"Also, what's this about a noble title and territory?"
Leilin quickly asked.
"Well, any warlock who formally joins our Ouroboros Circle is granted a noble title and a certain amount of territory..." Robin began explaining in detail to Leilin — after all, he was one of their own.
It was from Robin's explanation that Leilin learned the member ranks within the Ouroboros Circle actually followed the same noble title system used by aristocracy!
The system was divided into five ranks: Duke, Marquis, Earl, Viscount, and Baron. A Level One warlock held the rank of Baron, Level Two a Viscount, Level Three an Earl — and here came the exception: if a Komori Giant Serpent warlock reached Level Three, they were directly granted the rank of Marquis! This prompted Leilin to muse that discrimination existed everywhere, and fortunately he belonged to the privileged class rather than the one being discriminated against. As for Level Four warlocks, they were Dukes!
And the titles were directly tied to status and benefits.
The Ouroboros Circle had a total of three Dukes, who together formed the Elder Council, known respectively as the Grand Elder, Second Elder, and Third Elder — they wielded the highest authority over the entire Ouroboros Circle!
There were further distinctions: if a warlock possessed the pureblood Komori Giant Serpent or Horar Black Serpentine bloodline, their title evaluation and territory assignment were quick and easy. But for a bloodline like Manxter, it was far more difficult. Take Gubule, for example — although he could be granted a Baron's title, the paperwork had yet to be completed even now, and as for territory, that was still far off in the future!
But Leilin was different! He was a pureblood Komori warlock AND a student of the Third Elder, Grand Duke Gilbert, with deep and powerful connections! Naturally, special treatment applied — his title and territory would be granted quickly, and both would come with the very best benefits!
Robin didn't take Leilin directly outside, but instead headed toward the basement. This was Grand Duke Gilbert's prior instruction — to have Robin show Leilin something.
"Leilin, have you ever seen a Morning Star Wizard's magic?"
As they walked, Robin chatted with Leilin from time to time.
"A Morning Star Wizard's magic? Of course not!" Leilin's spirits suddenly surged. "Could that be what we're going to see?"
According to legend, a Morning Star Wizard could move mountains and fill the seas with a single wave of their hand, unleashing earth-shattering, devastating power! At the thought of this, Leilin's heart began to burn with anticipation.
"I didn't think so. And Teacher Gilbert believes that only after witnessing a Morning Star Wizard in action can you gain some understanding of the path ahead!" Robin said with a smile on his face.
"Just hope it doesn't scare you!"
"How could it?" Leilin chuckled in amusement. If it had been before, there might have been a chance — but he had already received partial bloodline memories from that Morning Star-level scorpion-man from the Frozen World, and had even witnessed an ancient mythological-level battle firsthand. No matter what, he wouldn't be frightened.
"Let's hope so!" A faint smile played at the corners of Robin's lips as he and Leilin didn't leave the villa but instead descended into the basement area.
Clang! After an iron door was thrown open, an enormous, labyrinthine maze appeared before Leilin's eyes.
"This is the Palace of Labyrinth — a spell formation that we Central Wizards are rather fond of. It can be specifically deployed as a gatekeeper and defensive force..."
Robin explained to Leilin: "As the teacher's students, we have access to the first and second floors. As for deeper levels, the teacher hasn't granted us those permissions yet!"
With that, he stepped in front of Leilin, grinned toward the labyrinth's entrance, and called out: "Open!"
Crack! Crack! A layer of rock crumbled away, and from the labyrinth's wall emerged an enormous vertical eye.
"Remember — this is another of the teacher's students, Leilin! From now on, his access here is the same as mine!"
"The Master has already given his orders!"
A spiritual imprint radiated outward from the giant eye. Leilin understood clearly — this was the labyrinth's core, an entity similar to a formation spirit.
The giant eye locked onto Leilin, and in an instant, a subtle Field enveloped him, making his body tense.
Fortunately, the Field held no offensive intent — it merely circled around Leilin once, extracted a trace of his aura, and then withdrew.
Whoosh! The labyrinth suddenly parted, revealing a corridor. Along both sides of the passage stood various small doors, each bearing labels that indicated different subjects and categories.
"Now these are the teacher's real laboratories and storerooms — the villa upstairs is just a disguise! Follow me!" Robin strode straight down the corridor, with Leilin close behind.
"Over here!"
After leading Leilin for nearly five minutes, Robin pulled open a door and stepped through.
As he entered, Leilin glanced at the nameplate affixed to the door: "Visual Records Storage Room!"
Inside the chamber, the light was exceptionally dim, yet clusters of crystals flickering in every color radiated their own brilliant, dazzling glow from the wooden shelves.
"Crystal Number One! This is it!" Robin picked up a fist-sized red crystal from the far right of the shelf and pressed it onto a recessed platform at the center of the room.
"This is a projection crystal. We generally use them to store precious visual records — like a particularly significant experiment, or a high-level combatant in action..."
Hummm! Once the Wizard array activated, every other light in the room dimmed at once, plunging the chamber nearly into total darkness.
The red crystal atop the platform, however, suddenly blazed with intensified radiance.
Blinding rays of light poured down!