. Leylin noticed within his line of sight that on the black mask were innumerable ladybugs flooding the surface. These were the same creatures that he'd seen at the auction.

In fact, their numbers far exceeded what he had seen previously. They were even cautiously entering Leylin's body.

'Hehe… This is the true Oakheart Clan!' Leylin shook his head.

The spell formation enveloping the entire barter was genuine. The concealment runes on the mask were also genuine. Otherwise, it wouldn't have by-passed the inspection of the many Magi. However, the Oakheart Clan had secretly planted these ladybugs all over the event area, including on all the masks.

They hadn't dared to tamper with the spell formation for fear of being discovered by Morning Star Magi. However, with these ladybug spies, which were ten thousand times smaller than a speck of dust, everything that every Magus did, and all other matters regardless of import would ultimately be known by them.

'I'm afraid even Morning Star Magi won't be able to detect these… ' Leylin sighed, and a layer of fine black powder appeared on his hand.

As if drawn by some unknown attractive force, the ladybugs advanced in the direction of the powder, and soon lumped together into a ball.

'A.I. Chip! Begin imitation of the organism's energy signature, issuing misleading information!'

The A.I. Chip's feedback was immediate.

[Mission received. Beginning…]

Leylin had been low-key for these past three days, and hadn't bought anything at the auction. He had held back due to fear of the espionage of these bugs.

However, he hadn't been idle at all. He'd made use of the A.I. Chip's abilities to continuously scan and collate data about these bugs, learning all there was to know.

Knowing the tendencies of large organisations, if they'd rigged the auction to their advantage, there was no chance they wouldn't do the same with the anonymous barter. In fact, the surveillance would even be much stricter. Therefore, Leylin had prepared well with his own customized potion on top of his disguise.

After the powder took effect, Leylin could see through the microscopes that the ladybugs had slowed to a languid crawl. Soon, they all moved back to the mask.

Leylin was pleased and smiled. Walking in, he slid the mask on. At the same time, a mysterious current and fine undulations emitted from his body.

At the huge barter event, in the centre of a hidden area.

"Reporting to Grandfather! According to feedback from the stardust bugs, everything is working normally!" The present chief of Oakheart reported respectfully to a middle-aged Magus with blue hair.

"Hmm! There are rumors about some convicts from the north heading towards us here. They had stolen some local treasure with intentions to trade and dispose of their stash. Be alert and pay special attention!" The blue haired Magus spoke indifferently, without the slightest degree of power and influence, yet it made the chief of Oakheart nod his head ceremoniously.

"Do not worry, under the strict surveillance of the stardust bugs, nothing can stay hidden, regardless of the methods they use!" There was a reason for the chief's confidence.

This species of stardust bug was a unique find from another plane. The Azure Mountain King had stumbled upon it during one of his interplanar experiments.

Thereafter, through intensive research, not only had he successfully tamed this organism, he had also given it the ability to work as a probe, becoming the secret trump card of the Oakheart Clan. In the entire clan, only the Azure Mountain King and the current elders knew of this.

Given their minuscule size, their energy undulations could not be detected without a special instrument. Thus, even Morning Star Magi couldn't find out about them as they were spread everywhere undetected.

The knowledge that these presumptuous Morning Star Magi had the impression that their concealment skill was flawless, not knowing that everything was being exposed, made the chief smile heartily.

Of course, armed with such stardust bugs, he had even used them for his own benefits, to peek into the naked body of female Magi and even kept the images. However, he was careful not to reveal such details for risk of angering the other Morning Star Magi, and having them turn on the Oakheart Clan and razing the entire clan to the ground.

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