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.
-x-X-x-
'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…
-x-X-x-
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.
-x-X-x-
"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!"
-x-X-x-
"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.
-x-X-x-
"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..."
-x-X-x-
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.
-x-X-x-
"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.