“There are many good items in this spatial ring, but the defensive layer on the surface is slightly troublesome. I’ll need to use the A.I. Chip and slowly analyse it.”
Leylin scratched his chin and kept the green ring away.
Rosby was a rank 2 Magus and had a spatial item. He would definitely have a lot of resources on his body, the total value of which could even exceed that of those stored in Green Water Gardens’ headquarters.
Gaining this was akin to robbing a large-scaled guild, as well as all the property belonging to a rank 2 Magus.
“The gains aren’t too bad this time. Also, hehe…” Leylin laughed coldly.
On the surface of the ring, he felt a tiny connection to a being a distance away. This meant that Rosby had yet to truly die.
The connection was minute, and if not for Leylin already being a rank 2 Magus, as well as the A.I. Chip’s help in carefully scanning the ring a few times, he might not even have noticed this.
If his opponent were to escape this time and find the ring on Leylin’s person, things would be bad.
But now? Leylin glanced in the direction that Ernis had fled, a slight smile on his face.
“It’s great that you could come back!” Longbottom glanced at Ernis, revealing a bright smile.
“I was just lucky!” Ernis laughed wryly, though the seed of distrust had been planted within him.
The two of them had already returned to the little manor.
The four Secret Silver Puppets had been reduced to dust after being attacked by the two dark elves and many Magi.
“Do you know who that Magus is?” Longbottom asked Ernis.
“No, but he should be an enemy of Rosby’s. The strength of a rank 2 Magus is too far off, so I couldn’t gather any useful information.” Ernis seemed a little regretful.
All of a sudden, he felt a prophecy entering his mind, and his eyes turned white.
“Rosby is dead, but the seed of a clone is still within the headquarters of Green Water Gardens!”
Ernis quickly passed on this information to Longbottom and asked, “What should we do?”
“Is there a need to ask?” A sinister smile appeared on Longbottom’s face.
“Summon our people. We shall go to their headquarters!”
Intrinsic Quality
There was still something else that Longbottom had not mentioned.
“Since the Magus that appeared seemed to have some squabble with Rosby, I’ll definitely get into the good books of that Magus if I kill Rosby completely in Green Water Gardens and destroy his guild. I can then try to rope them in…”
As a spy of the dark elves, Longbottom never forgot his own mission — create chaos and lower the might of Twilight Zone. If he could rope in a rank 2 Magus, that would be an immense merit!
At this thought, his heart began to blaze.
It had not been a mere day or two since the dark elves had infiltrated Twilight Zone. Longbottom immediately procured a map of Green Water Gardens.
In addition, Ernis had supported him with information about their defensive spell formations and weak points.
Green Radiance City was the central region headquarters of Green Water Gardens. Today, it had been met with a calamity.
Flames burned everywhere, painting the sky half red. The defensive spell formations had collapsed, and the Magi lying in wait outside all charged in.
“Kill!” Longbottom took the initiative, mysterious green light bursting from his hands.
The Magi who were obstructing him wilted, drying up into corpses on the road. Amongst them were Magi who, like him, were at the peak of rank 1!
Green Water Gardens was a large-scale guild, and there were quite a few peak rank 1 Magi and contracted creatures in charge of it. However, under the attacks of Longbottom’s revolutionary army and the dark elves, they were unable to endure for long.
“This way!” Ernis’ eyes turned white, and like someone familiar with the route, he brought Longbottom further in.
Minutes later, they arrived beside a large ancient tree. *Crack!* The ancient tree was prised open violently, revealing a descending passageway.
Luminescent defensive spell formations appeared. Having been set up by a rank 2 Magus, they possessed immense magic power.
Longbottom sneered, “Looks like Rosby’s clone seed really is underneath!”
He did have a certain amount of knowledge about these clone seeds. Each seed could only live on and grow after the death of the original body.
In addition, he could not immediately regain his strength of rank 2. It would be miraculous even if he managed to keep the strength of a rank 1 Magus.
The value of a clone seed was that it was a second life. Even when one was training their way up again, there would be no bottlenecks impeding them from achieving their original rank.
The clone would originally be very weak, but as time passed, it would grow even more terrifying than the original. Hence, it was wise to exterminate it as soon as possible.
Ernis tested the formations with an instrument, and his expression warped instantly. “These defensive formations set up by a rank 2 Magus are quite strong. A peak rank 1 Magus will have to attack them for about half an hour to break them apart.”
“There’s no need for that!” Longbottom waved his hands, producing a black crystal.
“This is a gift from the matriarch. Sealed within is one of her full-powered attacks. It just so happens that this is a good place to use it!” Longbottom crushed the crystal in his hands.
*Chi chi!* The confused cries of numerous bugs echoed out.
A huge phantom spider appeared, this one purple. Its compound eyes shone with wisdom, even sentience, as it swept past Longbottom, Ernis, and the rest.
Ernis felt his heart go cold. When he was being stared at by this spider, it felt as if all his thoughts and secrets had been discovered by it.
*Pak!*
The purple phantom spider condensed into a ball of energy, striking the defensive radiance.
*Creak!* A large depression appeared on the defensive layer. All sorts of runes flashed, and there were also sounds of something breaking.
Upon seeing this, Longbottom’s eyes brightened and he shouted at Enris. “Attack together!”
All sorts of spells and lights crashed onto the surface of the defensive spell formation.
Like the last straw that broke a camel’s back, the two’s spells reached the layer and caused the spell formation to tremble.
Petals of light with runes on them continuously withered and fell, turning into little bits of light that floated away like fireflies.
The defensive spell formation set up by a rank 2 Magus were broken through with their combined effort!
“I can feel his aura inside!” Longbottom’s eyes brightened, as if he had smelled something delicious. His eyes glowed green as he rushed in.
Ernis hesitated for a moment, and followed him inside.
“Haha…” After passing through a short passageway, Ernis heard Longbottom laughing maniacally.
He entered an underground laboratory to see Longbottom holding a little boy’s throat, laughing loudly.
“Great Magus Rosby, guild leader of Green Water Gardens, O powerful rank 2 Magus! Where is your power? Where is your might? Where is your grace? Where has it all gone to?” Longbottom chuckled brashly in front of the child.
Vile characters always sought revenge not past the night. He had just escaped from his opponent with difficulty, but he could now grasp his opponent by the neck, controlling his opponent’s life and death. Longbottom was left feeling drunk on this feeling.
He had even assumed Rosby to be another rank 2 Magus.
Ernis was shocked to find that this little boy’s face was similar to Rosby’s, who he had seen previously. His skin was slippery, with the placenta and mucus still attached to him. At this moment, he knew this person’s identity.
Although Rosby had successfully reincarnated using the seed he had prepared bef
orehand, his current body only held the power of an acolyte. In front of Longbottom, he was as weak as an ant.
“But you still have your uses!” The green in Longbottom’s eyes seemed to solidify.
“Though you are an acolyte, you are still a rank 2 Magus at your core! Absorbing you will further my insights into rank 2!”
Longbottom smiled slightly, and lights flashed in his hands. Thin threads of red and green were drawn from the boy’s body, entering his palm.
The boy aged rapidly even as Longbottom seemed to be drunk with pleasure.
Moments later, face frozen in terror, Rosby collapsed to the ground. As if a mere dried husk, his body cracked apart on contact.
Longbottom’s face flushed red, as if it had received some great supplements.
“Quick! Move everything of value away before support arrives. Destroy what we cannot take!” Longbottom’s aura had changed after absorbing the life force of a rank 2 Magus. Ernis deferentially lowered his head, not daring to meet his gaze.
……
At the same time, in the cover of shadows, Leylin’s figure somehow appeared above Green Radiance City.
*Pak!*
With the complete death of Rosby, the green ring in his hands also produced a crisp sound. Scans by his spiritual force and the A.I. Chip revealed that all connection to the outside world had been broken completely.
This meant that Rosby’s clone had been annihilated.
“Not bad!” A smile appeared on Leylin’s face.
The prophecies from before were planted by Leylin, letting him eliminate Green Water Gardens and Rosby’s clone.
Furthermore, with the most valuable items all in Rosby’s spatial ring, Leylin had no intentions of vying over anything with these paupers.
“Time to leave!” He looked up at the sky far away, and disappeared with a shake of his head.
Moments after Leylin left, the sounds of hurried huffs sounded from that very position. The Magi who had newly arrived looked very benevolent.
Green Radiance City was now in a state of chaos…
A few days later, a monumental piece of news was transmitted throughout central Twilight Zone. It spread to the other regions as well, and at an alarming rate. Green Water Gardens, the large-scale guild, had been destroyed by Longbottom’s revolutionary army!
Even Lord Rosby, their guild leader who was rank 2, had fallen in this battle.
The fall of a rank 2 Magus caused a sensation. With the loss of Rosby, their official Magi, and their inheritances, Green Water Gardens would soon become an unrated guild even if there were a few acolytes lucky enough to survive.
With this task, Longbottom’s name spread throughout Twilight Zone, and the war council put out an astronomical bounty on him; his danger had even been rated at seven stars!
……
Elsewhere, Leylin had also visited Logan, the Protector of the East.
Logan was one to abide by his promises, and he’d brought his guild to the central region. He had even stationed himself near Nature’s Alliance and a few other guilds.
“We need to suppress them! I’ve already sent out the enforcers and soldiers to wipe out their strongholds.”
Logan huffed roughly, but Leylin maintained a thoughtful silence.
“These rogue Magi are really out of control. And then there’s Longbottom. We need to behead him and store his spirit in the council as a reminder to all Magi!” Logan heaved.
Leylin laughed in his mind. Logan was truly feeling anxious.
Previously, rank 2 Magi could disregard Longbottom and his revolutionary army, but now that one of their own had fallen at his hands, they could ignore him no longer.
“In the middle of a great war, there are still so many lawless Magi who are causing trouble at home. We definitely can’t give way. We have to suppress them mercilessly!”
Logan declared his stance, “This is the unanimous decision of the war council. In addition, no matter which wandering Magus it is, as long as they dare have any opinions about having sympathy or support for the revolutionary army, they shall also be punished.”
Leylin nodded. Guilds still held immense influence, and were entirely capable of ending these fads.
A Competition For Geniuses
Leylin deliberated over his phrasing. “But to do that, you’ll have to deploy the higher-ups!”
If the guilds joined forces, they could naturally extinguish the scattered rebels, but part of their forces would be tied down. With the north down, and casualties stacking up at the center, the cost outweighed the benefits involved.
“Then what do you suggest?” Logan seemed to be able to tell the hidden meaning in Leylin’s words.
“The rebels led by Longbottom definitely need to be suppressed and exterminated, but I believe we can try to pacify the wandering Magi.”
Leylin stroked his chin.
“How? Twilight Zone has a limited amount of resources. Are you, Nature’s Alliance, going to pay out of your pocket?” Logan was slightly annoyed.
“No, of course not!” Leylin smiled while he shook his head, “What do you say we hold a competition for young Magi?”
“Competition?” Logan was baffled.
“Yes, a competition between geniuses! It will be targeted at young Magi, with generous rewards and the opportunity to join some guilds. If they obtain a certain ranking, they can even enter a guild of their choice!” Leylin declared his scheme.
“With this, not only can we unite more wandering Magi and express our goodwill to the organisations behind them, we can also shift their focus from the unfairness of guilds to the vying for a position, causing internal friction!”
“This… Let me think…” Logan scratched his beard.
Leylin paid no attention to him and smiled, because he knew Logan was considering his suggestion.
As expected, minutes later, Logan roughly slapped the table, “It’s a good idea! Of course! Why didn’t I think of it?”
He stood up and quickly paced around the room. “No matter how much we try to tempt those old Magi, it’s all going to be in vain. They’ve already lost all chances of improving anyway, and won’t be able to cause many problems!
“On the other hand, the competition offers young Magi more than just glory. The generous rewards and the opportunity to join a guild will surely tempt them! We just need to hand some things out, and it will definitely change the dynamics of their army. We might even be able to pick up some good seedlings! Not bad… not bad at all!”
Logan kept nodding. He, too, knew that pressuring the lower strata was not a good idea, especially in times of war. Prying them apart would lead to a much better ending.
“I’ll go and report your suggestion to the council, they’ll definitely agree!” he did not even bother to hide his excitement, yelling out his agreement.
Meanwhile, Leylin revealed a profound smile. There was something else he had yet to say, but he was sure Logan understood it as well.
Setting up a competition to select Magi and taking them into guilds was also a type of revolution. This was a step in the direction of the setup of the academies on the south coast.
This way, Longbottom’s righteous cause would be wounded in multiple ways. When that happened, it would be the best time to capture and kill him!
At the same time, the various Magi training in Sacred Flame all fell into a stupor. They were all receiving a prophecy.
“Countless stars are congregating there. It is the location of both the beginning and the end of everything!”
Aaron’s eyes recovered from having been all-white, the fear still lingering in him as he patted his chest.
“I actually automatically made a prophecy! Looks like the force of destiny is unprecedentedly powerful.”
“Of course! A competition between genius Magi! Not only wandering Magi, but also geniuses of guilds can also enter. The judges will be the protectors of the four regions who are at least rank 2, and the legendary protector of all regions might e
ven appear!”
In front of him, Vinas rolled her eyes and said sarcastically.
“You-” Aaron was so furious that he turned red, almost getting up.
“Alright, alright. Can you not quarrel!”
Baelin was now wearing his Bio Boosting Armour, his aura more vast and profound as a result of the power of destiny converging on his body. Though he couldn’t feel anything himself, for Aaron and Vinas who trained in Sacred Flame, the change was as obvious as the lighting of a torch in the darkness.
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