Age of Adepts c1-1513

by Zhen De Lao Lang, 真的老狼

  As he focused his Spirit and constructed a mental tunnel with his split soul, the split soul transmitted a stream of extremely pure Spirit back to Greem.

  After five years of complete stagnation, Greem’s Spirit finally started to increase exponentially beneath the monitoring of the Chip.

  32…33…34…35…

  As his Spirit continued to grow in strength, an overwhelming surge of spiritual pressure started to rise from Greem’s body as well. Dense fire elementium automatically gathered around him, forming into invisible flames that burned wildly in the air.

  The cave silently descended into a sea of invisible flames. All material substances slowly started to melt before the heat of the terrifying flames.

  Even the Third Grade elementium magical machine had no choice but to erect an energy forcefield to keep these flames away from it. The transparent flames gently licked its energy forcefield, silently wearing away at its magical energy. Even the elementium magical machine could feel its power quickly drain away.

  The magical machine was fortunate to be sustained by a miniature magic generator furnace. Any other adept would have had difficulty surviving amid these transparent flames.

  It was clearly one of the high-grade effects of elementium magic– Arcane Oblivion!

  Arcane Oblivion was a unique effect that could rival the likes of Arcane Absorption and Magic-Breaking.

  Arcane Oblivion was also known as neutralization. It allowed one to use magical energy of equal amount to neutralize or reduce the opposing magical energy to oblivion.

  Arcane Absorption, on the other hand, was better described as an innate talent of certain races. It allowed those who possessed the ability to absorb part of the offensive magical energy and convert it into their own strength.

  Magic-Breaking was used to pierce and penetrate an enemy’s magical defenses through specific techniques or magical effects. The reason the holy knight’s Holy Light Strike was so terrifying was that it possessed both Magic-Breaking and Exorcising effects.

  Now, as Greem’s Spirit continued to increase, his creature grade also rose from beginner Third Grade to advanced Third Grade. In fact, it was still rising even after crossing the threshold of advanced Third Grade.

  By the time the crystal shattered into countless pieces of glass shards, Greem’s Spirit finally stopped at thirty-seven points. This number was still at the level of an advanced Third Grade, but considering the Fire Throne set and Sodden’s Holy Ring’s bonuses to his Spirit, Greem’s Spirit was no less inferior to an adept at peak Third Grade.

  While Greem savored the feeling of power and invincibility from his massive increase in Spirit, he picked up on the abnormality on the outskirts of the sea of lava.

  The fire traps he had placed there had been triggered, one after another. An exceptionally slender and seductive figure charged at the very front, using her strange mental waves to detonate all the fire traps along the way.

  Three extremely familiar silhouettes rushed behind her, quickly making their way toward the cave’s position.

  Hm? Was the enemy taking the offensive?

  Did something happen outside? Why else would these hunter adepts suddenly become so bold, after refusing to step into the pool despite him having tried to bait them in here hundreds of times?

  Greem slowly opened his eyes, a trace of confusion still lingering in his mind.

  However, when his eyes that were burning with golden flames opened, his muscular, glowing body instantly absorbed every trace of fire in the room, like a whale sucking in water.

  For an instant, all the fire aura in the cave vanished, and the temperature fell slightly below average.

  An unprecedented feeling of replenishment in Greem’s Spirit made him feel exceptionally active. His powerful Spirit merged with the dense fire elementium aura outside the cave, making him feel as if he was one with the world itself.

  Very faintly, it seemed as if he could hear the shapeless sounds of the laws of the universe as the ground and moved. The laws of fire that he had always dreamt of appeared as if they were right in front of him. However, when he reached to grab them, he was obstructed by an unseen barrier, making him utterly incapable of touching them at all.

  Just as rage boiled in Greem’s heart and he prepared to muster all his flames to burn through this damned barrier, the elementium magical machine sent him an urgent alert.

  The enemies had arrived!

  As Third Grade adepts, most natural environments in the plane could no longer be considered hazardous to them. Even without the ability to manipulate fire, their power allowed them to easily remain within this pool of lava for an entire day.

  However, it was a completely different matter to fight a fire adept of the same grade under such conditions!

  “We are almost at his base,” Benija sent a mental message to her companions, “The fire elementium here is too vicious and wild. It’s too much disruption for me. I can’t continue locking on to the fire adept. That said, his mental flux still appears to be chaotic and unorderly. It seems like he has yet to turn away from his magical experiment!”

  “No more hesitation, then. Act according to the plan once we see that fire adept. We must capture him today!” Serpentine Adept Natagu encouraged his party as he prematurely started to transform into a fearsome Black Mamba, shaking his thick and long tail as he swam forward into the lava.

  Dirt-yellow halos radiated from his thick scales, keeping the shockingly hot lava away from his body and preventing the heat and pressure from affecting him. The halos also occasionally spread out to protect the old witch and the Blade Princess as well.

  They crossed three hundred meters in a matter of moments.

  When Natagu saw the dark red fire barrier at the entrance of the cave, he immediately shook his tail and surged past Benija, charging headfirst at the elementium magical machine standing at the front.

  Dong! Dong! Dong!

  A storm of bullets came firing out of the magical machine’s hands, turning into a terrifying current of metal and fire. These projectiles shot through the viscous lava and crashed against the body of the serpentine adept.

  A yellow Halo of Gravity wrapped around the barrage of bullets, causing them to swerve in a different direction and slide past his serpentine body harmlessly. Even the shots that found their mark were greatly weakened by the Halo of Gravity. They crackled against Natagu’s scales, but they could not pierce his defenses at all.

  Chapter 983 - An Intense Battle

  The bullets did not penetrate his scales, but Natagu could still clearly feel the intense pain inflicted upon him by the vicious stream of metal and fire.

  The serpentine adept twisted his massive body, preventing the barrage from hitting his vital points as he opened his mouth and lunged at the elementium magical machine like a flash of lightning.

  The sharp fangs of the snake clashed with the machine’s metal arm. Both parties trembled and were knocked back. The violent force of their exchange spread out between the two of them, turning into several force shockwaves that pushed the lava away, creating a vacuum ten meters in diameter.

  The flowing lava might have been affected by the shockwaves, but the three silhouettes following quickly behind the serpentine adept were not. They passed through the flame barrier without any hesitation and entered the cave.

  Katherine gritted her teeth as her silver body abruptly turned into a glowing bolt as she charged to the side of the elementium magical machine. Without any hesitation, she used her ace– Bladestorm!

  A dozen metal blades swarmed out like a hive of bees, revolving around the elementium magical machine and slicing with all their strength. Paired with the metal spike that Katherine wielded with the ferocity of a storm, the magical machine had to endure an unimaginably violent beating at every moment.

  Any other adept would not have been able to endure such ferocious attacks!

  However, the elementium magical machine was not a human adept, after all. It had a near-impene
trable body of alloy. Even if all of Katherine’s magical weapons had been enchanted with armor-piercing and sharpening effects, it was still unrealistic for her to break through the machine’s shell with her compound attacks.

  Katherine continued to circle the elementium magical machine as the sound of clashing metal filled the room. The two metal spikes within her hands were like silverfish, swimming about and constantly stabbing where the magical machine’s armor was the weakest.

  Sparks flew and shards of metal scattered across the ground. Fine scratches and notable dents started to appear on the elementium magical machine’s body. It was like a clumsy black bear, desperately lunging at Katherine but constantly missing its mark.

  The magical energy that they radiated bounced between the magical machine’s body and the walls of the cave, gradually increasing the difficulty of Katherine’s control over her mechanical body.

  Having lashed out with all her power, Blade Princess Katherine had managed to suppress the elementium magical machine for the moment and was furiously damaging it with all she had.

  With Katherine going full force against the magical machine, the other three hunter adepts were naturally free to surround and attack the young fire adept.

  The three of them frowned upon gathering around the fire adept. A trace of confusion arose in their hearts.

  His spiritual pressure didn’t seem right!

  However, the situation gave them no time to think about or examine their opponent. Natagu was the first to hiss and charge forward.

  An earth-yellow Halo of Gravity appeared on Natagu’s serpentine body, along with stone armor carved with profound and mysterious patterns. He opened his mouth slightly, revealing the terrifying white fangs and forked tongue within. He glared at the fire adept with his strange reptilian eyes, and an intangible power of petrification landed on Greem’s body.

  The old witch grinned with her wrinkled mouth behind them. She started to chant some wicked and evil spells. Gray and black circles of light appeared all around Greem and began to wrap around his blinding, blazing soul.

  Psionic Benija chuckled and smiled lightly, using her sweet expressions and swaying waist to launch mental suggestion after mental suggestion at the unmoving figure before them.

  Greem lifted his head and looked silently at the Petrification Beam, evil curses, and mental magic flying toward him from every direction. His mind was unexpectedly calm and composed. Powerful fire energy he had never possessed surged within his body. He activated the five pieces of the Fire Throne set and connected Sodden’s Holy Ring, pushing his Spirit even higher until it reached a peak he had never before imagined.

  Thirty-seven points of origin Spirit combined with the bonus of the Fire Throne set instantly pushed Greem to the thirty-nine point limit. At this instant, he was only one step away from Fourth Grade!

  Without any hesitation, Greem lifted his hand and released a halo of fire.

  Flame Halo of Repulsion!

  It was a fire spell that was meant as both offense and control. Greem typically used it more to control his enemies and keep them at bay. Today, as powerful fire energy surged into the spell, this Flame Halo of Repulsion displayed a terrifying effect.

  It didn’t matter if it was the lunging serpentine adept, the evil curses of the old witch, or even the intangible mental magic. All of them shattered helplessly against the flame halo and were blown away.

  Even Natagu, who had twenty-nine points of Strength upon transformation, was forced to stumble backward, let alone Guinevere and Benija. None of them could even take a single step towards the fire adept. Meanwhile, the special powers and magic they had just unleashed at him had all vanished in the flame halo as if they never existed to begin with.

  It was the Arcane Oblivion effect that Greem had just mastered!

  “Impossible…impossible! How could he have become so strong so suddenly?” Seemingly terrified by the might of the fire adept, Natagu suddenly screeched and hissed, “He must have used some sort of stimulant magic or item. His power can’t last long. Keep fighting on!”

  With that ear-grinding hiss, Natagu once again opened his giant maw and dove into the still burning sea of fire to snap at Greem once more.

  For some reason, the flames that he had initially been able to endure now inflicted intense pain when they burned against his body. It was almost as if his scales could no longer shield him from the heat of the fire.

  However, such pain could not force Natagu to retreat. On the contrary, it only made him more savage and wilder!

  Greem had now turned into a Flame Fiend with a sturdy body. When he clashed with the giant snake, the cave instantly collapsed.

  Two titans fought and tussled with each other in this environment of crumbling rocks and flooding lava as if there was nothing around them. The overwhelming waves of fire never stopped, but Natagu’s Halo of Gravity crushed all fire, lava, rock, and metal that approached them into pieces before flinging them away at the speed of bullets.

  The berserk serpentine adept was severely burned and blistered, much of his flesh scorched and charred. Meanwhile, the terrifying Flame Fiend he had coiled his body around was also struggling and resisting with all its might, even as he continued to bite at it with his vicious jaws.

  The serpent had tightly bound Greem’s body, and the grip was only getting tighter. His entire body was creaking from the pressure.

  Equally infuriated, Greem cast Fire Teleportation and dragged the serpent even deeper into the depths of the lava. There, he summoned one fire spell after another, each one more ferocious than the last. He had elementary fire immunity anyway. These fire spells dealt far less damage to him than the giant snake. Thus, Greem was more than happy to ‘torture’ himself in this manner.

  Fire spells that were enhanced with holy damage, the steadily blazing Burning Domain, and the tremendous heat and pressure of the magma; Natagu had to endure inconceivable damage at every moment, so painful that he almost wished he would stop living.

  The poison witch and the psionic quickly hurried over. However, they were soon shocked by reality when they once again cast their poison and mental magic on the Flame Fiend of Terror.

  Two out of three of their curse and charm spells did not affect the opponent at all. Even the spells that took effect quickly faded. They were burned away and dispelled by the blazing flames.

  Dammit! Such a situation only seemed to have appeared when they were fighting against high-grade adepts who were stronger than them. But…Greem shouldn’t…

  Just as they were struck by confusion, Benija once again took her time to carefully scan the fire adept they were fighting. Finally, her expression changed, so obvious that everyone could see it!

  Dammit! Peak Third Grade. How was this possible?

  Compared to Guinevere’s poison magic, Benija’s mental magic relied more on the suppression of Spirit. Her mental magic was intangible and invisible before adepts whose Spirits were weaker than hers. These adepts had barely any chance of defending against her attacks. However, when used on adepts whose Spirits far surpassed her own, her mental magic would be directly resisted. The chance of failure would rise exponentially.

  How did he do it? Was it just as Natagu had said? Was he relying on some sort of forbidden spell or unique item? How long could he maintain this state?

  A series of questions rose from Benija’s heart. For the first time, she could not help but start considering the possibility of losing this fight.

  Still, the situation remained a three-on-one. As long as they could endure until the fire adept’s Spirit reverted to its original level, they still had a high chance of winning.

  As anxious as she was, Benija continued to pile on more and more mental spells upon the Flame Fiend.

  Mind Spike!

  Mind Flay!

  Mind Blast!

  Frantic Frenzy!

  Chaos Consciousness!

  ……

  One dangerous and powerful mental magic after another took eff
ect on Greem, causing his movements to occasionally become slow and dull as he continued to fight the giant serpent. Every time he paused was the best opportunity for the snake to deliver a strike.

  Be it a bite with his fangs, a lash with his tail, or even a blast of his Petrification Beam; all would inflict unspeakable damage upon the Flame Fiend!

  Guinevere continued to skirt around the edges of the battle, sinisterly chuckling as she spread poison and plague around the Flame Fiend. She would occasionally rain down acid arrows and corrosion balls on the enemy in the hopes of penetrating his defenses and having the poison take effect from within.

  Unfortunately, the harsh environment here significantly limited the old hag’s ability.

  The fearsome poison that had stood its own against the Spirit of Pestilence was now burned to ashes before it could approach the Flame Fiend. Even when she finally managed to afflict Greem with some poison, it was immediately purified by a strange holy light before it could attack the organs.

  Holy light? Since when had the fire adept mastered even the power of holy light?

  The old witch simply could not understand.

  Chapter 984 - The Ferocious Volcano

  The battle was brief and brutal!

  After just fifteen minutes, Natagu could no longer keep going.

  The environment here, the enemy’s spells, and the flames that steadily burned and ate away at his flesh all inflicted tremendous damage to him.

  The scales on his body had already turned crisp and bright red from the heat. Most of the flesh beneath had also withered or been carbonized. Every time the serpent bit and tussled with the Flame Fiend, large patches of his scales and burnt flesh broke off from his body.

  After transforming into a Black Mamba, Natagu was enhanced with a powerful halo of earth elementium and gained an indefensible soundwave spell, along with fearsome Eyes of Petrification. Yet, at this moment, as his neck was in the grip of the Flame Fiend and fists were raining down upon his head, he had a feeling as if he was about to die in very next moment as if he no longer had any more strength to spare.