His only gain today had been Leilin's encouragement. Beyond that, he felt that the father he had never met was shrouded in a veil of mystery.
"What's wrong with Will?"
The change in his demeanor was immediately noticed by Xiling. Dressed in her maid outfit, she carried a silver tray and stepped lightly into Leilin's villa.
"Freshly ground coffee—I made it myself!"
On the silver tray, white steam drifted above a beige pot and a single-handled cup.
"Nothing! Just the confusion of youth!" Leilin smiled, lifting one of the cups. "The taste is as good as ever!"
"You… how long will you stay this time?"
Xiling bit her lip, her gaze flickering uncertainly as she looked at Leilin. Compared to their last meeting, he now seemed like an ordinary person—no more powerful fluctuations radiating from him.
But Xiling knew that this was a sign that Leilin had grown even stronger.
It seemed that he had gained a great deal from his trip to the Ice Cavern back then.
But even knowing this in advance, there was nothing Xiling could do but smile bitterly. One's strength determined what one could obtain. Even though she had learned of the Ice World's existence before Leilin had, any single Ice Behemoth within it could have reduced her to nothing but scattered bones.
And now, Xiling keenly sensed that Leilin had already obtained what he wanted. The Dark Extreme Domain held no further appeal for him. This realization immediately filled her with unease.
"I may stay for a while, but not longer than a year at most!" Leilin took a sip of the fragrant coffee, and the words he spoke turned Xiling's face pale.
For a
Seeing Xiling's reluctant expression, Leilin sighed inwardly but said nothing more.
The entire Dark Extreme Domain was far too impoverished. A place where a Third-rank Wizard could throw his weight around—or even become a supreme ruler—was simply too small.
Only the vast Central Continent, and the boundless mysteries of the Star World, were places where Leilin could roam freely to his heart's content.
"Then… could you take me along to the Central Continent?" Xiling gritted her teeth.
"Of course. But first, I need to tell you a few things!" Leilin looked at Xiling, his eyes carrying a certain inscrutable meaning.
"In the Central Continent, Second-rank Wizards are like ants—their numbers beyond imagination. With your current strength, you would only qualify as bottom-tier. And I already have a wife there… Are you willing to give up everything in the Dark Extreme Domain and come with me?"
Upon hearing Leilin openly admit that he already had a wife, Xiling stumbled back several steps, clearly caught off guard. And when she heard she would have to abandon the entire Dark Extreme Domain, her face turned even more ashen.
After a long silence, Xiling finally made her decision.
She smiled bitterly. "All right! I can't abandon my teacher's wishes, and I can't abandon the Dark Extreme Domain either. This is my home!"
Leilin chuckled. "Perhaps I can make it up to you in other ways. For instance—didn't you used to want my bloodline?"
This decision had not been made lightly. Leilin had given it thorough consideration.
His Kemoyin Giant Snake bloodline had already evolved to its absolute peak—pushed to the very limits of its genes, with no possibility of further advancement.
That meant the time to establish a family line had finally arrived.
A Fifth-rank Warlock bloodline would surely be enough to give rise to a formidable force in a short period. As his vassals and kin, bound by bloodline ties and blessed with the Kemoyin Serpent Emperor's innate dominion talent, these bloodline descendants would become his most capable support.
Since he had already decided to reestablish the Farell Family after returning, leaving behind a single child in the Dark Extreme Domain would cost him nothing.
"Really?" Xiling's eyes lit up, and a flush of excitement even rose to her cheeks.
With the terrifying talent Leilin had displayed, his offspring would surely be no weaklings—and might even inherit some of his own formidable abilities.
Such a bloodline was something many female Warlocks could only dream of.
The probability of a Morning Star powerhouse appearing among the descendants of a Morning Star was always far greater than in other Wizard families.
Who knew—perhaps her own family could produce a Morning Star powerhouse one day!
At that thought, Xiling's breathing began to grow slightly heavier.
Seeing her like this, Leilin couldn't help but laugh to himself. This woman may have changed somewhat, but at heart, she was still the same sect leader Xiling she had always been.
But he had never placed much hope in the outcome. Even if she were willing to abandon everything in the Dark Extreme Domain and follow him back to the Central Continent, it would at most give Furui a good friend.
Besides, scattering his bloodline across multiple locations was safer.
Leilin stroked his chin. He had decided to spread his bloodline far and wide—and his reasons went far beyond simply expanding his influence.
He had been researching bloodline mutations and genetic variations for some time. If he produced enough offspring, the chances of a beneficial mutation emerging—an individual with an even more powerful bloodline—would increase.
Though the probability was vanishingly small, it was still a hope.
In truth, many Kemoyin Giant Snake Warlocks and practitioners of other bloodlines did exactly this. And whenever a descendant with an exceptionally pure bloodline appeared, it was treated as a gift of fate.
"Once I've fully mastered the bloodline of the Kemoyin Serpent Emperor and perfected the power of a Shining Moon Warlock, I'll head back!"
Leilin's eyes gleamed with a distant, unreadable light…
Boom! Boom! Boom! The lava lake churned violently, sending massive plumes of molten rock into the air. Stone shattered, revealing a passage leading upward.
Several dark figures burst out from the tunnel.
"Damn that Leilin! Damn this Dark Extreme Domain! Chief, didn't you know that dense fire elemental particles are the worst enemy of female Wizards' skin? After this mission, I'm going to need an increased skincare budget!"
The previous Carol pouted petulantly, pulling out a mirror to examine her complexion.
But the team leader and the other Wizard, Eugene, paid her little attention. "As long as we complete the mission this time, you can rest for a hundred years for all anyone cares!"
The black-robed leader snorted. Compared to his subordinate's complaints, he was far more interested in the region itself.
"Tsk tsk… So this is the underground. The elemental particles are so impoverished it's简直 a Wizard's wasteland!"
On the other side, Eugene clicked his tongue in admiration, looking down on the Dark Extreme Domain's poverty. "Compared to the Central Continent, this really is a desert. Still, the concentration of Dark and Earth elemental particles is barely passable. Stick to those two systems for your spells and conserve your spiritual power…"
"Carol, can you locate the target?"
The leader turned his head toward Carol.
"Let me see…" Carol produced a transparent crystal ball, within which a thin wisp of black air current swayed back and forth.
This was the scent of Leilin they had gathered through a spell at the Asura Volcano.
Although Leilin had been very careful to conceal his traces, for these Wizards, as long as they had a sufficiently precise location and the right spells, obtaining this was merely a matter of time.
"I've confirmed it—he's in that direction!" A wisp of dark air curled across Carol's face. After closing her eyes in concentration for a moment, she pointed decisively to the north.
"Excellent! Once we've located the target, the three of us are all Shining Moon Warlocks—surely we can handle a single Morning Star!"
Eugene licked his lips. "That guy made me run around out here for so long, Chief. Let me take him on this time!"
"Fine! But the target has Shining Moon combat strength—don't underestimate him!" The leader nodded. "However, from my research, I've found that the target does have a weakness. Even if his combat power reaches Shining Moon levels and he possesses a powerful bloodline mark, his essence is still that of a Morning Star. His True Spirit is at most at the Morning Star's limit. If we launch a curse or engage in a battle at the soul level targeting that specific point…"
"A very prudent approach!" Carol nodded.
"As it happens, I've made some progress in my research on spirit curses recently. Leave it to me!"
"We two will provide support!" The leader glanced at Eugene, who answered with some reluctance. "Fine! You're the boss! You're the chief!" Clearly, he was somewhat disappointed at not being able to witness bloodshed firsthand.
…
"Leilin! Hurry up and get to school, or you'll definitely be late!"
An unfamiliar yet somehow familiar voice rang in his ears, leaving Leilin feeling groggy.
"Where am I? Chip?" He was standing on a road lined with cherry blossom trees in slow, full bloom. Petals drifted down one by one.
The ground was spotless—no peels, no scraps of paper. Leilin looked down at his own hands. The skin was pale, the muscles slight, but brimming with youthful vitality.
"…" The Chip gave no response, leaving Leilin in silence.
At that moment, a massive flood of memories poured into his mind.
"I'm Leilin! A third-year student at Shengchun High School! I have an older sister and a younger sister at home, and today is the school festival…"
"Why… why do I feel like I've forgotten something important? And what is this 'Chip'? Why do I think of it instinctively?"
Looking at his checkered shirt and the student ID badge pinned to his chest, Leilin fell silent.
"Hey! Leilin, what's wrong?"
A blonde-haired student walked straight up, grabbed Leilin's arm, and started pulling him along.
"Sivey! I need a moment to think!"
Leilin blurted out the student's name, then immediately fell into even deeper confusion. "How do I know his name? Where exactly am I?"
"What are you waiting for? We're going to be late!"
Sivey flagged down a taxi, shoved Leilin inside, and climbed in right after him. "Driver, Shengchun High School!"
"Have you lost your mind? The school festival today has the big pop star Carol performing a concert…"