Chapter 1683 - WMW 56

Leylin's pupils turned amber in an instant.

As if it had been provoked, the Giant Kemoyin Serpent bloodline in his body operated frantically, emitting mysterious energy. This energy was nutritious to him, and thus his body immediately absorbed it.

Under the effect of these mysterious substances, Leylin's spiritual force began to increase; slowly, but surely!

"This is the power of the Kemoyin bloodline! Warlocks definitely have a huge advantage in this regard!" he exclaimed.

The Giant Kemoyin Serpent was a terrifying ancient species, adults of which possessed Morning Star strength. In other words, until a Kemoyin bloodline Warlock attained rank 4, the Giant Kemoyin Serpent bloodline in his body would release a large amount of power to help in his advancements.

All bloodline Warlocks would receive this aid, but not all bloodlines were created the same. For instance, a Black Horrall Snake bloodline would exhaust its aptitude when helping the Warlock rise to rank 3, and could not help with the advancement to the Vapour Phase or further breakthroughs. It would even become an obstacle to the Warlock's progress.

"It is likely that the improvements of Warlocks, and my previous personal breakthroughs were largely attributed to this mysterious energy. Of course, the bloodline shackles thereafter is also largely due to this cause!" Leylin ordered the A.I Chip to record the nature and content of this particular energy so as to allow for future study.

At the same time, under the influence of the boiling Giant Kemoyin Serpent bloodline, a terrifying phantom in the shape of a black snake had appeared behind Leylin, exuding a powerful and cold majesty.

Thankfully, Leylin had gone underground and even set up a spell formation specifically to isolate his aura. Otherwise, he would definitely have alarmed the nearby Magi and Warlocks.

*Hiss* The enormous lifelike Giant Kemoyin Serpent phantom flicked its tongue, and rushed towards the Corrosive Lizard.

Compared to the enormous snake, the Corrosive Lizard was alike to a pitifully small rat. Even its roars had been suppressed into whimpers.

*Rumble!* The giant snake phantom opened its big mouth and swallowed the Corrosive Lizard whole.

"Hmmm?"

Just at the instant when the giant snake shadow had swallowed the Corrosive Lizard, Leylin felt the bloodline strength in his body surge, as if it had become more concentrated. A large amount of strength began overflowing from his body.

The A.I. Chip showed that his spiritual force had begun to skyrocket.

255… 267… 289… It only stabilised at a value of 299.

The abrupt surge of spiritual force caused Leylin's vision to blur even as his brain ground to a momentary halt.

"Compress!" A spell entered the Vapour Phase spell formation. Very soon, a resplendent glow erupted from the spell formation and enveloped his body.

The originally violent bright silver spiritual force in his sea of consciousness shrunk under the pressure.

The large amounts of spiritual force particles, under repeated compression, gave off a greater bright silver glow, and in the end slowly gathered together to form… a fog!

That was spiritual force in Vapour Phase, the result of a successful compression of his bright silver spiritual force! Leylin was overjoyed at the sight.

Originally, the bright silver spiritual force was only an indistinct glow. But now, it had become corporeal!

After the first trace of spiritual force had taken shape, the rest of the spiritual force followed suit, and the conversion became much easier.

Leylin shut both his eyes tightly. The energy around him shrunk, but it now held increased longevity and was more terrifying than before.

*Kacha! Kacha!* Light glowed from numerous cracks that appeared on the spell foundation surrounding him, until eventually it crumbled into dust.

It was at this instant that Leylin opened both his eyes. All the spiritual force in his sea of consciousness had been converted into a thick fog!

[Ding! Host has entered the Vapour Phase! Spiritual force has experienced changes, re-tabulating results!]

The A.I chip intoned, and not long after a set of data was projected before Leylin's eyes.

[Leylin Farlier. Rank 3 Warlock (Vapour Phase). Bloodline: Giant Kemoyin Serpent, Strength: 23.6, Agility: 20.1, Vitality: 39.1, Spiritual force: 251.3, Magic Power: 251 (Magic power in synchronisation with spiritual force)]

Even though his spiritual force had reduced from before, it actually gave Leylin a sense of relief.

The surge previously was just a surface phenomenon. Not only was the additional strength hollow, it was not consolidated. The quality of that type of spiritual force was very low. If not for having been compressed into a vapour, it would have actually impeded further progress.

And now, even though the total amount had decreased, the quality had increased quite a bit!

"Vapour Phase!" Leylin lightly waved his hand, and a foggy spiritual force immediately appeared at his fingers.

This was the first time that his spiritual force had taken a physical form. The bright silver previously was just an indistinct glow, but this haze now was tangible!

Just that alone showed how tremendous the changes to his spiritual force had been.

"This is but the beginning! Rank 3 Magi at the Crystal Phase can actually directly condense their spiritual force into crystals that would not dissipate easily. Even after long-term storage, these crystals could be used to replenish their spiritual force, or even sold to others…"

According to a few deductions of the A.I Chip and Leylin's own conclusions, this was his future path.

[Warning! Warning! More than 12.6% of the Host's cells are injured! Immediate treatment suggested!] The emotionless voice of the A.I. Chip sounded out and Leylin stumbled, almost falling to the ground.

"This must be the after-effects of the surge and sudden concentration of spiritual force. I'm afraid that, apart from my cells, even my sea of consciousness might have been affected slightly!" Leylin smiled wryly, and thereafter waved his hand once again.

The three sets of Purple Leaf Snake-scaled Fruit that he had bought appeared in his hands.

"Thankfully Giant Kemoyin Serpent Warlocks have a lot of experience, they even knew of some suitable medicine. The A.I. Chip ran some simulations as well…" Leylin swiftly swallowed a fruit.

The exterior of the fruit had fine scales that felt like hard ice to his gums and teeth.

When it entered the stomach, the icy sensation of the fruit immediately disappeared, instead being replaced by a flow of warm heat that swiftly spread throughout his body. Leylin's cells were like humans that had almost died of thirst in a desert, rapaciously sucking up this warmth.

[The agent's cells have absorbed an unknown strength, and are currently in recovery! Current damage: 9.6%]

The damage reported by the A.I Chip was decreasing, and eventually stopped at around 2%.

Minor damage to the body was the most cumbersome to heal. Even with the best medication, Leylin could only heal himself down to 2% damage, after which it wasn't easy anymore. After breaking through, Vapour Phase Warlocks would have to treat the damage over a long period by using the radiation they emitted during constant practice.

Of course, that was a minor price to pay for the breakthrough.

...

The Onyx Castle was holding a banquet to celebrate Leylin's breakthrough.

It was, of course, a gathering of Warlocks. The only ones invited had been Robin, a few other seniors, and other members of the Ouroboros Clan that Leylin had connections with.

This was another tradition of the central continent. Leylin originally should have held the banquet upon the completion of Onyx Castle, but he had decided to delay until the Magus Tower had been built completely.

Now, however, Leylin's breakthrough called for a celebration, so he decided that he might as well hold a banquet to take care of both obligations.

In the wide hall, large chandeliers hung up high from the ceiling, radiating a bright glow that was a mixture of spells and man-made flames.

The numerous Warlocks were all gathered in a hall. Since Leylin's status was not too low, there were many Warlocks who attended the event.

Furthermore, because of the added value of their bloodline, all the Warlocks had were good looking, and even the old men looked handsome.

Many female Warlocks wore gowns with plunging necklines, revealing their snow-white back and cleavage, whereas the male Warlocks wore black swallow-tailed coats. From time to time, they would talk over a drink or invite the females for a dance.

At the corner of the large hall, a band was performing with all their energy, and next in line were poets and dancers.

"Haha… Leylin, I knew you would succeed! Even though advancing to Vapour Phase is an obstacle for ordinary rank 3 Magi, Giant Kemoyin Serpent Warlocks like us will never face such a problem!" Robin laughed dramatically.

Given how high this junior's innate talent was, he was becoming increasingly important to the short Warlock.

Even at the banquet, the differences in ranks between the various Warlocks was very obvious. The few rank 3 Giant Kemoyin Serpent Warlock Marquises, including Leylin, had gathered in a circle and none of the other Warlocks would dare to interrupt them. A few rank 1 or rank 2 Warlocks with pure bloodlines had the fortune to listen at the side, but even they had no right to speak.

With regards to the other circles, Leylin needed only to make a toast and say a few words, but the guests in this circle required his personal accompaniment.

Not only were there seniors like Robin, Lucian and Kesha around, there were a few merchants whom they had good ties with along with their children. They were essentially his Mentor, Duke Gilbert's, influence, and hence good connections would have to be made.

Speaking of which, Leylin was more familiar with them, and had held a few transactions with them, and even coordinated on some experiments.

"This is the younger generation of my family. Come and see Uncle Leylin!" Kesha called forth two of her nephews and nieces. Those two youths though looked a bit reserved and flushed, but still respectfully bowed and said, "Uncle Leylin!"

"Mmm! Hello, you two!" Leylin said, his face stiff. He was not even a hundred years old. These two Warlocks with pure bloodlines, who were their family's hopes, were probably older than him!

"Senior Kesha's 2 nephews and nieces have a very rich bloodline within them, looks like they have a bright future ahead of them!" Leylin complimented, which had caused Kesha to beam with delight.

-x-X-x-

Much to his chagrin, Leylin had discovered that even though the Ouroboros Clan had a long heritage and was a large, powerful organisation, there were many traditions and complex regulations that were very tedious.

Especially in terms of hierarchy; nobody knew whether it was inherited from the Giant Kemoyin Serpents, but their hierarchy was very rigid.

Previously, even if they were all Giant Kemoyin Serpent Warlocks, Kesha who had reached the Vapour Phase would pay no attention to someone like Leylin. Yet, the moment he made the breakthrough himself, here she was, her attitude having flipped completely. This had dumbfounded Leylin.

Lucian was the same. He who was at the Crystal Phase was the strongest here, and sat quietly in a corner, drinking smugly. Unfortunately, everyone had already accepted such behaviour as a norm.

Even if he rolled his eyes internally, Leylin understood that he could only do things according to the rules.

"Senior Lucian has always been like this. He has suffered a lot previously, and just can't bring himself out of it!" Robin transmitted after noticing Leylin's gaze.

"Actually, he's extremely delighted at your breakthrough. Normally, he wouldn't even deign to take a glance at a banquet invitation!"

Perhaps because he was Gilbert's butler, Robin's communication and observation skills were outstanding. Just a glimpse at Leylin in his peripheral vision and he'd realised things, explaining Lucian's attitude.

"Don't worry, I understand!" Leylin smiled wryly. Even if Lucian decided not to show him respect, he could do nothing about it.

Even with all his trump cards, Leylin could at most deal with a Hydro Phase rank 3 Magus. With that kind of difference in strength, it was useless to talk about it. Had Lucian not considered his Mentor Gilbert and the fact that it was Leylin's first invitation, he might not even have come.

"Oh, right! Let me introduce you to my apprentice, Snoopy!" A reserved youth walked up at Leylin's introduction, a dimpled smile on his pockmarked face.

"He… Hello distinguished masters!" Snoopy greeted all the Magi, stumbling on his words.

A few rank 3 Warlocks merely nodded aloofly and did not pay much attention, and even Kesha's 2 younger generations looked down on him.

They could see Snoopy's Black Horrall Snake bloodline at one glance. Even though a rank 3 Warlock bloodline was considered a big deal even in the central continent, those with higher bloodlines thought nothing of it.

Immediately, they linked this sight to Leylin's top subordinate, Parker and guessed the motives behind Leylin's acceptance of this apprentice. They would naturally not pay any more attention, but on account of Leylin, they had nodded their heads in recognition.

Fortunately, Leylin had only brought Snoopy out for exposure, and quickly dismissed him after he had bowed to everyone.

Snoopy's response was quick, and his withdrawal was even faster. With a tinge of embarrassment on his face, it appeared to Leylin as if he was fleeing.

"This is the hierarchy of Warlocks!"

Leylin sighed internally. In comparison, though Kesha's 2 younger generations were slightly lower in strength, because their bloodline was distinguished and there was the possibility of making a breakthrough to rank 4, they would immediately receive more attention. Even the rank 3 Elders would consider this normal.

For Warlocks, even though bloodline could not determine your lowest achievements, it could dictate your greatest.

Take for example the two Giant Kemoyin Serpent Warlocks Kesha had brought along. They needed only to put a bit more effort and spend more time, and it would be child's play to reach the Vapour and even Hydro Phase. However, the advancement to the Crystal Phase depended on one's innate talent. As for the breakthrough to the Morning Star realm, innate talent alone was not enough. There was a huge amount of luck to be factored into it!

After all, they were not first generation Giant Kemoyin Serpent Warlocks. Their bloodline was not as pure, and could not allow for the adults to easily advance to rank 4.

In actual fact, in the entire Ouroboros Clan, there were already no more absolutely pureblood Giant Kemoyin Serpent Warlocks. Their bloodlines had faded with the passage of time. For the three elders to break through to the Morning Star realm required not only a large amount of resources and effort, but also a stroke of luck.

Leylin did not know how pure his bloodline was, but the A.I Chip and the recognition by the few seniors and Mentors seemed to suggest that it was not too bad.

In fact, he had immense confidence in the bloodline purification skills of the A.I Chip.

During the period of time he was in the Ouroboros Clan, he had discovered that even in the central continent, there were no microscopes here that could form images at the genetic and atomic levels.

Their research at most halted at the cells. Their best microscopes could at most see the structure of a cell.

Previously, the A.I Chip had directly extracted the part of the genes that belonged to the Giant Kemoyin Serpent from the bloodline essence of the Black Horrall Snake, and reconstructed them.

Leylin even suspected that the bloodline within his body could compare to that of a first generation Giant Kemoyin Serpent Warlock!

Mind you, that was a bloodline that allowed a Warlock to progress to the Morning Star realm automatically as he aged.

Leylin's own improvement had been too rapid. He was only a hundred years old, an infant among Giant Kemoyin Serpent Warlocks. Thus, he did not have a deep enough understanding of the frightening potential of his bloodline.

Still, it took way too long for Giant Kemoyin Serpents to mature. If he was to advance at the same rate as his bloodline would let him, he would only be a rank 1 Warlock as of now. With the passing of time, he would feel his spiritual force growing slightly even if he did nothing but sleep all day. After finishing semi-conversion and complete conversion, his strength would soar. At about 500 years of age, he would become a rank 3 Warlock. As for a Morning Star Warlock? That would take him until he was 900 if he only depended on his bloodline.

In other words, Leylin's current improvement was rapid to the point that his bloodline could not keep up with him.

'Even if I have almost 900 years of life according to the A.I. Chip, the risks with waiting that long are way too high!' he thought as he stroked his chin. On top of that, Leylin can't be sure that the purity of his bloodline was enough for a breakthrough to the Morning Star stage by the time he reaches 900.

As such, he would continue to work hard!

At the very least, his bloodline shackle would not retard his progress before he hit rank 4, and he would be able to advance to that realm without any obstacles.

"Penny for your thoughts?" His introspection had obviously drawn Robin's attention.

"Oh… It's…" Leylin summarised his ruminations on his bloodline growth, obviously concealing his conjecture on its purity and instead diverting the conversation to how he could develop his bloodline.

"...So, you wish to find out whether there are any medicines or materials the Ouroboros Clan uses to speed up bloodline growth?" Robin looked at Leylin, and did not know whether to laugh or cry.

"Many Warlocks depend on the strength of their bloodlines when using their meditation techniques to slowly improve in ranks. A case like yours, where the host's strength surpasses that of the bloodline's growth is extremely unlikely…"

"Unlikely, but not impossible!" Leylin was determined. The central continent had many groundbreaking talents, and the Ouroboros Clan was where Giant Kemoyin Serpent Warlocks congregated. There must be a way!

Still, any solutions that existed were sure to be extremely precious and hidden. Leylin had never seen such a thing in the trading hall.

"Indeed. Like you, Leylin, our organisation has had a few Warlocks in the past whose strengths far surpassed their age!"

Kesha interrupted, "And they used a top-notch precious material to increase the growth of their bloodline to remarkable results!"

"What material?" Leylin's eyes glowed.

"Lamia Hair!" Kesha did not intend to leave Leylin in suspense, and gave him a specific term.

"A.I Chip!" Leylin recited internally: "Query the database for Lamia Hair!"

Collecting data and books was habitual for him. Naturally, he hadn't slacked off on it in his time in the Ouroboros Clan.

The Ouroboros Clan was a major power of the central continent. Its library had a rich collection of data, and since Leylin was a Marquis, he had little restriction on what he could read, and had thus expanded his database significantly. What was remaining was naturally not too big a problem.

Although he could not claim that he knew everything about the central continent, the knowledge he had accumulated in this period would not lose out to that of a scholar who was a few hundred years old.

[Lamia Hair: It is an ancient precious material. Legend has it that a strand of hair from the ancient Lamia has a extremely horrifying ability. Rank: 3, Rarity: 4, Description: The Lamia was an extremely tyrannical being in ancient times. Other than strange spells, they were experts at controlling lower serpents to attack, and normally lorded over snakes! Legend has it that they were direct descendants of the Snake Dowager, and were comparable to Radiant Moon Magi in adulthood!]

Leylin saw the description given by the A.I Chip and could not help but smile wryly.

A description in terms of rank and rarity was standard on the central continent. Rank 3 indicated that the material was only effective for rank 3 Magi, while the rank 4 rarity meant only Morning Star Magi could get their hands on one.

Needless to say, the assessment on how it could compare to a Radiant Moon Magus in adulthood shocked Leylin completely.

A Radiant Moon Magus was at rank 5! They exceeded Morning Star Magi by one full rank, and there were few Magi on the central continent who possessed such strength.

How would Leylin, who could not afford to offend even a single Morning Star Magus, dare to think of a plan involving Radiant Moon Magi?

Of course, the strength of the beings themselves was one matter, the resources were yet another.

"For senior Kesha to mention it, could it be that Mentor has strands of Lamia Hair?" Leylin's eyes lit up. The ancient Lamia had been extinct for a long period of time. But some remains could have been discovered by Magi, and it would be extremely normal to obtain these resources as a result.

-x-X-x-

"It looks like you're extremely familiar with this material, Leylin. At the very least, you should've read up on something similar before!"

Kesha first nodded her head, before smiling wryly, "Lamia Hair can nourish the Giant Kemoyin Serpent bloodline within our bodies. I won't go into detail, but it's useful enough to have others fight you for it. Nobody who has some will want to sell it! Moreover, it will be used up the moment someone discovers it. The reason I know of it is that Mentor Gilbert had obtained such a material when he was younger…"

This was an eye-opener for Leylin. Given how much the Giant Kemoyin Serpent bloodline had deteriorated by now, the current generation's bloodline could not be considered extremely pure. At the bottleneck before the Morning Star realm, the current bloodline in the Ouroboros Clan could only provide a tiny bit of help.

On the other hand, once nourished, this bloodline would have been strengthened greatly. Not only could it allow weaker Warlocks to advance rapidly in rank, it would lay a solid foundation for their future breakthroughs.

Perhaps this was the primary reason for Duke Gilbert's successful advancement to the Morning Star realm.

Leylin could only sigh, helpless. This type of top-notch material was not easy to acquire, and one required both sufficient strength and fortune to get their hands on it.

At that very instant, Leylin noticed that Robin's expression had warped. Leylin put it into memory before beaming and changing the topic.

Leylin's study in Onyx Castle.

The banquet had already ended, and an attendant had currently led Robin here, opened the door and entered before retreating with a bow.

Leylin was sitting on a couch, the glass in his hands filled with dark red wine that was rippling under the light.

"The wine produced in this year is actually my personal collection! Does Senior Robin want a glass too?" Leylin swirled the wine in the glass.

"Of course!" Robin sat down on another couch and picked one up for himself.

After pouring a small amount, he swirled the wine as well, his face expressing his enjoyment. "Grape wine brewed during the harvest year! It's a rare sight these days!"

"Parker and the rest sent it over to me. Apparently, it was a tribute from some royals in the vicinity!" Leylin laughed. He was not interested in anything that was purely for enjoyment, and moved on to the main topic after some pleasantries.

"When the matter of the Lamia Hair came up today, Senior, you seemed to have some thoughts about it?"

"Mmm!" Robin squinted his eyes and deeply inhaled in the fragrance of the red wine.

"Since senior was willing to come over, the information must be something that can be shared. Please state your conditions!"

"Good, that's the Leylin I know!" Robin praised before taking a sip. He continued, " There is no price or the like, but I need you to keep what you hear today a secret. This information cannot be leaked!"

"No problem, I swear upon the honor of my royal bloodline!" Leylin's face was solemn as he made an oath.

When two parties were at a certain level of strength, even casual agreements would be binding, let alone an oath like this. It made Robin smile.

"I do have some clues about the Lamia Hair!" Before Leylin could inquire further, he continued, "I received information that in the Eastern region of the Forgotten Land, a pocket dimension was found!"

"The Forgotten Land!" Leylin stroked his chin. The A.I Chip swiftly scoured the database for information related to the Forgotten Land.

The damage output of a Morning Star Magus was immense. Their final techniques held power akin to nuclear bombs, and had the ability to wipe out countries. Thus, the central continent had signed a peace agreement that forbid the wanton usage of final techniques, restricting Morning Star Magi from using their full strength.

Still, even with such a contract, some disputes escalated to the point that battle was inevitable. Clashes between Morning Star Magi still occurred, and devastated the land every single time.

In Twilight Zone, two Morning Star Magi had inadvertently destroyed the passages linking it to the rest of the Magus world, isolating the place for thousands of years.

Even in the much vaster central continent, with Morning Star, Radiant Moon and even Breaking Dawn Magi watching over, such battles would still cause a large amount of damage to the area.

Moreover, some regions would be damaged to the extent that there was no return. All sentient species would go extinct, and elemental particles would start leaking whenever someone visited the area, causing the strength of a visiting Magus to drop greatly.

Gradually, some of the affected areas became lands of death. Only strange species and convicts who could not mix with the rest would bear the hardships of the environment and settle down there.

The Forgotten Land was one such place.

Legend has it that in such vile conditions all the beings would strive to promote their strength, and evolve in a horrifying direction. Over time, they would form an extremely strange race, and the place would be fraught with dangers.

"What pocket dimension?" Leylin asked, getting a bad premonition.

Pocket dimensions were naturally not rare in the central continent, and the Ouroboros Clan itself had the powers to construct one themselves. Although the major powers of the central continent were focused on interdimensional travel, rank 2 and 3 Magi still built pocket dimensions.

But the resources in the Forgotten Land were extremely poor normally. That a pocket dimension, a type of region known for being rich in resources, had appeared there would lead to a lot of competition and bloodshed.

"The pocket dimension must have been damaged during the clash between Morning Star Magi. Due to its regenerative abilities, a small portion of it was preserved and was unearthed recently!"

Robin placed the wineglass down, his face solemn yet tinged with greed.

"Even though the subordinate who had discovered the mysterious region was under a very powerful curse, and died painfully immediately after handing me the intelligence, at least I obtained some information! If you would look at this!"

Robin took out a black leaf. Once it appeared, Leylin felt the bloodline within his body throbbing. He suppressed the peculiar reactions of his body and took it.

Even though it was an ordinary leaf with green veins, there was an aura lingering on its surface that caused his pupils to dilate.

Even though the aura was very feeble, it could not in the very least conceal the strong essence behind it, and even caused Leylin to be fearful.

"The aura of the Lamia! Legend has it that the Lamia could control giant serpents through spells, no wonder I feel uneasy!" Leylin sighed a long breath of relief: "Did this leaf come from the pocket dimension?"

The ancient Lamia was a terrifying being at the Radiant Moon realm. Even though there were half-human half-snake species in the Magus world now, the ancient Lamia was an entirely different species!

And only the threatening aura of the Lamia could make Leylin feel terrified.

"Yes!" Robin nodded.

"According to my intelligence, there is a huge pocket dimension there filled with resources. It belonged to a Warlock organisation of ancient times. As you know, as long as it's a Warlock organisation, due to the bloodline limitations of Warlocks, they are the most passionate about collecting bloodlines to mix and modulate in their experiments. As a result, you will be able to find many materials Warlocks urgently need!"

"I get it now. You wish to explore, but you don't have sufficient manpower?" Leylin had understood Robin's plans.

Even though there was a certain level of danger, he was still prepared to journey there. The temptation of the hair of the Lamia, alongside many other bloodline resources, was sufficient to have him brave the danger.

"Yes! Apart from you, I have also invited Kesha along!" Robin nodded his head.

Even though they were all rank 3 Warlocks, the Kemoyin bloodline and the Black Horrall Snake bloodline had a very big difference.

Under him, there was a younger generation of the Giant Kemoyin Serpent bloodline who had just advanced to rank 3, and the rest of his subordinates could at most act as assistants, and were not very useful.

"Looks like there are more risks!" Leylin leaned back.

As to why Robin did not invite Lucian who was at the Crystal Phase, or even directly reported it to Gilbert, Leylin did not need to think much to understand the reasons why.

Robin himself was at the Hydro Phase, and with Kesha and Leylin at the Vapour Phase he could suppress them easily. If they were to call Lucian, how would they distribute the potential yield?

And if he were to inform their Mentor, there might not be many resources left for him.

Of course, Robin had made the decision after examining their strength. He had felt that if the three of them were to join forces, they would be able to obtain the resources in the mysterious region. Even if they were to meet obstacles they could not overcome or were not able to succeed eventually, there was still time to invite Lucian or Gilbert then.

"I have no questions! When do we set off?" Leylin asked.

"There's no rush. I have to make preparations on my end as well. I need about 2 more months. After 3 months, let us gather at the headquarters and set off together!"

Robin said the specific timing, and at the same time placed a document on the table. "This is the intelligence regarding the Forgotten Land and the pocket dimension. You should have a look at it, and prepare yourself accordingly!"

"Got it! See you 3 months later at the headquarters!" Leylin nodded, and got up to send Robin out of the study room. After which, he sat down and did not utter a word.

The A.I Chip was swiftly scanning the documents Robin had left behind, and was carrying out comparisons and making deductions.

"There are no problems with the data, looks like Robin is sincere!"

Leylin stroked his chin.The data related to the Forbidden Land which Robin had provided was generally similar in content to the data the A.I Chip had collected, and was even more comprehensive and detailed.

"Quicksand! What a weird name for an organisation. Is that a Warlock organisation?"

Quicksand was the organisation that created the pocket dimension. Legend had is that it was a Warlock-based organisation, but it was unlike that of the Ouroboros Clan which only accepted Warlocks of the same bloodline. Instead, it was heterogeneous, and would accept Warlocks of any bloodline. As a result, the condition of the members was extremely complicated, and there were even some members with bloodlines that were only heard of in folklore!

And this pocket dimension seemed to have been constructed by the Quicksand Organisation, as a place meant for experimentation on the modulation and combination of bloodlines.

Of course, no matter how formidable Quicksand once was, it had disappeared in the ancient final war, and was now an abandoned mysterious region.

But Leylin delved deeper into his thoughts.

-x-X-x-

"Perhaps the Lamia Hair within the pocket dimension was not obtained by capturing an ancient Lamia. There might have been someone who advanced their own Lamia bloodline to the extreme and has even gone through atavism, thus leaving this item behind."

When a Warlock's bloodline was concentrated to its limit, it would transform into its original form. Once this process was over, a Warlock would discard their original appearance as a human, and completely turn into a creature alike to his bloodline origin.

By that time, the Warlock would no longer be human. Even those with the same bloodlines would not be able to tell that it was a Warlock who had gone through such a process.

In other words, if Leylin did so, he would truly turn into a Giant Kemoyin Serpent.

"Hm… Forget it."

Leylin imagined himself as a giant serpent, only able to swallow raw food everyday and looking for female serpents whenever he had to sate his desires, and it made his whole body shiver.

'The Morning Star morphing technique is enough. I have no desire to really become a giant serpent,' he decided.

He pursued strength and dominance, as well as his own freedom. If the option was that he obtained unequalled strength and yet suffered for eternity, it was fine if he was not unrivalled.

In addition, the closer he was to the source of his bloodline, the greater the suppression of his mind by higher members of his race.

In the ancient war of the Icy World, the Snake Dowager was the only thought in mind. Many Giant Kemoyin Serpents who risked their lives and battled with beings from other worlds were more than aware of this. Leylin did not want to be controlled by someone after all his efforts and become cannon fodder.

Of course, all this was far into the future. Right now, all he was focused on was using the Lamia Hair to nourish his bloodline, allowing it to mature faster and bring him to the Morning Star realm.

In the central continent, rank 3 Warlocks were respected, but only Morning Star Magi held any actual clout.

Only after reaching the Morning Star realm could he perform experiments on astral gates alone, attempting to travelling between various places and worlds. This was the only method for Leylin to solve the issue of his bloodline and could not be substituted.

After thinking about it for a while, a silver light flashed in his hands, and a dull gold coin appeared.

'If I go to the pocket dimension, will I be able to get all that I want and leave safe and sound?' With this thought in mind, Leylin tossed the Coin of Destiny in his hand.

*Pak!*

The coin landed steadily on the back of his hand, revealing the image of a luckbird. At the same time, slight cracks appeared on it.

Noticing this situation, Leylin kept the coin away, and a flash of excitement could be seen on his face before he turned serious.

'It'll work out, but the power of a Morning Star will hinder me?' The Coin of Destiny was a unique magic item that Leylin had sacrificed blood and tears to make. It had the terrifying ability to predict the future, but could not be used when powers at the Morning Star realm and above.

Every time a prediction involved a being with Morning Star strength, the coin would crack further and further until it would eventually be destroyed.

Leylin had a feeling that after losing this Coin of Destiny, he would not be able to create another for a long time.

'What does this prophecy mean? Is there a Morning Star creature slumbering in the pocket dimension, or will there be Morning Star Magus outside who'll interfere' Leylin rubbed his eyebrows, the many possibilities flying through his mind and giving him a headache.

The Coin of Destiny was a non-living thing and its prophecies were vague enough to baffle him on occasion.

In addition, destiny could not be grasped so easily. Even the coin could make some wrong predictions, especially in a place like the central continent where almost every area was overseen by Morning Star Magi. They would affect destiny even more.

Morning Star strength was already able to slightly affect the force of the river of destiny.

The strong grasped their destiny. This was an eternal truth.

Hence, the prediction of this coin could only act as a reference and might not be accurate. Blue light flashed in Leylin's eyes, and all sorts of possibilities streaked through his mind...

About two months had passed in the blink of an eye.

Leylin was now in front of the black Magus Tower, with various runes and strange metal plates on the ground.

"Enchant!" Foggy spiritual force congealed to form a solid rune pen that carved out refined, complicated patterns on the metal plates. All the patterns combined to form a dazzling spell rune and imprint.

After the last stroke was completed, the many metal plates were shrouded with dim light.

"Your enchantment techniques have probably reached the level of a master and are not far from those of a grandmaster, my Lord. My respects towards you!" Parker glanced at the enchanted metal plates, of which almost all had been done successfully, his expression revealing his admiration.

The young man in front of him had reached the Vapour Phase before he turned a hundred, leaving him biting the dust. His knowledge in potioneering had even reached the level of a grandmaster. It seemed like his enchantment knowledge was also not to be underestimated, at the level of a master!

'Looks like my master's future will be hard to predict!' Parker suddenly had this thought. 'This is good too. I've made the right choice!'

Leylin cared little for Parker's thoughts. He glanced at the enchanted metal plates that he had worked on, looking satisfied.

In actuality, with the support from the A.I. Chip, what he was least afraid of was complicated things like this. His skills in enchantment and alchemy had long since reached the level of a grandmaster.

He had even intentionally failed a few so that he would not be seen as terrifying.

He would be considered a genius if he could be one or two steps ahead of everyone. However, being ten or more steps ahead would cause panic, and he would be seen as a freak. Leylin obviously did not want that to happen.

"Parker, spread these isolation plates within the positive and negative energy elemental pools based on the blueprint from before. Is that understood?"

Leylin took a white towel from a deferential Snoopy and wiped his hands as he spoke to Parker.

The Magus Tower was now completed with the efforts of the Stone Tribe men. The next order of business was to carve defensive runes and activate spell formations.

The Warlocks that sided with Leylin were like him, spending all their time adding these runes on all sorts of materials. After inspection, they were stored until the building's construction was completed.

"Understood, master." Parker respectfully bowed 90 degrees, leaving Leylin flabbergasted. This new vassal of his seemed to be even more respectful than before.

However, this was to be expected. The might of a leader was built from strength and obedience.

"Also, I'm planning to leave. When I'm not around, you're in charge of everything regarding the construction of the Magus Tower. A few supportive facilities have been built. However, the activation of the spell formations will wait until I'm back, I'll do that myself," Leylin commanded.

These miscellaneous matters could be passed on. As long as he was the one checking everything and activating the spell formations, there was no problem.

The last step, which was to give life to the structure, was enough for Leylin to make the whole Magus Tower perfect and even have a spirit of its own. If there were any issues, all would be known to him.

"Understood. Master, are you going on a long journey?"

The Magus Tower was only half-done, and it was the lifeblood of a Magus. Usually, nothing could move them from the tower, which was why Leylin's actions were very strange.

"Yes! I'm going to the headquarters, but it is not certain how long it will take." Leylin glanced up the sky, into the distance.

He had a reason why he had to go there. The temptation of the Lamia Hair was too much for him. In addition, besides the last few steps, the construction of the Magus Tower now was all about the details. There was no need to stay here and supervise.

...

A few days later, outside Phosphorescence Swamp.

"Haha, Leylin, you're finally here. We've been waiting for you!" Upon seeing Leylin's figure, Robin immediately moved over and gave him an enthusiastic hug.

"My apologies. I had some work to do so I'm a little late." Leylin had an apologetic look on his face as he greeted Kesha.

Besides Robin and Kesha, there were nine other Warlocks whose auras made it evident that they had reached rank 3. Leylin couldn't help but sigh in admiration at these Warlock families who had accumulated their bloodline and strength for a long time. Just a casual request would call forth many powerful Warlocks.

"This is Noah. You've seen him at the banquet before." Robin laughed as he pulled Leylin aside.

"Uncle Leylin!" This young man named Noah had wine-red eyes that were very memorable.

This young man was Robin's nephew, and he had a very concentrated bloodline. He had already reached rank 3 and Robin thought highly of him. Leylin had also seen him once before at the banquet.

As for the rest of the rank 3 Warlocks, Robin merely skimmed over them.

Headed by Leylin and the other three Giant Kemoyin Serpent Warlocks, the eight other Black Horrall Snake Warlocks were also at rank 3 but had a lower status.

Out of these eight rank 3 Warlocks, Robin had brought over five, and with his nephew added in he held the most authority in this small group. Kesha had brought three Black Horrall Snake Warlocks from her own family over. Those rank 1 descendants from before had not appeared at all, and it was probably because she knew this expedition would be dangerous, and it was pointless to bring them along.

Leylin was alone and looked quite pitiful.

Out of all his subordinates, only Parker was somewhat acceptable. However, he was useless in this expedition, and might even have hindered them. Leylin though it'd be better if he just stayed and looked after domestic affairs.

"Alright. Since everyone is here, let's go! The Forgotten Zine is very far from here, and it will take a month by airship." Robin waved his arm in high spirits.

-x-X-x-

Leylin and company's departure did not rouse much commotion in the Ouroboros Clan.

Warlocks did not spend all their time on research. Adventuring and the exploration of pocket dimensions were also deemed normal for them. Due to their longevity, even were they to disappear for a few years, their absence would be inconspicuous.

The twelve rank 3 Warlocks moderated the horrifying radiation and energy undulations on their bodies and went under the guise of a regular troop of adventurers from the central continent. Discreetly, they all boarded an airship at a city not far from Phosphorescence Swamp.

Standing on board the deck, Leylin fell silent as he looked at the illustrious symbol of the Fallor Family splashed across the body of the airship,

"They are indeed the rulers of the skies. They single-handedly dominate and monopolize the entirety of aerial transport in the central continent!" From the bottom of his heart, Leylin sighed without any inhibitions.

"What are you looking at?"

A whiff of perfume and seconds later, Kesha walked over, half leaning on the railings and revealing her sensual beautiful body.

Due to the enhanced bloodline of Warlocks, her skin was more delicate and exquisite. Coupled with her slim, shaped eyes and slightly curled cherry lips, she eluded a kind of demonic charm that caused some travellers to have rumblings in their throat and flames burning in their stomach.

Leylin's eyes naturally swept across Kesha's body unrestrainedly, paying particular attention to the vital parts.

"Hehe!" Kesha laughed tenderly and without a qualm arched her back and pushed her bosom forward, "The journey is getting rather boring, would you like to go back to my room for some fun?"

Leylin rolled his eyes, lust and illicit sexual relations among the nobles were common. It was even more normal for those who grasped great power and possessed a long life.

Of course, there were some exceptions among the Warlocks. To attain an even more outstanding and pure bloodline, female Warlocks would go all out and embrace craziness. In fact, they had the advantage for seduction.

Leylin smiled and replied, "Pardon me! Not today, you will be the be first to know when I decide to sell my seed, though!"

"Alright then! Such a pity!" Kesha licked a finger, revealing no hint of her humiliation.

"But still! I really do like you, junior!" She placed her finger on Leylin's chest and with a smile, twirled it in circles.

However, that was the furthest Kesha went and she attempted nothing else. In the end, she appropriately settled for casual conversation with Leylin.

"Do you know Freya and Miranda? Kesha asked out of the blue.

"We have met a few times!" Leylin replied with some uneasiness as he drew out the air from his breath. As far as those two nutjobs were concerned, especially the more powerful one out of the two, he really had a hard time dealing with them.

"Then are you aware?" Kesha smiled mysteriously, with an added crafty look of a little girl.

"They have been spreading the word that you belong to them and you are their prey. Any other female Warlocks who have any intentions of looking your way, will have to go up against them!"

"I…" Leylin rolled his eyes in anger, almost cursing in his rage.

"These two maniacs!" he finally exclaimed with extreme resentment.

"Actually, Why don't you seriously consider it? Miranda has to-die-for skills and holds the title of the Succubus, as for Freya…."

Kesha moved forward, almost leaning on Leylin and whispered into his ears : "Freya has never been with a man, so she might be a virgin after all!"

The scent from her hair was pleasantly sweet as it permeated the air. Coupled with Kesha's words, Leylin was left with a dry mouth.

"Why?" A victorious smile surfaced on Kesha's face, "What about now? Do you want me to cease your desire? My skills might be better than Miranda's!" As she spoke, she stuck out her pink tongue and gently licked on Leylin's earlobes.

Suddenly, Kesha felt Leylin's body turned cold, just like a block of ice. "So I see, you knew the both of them?"

She lifted her head in astonishment and saw an emotionless Leylin standing there, both his eyes sparkling and clear, without a trace of sentiment.

"Yes! I know them, and I am just relaying somewhat of a message for Freya, that's all!" Seeing Leylin's reaction, Kesha knowingly stepped back, not daring to tease him further.

"Please tell them I will consider it carefully!" Leylin replied nonchalantly.

"Got it! " Kesha looked intently at Leylin: "Your current state! It's as if you're not influenced by the emotional and passionate moods that arise from your bloodline! I finally understand why Freya could not get her mind off you! Such an outstanding bloodline. It is what we Kemoyin Warlocks need…."

Watching Kesha's back as she was walking away, Leylin stroked his chin and a bitter smile curled the edges of his lips.

Even for Kemoyin Warlocks, deterioration of one's bloodline cannot be avoided. Looking at the three Black Horrall Snake Warlocks from Kesha's Clan, it was obvious their bloodline could not avoid the inevitable degeneration either.

Thinking back on her recent temptation, at least half of it were real. If Leylin had agreed to Kesha's seduction and had multiple sexual escapades with her, she might have even helped herself to obtain his bloodline

Even if it weren't for the bloodline, according to the emotional state of minds of female Warlocks, as long as the mood and feel were right, they will go ahead and copulate with other Magi.

In the Magus world, other than female Warlocks, the same applied to the female Magi. Those girls who were pure were a rare species.

But Leylin really had no interest at all. He was in the middle of a risky journey and had no mood for it. Even if he needed the company of a lady, his choice would not be Kesha, Freya or Miranda.

These ambitious female Warlocks would do anything for the continuation of their bloodlines. As female Warlocks, they must have done their research on the nourishing of the bloodline with some specializing in techniques and spells to do it. They were well aware of the ways to attain the seed of a male, something which did not surprise Leylin at all.

He was not completely confident in the A.I. Chip's ability to calm him down, as well as his control over his own body against the methods they deployed to acquire his bloodline.

If anything unthinkable were to happen, resulting in a pile of descendants that were raised and taught by other clans, it would be mind-boggling and Leylin dreaded the idea.

Besides, there was another hesitation in his heart

His bloodline was purified by means of the A.I.Chip and the purity level was exceptionally high, almost equalling the original bloodline. With his own ability and with the help of the A.I. Chip, he was able to conceal his true strength and capabilities from others, but a newborn baby could not.

If his peculiar bloodline were to be discovered, given the greed of those Morning Star Magi, he might have been captured to become a reproductive machine for the next generation.

God knows, they might even be able to extract and strip him of his bloodline!

Therefore, until he was absolutely sure that it was safe, he would not allow the outflow of his bloodline, not to mention having descendants.

"But, nevertheless, if I am promoted to the rank of a Morning Star Magus and I want to start a clan of my own in the central continent, I am afraid those female Warlocks are my only choice!" Leylin stroked his chin.

Being a pure Kemoyin bloodline Warlock, in order to have strong and powerful descendants in the future, it was naturally more suitable if he chose a female Kemoyin Warlock.

As for female commoners and ordinary Warlocks, children he had with them would have their bloodline diluted to half of his, something which was unacceptable.

The quality of a Warlock's bloodline was known to be the best in the first generation. The more concentrated it was, the better they would be.

These minute details flashed across his mind once before he tossed them aside.

"This is not the right time for me to think about such matters!"

Leylin squinted his eyes, enjoying the natural and pure sunlight from the deck. A look of satisfaction gleamed in his eyes and his thoughts wandered to a faraway place.

...

As far as Warlocks were concerned, long and slow journeys were not torturous. At worst, they might have to stay in their room every day and meditate to pass time. And since the Fallor Family had provided such excellent services in the first class cabin, Leylin was satisfied, especially with the meals provided.

Given how poor Twilight Zone's environment was, the food and drink of the central continent were worlds apart.

And no matter how long a journey was, it had to come to an end.

The huge airship started descending, casting a huge circular shadow on the ground. The shadow kept spreading until at last, a loud thump was heard.

"This is Sin City station. All passengers who are alighting, please maintain order!"

After the airship had stabilized, a group of workers and slaves opened the warehouse latch and started unloading the goods. A few flights of stairs were unfolded and secured to the ground. The passengers who were going to alight got ready and started forming a queue.

"We are finally here, the border of the Forgotten Land, Sin City! Even the name is unpretentious with no need to cover up!"

After multiple flights on airships and a month of travel, Leylin had finally reached his destination as he mingled among the other tourists.

He fixated his eyes on the orange sun in the distance, and the dilapidated grey and brown walls under it, as he sighed.

The A.I. Chip issued a warning.

[Beep! The energy particle concentration here is about 10-20% lower than the outside world. Please take note!]

The spells of Warlocks and Magi were cast through their own energy which galvanised the surrounding energy particles. Low concentrations of the energy particles would cause a weakening of their power, leading to greater consumption of their spiritual and magical energies. If they were to face such a situation all of a sudden, many Magi would probably be thrown into a flurry.

"The elemental leakage had affected even the Forgotten Land!" Leylin sighed, "The power of Morning Star Magi is too devastating!"

Although the energy particles concentration level was lower than that in the outside world by 20%, it posed no problem to Leylin.

The concentration level of energy particles of his homeland, the south coast, and the Twilight Zone, were less than half of the central continent. Spellcasting with such low available energy was natural for him.

-x-X-x-

Leylin remembered the relevant information.

Immediately, he looked at his surroundings. Sure enough, the tourists who had departed the car had solemn expressions, an aura on their bodies that clearly indicated that they were not to be messed with. Some of them had even covered up their faces.

Those were the slaves and coolies who had been transporting objects underground. They would size up the batch of tourists from time to time, and their docile gazes concealed a malicious bloodthirst. It was as if they were waiting for the tourists to reveal a slight opening, for them to rip them apart and devour them like wolves.

'A chaotic region where strength rules all! A place that reeks of sin! Nefas is the city of sins indeed.' Leylin thought of the information mentioned by his A.I Chip previously, and along with Robin and the rest, subtly mixed in with the crowd.

Nefas City had no city guard to speak of, and there was obviously no entrance fee. As a result, there was a lot of human traffic, but none of it was particularly good. Of course, anyone who was forced to come here did not exactly have a stellar character.

"Rascal, what are you looking at?" An extremely muscular man who was close to two metres tall gazed at a youngster with an unfriendly expression.

"Oh! Sorry! Sorry!" The youngster had eyes that were triangular in shape. His mouth opened and he started to smile apologetically, at the same time nodding his head and bowing.

Just as he had bowed down in his apology, a cold glint emerged in the youngster's eyes. He violently whipped out a black dagger and stabbed the strong man in the stomach.

"You!" The strong man's face registered rage as he was caught off-guard. Still, a thin layer of defense formed on his body.

That strong man was actually a Grand Knight that could incite life force! A defence made of life force was very useful at mitigating the damage from clubs and the like. Even for sharp blows, it greatly reduced the strength.

*Whoosh!* The strong man's eyes shone ominously as he decided on how to torture the youngster to death. But instantly, the ominous glint in his eyes, disappeared, replaced instead by terror.

The defense he was so proud of, a Grand Knight's defense, was cut apart like paper by the black dagger.

The black dagger repeatedly, as if following a trajectory, stabbed the strong man's stomach before violently pushing it in.

"You…" The strong man's foamed at his mouth and he collapsed. He struggled in pain on the ground, and one could faintly see the ruptured organs and intestines through the wound.

With that type of injury, unless a Magus were to help, the man would completely not have a chance of survival.

The youngster kept his dagger, and swiftly squeezed out of the crowd before disappearing around a corner.

"What a pity. The strong man was at the very least a knight! If they were to fight properly, even 10 dwarves would not have been able to win against him!"

"What pity? That dwarf's weapon was something that, at the very least, was leaked out of the Magus world. With something like that against him, even a Grand Knight would suffer if he was not careful!"

The pedestrians on both sides did not panic at all, and were instead rejoicing at the misfortune of the strong man who had collapsed in the middle. There were even a few people who exchanged glances before moving toward the direction in which the dwarf had escaped.

After a long time, a batch of patrolling soldiers arrived, serving well their roles as cleaners and corpse-collectors.

'The object the dwarf was holding on to was a dagger with a weak spell attached to it. Even though it had not reached the rank of a low-ranked magic equipment, that alone is not too bad…' Leylin saw the scene unfolding before him and shook his head internally.

He had seen such a situation occur about four to five times ever since he entered Nefas City. There was simply nobody watching over this place.

The pathways of the city were paved with knife shavings and hammer splints. There were even bloodstains that could not be washed off, having long since turned a brownish-black.

In general, this was an extremely chaotic criminal town. Robbery, murder, rape and lewd behavior could be seen everywhere. Shady businesses were being conducted in the corners, and there was a faint aura being emitted that caused even Leylin to be uncomfortable.

Thankfully, Leylin and the rest were under disguise as mercenaries, and had a strong aura. They were also equipped with weapons, and looked like they were not to be trifled with, which had removed many inconveniences.

However, even so, there were still a few people who did not know better and lusted after the beauty of Kesha and a few other female Warlocks. They would often unscrupulously block the path ahead, and make certain requests of Leylin and the rest.

Of course, they had all become corpses, carrying their regrets to their deathbeds.

"Robin, the aura from the shadows is making me extremely uncomfortable." Leylin leaned in to say as he sped up.

"Very keen perception!" Robin wore a black cloak that only revealed his eyes. "That's right, these depraved fellows are performing summoning rituals and offering sacrifices!"

"Huh?" Leylin's pupils enlarged; he would not think of that answer in a million years.

Similar to their interdimensional exploration through the astral gate, powerful individuals would occasionally unload some of their keepsakes or spiritual force particles in the Nefas City through other planes from time to time. They would even tempt intellectual beings in order to obtain higher strength!

In summary, it was a constant cycle of travelling through respective passageways of designated places and the Nefas City while collecting depraved souls and stuff like that.

The most famous were the plane that held demons. Legend has it that there were many such locations, both on the south coast and in the central continent.

Robin smiled and began to explain, "You know, the more degenerate and sinful places are, the more attractive they are to demons. The sacrifice of spirit and flesh in these environments brings them, even more, delight, leading to their duplicates, or even original bodies, descending.

"Nefas City's Governor is the mighty demon hunter. Lord Cyril, the Morning Star Magus!" Whenever a demon's duplicate descends, he immediately captures it, and either conducts his own research on it or sells it. Apparently, they sell like hotcakes!"

Leylin was somewhat speechless after hearing all of that.

Lord Cyril acted like the biggest bait of the entirety of Nefas City, and attracted many different demons to take the hook.

Whenever these demons were offered tributes, and sent duplicates or even descended themselves, Cyril would immediately seize them. To think about it, these demons must have a lot of grievances.

"Well… Is this mighty hunter not afraid of the descent of demons of a higher power?" Leylin voiced out his worries.

A city like that with demon worshippers in every corner was literally an active volcano! Was that Morning Star Magus not afraid that by using himself as a bait he would attract troubles?

"Don't worry. This hunter has a very thorough knowledge of demons, and many formidable demons are not his adversaries! Moreover…"

Robin shot a glance at a corner not far away, "The plane of the demons is nothing! Plenty of Magi have been eyeing it. If not for the crafty behaviours of the demons, in that they would rather abandon their duplicates than to leave any tracks, we would have chased after them long ago, and completely taken over their plane!"

"Furthermore, they are struggling whilst at death's door. According to our predictions, that hunter is the Magus closest to finding the plane of those demons! He might even have already found it!"

This rendered Leylin speechless. Robin demonstrated to him the confidence every Magus of the central continent had. That ambition and aspiration were cultivated after having overcome countless planes.

Such a state could only be seen in the ancient times, but the Big War had ended the golden period of ancient Magi. Now, with interdimensional travel being resumed, the central continent had recovered part of the glory of the ancients!

'Perhaps, only this mental state that's full of ambition and enterprise can push the Magus world to greater heights!' Leylin sighed internally, and his spirit grew even more indomitable.

This was the best period! All the resources, knowledge, and meditation techniques were available to him, and there were numerous planes and strange realms outside that were waiting to be explored and conquered!

'I need to advance to the Morning Star realm quickly!' In Leylin's heart, the thirst was becoming stronger. He hoped to be able to leave a legacy, or even take the lead in the rejuvenation of the Magus world!

Even though he had done similar work in Twilight Zone, that was at a small scale. Where was the broad stage for the work to be done?

"The Forgotten Land is just after Nefas City! The elemental leakage effect is very intense there, and I'm afraid there's only less than 1 percent of the elemental concentration of the central continent remaining. We can only depend on potions and the essence of magic crystals to replenish our spiritual force and power. Everyone, please take note. If you need to, please swiftly refill your spiritual force here…" Robin pointed out softly.

"Also, don't go too far in Nefas City, and don't deliberately cause trouble! After all, there's still a Morning Star Magus here. This particular demon hunter is famous even amongst Morning Star Magi..."

Leylin, along with the other Warlocks, nodded in agreement.

The Ouroboros Clan was considered a large-scale force in the central continent, but did not dominate the entire continent. They did not rank all that highly, either.

Before they had set off, Robin had explained some taboos to Leylin.

First, the few rank 6 Emperors were a force not to be reckoned with, and for those at the Radiant Moon realm, they had to avoid getting into trouble with them as much as possible.

The remaining forces fundamentally were of the same rank as the Ouroboros Clan, and hence there was nothing to be afraid of. As long as their reasons were justified, they could take actions if they wished to! Warlocks surpassed Magi of the same rank.

Even though all the Warlocks had declared that their spiritual forces were plentiful and their magical powers were full, Robin still decided to reside in Nefas City for a night before entering the actual Forgotten Land.

As a result, Leylin and the rest found a clean hotel to reside in after which the Warlocks either meditated, shopped or bought some necessities.

-x-X-x-

A boundless barren wasteland.

Gales howled, sending the dust hurtling through the air to cover the sky, forming a thick haze.

In this land, twelve Warlocks were hurrying along on a special giant lizard.

"This is the Forgotten Land after all. Look at how sparse the elemental particles are here!" Leylin glanced at the statistics that the A.I. Chip gave him and shook his head. Even compared to the south coast and Twilight Zone this place was too poor. Not only was the land barren, even the elemental particles were scarce. It was no wonder that Magi and other races only chose to live here if they'd run out of options.

Leylin believed that were it not for his ancestral map, even Kubler would have been forced to hang around this place.

"Regular fugitives can just flee to the Nefas, it is the city of sins after all. From the perspectives of other Magi in the central continent, going to Nefas City is akin to banishment. Only those that are truly evil who could no longer stay in their own cities and are being hunted down would choose to come here. We need to be careful." This was not the first time Robin had warned them about this. It was evident how great the danger here was in his mind.

*Swish!* Two dense corrosive balls that were yellow in colour flew out and burst midair causing countless droplets to fall.

The moment these droplets made contact with the similarly yellow sand, they began to emit smoke, forming a pit whose descent could be seen with the naked eye.

*Chi chi!* A few black figures in the sand shrieked, fleeing far away.

Leylin saw that although these creatures had a head and humanoid limbs, they were only as large as a seven or eight-year-old child. In addition, their heads were shaped like those of mice, with two giant white teeth jutting out that looked sharp. Their bodies were covered with fur, and they all had thin black tails behind them.

'Mouse People! They're a type of lycanthrope, the product of experiments left behind by ancient Magi!' Leylin quickly recalled information about these Mouse People.

The ancient era was the most glorious period for the Magus World. Not only did the ancient Magi take over many different worlds and places, they even took away creatures from different worlds to be their slaves and even guinea pigs. This was why there were so many races in the Magus World.

"Noah, what are you doing?" Robin suddenly shouted at his nephew who had launched the attack.

"Uncle, I merely…" Noah lowered his head, ashamed.

"You can't just attack anything as you please! You're too weak, and you're giving the opponents a chance to get you! The Mouse People are a very united race, and the blood from their injuries will attract even more of them. We need to leave this place as soon as possible!" Robin was infuriated, but after remembering that Noah had only just come out for some experience, he could not help but soften his words.

"I'm sorry!" Noah found it hard to speak. Though he was no longer young and had long since obtained the strength of a rank 3, he might not even be as experienced as rank 2 Magi when it came to confronting enemies.

Giant Kemoyin Serpent Warlocks were precious resources in the Ouroboros Clan. They were sheltered, which was why Noah had no real life experience even if he had theoretical knowledge.

Under Robin's command, the lizard under them increased its speed.

However, it was too late. The situation proved that Robin was not wrong in his lecturing. In less than a day, they were surrounded by a large group of Mouse People.

"Damn it, why are there so many?" Noah's face flushed as he glanced at the Mouse People who amounted to more than two thousand. They formed a huge wave and surrounded them, the stink so bad that he was on the verge of vomiting.

"Mouse People reproduce like rabbits, and they require very little in order to survive. Other races may find it difficult to survive in the Forgotten Land, but this is not an issue for them. They make use of the rotten plants and maggots underground to live, and if they are truly desperate, they can even gnaw at sand and rocks!" Leylin explained to Noah.

"Damn these inferior beings. If we were outside-!" Noah clenched his teeth. Though they had spiritual force potions for replenishment, they still needed to be frugal.

"It can't be helped. Regular Mouse People are very resistant to radiation and can be compared to rank 3 acolytes. Elite adult Mouse People even have the strength of official Magi. The leader of this group here is very sly, and I suspect it isn't even here!"

Robin closed his eyes, a white eyeball appearing on his forehead. It was evident he was using detection magic to search for the tracks of the leader of the Mouse People.

In this situation, in order to keep depletion at the lowest, the best idea was to kill the other party's leader. However, the Mouse People seemed to be aware of this as well.

"Darl, you guys, prepare to attack!"

Robin opened his eyes and exclaimed to a few of the Warlocks behind him. The five Black Horrall Snake Warlocks went forward, a great energy wave flickering from their bodies, causing an uproar amongst the group of mice people.

Robin and the others were the main force and could not afford to waste energy here. They could only have their followers take care of it.

"Prepare to provide assistance!" Kesha instructed the three Warlocks from her family behind her.

Leylin took around. He was alone and did not have any servants. "Never mind. Their spiritual force and magic power are also precious and can't be wasted here. Let me do it."

"Leylin, you-? … Alright. Only you are the most suitable in this situation." Realising Leylin's identity as a Potion Master, Robin nodded.

"Get away, or you'll pay the price!"

Riding the lizard, Leylin went up front, the terrifying undulations of a Vapour Phase rank 3 Magus emanating from him.

The disturbance amongst the mice became even louder, but nobody left.

Leylin couldn't help but admire them. The use of his aura to suppress them might be easy for creatures with lower intelligence, but the moment it was used on creatures with an intelligence similar to humans, it was useless. This was especially so, if they had a leader commanding them.

Of course, if Leylin used his rank 3 innate talent, Intimidating Gaze, there was no problem. After all, that was not just using his aura to suppress others, but a suppression that was similar to that of a domain.

However, Leylin thought it would be too extravagant to use a rank 3 innate spell against this group at the boundaries of the Forgotten Land.

As he watched the Mouse People pouncing at him, a silver light flashed in his hand as a few test tubes glimmering in multiple colours appeared.

"Defiant Ring of Fire!" A fiery-red test tube was tossed out with a swish and exploded in the air to form a giant ring of fire encircling Leylin and the others.

"Wind Blast!" Immediately after, another two light green test tubes flew out, and great gales broke out, blowing the flames in all directions.

"And lastly, oil roasting potion!" With another toss, a purplish-black potion exploded in the air, and something like crude oil in gaseous form was dispersed.

*Rumble!* The fire from before made contact with this oil and grew even more powerful, tongues of flame sweeping in all directions.

"Rank 3 Potion-combination Spell—Divine Prairie Flames!"

Great flames rushed along the ground, and as if pushed by a powerful invisible force, began to surround the Mouse People.

Many fire serpents engulfed the area and swallowed many of the Mouse People, the cracking sounds of meat being roasted filled the air.

*Chi chi!* *Chi chi!* They were burnt to ashes, and this horrifying scene motivated the Mouse People at the sides to flee. However, this was merely a small number.

At the end, many Mouse People were charred and became conjoined to the ground forming a single entity. A disgusting stink that was ten times worse than before was produced.

"He actually used a few rank 1 and 2 potions and simulated the effects of a rank 3 spell! He really is a Potions Grandmaster!"

Robin praised from the bottom of his heart, "Also, this battle style does not consume spiritual force nor magic power. It is the most appropriate to use in the Forgotten Land!"

"It's only the results of an ordinary experiment." Leylin smiled very modestly.

In actuality, those were his true thoughts. The amplification of effect from such a combination only reached around 70%, and was far from what could be produced from the Morning Star final technique that used a few spells and produced an effect that had a huge change in quality.

However, Leylin had gained a very large interest in this method of combination and had been doing research on it. This Potion combination technique was a result of one of his successful experiments.

"Everything is great, but this is a little too disgusting!"

Kesha used a gold-laced handkerchief and covered her nose, her expression revealing a look of revulsion.

The other rank 3 Warlocks were not in good shape either, especially Noah, who was deathly pale and seemed unable to hold back his urge to vomit.

After surveying this region, they realised that besides the earth under their feet, everything else had become charred. That unique stink of the Mouse People had become even denser after the burning.

"Alright. Get used to this kind of thing, because you're going to be experiencing more of it in the future!" Robin patted Noah's shoulders, gaze unable to conceal his admiration towards Leylin.

Over here, only he and Leylin could chat without a change of expression.

To take care of everyone, Robin quickly led and continued the journey.

With the previous experience, everyone was even more cautious this time. Even Noah exercised restraint and followed along at the back of the group, gathering experience.

After that, Leylin found that this Forgotten Land truly was a large dump. They met all sorts of strange creatures that were all the products of failed experiments who had escaped. Some of these species were very rare in the central continent.

No matter what they were, they all had a common point—they were either plagued with flaws, were corrosive, or had powerful poisons.

There was one way to sum this up. They were hard to make use of and were of no value to Magi!

-x-X-x-

Maybe that was why the Forgotten Land was not overtaken by the Magi. Otherwise, the barriers between dimensions would not deter against the greed of Magi!

There were, of course, a handful of rare species who voluntarily entered the Forgotten Land to escape the grip of the Magi, however rare the cases might be.

The Magi here were so few in number that Leylin only caught a glimpse of one in all this time. And it wasn't without the aid of his A.I. Chip that he could make out some of his features.

The said Magus was a mature male with peculiar scales embedded in his face — probably the result of a mutation.

With the unexpected negligence of Robin, however, he fled at the speed of light upon noticing Leylin's group.

The concentration of energy particles continued to drop drastically as time passed and the group headed further into the Forgotten Land. Often, there was no soul in sight.

Those they did come across were mostly some rare species or exiled Magi who couldn't survive in the central continent.

More often than not, these meetings ended up in a battle.

While they showed mercy to many creatures, keeping in mind to conserve their energy, some of these creatures actually initiated the attacks.

The most threatening one was a profuse chase by a rank 3 Cthulhu beast which bore the physique of a hill.

It took Kesha, Robin, Leylin, and the surrounding Warlocks before the Cthulhu was wholly taken down, and the death of it actually garnered them a heap of rare materials. But unfortunately, a Black Horrall Snake Warlock was sacrificed in this face-off, removing a member from Leylin's group.

*Flap flap!* Kesha's pet, a pristine white bird, flew to a stop on her shoulder. Leylin often wondered why Kesha chose to keep a creature that only possessed an investigative nature instead of fighting abilities as her contracted partner.

"Guys, a tribe of Kobolds lies ahead of us. It is a sizeable one with a manpower of more than a thousand, I'm afraid we'll have to make a detour!" Kesha announced as she opened her eyes.

"Kobold?" Upon hearing that, Leylin did a thorough research on this species through the A.I. Chip.

[Kobold: Ovipara, said to be a subspecies of giant dragons. They will reach a height of 3 feet (around 1 metre) upon maturity and their outer appearance is characterised by a scaly skin which can range from a dark reddish-brown to a faded black. There are two taupe horns on the crowns of their heads and their fiery red eyes possess infrared vision. Furthermore, they can obtain spells through their bloodline and become an expert—similar to that of a Bloodline Warlock!]

"Giant dragons?!" The frightful creature that was mentioned in his high-grade meditation technique—Dragon King's Mystic Might came to his mind in that instance. The image of the Kobold on his A.I. Chip was, however, not close to his imagination of the creature.

Nonetheless, the giant dragons of the ancient era were famous because of the majority Ehya subspecies which was said to be able to mate with any species. Thus, these Kobolds were only to be expected.

But the thing that caught Leylin's attention was actually their bloodline!

Rank 3 creatures still existed in small numbers on the central continent despite their rarity. Moreover, Leylin had already reached the status of a rank 3 Warlock, it was about time he explored things in that field.

Unlike Leylin, other Warlocks did not own an A.I. Chip, nor could they extract ancient bloodlines from the blood of rank 3 creatures. As long as there was an adequate source, Leylin could extract as much of the ancient bloodlines as he wished.

"The bloodline of ancient giant dragons?" Leylin touched his chin, uncertain. "We can't be sure if there are any rank 3 Kobold Warlocks… but it's definitely possible in a large tribe with a population of over a thousand.

Kesha spoke after that, "I've found several rank 2 Kobold Warlocks within them and there are no signs of division in the tribe as of now. They are definitely under the control of a stronger Warlock, there must be a rank 3 in there..."

"A rank 3 Kobold Warlock backed up by numerous Kobold warriors and low-grade bloodlines. That is enough of a threat to us, we have to take a detour!" Robin did not hesitate in his decision. It was an aftereffect of the death of his subordinate, the Black Horrall Snake Warlock, earlier. Afterall, he had spent a painstaking amount of time and effort in nurturing him.

Leylin was about to make a comment but said nothing upon seeing everyone's approval towards Robin's decision.

It was clearly impractical for Robin to go against a huge Kobold tribe. Besides, the Kobolds were known for having diluted bloodlines and were already very distantly related to giant dragons. So it was almost impossible to extract giant dragons' bloodlines from them, even for Morning Star Magi. Wouldn't Leylin be digging his own grave if he persisted in moving ahead?

To put things into perspective, Robin and the rest were all Bloodline Warlocks. They could start suspecting Leylin's intentions in collecting bloodlines.

'Well, I guess we can only make a mark and return in the future!' And Leylin stealthily marked out the place on the map of his A.I. Chip.

...

Leylin and his group made it to their destination in spite of the many mishaps on the way.

A saffron bonfire danced from below as an alluring aroma of roasted meat filled the air. The meat was dripping golden and glistening grease every now and then.

A small stretch of white tents encircled the bonfire.

"How are things going? Are the sentry and camouflaging spells up?" Kesha walked out of her tent, a cloud of steam still surrounded visibly. She had only clothed herself in a loose bathrobe and was still drying her hair.

She had obviously just come out of the bath. Nobody knew where she got the water for it, but it was a simple thing for a high-ranking Warlock like her, even if a waste of resources.

"It's all done, we're undetectable." Robin furrowed his brows and replied, "And I remember reminding you not to use any spells here!"

"Don't worry! The water was from my spatial item!" Kesha was noticeably annoyed and even threw a coquettish glance at Noah who turned beet red.

Robin pulled a long face at that, saying, "Kesha, you're old enough to be Noah's granny! On top of that, our families have numerous blood relations, he might as well call you Aunt!"

"Rest assured, I have no interest in kids! On the contrary, I actually prefer mature and charming male Warlocks. Am I right, Leylin?" She shot Leylin a look.

"I'm gonna go double-check!" Leylin quickly excused himself from the circle to check on the spell formations before he got involved in the irrelevant argument.

From his vantage point, he was able to see the white haze that engulfed the whole campsite, making the bonfire and tents only faintly discernible.

Leylin was aware that it would be beyond unlikely to notice any anomalies in the campsite if viewed from outside. The campsite would look like nothing more than barren land.

The whole camouflage was seamless under the setup of Robin's and Kesha's men, it would be challenging even for the A.I. Chip to locate areas that could be improved on.

Leylin strolled around aimlessly and shook his head at the indistinct quarrels.

Many families of Kemoyin Warlocks intermarried to preserve the purity of their lineage and for other benefits. Strictly speaking, every family in the Ouroboros Clan was related to every other, and they all could even be traced down to the same ancestors. Hence, it'd be a rotten mess if one were to try and piece the puzzle together.

Leylin was sick of hearing about the indecent acts of the aristocrats, and of the fact that they would always be superior regardless.

He figured that he might as well use this extra time to study the spell models and relevant information in his A.I. Chip.

Leylin's eyes lost focus as he devoted the entirety of his attention to the A.I. Chip...

Robin and Kesha had made up by the time Leylin returned to the bonfire in the evening. They, too, knew it wasn't a time to discuss such things.

Robin gathered all the warlocks next to the bonfire and spoke of the final safety precautions.

"This pocket dimension was discovered by a Barbarian Bear tribe from the Forgotten Land and the information was proliferated in the Forgotten Land instead of being kept secret. Following that, 2 factions, that were led by human magician fugitives and the local barbarians respectively, also marked out this sacred place, opposing the Barbarian Bears.

"They are the three main factions that we'll be facing this time. Aside from a trickle of other intellectual species, we can overlook the rest…" He explained in detail.

"The entrance to the pocket dimension is at the mid-section of an underground river, guarded by these forces! We must break in swiftly, then fight our way through using either a boundary-breaking spell or by force…"

A solemn look was painted across the faces of Leylin and the rest.

Given the pitiful concentration of energy particles in the Forgotten Land, it would be hard to find useful resources.

Thus, this secret place was of utmost importance to the Forgotten Land and its livelihood, especially towards those factions! These factions would not sit back if Leylin and the rest were to take advantage of this land!

Though the group was practically undeterred as they were backed by the Ouroboros Clan, it must also be understood that the Clan would not launch an attack just for them. It just wasn't worth it!

To add on, there was no end to the amount of evil and wicked Magi and dangerous creatures in the Forgotten Land that couldn't care less about it.

Leylin and the rest had to defend themselves throughout the duration of their escape from the Forgotten Land, or else it'd be a truly undignified sacrifice if they were to lose their lives.

The boundary-breaking spell was a type of escaping spell that was fast and convenient, customised for entering and exiting pocket dimensions. Though the result varied for different types of lands, and might have no effect on occasion, it was still a useful spell.

Though, if one was superior in ability he'd able to travel through the pocket dimension with ease. Obviously, this did not work with Leylin and company. Why else would they painstakingly plot all this?