Age of Adepts c1-1513

by Zhen De Lao Lang, 真的老狼

  Billis immediately dragged the head slaver to a corner without any hesitation and started a round of negotiations while being careful to keep his cards close to his chest.

  The head slaver might have figured out that the Flowers of Misfortune were more important to this adept, but he didn't push the price excessively out of his desire to leave on friendly terms.

  After a round of negotiations, Billis turned over his claim of the fifteen elven slaves to the head slaver, while the man handed over four twenty-year-old Flowers of Misfortune.

  After Billis had successfully pocketed the four Flowers of Misfortune, the only thing left was for the head slaver to pick the slaves he wanted.

  The slaver had clearly figured out which goods he wanted, as he quickly picked out the elven slaves that he liked. His choice was very much beyond Billis' expectations.

  If Billis had been the one to choose, he would have gone for those with high elemental affinity and those with power. Though the head slaver had only chosen First Grade profession owners, they mysteriously included every single profession: archers, casters, and druids.

  Moreover, he didn't choose the few advanced First Grade elves. He instead opted for several beginner First Grades.

  Billis turned his green eyes around several times before he discovered the surprising truth. The elves that the slaver had chosen might not be the strongest, but he had chosen slender bodies, perfect figures, and their pretty and youthful faces; the slenderness and beauty of the elves were perfectly embodied in these individuals!

  After selecting the slaves he wanted, a native teenage girl waved a crystal stick and dispelled the defensive arrays around the wooden cages. She then unlocked the doors and ousted the chosen elves out of the cages.

  The elves inside the wooden cages immediately started cursing and crying, turning the place into a chaotic mess of shouting and yelling.

  However, the compounded effect of the sealing and weakening spells had turned the once mighty forest elves into frail beings. The native girl was a normal human at best. Her muscles weren't even developed. Yet, any single strike from her easily brought a master sword dancer to the ground.

  An indescribable sorrow and tragedy rose in the hearts of the elves as they saw their once undefeated companions turn into defenseless weaklings, causing them to cry out loud.

  The people around the cages didn't feel a trace of sympathy for the tears of these weaklings. Instead, they all let out laughter as if savoring the suffering of these slaves.

  Billis did not leave immediately after completing the trade. Instead, he turned to look at the other head slaver and merchant union representatives.

  "Since you are all here now, why don't you show me any good things you have in stock!"

  The other slavers and merchants were already itching to go after seeing their companion's trade. They immediately swarmed the adept and took out the inventory lists they had carefully prepared.

  And who'd have known? After some close examination, Billis discovered two rare materials that he was extremely interested in– the Redscale Overlord and the Poisondragon Water.

  The former was an odd insect with tough red scales, while the latter was a poison potion.

  Though Billis couldn't confirm their effects in the short term, collecting them for research would have significant benefits for his insect modifications in the future.

  These rare materials had slipped past the net due to the misevaluation of the Pale Witches, or perhaps due to them not caring for such 'small' profits. Somehow, they had landed in Billis' hand. Naturally, there was no way he would let them pass.

  Billis spent the rest of his time in the slave market. Not only did he gladly trade away his reward from the clan, he even spent half of the twenty thousand magical crystals he had just received.

  In exchange, he obtained plenty of odd flowers and herbs, along with some strange insects and poisonous bugs.

  There was never such a time where Billis had so strongly felt that otherworldly planar wars were truly the fastest way to wealth!

  …………

  Even as Billis was enjoying his search for treasure in another world, his Crimson Clan leader Greem received a mysterious guest.

  Honestly, Greem had never imagined that a familiar face would visit him in this other world.

  "Lord Arms, I didn't think you were still in Faen."

  Greem was sitting inside his room, leisurely enjoying the rich wine in his hand.

  The guest took off his hood and revealed his head of long, blue hair. It shimmered with crackling electricity that, when paired with his handsome and sturdy face, gave an intimidating appearance.

  It was the Third Grade Thunder Dragon Arms!

  Arms was standing straight, and his amber eyes swept from side to side before he offered his praise, "You adepts are truly powerful casters that are famed across the multiverse. To think you could build such a mysterious and powerful magical structure even upon the land of a different world. No wonder you people could fend off the attacks of the natives and survive here."

  Greem didn't know whether to cry or laugh at the dragon's forced and awkward flattery.

  "Lord Arms, we are already old partners. I will most definitely help with anything you need!"

  In honesty, the Third Grade thunder dragon was bearing quite the considerable risk in disguising himself and visiting Greem in this manner.

  Where was this?

  This place was an adept's tower guarded by a Fourth Grade witch!

  Even with the Third Grade thunder dragon's might, he would be captured alive within minutes if he was to catch the attention of that witch. That was why he would never have dared to take a single step into this tower if not for his faith in Greem.

  Greem hadn't done anything to him even when he was utterly sealed the last time. This time, they were in someone else's tower. Greem wouldn't be the greatest benefactor if he sold him out here. As such, Arms was confident that Greem would never sell him out in this place.

  Still, as a Third Grade dragon, asking for help from a Second Grade adept was a request that was extremely hard to put into words!

  "Er, did I heard that in two more weeks it would be the day you adepts open the planar door and return to the World of Adepts?" It was a simple sentence, but Arms practically butchered it with how much he was stuttering and mumbling.

  That said, Greem still understood what he was trying to say.

  "Indeed, the planar door will open in fourteen more days." Greem looked at Arms with an expression of surprise, "Could it be that my Lord wants to follow us back to the World of Adepts?"

  It was no wonder Greem was so shocked. The day of the planar door's opening would also be the day the witches were their most alert. It didn't matter how good Arms' Transfiguration was; he would not be able to sneak across successfully. Moreover, the Third Grade thunder dragon had been forcefully summoned here from Lance through a contract summoning. All he needed to do to return was to borrow the power of the contract. Why would he need to use the World of Adepts as a transit point?

  "Don't worry, my Lord. If you wish to travel to Lance through our world, I might be able to come up with some ideas for you!"

  "And if there are more people trying to travel the same way?"

  "Oh?"

  "Eleven dragons. Can you think of a way to help me bring them back to Lance?"

  "Ah."

  Chapter 716 Extorting a Dragon

  After a few questions, Greem finally figured out Thunder Dragon Arms' reason for still staying on Faen.

  Arms had actually broken into the Dragoncliff and brazenly abducted eleven powerful dragons from the forest dragon tribe.

  This iron truth caused the corner of Greem's mouth to twitch upwards. His facial muscles were almost in a spasm from trying to restrain his laughter.

  He had never thought that that one random move of his had caused the elves to suffer such tremendous losses. Greem felt extremely gleeful and exhilarated, especially after the beating
he had taken at the hands of the Sword Saint.

  The situation was apparent now. The thunder dragon had abducted eleven dragons of various grades from the forest dragons, but he didn't have the ability to bring them back to Lance. It was easy for Arms himself to return to Lance, but it was impossible for him to take eleven dragons with him!

  With no options left, Arms could only turn his mind to the only Second Grade adept he knew.

  Eleven dragons, one of which was Third Grade, three who were Second, and seven who were First.

  To think that he was the one to introduce such an alluring flight of dragons to Arms, only for them to fall into Arms' pocket. Greem's was currently experiencing intense internal turmoil. His handsome face wasn't quite sure whether to laugh or cry.

  Consequently, for a moment, Greem had no idea how to respond to Third Grade Thunder Dragon Arms' question.

  "I can agree to that request, Lord Arms!" A crisp female voice rang out from the side, "We can guarantee that you and your dragon subordinates will all safely arrive in Lance. However, the associated costs for travel..."

  Arms' eyes went wide as he saw the suddenly appearing Alice.

  "Second Grade!? Even you are Second Grade already!" The thunder dragon couldn't help but stutter.

  Dragons and adepts were two completely different creatures.

  Dragons had long lives, powerful individual strength, and an enviable legacy.

  It also caused them to develop a unique worldview.

  For the dragons, a hundred years were far too short. That amount of time would pass by in a matter of a few naps. However, a hundred years would take up the lives of most other short-lived beings.

  Dragons very rarely made friends with humans– not because they were unwilling, but because it was unnecessary.

  In all honesty, any human that could reach a level as powerful as a dragon would usually be at the end of their life as well. Making friends out of such people wasn't practical for dragons. If the perhaps only took a nap, then by the time they woke up their friend would be long dead, with a corpse in the earth probably decomposing into unrecognizable bones.

  The adepts might be reasonably powerful, but they had also inherited much of humanity's weaknesses and flaws.

  Even Fourth Grade adepts could not live longer than the dragons!

  Maybe it was their short lives that caused all adepts to mature and grow at a shocking speed and efficiency.

  When they had last met two months ago, Alice was a dying person whose life force was in its last vestiges. Yet…yet when they met again, she had already advanced into a Second Grade.

  Moreover, for some unknown reason, Arms would feel a vague sense of unease every time his eyes fell upon Alice's youthful body and appearance. It was as if there was something inside her slender and frail frame that demanded respect, even from him.

  "You've absorbed the pseudo-artifact?" Arms blurted out without thinking much.

  The Second Grade Green Dragon Ohgu had also become his subordinate. Arms had gained some degree of understanding concerning the things that Greem and Alice had done over the past few months.

  "Not yet; I've only absorbed a bit of it!" With the restoration of her life force, Alice's pretty looks and exquisite figure had been restored as well. Her spiritual aura had also become plentiful and filled.

  At this moment, just the very sight of her sweet smile would brighten the mood of anyone nearby, let alone communicating mentally with her!

  This change would not be observable to weak individuals. They would have no idea that their minds were already under her control. Only Third Grade powerhouses like Arms could sense that odd overwhelming sense of familiarity that accompanied every word, action, and move that Alice made.

  Creature Affinity!

  Arms couldn't help but frown slightly.

  He didn't know when, but the spirit that Alice radiated had somehow gained a trace of Creature Affinity power!

  Only Third Grade powerhouses like himself could resist the infectiousness of this Affinity power. Weak lifeforms whose Spirits were far below himself would unknowingly treat Alice as one of their own the moment they saw her.

  Those who were unable to resist Alice's Affinity power would never attack her of their own will.

  This…was a pretty decent method of self-defense!

  That said, even if Alice were to advance once more, she was still a frail witch that wouldn't be able to take a single hit from a Third Grade thunder dragon.

  Arms quickly broke free from the clutches of Alice's Affinity and reminded himself of the topic they were discussing.

  "You have a way to send eleven dragons to Lance? Tell me, how much would it cost?"

  "As you know, passing through the planar door means an unavoidable confrontation with the Fourth Grade witches. As such, I need to expend extra efforts to help you hide the aura of the dragons. I will lower the price for this service and only ask for two hundred thousand magical crystals..."

  "Two hundred thousand magical crystals? Not much, not much at all. I'll take you up on that."

  Honestly, this was the most challenging part of the smuggling operation.

  Trying to bring eleven dragons through the planar door under the watch of a group of high-grade witches was no more difficult than an ogre successfully advancing to become a rogue and then proceeding to steal from a dragon's hoard.

  The unique odor and elementium aura of the dragons would not be able to escape the spiritual senses of high-grade witches, even with dozens of kilometers between them. That wasn't even mentioning the fact that most of the eleven dragons were First Grade. They didn't have the power required to conceal their own auras.

  If Arms was to boldly approach the portal on the day it was opened, there was no avoiding his fate of being captured and slaughtered by the Fourth Grade Pale Witch.

  Before Arms could agree to the offer with a brilliant smile, Alice followed with another sentence.

  "…and for passing through the planar door, ten thousand magical crystals for each First Grade dragon, twenty thousand for each Third Grade, and fifty thousand for each Third Grade…"

  "So expensive?" Arms' smile froze on his face. He kept it up and said, "Very well, very well. That's not a problem."

  Unfortunately, Alice wasn't done speaking.

  "…the same price for teleporting from the headquarters of the Witch Alliance to the Tower of Fate…"

  Arms couldn't even keep on a forced smile at this point.

  "…and the same price again for teleporting from the Tower of Fate to Lance."

  This time, Arms' face turned utterly green. His odd, narrow pupils filled with the anger of humiliation.

  All these teleportation fees added together was already pushing toward a million magical crystals. Even if Arms were a dragon lord, he would have had trouble paying such a massive amount of money.

  It was practically forcing a dragon to hang himself!

  "However, considering Lord Arms' financial situation, we can accept payment by installments, pawns, or pledges with other items. Of course, if Lord Arms is willing to join the Crimson Clan, the costs as mentioned earlier can be immediately slashed in half." Alice looked at Arms with a big smile on her face, as sweet as an angel. Yet, Arms clearly saw on her back a pair of devil wings that couldn't be any blacker.

  "I could never bow my head before a weakling. That is the unchanging will of us dragons!" Arms still proudly roared even when he was cornered.

  "What a shame, then!" The smile on Alice's face was still the same, "Since you and your subordinates are not members of our clan, you are unable to enjoy the privilege of having the costs reduced by half. Given that case, Great Lord Arms, I wonder how you intend to pay us for the teleportation costs?"

  "Er…"

  Arms deflated almost instantly, despite his prideful and unyielding attitude just a moment ago.

  For the first time in the past two months, he couldn't help but regret how many dragons he had abducted.

  I
f…if only a few less green dragons had chosen to follow him, then the financial pressure he was facing might be just that bit less. A million magical crystals. It was a million magical crystals! If he owned a million magical crystals, why would he have needed to spend so much time and effort to run to a different plane to rob those brokeass goblins?!

  Aaaahhhhhhhhh!

  He had been roaming Faen Plane with the cute emerald dragon over the past two months–as if they were on their honeymoon–even as he basked in the adoration and admiration of his subordinates. Arms had been up in the clouds over his personal charm and had been giddy with joy.

  However, at this moment, the only thing left for him was unending frustration and regret!

  With the hoarding habits of the dragons, he should be able to fill in the massive sum he was missing if he went to borrow from the cute female dragon!

  When he thought of Iritina's coy expression filled with admiration for himself, Arms hesitated.

  The selfish and lustful nature of the dragons was known throughout the world.

  He put himself in Iritina's shoes. If he were Iritina, Arms would probably fly into a rage the moment he realized the dragon he liked had set their eyes on his hoard.

  No! He couldn't try to borrow anything from Iritina!

  How about making the other dragon subordinates pay for their own teleportation?

  If he did that, these dragons he had managed to draw to his side would probably leave him immediately.

  It was a difficult problem no matter how Arms thought about it. The previously prideful and intimidating Arms instantly turned into a frustrated teenage dragon, unable to make a decision even after he gritted his teeth and pondered for most of the day.

  "Lord Arms, we can accept other treasures as payment if you have of such things in your possession!"

  "Dream on. You evil fellows; don't ever think of getting your hands on my treasure!"

  Like an ignited explosive, Arms immediately flew into a rage the moment someone even implied laying a finger on his treasures.

  "Then… Lord Arms, I have another plan here for you to pay with contributions instead. Were you willing to give it a listen?"