Headquarters of the Nature Alliance.
Leilin, having returned from the battlefield where the war had already concluded, was leisurely drinking coffee.
Suddenly, his mind stirred as he received the images transmitted back by the Chip.
"Weilin really is the Child of Destiny of this Abyssal Domain. But this Longbaton... he's actually a bit beyond my expectations..."
Leilin stroked his chin, watching Longbaton deliver an impassioned speech.
"Raising an army in the name of revolution, gathering rogue Wizards dissatisfied with the faction system's rule, and even teaching advanced Meditation Methods to common apprentices? Quite the scheme!"
Even Leilin had to nod in grudging admiration at Longbaton's methods.
The
To bring chaos to the Wizard world, one had to start from within and stir up conflicts.
And it looked like Longbaton was doing a fine job! Moreover, he was truly bringing about a faint sense of revolution!
"Perhaps on the South Coast, something like this Wizard Revolution happened too, after which the power of factions gradually waned and more progressive academy-style forces took the stage..." The thought suddenly occurred to Leilin.
However, pioneers of revolution rarely met a good end. They were certain to face backlash from conservative forces, ultimately being crushed to dust.
And so Leilin had never once considered promoting the Wizard Academy system in the Abyssal Domain. Instead, he quietly maintained a surface-level assimilation.
"It looks like Weilin and Longbaton are two sides of the same coin — both Children of Destiny for this era! It's just that one will be the hero and the other the villain!"
Leilin picked up the coffee on his desk and took another sip.
Sometimes, a villain was simply a hero who had failed. And so, if Longbaton's revolution succeeded, he would become an immortal role model in the Wizard world, recorded in the annals of Wizard history and widely celebrated.
But once Longbaton was defeated by Weilin, he would become the great villain — a traitor to humanity! Nailed to the pillar of shame for all eternity.
"The final battle will inevitably come down to the two of them! And before that, the power of destiny will rapidly accelerate their strength — even if it means forcing growth beyond what's natural!"
Leilin was all too familiar with the path of such Children of Destiny.
When they rose to prominence, it was truly the case that they would stumble upon inheritances just by walking down the street, encounter ancient masters who would transfer their power upon venturing into any random dangerous place, and advance at a pace that shamed countless geniuses into wanting to kill themselves!
"Longbaton seems to have inherited some kind of bloodline. But Weilin is even more extraordinary — not only did he find the Enhanced Warrior path that suits him best, but he also subjugated the Subterranean Cold Spider Emperor, a creature equivalent in strength to a Second-rank Wizard!"
With his vast experience, Leilin could naturally gauge their approximate strength from these images. Such absurd luck even made Leilin somewhat envious.
At the same time, he felt a chill of retrospective fear.
"If I had stayed back there, wouldn't I have been toyed with by fate too? Reduced to some old master handing down powers?"
Leilin's expression darkened. No! In fact, Weilin had already extracted some benefit from him.
Although at the time it had been the influence of a Warlock's emotions, the possibility of destiny's manipulation couldn't be ruled out!
After all, the workings of destiny didn't generate things from nothing — they required triggers! And then amplified the probability infinitely.
For instance, the Leilin of that time could have chosen to use potions instead of taking on an apprentice to pass the time, but he had ultimately chosen to teach Weilin the Knight's cultivation method.
And out of all the people in Bort Town, he had ended up choosing Weilin — what were the odds of that?
"Since you want to play? Then let's play this game to the fullest!"
Leilin raised his cup, making a silent challenge to the heavens.
"Ding! Based on real-time monitoring by the semi-autonomous agent, target Ailin is showing slight emotional irritability with preliminary symptoms of schizophrenia! Immediate action is recommended!"
Just at that moment, the Chip's alert chimed, projecting footage of Ailin's deteriorating state before Leilin's eyes.
"This looks troublesome! Although the Holy Light Candle Flame didn't show any side effects at the apprentice level, it seems to be breaking down now that he's advanced to a full Wizard!"
Leilin's expression immediately darkened.
This was one reason he himself hadn't cultivated the Holy Light Candle Flame alone. Having the Eye of Kemoin was one factor, but fear of these side effects was also an extremely important consideration.
The mysteries contained within the soul were too numerous. Even with the Chip's computational power breaking through the heavens, not all of the soul's secrets could be analyzed.
"Chip! Based on the latest data collected from Ailin, perform a second revision of the Holy Light Candle Flame! Simultaneously monitor the other experimental subjects!"
Immediately, the images of the other two bearers were projected before Leilin.
The ring wasn't the only thing he'd crafted back then. These artificial "old masters" had been covertly distributed by Leilin over the course of more than a decade through various "coincidental" means.
Through the footage, a young female apprentice and a burly man could be seen, both cultivating the Holy Light Candle Flame, cold sweat continuously streaming down their faces.
"The power of destiny!"
Suddenly, both of them opened their eyes, gazing in the direction of the Central Domain.
"Everything will begin there, and everything will end there! And they..."
Both uttered the same prophecy, their faces flickering with unmistakable dread.
Through the intercepted information, Leilin naturally knew what they feared.
"Heh... they've already sensed the other cultivators? It seems the uniqueness of the Holy Light Candle Flame hasn't been completely eradicated after all!"
The Holy Light Candle Flame, this advanced Meditation Method, had originally been passed down from the Prophet Portley family. It was said to possess uniqueness — only one person per generation could successfully cultivate it, while all the others would go insane and die!
But after the Chip's modifications and Leilin's indifferent attitude, this Meditation Method had been taught to multiple apprentices, and they had now all advanced to full Wizards using the Holy Light Candle Flame!
"Due to the unique nature of this Meditation Method, they must kill each other until only the final victor remains. Only then can the Holy Light Candle Flame be fully completed..."
Leilin smiled coldly as he relayed the Chip's latest assessment.
"This Holy Light Candle Flame really is a treacherous thing!"
His conviction grew ever stronger — he would absolutely never cultivate this bizarre Meditation Method himself.
And how to fully exploit this prophetic power, set up his strategy, and ultimately seize it — these were all questions worth deep contemplation.
Leilin stroked his chin and fell into deep thought.
...
Five days later, an unexpected guest visited Leilin's villa.
Bang! Four enormous metal legs crashed their way through, finally coming to a stop beside Leilin's garden. A massive cloud of dust billowed up, and the commotion sent everything behind it into chaos.
"My apologies, Lord Leilin! This big fellow has been difficult to control lately — it might be entering its mating period..."
Logen jumped down from the metal lifeform's back, an apologetic look on his face.
"No matter! Please come in, Lord Logen! I've just happened to acquire some good things."
Leilin smiled, shook his head to show he didn't mind, and gestured invitingly.
Moments later, when Xiling arrived to deal with the incident, she found only Logen, the Guardian of the Eastern Domain, seated in a chair, lavishing praise on the enormous roasted fish on the long table.
"What kind of fish is this? I've never seen it before!"
"A hybrid of the Manha fish and Pike fish from the subterranean rivers — I obtained it through crossbreeding!" Leilin chuckled.
This creature had been an accidental byproduct of one of his bloodline experiments. He hadn't expected it to taste quite good, so he'd brought it out to entertain guests.
And because this fish meat was exceptionally delicious and even had body-enhancing effects for Second-rank Wizards, it proved extremely popular.
Upon learning this, Leilin immediately instructed Xiling to establish a massive dedicated breeding facility, intending to mass-produce the fish as a new source of profit.
Having experienced the education of White Wizards on the South Coast and personally managed numerous secret realms, he naturally understood that building was more meaningful and valuable than destroying.
And not only that — lately, Xiling had become incredibly docile at night, her eyes seeming to brim with tenderness.
Leilin guessed that she might have been moved by his dedication to managing things so carefully.
As for her misunderstanding, Leilin merely smiled it away. He had no interest in explaining, and simply enjoyed the pleasant company in silence.
"I wonder what brings Lord Guardian Logen here today?"
After they had both enjoyed the fine wine and food together, Leilin finally got to the heart of the matter.
"I've come today with a rather bold request!"
Logen's expression turned serious, with a faint hint of embarrassment.
"What is it?" Leilin's expression remained calm, while Xiling beside him clenched her fingers.
"On behalf of the Central Domain Faction Alliance, I invite the Nature Alliance faction to relocate to the Central Domain! We will prepare resources sufficient for a major faction and reserve a seat for a major faction as well... In other words, the moment you arrive there, the Nature Alliance will become a major faction!"
Logen dove straight into the matter without hesitation.
The moment the words left his mouth, Leilin could clearly feel Xiling's breathing quicken beside him.
A major faction! That was the ultimate dream of every faction in the Abyssal Domain! And the Central Domain was the heart of the Abyssal Domain — the most densely populated and prosperous region, representing the essence of subterranean humanity.
Many factions in the past had been eager to develop there.
Xiling had always been striving for the rise of the Nature Alliance, so her expression now was hardly surprising. But Leilin saw something else entirely.
"Has the situation in the Central Domain deteriorated to this extent?" he asked abruptly.
"Uh?" Logen's expression froze.
After a moment, he gave a bitter smile.