"If I want to upgrade my Dullahan Cavalry Crossbow, I'll have to return to Calore to get the materials first, then take some time to do some research."
Nie Yan glanced at the time. It was about time to log off. After exiting the game, he stepped out of the game capsule.
"You're out now? Good, come! Let's go have some breakfast," Xie Yao greeted with a splendid smile.
Nie Yan nodded. After brushing his teeth and washing up, he sat down with Xie Yao at the breakfast table. The rays of the early morning sun filtering through the window appeared especially bright. Xie Yao was as beautiful as ever in her bright yellow sundress. Her calm and gentle smile brought a feeling of warmth to his heart.
After constantly chasing the apex inside the game, being able to come out and enjoy this kind of atmosphere in real life was an indescribable bliss.
"So, how is your Phoenix?" Nie Yan asked. He couldn't help but feel a little guilty. It had been a while since he had last checked up on Xie Yao's progress. Luckily, she was understanding. Knowing her significant other was ever busy, she'd vowed to do the same in an effort to be of use to him, to stand proudly by his side.
"It's a Rank 6 flying mount that specializes in fire magic. Thanks to my influence, it knows a bit of light magic too. It also has the Flame Rebirth skill. Its defense and health are much lower than your Darkwing Dragon's, but its magic abilities are top tier," Xie Yao replied. She had no complaints about her Phoenix's strength.
After inquiring about the Phoenix's specific stats, Nie Yan had a more or less rough understanding of it. The Phoenix and the Darkwing Dragon were two different types of flying mounts. The former specialized in offensive magic, while the latter leaned more toward close combat with high defense and resistance to magic. Its physical attacks far surpassed equal rank flying mounts.
If the two fought on equal footing, the Darkwing Dragon would definitely come out the victor. Dragons were well-known for their astonishing resilience to magic. The Phoenix's ordinary attacks would have no effect on the Darkwing Dragon. If it allowed the Darkwing Dragon to get close, and the two scuffled at close-range, it would be at even more of a disadvantage. So, in the rankings for various creatures, the Darkwing Dragon stood above the Phoenix.
"It'll take me another 10 days to finish my class advancement quest," Xie Yao informed. Thinking about how she was going to become a Holy Magister, she was elated. She would finally have the qualifications to be of help to Nie Yan.
In all of Conviction, Holy Magisters were an absolutely awe-inspiring class. Their powerful magic could decimate a battlefield and reap countless lives.
The most important factor that differentiated Magisters from Great Mages was that a Magister had a much deeper comprehension of the essence of magic, allowing them to tap into taboo powers. Some powerful forbidden magic could destroy the heavens and upend the earth. Holy Magisters specialized in light magic. So, the damage they dealt to creatures of darkness far exceeded that of other Magisters.
Not just Xie Yao, but many more other Magisters would emerge from Asskickers United. They would become the guild's most frightening force.
At present, the other guilds including Angel Corps only had a few members doing their class advancement quests, lagging far behind Asskickers United.
Before long, Angel Corps would realize that prioritizing capturing flying mounts over the fostering of Master Class players was a costly mistake. By neglecting the roots and pursuing the peak, the advantage they had built up so far would slowly erode away.
"After becoming a Holy Magister, you should be able to learn one or two forbidden spells. When the time comes and you can't decide which ones to pick, come ask me," Nie Yan said. He had a bit of knowledge on the forbidden spells of Magisters.
"Okay!" Xie Yao nodded enthusiastically. She had complete faith in Nie Yan.
After finishing breakfast, Nie Yan and Xie Yao left for school, where they headed off for their respective classes.
As soon as Nie Yan stepped into the classroom, he instantly became the center of attention. Everyone stared at him with strange expressions. Especially notable were Fu Guangtao and them, who looked at Nie Yan in fear before quickly turning their heads away.
Nie Yan raised his brows in surprise. He suspiciously examined himself to make sure there was nothing on him before walking over to his desk.
Ever since finding out that he was Nirvana Flame inside Conviction, the students in the command faculty viewed him in a new light. They had a hard time treating him as the same low-key, quiet person as before.
"Good morning, Boss!" a student greeted. Thanks to Xu Yan's influence, he had entered Asskickers United and was already a full-fledged member.
Nie Yan's footsteps froze in place as a wry smile tugged at his face. He had no idea how to reply. He could already imagine how ridiculous it would look if more than half the class started calling him boss from now on.
"Morning." Nie Yan nodded, deciding to respond the same as he normally would.
"Good morning, Boss!"
"Good morning!"
...
Even Chu Chenghao, who had quite a bit of status in the class, greeted Nie Yan in the same manner. They all revered him from the bottom of their hearts.
Even though Nie Yan could tell Chu Chenghao and the others were sincere in their greetings, they were still his fellow classmates. Being called boss by so many of them left him feeling uncomfortable.
As Nie Yan sat down on his seat, Xu Yan inched himself closer.
"Boss! What do you think? Five people from our command faculty have already joined Asskickers United, and another eight are planning to join soon. Soon enough, almost everyone in the class will be calling you boss," Xu Yan smiled brightly.
Nie Yan waved his hand with a helpless smile. "You guys should just call me Nie Yan. I feel my whole body cringing every time I hear someone in class calling me boss."
Xu Yan laughed out loud. However, he sympathized a little. Perhaps after reaching Nie Yan's heights, one would no longer care for such forms of addresses.
What Nie Yan wanted was something more genuine. Rather than having his classmates feel apprehension about approaching him, he'd wanted to grow more powerful from the shadows and keep his low-profile so there wasn't such a barrier keeping him from making real connections. Alas, it was too late for that now.
"Boss, should we tell Undying Scoundrel and Big Sis Muslin about you being a student here? Besides Heavenly Kings and the student union, no one else can match their influence in the Top Military Academy. After getting beaten so badly last time, those guys from Bloodfiends have plummeted in popularity. They're already no longer the same as before," Xu Yan said.
"Tell them?" Nie Yan thought for a moment before shaking his head. "Maybe in the future. Let them know they have full authority to recruit more members into Azure Windchime. However, the restrictions inside the guild are still the same, you can only pull in new members from the outside. Focus on quality over quantity. If they have any questions, they can contact me inside the game."
"Alright, I'll immediately call Big Sis Muslin!" Xu Yan excitedly said. If Azure Windchime started recruiting members from within the Top Military Academy, who knew how many people would flock to join. A crazy recruiting spree would sweep through the entire school.
When Nie Yan, Xu Yan, and the others were chatting, Fu Guangtao came over. His complexion looked a bit unnatural, as if he hadn't gotten a wink of sleep all night. His eyes were filled with nervousness.
Seeing Fu Guangtao walk over, Xu Yan, Xia Tianyu, and Fei Zhe immediately narrowed their eyes. Most of the class shifted their attention over. At present, more than half the people in the command faculty were Nie Yan's. If Fu Guangtao tried to pull any tricks, he would immediately be crushed.
Fu Guangtao's face flickered with various emotions. Ever since he found out Nie Yan was Nirvana Flame, he felt like his life was over, his mind shrouded in a haze. Nie Yan was undoubtedly the most powerful person in the entire Viridian Empire. If Nie Yan wanted him gone, all he would have to do was give the command, and several dozen high level Thieves would hunt him down until he was slaughtered back to Level 0. This was most definitely possible with Asskickers United's strength.
For the past day, Fu Guangtao felt an immense weight bearing down on his chest, pushing him to the brink of a mental breakdown. He couldn't help but get paranoid. Perhaps, Nie Yan had already given out the order to have him hunted down. It was just that they hadn't started yet.
Nie Yan shot Fu Guangtao a disinterested glance, his expression as unmoving as Mt. Tai. After being the guild leader of Asskickers United for so long, he already possessed the air of a bigshot.
Even in the face of perilous danger, Nie Yan could still maintain absolute calm, to say nothing of the present situation. Fu Guangtao was a small fry among small fry, one he could hardly deign to pay attention to. A heaven-favoured talent? A top ranking student in the entire nation? A 1 out of 10,000 genius who managed to enter the Top Military Academy? In his eyes, they were simply first-year freshmen, immature brats who had yet to gain any life experience.
When Fu Guangtao saw Nie Yan's appearance, he finally understood something. Previously, when he mocked Nie Yan, he had really been asking for trouble. The reason Nie Yan always ignored him wasn't that he was scared but rather he couldn't be bothered with a nobody like him.
Fu Guangtao finally threw away the last bit of his pride and arrogance. He lowered his head and said in a humble voice, "Nie Yan, please forgive me. I was truly blind. I don't expect you to let me off the hook completely, but on the account of us all being classmates, I'd be really grateful if you would go lenient on me."
Xu Yan, Fei Zhe, and the others were all dumbstruck. They didn't expect that someone like Fu Guangtao, who had his head so far up his ass that all he could see was his own bullshit, would suddenly take the initiative to apologize. Their eyes widened in shock.
However, thinking about it, if they were in Fu Guangtao's shoes, they would likely do the same. The strength behind Nie Yan was simply too overwhelming. They weren't even on the same plane of existence as him. He was a giant who could crush them to death with a tap of his finger. Offending him was tantamount to courting death. In the command faculty, even dragons would have to submit to him.
Some people should never be provoked.