All the Crimson adepts could finally relax after settling into the Shadow Island's adept's tower. As a reward for this battle, every adept was given around ten to thirty elven slaves, as well as magical gemstones measured by the kilograms.
Of course, the most important reward was the otherworldly knowledge they had obtained from Garan!
The forest elves were split into two major caster systems: elven casters and druids. Though the core of their system revolved around divine magic, their knowledge still had a great deal of reference and research value to the adepts, who were casters themselves.
As a reward for following the clan through all those risks and dangers, all the participating Crimson adepts and Fate Witches obtained a copy of a knowledge crystal. The significance of this knowledge crystal was far, far higher than those elven slaves and magical gemstones!
At any rate, there were only two more months before the planar door was supposed to open. Some of the more restless clan adepts gathered with the Fate Witches and joined the witches on Faen in their conquest.
The witches of the various branches were having a fun time against the natives of Faen Continent. They would be able to make it back just in time for harvest season and might be able to obtain a different kind of bounty.
Mary led Wind Adept Deserra, Medusa Dana, and Goblin Tigule to Faen. Only Dragonborn Zacha appeared to have no interest in the matter, loyally staying by Greem's side.
Greem took the opportunity to stay on Shadow Island. He organized what he needed to, sold off what he had to, and then utilized this chance to collect special resources found on Faen Plane.
After all, while many of these otherworldly resources could also be found in the World of Adepts, the price was chillingly exorbitant!
Chapter 712 Advancement Statistics
[Alice. Beginner Second Grade.
Profession: Leader of the Fate Witches.
Bodily Attributes: Strength 4 | Physique 3 | Agility 5 | Spirit 22
Profession Skills: Sense Fate, Divine, Fate Interference…]
The blue light slowly faded as Greem closed his eyes in exhaustion, rubbing his stinging temples.
Greem had just severely exhausted the Chip's scanning and probing abilities to perform a comprehensive construction of Alice's basic stats. Of course, this was only possible with Alice intentionally lowering her instinctual defenses and retaliatory instincts.
Otherwise, there weren't many people in this world who could bear witness to the leader of the Witches of Fate's abilities.
"How is it? Did you come to any conclusions?" Alice yawned slightly and stretched her body as if she hadn't seen Greem's glowing blue eyes.
Everyone had their little secrets. There was no need to uncover everything– that would make life a bit too boring!
"Your body is too weak!" Greem solemnly and unamusedly said, "Could your identity as a Witch of Fate also devour your basic attributes? Apart from your Spirit which has gone past twenty-two points and exceeded the threshold for Second Grade, the rest of your body's attributes are still at the same level as when you were First Grade. In fact, some of them have even fallen slightly."
"My Spirit has reached twenty-two points? I thought it was only twenty-one. Hehehe, it seems the Staff of Divination truly suits me!"
"Don't change the topic. Listen to what I'm saying," Greem rubbed his temple even harder now, "Judging from your attributes, I strongly suspect that your unique profession has certain energy-draining traits."
"What do you mean?"
"It means that your profession leans toward Spirit, very much like most elementium adepts. Moreover, your profession will slowly absorb the other attributes to feed your Spirit. That allows your Spirit to improve at a rate greater than even elementium adepts!"
"Eh?!" Alice was undoubtedly very interested in this topic, "Doesn't that mean my Spirit will improve much faster than yours?! This…this is a good thing!"
"Don't just look at the good parts!" Greem scolded, "It can also burden your Strength, Physique, and Agility, causing them to decrease continuously. If this keeps going, you might become as weak as a chick, as frail as paper, and as slow as a snail."
"So what about that? I'm a Witch of Fate anyway. I only need to point, do some behind-the-scenes work, and leave all the fighting and killing to you guys." Alice was still maintaining her nonchalant attitude.
"No, you're wrong," Greem shook his head and said, "The Witches of Fate of the past might have tried many ways to raise their Spirit. Based on the characteristics of your profession, it's very likely that only methods used to nurture Spirit were highly effective. Even if you tried to train your Strength or cultivate your Physique, the returns must have been inferior. They might even have shown signs of regression. That's probably what led to this unfortunate practice of Fate Witches only focusing on Spirit."
"You are saying…"
"I'm being very clear. You should formulate a more well-rounded and optimized attribute improvement plan based on the characteristics of your profession. It doesn't matter whether they are plans for nurturing the Spirit or the body; it will benefit your Spirit in the end!"
Alice couldn't help but be shocked.
"You…you aren't making me promote the stuff of body refining adepts among the Fate Witches, are you?"
Alice felt the entire world spin and her future go dark when the thought of frail Fate Witches being shut in closed rooms and soaked in tubs of poison to train their bodies popped into her mind.
Sofia was probably the only one who would enjoy a life like that!
Greem managed to guess Alice's thoughts. He chuckled and said, "It's not an impossible plan, as long as you lot are willing."
"No! I will never agree!" Alice immediately panicked, "I…we…can compensate through eating."
Er…very well, then. Customizing your diets is indeed one way to do it!
"Oh, right. Apart from my attributes, are there any other problems with my advancement this time?"
Greem brooded for a moment and couldn't help but speak with a hint of frustration in his voice, "You Fate Witches have given up on almost all defensive and combat magic, only keeping those few profession-related skills you have. That's why I suspect that the profession skills of Fate Witches have to be immense!"
Alice closed her eyes and sensed for a moment when she heard this. A moment later, she finally opened her pretty eyes again, "I had already mastered divination before I became the Witch of Fate. After I became the Witch of Fate, I gained mastery over the ability to sense fate. This time, through my advancement, I only obtained one new ability– Fate Interference. Its power is very intangible, and even I can't completely figure it out."
"Oh? What use does it have?"
"It seems...maybe, probably…to allows me to change the trajectory of fate for certain very minute matters. Moreover, the use of this power requires me to exhaust 1,500 points of the power of Fate."
"How much power of Fate do you have stored up now?"
"13,511 points!"
"How could you have so much?" Greem was shocked, "I remember you mentioned the last time that our whole affair on the Goblin Plane only netted you four thousand points."
"Perhaps it's because of this!"
Alice mysteriously smiled and flipped her slender fingers palm up. A delicate card materialized out of thin air. The card spun between her slender fingers, and Greem could clearly see the Staff of Divination and its unique design displayed on the face of the card.
[Beep. Detecting abnormal high-energy aggregated Fate object. Form of existence: Magical staff. Sealed.]
What exactly was Fate? Wasn't it supposed to be an intangible existence? How was it possible for a nearly solid energy shell of Fate to appear?
Greem shook his head in frustration. He was utterly confused by the Chip's data.
If Alice could lend him the Staff of Divination for some time to do research, then he might be able to get some answers. However, Greem could only let out a deep sigh and shake hi
s head helplessly with a bitter smile.
His current strength did not allow him to research such a profound and superior power. Even Alice herself, the leader of the Witches of Fate, was only using it on instinct. She was probably ignorant of the true nature and origin of the power of Fate!
Greem was only Second Grade now. He was still stuck on the level of elemental manipulation and mastery. It wasn't until he reached Fourth Grade and finally gained a preliminary mastery over some lower planar laws that he would have a chance at continuing research on a power as advanced as that of Fate.
Greem lowered his head to recall a particular memory and theorized, "It is said that this Staff of Divination used to be a pseudo-artifact that a human God of Divination of Faen Plane bestowed upon their own god messenger. When this god died in the war between the human and elven pantheons, the Staff was lost to the hands of outsiders. The fact that you obtained so much power of Fate in a single instance might have something to do with the fall of that Divination God!"
"These things are too profound. We had best take our time to research it only in the future. Speaking of which, you just looked at my attributes. What about yours and Mary's?" Alice asked out of curiosity.
Greem smiled and waved his hand. Fire elementium quickly gathered and formed into rows of text before Alice's eyes.
Greem. Intermediate Second Grade.
Profession: Elementium Adept (Fire Specialization).
Bodily Attributes: Strength 11 (18) | Physique 13 (20) | Agility 10 (8) | Spirit 26 (29).
Note: Attributes in brackets refer to post-transformation statistics. Profession Skills: Body of Flames, Flame Fiend Transformation.
Apprentice Level Skills: Fire Arrows, Flame Serpents, Burning Hand, Magical Fireball…
First Grade Skills: Magma Fireball, Meteor Shower, Fire Core Explosion, Firestorm, Fire Prison…
Second Grade Skills: Doomsday Volcano, Scarlet Firestorm, Demonic Wall of Fire, Meteor Crash...
Compared to Alice's profession skills, the fire spells that Greem possessed as a specialized Second Grade fire adept were innumerable. Be it the auxiliary Fire Stream, the defensive Lava Shield, or even the offensive Doomsday Volcano, Greem's crammed skill list utterly dazzled Alice. Her small cherry mouth opened wider and wider until she could no longer close it.
Mary. Beginner Second Grade.
Profession: Bloodline Adept (Vampire).
Bodily Attributes: Strength 13 | Physique 14 | Agility 26 | Spirit 17.
Profession Skills: The Embrace.
Apprentice Level Skills: Blood Mist, Blood Bullet, Bat Transformation, Blood-drain Regeneration, Blood Sense…
First Grade Skills: Contract of Blood, Blood Frenzy, Blood Manipulation…
Second Grade Skills: Blood Mist Corrosion, Bloody Claw, Boiling Blood…
Compared to Alice, Mary's attributes were almost perfect. Back on Earth, she would have been a superhero that could compare to Wonder Woman. However, here in the World of Adepts, Mary was still far from the most powerful fighting force.
The so-called strongest in this world only referred to those Fourth Grade adepts.
However, in his heart, Greem knew very well that even the Fourth Grade powerhouses that dominated the World of Adepts were nothing compared to the Great Adepts that had stepped out beyond the bounds of the planes.
The Great Adepts who could freely travel in the space beyond the realms, who could pass through the energy storms in search of suitable planar spaces to rob, were the true core powers of the adepts!
Compared to them, practitioners in the World of Adepts were like ants hiding in their nest. Individually, there might be one or two of them who were significantly more significant than the rest. However, in the eyes of the Great Adepts, even the largest of ants was no more than an ant. There was no possibility that they could pose a threat.
If the ants jumped around too freely, the Great Adepts only needed a single finger to crush them!
That was why Greem tried his best to maintain a low profile, even after he had advanced to Second Grade. He didn't want to fall under the watch of those ultra-powerhouses prematurely.
Otherwise, his fate would be decided by the whim of those individuals!
Chapter 713 The Bug Adept Returns
Billis was one and a half months later than his companions in arriving at Shadow Island.
As a ship crashed into the reefs at the shoreline with a resounding thud, a massive hole opened in the right bow. There was the ear-piercing sound of the ship's hull grinding against the sand at the bottom of the sea. The salty seawater surged in from the damaged spots as the boat gradually started tilting. Large numbers of splintered planks, barrels, and other miscellaneous objects became scattered on the surface of the sea.
Billis turned into a cloud of black smoke and rose from the deck of the ship, crossing a hundred meters of the sea and landing heavily upon the beach.
Several dozen muscular sand giants with undefined faces emerged from the beach, surrounding the bug adept the moment he landed.
"Give your name, intruder!" A cold voice boomed from above.
From the shadow of his lowered hood, Billis lifted his head slightly as his four green eyes–two large and two small–locked onto the strange witch floating on her flying broom twenty meters above him.
Perhaps because she sensed the familiar magical flux around the intruder, the patrolling Pale Witch did not have the golems attack.
"Billis, Crimson Clan adept. We came here with the Fate Witches!"
A few months away had only thickened Billis' aura of malevolence and savagery. His body, cloaked by the robe, also seemed to be fatter than before. The black robe was still wiggling where the Pale Witch's vision could not reach as if the body under it was not that of a human's.
"Billis?" The hovering witch took out an inspection crystal and started to scan Billis with it. As expected, the aura she extracted from Billis matched with the one stored in the crystal.
"Very well, your identity has been confirmed. You may enter the island now! That said," The witch had just announced the result of the inspection, and her tone immediately turned, "The ship you are riding on has been registered with Shadow Island; it is protected by the Pale Witches. Why is it that I can't sense any trace of life on that ship now?"
The stranded ship was tilted toward one side on the beach not far away.
No crew members had jumped into the sea, and no humans called for help. Apart from the dull thuds of waves crashing against the hull, everything was eerily quiet!
"Well, you know, the journey here took a bit too much time! I…I can't quite control these…precious babies of mine." Billis shrugged with a trace of resignation. A black substance fell from his black robe, plopping on the beach and quickly dispersing into thousands of black insects. They promptly dove back under his clothing.
"Your excuse is not accepted, foreign male adept!" A trace of dissatisfaction appeared on the face of the Pale Witch, "You have publicly attacked a native organization under the protection of my Pale Witches. You must receive the corresponding punishment. One hundred magical crystals! We will deduct one hundred magical crystals from your profits as punishment and warning!"
"A hundred magical crystals? It's only thirty-seven native mortals. They weren't even actual professionals. How could it be so expensive? You guys are so unfriendly to your allies." Bug Adept Billis immediately started grumbling unhappily when he heard of the punishment.
"Male adept, if you refuse to accept your punishment, I have no choice but to expel you from Shadow Island in the name of the Pale Witches! Choose. Will you accept or reject your punishment?!" The Pale Witch insisted.
"Very well, very well. I accept! You people that stay behind to guard the base dare treat your allies fighting on the frontlines in this manner; I will be complaining to the high-grade witches in your clan." There was no helping the situation. Billis might be dissatisfied, but he had no choice but to accept his punishment.
"Follow it i
nside! It will bring you to the island center. Also, your companions have already returned to Shadow Island. You will find them on the fifteenth floor of the adept's tower at the island's center." The patrolling witch turned and left on her broom after saying that.
The sand giants surrounding Billis also collapsed into the sand once more. Only one giant remained to lead Billis into the depths of the island.
Not much longer after it left the beach, the sand giant fell apart, and the job of guiding Billis was left to a Shadow Mastiff hiding in the shadows. They passed through a small swamp, where the task was once again passed to a Chaos Lasher.
It was an odd magical plant that resembled man-eating flowers. A human face was Imprinted upon its sunflower-like disc, and two vine-like appendages extended out of its two-meter-long stem. Hooks and slimy, green liquid covered these limbs.
The roots beneath it split into two strands, much like the two legs that humans had. The Lasher shambled across the ground with a weird gait.
These plants were magical creations that most adepts loved to farm near their homes as scouts or guards. They not only had long lives but could also feed on their own and did not require an adept's daily care.
Billis got a proper look at all the classic voodoo beasts and magical plants in the adept's handbook on this trip.
Under the guidance of these creatures, Billis passed through the multiple outer areas and successfully entered the island center after retrieving a strange crystal that resembled an identity plate.
Billis met his master in a room on the fifteenth floor of the tower. The master that had abandoned him on Garan– Second Grade Fire Adept Greem.
Greem was visibly thrilled to see Bug Adept Billis' successfully return as well. After some customary welcomes, Greem tossed a knowledge crystal into Billis' hands.
"You did very well on Garan! As a reward for your bravery, this knowledge crystal is yours. That's just my personal reward! As for the portion that all clan adepts get, you can find Snowlotus to retrieve it. Well then, if you don't have any other matters to pursue, then just take the time to relax and rest on Shadow Island. I still have a magical experiment I need to complete."
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