Chapter One Hundred and Eighty-Seven: Emergency Lei Lin fled at tremendous speed. Half a day later, the tall, thick walls of Nightless City came into view once more.
By now, his right hand had completely recovered. The astonishing physical constitution of a Warlock proved its extraordinary usefulness at a time like this.
Only after entering Nightless City did Lei Lin finally let out a deep breath of relief.
Gegewu was a concentrated manifestation of evil intent, crafted by the Soul Harvesting Cult. Though he didn't know why that Gegewu had been sealed there by the Soul Harvesting Cult's Wizards, Lei Lin had fought it several times and relied on the Chip's analysis to roughly determine its level of power — Second-rank
It was far beyond what Lei Lin could currently withstand, but across the entire South Coast, while Second-rank Wizards were rare, they were not nonexistent. At the very least, the leaders of every major Wizard organization and power would certainly possess that level of cultivation.
And in the South Coast's commercial hub — Nightless City — such Wizards would definitely not be few in number.
Lei Lin was certain that if that Gegewu dared to pursue him here, Nightless City would absolutely have the strength to suppress it!!!
In the back of his mind, there was also a vague plan taking shape.
The old hag was trapped inside the secret realm, and with that bizarre, terrifying aggregation of evil intent lurking there, in Lei Lin's view, her chances of survival were slim.
But this old hag was a senior member of the black Wizard organization behind Lei Lin — the Hand of a Thousand Leaves — holding a status above ordinary members, and she could directly contact the Second-rank black Wizard hidden behind the Hand of a Thousand Leaves!
With her death, this particular problem needed to be addressed as well.
If possible, Lei Lin would rather inherit everything she had outright.
Within a white Wizard organization, that would naturally be nearly impossible. But in a black Wizard organization like the Hand of a Thousand Leaves, Lei Lin believed that as long as he showed even a fraction of his true strength, it would be more than enough to suppress any other Wizards with ambitions toward that position.
"Hello, hello… is that Lei Lin?"
Right at that moment, a four-colored ring-like arcane imprint surfaced from Lei Lin's waist, and a man's voice came through it.
"Greetings, Lord Tiget!!!"
Lei Lin recognized the owner of that imprint — it was Tiget, the leader of the Potion Group! His tone naturally became considerably more respectful.
Moreover, Tiget had previously always issued any tasks through Lei Lin's current squad leader,
"Hmm! It seems like my secret imprint was being affected. I couldn't reach you — did you go on a long trip?"
Tiget's inquiring voice came through from the secret imprint.
"Yes, I accepted a friend's invitation to go explore a small ruin together…" Lei Lin replied, half-truthfully.
"No wonder! Many Wizard ruins have the ability to automatically block the transmission of messages. A secret imprint is practically useless inside them…" Whether Tiget actually believed him or not, an enlightened tone still came through the secret imprint.
"My apologies for worrying you, sir. May I ask what you needed me for?" Lei Lin queried the secret imprint with some confusion.
"Yes, there is something. By order of several elders and the Head, the
From the other end of the secret imprint, Tiget delivered news that shook Lei Lin to his core.
"What?"
Lei Lin stumbled back a few steps in shock.
The Four Seasons Garden was no fool — they wouldn't issue such an order without reason. There was only one possibility: something massive was about to happen across the entire South Coast!!!
"I'll be there on time! Can you tell me what exactly is going on?"
Lei Lin took several deep breaths before he could steady his emotions, then addressed the secret imprint once more.
"The specifics are extremely complicated. You can ask Martin when you get back. I can only tell you one thing! War! War is coming…"
"And one more thing! I don't have much time, so remember — get here as fast as you can! In wartime, the weak who lack an organization are usually the first to be eliminated!"
*Snap!* The moment those final words were spoken, the secret imprint dissipated directly into countless motes of light that drifted around Lei Lin.
The sheer gravity of Tiget's tone made Lei Lin's own heart sink.
For a major power like this, a dispute on the scale of what Black Bone Forest had caused last time was nothing more than a minor scuffle.
The only thing that could make the Head of the Four Seasons Garden's Potion Group this alarmed was one possibility — a war that would engulf the entire Wizard world was about to begin!!!
Lei Lin couldn't help but recall a portion of the history of the Wizard world.
After the Ancient Era came the Modern Era, and during the Modern Era, two massive wars had erupted on the South Coast. These two great conflicts had swept across the entire South Coast's Wizard world and involved nearly every non-human race. Wizard casualties were staggering, ordinary people were caught in the crossfire, and several empires were annihilated as a result.
These two wars came to be known as the First Wizard War and the Second Wizard War!!!
Now, it seemed the Third Wizard War was about to erupt!
Lei Lin's brows knotted together into a tight furrow.
For him, with the Chip, he could accumulate power slowly and silently, breaking through his bottlenecks and making steady progress without anyone noticing.
That was precisely why Lei Lin wished for a relatively peaceful and stable environment — at least until he hit a bottleneck of his own.
During the previous two Wizard Wars, apprentices were nothing but cannon fodder! Even full-fledged Wizards suffered constant deaths and casualties, making those conflicts nothing less than a meat grinder for the Wizard world!
Lei Lin did not fancy his odds of being one of the lucky few who could slip through unscathed.
A war of this magnitude would engulf the entire South Coast. No one would escape it — every single Wizard would be dragged into the fray.
Unless... he left the South Coast entirely, crossed several exceedingly dangerous territories, and set off for an entirely new land.
"Stop scaring yourself," he muttered. "Maybe it's just a conflict between the Four Seasons Garden and a few other Wizard organizations!"
After standing motionless beside the city gates for a long while, Lei Lin suddenly let out a soft laugh and strode directly into the City of Nightless.
He had made up his mind. Whatever was happening, it had nothing to do with him — not yet, at least.
After all, he was still a member of the Four Seasons Garden's Potion Group! Before the Hunting Group's Xishan contingent was completely wiped out, it would not be the turn of researchers like him to take the battlefield.
And if the conflict turned out to be merely a skirmish between several Wizard organizations, the Four Seasons Garden had more than enough depth and resources to survive. Fleeing immediately and making enemies of them for nothing would be the height of foolishness.
But if the Third Wizard War truly broke out — the entire South Coast would become a battlefield, and nowhere would be safe.
Just as Tiget's final words had served as both a reminder and a warning: A real war never began with both sides committing all their forces from the start. It would inevitably begin by targeting the small, peripheral factions and fence-sitters, eliminating all other variables first so that the major powers could fight without worrying about opportunists sniping at their blind spots.
Independent Wizards and wavering small Wizard organizations would absolutely be the first ones thrown to the wolves!!!
Lei Lin had no desire to lose one protector only to plunge right back into a life where each day's survival was uncertain.
And so, making a trip back to the Four Seasons Garden was absolutely necessary.
After all, Lei Lin was confident that he was hidden quite well. In the eyes of the other Wizards in the Four Seasons Garden, Wizard Lei Lin was nothing more than a newcomer with some talent in potions and cultivation!
If the leaders of the Four Seasons Garden really had their heads screwed on backwards and wanted to send Lei Lin to the front lines as cannon fodder, at worst it would just be a case of both sides walking away empty-handed.
Lei Lin was certain he could escape the Four Seasons Garden headquarters as quickly as possible without alerting their Rank 2 Wizards.
After turning everything over in his mind, Lei Lin's mood actually settled. Only now did he have the heart to take in his surroundings.
It was only then that Lei Lin noticed how the City of Nightless differed from before!
The city's main gates were thrown wide open. The giant race, rarely seen on ordinary days, shuffled through in groups of two or three, clad in crude, bulky beast-hide garments and carrying massive wooden stakes on their shoulders.
With each step they took, a faint tremor rumbled up from deep underground.
The crowds in the City of Nightless had swollen by roughly fifty percent compared to normal, completely choking the passages solid.
Yet whether it was mortals, Wizard Apprentices, or even a handful of official Wizards, every face was shrouded in a thick layer of gloom. The official Wizards in particular regarded unfamiliar practitioners with undisguised wariness in their eyes.
On the first level of the City of Nightless, prices for all manner of raw materials on the once bustling and chaotic market stalls had plummeted, while finished goods — protective gear, potions, and the like — climbed without stopping. Quite a few shops had already posted sold-out signs.
Although he had long harboured suspicions, actually witnessing this scene still weighed on Lei Lin's mood.
These signs all pointed to a conflict of extraordinary scale, one that was about to sweep through the entire Wizard world — and Lei Lin himself would certainly not be spared!!!
Lei Lin's steps seemed to grow a fraction heavier, or perhaps nothing had changed at all, as he passed through several city gates and entered the third tier of the City of Nightless.
In the villa district on the third tier, what had once been a lively neighbourhood now looked rather deserted. Gone were the Wizards who had frequented the various gardens seeking amusement. Several flowers in the planters, neglected and untended, drooped listlessly — some had even begun to wither, lending the place a desolate air.
"Master!"
The moment he returned to his villa, his steward — Third-tier Apprentice
"I'm fine. Has anything unusual happened in the City of Nightless recently? Tell me everything you know!" Lei Lin tossed his coat and cloak to Damien and immediately fired off his question.
"Yes! Damien was just about to report to Master!"
A deep look of worry was etched on Damien's face as well.
"About a day ago, rumours suddenly started spreading through the City of Nightless that the Third Great Wizard War was about to begin. At first, no one took them seriously, but as time went on and none of the major organizations came out to deny them, the entire city descended into chaos…"