To extinguish fire, one must first understand it, in order to extinguish it more effectively.
Though Pete lost to him, Andrew still couldn't understand him. This person, like the Strange Fire he possesses, "Shadow Erosion Fire," seemed to remain hidden in the shadows.
Pete originally thought he was doomed.
At this moment, as if seeing a glimmer of hope in the darkness, he asked with difficulty, "Will... will telling you... spare me?"
Andrew nodded and said, "Yes."
Earlier, he was entirely deceived by this Pete.
But now it was Andrew's turn to act.
The performing abilities of the Water Soul Constitution may not be inferior to that of the "Shadow Fire Mask."
While acting, he began to tighten his grip on the other's neck.
After all, he didn't have time to waste here!
In the Water Spirit Sensing, the nearest Magic Apprentice was less than three hundred meters away.
Fear and anger flickered in Pete's eyes, but he had no choice but to say, "Fine, I'll talk."
With a hoarse voice, he said, "It's said... that owners of the Eight Strange Fires never end well!
Either they die tragically, or they mysteriously disappear.
I... I indeed wanted to become stronger, but at the same time, I was also afraid. So I intentionally hid my strength, trying to keep a low profile while cultivating..."
Because many of his teeth had fallen out, he spoke indistinctly, and each sentence caused intense pain in the wounds on his face.
"Oh?"
Andrew didn't expect such an answer, and couldn't help but furrow his brows.
Do owners of the Eight Strange Fires also have this disaster-attracting attribute?
The sounds of chaos grew closer.
For a moment, Andrew was unsure whether Pete was telling the truth, but silently noted it down.
He then asked, "What's Humboldt's strength?"
Currently, his biggest enemy was Humboldt. He was also Barbara's biggest enemy.
After crossing paths with Pete, Andrew roughly knew the strength of Humboldt's apprentices and where he stood among them: as an Intermediate Water Mage, he feared none of the Advanced apprentices except Cook and Sally.
If he himself could also break through to Advanced Magic Apprentice, he would directly be invincible among the Advanced Magic Apprentices!
What was still unclear was Humboldt's strength and what level it was at.
"Will telling you save my life—"
"Talk!"
Andrew showed no mercy.
After all, the other had previously fooled him thoroughly, and during the first sneak attack, almost killed him.
"..."
Pete gritted his teeth, and under Andrew's hand, struggled to breathe, saying, "Teacher is very strong, but that was in the past! He is actually… already old and dying. Teacher once had a place in the 'Scholar's Fortress,' otherwise, why would I have ever become his apprentice?
But later, Teacher encountered problems during cultivation!
He attempted to integrate the 'Earth Fire' attribute into his own Magic Flames, hoping to break through to a higher realm.
However, problems occurred during this breakthrough. He suffered severe 'Earth Fire backlash', his realm fell, and he was dying.
This is why he came to Wildfire Town to research methods of healing and prolonging life."
Pausing at this point, Pete lowered his voice and said, "Teacher… is still very strong, of course. After all, the position he once held is far too high for us. But he is no longer at the level of a 'Grand Mage.'"
Andrew listened intently.
He discerned the truthfulness of what was being said.
After listening, his expression was somewhat complex: "I see."
A once-high and mighty Grand Mage, now a dying man?
The question was, how much of his former strength did he still retain?
Andrew searched his mind for information about "Grand Mage."
But couldn't find much.
It was unclear whether the body's original owner had never learned such knowledge, or if much of the memory had been lost when he crossed over.
So he further asked, "What does the level of a 'Grand Mage' mean—?"
Pete was surprised upon hearing the question, thinking, how could someone ask such a basic question? I… I was actually defeated by someone who doesn't even know such fundamental knowledge?
But he was being choked by Andrew's hand, tightened by excitement, and didn't care about so much!
Struggling to catch his breath again, Pete truly felt that it would be better to die quickly than to suffer this torture.
But his will to survive was also strong, mainly because he too heard the noise from the town growing nearer.
Thus, he became even more detailed in his answer to Andrew:
"A Magic Apprentice, after passing the examination, becomes an official Mage.
And Mages are also divided into tiers.
The so-called 'Grand Mage' stands at the top of the Mage community, possessing their own independent laboratory, and is able to take on their own Magic Apprentices. Ordinary Mages, without a laboratory and not qualified to take on apprentices, are fundamentally different in this regard.
A Grand Mage, further integrating the 'Earth Fire' attribute into their own Magic Flames, has the potential to become something akin to a 'Magic Guide Sorcerer.' If one truly becomes a Magic Guide Sorcerer, that person reaches the level of the 'Magic Guild Elder Council,' which has existed throughout the long history of the Magic Guild."
Andrew responded with an "uh-huh," and further inquired:
"What is the 'Earth Fire Attribute'?
And does it have any relation to the 'Molten Rock Fire' among the Eight Strange Fires?"
Pete, already faintly breathing, struggled to answer, "A Grand Mage integrating the 'Earth Fire Attribute' into their Magic Flames becomes 'Molten Rock Fire'! Molten Rock Fire is the head of the Eight Strange Fires and is the only Magic Flame that can be obtained through postnatal cultivation!"
Andrew was quite astonished: "So you're saying, everyone who successfully breaks through from 'Grand Mage' to 'Magic Guide Sorcerer', or as you call it, 'members of the Magic Guild Elder Council,' are all—"
"Yes, they are all owners of the Eight Strange Fires."
Even in Pete's increasingly weak voice, there was a hint of longing and admiration, "Members of the Magic Guild Elder Council are all owners of one among the Eight Strange Fires, the 'Molten Rock Fire.' So they have another title—
Earth Fire Scholars."
Hearing this, Andrew was silent.
"Earth Fire Scholars…" Andrew seemed to understand, "So this is why the headquarters of the Magic Guild is called the 'Scholar's Fortress?'"
At the same time, he also felt the pressure.
Though for now, reaching such heights seemed far away.
Yet as a Water Mage, he knew he would one day face the strongest of the Magic Guild. Of course, the premise was that he could consistently progress to that point, step by step, using the Fire Extinguishing Upgrade Method, truly reaching that stage.
"Every Earth Fire Scholar is an owner of the 'Molten Rock Fire.'"
Andrew silently noted this.