"Chip! Pull up my status panel!" Leilin commanded inwardly.
"Leilin Farell, Warlock, Fourth-Rank Bloodline: Komo Giant Serpent (Complete Form). Strength: 50. Agility: 45. Constitution: 100.2. Spiritual Power: 956.8. Mana: 956 (Mana determined by Spiritual Power synchronization). Soul Force: 96 (Five-Star)."
Seeing that his constitution had broken past 100—completely resolving the backlash from his surging spiritual power and soul force—Leilin finally let out a sigh of relief.
His primary reason for coming to
First, the amplification from the Leyden Scepter had raised his constitution by two tiers—20 points. Then, through a blessing in disguise during the backlash of the Sunfire, his Fire Feather Technique had absorbed a massive amount of the Sunfire's energy, undergoing a mysterious transformation that pushed his constitution past the 100 mark!
By now, his original goal had been completely achieved, though the accompanying side effects were somewhat troublesome.
At the thought of this, a bitter smile tugged at the corners of Leilin's lips, and his mood soured.
After all,
And now, he had fallen at Leilin's hands. What would the other side think? Even if the Sky Throne expelled Stuart, it was probably only because they didn't want to provoke Leilin at the moment. To say they harbored no ill feelings? Even Leilin wouldn't believe that!
Leilin could simply brush his hands clean and walk away after shattering a world, but the Sky Throne couldn't just leave. They had to foot the bill for Leilin and Stuart's battle—repairing the torn world rifts, and so on. After all, their base was right next door. They had no choice but to intervene.
At a time like this, the other party surely hated him to the bone.
Leilin could now be said to have provoked the entire force of Sky City.
After all, Leilin had previously only used world coordinates and the pressure of a portion of Sky City's wizards against Stuart, forcing the man into a humiliating position. That was still within the realm of tolerance.
But directly killing him? Even Wells and the people behind him would likely feel the chilling dread of "when the hare dies, the fox mourns."
All things considered, the entire Sky City—from top to bottom—harbored no goodwill toward Leilin. They might even make a direct move.
"This is really… troublesome…" Leilin continued to grimace, but the cold light in his eyes grew ever sharper.
As far as he was concerned, if others schemed against him, they had better be prepared for retaliation.
And besides… a Dawn Sun—was that really so impressive?
With the Chip, the teachings of the Wise Ancient Tree, and even his Komo Giant Serpent bloodline—Leilin had full confidence in his future ascension to the Dawn Sun rank, and even surpassing it!
"But the practical problems still have to be faced! Right now, I can barely handle a new-moon-level Radiant Moon wizard. By activating my bloodline seal, I can even threaten a full-moon Radiant Moon!"
Leilin had a precise estimate of his combat strength.
"But the Sun Scion bloodline seal only has one activation left! Once it's used, it's gone! And even with the attack of an ancient Sun Scion, a full-moon Radiant Moon wizard still has a certain chance of survival. As for a Dawn Sun Throne—those existences can definitely endure it. It just depends on how much of a price they pay…"
"Therefore, if I show myself now, there's a chance that a full-moon Radiant Moon or even a Dawn Sun—who fears my growth potential—could strike and eliminate me! If they do that, I won't have any power to resist!"
This was exactly why Leilin had been hiding all along, and why he hadn't returned to the Ouroboros Ring headquarters.
Though the outside situation was unlikely to escalate to that extent, Leilin never hesitated to consider the worst-case scenario.
If he were truly caught by a Dawn Sun Throne, then even with all his trump cards played, he would still have no chance of survival.
Life was only given once, and Leilin didn't believe he'd get another chance to transmigrate after death.
"I'm afraid that until I advance to Radiant Moon, I'll have to stay hidden in the shadows!" Leilin sighed.
Once he advanced to the fifth rank—Radiant Moon—with the bloodline bonuses of a warlock, combined with his own methods and trump cards, escaping from a Dawn Sun's grasp would actually be possible.
And if he could achieve that, he would be among the most powerful wizards on the entire Central Continent! He'd never have to fear hidden arrows or open spears again.
"Radiant Moon, fifth rank…" Leilin sighed. "The bloodline bottleneck of a Komo warlock—how could that be so easily broken? But no matter how difficult it is, I have to break through. Otherwise, I'll have to spend my entire life in hiding, and that would be worse than simply starting over in another world!"
With this thought, Leilin opened the Arcane Imprint book in his hand and tapped on a Komo Giant Serpent pattern.
After a burst of crackling sounds,
"It's me!" Leilin replied concisely. Although the Arcane Imprint had its limitations, all users were Morning Stars, and with the amplification of soul force, the range of message transmission was considerably extended.
"It's really great that you're alright. Tsk tsk… you've really stirred up quite the commotion! Both
"I'm sorry! I've caused both Dukes great concern. Also, please pass my apologies to Frey! I'm afraid I won't be able to return for a while…"
Leilin's voice was low.
"What? Are you in trouble? Do you need us to come to you?" Gilbert grew tense. Leilin was not only the pillar of the Ouroboros Ring—he was their hope!
"I'm fine! I just need to travel far for a period of time. During this period, I'll leave the affairs of the Ouroboros Ring in the hands of the two Dukes!" Leilin concealed his upcoming attempt to break through to Radiant Moon, giving Gilbert the impression that he simply wanted to lay low for a while.
The current Ouroboros Ring, with two Morning Star warlocks holding the fort, was already sufficient.
Moreover, Leilin's disappearance served as its own tremendous deterrent! Until something actually happened to him, any wizard who wanted to make a move on the Ouroboros Ring would have to think very carefully about the consequences of offending someone with Radiant Moon-level combat power!
"Mm! That works!" Gilbert was old and shrewd, and had clearly considered this issue in the brief moment of thought.
"…Actually, the Warlock Alliance approached me. They hope you'll come to Morning Star
After a brief pause, Gilbert relayed another piece of news.
"Morning Star Space? The Warlock Alliance?" Leilin considered. "With several Radiant Moon warlocks stationed there, safety wouldn't be an issue. But offering this now—are they trying to recruit me? Or is it a trap?"
His thoughts raced, but Leilin quickly gave his answer: "No need. Thank them for their kindness on my behalf!"
Even if it was truly for protection with no ulterior motive, Leilin would not go to Morning Star Space. His own safety had never been something he intended to entrust to anyone else!
In other words, even a Radiant Moon warlock was not qualified to guarantee his safety!
"Even seventh, eighth, and ninth rank existences can't be trusted. Relying only on yourself is the truly secure path!" Leilin's eyes were dark and deep, burning with determination.
"Alright… you…" On the other end, Gilbert could only smile wryly.
"Then! Take care!" "Take care!" After exchanging their farewells, Leilin cut the communication and immediately departed.
Arcane Imprint contact still carried the possibility of being monitored. This location was only a temporary place to recuperate, and he had long been prepared to abandon it—which was why he had initiated contact with the outside in the first place.
Shortly after Leilin left, raging black flames erupted, reducing the entire barren mountain to a field of ash.
Hummmm! Not long after Leilin's departure, the void in the area suddenly twisted. Invisible spatial forces formed ripples, coalescing into a radiant gateway.
Several figures emerged from it, their bodies radiating terrifying waves of energy. Looking at the mountain that had already been reduced to ashes, they let out a sigh: "We're too late!"
One figure descended over the ashes, reaching out and grasping at the air repeatedly, but shook his head helplessly: "The target was very careful, and did a clean job. Not a single trace of aura was left behind—impossible to track!"
"Divination magic is ineffective against him again. Are we really letting him get away this time?"
Several dark figures began to discuss among themselves.
"This warlock's potential is the highest I've ever seen. At the fourth rank, he could already fight a fifth-rank to the death. If he advances to Radiant Moon, what then?"
"You may have forgotten something! He's a Komo Giant Serpent warlock! There's the bloodline bottleneck—his maximum strength is capped at the fourth rank! This is a limitation of the soul! Throughout all of history, countless bloodline warlocks have failed to break through. Do you really think he can?"
Another dark figure added, his tone tinged with regret: "But I have to admit, that Leilin is absolutely a genius! He could even rank among the top in all of history. It's a shame he chose the path of a warlock. If he had gone directly down the wizard's path, perhaps we would have witnessed the rise of another
"It's not a shame—it's a fortune! Fortunately, he chose the warlock's path!"
The dark figure standing at the center suddenly spoke, his voice frigid.
"Indeed! Fortunately, he chose the warlock's path!" The other dark figures echoed in agreement, then transformed into streams of black mist and dissipated.
Leilin, of course, knew nothing of what happened after his departure. He hadn't even planted Stardust Moths.
Though this method was extremely covert, Radiant Moon-level wizards possessed terrifying spiritual power, and there was still a certain chance of detection. Leilin had no intention of letting someone trace him back to his trail.
His immediate relocation and the destruction of his aura had been merely precautions. He hadn't expected that they would actually help him evade capture.
"So… how should I begin the path to fifth-rank Radiant Moon?"
At this moment, Leilin had used his Mimicry Spell to alter his appearance and arrived at a location on the Central Continent.
Before his eyes stretched a sea of fire!