After the banquet ended, Leylin decided to stay at the Blood Castle for a while. During this period, he constantly received intelligence about the situation at Crystal Mountain.
The Crystal Mountains was the main area where the conflict with Jupiter's Lightning happened, a mountain range that was located near the aisle of Arcelor. The Crystal Mountains were named so because of its production of a type of high energy crystal ore.
This ore could, to an extent, replace magic crystals as a power source for puppets, or to build formations and artifacts. This led to a decent demand for the ore, which kept the prices high.
It could be found everywhere on Crystal Mountain, even on the surface. This made extracting the ore easy, causing the place to be regarded as a natural source of wealth.
Of course, even so, it could only entice weaker Magi. It wasn't nearly enough to draw the eyes of Morning Stars.
Ore mines of such quality were already present in Jupiter's Lightning, Spirit Circle, and even within the Ouroboros Clan. It wasn't worth a fight between Morning Stars.
The real worth arose from a rumour about the place. Legends recounted that this was originally the headquarters of an ancient large-scaled Magus organisation— Scarlet Crescent. During the war, the ancient Magi had peered into the future and decided to conceal the entire region with spell formations. They left their heritage there, and it would only appear when it was time.
Many Magi had brushed this off in the beginning in mockery, calling it nonsense. But on-site inspections by Cybel and the others revealed that those remains indeed existed, and even hid enormous wealth!
Jupiter's Lightning had learned of this information at the same time. As such, there was a disagreement about the ownership of Crystal Mountain. Battle soon ensued.
Both sides had shown restraint in the beginning. The battle was restricted to a small spatial rift, and only involved those at or above the Morning Star rank.
But when the Radiant Moon Magus found himself at a disadvantage against the combined forces of the three Giant Kemoyin Serpent Warlocks and Cybel, he felt extremely embarrassed. Thus, this matter abruptly intensified.
What followed was the three Dukes being lost in the astral plane, and the allied armies besieging the Ouroboros Clan in the midst of trickery.
Were it not for the unexpected factor called Leylin, the Ouroboros Clan could possibly have been annihilated in this tempest, ending the legacy of the Giant Kemoyin Serpent Warlocks in the continent.
'You merely had a small disadvantage, and your revenge was already so vicious..." Leylin had already formed an image of the Radiant Moon Magus of Jupiter's Lightning. He was a cruel, petty man. Normally, such characters were not to be feared, but once one fellow possessed such enormous abilities, Leylin would dread meeting him.
"According to rumours and the data collected by mentor and his team, the surfacing time of the remains of the Scarlet Crescent would be when the sun, stars and moon converge and when the arc of Oake appears…"
Leylin put down the 'top secret' documents, and the A.I. Chip began calculations.
[Time format identified to be from the ancient era. Converting into the calendar used by the central continent, date is approaching soon…]
Leylin stroked his chin, "No wonder the struggle got so violent that they even wanted to get me involved…"
As for the intentions of Spirit Circle and Wind Wolf Lair, he was very clear on what they wanted. They might have made some pact with the three Morning Star Warlocks of the Ouroboros Clan previously, setting regulations about the distribution of the spoils.
The other party in the pact had disappeared, but the contract still stood. And yet, they were unwilling to just transfer these benefits to him.
As such, getting him involved and having him represent the Ouroboros Clan, they wanted to rework the pact imminently. If they didn't they'd have to share all the benefits they painfully acquired with Leylin, and it was not a welcome thought.
However, even Leylin agreed with this matter. Simply put, the benefits were meant to be for the three Morning Star Warlocks. And now, although the benefits had been reduced by a little, they were meant solely for him.
He was, after all, the sole representative of the Ouroboros Clan, possessing the right to negotiate on their behalf. Thus, it was understandable that they'd give up a few things to garner his support.
In this scenario, the gains of the Ouroboros Clan, on the whole, would reduce, but he would have good profits himself. With that being the case, why wouldn't he agree?
"Lord Leylin, are you there?" Paul's voice suddenly sounded from outside.
"I'm here!" Leylin replied as he opened the door.
"If you have made your decision, we can proceed with the contract alteration ceremony!" Paul smiled as he conveyed the message.
"Certainly!" Leylin nodded his head and followed Paul to the hall.
Those present numbered five. Along with two spirit Warlocks were Cybel, Palesa, and Philip. In the centre of the tiny hall was a long table dressed with a red tablecloth. On it was the contract, along with a goose-feather pen and ink.
Leylin trembled the moment he stepped foot into the hall. He felt as if he'd entered a boundless domain, one filled with an air of righteousness.
"This is the domain of righteousness! This place was the witness when we signed the contract with the three duke the last time too…." Cybel explained.
Contracts made among Morning Star Magi could not be broken. With the included effectiveness of this binding, the pact was absolute. No wonder Cybel, that old monster, still had no choice but to follow the rules and make allowances for Leylin, getting him to alter the contract.
Leylin walked towards the table, scrutinising the slight differences between the old contract and the new.
The new one halved the Ouroboros Clan's benefits, causing Leylin to knit his brow. But under the column that noted the beneficiary, the name had been changed. The names of the three Dukes had been replaced with Leylin Farlier.
The three Dukes had placed the condition upon Cybel that, were they to die, the benefits would be transferred to the Ouroboros Clan. Now, it was all being handed over to Leylin.
"How is it? If there is any problem, feel free to tell us. We will address it and make the changes right away!"
The urgency in Cybel's tone was evident; the time for the revelation of the remains was drawing near, after all. If they hadn't even solved internal issues, how were they to vie over other things?
Leylin closed his eyes for a second as he pondered before asking, "The contract states that additional spoils will be distributed on the basis of military strength and contribution. Exactly what are the criteria?"
"Of course, it will be based on the achievements of the Morning Stars!" Cybel answered without hesitation. In his opinion, the troops below the Morning Star realm weren't even worth consideration.
"Very well. I wish to add another clause, regarding emergency evacuations. In the event that one encounters an irresistible strength, namely an opponent at the Radiant Moon realm, we are permitted to use any methods we wish to exit the battlefield. This will not change the distribution of the spoils. Any objections?"
Leylin presented himself like one who specialised in law and litigation. Cybel and the others were stunned and they exchanged glances with one another.
"If that is what you wish, sure!" Cybel nodded his head, and Philip immediately stepped forward, making the alterations with the goose feather pen.
"I have no other issues!"
After ironing out some disputes, Leylin finally nodded his head in agreement. He took out a seal from his chest and stamped on the contract.
*Weng!* After the seal was stamped, an image appeared on the light yellow paper. It was that of a black snake biting its own tail swivelling around unceasingly.
This was the official seal of the Ouroboros Clan. It was originally held and controlled by the previous three Giant Kemoyin Serpent Warlocks, and now it was in Leylin's hand.
Fortunately, due to some unknown reasons, the three dukes had signed the contract under the Ouroboros Clan's name, otherwise, Leylin would not have been able to make the amendments.
After the last seal had been stamped solemnly by the last Morning Star Warlock on the contract, the power of righteousness in the hall rose to the limit.
The new contract gradually floated into the air, glowing a beautiful golden yellow as the old contract silently turned into a pile of ash.
"Alright, let us discuss the next arrangements…"
With the contract successfully altered, Cybel and the other Morning Star Warlocks seemed to have been refreshed with confidence and started to develop positive feelings for Leylin. Cybel impatiently urged everyone to begin planning battle strategy; he clearly couldn't wait.
Leylin plastered a smile on his face, but deep inside he rolled his eyes.
'How could I not alter it? I'm alone, unlike the three mentors. If I'd persisted, I would end up with nothing in the end, even attracting the malice of your two organisations…'
Weighing his options, Leylin had ultimately chosen to alter the contract. It was the best option under his current circumstances.
He believed that even if the three Dukes were to return from 'Purgatory' they would not be displeased by his decision.
"Within Jupiter's Lightning, other than the Radiant Moon Magus, there are over ten Morning Stars…" In the middle of a room that resembled a command center, Cybel slowly explained the details of Jupiter's Lightning, and Leylin was finally exposed to their strength.
"The other party's leader will be pinned down by the Radiant Moon Warlock on our side, don't worry. We just need to take care of the remaining ten plus Morning Star Magi.
"Many of Jupiter's Lightning's important territories and missions required Morning Star Magi to oversee them. As such, I suppose not more than nine Morning Star Magi will be at Crystal Mountain!"
Cybel seemed to be very familiar with information about Jupiter's Lightning. He either had a specialised channel of information, or managed to ambush a spy.
"Spirit Circle can take care of three!" Paul remarked with surety.
"Very well, Palesa and Philip will hold up two of them. That means we are down to four Morning Stars!"
-x-X-x-
Cybel glanced at Leylin.
"I can take on three. It won't be a problem to take care of the remaining one, right? After all, you managed to kill Demon Hunter Cyril. I look forward to witnessing you opening the battle with your great skills, hopefully ending quickly and assisting others!"
"No problem!" Leylin stroked his nose.
Cybel seemed to be at the peak of the Morning Star realm and could even take on three Morning Star Magi at the same time. No wonder the other Warlocks respected him so.
After the deployment had been settled, Cybel heaved a heavy sigh, his tone tinged with regret.
"Actually, Leylin, if your mentors were present, we would be at a great advantage. Pity… But it's all too late now! Besides, you and you alone can take care of this matter, we can only furnish you with logistical assistance!"
"It would be good enough to have all of this!" Leylin quickly declared.
It was fundamentally impossible for one organisation to interfere and provide military support to another. It was an extremely easy way to seize power.
In the event that Cybel had deliberately tricked Gilbert and the rest, causing them to perish in their search for 'Purgatory', it would be too late for the Ouroboros Clan to even shed tears.
Although the possibility of this happening was slim, prevention was better than a cure.
As such, Cybel and the rest had to remain low-key to avoid attracting suspicion.
"Alright! We'll set off immediately, and head towards the Crystal Mountains. This time, we need to get our hands on the historical remains of Scarlet Crescent!" Cybel waved his hand in the air, emanating a heroic spirit.
The other Morning Stars' eyes gleamed with a thirst for success.
...
At a Magus military base.
The entire place was covered with detection towers and barriers, sinister-looking steel puppets and bio-beasts alongside fangs and cannons.
From time to time, spiritual force undulations of Crystal Phase Magi could be felt as they swept through the area on patrol. In fact, there was even the terrifying aura of an occasional Morning Star Magus, causing the most ferocious of mutated beasts to be petrified and whimper in fear.
"We do not know the concrete location of the historical remains, though we do know that there are a total of thirteen likely sites. Five of them are in our hands and the rest are with the opposite side. This place is one of their military bases. The ones keeping watch here are the hunter Borick and the Marine Giant Siebel…"
The silhouettes of Leylin and Philip appeared at the heavily guarded military base.
"The convergence of the sun, stars and moon and the appearance of the Oake's arc is very soon!"
Leylin's eyes sparkled. With the help of the A.I. Chip, his calculations of the star's trajectory was much more advanced and accurate than the many astrologers on the continent.
The lower right corner of the A.I. Chip's interface stated the time clearly: 1 hour 24 minutes!
Ridiculously, Cybel and the others believed that the historical remains would appear in these two days and they were seizing the military bases everywhere.
It requires a huge amount of calculating and researching to determine where the remains would appear. Even Jupiter's Lightning along with Cybel and his men could only conclude that these thirteen locations were likely.
As for Leylin, he was certain that this base was more than 80% likely to be the location!
This was due to the amazing processing power of the A.I. Chip. With him joining the union, Cybel had revealed all information associated with the place. Thus, unknown to him, Leylin was able to determine both a time and a place for the reappearance.
Leylin guarded the secret of the A.I. Chip fiercely and would obviously not reveal anything. He only fought for the opportunity to be bestowed this mission and then watched Cybel assign the subsequent missions.
"It's almost time to start!" Philip looked at the pocketwatch in his hand.
Leylin turned to look at the Wind Wolf Warlock. According to his calculations, this location looked to be the entrance to the historical remains, and Philip along with himself would, unfortunately, be the first Magi to enter and explore.
'With him here, Cybel and the others will be attracted to come over. I will have no need to worry about being a lone soldier…'
Leylin was very generous. Besides the point that it was mentioned in the contract that one should not attack their own ally, he would not be able to pocket such huge portion of historical remains alone.
The starting time Philip spoke about was the time they'd agreed on to launch their combined offensive. Before the Radiant Moon Magus from the Jupiter's Lightning was pinned down, no one was willing to make the first move.
At this moment, a wave of frenzied energy passed through the area. It was close enough to hear the rumbles from where it passed.
Leylin could faintly see the image of a three-headed golden-yellow lion appearing, dragging a Magus whose body was covered in lightning images into a struggle.
"This is the power of the Radiant Moon?" Leylin looked at the golden lion and his face revealed a faint sense of loss.
This was a rank 5 Warlock, someone who walked the path of the bloodline as well! The guidance he could get from this was incomparable to anything else.
"This is the clone of Lord Wayde, the 'Golden Lion'!" Philip's tone was filled with respect, and Leylin's eyes opened wide in amazement.
"What?" He pointed at the lion's golden heads in disbelief; they were spouting fire, ice, and lightning at the same time. "This is just a clone? How formidable is his true form?"
"We Warlocks are rightfully much stronger than the Magi!" Philip proudly declared, "Lord Wayde is one of the main pillars of support of the Warlock Union. His true form is feared even by Breaking Dawn Magi. One clone is enough to deal with a mere Radiant moon Magus."
During their conversation, Leylin saw that the aura that emitted from the phantom of the three headed lion formed a lightning cage that dragged the Radiant Moon Magus into a spatial rift.
"Damn! Be careful, I'm sure they have more cards up their sleeves!" The moment the rift began to close, an unwilling violent yell was transmitted that echoed throughout Crystal Mountain.
The men at the base Leylin was at had been initially woken by the strong energy undulations. Now the uproar was even more direct, and two streaks of strong Morning Star undulations appeared.
"To draw away the enemy, we will have to expose ourselves, this is an inevitable price to pay!"
Philip heaved a deep sigh, "It's our move now!"
"Indeed!" Leylin nodded his head in agreement. Soon after, he saw the image of an ancient Wind Wolf the size of a mountain manifesting behind the other Warlock.
This enormous green wolf's body was covered with a layer of spike-like fur, all standing on end with a steely lustre. Its eyes were glowing with a bloodthirsty aura, and a huge storm covered it, forming a bizarre form of armour.
"Rank 4 spell— Storm Annihilation!"
Philip's voice was deep and gloomy. He did not have the courage to use the Morning Star Arcane Art in the central continent, however regular rank 4 spells were not off the table.
The phantom wolf howled in sync with Philip.
The distant and gloomy howl was extremely piercing and travelled far. Huge wind elemental particles violently came together forming a strong convection current and finally creating a strong violent storm.
Storm Annihilation! This was exactly what Leylin had employed at the West Seas Canyon to destroy the Azure Mountain King's clone. It had appeared here once more, this time at a much larger scale.
"Stop it!" A flustered and exasperated voice emerged and two streaks of light shot over.
"Haha… It's too late…" Philip laughed heartily, hastening the effect of the Storm Annihilation to mercilessly crush the military base.
The violent winds whistled. In the face of a storm that had the ability to destroy anyone below the Morning Star realm, the heavy guard of the military base was a joke.
Countless puppets and the mutated beasts turned to dust, followed by a huge number of Magi and buildings runes etched into them.
"Stop them, don't let them rescue the others!"
Philip and Leylin firmly obstructed the way of the two Morning Star Magi, stopping them from helping the others.
Soon after, the black storm was over, the original military base razed to the ground. The ground itself had sunk down a few layers.
In front of a Morning Star, everyone else and any spells cast were as good as nothing!
"You… " Two silhouettes emerged, glaring at Leylin and Philip.
One of them was a dwarf with a huge wooden bow on his back, the other a blue-skinned brute who was over three meters tall.
An enormous amount of pressure was released from both their bodies.
"Hunter Bolix and Marine Giant Siebel!" Philip gave a wide smile, revealing the sharp teeth in his mouth, "I want the Hunter, you can have the Marine Giant!"
The dwarf with the wooden bow smiled sarcastically as dark green whirlwind sprang forth from his body. He was a Wind Element Morning Star Magus and had been dissatisfied with Philip for a long time.
"No problem!" Leylin moved a few steps to the side and obstructed the way of the blue giant.
"Let's change the battlefield, shall we?" Philip eyed the opposing dwarf with provocation in his eyes. The huge phantom wolf exposed its sharp teeth.
"Humph!" The dwarf opposite him snorted coldly, grabbing the huge wooden bow from his back.
Space cracked apart in the between them, forming a huge rift. The spatial ripples were as if a curtain that was being drawn, and Philip and Bolix were gone in the next moment.
"We do not need to change location, let's settle it here!" Leylin locked eyes with the giant in front of him and smirked.
As the damage from clashes between Morning Star Magi was great and extensive, they usually made their moves in spatial rifts to prevent harming the Magus world.
With Leylin's words, Marine Giant Siebel's face hardened.
For a Morning Star Magus to dare to fight in the open, they were either crazy or absolutely confident in their power control. Evidently, this Warlock was of the latter category.
-x-X-x-
Leylin chose to battle here right away. He was confident in his energy control, and on top of that, he didn't want to move too far away. It would be too tragic if he failed to be the first one to detect the reappearance of the remains.
He was also prepared to try out an interesting idea.
For Marine Giant Siebel, Leylin's attitude was nothing but a provocation. He shot Leylin a piercing gaze, and soon released the massive power of his domain.
The power of one's domain would only be perfected at the Morning Star realm. The effects of amplification and suppression would intensify, and the range of effect would also be extended. Morning Star domains were a far cry from rank 3 forcefields.
Turbulent, vast and immeasurable!
White ocean waves and the crystal clear sea surface formed a horrifying scene.
The depths of the ocean were darkened by the frantic waves, giving one an ominous premonition.
The enormous tides engulfed Siebel, completely hiding his body. Yet, his voice was transmitted clearly, "This is my domain— Ocean!"
In a split second, the ocean engulfed the entire area, burying the alpines and the wreckage left by Philip's spells.
The boundless blue ocean roared at Leylin in rage.
'A real Morning Star domain, and the rules he controls are those of the water element...' A glimmer of blue light flickered across Leylin's eyes as the A.I. Chip recorded all data about the fluctuations and the power of the domain.
Siebel's aura rose quickly in this ocean, causing Leylin to be thrilled.
"So you're of the marine tribe. No wonder your domain is such, changing the battlefield to be underwater." Leylin's voice trembled a little. It managed to traverse the depths of the ocean, but there was no reply.
The marine tribe was a non-human species. However, they cohabited the Magus world with humans. They occupied the ocean while the humans occupied the land. It wasn't like there weren't any wars, but most of the time it was peaceful.
There were legends and records about a Great Magus Serholm who led all human magicians and fought off the enemies from the ocean.
There were also Magi amongst the marine tribe, but they were extremely rare, as their chance of advancement was even lower than humans.
To be able to meet with a Morning Star Magus of the marine tribe thrilled Leylin. He was puzzled as to why Siebel was a part of Jupiter's Lightning, but soon came to a realisation.
Despite the fact that Jupiter's Lightning had the help of a Radiant Moon Magus who was one of the top forces of the central continent, it was difficult for even them to nurture a Morning Star Magus.
Other than resources and experience, luck was an important factor in becoming a Morning Star Magus.
Given their high status in the central continent, it was extremely hard for any faction to have ten or more Morning Stars like Jupiter's Lightning did. It was impossible to rely on training their own, so they would recruit foreign Magi as well.
The auras of the previous bowman and Marine Giant were pretty much impure. Leylin was rather puzzled back then, but now it looks like they could be from a different tribe or are hybrid Magi!
The enormous waves surged into the sky, forming two dark blue crystal-like hands that gushed down towards Leylin.
The sharp increase in the air pressure formed unstable currents and caused the space in the region to be unstable.
[Beep! Data about the Ocean domain has been fully recorded!] Leylin smiled upon hearing the mechanical voice of the A.I. Chip.
"Corrosion!" Gently, an ancient Byron runic chant slipped out of his lips.
*Hiss! Hiss!* A large amount of uneven black pores appeared on the dark blue hand, corroding almost the entire arm within a second as if turning it into a beehive.
*Crack! Crack!* The gigantic arm lost its support and fell apart in the air, soon turning into a huge stream of water that merged back into the sea.
"In the name of the Warlock! My power of bloodline!" Leylin chanted out loud as a crimson barrier appeared on his body.
"Absorption of bloodline!" Blood red lightning flashed across his eyes, piercing through the pitch dark ocean as it revealed everything. Meanwhile, aiming at a specific spot, Leylin stretched out his right hand and made a grasping motion with great force.
An invisible air current appeared, causing a massive whirlpool in the middle of the ocean.
"AAAH!" a voice bellowed in agony from the whirlpool.
"All bloodline creatures will be under my bloodline's control, show up now!" said Leylin, and the blood red glow on his hand converged in his hand as he lifted his right hand into the air.
Water gushed up into the sky and rained down like a huge fountain as a gigantic blue figure slowly appeared from the middle of the whirlpool.
Numerous veins protruded from the blue skin, as if about to burst out at any moment. The wriggling veins looked like earthworms, sending shivers down one's spine.
The giant groaned in agony, forced out of the sea while being battered by crimson lightning.
"Multilimb Strength!" Leylin's eyes glittered, and the humongous phantom of a Multi-Armed Race member appeared behind him. This phantom was much clearer than the previous ones, every single scale and pore on his body distinguishable.
Even after reaching the Morning Star realm, this foreign Arcane Art could be of great use.
Leylin even felt that combining the nourishment of his spirit with the body refinement of Multilimb Strength, he would be able to reach the peak of the Morning Star realm at a much quicker pace, and would end up far more powerful than the rest.
The phantom punched out in tandem with Leylin.
Even a single arm of the humongous phantom was as large as Siebel. It felt like seven huge mountains appeared out of thin air and came crashing down at the same time when all seven arms smashed towards him.
Siebel placed both arms in front of his chest, forming a dense shield of water that was to reduce the shockwaves from the attack. However, it was all in vain. The water shield was destroyed under the force of the phantom's arms.
*Bang!* Siebel was shot backwards by the explosive force of the collision.
At the same time, threads of luminous blue liquid shot out from his pores and gathered to form a thumb-sized ball that landed on Leylin's palm.
"The bloodline of a Marine Giant at the Morning Star realm!"
Leylin nodded with satisfaction and kept the bloodline in a test tube. This was a rare material for bloodline experiments, and could earn him a good sum even for his current realm.
"You are not an ordinary Morning Star Warlock. Who are you?"
As Siebel regained consciousness, he stared at Leylin cautiously. With the amazing defensive and recuperative abilities of a Morning Star Magus, this sort of injury was nothing to him. Yet, Leylin was completely relaxed as before, clearly indicating that this wasn't his full strength.
Siebel gazed at the black haired Morning Star Warlock in front of him, running through all the top ranked Morning Stars in his mind, but did not manage to match the face to anyone. That is, until he recalled some more recent information, something that detailed Leylin's background.
"You are Leylin Farlier! The Morning Star Kemoyin Warlock of the Ouroboros Clan! The one who killed Demon Hunter Cyril!" Siebel was in shock. Demon Hunter Cyril was considered a powerhouse among Morning Star Magi, but he'd been easily slain by Leylin.
This accomplishment was much more challenging than a win-lose in an ordinary face-off and Siebel was well aware of that.
'For now, the best case scenario is that I keep up my defence and sustain myself. I might even have to request reinforcements!' He smiled bitterly at his own thought. Just then, a ring of pearls glowed around his waist, and he heard urgent voices shouting around, "It's the Third East Region, we need immediate reinforcements! We're under attack by Spirit Circle! "
"West Region calling for reinforcements, three layers of defence have been destroyed! Damn it, the Warlocks seem to be fully concentrated in this region! "
"No, you bloody liars! Cybel is in our North Region, we should be the ones getting reinforcements! Ahhhh…"
The transmitted voices had a lot of interference, and there were also loud sounds of explosions in the background that added a violent shudder.g.
Siebel's heart hit rock bottom. Knowing that Cybel was here as well, he felt hopeless.
"So this is your plan?" Siebel looked fixedly at Leylin, but could not get any details off that expressionless face.
"Even if it is so, I signed an agreement with Jupiter's Lightning. Don't think you can get rid of me so easily!" Siebel thought in his heart and roared out a jumbled chant of sacrificial phrases.
The serenity of the ocean was broken again by the violent movement of water as large amounts of it gathered around Siebel. When the rumbling ended, a monstrous creature that was a thousand metres tall appeared in front of Leylin.
The monster had the head of a cow, the body of a human and tentacles for feet. It growled like a raging bull.
"This is your original form?" Leylin fended off the water bullets, looking at the humongous form of the magician and chuckled.
-x-X-x-
The marine tribe were not humans. Born of the ocean as they were, their bodies were like a manifestation of the laws of nature.
Those of the marine tribe seen on the continent were similar to humans, and had at most a few scales on their bodies. However, that was only the form they used specifically to communicate with humans. This monster that had appeared in front of Leylin was over a thousand meters tall, and it was the true form of the marine tribe.
After he revealed his true form, the undulations from Siebel's body surged wildly, inspiring much greater terror than before.
Leylin, however, revealed a grin of excitement. 'A.I. Chip, begin calculating the trajectory of the homing light rays!'
Endless blue light glowed in Leylin's eyes, and most of the A.I. Chip's power was allocated to this task.
[Setting up model of opponent. Calculating trajectory.]
Siebel in his true form growled wildly, and soul force at the Morning Star realm mixed with enormous amounts of seawater, compressing it into just a centimetre wide ball. Flickering with a blue light that transcended any normal brightness, it reached Leylin in the blink of an eye.
"Good timing!" Leylin burst out in laughter. Bloodline power and soul force converged in his palm, the formidable energy undulations finally colliding with the blue ball with a rumble.
The air buzzed and trembled, but there were no intense explosions or spatial cracks that appeared, causing the marine tribe Magus to be confused and his movements to slow.
*Shua!* At this moment, the blue ball of energy was enshrouded by crimson light as it streaked through the horizon like a meteor.
The light arched in the direction it headed, similar to a rainbow that suddenly filled the heavens.
"Oa-Oaker Arc!" A shout of disbelief was let loose from the marine tribe Magus' lips.
He raised his head and saw a bizarre scene. A giant sun suddenly emerged despite the fact that it was night, fusing with the moon and the brightest star, Venus.
The dazzling yet harmless light formed a thin line that descended to the earth.
*Rumble!* The air was unstable, and it seemed as if another large space was 'squeezed' into the place, causing the two spatial forcefields to overlap.
"It's a success!" Leylin rejoiced covertly.
Using the A.I. Chip's terrifying calculation abilities, he had mixed the opponent's strength with his own, causing the time of opening of Scarlet Crescent to be brought forward.
This had not been his original intention, but he had suddenly been inspired after seeing the other party's Morning Star Magus. It ended up being an advantage for him.
The early arrival of the ruins would likely cause the specific plans of the the person behind all this to be affected.
The more chaotic the situation, the more advantageous it was to Leylin.
"This– this– this is… the ruins of Scarlet Crescent!" The Marine Giant's eyes grew wide as he mumbled in disbelief.
Though he knew it was possible that the ruins could appear at any of the 13 strongholds, it was too much of a coincidence that it had appeared where he was.
Seeing the image gradually becoming more distinct and forming a spatial passage glimmering with dark silver light, Siebel hesitated. However, he still choose to contact the other Magi and even their leader, the Radiant Moon Magus.
However, when his soul force touched the communicative device, Siebel was suddenly startled.
Their leader, the Radiant Moon Magus, was still in a spatial rift! Messages would definitely not be able to pass into the place. Even his other comrades were busy with the Morning Star Warlocks from the other side. The situation wasn't going well, but where could he go to find reinforcements?
Seeing the look of hesitation on his opponent's face, Leylin chuckled and had no intentions of continuing.
Though he was certain he could kill his opponent, he would need to use his Morning Star Arcane Art, and it would consume too much time. This was not the time and place.
Thus, like pulling open a curtain, Leylin's hands pushed at the spatial crack and he walked in without the slightest hesitation.
After Leylin completely vanished into the spatial crack, Siebel gritted his teeth and spoke a few sentences to the communication imprint. He then followed and allowed the spatial waves to swallow him.
The bodies of Morning Star Magi were able to go through even spatial turbulence. Spatial passageways like these that were similar to teleporting to pocket dimensions generally had no specific teleportation spell formation, and could only be entered through force.
"What? The ruins have already appeared? So quickly?"
The Magi of both sides who were battling at the other strongholds seemed to receive the information at the same time. They, who were stunned by this sudden news, stood opposite each other for a moment without acting, then immediately rushed in the same direction.
At this moment, in the outer regions of the rift in the world.
Boundless stars and vortices were part of the background, filling it with a sense of vastness and might.
Here, it was as if a great war on the same level as that of ancient times was being replayed. A majestic lion that had a body of golden fur and three heads that kept spouting flames, ice and lightning suddenly stopped, seeming to be deep in thought.
In front of it was a Magus with a luxurious pitch-black magic robe, a strange moon-shaped rune on his forehead.
"Hehe… Wayde, you made an error in your calculations. Though you might be able to stall me, someone else is benefitting!"
This Magus was obviously the great rank 5 Magus of Jupiter's Lightning. Now, however, his expression held a rare expression of exasperation.
This strange creature was not Wayde's main body, but one of his most powerful clones. It had inherited the innate skills of the ancient clans, and its strength almost reached rank 5. Even he would find it difficult to take this being down, and might even be suppressed here.
"It's a mistake on the astrologer's part! It has nothing to do with the original plan!" A middle-aged man's icy words sounded from the middle head of the three.
"Furthermore, I'm different from you. I'm just a clone…" The three-headed lion raised its claws, looking pleased.
"Could it be that you…" The Radiant Moon Magus' expression suddenly changed as he tried to break through the seal and return.
"Trying to leave? How could it be that easy? Stay!" The three-headed golden lion roared, its three gigantic mouths opening.
A terrifying suction force similar to that of a black hole shot towards the Radiant Moon Magus. Even the rays of light in his surroundings were not spared as they were all sucked in. Howls and cries of indignance sounded every once in a while.
In the main world, a golden meteor streaked through the horizon.
Within the golden rays was a male Magus with long flaming hair that looked like a golden sunshine. His body and face seemed to be formed entirely of gold, and was full of dignity.
Meanwhile, however, he seemed to be deep in thought.
Outside, in the direction of the ruins of Scarlet Crescent, two groups of Morning Star Magi, and even Philip as well as Hunter Bolix, returned to their factions. After persisting with the confrontation for a while longer, they still charged into the spatial passageway at the same time.
The air suddenly became tranquil, and only the deep depressions in the ground and large puddles of water proved that there had been a battle of Morning Stars here.
Due to the extremely intense spell radiation, the region would be barren and void of life for a long period of time. There could even be formed a range of phenomena that would attract creatures of different planes, becoming another fearful area that would become famous in the central continent.
*Whoosh…* The air rippled as a breeze blew past, revealing the sudden appearance of another human figure.
"What's going on? I calculated the timing based on the records of the ancestors. How could it have been brought forward?" A simple-clothed old man with a full head of white hair muttered, eyes without focus.
"The opening of the Scarlet Crescent ruins was initially an opportunity for our organisation to rise, but unexpectedly such complex issues are involved in there…"
The old man began to mutter to himself, "First was the discovery of our secret, causing several Warlock organisations and Jupiter's Lightning to covet it. It even resulted in a war, and the diary that stated the time of appearance of the ruins was wrong. What exactly is going on?"
Because of Leylin, this old man whose origins were unknown was beginning to have doubts in his outlook of the world.
However, his education from a young age and the philosophy he had developed over the years allowed the old man to quickly regain his calm.
"No matter what it is, my ancestor was a member of Scarlet Crescent. My organisation is also one of the branches that has inherited part of the teachings of the ancient Scarlet Crescent organisation. This ruin should be ours!"
The old man's expression instantly turned vicious, and a halo of resplendent starlight burst forth.
The spatial passageway opposite began to tremble as if it had sensed something. It, too, shot out a large amount of light, fusing with the splendour on the old man's body and absorbing the whole bundle of starlight, leaving nothing behind.
...
"What a strange setup!" Leylin currently had his hands behind his back as he strolled along a spatial corridor filled with starlight, his own body shrouded in crimson.
There were multiple spatial rifts that caused turbulence within, but they could not cause even a ripple on his body.
"To completely isolate this region, I can only wait until a specific time. Only then can I enter the passageway through the spatial flow…" Leylin's eyes were full of praise. "Such an intricate set-up, as well as space-division spells. This is truly frightening."
The Morning Star realm that he had reached was only the bare minimum of ancient times. There was still a long way ahead, and he would naturally not feel conceited or complacent.
On the contrary, the more he knew, the more Leylin felt that the information he had acquired was much too little. He became increasingly humble.
The power who had set up such a spatial spell formation was an existence he needed to look up to and learn from…
-x-X-x-
"Now, the ruins seem to be nearby, but in fact…" Seeing the indistinct space in front of him, Leylin shook his head. He'd just found the entrance. It wouldn't be easy for him to achieve his goals and enter the place without using the right way.
The others that had come afterwards were in the same situation.
After all, it wasn't likely that they'd find the successors of Scarlet Crescent, so Leylin and the other Magi didn't bother to deduce the proper way to go in.
With them being Morning Stars, as long as they found the entrance it would only be a matter of time before they broke in.
However, the rules of space were powerful and mysterious. Leylin could only manage to survive in here for now, and he needed to deduce a plan to break through this spatial defence. The other Morning Stars who came after him were also stuck in the same dilemma.
Thus, time was one of Leylin's advantages against the rest of the Magi.
This was why he'd used Siebel and made the ruins appear in advance. Although they had an agreement about the distribution of the spoils, that was only on the whole. As for who got what, it was largely dependant on who found it first.
Wandering in the spatial passage was like taking a walk in outer space, nebulae of different shapes everywhere. There was even a silver spatial storm every now and then and spatial turbulence whizzed by on occasion.
Threads of a dubious black material were even coagulating around the passage, forming mysterious black buds and gave off a dangerous vibe.
After walking for who knows how long, Leylin suddenly missed his footing and felt like he was falling down from up high. Even more strangely, he felt like he was rising up afterwards.
After the strong sense of weightlessness passed, Leylin found himself standing in a little garden. The black buds he saw before covered the flowerbed, some even making it onto the hedges. A wooden board covered in tentacles was posted in a corner, the words on it faded.
"Flowers full of malice and danger…" Leylin muttered to himself. The A.I Chip searched the database but found no such ancient plant.
Suddenly, the black flower buds trembled and bloomed, showing a crimson pistil.
*Thump! Thump! Thump!* Like a chain reaction, masses of black buds bloomed, and the garden was instantly full of black petals flying in the air, red pistils emanating a threat like the tongues of snakes.
The faint sense of an ancient curse made Leylin frown.
"This! Is it a final defence against intruders? Or… is it a warning?" Leylin smiled, and his pupils turned into vertical slits that glowed red.
The next moment, a strong and violent radiation was emitted from his body!
This was the radiation of a Morning Star Warlock's body, containing the power of the bloodline of the ancient Giant Kemoyin Serpent. Leylin kept it repressed in his everyday life, but now he let it all out, and it caused a horrible change.
A layer of rainbow-like five-coloured light shone with green and orange fluorescence, filling the whole garden.
The air turned hazy, and the scene distorted. After the radiation passed through, the entire space seemed to become still, and the faint smell of rust permeated the air.
The original colours of the garden were also diminished with the radiation, leaving only black and white. It started to look like an old photograph.
A cracking sound rang out as a slight fracture appeared in a corner. It spread across the whole grayscale garden, leaving spatial cracks everywhere.
And then, like the falling of a glass bottle, a low and jarring sound rang out as the whole garden was shattered apart, exposing the dark void filled with spatial storms.
The storms roared, devouring all those fractures.
The silver storms continued to mince the garden for a few minutes before the ruins were visible once again.
The black buds in the middle had disappeared, leaving a few broken petals on the ground. It gave the environment a sense of gloom.
Leylin's pupils returned to their original colour with a flash of strange light.
This burst of strength had taken a toll on him, but he had no choice but to employ it to maintain his time advantage.
The full strength of a Morning Star Magus was enough to affect the normal functioning of many formations! On top of that, Leylin was not any Magus, but a Warlock with the bloodline of an ancient organism! Combining his own power with that of his Kemoyin bloodline, the power of his radiation was much greater, to the extent of even attracting extradimensional creatures.
Leylin stared at a point in the void, silent. Over there, a conscient, or rather, a group of conscients, was coming through slowly! Although it was invisible, Leylin could sense the being through his soul force.
"Creatures from a higher dimension? Or a plot of Scarlet Crescent?" Leylin's eyes showed surprise.
"Outsider! What have you come here for?" A conscient entered Leylin's mind through the connection of soul force. The voice was that of an old woman, but it was interspersed with much more, the roars of multiple other creatures.
"To find the truth!" Leylin said with a low voice, providing an ambiguous answer.
"The truth? Even those of Scarlet Crescent were still pursuing it. You've come to the wrong place…" The voice sighed.
"I didn't come to the wrong place. The ways of the ancient Warlocks will be a valuable reference and their experiences will save me time…" Leylin's soul force countered the unknown creature sharply.
He could sense that this creature did not have a normal body. It was just a ball of light emitting a strange power, perhaps a creature hiding its true body in a higher plane.
Even so, after confronting Leylin's soul force for a while, the will seemed to yield, "Follow the Path of Quandary, it will lead you to your answer…"
As the voice faded, the sound of movements could be heard as a brand new aisle appeared in a corner of the garden. The floor was made of grey stone, and black specks spread out along the floor like numerous insects. They had the figures of twisting faces.
Scanning with his soul force, the outline of the Path of Quandary appeared in Leylin's mind. After ensuring that there was no danger, Leylin bowed to the void and stepped directly onto the path.
The sound of footsteps could be heard as the black garden disappeared from sight the moment his feet hit the stone floor. All that remained was a long sigh.
...
"Soul Whip!!!"
Massive invisible waves of energy swept through the air as dozens of giant swamp monsters trembled. It was as if they were tortured by some invisible whips, and they hit the floor after a while, their unconscious eyes filled with fear.
"My lord! This seems to be the Maze Lock, we are in a defensive trap of Scarlet Crescent!" Paul reported to Cybel. Although both of them were Morning Star Magi, their powers were far apart, and thus they had widely varying statuses.
"This is the Naraku Type 2 maze, a kind of maze liked by those ancient Warlocks. There should be nine levels, each level having its own keys and riddles. We must break through them one by one, or we'll never get to the end…"
Cybel nodded. He'd obviously studied up on these things. Beside him, other than Paul, the Warlocks from Spirit Circle and Wind Wolf Lair had all disappeared. And a few unfamiliar Morning Star Magi were just watching everything detachedly.
"Well, it's our turn this time. According to our agreement, you are up next time!" Cybel took several green gems from the swamp monster as he spoke to those Morning Stars.
"Of course!" their leader replied, his eyes cold. This Magus with a golden headband had no sense of fear even when confronting Cybel.
Seeing this, Paul smiled bitterly in his mind.
The sudden appearance of the ruins of Scarlet Crescent rendered most of their plans useless. The entrance of the ruins contained some mysterious spells cast by ancient Warlocks, and those who entered through abnormal ways would encounter barriers. The dispersion made Paul feel depressed. Were it not for Cybel, he would have been killed here.
After all, they were mortal enemies before, and that was still true.
Paul sighed, even the tentacles on his head seemed dispirited.
He would be safe following Cybel, but there wouldn't be any gains. Leave alone those Morning Star Magi, even Cybel would leave him with nothing.
Compared to his resignation, the Magi on the other side were hysterical.
-x-X-x-
"How could it be? Someone has already entered the Path of Quandary. That's extremely close to the core!" The old Magus wearing simple attire observed the light yellow notebook in his hands, letting out a low growl. His expression was that of anxiety.
On one of the pages of the light yellow notebook, a general map had been drawn out with weak black lines. There was a little black dot moving slowly in one of the central passageways that was labeled the Path of Quandary.
There were also other dots on this map, but they were all situated at the exterior regions.
The old man himself was marked with a white dot. Though he was much faster than the Morning Stars outside who were being hindered by the labyrinth, he was still at the middle section and a distance away from the core.
In contrast, Leylin's black dot was only a few steps away from the core which was marked in red!
"Damn it, damn it, damn it! Why is there a Magus that's so fast…" the old man cursed, his expression full of impatience and indignance, "It's a pity that I only have the correct method to enter the ruins. I can't control all the secret mechanisms, or else…"
Though the old Magus' ancestor had been a member of Scarlet Crescent, he was merely an ordinary member. While he had participated in the construction of the ruins, he had not been able to make contact with the core areas. Hence, obtaining this map, the password to enter, as well as some information, was the limits of what could be done.
Leylin had also unexpectedly brought forward the timing of the opening of the ruins, causing things to become disadvantageous for the old man. Even if he was hurrying along, careful not to fall into any traps, he was still behind Leylin.
"I don't care anymore! As long as I can get to the core area, I still have a chance of turning the tables!"
The old man angrily used his fingers and traced the map, finding another route. However, just when he was about to move, his pupils suddenly shrank.
A black dot entered the edges of a map. It was several times larger than the rest, and was ringed in red.
The few traps and patterns at the exterior were completely destroyed in the face of the large dot, and even their names disappeared from the map. The man wailed in anguish, "A rank 5 Magus rushed here so quickly. Are you even giving me any chance at all…"
While he kept lamenting, the old man's footsteps did not lose speed. Instead, he began to move more quickly.
If he was slightly slow and allowed the rank 5 Magus to take over this place, this area would no longer be of any concern to him. Besides, there was a certain item at the core region that he needed to obtain, which was his main goal.
"Just wait! Just wait till I get control of the core!"
The old man stared at the little black dot in the Path of Quandary, his expression revealing his frustration.
...
Leylin, of course, did not know that someone had him in their thoughts. He was now walking on a little pathway of ash-gray stone.
The path was surrounded by white fog on both sides, and it became increasingly dense as it concealed the scenery.
On the still, empty road, only his footsteps sounded unceasingly. The scenery that was exactly the same on both ends made it easy for one to forget time, giving rise to a strong sense of fear.
Combined with the unique power in the fog, even a Magus' tenacious willpower might not hold out.
If it were other lower-ranked Magi, they might long since have broken down, crying and yelling that they wanted to return, begging for release.
However, resolution showed on Leylin's face, as if this was negligible. In the face of his mindset that was ten thousand times more stronger than steel, things that ancient Magi had specifically set up to test one's will were trivial.
As Leylin went deeper in, the surrounding fog became more dense, and even his feet became unclear. Every step seemed like he was walking on clouds.
Leylin took a step, and the scenery suddenly changed.
Now, the room had dark yellow planks and a mouldy ceiling. The squeaks of mice could be heard from the corner.
It was the most common image seen by commoners in the continent. There was not one piece of furniture in this little wooden cabin. Strangely, all that existed was a golden parrot cage at the center, a toad with a pipe in its mouth on top.
"Hey, brother! Are you here to give me a love letter on Miko's behalf? Please tell her that I'm busy and can't make it to the date tomorrow evening!"
The toad was dressed in a black top hat, looking relaxed. It puffed out one white smoke ring after another from the pipe.
"..." Leylin was dumbstruck as he watched the toad, unsure of what was going on.
"Are you not Miko's messenger? Oh! Then it must be Elizabeth. She's the most beautiful girl I've ever seen. That skin, full of folds and spores, as well as those protruding eyes… Oh! She's my angel…"
The toad jabbered on and on, but what it said only baffled Leylin. At one point, he could no longer take it and asked, "Where is this?"
"Quark's cabin, Number 232 at the edge of the world. Is there a problem?" The toad put its pipe down, its large eyes that were like light bulbs shooting Leylin a glance.
Could it be that the Path of Quandary is similar to an astral gate? Has Scarlet Crescent's defensive formation sent me to another plane?' This sudden thought left Leylin unable to decide whether he should laugh or cry.
Many ancient defence systems had a last resort when they encountered an enemy that was much too powerful for the spell formations to be of use— banishment to an alternate world!
This was akin to an astral gate, teleporting Magi out of the Magus world.
As this was a one-time thing with no definite coordinates, unlucky Magi would usually be sent into spatial turbulences far, far away; or even into a giant storm. It would be extremely lucky to find another plane with life on it. However, returning to the Magus world? There was no need to even think about it.
The current situation caused Leylin to have doubts.
At this moment, the floor suddenly began to tremble, seismic waves passing through every few moments.
"What's going on?" Leylin tried scanning with his soul force, but found that his soul force had been repressed to the limit. It could not even see past the cabin.
"It's nothing. I have a new neighbour preparing to move in…"
The toad jumped off the parrot cage nonchalantly, bouncing as it headed out. Leylin turned his head and thought about it for a moment, eventually following behind it.
After opening the door of the wooden cabin, his body suddenly went stiff, eyes flashing with disbelief.
In front of him was a large sandy wasteland. There were black holes and distorted nebulae in the sky, and a large green shadow that seemed to have taken root in the cosmos was shifting its body.
It was a giant ancient tree, its green leaves spilling with a jade-like lustre. Leylin had seen many ancient trees before, and there were enormous trees in Creevey City where houses could be built on their leaves. However, the entirety of Creevey CIty was like a tiny thing in comparison with this gigantic tree, not comparable to even a leaf.
"Hello, new friend! Do you need any help?" After seeing this tree, the toad happily went forward to welcome it, jumping onto a root as thick as a mountain.
Compared to the tree, the toad was like a speck of dust. No! It was ten thousand times smaller than a speck of dust!
Leylin was speechless. Soon after, he realised that he had indeed walked out of a wooden cabin, but the surroundings were a depthless black starry cosmos, and the cabin had been floating in the sky. There was even a shaky scrawl on the bronze door plate, reading 'Number 232, Edge of the World! This house belongs to Toad Quark.'
On that gigantic root the toad had jumped onto was another little cabin, this one constructed askew. There was a number there as well, 233. The name had changed to Wisdom Tree. Leylin had no idea how the big the other party was or how they entered the cabin. Watching the cabin on the tree root, as well as the toad, he could not come up with anything to say.
Shortly after, however, his expression changed. 'The ancient Wisdom Tree? The intellectual being of the Magus World that once enlightened multiple great ancient Magi? The culmination of all wisdom?'
*Rumble!* A few large cracks opened up on the tree that extended to the cosmos, sucking in the violent spatial storms and producing soundless whimpers.
Two enormous, yellowish eyes opened, followed by lips full of wooden lines.
"It's… been… a… long…. time… my… old… friend…" The tree's words were extremely loud. Just the sound waves were enough to blow everything over. Toad Quark had no choice but to hug the root tightly in order not to be blown away by the violent hurricane.
The Wisdom Tree's speech was very slow, taking a minute between syllables. It seemed that each thought required a great amount of time.
"And… also… a … new… friend…" *Bang!* The ground exploded, and a root that was like a mountain flew over, raising Leylin till he was before the ancient Wisdom Tree, meeting its starry gaze.
"I smell myself on you…" The Wisdom Tree's words were hard to decipher, but Leylin immediately understood what it meant.
"Is it the essence of the ancient Wisdom Tree? And this!" Leylin produced a wooden cup, though it was now empty.
It had once contained the essence of the Wisdom Tree, and had been vital in supporting Leylin's advancement to rank 3. This wooden cup had been said to be made out of the bark of the Wisdom Tree.
-x-X-x-
"You're a Warlock… Ah, I remember this feeling. You must be from the Magus World, right?" The ancient Wisdom Tree spoke slowly, each syllable taking a significantly long time. It was enough for any quick-tempered Magus to get annoyed.
However, there were no traces of impatience on Leylin's face. On the contrary, he was full of respect towards the ancient Wisdom Tree, especially since his advancement to rank 3 was all thanks to it. Hence, he bowed deferentially.
"Yes! I am Leylin Farlier, a rank 4 Warlock of the Magus World. Greetings, mighty Enlightener!"
The Enlightener was a title given to the ancient Wisdom Tree by the combined decision of all the Magi in the Magus World.
It was rumoured that the ancient Wisdom Tree was the culmination of all wisdom. It was even knowledgeable in all the mysteries of the cosmos and the universe. There were countless high-ranked Magi who had gained enlightenment with its help, and even the glamour of the ancient era was, in part, possible thanks to its guidance.
However, the mighty ancient tree which had granted enlightenment and solved riddles had disappeared from the Magus World all of a sudden. No matter how hard the ancient Magi tried to find it, no traces were left behind.
In the following generations, many Magus historians had attributed the fall of the ancient era to the lack of guidance from the Wisdom Tree, leading to many ancient Magi walking a path ridden with errors.
Though Leylin did not really agree with this standpoint, it was true that it was very knowledgeable regarding Magi.
"The Magus World!" The ancient Wisdom Tree's large eyes flashed with nostalgia, "I still remember… 20 or 25 dark ages ago, the Magi were all adorable little children. Oh! There was one called Aten, and he was pretty good at barbeques…"
The mighty ancient Wisdom Tree was like an old man trying to chase after the past, jabbering on and on.
Leylin waited silently at the side, while Toad Quark was beginning to get annoyed, "Old friend, are you moving again? You've only lived here for 87,000 years… I've only taken a nap, and you're already moving again?"
'An 87,000 year... nap?' Leylin was speechless.
"Yes, my friend! I feel the descent of terror. Even the end of the world can't hinder the spying of such power. The aftermath of the ancient era will continue to cause ripples, involving other worlds…"
The ancient Wisdom Tree said something that sounded like a prophecy, causing Leylin to be surprised. However, no matter how he inquired, it would not make a sound.
'It doesn't finish its words, ugh…' Leylin rolled its eyes inside, but then heard the sounds of the Wisdom Tree after speaking to the toad. "And there's you, you adorable thing. I can answer one question of yours as a present. Of course, it cannot touch upon the topic from before…"
"Many thanks, mighty Enlightener!" Leylin was elated. An opportunity to have the Wisdom Tree solve a riddle was not something any Magus could have even in ancient times. Even a Breaking Dawn Magus would smash their own head in for such a chance.
However, after the moment of ecstasy, he grew perplexed.
'What should I ask? How to attain immortality? That's too vague!' Leylin opened his lips, but eventually did not ask the question.
After an intense struggle, Leylin's pupils flashed with soberness. 'Even if it's truly the ancient Wisdom Tree, it's only one of the ancient legends. It's probably at rank 8 or 9 as a Magus, and even such a being needs to defend itself. Asking about is pointless. I need to think of something more suitable for myself…'
Having thought it through, the fog in Leylin's mind finally completely dissipated.
Leylin took in a deep breath, clenched his fists, and asked the ancient Wisdom Tree this question, "I would like to know how to break through the bloodline shackles of Warlocks!"
For now, there was nothing more important to him than solving this issue.
"This…" The ancient Wisdom Tree raised a root and propped it against its lips, looking extremely similar to a human in thought. "You can…"
...
The fog disappeared, and Leylin was started awake.
He rubbed his forehead that was slightly aching and glanced at the grey slabs on the ground. The fog was dissipating from the surroundings, and buildings were gradually revealing themselves. The lost look in his eyes disappeared and was replaced with confusion.
"Was that scene real, or an illusion?"
Leylin glanced at his hands, 'I'm already at Morning Star. Under the scan of my soul force, any illusory spells should have been seen through. Furthermore…'
Leylin felt his heart beat. 'The answer from the Wisdom Tree is still deep in my heart. It's very feasible.'
Such a situation left Leylin bewildered.
"Perhaps the Path of Quandary was a superior illusion, allowing intruders to find answers amidst their perplexment about where they were. This answer might already be deep in the intruder's heart, and only made known at this point. Of course, if it can't be found, they would remain lost there…"
Combined with his former knowledge and experience, Leylin came to a specious conclusion. Inside, however, he felt as if what had just happened was real.
With the strength of ancient Magi, it was not impossible to create a scene like that. Another plausible reason would be that through endless flowing from the river of time, many scenarios had converged at this point.
In other words, Leylin's mind had passed through the isolation of time and space, reaching one of the spatial fragments in the ancient era, and met the true ancient Wisdom Tree.
'Hah! I don't care anymore! There are only benefits for me here anyway! If it doesn't make sense, then so be it. When I get enough strength, I might even understand all of this naturally…' Leylin thought optimistically.
There were no cons whatsoever in coming to the Path of Quandary. He had even obtained a method to solve the issue of his bloodline shackles. While this was merely a tentative plan, it was still very precious. It might not even compare to all the benefits from Scarlet Crescent!
"However, since I've gone through the Path of Quandary, I should be getting some rewards." Leylin touched his chin, watching the large Magus building that had completely revealed itself, as a smile appeared on his face.
What had appeared in front of Leylin was a little western-styled building that was two storeys high. The window at the balcony was still open, as if the owner had only been gone a short period of time.
The brass door handle had a simple yet splendid lustre, and seemed to have been used regularly.
Leylin knew, though, that this building had been abandoned for at least over ten thousand years. It was naturally magic that resulted in this effect.
*Ka-cha!* After gripping the handle and putting some strength into it, the door was easily pushed open, revealing a hall with a giant fireplace. The firewood in there was still crackling and burning, a wave of heat gathering indoors.
"Besides what's on their bodies, Magi keep their most precious objects only in the bedroom, study room and laboratory…"
Leylin scanned the area quickly and immediately gave up on the living room, going up to the second level of the building.
He first found the study room. There seemed to have been some spatial spells used here, and upon opening it, what was presented in front of Leylin was an enormous space comparable to a football field. There were large bookshelves that towered at ten or so metres tall, but everything there was empty, leaving behind only a pile of ash in the compartments.
Leylin rummaged through the area quite a few times and had the A.I. Chip check the area repeatedly without giving up, but he eventually resigned himself to the situation and left the study room.
"I never expected that all the books and research materials would have been taken away… What would else would be left?"
Leylin was slightly dejected, but still searched through room after room. He then found the original owner's bedroom.
Unexpectedly, he was easily rewarded with something on the makeup table.
A blood-red earring in the shape of a crescent moon lay quietly in an opened jewellery box. After Leylin confirmed it was not a trap, he took it in his hand, and a stream of information was immediately transmitted over.
"Scarlet Earring! High-grade magic equipment. Work of Mefylk! … Ah! This is presented to my goddess, Jonase, my true love…"
From the opened jewellery box, it seemed that the owner had been preparing to wear the earring, but everything had suddenly come to an abrupt stop.
Leylin was confused as he looked through the bedroom, but still did not find anything that looked suspicious.
"A strange set-up!" Leylin mumbled to himself, keeping the Scarlet Earring and adding many seals outside.
Even if it it was a trap, a piece of high-grade magic equipment was worth the risk. Besides, Leylin was very confident in his judgement and the A.I. Chip's scans.
While leaving, he consciously took a look at the mirror frame at the makeup table.
There was a large oval silver mirror inside, reflecting Leylin's image. Strangely enough, the Leylin inside had a secretive laugh, causing him to be startled.
By the time he came back to himself, everything in the mirror seemed to have returned to normal, as if all that had just happened had merely been an illusion.
But would Morning Star Magi hallucinate? That was impossible!
Leylin's expression became gloomy as he gritted his teeth, quickly keeping the mirror and running out of the bedroom and out of the villa.
The moment he left the villa, it completely vanished, leaving behind a large depression that looked to have been gnawed at by beasts.
*Bang!*
A fist smashed onto a table, causing dust to fly, "Despicable! Damn it! He's actually taken it away! That was the magic equipment that was the easiest to obtain, and it was even of a high-grade at that!"
In an unadorned crystal private room, an old Magus looked annoyed, unwilling to accept this.
"It's not just that. He even took 'that' away!"
The old man's expression changed a few times before he made his mind.
-x-X-x-
"No! No matter what, I have to get it back!" The old man took out his light yellow notebook. A map with many black dots appeared on it immediately.
"Find him! Rip him apart! And bring everything back!" Following the old man's growl, streaks of crystal-clear light flashed in the secret chamber and a few translucent puppets suddenly widened their bloodshot eyes.
As if they understood the old man's words, they rapidly shuttled through the void, gradually vanishing.
...
"This feeling, something bad's about to happen!" Leylin's eyebrows furrowed. He'd actually been feeling a sense of discomfort ever since he exited the Path of Quandary. It was as if someone was secretly spying on him. However, the scanning of the A.I. Chip and his own soul force could not discover anything.
And now, this feeling of discomfort suddenly intensified, even to the point of turning to anxiety!
"The malice that's pervaded the atmosphere..." Leylin shut his eyes and quickly opened them again. At this moment, his pupils had already turned into a pair of amber slits. A thin, blood-red line flashed across them.
Suddenly, rumbling sounds rang out as a large amount of spell runes flickered. A colourful radiance shot into the sky and formed a gigantic ice cage, trapping Leylin within.
"What? I definitely didn't trigger any traps… Unless…" Leylin squinted his eyes slightly. This situation caused him to become clear-headed.
"Haha… I, who have gained control over the entire core secret chamber, am an invincible existence in Scarlet Crescent!" In the core control room, the old Magus' face shone brightly, his hands still grasping a piece of ruby with its tips connected to numerous crystal threads.
Strings of complicated commands were continually transmitted through the ruby in his hands.
Numerous crystal-clear hexagonal snowflakes suddenly condensed within the trap, forming a large quantity of icy blades, shields, axes and such. They all smashed loudly towards Leylin's head.
Leylin thought of an idea. "Kemoyin's Scales!" "Blood Flame!" His body was immediately wrapped in a layer of dense, black snake scales as a blood-red flame raged above him, subliming the large quantity of ice.
As if it was provoked, the ice condensed once more with a sizzle. Its blue core became even more crystal-clear, emanating a piercing chill.
The ice, which was covered by the blue radiance, stood firmly while it was being roasted by the flames. A large quantity of cold air was emitted, even breaking through the Blood Flame's seal. It shot in front of Leylin, who smashed it apart with a frown.
Sharp icy blades slashed his body, only enough to create thin, long sparks. They couldn't even break through the outermost energy defence.
"Absolute Zero Kelvin!" Leylin's pupils narrowed and his face no longer had the previous relaxed look.
"This was undoubtedly set up by ancient Magi. Such a formation that unifies all the runes in the area is definitely difficult for ordinary Morning Stars to withstand… However, It doesn't seem to be working at full force… That means…"
Leylin seemed to be in a deadlock with the huge icy spell formation on the surface. However, he was actually calculating something in his mind.
*Whoosh!* Suddenly, space twisted and a few rays of white light seemed to have broken through the boundary as they appeared right before Leylin.
The handle, which bore the sharp broken sword, had already pierced the edge of Leylin's chest.
"So fast!" It was difficult for Leylin to react in time. The only thing he managed to do was strengthen the Kemoyin Scales' defence to the maximum.
Compared to other spells, the innate spells of Magi were activated purely by thought. With such incomparable speeds, they were the common last-ditch resorts when their lives were in danger.
*Schlick!* A broken sword, seemingly forged out of pure crystal, pierced through the energy defence as well as the runes outside the black scales with much difficulty, coming into contact with the scales themselves.
*Pop!* Leylin frowned, as if at something bursting. Behind him, a large Multi-Armed Race phantom came into existence and channelled a dark green energy to cover his body.
"My goodness!" The muscles on his right hand flexed, hammering a punch at the opponent. This made the translucent figure retreat.
After waiting for the opponent to put a certain amount of distance between them, Leylin looked at his chest with a gloomy face.
A bright white line in the shape of a crescent had been carved on the Kemoyin Scales. The sword had left behind a deep pit, taking a few smaller scales with it.
"Puppet?!" When Leylin got a clear view of the figures making a sneak attack, he shouted in surprise.
In front of him were a few translucent figures in pure white, body-fitting Magus robes. In their hands were a large quantity of physical weapons, including the broken crystal sword from before.
"A puppet that is able to break through my Kemoyin's Scales defence, such a rank… I'm afraid can only be created by an ancient Magus…"
Leylin looked at the bloodshot eyes of the puppet before him, confirming his conjecture, 'Someone's behind all this.'
"So this is the power of a Morning Star? Even the Void Assassin could not take down the opponent!" In the core, the old man's dignified face warped as he clenched his teeth.
"It doesn't matter. I have the spell formations to control the core and the puppets on hand. Even if it takes up a little more energy, I have to take down the enemy!"
With his orders, the arms of the Void Assassins surrounding Leylin warped, revealing daggers, knives, and even weapons that looked like power saws. They were all translucent except for the golden runes twinkling on them, seemingly made from crystal.
Space twisted once more as these Void Assassins vanished into thin air again. It was as if they were vipers hiding in the dark, preparing to deal a fatal blow at any time!
With these enemies around eyeing covetously at their prey, in addition to the pressure of the icy cage above their head, any ordinary Morning Star would definitely have sustained serious injuries.
"It's a pity that you met me!" A sneer emerged at the corner of Leylin's lips. Wasn't the shadow-attribute Giant Kemoyin Serpent even better at concealing itself in the void? He'd previously used spells such as Shadow Stealth to lay in ambush, and he naturally knew about the weaknesses and disadvantages of such spells like the back of his hand.
Although the ancient spell formation was a little more troublesome, the enemy evidently did not have complete control over it. This gave him an opportunity.
"Only…" Leylin laughed coldly as a radiance sparkled in his eyes.
A translucent figure shot out from the void with a whoosh, the dagger in its hands aimed ferociously at Leylin's eyes.
Leylin's face remained unchanged and he suddenly stretched out his wrist. When it came to a stop once more, he was holding one of the puppet's arms in his hands.
A gigantic blue iceberg, with a great blazing flame at its bottom, started to exert pressure on everything below as it rumbled. At the same instant, a sharp aura suddenly shot out in the other three directions.
"Good! Very soon, that thing will belong to me…" In the control room, the old man watched a pale Leylin. Looking at his wounded body, he could not help but let out a carefree smile.
"Haha… So what if you're a Morning Star? I'm the king here!" The old man spread out his arms and cheered, but his voice was instantly silenced with a grunt, as if he had been strangled at the neck.
When it came back, it returned as a frustrated curse, "How did he escape?"
In the projection he'd been looking at from the control room, Leylin's condition had already hit rock bottom. His entire body was soaked in blood, and he seemed ready to die at any moment. However, every opportunity to kill him was thwarted by small problems in the coordination of the Void Assassins, letting him evade it by luck. At least, that's what he'd seen it as.
And right when he was in the most desperate straits, that lucky Magus had actually discovered a flaw in the spell formation, directly breaking through space and escaping.
The old man roared in anger, smashing his fist violently on the platform of the control room with a bang.
"If I had known all the control spells, and obtained the highest authority, even a Radiant Moon Magus wouldn't be able to escape this place, let alone this Morning Star!" What followed the bout of rage was a sense of helplessness.
Indeed, he'd used his map and reached the control room, obtaining partial authority by following his ancestor's notes. In fact, he didn't encounter much danger at all. However, his ancestor did not have a high position in Scarlet Crescent. This naturally meant he had no way to gain complete control of the place.
That previous spell formation was actually the limits of what he could accomplish with his current authority. As for those Void Assassins, he had to thank the fact that their creator was none other than his ancestor. That was why he had a backdoor method to take control of them.
"Damn! Damn! DAMN!" The old man's face was full of indignance, "Just these Void Assassins have already made this trip worthwhile, but the most important item is still not in my hands. Not to mention, this place will definitely be monopolised by great forces in the future. I'll no longer have a place here…"
He subconsciously shot a glance at the other black dots. They were already very close to the core area, especially the one that represented the Radiant Moon. It seemed to have an unstoppable force, barging its way through and already sweeping past several small-scaled resource points, making the Magus secretly hurt.
Such desire and the strong indignance led this Magus to a decision, "Try again, no matter the result, you have to leave!"
He looked at another screen, pressing the jewel down without hesitation. A huge flame exploded forth, forming an enormous blazing giant that blocked Leylin's path.
"So it's fire after ice? But it's still of the same degree of power as the previous one…" Leylin shook his head, becoming more confident in his judgement.
"Catch him! Catch him!" The old Magus grabbed the jewel with both hands, his eyes full of excitement and desire.
And at this time, Leylin, who was on the screen, suddenly lifted his head and laughed at him. The old man's hair stood on end…