"Kashia, you've gotten even more beautiful!"
In the Phosphorus Fire Swamp, the headquarters of the Ouroboros Circle was as bustling as ever, with numerous Bloodline Warlocks moving to and fro.
Under the colossal Komoian Giant Serpent statue,
He strode up to her with a hearty laugh and pulled her into a tight embrace, his hands shamelessly exploring her figure.
"Enough! Enough! We're on the road—let's talk when we get back!"
Kashia's breathing grew heavier, though her expression was one of exasperation.
"I really have fallen into your hands, Junior!"
"Haha..." Seeing his senior, who had previously given him plenty of trouble, reduced to this state, Leylin couldn't help but burst into laughter, undisguised satisfaction on his face.
Through his reverse-engineering of the Flowing Sand Organization's bloodline experiments, Leylin's knowledge in this area had advanced by leaps and bounds, reaching the pinnacle of the Central Continent.
With his own control and the Chip's assistance, he had already developed a technique to protect his own bloodline.
After multiple "field tests" with Kashia and the other female warlocks, these women had reluctantly come to accept that even if every female warlock in the Ouroboros Circle ganged up on him and deployed all their ancestral secrets and techniques, they still wouldn't be able to obtain Leylin's Life Seed.
Having shed his reservations, Leylin naturally enjoyed himself without restraint, though Kashia and the others were starting to have trouble keeping up with him.
...
The pink silk sheets were covered with the marks of their passionate encounter, and the entire room was enveloped in a rich, intoxicating fragrance.
Leylin was bare-chested, revealing his firm, well-defined musculature, lounging on the sofa as he listened to Kashia's account from across the room.
Kashia, on the other hand, looked rather worse for wear—her body bore the evidence of their vigorous activities, though a satisfied smile graced her face. Her thin robe could barely conceal her form, only revealing more than it hid.
Though she appeared to have been through quite an ordeal, in reality these were trivial matters for a female warlock. It was merely a rather stimulating game—she would recover in just a few minutes.
Take the current Kashia, for instance—her breathing showed none of its earlier heaviness and she appeared perfectly composed.
"Your rate of advancement, Leylin, is among the very top in the Ouroboros Circle. Only
When conversation turned to serious matters, Leylin dropped his earlier casual manner and listened with full attention.
"Senior Robin's breakthrough came from years of patient accumulation—how can I compare?"
Rather than basking in Kashia's flattery, Leylin merely smiled faintly and shook his head.
He had used several decades to reach the Liquefaction stage. In the Ouroboros Circle, such advancement speed should have caused quite a stir—it was, after all, the hallmark of an extraordinary bloodline genius.
But all that thunder had been stolen by Robin.
Almost simultaneously with Leylin's Liquefaction breakthrough, news came that Robin had successfully crystallized his Spiritual Power and advanced to the Crystal stage.
Liquefied wizards were still fairly common on the Central Continent, but Crystal-stage wizards were considerably rarer. The gap in both power and breakthrough difficulty between the two stages was immense.
Naturally, all of Leylin's spotlight was snuffed out by Robin.
In truth, Leylin was somewhat relieved. Robin had drawn away a great deal of unwanted attention for him. He had always preferred to make his fortune quietly—such flamboyance was not to his taste.
At the same time, he recalled the black marking on Robin's forehead.
It seemed that Robin's breakthrough was deeply connected to their encounter in the Flowing Sand secret realm.
Duke
"You two are both freaks!"
Kashia's expression was somewhat sour, tinged with indignation. Both Leylin and Robin had clearly reaped considerable benefits from their last expedition, while she had gained nothing and lost several of her family's senior members in the process.
What made it even worse was that the shared burden of being wanted and hunted fell on all three of them equally.
"Come now—it's been over a hundred years. Those people should have lost patience long ago..."
Leylin wrapped a gentlemanly arm around Kashia's slender waist and began to comfort her in soft tones.
"Oh right—you mentioned something last time about Astral Stone. What was that about?"
After some tender moments, Leylin finally asked about the primary purpose of his visit.
He had always maintained a clear distinction between business and pleasure.
Kashia, of course, understood that her relationship with this gifted junior was a fragile thread at best. Only an entanglement of mutual interests could bind him to her family's cause—or at least keep them in the same camp—so she quickly recounted the full story.
"An auction?" Leylin's brow furrowed slightly at the news.
"Yes!" Kashia swatted away his wandering hand but only shot him a glare. "The Blue Mountain Auction, held in Blue Mountain City, organized by a Morningstar
Seeming to sense that Leylin didn't fully grasp the implications, Kashia explained in greater detail.
It turned out that once wizards reached the Morningstar realm, ordinary materials and resources were far from sufficient to meet their needs. What a Morningstar Wizard required were treasures that had been exceedingly rare in ancient times—some had even gone extinct long ago. Such items obviously could not be purchased with Magic Stones, so private exchanges based on barter had become the prevailing norm.
The founder of Blue Mountain City, the Blue Mountain King, was a neutral Morningstar Wizard whose family controlled nearly half of all auction houses in the region.
Every decade or so, a grand auction would be held at the Blue Mountain City headquarters, drawing a vast array of rare treasures that attracted legions of wizard bidders.
Behind the scenes of the public auction, the Blue Mountain King himself would host a number of smaller, private exchange gatherings.
These exclusive exchanges had extremely high barriers to entry—even ordinary Third-rank Wizards couldn't get in. In fact, many Morningstar Wizards from various factions would slip in anonymously, searching for the resources they needed.
"The next Blue Mountain Auction is approaching soon. I've received word that someone plans to sell a fist-sized piece of Astral Stone at the auction..."
Kashia laid out the details with crystal clarity.
"Furthermore, even if you come away empty-handed at the auction, you can try your luck at the exchange gathering afterward. With so many high-level wizards in attendance, someone is bound to have Astral Stone in their reserves. Of course, the prerequisite is that you have something sufficiently attractive to offer in return..."
"When does the exchange start, how do you gain entry, and are there any restrictions?"
Leylin had clearly taken an interest in this exchange gathering.
He had accumulated quite a collection of items that he needed to sell and convert into Magic Stones or other raw materials.
"The exchange begins after the main auction concludes. Any high-level wizard within Blue Mountain City who meets certain qualifications will receive an invitation. And rest assured—the entire exchange takes place under concealed identities, so there will be no repercussions. The Blue Mountain King himself vouches for that!"
A guarantee from a neutral Morningstar Wizard carried considerable credibility across the entire Central Continent. Leylin felt reassured.
It seemed the material problem that had been plaguing him could very well be resolved in Blue Mountain City.
Moreover, after lying low for so long, it was about time he ventured out for a stroll.
In high spirits, Leylin pulled Kashia into yet another round of battle...
"Lord Leylin!"
"Good afternoon, Lord Leylin!"
Strolling along the main road of the headquarters, Leylin wore a pleasant smile as he greeted the passing warlock nobles, occasionally nodding in acknowledgment. This sent the lower-ranked Bloodline Warlocks into a state of flattered surprise.
He had earned a modest reputation within the Ouroboros Circle by now. Being Gilbert's disciple and his breakthrough to the Liquefaction stage were secondary—the real source of his fame was his technique for protecting one's Life Seed.
After Kashia, Milanta, and other female warlocks had personally verified its effectiveness, the female maniacs within the Ouroboros Circle had largely stopped pursuing Leylin.
If it was purely pleasure they wanted, their own families had no shortage of male companions—rough types, refined types, even delicate young boys for those with particular tastes. There was truly something for everyone. There was no need to bother with Leylin.
In fact, many male warlocks had approached Leylin as well, offering generous conditions in hopes of obtaining his research results.
Naturally, Leylin had politely declined.
Setting aside the risk that his bloodline research could be exposed through his techniques, the sheer consequences of offending all the female warlocks in the Ouroboros Circle were enough to make him keep his distance.
Using the technique himself was one thing, but once made public, it would be a direct provocation to every female warlock in the Circle. Leylin was not that foolish.
"Good day, Milanta!"
In the distance, Leylin spotted an acquaintance and hurried over to greet her.
"Oh, it's Lord Leylin! Haha... What lovely weather today. I just remembered I have a research experiment to attend to—forgive me for not keeping you company!"
Milanta forced a laugh, made an excuse, and swiftly departed.
Watching her retreating figure, Leylin rubbed his fingers together as if recalling the exquisite pleasures he had sampled from her, a wicked grin spreading across his face.
Last time, he had quite thoroughly put her through her paces.
Now it seemed Milanta had developed a bit of an aversion to him as well.
He ambled along at a leisurely pace until he reached Gilbert's villa.
Just as Leylin was about to knock, the front door suddenly swung open and a figure emerged from the villa, nearly colliding with him.
"Senior Robin!"
Leylin studied the current Robin carefully. The crystalline fluctuations radiating from him were unmistakable—he had clearly consolidated his position at this rank. Furthermore, the veins on Robin's forehead had grown thicker and more prominent, the black marking gleaming with an eerie light.
"Leylin!" Robin smiled, though the muscles of his face seemed somewhat stiff, as if he hadn't made that expression in a very long time.
"I have some matters to attend to—take care! The teacher is inside!"
After a few brief words, Robin hurried off.
Watching Robin's departing figure, a thoughtful expression surfaced on Leylin's face.