Age of Adepts c1-1513

by Zhen De Lao Lang, 真的老狼

  Greem's felt his head swell in the face of this task!

  Assassinate. The opponent's power and influence were too massive. It was too easy for him to provoke an enemy that was too strong for him to deal with.

  To not assassinate. Greem had already signed the magical contract. Dragging this out would only result in locking his powers at intermediate Second Grade with no room for improvement. Though Greem had absolute confidence in the Crimson Clan, his control over the clan would indirectly weaken tremendously if he, as the clan leader, stagnated in the improvement of his power.

  After all, most adepts still hailed power as the ultimate good!

  Though knowledge was respected as well, knowledge that couldn't be converted into power might as well not be!

  "Why?" Greem asked solemnly.

  He had trouble understanding why he had been deceived. If the opponent had intended to harm him, a simple Fourth Grade witch would be more than enough to wipe the entire Crimson Clan from the map. Yet, they had chosen to use such a clumsy and roundabout manner, all for the sake of sealing Greem's power at its current state for one or two hundred years?

  Alice fell into a brief moment of silent thought before speaking to Greem in a melancholic tone, "Sorry. This time, I might have been the one to drag you down."

  Greem was shocked as he said, "Why would you say that?"

  "We have gotten too close recently," Alice sighed and explained, "The Northern Witches have always formed a system of their own and particularly dislike the intervention of outside forces. I am the leader of the Fate Witches after all. Though the strength of the Fate branch has yet to return, the other witch branches are still unwilling to see me become too intimate with an outsider."

  "That's why they thought up such a relatively gentle scheme. One in which you wouldn't take up arms against them while still being able to indirectly knock me, the outsider, down a few pegs. Quite a brilliant plan!" Greem quickly figured out the idea of the scheme and understood the backstory behind the incident after expanding upon Alice's revelation.

  The only thing they didn't know now was which branches among the Northern Witches had had a hand in this conspiracy!

  Of course, those witch leaders thought it beneath them to conspire against a Second Grade male adept. However, as long as they revealed their intent to teach Alice a lesson, plenty of subordinates would arrange and plan such a matter for them.

  In the end, Greem had still been tricked by these Northern Witches!

  "They managed to shield themselves from my fate senses. It suggests that there are probably False Witches involved. Meanwhile, the one who tricked you into signing the magical contract today was a Deceit Witch. Don't be intimidated by her aura. I already verified earlier that the origin aura on the contract is only that of a Second Grade witch. She tricked the two of us very convincingly."

  That was just a Second Grade Deceit Witch?

  Greem's eyes were opened wide, and he took quite a while before he finally exhaled.

  Damn! These Deceit Witches were way too good at their Deceit magic! To think they could disguise themselves as a Fourth Grade witch without betraying a single flaw in their facade. Greem still felt it unbelievable even as he recalled the scene now!

  It seemed his establishment of the clan's framework in the Fate Witches' territory had still crossed a line in the Northern Witches' book. When he selflessly helped Alice back in Faen Plane, the Northern Witches could still turn a blind eye and pretend that Greem was a male adept that Alice was manipulating in the palm of her hand.

  Yet now, Greem's Crimson Clan had brazenly started to recruit civilians in the home territory of the Northern Witches and had planted his banner on their land. That undoubtedly invited the dissatisfaction of many of the witch leaders, making them feel as if this was a foreign male adept's influence seeping into witch territory.

  That was why these witch leaders would drag Greem into this conspiracy out of nowhere and feed him metaphorical poison. Meanwhile, Greem had no choice but to grit his teeth and silently swallow this bitter pill, even though he knew what was happening.

  Everyone knew how vital one hundred years of time was to a Second Grade adept. Even with Greem's exceptional talent and terrifying advancement speed, stagnating for one or two hundred years would ruin his life!

  "I'm sorry." Alice's eyes turned red as tears started to fall.

  In the end, this matter was uninvited trouble that Greem had to endure due to Alice. It was only natural that Alice was so upset and resentful about the situation!

  "Don't be in such a hurry to sob and give up!" Greem quickly returned to his usual composure after a brief fit of anger, "Tell me first, is there still any way to break ourselves out of the current situation?"

  Alice looked at Greem in surprise. She saw the calm and collected light reflecting from his black eyes. It was only now that she realized that Greem had not been beaten down by this accident and was still calmly thinking of a way to solve the problem and retaliate.

  It was a trait that all individuals destined for greatness had to possess!

  Secretly impressed by Greem's calm state of mind, Alice wiped away the tears in the corners of her eyes and started to calm herself down to think for Greem's sake.

  Half a moment later…

  "I have completely sorted out the cause and effects of the situation. There are only three paths that lie ahead of us.

  "One is to do nothing and simply wait until the effects of the contract wear off. I've done some divination, and this magical contract can probably hold you back for approximately one hundred and thirty-nine years. Once the contract loses effect, you will still have over a ninety percent chance to advance to Third Grade before your life force runs out, given your potential."

  Greem shook his head slightly, and Alice could only continue her analysis.

  "The second choice is to find a way to force that Deceit Witch to abandon this magical contract willingly."

  Greem shut his eyes and mulled over it for a long while before finally shaking his head with much difficulty.

  Since the opponent had come prepared, they had probably taken precautions against such measures. Abducting a Second Grade Deceit Witch in the Northern Witches' territory was practically impossible, even with Alice's complete cooperation. Greem could only grit his teeth and give up on the option!

  "Then only the last option is left! Find a way to kill that Second Grade Fire Lord. Once he dies, the magical contract would be largely completed. The remaining effects of the contract will not be enough to seal the improvement of your power." Alice decisively brought up the last deadly path.

  It might seem like the most simple of all the paths, but it was actually the most dangerous of the three!

  Since the opponent obviously didn't want Greem completing this contract, there was no guarantee that they wouldn't have something planned for the encounter with the Fire Lord.

  Given that case, Greem could no longer treat the Second Grade Fire Lord as a mere Second Grade Fire Lord when assessing his strength. Perhaps Greem would travel to the given planar coordinates, only to arrive in front of the terrifying and endless fire elementium army of the Fire Lord.

  Still, in the end, a Fire Lord was a Fire Lord. At the very best, he was only a somewhat stronger fire elementium creature. How intelligent could he possibly be?

  Greem gritted his teeth and said determinedly, "The third option it is then. I will kill that Fire Lord."

  Chapter 746 First Time in the Fire Elementium Plane

  The occurrence of this unexpected event undoubtedly messed up Greem's cultivation plans.

  The urgent matter at hand wasn't how to increase his power, but to create that Emblem of Fire armband as soon as possible. After all, it was the combination of two set pieces that could provide Greem with actual fire immunity, rather than before where he had to turn into his body of flames to be immune to fire.

  If he had no choice but to go into the Fire Elementium Plane, he would not have a s
ingle companion who could accompany him.

  The Fire Elementium Plane was the world of the fire elementium creatures. Second Grade adepts like Mary and Alice would not be able to endure the burning flames for extended periods of time, regardless of how good their magic resistance was. Even the tough Dragonborn Zacha couldn't last in this aspect, let alone them.

  That was why the only person that Greem could rely on was himself!

  If his companions couldn't survive in the Fire Elementium Plane, what other options were available to him?

  The Fire Elementium Plane was a pure elementium plane. The plane itself rejected all other elementium apart from fire elementium. All magical equipment or accessories that needed to absorb external elementium to function would only have one use. They could not be replenished after being exhausted.

  Magical scrolls, magical potions, wands, accessories; all of these tools could no longer be of much help to Greem.

  What about magical golems then?

  These elementium golems were what had helped Greem the most since he started his rise to power. Could he still rely on them to break through the storm this time?

  The expectation of his elementium golems quickly fell as he started to delve into more detailed information on the Fire Elementium Plane.

  That place excluded all elementium apart from fire elementium to an extreme degree. Elementium golems like the Wind Dragon and the Decayer would rapidly exhaust their internal elementium energy reserve there. The only ones he could use there were probably fire elementium golems.

  It wasn't necessarily a bad thing!

  At the very least, the Flame Fiend of Terror would be able to manifest for extended periods without any damage due to the plane's rich fire elementium. With the aid of the Flame Fiend of Terror, a powerful fire adept like Greem would probably have no problem surviving in the Fire Elementium Plane.

  The only trouble was the uncertainty as to what traps the wicked witches had laid around the Fire Lord. If Greem were tracked down by the enemy the moment he entered the plane, he would have nowhere to go in the Fire Elementium Plane where he had no allies or friends!

  The event that had happened to him concerned some secrets of the Northern Witches' higher-ups after all. As such, Greem did not reveal anything about the situation to the people around him. He could trust Mary, but she was an impulsive and irritable person. Greem was worried that she would sneak behind him to find trouble with the Deceit Witches if she found out about the incident.

  Thus, Greem handed all of his authority over White Tower to Meryl and returned to Fire Throne under the excuse of performing a major magical experiment.

  A fire elementium altar had been constructed in Fire Throne as well, which allowed Greem to open a passage to the Fire Elementium Plane at any time he wished. Thus, Greem felt like there was a need to first travel to the Fire Elementium Plane for reconnaissance.

  The creation of the Emblem of Fire armband still required three to four months. It would be best for him to familiarize himself with the Fire Elementium Plane during this time.

  After returning to Fire Throne from White Tower, Greem first summoned Gargamel to ask about the tower's situation. He then set down some tasks to be completed and waved Gargamel away.

  Once Gargamel had left, Greem used his authority as the owner of the tower to move the fire elementium altar from the first floor of the tower into his own room.

  The massive fire elementium altar had three tiers. It was twenty meters long and thirty meters wide, while each layer was three meters tall.

  The marble surface of the altar's base was carved full of strange magical lines and runes. Many of them were sketches of various fire elementium creatures. An elementium brazier was lit at the four corners of every tier, with a bright yellow elementium flame burning within them.

  A wide, thick slab of marble had been placed at the top of the altar. It was the altar platform, where the casters would present their sacrifices to the Fire Elementium Plane.

  Ordinary fire elementium altars had two purposes. One was to summon powerful fire creatures from the Fire Elementium Plane through sacrifices, while the other was the Flamegate that Greem needed to use. It was only through the Flamegate that Greem could successfully travel between the World of Adepts and the Fire Elementium Plane.

  Once the fire elementium altar had been placed in his room, Greem used his authority to separate a dedicated power channel from the energy room and connected it directly with the fire elementium altar. This way, he wouldn't need to worry about the Flamegate dispersing on its own due to a lack of energy.

  Greem carefully inspected the fire elementium altar once again after he'd done everything. He confirmed that there were no problems before waving his hand and activating the fire elementium altar.

  As abundant fire energy surged into the fire elementium altar without stop, the altar started to light up, tier by tier, from the base. The runes and arrays etched upon the altar began to activate wherever the fire energy coursed through, slowly but surely burning with dense and blazing flames.

  Greem stood atop the altar platform and hesitated for a moment before taking out the Blaze of Destruction from his storage ring. It was a staff that had accompanied him for a long time. Alice had given him the Blaze of Destruction shortly after her own advancement to First Grade. With the increase of Greem's powers, this First Grade magical equipment was no longer suitable for him.

  If that was the case, then let it unleash its power one more time!

  Greem raised his arm and lightly placed the Blaze of Destruction into the narrow socket located at the center of the platform. As overwhelming fire energy flowed into the staff through the altar, the Blaze of Destruction turned bright red in color before turning a blinding white as it grew brighter and brighter.

  By the end, the light it emitted was so strong that one couldn't look straight at it.

  The lights glowed and hovered above the altar. They then slowly gathered together and formed into the shape of a phantasmal door of light. Through this shimmering door, Greem could vaguely sense the destructive pulses of fire energy on the other side.

  The Flamegate leading to the Fire Elementium Plane slowly opened.

  The temperature in the magical room started to rise rapidly. The glimmer of elementium defenses began to show on the surrounding walls, floorboards, and ceiling, repelling the fire energy radiating into the air. Otherwise, the intensity of the fire energy from the opening of the Flamegate would have melted even the enchanted stone materials.

  If that happened, Greem's little secret could no longer be concealed!

  Greem's towering body stood in front of the Flamegate. He looked around him to ensure that all the defense and security arrays had been activated and that all his preparations were going according to plan. It was only then that he turned and leaped into the Flamegate.

  …………

  This was a burning world!

  The sky was burning. The ground was burning. Everything in the world was burning.

  There was no air here, nor food, and naturally no water.

  Of course, just when you thought this place to be a land void of life, this unique world would prove otherwise with its own odd and twisted planar laws– sometimes fire could also be life!

  Greem quickly lost all his physical senses after stepping through the Flamegate.

  He had no vision, hearing, sense of touch, and no sense of smell. Even his sense of space had vanished. The only thing that could help him in this strange and twisted world was his extended Spirit.

  It was like falling into a dark and bottomless abyss. Everything around him was hidden behind a heavy shroud of darkness, making it impossible for Greem to see anything, even if his eyes were wide open. Greem quickly regained his composure after a brief moment of panic. He started to converse with the Chip.

  "Chip, what is it with me? Why can't I see anything?"

  [Beep. According to the planar laws of the elementium world, no other elementium part
icles aside from fire elementium particles exist here. That is why normal human organs are no longer suited for this new world. Host must direct the reconstruction of the sensory system with his Spirits as the framework.]

  "Begin construction now!"

  [Beep. Host's instructions received. New sensory system in process of construction. Estimated time required: Seven seconds. 7…6…5…4…3...2…1.]

  As the countdown ended, Greem felt the darkness before him fade away. The shape of nearby objects started to become clear and appear in his vision. The strange mental flux extended in every direction like ripples on the surface of the water, feeding everything it sensed back to the source of the flux.

  A brand new world slowly presented itself to Greem, just like that!

  Greem slowly turned about and earnestly sensed the world around him.

  It was a desolate and quiet plain. Apart from two or three sharp broken rocks around him, there were no other lifeforms or objects.

  Greem squatted down in curiosity and felt the soft grass under his feet with his hand. The grass here was utterly different from material planes. All the grass and flowers were of a single color: red. If it weren't for the fact that the tactile sensation resembled that of grass in the material plane, Greem would have suspected that they were only flames of a different state.

  Greem applied some force and plucked a handful of red grass from the ground, placing it in his palm for better observation.

  It was an ordinary handful of grass, but everything from its roots to its leaves was bright red. Even the dirt entangled in its roots was a dark red. The fire grass seemed to have lost the constant nourishment of fire elementium upon leaving the ground. It quickly wilted and withered away, losing all of its life force in an instant.

  The next second, the grass in Greem's hand–along with the dirt on its roots–exploded into sparks of fire in a sizzling blast.

  Greem could sense pure and concentrated fire energy in these sparks!

  Chapter 747 First Scou