Greem only had a small reserve of origin substance in his possession that could serve as sone of the ‘nourishment’ that the Chip had mentioned. Moreover, these origin substances were meant to strengthen his soul origin and increase his understanding of the laws. He could not use them to nourish his bloodline. Greem could only place his hopes in the Chip to find an easier, cheaper, and more available resource.
[Beep. Detecting one substitute for improving the starbeast bloodline.]
“What is it?” Greem asked with joy and surprise in his voice.
“Chaotic magical energy. The host can use the magic generator furnace to connect to the space beyond the planes and absorb unmodulated magical energy. In sufficient amounts, the chaotic magical energy can serve as a substitute to chaos energy.]
“How effective will this be?” Greem couldn’t help but ask.
[Beep. According to simulations and calculations, after absorbing chaotic magical energy for 4 hours a day for an entire month, the host will be able to improve the quality of the starbeast bloodline by 1%, and the quality of the Chaos Physique by 2.7%.]
“Only four hours a day? Why only four hours? Can’t we extend the absorption time and hasten the rate of improvement?”
[Beep. Host may have Chaos Physique, but continuously absorbing chaotic magical energy for four hours will also cause the body to accumulate a certain amount of elementium damage. As such, Host has to rest sufficiently for the body to heal and absorb the energy. Four hours a day is the most efficient time calculated!]
So that’s how it was!
Greem brooded in silence for a brief moment before asking again.
“What will happen after one hundred months, when the starbeast bloodline has been improved by 100%?”
[Quality of the starbeast bloodline will advance, and Host will obtain a new bloodline talent!]
Greem drew in a breath of cold air. Finally, for the first time ever, he understood the power of bloodline adepts.
If the advancement in the quality of their bloodline was always accompanied by the appearance of a new bloodline ability, didn’t that mean that bloodline adepts would obtain several powerful offensive options out of thin air that didn’t require the use of their Spirit? No wonder bloodline adepts were always able to unleash powerful spells that required no chants or handsigns, despite how little time they spent on researching elementium magic.
They weren’t using spells, but their bloodline powers!
A hundred months was no more than ten years. To be able to obtain a powerful bloodline ability out of nowhere in just ten years was exceptionally worth it, no matter how he looked at it.
Greem had already obtained a bloodline ability known as Energy Blackhole when he first acquired the starbeast bloodline. The Chip’s evaluation of that ability was reasonably high as well. If he could obtain another bloodline ability in ten years, it was sure to be at least as powerful as Energy Blackhole.
Greem couldn’t help but lick his chapped lips at the thought of this. He started to look forward to when his bloodline would advance.
Ten years might be a long time for an ordinary mortal, but it was only a small journey for Greem!
At the very least, Greem already planned to spend over twenty years in seclusion to complete his advancement this time.
…………
Northern Lands, White Tower.
Vanessa, who had dressed herself up as a young human girl, slowly walked down the corridor with a large stack of magical tomes in her arms. She smiled and nodded at all the adepts and apprentices she ran into along the way.
As one of the fairly well-known mechanical witches of White Tower, Vanessa had taken on several lectures for the apprentices. She was in charge of ‘The Origin of Mechanical Magic’ and ‘Research on Magical Energy Substitutes.’
After thirty years of hard work, Vanessa had also cultivated several qualified adepts. She was gentle and far more approachable than most other adepts, making him a lecturer admired and respected by most adept apprentices.
As such, most adepts and apprentices in White Tower looked past her identity as the goblin princess and fully treated her as a human adept.
Vanessa had a gentle and pleasant smile on her face, which was forged from a unique magical alloy. She kept the smile on her face until she disappeared into her room.
As the doors of her room close shut, the sweet smile on her face faded without a trace. It became the cold, expressionless metal face that she always had.
Two goblin machinist sorcerers wearing the uniform of the Brutalblood Army were waiting for her inside her room.
The two machinist sorcerer hastily walked forward when they saw Vanessa return. They leaned to her ear and started whispering.
“What? You said Greem personally summoned Tigule for an audience?”
“Yes, princess. My man saw it with his own eyes. Fire Throne might be on lockdown, but anyone that enters or exits Fire Throne will have to pass by Pinecone City. That is why I arranged men in Pinecone City a long time ago. My subordinate personally saw Lord Tigule pass by Pinecone City to Fire Throne. He stayed there for half a day before leaving.”
“Who else did Greem summon for an audience apart from Greem?”
“Greem met with Snorlax before Tigule, but Snorlax has not been seen leaving Fire Throne yet. Bug Adept Billis also had an audience after Lord Tigule left!”
“What is he thinking about? Shouldn’t he be busy absorbing the origin substance right now? Why would he have time to have an audience with Snorlax, Tigule, and Billis? If I’m not wrong, it has already been over twenty years since he last had an audience with them!”
“Yes. It is because we cannot determine his intentions in summoning Lord Tigule that our master has asked us to come here to ask you what to do next. Should we put our plan on hold and decide after we have ascertained his intentions?” The two goblin machinists sorcerers couldn’t help but further lower their voice when they spoke of the ‘plan.’ They even looked around them, seemingly nervous and in a panic.
“No, the plan cannot be put on hold. It must continue forward. I have already completed my arrangements in White Tower. Once we destroy that teleportation array, the people you have planted in the City of Machines must act as soon as possible. Apart from wind Adept Deserra, the rest of the stationed adepts in the City of Machines will not be much of a problem. You only need to keep them occupied while having others destroy the teleportation array, and our plan will have succeeded.”
“But…but Lord Gonga, Lord Locke, and the others are all still in the World of Adepts! Should we destroy the teleportation arrays, they won’t be able to return to the Goblin Plane any more!”
“Hmph, those traitors. They no longer think of themselves as goblins anymore. Why should we give them any consideration? Leave them here in the Crimson Clan to bear the brunt of their fury!”
Only these few influential individuals had risen to power in the goblin faction in the past hundred years of the adepts’ rule. Abandoning them in the World of Adepts would thoroughly break the hearts of all the goblins.
However, the reality was as the princess had said. These people no longer thought of themselves as part of the goblins. If they were involved in this plan, it was possible that this great operation that they had planned for several decades would be exposed.
At the thought of this, the two goblin machinist-sorcerers looked at each other and let out a helpless sigh.
Chapter 1059 - A Goblin’s Ambition
While the three goblins conspired, a loud clattering rang out. Somone was fiercely pounding on the doors to the room.
The three goblins shivered in shock and looked at each other.
Vanessa was the owner of the room. Naturally, this meant that she had the highest authority over the place. She waved her hand; a barrier of light appeared in front of her, projecting the scene occurring beyond the doors.
Vanessa’s red mechanical eye shone brightly when she saw the familiar towering silhouette
on the screen, but the light quickly faded away.
The looming figure standing outside the door was none other than Tigule’s Goblin Shredder.
The two goblin machinist-sorcerers looked at each other in fear. They had a feeling that things were slowly going downhill, rapidly heading towards a place where they had no control. They had just been talking about Tigule, and he was already breaking down their doors. Moreover, he was in full combat outfit.
Could it possibly be a coincidence?
Tigule must have rushed here immediately after leaving Fire Throne. Otherwise, there was no way he would have arrived so quickly.
Princess Vanessa scolded the two messengers when she saw the nervous expressions they had on their faces. She then waved her hand and sent them away.
There were several goblin teleportation devices leading to different regions in a secret room hidden in her quarters. It could allow the goblins to freely and secretly come and go while avoiding the detection of the tower.
Once the two goblin machinist-sorcerers had vanished into the teleportation devices, Vanessa calmed herself down. It was then that she strode towards the door and dispelled all the magical protections around her quarters.
The doors opened wide.
Tigule roughly blasted through the alloy doors with the Goblin Shredder, breaking into the room with rumbling steps. A dozen magical machines in full combat gear followed behind him.
“Tigule, this is my personal quarters. You…you have no right to freely enter in this manner!” Blinding red light shone in Vanessa’s mechanical eye as she shouted. She opened her arms wide and stood before the magical machine.
The Goblin Shredder ignored Vanessa’s words. Instead, it lifted its legs and strode right over her head. It slowly bashed down the doors to the four or five secret rooms, until it found the goblin teleportation devices.
The principles by which the goblin teleportation devices operated were not of the same system as the adepts’ teleportation arrays, which was what allowed them to escape detection from the tower. Vanessa would only require a single teleportation device if it were for the sake of her own convenience in traveling.
However, there were five expensive teleportation devices in her room. To say that she was using them for convenience in travel would be far too terrible an excuse. It might work for the more ignorant, but it was far from sufficient to deceive Tigule.
The Goblin Shredder abruptly froze on the spot when it saw the five teleportation devices. Vanessa, who had been following behind the Shredder, also fell silent.
After a long pause, the Goblin Shredder stood up straight and waved its hand silently.
The dozen powerful magical machines that had broken into the room slowly retreated and shut the doors back in place. The machines did not leave immediately. Instead, they stood guard over the entrance of the room in combat mode.
After a long time, the Goblin Shredder finally turned around, its vicious and terrifying metal frame facing towards the cute and petite Princess Vanessa.
“It’s been a while, Vanessa,” Tigule’s deep and tired voice rang out from within the vicious machine, “Can you explain why all these goblin teleportation devices are here?”
Princess Vanessa’s fully metallic body remained stationary. There was not a trace of an expression on her smooth and perfect face.
Clearly, she refused to answer Tigule’s question.
“What exactly are you trying to do?” Tigule’s tone was furious yet powerless at the same time, filled with unconcealable anxiety.
Vanessa finally replied to the question of her admirer.
“Helping the goblins rise to power once again!”
“With what? With the mercy and charity of the adepts? The magical crystals you are using belong to the adepts, the knowledge you have obtained belongs to the adepts, even the room you are living in belongs to the adepts. Every single thing you own belongs to the adepts.
“What exactly do you intend to rely upon to fight against the adepts? Three hundred million goblin lives?” The anger burning in Tigule’s heart only grew with every word he spoke. His tone was turning sharper, and he was practically shouting by the end of it.
“But everything you just mentioned once belonged to us! The adepts took everything away from us, then tossed the unwanted remains back to us, as rewards for our ‘loyalty’ and ‘diligence.’ That isn’t fair! I want to take back everything that once belonged to us now.” Finally, Vanessa started shouting back in Tigule’s face.
She balled her fists and screamed loudly, revealing her true thoughts for the first time in her life.
“As expected, that is what you were thinking.” Tigule was no longer as furious when Vanessa finally bared her heart, “Then, do you know why I’m here today?”
“It’s that tyrant. That evil adept that took away everything from us sent you here.”
“Indeed, everything you have said might be true. But…so what? You have already been living in the World of Adepts for several decades now. You should have witnessed and experienced the power of the adepts. Do you think that we could have continued surviving untouched, even if Lord Greem hadn’t invaded and enslaved the Goblin Plane?”
Vanessa, who had been shouting with all she had earlier, suddenly stopped talking. She chose to respond with complete silence.
She was no longer the insignificant and ignorant goblin princess of the past. She was a mechanical adept that had witnessed the world beyond her well. Through the massive number of magical tomes she had read, and through all she had personally seen, Vanessa understood very clearly how backward and isolated the Goblin Plane had been.
Even though she was reluctant to admit it, the civilization she had experienced over the years did not allow her to gloss over the problems that once existed in the Goblin Plane.
Compared to the World of Adepts, compared to the tens of thousands of lesser planes enslaved by the World of Adepts, the Goblin Plane was simply far too weak and primitive!
The only advantage that the Goblin Plane could claim to possess was its shocking amount of metal resources.
Meanwhile, the goblins were simply a weak race that kept guard over the treasure hoard without the power to claim its ownership.
It wouldn’t even take the World of Adepts to conquer the Goblin Plane. The goblins would not have been able to escape their fate of being enslaved and slaughtered had they run into any other planar world with some degree of power.
Moreover, while their metal resources could be considered rare resources, the goblins themselves were barely qualified as a labor force. They might not even have the qualifications to serve as slaves.
As such, the fact that the Goblin Plan had run into Greem and the Crimson Clan could be considered fortunate for them. At the very least, the Crimson Clan had not employed the most barbaric and cruel way possible in taking over the Goblin Plane. They did not enslave all the goblins and reduce them to mere miners.
It was probably the greatest fortune in all of their misfortunes!
However, Vanessa was the princess of the goblins. She could never rid herself of that damned and heavy tag. As the only noble princess of the goblin royalty, Vanessa was constantly dreaming of the glory and brilliance of the Goblin Empire rising by her hands once again.
These wild dreams forced her to push towards that unspeakable ‘Secession Plan’ slowly, one doomed step at a time!
Vanessa had always believed her actions to be successful and covert in the past.
However, when Tigule, who was completely uninvolved in the affair, appeared before her, she had a sudden and shocking realization. None of her actions in the past had ever escaped the grasp of the adepts.
How much did the adepts know? How many core members of the Magic Energy Association had already been exposed? Could the Secession Plan still be carried out?
While Vanessa was caught up in her state of panic and loss, the cockpit of the Goblin Shredder opened up. Tigule jumped out in his tightsuit, grabbed her by the
shoulders, and shook her gently, “Wake up, Vanessa. Your plan, your people. Everything is within the grasp of the Crimson Clan. It doesn’t matter how good your intentions are; your reckless actions will never bring about a happy future for the goblin race. You will only be leading even more goblins into the abyss with you. Turn back, Vanessa. As long as you are willing to give up on these delusions, I…I can protect you with my life on the line. I can ensure you stay alive.”
Vanessa might be a lot more petite than Tigule, but her ‘weakness’ was only on the surface. In the end, Vanessa possessed the power of an advanced First Grade mechanical witch. Dealing with the intermediate First Grade Tigule at such a close distance was no problem at all.
Tigule might be able to fight as an advanced Second Grade while hiding inside the Goblin Shredder. However, now that he had emerged from his armor, he was no more than a slightly stronger goblin pilot!
Red light glowed brightly in Vanessa’s strange mechanical eyes.
…………
One of the higher floors of White Tower.
Meryl was seated in her chair in a bright, large arcane hall, silently listening to Vanlier’s report.
Snorlax was rubbing his hands together in the corner of the hall, excitement written all over his face.
“You mean…Tigule led his men into Vanessa’s room, then had them exit the room while he remained inside her room alone?” An intimidating light glowed in Meryl’s red eyes as she asked with a cold and cutting voice.
“Yes!”
“There’s nothing strange in Vanessa’s room, is there?”
“We have been keeping a very close eye on her recently. Even though she has not made any contact with any members of the Magic Energy Association, the Association has become increasingly active.
As such, I suspect that there is some sort of strange device in her room that allows her to maintain contact with the outside world.” Vanlier had become sharper and more capable after all these years serving as Meryl’s aide.
“My lady, if I’m not wrong, Vanessa might be hiding some goblin teleportation devices in her room.”
Age of Adepts c1-1513 Page 650