Magician Slaves
"No problem, we have the largest warehouse. As long as you make a request, we'll immediately find a compatible slave for you!"
Lucia stated with confidence.
"Also, even if we don't have it here, as long as you pay enough deposit, we can even organise a team to catch slaves and train them and teach them, customising them to your needs…"
Such a business model and industrialised chain of processes, also the special service provided for esteemed guests led Leylin to recall the VIP statuses back in his previous world.
"No need for that, my requirements are extremely simple!"
Leylin smiled, "First of all, it's 5 slaves with the strength of Grand Knights. The race is to be humans, gender is unimportant. I need those with intact intelligence with no obvious flaw or damage on their bodies…"
He did lack a few workers in his villa to do odd jobs and maintain his image.
Furthermore, it was impossible for Leylin to take care of all miscellaneous tasks by himself.
Deep inside Leylin's heart, he also had another plan. He had received one portion of resources for the Branded Swordsman from his trade with Dorotte. Even though it was incomplete and virtually impossible to break through with those materials, with the A.I. Chip's deduction and Leylin's own experiments, he had also garnered some results.
At the moment, he was thinking of trying out the fruits of his labour on a Grand Knight.
These Grand Knight slaves would definitely have spirit seeds planted or some form of branding that would ensure they were 100% loyal. Their bodies were extremely strong as well and were the best people to experiment on to become Branded Swordsmen.
"We have five Grand Knights here, you may pick them later. Each one will cost 700 magic crystals. Moreover, your big sister I will give you a discount. Amongst the 5 Grand Knights, there would be two beauties!"
Lucia smiled. "I believe that apart from their duty as guards, they will definitely fulfill the other 'duties' as well!"
For Magi whose vitality surpasses that of normal humans, normal girls would not be able to satisfy their needs. Hence, cultivating some Knights and Grand Knights as maidservants was a common practice. Hence Lucia did not lack any goods in this aspect.
Towards such a benefit, Leylin only nodded his head, not feeling anything special.
The Grand Knights were only a small matter. Leylin immediately stated his true purpose of coming here.
"And then, I require an acolyte grade slave, it's best if the strength is of a level 3 acolyte! Also, they have to know simple Potioneering and alchemy!"
At this point, Lucia no longer had a relaxed expression. Even Crew looked at Leylin in surprise.
In the Magus World, there were many tiers for slaves. Maidservants who have been nurtured, princesses or female nobles whose countries have been destroyed only belonged to the lowest tier of entertainment and consumption. Apart from the special cases of princesses and the likes, their prices were all extremely low.
Further up, it would be the level of Knights and Grand Knights who could be of use to their owners. The increase in expenditure was not small. If they also wanted slaves from different races of a beautiful slave, the prices would often be taken up another notch.
However, none of them could be considered high-grade slaves.
In the south coast, there was only one type of slave that was considered to be high-grade. They were the magician slaves!
Whether regular humans or knights or Grand Knights, their bodies were unable to resist the energy pollution that Magi unwittingly emitted. In addition, they did not have any spiritual force to defend their Magus masters, nor help out with spell formations and the like.
Hence, upon advancing to an official Magus, many would usually recruit a few acolytes to assist them in their own experiments.
However, on the south coast, some things still had to be adhered to. Even if one was in Abyssal Bone Forest Academy, the mentors could not use the acolytes as their guinea pigs and experiment on them as they wished, and had to tempt them with magic crystals or swindle them into a contract.
Rather than using the pampered acolytes, using slaves could solve this problem entirely.
Due to the existence of a spirit brand, slaves were typically loyal to a fault. In addition, the moment that a master buys them, their lives would immediately belong to their master's. No matter how the Magi experimented on the slaves, they would not cause any trouble!
"Handsome fellow, you're quite gutsy!"
Lucia seemed quite bewildered as she looked at Leylin. "Level 3 acolytes aren't that cheap!"
"Does that mean you have them?"
Leylin picked at his eyebrow.
The origin of magicians slaves was quite simple. They were either wanted criminals or captives after a war.
In addition, their existence was not the most welcome, and even in Poolfield Kingdom's Ellinel Market, Leylin did not see any shop that dared to publicly sell acolyte slaves.
Leylin had only asked without expecting for there to be any results and had met with an unexpected surprise.
Nightless City was the entire South Coast's main trading centre! To think that it was possible to find high-grade slaves in a random slave shop!
"Don't worry. As long as you can find someone, the price isn't an issue!"
Leylin threw a black pouch to Lucia.
"I didn't think a little guy like you has magic crystals!" Lucia checked the contents of the pouch and nodded, immediately ringing a red hand-bell on the table.
*Ding-ling-ling!*
With the ring of the bell, a maidservant pushed open the door, "My Lady! Do you have any orders?"
"Go bring Damien here!" In front of her servants, Lucia put on a frosty expression with no traces of smiles. Her every movement was filled with a domineering aura.
As for this maidservant, she did not even dare raise her head in front of Lucia's orders and hurriedly led the room.
"Come! First, have a taste of this 'chugu'! This is a special product from the Sicily Islands!"
After the door was shut, Lucia resumed her enchanting demeanour and brought out a fiery red flask, pouring a drink that seemed to be a mix between coffee and chocolate, for Leylin and Crew.
Leylin took a sip and the mellow yet invigorating taste swirled in his throat.
"The taste is excellent! It's rather similar to the Coco Fruit. Moreover, it had the effect of increasing vigour. If it can be popularised, it will definitely gain the attention of Magi!"
Leylin said indifferently.
"Lucia! You're too much, how could you not give me several flasks of such great stuff!" Crew began to raise his loud.
"Young brother you have the foresight. I am preparing to open a new shop and promote this drink item as my brand item…" Lucia looked at Leylin in surprise, before smiling in an enchanting manner. "How about this, do you want to invest in this as well?"
"My apologies, I don't have enough magic crystals. Especially after this round of purchasing slaves, I'm afraid I'd have to amass another fortune before considering such an investment…"
Leylin naturally refused such a suggestion.
As for Lucia, there was no disappointment on her face; it only seemed that she had asked on the spur of the moment.
"Lucia, why don't you consider me?" Crew put on an eager expression.
"You?" Lucia looked at Crew with disdain, "A fellow who only knows how to throw magic crystals on women, I have no faith in you at all. 27 years ago, it was you who took my investment and…"
After Lucia talked about past events, Crew's face reddened, and he kept his head down like a small boy who had done something wrong.
As for Leylin, he only cared about sipping his drink, pretending not to see or hear anything.
"My Lady! May I come in?"
This atmosphere was quickly broken by a request to enter the room.
"Is it Damien? Come in!" Lucia smoothed her hair and sat behind her desk once more.
*Creak!* The door to the office opened, and a silver-haired level 3 acolyte entered.
This acolyte was not young, and his face was wrinkled like the skin of a tangerine. In contrast, his clothes were neat and tidy, and not a single hair was out of place. He seemed to be in good spirits, looking nothing like a slave.
"Damien! This is Magus Leylin, and he has expressed his desire to buy you. Now, he'll ask you some questions." Lucia pointed to Leylin, who was seated on a sofa at the side, and introduced Damien to him.
"It is my honour to meet you, my lord! I hope I am able to service you in the future!" Damien bowed respectfully.
"You don't have to be so polite! I hope you'll meet my requirements too!" Leylin looked undisturbed.
"In that case, if you blend the liquefied form of a Sun Flower and the stem of a Three Night Flower, what will happen?" Leylin asked a question related to Potioneering without any second thoughts.
"There will be a substitution reflect, and it will produce…" From the looks of it, this old geezer called Damien did have some attainments in Potioneering. He only needed to think for a short while, before fluently answering.
Next, Leylin asked a series of other questions.
At the beginning, Damien's expression was relaxed, but as they got further along, cold sweat started to form on his back.
A little over ten minutes later, Leylin stood up, feeling satisfied, and told Lucia, "I want him. How many magic crystals?"
Through the little test that he had just conducted, Leylin concluded that Damien's attainments in Potioneering and alchemy were definitely considered pretty good amongst acolytes who were in the same tier as him. It would definitely be worth it to buy him.
"16500 magic crystals!" Lucia smiled, "Adding on to those 5 Grand Knights, it amounts perfectly to 20000 magic crystals!"
"No way, this is too expensive! His age is already so high. Normally, acolytes only have a maximum lifespan of 150 years…"
As for Damien, he stood there quietly by the side, as if the person they were haggling over was not him.
After Leylin left Lucia's store with Crew, 6 more figures followed behind them.
There was Damien, and the other 5 Grand Knights. Amongst the Grand Knights, there were two good looking girls with sexy figures, who also didn't have any bulging muscles that destroyed their aesthetic beauty.
One Year
After fiercely negotiating the price, Leylin finally cut the price down to eighteen thousand magic crystals and bought the slaves.
Furthermore, right in front of Lucia within the shop, Leylin used his own spirit brand and branded the six slaves' minds.
That meant from thereon, the fates of these slaves were all grasped within Leylin's palm.
Also, the nature of the soul brand was such that they had to be completely obedient to Leylin. Even if they were asked to kill themselves, they had to do so without a moment's thought!
One could go so far as to say that if Leylin felt a sudden urge, these slaves' brains could simply explode like a watermelon.
"Haha… I'll stop bothering you and be on my way then!"
Once they were on the street of their villas, Crew silently judged the two gorgeous female Knights behind Leylin with a mischievous twinkling in his eyes as they returned to their respective homes.
"That old geezer!" Leylin was speechless as he shook his head, before bringing the six slaves into his villa.
"This is my villa. You'll be staying here from hereon, and you can choose your rooms in the back. Nobody is allowed into my bedroom and the basement! Understood?"
Leylin turned and swept his eyes over his six newly-bought slaves as he ordered.
"Understood, master!" The six of them split up and left.
"Damien, you stay behind!" Leylin stopped the level 3 acolyte.
"Master, do you have any more orders for me?" Damien questioned respectfully.
"From today onwards, you are the butler of this villa and will be in charge of managing this place when I'm not around. Also, regarding the villa's defense spell formation, I'll give you the authority to modify it. Your task is to tidy up the entire villa, and stock up on items needed for everyday use…"
Leylin began to give a series of instructions.
In a trading centre such as Nightless City where the Magi were in charge, there were many things that only a Magi could do. A typical Knight or Grand Knight didn't have a sea of consciousness, so how could they even control their spiritual force, chant incantations and the like?
In order to maintain the operation of his villa even after Leylin left, an acolyte-level butler was indispensable.
"Also, tell me how you became a slave." Leylin was slightly curious.
At the mention of this, Damien's expression darkened and he trembled, a look of suffering appearing on his face.
It was clear that his past was an extremely painful experience for him.
However, due to the control of the soul brand, he still had to adhere to Leylin's command. "I was from the Steel Fort and was born in a regular little town. I was fortunate enough to be tested to have an affinity for magic and was accepted by my mentor into the Moonlight Shadow. Master may not have heard of it, as it is but a small Magi organisation. Even though I had to allow my mentor to experiment on my body, I was still lucky enough to survive and even became a level three acolyte…"
Until this point, Damien's expression was still normal, but a traumatised look emerged on his face.
"Right after that was… the war! That darned war! As the powers lording over our district, the Wetland Gardens Academy began to support the expansion of other small organisations just because our leader was against them. Moonlight Shadow was conveniently used in the war, and my mentor, as well as many other seniors, died in battle. I was held captive and eventually became a slave…"
Leylin nodded in agreement. In the unwritten rules of the Magus World, Magi were typically not allowed to hold acolytes captive and use them as slaves, or else there would be no order in society.
But there was one situation where the Magi was evidently not protected by any laws or agreements — it was when they were the prisoners of war!
The prisoners of war and sub-human acolytes from established academies were the chief sources of magician slaves!
Leylin watched Damien, who was somewhat indignant and sorrowful, and suddenly felt a surge of fear.
At the beginning, if not for Abyssal Bone Forest Academy warding off the attack from the enemies, he wouldn't be able to escape at all and his fate might have been to be killed by an official Magus or captured as a prisoner, and later be sold off as a slave.
"That's why I'm so desperate for power! Only by possessing strength can I take control of my future!"
Leylin waved Damien away with a gesture of his hand.
"Familiarise yourself with the surroundings first. I want to go out and will only be back in the evening."
...
The villa that Leylin was renting was extremely spacious, and there were rooms specifically meant for the servants to live in. Having six slaves moving in wasn't crowded at all, and on the contrary, added a bit of life into the villa.
Damien revealed his abilities as an exceptional butler and kept Leylin's villa neat and tidy. This allowed Leylin to relax and discard thoughts about odd jobs that needed to be done around the villa, and focus on brewing the ancient potion, Tears of Mary, in the basement.
Countless days later, Leylin went to the old witch's shop alone and passed on to her the two portions of Tears of Mary that she was entitled to, based on their contract. They also set a timing for their next transaction.
After obtaining the ancient potions, no matter how hard the old witch tried to conceal her excitement, Leylin was still able to see her become feverish with elation.
She also stated that she was more than capable of handling even more spirits and that Leylin should prepare himself for that.
From the looks of it, in order to obtain more of these precious potions, she was willing to gather and prepare the ingredients at all costs.
Leylin was quite pleased with this temporary ally of his.
Though he didn't know the reason why she needed the potions so urgently, this was a situation that benefited him too.
After the two of them came to a consensus, Leylin returned to the villa and took care of all the matters in the villa. He then proceeded to the outside of the city and returned to Four Seasons Garden's headquarters on a Dragon Crown Nighthawk.
After joining Four Seasons Garden, besides the allocated amount that all Magi were entitled to, the great amount of resources in the library was something he something he coveted.
However, as a member of the organisation, he obviously was unable to stay in Nightless City all day long unless he was retired.
The missions this month were simple and could be completed in a few days, which gave him a lot of free time that he decided to spend in Nightless City.
At the moment, he had to return to Four Seasons Garden and take on the monthly tasks. Unless he wanted to renounce the portions he was allocated and the little power he had, he had to follow this sort of lifestyle.
If he were a typical Magus and were to use this way of life to slowly amass enough knowledge and resources for him to break through, it would take more than a hundred years!
But Leylin was different. Not only did he possess a high-grade meditation method, he was also extremely knowledgeable about the path one would need to take to become a rank 3 Magus. In addition, he had also stocked up and done preparations to ensure he had the best materials and ingredients!
In order to gain power and wealth, one needed to come up with alternative methods that might be frowned upon by others. He had never been a principled person.
Leylin had two main sources providing him with materials. One of them was the Four Seasons Garden, and even though the portion allocated by them was meagre, it still was a constant flow and the items were gained based on merit.
The other source was the dark Magi organisation he had recently joined. While it was slightly dangerous, the profits were plentiful.
With these two sources, one from an honest organisation and the other from an unscrupulous group, the rate at which he gathered his resources and increased his strength was far from what anyone could predict.
"Next, I'll have to lay low, gather all my resources, and wait for the second transition of my bloodline."
Leylin had planned everything for the next few years well ahead.
The current him was just like the Dragon Crown Nighthawk he was sitting on — before it flew, it would silently save its energy, anticipating a time in the future when it could soar through the skies!
...
Time flew by quickly, and in the blink of an eye, one year had passed.
The mountain that was the Four Seasons Garden's headquarters was still standing strong and proud as always. Magi travelled through the passages within the mountain, looking like ants as they travelled around.
"Leylin! The theory of the ecology that you tested in the secret plane aroused my interest. How about it? Shall we have a discussion about it?"
At the moment, in a room for rest and relaxation, a male Magus with fire-red hair was speaking with Leylin.
"Of course! I also hold an interest in the experiences and thoughts Magus Truman had while taking care of the Lava Goldfish."
Leylin looked about the same as he did a year before, the main difference being the blackness in his eyes that seemed to have another layer of depth to them.
"I was planning to take a trip to the library anyway. We can talk there!" Leylin invited Magus Truman.
"But of course! I'm very familiar with your reputation as the child of the library," Truman teased.
In answer, Leylin merely gave a light chuckle and did not take his comment to heart.
In the span of this one year, he had been lying low most of the time, completing his missions without complaints and receiving his allocated resources every month, mostly living in seclusion.
The place where he spent the most time in was the Four Seasons Garden's giant library.
The Four Seasons Garden was on a much larger scale than Abyssal Bone Forest Academy, and the records and resources in the library were abundant.
In addition, with Leylin's status as an official Magus, he had access to much more materials than what acolytes could get their hands on.
Though some high-grade knowledge and potion formulas needed to be exchanged for using the specified amount of contribution points, the resources that the Four Seasons Garden provided free of charge was extremely helpful for Leylin.
He spent about half a year gathering the information he had access to and saving them into the A.I. Chip, thereby largely enriching its database.
In order to prevent others from noticing the strangeness in his actions, Leylin would sometimes spend time in the library despite having saved all the information that was in there. For this pretense, he had rejected the invitations of countless beautiful female Magi. That had gained him several nicknames that were along the lines of 'the insensitive wooden block' and 'the child of the library' which quickly spread.
The Four Seasons Garden's library was constructed within a huge hill, and acolytes could often be seen entering it.
As official Magi, Leylin and Truman naturally received special treatment and received an isolated room in order to facilitate their discussion. There was also a soft sofa and multi-coloured snacks within the room.
The Venom Wyvern
"The theory of ecosystems has long since existed. For example, many Magi find that growing wild grasses alongside Tortoise-Backed Mountain Grass will increase the yields of both by 30%!"
Leylin sat on the sofa and began to articulate upon his theories.
"All I did was expand on this ring of connection. Adding multiple factors, it would proliferate to tens or even hundreds of species, forming a large ecosystem and increasing the outputs of various resources inside the secret plane…"
Truman's eyes seemed to be giving off light. "What a novel theory! Being able to choose the most compatible ecosystem for the millions of resources in the natural world — I admire your knowledge and background in this area!"
Leylin just gave a faint smile. He was obviously unable to analyse that much data on his own, so the A.I. Chip did most of the work.
The research that he had made public was only on a superficial level.
He was prepared to employ the many key experiments and procedures in his very own secret plane in the future and was unwilling to help Four Seasons Garden increase their output for free. After all, he was no do-gooder.
"However, I am also curious about the Lava Goldfish that you're rearing, Truman." Leylin remarked with an anticipatory look in his eyes.
Lava Goldfishes were a unique species in the Magus World. Usually, they thrived in lava, which made them extremely difficult to breed.
As for their fish scales, they were necessary ingredients for many alchemy procedures. The blubber and flesh were a kind of nourishment which could recover a Magus' energy and enable them to be revitalised after a weary meditation session. Hence, it was highly sought after with an extremely high price.
"Actually, it's no big deal. These Lava Goldfishes' habits are very predictable. Once you understand them, then you can make a relevant section inside the secret plane…"
Of course, Truman only briefly stated the methods.
"I hope to use this information of breeding the Lava Goldfishes to exchange for your theory of ecosystem. Moreover, as the value of your information is above mine, I am willing to top up 5000 more magic crystals!"
Truman made a sincere request.
"It's no problem at all!" Leylin nodded and smiled. The purpose of releasing this information was to exchange it for resources and knowledge with other magicians.
After a year of hard work, he had finally managed to grasp the general methods in operating a secret plane. Apart from that, he also learned about some of the habitats that the most expensive plants needed to thrive in. If he was given a secret plane to govern now, it would definitely not be in deficit, and actually, make profits.
Although Leylin was a dark Magus and participated in plundering operations that the organisation he was in arranged, he never excluded the possibilities of extracting more magic crystals using a light Magus' methods.
"Speaking of which, Leylin, you're done with your missions for the month. Do you have any plans? I have a good friend whose experiment requires a high levelled Potions Master, so if you were to go…"
Truman sent Leylin an invitation.
Apart from their duties inside Four Seasons Garden, many magicians often had a part time job through their connections in the organisation, earning additional magic crystals and resources.
Of course, some did it purely as their interest or hobby, or merely just to help a friend out.
"My apologies! The mission for this month was extremely taxing. I wish to take this well-deserved break to recuperate in Nightless City!"
Leylin rejected Truman's invitation tactfully.
Right now, he no longer prioritised these tiny organization's resources or connections. Moreover, he was in the crucial period of boosting his prowess, so he did not have that much time to bother about other trivial matters.
"That's really regretful…" Truman's face reflected the disappointment that he felt. Only after exchanging several more words with Leylin and their specialised information did they separate.
"Lord Leylin!"
After parting with Truman, Leylin went to the landing pad of the Four Seasons Garden. The acolytes here all recognised Leylin and they bowed to greet him.
"How is Hawke's current condition?"
Leylin walked to a cage with a giant creature within it. A pair of large red eyes stared back at him. The beast opened its jaws and revealed rows of razor sharp fangs that resembled swords, with a crimson tongue that had reverse scales.
"Lord, your mount's appetite is great. Yesterday, it had even eaten a whole red bread pig. Its temper was rather nasty, though this could be due to it being caged for a long period of time…"
The acolyte who was in charge of these mounts was obviously skilled in his work. He was also extremely diligent as he replied Leylin.
*Creak!*
A scarlet rune appeared on Leylin's finger, forming the shape of a key and entering the keyhole of the metal cage.
"Roar!"
With an impressive roar, a green wyvern charged out of the cage.
This creature had sharp talons and claws, and its whole body was covered in murky green scales. On its back was also a pair of large green wings. The membrane of the wings shone with a green lustre under the light.
[Venom Wyvern. Strength: 13.5, Agility: 19.8, Vitality: 11.2, Spiritual Force: 9.8. Special abilities: 1. Acidic breath: A corrosive poison will be spat on the mouth, with an area of effect of 20 metres. Average power: 16 degrees. 2. Toxic Rip: The Venom Wyvern's claws and fangs have toxic properties, with a huge numbing effect on the spiritual force.]
The Venom Wyvern's stats were displayed by Leylin's A.I. Chip.
"Rawrrr!"
The gigantic Venom Wyvern continued to roar. At the same time, there was a fawning look in its eyes that was incredibly humane as it lowered its head and rubbed gently against Leylin's body.
"Alright! Alright! I will give you an upsize for your meals when I get back!"
Leylin could not help but laugh as he rubbed this Venom Wyvern which had the mentality of a puppy missing its owner.
"Hawke, bring me to Nightless City now!"
Leylin got onto the back of the Venom Wyvern in one leap.
"Rawrr!" The Venom Wyvern snarled and the wings on its back jolted, unfolding segment by segment until they were fully extended, and were at least three times larger than its body.
With a fierce hurricane, the Venom Wyvern spread its wings and swooped into the air.
"Hah… They're finally gone. Just having that Venom Wyvern standing here is enough to make me feel uncomfortable," a female acolyte who was feeding a Dragon Crown Nighthawk, gave a long sigh of relief.
"With that guy around, all these Nighthawks lost their appetites!" The female acolyte patted the Nighthawk in front of her that was eating cheerfully, seemingly just as relieved as her.
"That Venom Wyvern's power is probably close to that of an official Magus. How strong must Magus Leylin be to be able to tame it?"
The male acolyte following behind Leylin had a very contrasting opinion from the female acolyte and his eyes reflected his envy and admiration for Leylin.
The Venom Wyvern's flying speed was twice as fast as the Dragon Crown Nighthawk had been. It was thus much more convenient for Leylin to travel between Nightless City and the Four Seasons Garden.
Upon reaching the Nightless City's landing pad, Leylin issued some orders for the acolytes to take care of his Venom Wyvern and gave Hawke another red bread pig before returning to his villa.
"Master!" Damien and a few Grand Knights bowed respectfully.
Leylin looked around, finding that the villa was still in the same state as it was before he had left. The human slaves that he had bought later on were carefully cleaning the staircase railing and all the pieces of artwork.
Damien was wearing a butler's uniform, looking impeccable as he stood behind Leylin.
"Master! After you left, your neighbour, Magus Crew came over once. Also, I've already paid the continuity fees to the communal centre. Here is the inventory."
After which, Damien gave a report of what he had done in this period of time.
"Okay." Leylin paid no mind to his words and nodded along. This Damien seemed to have undergone specialised training while he was a slave and was very proficient in these matters. Leylin had branded him and there was no way that he could revolt, so Leylin could place his trust in him.
"That's enough for now. Make me some dinner and milk tea!" Leylin ordered indifferently.
"Hawke can be used for transportation and can sweep away most acolytes, but he won't be useful in battles with official Magi."
After a moment, Leylin, who was lying comfortably on a couch with pretty maids servicing him with their soft little hands, reflected with a hint of regret.
In the south coast, some Magi had top grade magic creatures as pets. These pets matured quickly, to the point that after their master advanced, it was possible for their own strength to reach the level of an official Magus.
In battle, how much help would an assistant with the same rank render?
Unfortunately, no matter how much Leylin searched and gathered them, he couldn't find these high-quality pets, and could only purchase a Venom Wyvern to use as a mount.
Magi and their pets had to agree upon a strict spirit contract, and there were some that even required them to share their life force!
Leylin was obviously not going to waste his chance on this Venom Wyvern and used the simplest and cruelest spirit brand to forcibly control it. It was going to be a temporary mount, and he was planning to substitute it with a better option at the next best opportunity.
"But it's a shame!"
Leylin turned his hand and a crystal that was like an amber revealed itself in his palm. In the middle of the crystal was a drop of green liquid that had a unique aura emanating from it constantly.
"The Venom Wyvern's blood essence has a trace of the bloodline of the ancient creature — the Thousand Venom Dragon!" The A.I. Chip prompted.
That was why he had purchased the Venom Wyvern.
While he was in Nightless City, Leylin had constantly been collecting creatures that might have ancient bloodlines in them and tried to purify their blood with the A.I. Chip.
However, a majority of his experiments were a failure, and the blood essence in his palm was the best result he had.
"A.I. Chip, have you found out the reason?"
The Ancient Spirit Slaying Sect
In order to obtain the bloodlines of more ancient creatures, Leylin had conducted numerous experiments. However, none of them were successful.
The best result was what was in his hand — the quintessence of some ancient creature.
To most Magi, this was probably a precious treasure, but for Leylin, this was far from enough.
[Beep! After 124 practical experiments and a comparison with 9718 simulated experiments, the conjecture is that the Host's concentration of bloodline essence is not enough. Unable to unearth deeper purification. Recommended to look for the blood essence of creatures with the power of rank 3 Magus and above as stimulus to purify bloodline.]
The A.I. Chip gave a prompt answer.
"As expected…" Leylin had already surmised this conjecture, and now it seemed to tally with the A.I. Chip's calculations.
After a long period of time, the ancient bloodline in the mystical creatures in the south coast had been thinned out so much that if not for the amazing ability of the A.I. Chip, Leylin would not even be able to refine this blood that was full of impurities.
To obtain a pure ancient bloodline, it was necessary to gain blood samples from even stronger monsters.
The A.I. Chip had gathered that at the bare minimum, blood samples from a rank 3 creature had to be obtained.
That meant that as long as Leylin was able to obtain the blood of a monster that was rank 3 or higher, the A.I. Chip would be able to purify and extract a perfect sample of the ancient bloodline.
"But… A creature that is rank 3 or above?" Leylin smiled wryly at his thoughts, "I'd probably die just from a snort from them! I'd obtained the blood from the Black Horrall Snake that originally had the strength of a rank 3 Magus. Thankfully, its might had weakened to the equivalent of an acolyte, and that alone was a giant stroke of luck. It's as if a tasty meat pie had fallen from the heavens! "
The Giant Kemoyin Serpent's bloodline that Leylin was in possession of was purified from the Black Horrall Snake previously found in the Dylan Gardens.
That Black Horrall Snake was a powerful creature that rivalled the strength of a rank 3 Magus at its adult stage!
The Black Horrall Snake back then had definitely matured into an adult. However, due to the limiters inside the secret plane, coupled with prolonged hunger — and perhaps also with the other methods from the great Magus Serholm — it caused the Black Horrall Snake's state to deteriorate in its slumber, eventually turning pitiful enough to be attacked by a group of level 3 acolytes.
This was obviously a present that the great Magus Serholm left for his inheritor. It was an intentional setup and not a coincidence.
The great Magus Serholm was a rank 4 Warlock, and as compared to Leylin who was a rank 1 Warlock, he was the sun while Leylin was but a firefly.
"These things are dependent on luck. At most, I'll take more notice in the future. It's not the time to think about this now!"
Leylin pulled up his stats.
[Leylin Farlier. Rank 1 Warlock. Bloodline: Giant Kemoyin Serpent. Strength: 7.1, Agility: 6.7, Vitality: 8.5, Spiritual Force: 58.9, Magic Power: 58 (Magic Power is in synchronisation with Spiritual Force). Elemental essence conversion: 70%. Status: Healthy]
In this year, he had been continuing his trade with the old witch. Using the processed spirits she had gathered, he had obtained a large quantity of the ancient potion- Tears of Mary!
With the help of the ancient potion, Leylin's spiritual force shot up rapidly.
Leylin had spent quite some time in the Four Seasons Garden and through the exchange of contribution points, he had gathered the formulas of potions that could increase an official Magus' spiritual force.
However, he found that those potions' effects were nothing compared to the ancient potion.
With its help, Leylin increased his spiritual force at a shocking rate, as if he had no limits.
Presently, he had no choice but to use concealment methods to hide his tremendous spiritual force. He stayed indoors whenever possible, avoiding areas where rank 2 Magi might appear. He didn't want there to be any chances of others finding out.
Unfortunately, even with the A.I. Chip constantly upgrading the concealment method, it was not possible to hide his spiritual force entirely.
The moment he had a break, Leylin would rush back to Nightless City to hide and avoided all social interaction.
After reaching a certain level in terms of his spiritual force, Leylin had once again used the crystallised Darkness energy particles to push his elemental essence conversion to 70%!
However, after his elemental essence conversion reached 70%, Leylin received a notification from the A.I. Chip that his body and spirit had developed a resistance towards such crystals. Unless he found more precious resources to raise his elemental essence conversion in the future, he could only rely on meditation and time and progress at a slower rate.
"Potions made by ancient Magi are really different!"
A look of satisfaction crossed Leylin's face. "The agreement with the old witch cannot be broken. Moreover, finding new ways to conceal my spiritual force is becoming a matter of urgency."
In all honesty, he should be collecting the spirits himself. Directly branding the spirits of slaves who helped out would ensure that this matter was kept secret.
However, the preparatory stages for the brewing of the Tears of Mary required someone with the might of a rank 1 Magus. Moreover, it had to be a Magus who was specialised in spirits.
As for Leylin, his current attainment in the knowledge of spiritual force and spirits only allowed him to brand level 3 acolytes. It was basically impossible to brand an official Magus.
Anyway, the old witch had made her vow in front of the Trial's Eye, so she could be trusted for the time being.
"However, the amount of spirits provided by the old witch seems to have decreased. In the past few trades, she also seemed distant and unfocused and didn't even participate in the activities organised by the dark Magi organisation. It seems there's something of extreme importance going on. I'd better check on her tomorrow and hope that there won't be any trouble…"
This ally of his was recently acting strangely, inciting worry in Leylin's heart.
"Master! Your dinner's ready!"
Damien's voice sounded while he was deep in thought, enjoying the service from his maids.
"Alright! I'll be right there!"
Leylin opened his eyes, the blackness in his pupils gaining another depth in them…
After a day of entertainment and rest, Leylin was feeling refreshed. Wrapped in a black cloak, Leylin covered even his face and paid a visit to the old witch's shop.
"What happened to you?"
The moment Leylin saw the state the old witch was in, he wrinkled his eyebrows.
The first time he'd seen her, the old witch looked like a dead person. The scent of death and decay was even more apparent now, and she looked like she was a corpse which had just crawled out of an old tomb. The undulations from her spiritual force were also extremely feeble.
This condition immediately alarmed Leylin.
For Magi, injuries on one's physical body were insignificant, but if one's spiritual force showed signs of weakening, that immediately meant that one's might was decreasing.
The old witch was still Leylin's ally, and he didn't want his supplier to suddenly disappear.
"Nothing much! Just a recent experiment that's approaching its crucial stage!" Her body was already as weak as it could get, and just speaking resulted in her panting. However, the light in her eyes was even more radiant, as if on the verge of burning up.
Leylin had seen such a fervent heat in a person's gaze before– in his previous life, in the eyes of lunatics and crazy people.
"You'd better not keep anything from me. Remember, we're allies. Haven't we been working well together in this past year?"
Leylin obviously didn't believe her vague explanation.
"When it's time, I'll definitely tell you everything."
The old witch gave a mysterious grin. "Also, I've found the spiritual force concealment method that you requested the previous time."
"What? What?!" This was so unexpected that a smile surfaced on Leylin's face.
He had always been searching for this content on the sly and attended a few of the dark Magi's bazaars and meets to exchange resources, but to no avail.
He wasn't expecting much when he employed her help, and it was a pleasant surprise that she had actually gotten what he wanted.
"This is information regarding the compression of spiritual force. Take a look!" She passed a green leaf to him.
Leylin reached out and took it, and then placed it on his forehead.
A cool feeling was emitted from the leaf and permeated Leylin's skull, going straight into the depths of his brain.
[Spiritual force data interface has been detected. To accept the connection or not?] The A.I. Chip's voice intoned.
"Accept!" With Leylin's command, a massive stream of information entered Leylin's sea of consciousness. It was constantly broken down, recorded and analysed by the A.I. Chip.
"Overall, the compression of spiritual force is to stack the spiritual force together continuously, arising in a different frequency of energy waves. From there, one can achieve the purpose of concealing their spiritual force…"
After browsing through for a while, Leylin smiled in satisfaction.
"This piece of information is very useful to me, but it seems to be incomplete. Where is the rest of it? Take it out! What do you want? Magic crystals? Potions? Resources? Just give the word!"
Leylin appeared to be extremely rich and overbearing.
"Hehehe… Just with the first half of this information, your spiritual force will be untraceable to all rank 1 Magi. Once you have the second half, even a rank 2 Magus won't be able to discover your spiritual force energy waves. Although you can definitely afford it, I wish to make a trade with you using another method…" The old witch said with a cryptic laugh and hooted.
"What method?" Leylin's brows furrowed, guessing that it was going to be extremely troublesome.
"I will give you the first half of the information now as a gift of thanks for being my ally!" The old witch appeared to be extremely generous, "As for the second half, I need you to do something for me!"
It was obvious that the old witch was using the second half of the information as bait to have Leylin help her with a certain matter.
"I need to know the specifics."
Leylin did not refuse, but he did not agree either.
"Hehe… Don't worry, I won't ask you to hold back a rank 2 Magus or anything like that. I just want you to accompany me to explore some ruins."
The old witch revealed her true motive.
"Exploring ruins? What ruins?" Leylin probed curiously.
"The remnants of the Ancient Spirit Slaying Sect!"
Brass Ring and Jaye
"The Ancient Spirit Slaying Sect?!"
Leylin's looked lost for a second, and immediately made a sound of astonishment. "Do you mean that sect that's full of lunatics who think that spirits are the ultimate resting state of all living beings and like to massacre and sacrifice human flesh from time to time? Do you mean that wicked Magi sect?"
"Exactly! The Ancient Spirit Slaying Sect was just a small sect in the south coast during ancient times. I didn't expect you to know of them!"
The old witch gasped at Leylin.
"The ruins of this kind of crazy sect is definitely going to be annoying. There might be some troublesome curses or mechanisms in there…"
Leylin was very clear about his abilities.
A year ago, he could barely win over a Magus with 50% elemental essence conversion and was considered an elite within the tier of rank 1 Magi.
After a year of constantly increasing his spiritual force and elemental essence conversion, the current him was at the top, second only to those who were on the verge of breaking through and already met the requirements in terms of their spiritual force and elemental essence conversion.
This might was considered quite good in the entire south coast and he could be ranked highly here,but, if he had the misfortune of bumping into a rank 2 Magus, all that awaited him was death. At the most, he had a little hope of escaping with all his might, but what were his chances of survival? The A.I. Chip chip calculated that it was less than 10%!
In ancient times, elite Magi organisations were sure to have rank 4 Magi taking charge, and it was obvious that there were multiple rank 2 and 3 Magi.
The mechanisms left behind by Magi with such levels of strength were definitely not something Leylin could ward off, even though thousands of years had passed.
"Don't worry, we're just seeing a small part of it! I've also invited a few other friends. I just need one item from there, and all other gains will be left for you to divide amongst yourselves!"
The old witch gave her word.
"It looks like this item must be of massive importance to her. If that's the case, it might be possible for me to…"
After hearing her words, Leylin's eyes darted around as he considered.
"I need to think this over."
Out of cautiousness, Leylin decided to obtain more information first before answering her.
"Alright, but make it quick. I plan to leave in five days, so contact me using the secret imprint before then!" The old witch gave a quick nod and passed a dozen spirit spheres to Leylin.
"This is the latest batch of spirits! However, I need 20% more of your potions this time. I'll exchange some items to make up for this! How about two hundred thousand magic crystals and a Wolf Spirit Flower?"
Leylin glanced at the old witch, whose spiritual force undulations were waning.
If she was the one using all those spiritual force potions, she definitely would not be in this state. From the looks of it, all the potions she had obtained had been given to someone else.
"Sure!" After giving it a thought, Leylin agreed.
In order to increase the efficiency of the Tears of Mary and break through the nature of spiritual force, which always hit a bottleneck, he would always meditate for a period of time first. When the increase in his spiritual force slowed, he would then use the potion.
Based on the A.I. Chip's calculations, this combination was the best method to consume the potion.
Hence, he still had some Tears of Mary in his possession.
...
Five days later, on a flat ground in the eastern part of the Nightless City.
A shining bright moon hung in the sky, reflecting a silvery lustre on the earth.
The silhouettes of the trees dancing in the wind continuously projected malevolent shadows on the ground, just like monsters of various shapes and sizes.
*Whoosh!*
Countless black figures converged, forming the shadows of 3 figures on the ground.
Two of the three people had worn a thick layer of black robes and used a veil to cover their faces. It seemed to give off the vibe of something eerie and crafty.
"Old Devil! When is Blood Rogue coming?" A cloaked figure spoke to the person that did not put on a veil but had a small demon mask on instead.
"Soon!" The voice of an old woman sounded from under the mask.
"By the way, I don't have a problem with you getting Blood Rogue to come since he's from our organisation and he's quite strong. Who's this person though?"
The cloaked person projected to the old witch, evidently dissatisfied.
"Don't worry, she's a good friend of mine. She's definitely trustworthy!" The old witch guaranteed.
"She'd better be. If not, no matter how tempting your rewards are, I'll take my leave!"
"Don't worry, she's…" She projected to him once more.
"I see!" She told the cloaked person some information, and it immediately became silent.
Minutes later, a blood-red flame soared at the site and a silhouette covered in a crimson cloak directly appeared on the ground.
"My apologies, I'm a little late!"
Leylin spoke and glanced through the people around.
He was obviously familiar with the old witch, and he had also seen the cloaked man in the dark Magi organisation before. He went by the nickname Brass Ring. As for the other, Leylin had no idea who it was.
"Blood Rogue, you're here! Let me introduce you, you already know Brass Ring, and this here is Jaye, a good friend of mine!"
The old witch first gave a brief introduction.
At this moment, Leylin, who had gone back to his experiment lab and tested the spiritual force concealment spell that he had gotten from the old witch, coveted the latter half of the spell even more.
Moreover, regarding the ruins of an ancient organisation such as the Ancient Spirit Slaying Sect, Leylin was also somewhat interested in them. Hence, after a period of consideration, he finally agreed to the old witch's invitation.
However, as she had invited others, Leylin naturally made a deal with the old witch and came here with his identity as Blood Rogue in the dark Magi organisation.
Since he was using that identity, he naturally couldn't ride his Venom Wyvern.
The present Leylin's face was all red, and he had the appearance of a malevolent demon. There were even horns on his demon mask.
"Blood Rogue! Long time no see!" Brass Ring acknowledged his comrade.
Leylin's had gained a reputation from his identity as Blood Rogue from the few operations within the organisation. It could also be said that he was infamous, and coupled with the way the bald Venom Snake had suddenly vanished with no warning, Brass Ring was slightly fearful of this Blood Rogue.
Dark Magi respected power, and Brass Ring naturally would not underestimate Leylin.
"Brass Ring! And Jaye, hello!" Leylin greeted and smiled.
"Alright, since we're all here, let us set off!"
The old witch nodded her head and her figure disappeared in the darkness. Following which, after various flashes of light, there was no one left on this patch of ground, and darkness once again enveloped the area…
The old witch led Leylin and the others on a hastened journey. As they were all official Magus, their travelling speed was extremely quick, far surpassing the speed of horses. In the span of two days, they had already traversed across the entire Teljose plains.
Following which, Leylin and the others walked towards an extremely ordinary looking town.
This western styled town was no different from others, and the total headcount would not exceed ten thousand people.
As for the professions in this town, lumberers and farmers comprised the bulk of it. On the paths, there were even rubbish and dung strewn.
"It smells quite bad here!"
Brass Ring grumbled.
From the strange attire of the four of them, it was obvious that they could not enter the small town in broad daylight. The old witch first let them hide outside while she went in by herself.
After that, they strutted in without fear to the sight of numerous people who were in a deep sleep along the roads.
"This…" Leylin breathed in with his nose, "The pollen of the Sea Anemone Flower, and the liquid secretion from the Pungent Rat's joints! This dosage is enough for them to stay asleep for at least three days and three nights!"
"Hehe… And even if someone were to chop off one of their legs or kill them, they wouldn't even wake up. That's enough for us to conduct our exploration…"
"Is three days enough? Isn't it more convenient to just kill all of them? We can even take this opportunity to obtain a few bloodthirsty spirits and the like." Brass Ring casually brought up.
This was the way a typical dark Magus thought. They revelled in bloodshed and violence and preferred to slaughter in order to solve most of their problems.
"After the exploration, I'll let you do anything you want with them, but now, you have to listen to me!" The old witch stared at Brass Ring, a strange undulation emitting from her body.
*Teng Teng!* Brass Ring had to retreat a few steps. "Are you mad? You want to use this in this situation? Are you looking to die?"
"Don't provoke me, or you'll absolutely regret it!" Her voice was hoarse.
At this moment, Brass Ring suddenly came to the realisation that the old witch in front of him was one of the elders in the organisation. She had connections and her powers were unknown, and if not for an incident many years ago, her power would be much stronger now!
At this moment, the other Magus called Jaye stood behind the old witch and expressed her support for her.
"Alright, alright! Let's make a compromise and not act this way!"
Leylin began to resolve the dispute, "Among the light Magi's standard operating procedures during times of calamity, a town whose civilians had all fainted or were all massacred are two different matters altogether. The first scenario would only have acolytes dispatched to investigate, as for the second scenario, there will be official Magi dispatched!"
"For the sake of our safety, Brass Ring, it's better for you to hold it in!" Following which, Leylin turned around and asked the old witch, "Time is indeed a concern. Old Devil, I'm sure you can tell us some things by now, can't you?"
The old witch looked at Leylin deep in the eyes before reluctantly agreeing. "Alright then!"
"… This is a small scale secret plane that I stumbled on during my travels. It should be an experiment lab of sorts. The area will not exceed 100 mu, so we can definitely finish exploring it within 3 days!"
"Small scale secret plane?" A flash of disappointment was shown on Leylin's face.
In the south coast, the secret planes were also categorised.
A Banshee
In the south coast, the storage type secret plane Leylin had previously raided and the laboratory type secret plane that the old witch found were all classified as small scale secret planes.
The area of these kind of secret planes usually didn't exceed a 100 mu and were only used to perform experiments and to store supplies. If one does not take into account of the items stored inside and only look at the area of the secret plane, its worth would be at the bottom.
Above that were the resource type secret planes, the area of that type of secret planes is usually larger than 100,000 mu. The area is large and the topology is varied and suitable to grow resources necessary to Magi.
The highest rank of secret planes are those that have spells that can adjust the living environments of both plants and animals, and can be controlled by a single Magus!
These are only under normal circumstances, there are also places like Dylan Gardens which Leylin previously found. Even though the area was small but it was personally arranged by the fourth level warlock great Magus Serholm, thus its value couldn't be compared to the normal planes of its kind.
"It's a shame! If it was a resource type of secret plane, we could occupy it in secret then alter it, hehe… then we would be filthy rich!"
Brass Ring was stroking his chin as if he was caught in some fantasy.
"Keep dreaming!" The old witch sneered icily, interrupting Brass Ring's fancy dreams.
"The bigger the area of the secret plane, the higher the cost of construction. As for the resource type secret planes which was larger than 100k mu, even for some ancient Magi organisations, there weren't many that could afford to construct it…"
"All the present resource type secret planes that belongs to the large organisations are all remnants from the ancient Magi which have been altered slightly, that's all! If there really was a resource type secret plane being discovered here, the likes of us wouldn't be able to stomach it. Even if we added our whole organisation plus the Boss that is backing it, it still wouldn't be enough!"
"Let's go! Even if it's just a laboratory type of secret plane, there must still be a lot of valuable stuff inside. We're also handing over a lot contributions to the higher ups. It's enough for you to trade for a lot of resources!" Leylin said.
For these kind of small scale secret planes, every large Magi organisation has set up missions.
No matter if it's Four Seasons Garden or the dark Magi organisation which the old witch belonged to, they all have the power to take it over. After which there naturally will be a lot of rewards for the finders.
If this was a resource type of secret plane then Leylin would put in some thought in order to pocket it himself.
Since it's only a laboratory type of secret plane, he didn't put much thought into pocketing it. After all even if he was to occupy it because it's so small he couldn't actually alter it that much. At most he would only have a small scale secret base to hide.
"The entrance to the secret plane is on the west side of this town, inside a two story wooden building!"
The old witch seemed quite familiar with the surroundings as she brought the three of them to a two-storey building made out of wood.
Compare to the small town, this place was even more remote. Weed were growing all around the villa and there were even two mole like animals quickly scurrying by.
"Originally this place was a lively street, but since 13 years ago the residents in this place kept dying one by one. Sometimes the town residents could hear sound of a woman wailing outside their homes, that's why the rumors spread about it being a cursed or a haunted house. The surroundings ended up being overgrown!"
The old witch opened up the rusted gates while feeling rather satisfied with herself.
"I found this place during one of my explorations, after a couple of months of investigation, I'm sure that the unusual situations around here is cause by the deterioration of the defensive spells around the entrance to the secret plane, unwillingly leaking radiation …"
"According to calculations, after 13 years the defensive spells should have totally deteriorated. Leaving the entrance to the secret plane exposed…"
"Thusly I pretend to be an ordinary person and bought this building, plus I added a facade on the outside so other Magi couldn't discover this place."
Leylin was listening to the old witch while he was exploring the inside of this building.
The bottom floor wasn't that big, it only contained 2 to 3 buildings. The hall was filled with a thick layer of dust and broken furniture. In the corner was a spiral staircase filled with holes. It was the only thing connecting these two floors.
Beneath this obvious state of decline, Leylin could feel a strong aura of negative energy.
This aura was extremely malevolent, and it carried with it a smell that Leylin was familiar with.
"Spirits! And they're spirits that have been driven crazy from being vengeful!" The corner of Leylin's mouth curved, "This old witch really found a nice place!"
"Follow me! Be careful not to touch the black mold on the walls, those are trigger points!"
The old witch was in front leading the while, bringing the three behind as they climbed the squeaky stairs to the second floor. She seemed extremely familiar with this place.
The area on the second floor was smaller than the large hall on the first, where the corridors only allowed 2 people to walk side by side.
By chance Leylin was walking beside Jaye, because the other person was entirely wrapped in a cloak and didn't speak much. Leylin couldn't even distinguish the other person's gender.
"This oil painting is the entrance to the Ancient Spirit Slaying Sect's secret plane!"
By the end of the corridor, the old witch was pointing towards an oil painting that was hanging on the wall as she turned around and spoke to Leylin and the rest.
Leylin's focus involuntarily shifted to the oil painting.
This oil painting depicted a richly dressed noble woman, using a delicate fan to cover half her face.
Due to time and age, there were a lot of dust on the walls. Even around the oil painting were a ring of thick dust.
The whole oil painting used green as a base color, and it didn't seem to fit the picture.
Besides, maybe it's because of the angle and line, but if he stared at it long enough, Leylin felt that the fan the noble woman was holding in the oil painting moved slightly.
Suddenly, the young woman inside the oil painting blinked her eyes!
"Is this oil painting alive?"
Leylin cried out involuntarily.
"You're finally awake?" The old witch advanced as she cackled.
"Foreign intruders, speak the password!" The woman inside the oil painting blinked again as information directly entered each Magus that was present.
"Password? Your masters have all perished, and right now we've come to take everything inside the secret plane!"
The old witch was staring at the woman in the oil painting, "If you choose to comply, there might be a place for you inside my storage room!"
"Password incorrect!" The woman inside the painting said. Leylin was keenly aware of that the fan which the noble woman held inside her hand closed slightly.
"It's only a being conjured by spells, yet it dares to disobey me!"
The old witch's eyes emitted green lights, and a ring of green fireballs emerged flying directly toward the oil painting.
*Bam!*
As the green fireballs burned the oil paint, the noble woman's fan closed entirely exposing the face behind it.
Leylin didn't expect that under the beautiful half of the noble woman's face was a nose and mouth composed entirely out of bones.
This appearance was as if the flesh and blood below the noble woman's eyes had instantly disappeared.
A feeling of discrepancy and wrongness suddenly assaulted Leylin's thoracic cavity.
*Scree!*
Following that, the shrill sound of a woman flooded the whole corridor.
The green fireballs started to crumble, turning into small spark of green fire. Following which it directly extinguished in the fluctuation of the air.
[Beep! Host is being attacked by sound waves. Resemblance to banshee wail 67%. Abnormality in muscle coordination, spiritual force circulation rate lowered by 89%…]
The A.I. Chip projected the status with red color in front of Leylin's eyes.
"Banshee wail? Could it be that there is a genuine banshee trapped inside that oil painting?" Leylin was startled, immediately a layer of crimson membrane appeared outside his body and isolated the sound.
Even though his ears still hurt, but his body has regained his mobility.
At the same time, a couple of blood red tentacles like intestines protruded from the oil painting and they headed for Brass Ring.
"Damnable thing!" Brass Ring cursed as his body protruded countless bone spikes. The red intestines was directly pierced and was severed.
"Bone Spike Arts?!" Leylin was startled, "He actually solidified this kind of innate spells onto himself, is he a masochist?"
Bone Spike Arts was a rank 1 spell, and was quite formidable. But its activation process was quite a hassle. It needed to be grown from a Magus' own skeleton then pierce the Magus' own muscle before attacking his opponent.
This kind of spell was literally hurting oneself before hurting your opponent, only maniacs and masochist would pick this.
"I'll tear you damnable thing to pieces!". One could see that Brass Ring was quite enraged since he was forced to use his innate spell.
Presently, his whole body was covered with bone spikes. It gave one the impression that he was like a white sea urchin.
At the same time, a green light spread from below his neck to his whole body, initiating blood staunching and similar effects.
"Stop!" The old witch's body started to emit countless translucent spirit bodies, and every one of them circulated around Brass Ring's body, making his speed drop.
"There is a spell effect on this oil painting, if you tear it apart the whole entrance to the secret plan will also collapse!"
The old witch's expression turned serious, "Let me do it!"
When the previous Banshee wail had struck, the bodies of both the old witch and Jaye emitted a black colored membrane. It seemed like neither of them suffered any injuries.
"Your Banshee wail was pretty good, it is a shame that the matching spell formation has been half collapsed due to the passage of time. What's left isn't something than can affect us official Magi…"
The old witch looked upon the Banshee within the oil painting with pity, as she stroked the surface of the painting with her hand.
Following which tiny dark purple dots originated from the old witch's palm and spread continuously. Like someone was adding a coat of paint.
"Come forth! My baby!"
The old witch said softly, her voice sounding tender and flirtatious.
As soon as these words were uttered, the Banshee within the painting turned fearful, as if she had encountered her natural enemy.
The Spirit Devouring Moth
After the black purple colour extended throughout the entire oil painting, the banshee disappeared without a trace.
"That's a pretty good entrapment method! Did you buy this just for this purpose?"
Leylin approached the old witch, "I'm rather interested in this banshee. Can you sell it to me later? I'll buy it at twice the market price!"
"Once we're done exploring the secret plane and we find what I want, I can just give it to you!"
The old witch flashed Leylin a glance.
At the present, in the middle of the oil painting a small dot of silver light suddenly appeared.
The silvery light grew bigger and bigger and the surrounding void started to ripple. Finally, it settled into a corridor filled with a silvery sheen.
Resentment, wailing! A strong aura of dark spiritual power poured out constantly from within the corridor.
A faint mist started to rise around the whole wooden building and the sound of people of all ages started to sound all around.
This kind of scenery, if the old witch didn't previously put everyone in the town into slumber, would most likely have caused quite a commotion in the town.
"Even though there is no chance of encountering any ancient Magi inside the secret plane, but there are still some lingering curses and traps that are still working. We better be careful… considering that the Ancient Spirit Slaying Sect was a Magi organization famous for researching spirits, one must prepare accordingly."
The old witch warned specifically.
"By now you should reveal to us what you're really looking for right?" Leylin locked the old witch with his gaze.
"Heuheuheu… relax, you'll all know when that time comes!" The old witch just cackled manically as usual.
"Speak the truth. Old Devil if you still won't we all will feel insecure…" This time, Brass Ring sided with Leylin, "If you don't tell me now, I won't be able to keep my former promises…"
"You guys…" The old witch was quite anxious but suddenly broke into a coughing fit. Her originally crooked body seemed to bend even more as if her waist was about to break.
"Sigh… Alright then!"
After a long while the old witch recovered her breath but her complexion was turning paler.
"It's an altar-like thing. There is only one of it in the whole laboratory. You won't be able to miss it!"
The old witch spoke with an impatience.
"Then what? Only this much information?" Brass Ring immediately asked.
"What else do you think there is?" The old witch's eyes emitted green light as her gaze bore into the body of Brass Ring, "I only found some clues from some ancient information that this altar might be inside this secret plane, how could I know any more specific facts?"
As if he was afraid that the old witch would again lash out at him, Brass Ring chose wisely not to ask any further questions.
"Then what's the altar's function?" After Brass Ring went silent, Leylin asked instead. "Don't tell me that you don't even know how to use the altar and still went to look for it."
"Of course not!" The old witch tried to calm her expression but still chose to speak at last, "That altar is a product made by the Ancient Spirit Slaying Sect during their later periods, and is called the Spirit Altar. It has great benefits towards alleviating my current conditions. There is even a chance that it might directly cure it…"
"If you all help me get to it, then Blood Rogue's materials, Brass Ring's thunder fire stone, Jaye's gasping lakewater will all be given, not one gram less!"
The old witch guaranteed once more.
Leylin didn't completely believe it — it was apparent that the old witch had some other tricks up her sleeve.
"You and I are old friends, if I won't help you then who will?" Among the rest of the three Jaye was the first to speak. The voice was neither masculine nor feminine and carried a weird pitch.
"Alright! I was just asking!" Brass Ring also started to concede.
"What about you Blood Rogue?" The old witch looked over Leylin.
"If you are not planning to exploit us and make us risk our lives for your cause, I don't have any other objections!" Leylin sneered.
"That's good!"
The old witch looked at the corridor which emitted silvery light and said, "Alright, the corridor should be completely stabilised by now, let's us proceed!"
Following which the old witch's eyes radiated a fervent hunger as she stepped into the corridor.
Leylin and the rest looked at each other and followed.
The dazzling silvery light suddenly expanded and swallowed the four people completely.
"Buzz buzz!"
Leylin scanned his surroundings.
What he saw was a black corridor which seemed to be constructed by some unknown metal. The wall could strangely enough reflect their shadows.
But the shadows appeared twisted and seemed to emit a bone-chilling laughter.
"Illusion materialization technique?" Leylin smiled coldly. Black light flashed in his eyes and he was able to break out of the illusion immediately.
Following which he heard some buzzing sounds.
Following the sound a large grey cloud appeared. Once it got closer, Leylin discovered that this dark cloud consisted of densely packed, moth-like organisms.
Fur grew on these organisms, and the image of a huge eye was depicted on each of their huge wings. It seemed quite eerie.
"Careful! Those are the Spirit Devouring Moths!" The old witch raised the alarm.
"Don't touch the dust that they carry, otherwise your spirit and mentality will be continuously corroded!"
At the same time the old witch opened her mouth and emitted a shrill scream. Sound waves could be seen exploding forth like an artillery shell.
*Boom!*
Half of the grey clouds disappeared, and at the same time, a huge amount of dust billowed down like it was snowing.
*Whoosh!* As he heard the old witch mention the name of Spirit Devouring Moths, Leylin was already on alert. Now a scarlet red membrane of light enveloped his body and kept the dust at bay.
[Host's body is being attacked by an unknown powder. The powder has a sticky quality!] [Activating the defense potion smeared on Host's body. Adjusting frequency, emitting shockwaves… Adhesive powder substance's effect removed!] A prompt from the A.I. Chip emerged in front of Leylin's eyes.
"Such a bother!"
Leylin had read about this adhesive quality in the Four Seasons Garden's library before. This type of attack would stick onto the opponent's body, and if the layer of light was removed before the powder was completely gotten rid of, the powder's magic would be activated and begin the second attack.
"Crimson Palm!"
Leylin's hands suddenly turned red as he struck an offensive pose. Both his hands clawed in front of him.
*Bang!*
Two crimson talons' image flashed through the void. It surrounded the Spirit Devouring Moths from both left and right and pressed towards the center.
Countless moths were directly torn into tatters by the blood talons, torn wings and grey dust like kept fluttering.
[Host's Crimson Palm's theoretical power: 20 degrees. Real power: 34 degrees, Crimson Palm reached boundary of limits, adding additional power!]
Along with the sound from the A.I. Chip's prompt, the phantom crimson claws in the air suddenly trembled, and blood-red flames burst out from his two hands, burning up all the falling bodies.
Without even emitting any smoke, the Spirit Devouring Moths were directly burnt to ashes in the crimson flames.
"Is this the signature move of the Blood Rogue — the Crimson Palm? Why is it so powerful?"
Brass Ring looked at Leylin with shock.
Within the dark Magi organisation, Leylin was a newcomer who went by the name Blood Rogue, and the spells that he often used were quickly revealed.
Brass Ring was aware that Leylin had such a technique, but he never knew that it had such a mighty offensive power!
"You have made great progress recently!"
The old witch secretly transmitted to Leylin.
From what Brass Ring had seen from the battle between the old witch and the Spirit Devouring Moths, he reckoned that these creatures were crafty and difficult to handle. Leylin, however, had used just one spell and completely demolished the opponent, which shocked the old witch.
It seemed that from the very beginning, this ally of hers had been developing at a frightening speed!
"This might… Is your elemental essence conversion more than 50%?" The old witch transmitted her voice to Leylin.
"What do you think?" Leylin answered indifferently.
"Hehe… the stronger you are the more it will benefit me. After all, compared to Brass Ring, I would rather trust you who signed a contract with me!"
The old witch made another promise while she spouted words she herself didn't believe, "As long as you help me, not only will I give you information about concealing your spiritual force, I'll also give you another million magic crystals. Hell, I'll even give up my position as an elder in the organisation to you!"
"A position like that is transferrable?" Leylin was a little shocked. The group that he was in, the Thousand Meddling Leaves, didn't have any real leader. The rank 2 dark Magus backing them was only in contact with a few of the elders.
The organisation had gatherings and trade fairs every once in awhile, letting the members have chances to find good opportunities.
The moment an elder felt that the lead a member had found was worth acting on, he or she would gather the members and launch a looting operation. The elder and members who had first found out about this chance would be able to get a bonus after the plundering.
It was obvious that once one became an elder, he or she would have a place as a leader in the dark Magi organisation. His or her status would be different.
"This situation would be impossible in a typical organisation, but what can I do when I have a dark Magi organisation backing me?" The transmitted voice of the old witch sounded bitter.
"Actually, besides me, the other elders have been changed quite a few times already. My condition hasn't been the best lately, and the number of people waiting to trample on me have increased…"
Her explanation made a lot of sense, but Leylin didn't really believe it.
"Alright! Since I've received your deposit, I'll do my best in the coming expedition!" Leylin agreed.
This entire exchange was very quick, and as they both came to an agreement, the blood-red flames that had just been ignited in mid-air, had been extinguished.
The old witch took on her role as the leader and guided them in. Minutes later, the four of them came to a fork in the path.
Vengeful Spirit — Loathsome Evil
In front of Leylin and the rest of the exploration team.
A passage made of jet-black metal had opened up to three pathways, each leading to a different direction.
At each of the entrances, there were no obvious signs at all, causing a wave of foreboding to go through the four of them.
"Since it's a laboratory, how can there not be a sign for it?"
Brass Ring took the initiative and asked.
"There might have been one that had been destroyed by someone, or the Magi here had another method of communication that we're unaware of!"
The old witch shot a glance at Brass Ring. "What's wrong? We've come all the way here, are you thinking of backing out of our deal?"
"Of course not!" Brass Ring shook his head like it was the most obvious thing to do.
Not only were the rewards that the old witch offered extremely generous, there was a large possibility of there being large amounts of profit from within the secret plane. Neither of these were things that Brass Ring was willing to give up on.
"In that case, should we split up into teams and search, or do it by ourselves?" Leylin asked a very practical question.
"Of course, we're going to go in as a group! This is the ruins left behind by ancient Magi! Traps and other defense mechanisms are not easy for us to dismantle even as a group! It's much too dangerous for us to act alone!"
As the initiator of this operation, the old witch was resolute and made the decision for them.
"We've set up everything in the town already, and in the next ten days, there will certainly not be any people compelled to enter. This is enough time for us to clear up everything in the laboratory!"
After hearing her words, Jaye quickly agreed. Leylin thought it through for a while and also nodded.
"Alright then!"
Hearing Leylin's agreement, Brass Ring had no choice but to curl his lip and approve of this suggestion.
The four of them chose the path that was on the far right and entered.
*Step step!*
Black leather shoes and the metal flooring met, the friction causing a very piercing sound.
"Be careful. The methods of the Ancient Spirit Slaying Sect are much more difficult to deal with than Spirit Devouring Moths…" Leylin reminded as he glanced at the surrounding walls.
A bright sound was constantly travelling through the passage, and there were also some echoes.
Leylin suddenly paused.
Only his figure was left in the entire passage. The old witch, Brass Ring, and Jaye had all disappeared!
"What happened?" Leylin fixed his attention on the red reflection on the metal wall.
"Did I unconsciously activate some trap? Even the A.I. Chip didn't detect it!"
A hint of a smile appeared on his lips. "Looks like this expedition isn't going to be so simple…"
*Ding!*
Leylin's sudden stop seemed to have triggered some sort of mechanism, and behind him, the metallic walls seemed to have lives of their own as they converged, thus blocking his retreat.
"Crimson Palm!"
Both of Leylin's palms turn blood red once again, crimson flames burning from the claws as he pressed them directly on the converging walls.
*Sssii!*
As if cold ice had been directly thrown onto a blazing inferno, a sizzling sound of evaporating water was heard.
Under Leylin's hands, the unknown black metal turned completely red and constantly melted, forming puddles of liquid metal that stained the floor.
Over ten seconds later, the metallic walls that had suddenly emerged had a hole that was about one metre deep, and yet there was no sign of the end.
It seemed that in that moment, Leylin's path of retreat had been completely blocked by the black metallic wall.
[Based on the data taken so far, estimated thickness of metal wall: 45-47 metres. There is also a huge amount of the Manker Alloy found in the middle. Estimated time required for Host to entirely break through: 30 Minutes 56 Seconds!]
The A.I. Chip projected blue lines of data in front of Leylin.
"Half an hour. That's much too long!"
Leylin wasn't so naive to think that the Magus who had designed the trap would be so kind as to give him time to escape.
Sure enough, the longer amount of time Leylin stayed in there, the black metal in front of him also started to distort and gather in the centre as if it had a life of its own.
The passage became increasingly narrow, to the point that only one person would be able to pass through.
"I can't let this go on any longer. Otherwise, I'll be stuck in the middle of a huge metal sphere. It'll take too much magic power and spiritual force to get out!"
Leylin glanced at the wall that had a large hole in it and rushed forward.
*Zoom!*
With the help of his burly physique and his magic, Leylin's speed was already past the limits of a regular human. All that was left of him were a few long after images.
The passage ahead seemed to sense Leylin's approach and converged at an even quicker rate!
"Hah!" Leylin breathed in deeply and quickly spat out a few punctuated syllables!
In a split second, the blood-red layer on his body expanded, the flames' range achieving half a metre, emitting a fervent heat.
Leylin seemed to have been possessed by some ancient flaming creature, and with his body cloaked in crimson flames, he darted quickly towards the small crack left between the black metal!
*Bang!*
The entire passageway jolted slightly, and the sound of corrosion sounded.
Right as the metallic walls were about to converge, Leylin had forced his way out, leaving behind a human-shaped gap. Droplets of liquidised black metal were still dripping incessantly.
Leylin's charge had lasted for almost an entire minute, and he only stopped the flames when his field of view opened up.
"What a troublesome passage!"
Leylin looked at the black passage behind him that had completely closed up. This sort of passageway might not be able to kill a Magus, but it was able to make the opponent waste large amounts of spiritual and magic force, and just the slightest bit of hesitance would entrap the Magus within it. It would consume a lot of magic power to fire a spell, and by the time the Magus' spiritual force and magic power had been mostly used, coupled with the curses and traps, it was enough to inflict serious damage, or even kill the intruder!
"This trap should have several parts to it, which implies that this is the area where the next part will be activated!"
Leylin surveyed his surroundings.
This used to be a garden or a place where plants were cultivated. It had a large area, and streams of man-made sunlight shone upon the land. Those were the Sunbeam Moss, which were tenaciously exhibiting their usefulness. There was also evidence of plants wilting.
"Though this is just a small-scaled garden, it seems to have been well taken care of. It's such a waste that it was abandoned…"
Leylin constantly swept his eyes over the garden.
His time at the Four Seasons Garden's secret plane had allowed him to identify a few plants from their remnants.
"The Three Horned Flower, Spirit Breaking Grass, as well as the Half Bodied Bat, Upside Down Lizard– These four are the main cultivators of this garden!
"The Three Horned Flower pollinates with the help of Half Bodied Bat, and the excretion from the Inverted Lizard is the best fertilizer for the Spirit Breaking Grass! In the middle of the region where the Three Horned Flower and Spirit Breaking Grass are located, there also seems to be a Star Fruit. This is what the Half Bodied Bat and Inverted Lizard feed on!
"This method of growing them…" A light flashed in Leylin's blue eyes.
"This can increase the output of the Half Bodied Bat by 50%, the Inverted Lizard by 40% and the Three Horned Flower and Spirit Breaking Grass by 10%…"
Constructing a garden outside a laboratory must have been to make it convenient to make potions and other items that would be useful in experiments.
The reason why Leylin was calculating the output of the plants and animals so carefully was because he wanted to probe and find signs of experimentation.
Just based on these clues, brilliant Magi could deduce the scope of experimentation and the laboratory's uses in ancient times.
With the knowledge that the A.I. Chip had gathered from the Four Seasons Garden's library, Leylin's knowledge was very profound. With the added aid from the A.I. Chip's calculations, he would also be able to make a fairly accurate guess.
"A.I. Chip! Search for similar ancient potion formulas that primarily require these four ingredients!"
Though the number of formulas that Leylin had received were few, the ingredients required to make ancient potions were made public. Only the steps to brew the potion had been written in code on the formula, and as a result, the A.I. Chip had gathered quite a lot of information.
[Beep! Entering simulated data! Searching database for compatible potions!]
The A.I. Chip loyally intoned.
Rows of data flowed, finally stopping on a few columns.
[Spirit Fusion Potion. Similarity: 79% Effect: Able to boost fusion between different spirits by a large margin, producing a new consciousness from a fused body.] [Rejecting Spirits Removal Potion. Similarity: 56%. Effect: Able to eliminate confusion between spirits while fusing and stabilise the new spirit body.] [Wolfiporia Potion. Similarity: 34%. Effect: Able to boost the power of the spirit by a large margin! Side effects: Spirit's consciousness will be expelled to a certain extent.]
Leylin examined the information pertaining to these potions, and the look on his face became more serious.
A period of time later, he sighed slowly. "These potions all complement each other. From the looks of it, I seem to have discovered something amazing!"
"Oooh…"
Just when Leylin was thinking of exploring further, a low and hoarse voice sounded, and an enormous and warped figure appeared in the line of Leylin's sight.
It was a huge monster that was about 10 metres tall.
There were numerous frightful wounds that were sewn together, and it looked to be the result of putting different body parts together.
This stitched up monster's right hand was twisted in a weird shape and had eight fingers. In the palm of its left hand was a large axe that was dotted with rust.
Other than the two large arms, there were many slim arms grown on its upper body and back which were continuously trembling.
"This is a type of vengeful spirit… the Loathsome Evil!"
Leylin sucked in a cold breath. "Such a huge physique! How much blood and flesh had to be sacrificed for its body to still be so solid?"
[Alert! Alert! High levelled creature approaching with a strong contamination of spirits! According to the Host's level, the threat is at a Grade 5!]
The A.I. Chip frantically warned.