The existence of the Shadow Mana Web, and the granting of spells, both required enormous amounts of energy to maintain.
Even with the support of the Shadow World's entire native power, Lady Night could not simply give everything away for free. So she fell back on the old method from the
"The only difference is that the proportion here is a little gentler…"
A cold, disdainful smile crossed Leilin's face. "Chip! Begin analyzing the Shadow Mana Web!"
[Ding! Task established. Analyzing the first three layers of the Shadow Mana Web…]
Dense streams of data swept across Leilin's field of vision. Compared to the World of Gods, the analysis of the Mana Web here was clearly proceeding much faster.
[Ding! Estimated completion time: 68 hours, 23 minutes, 19 seconds!]
[Ding! Layers above three are sealed. Forcibly breaking through carries a 78.55% probability of alerting an unknown will. Force a breakthrough?]
The Chip displayed a prompt window for confirmation.
"No need. Worst case, I'll just go take the Advanced Technician License exam…"
Leilin shook his head and dismissed the Chip's suggestion.
After tinkering with the Swiftshadow for a while, Leilin opened the computer and began browsing through vast quantities of information.
Entertainment and leisure sections he skimmed over at speed, turning instead to the empire's geography, politics, military affairs, and various suspicious incidents. With Leilin's current level of cognition, the information on the internet was processed with ease. Gradually, everything about the empire began to coalesce before his eyes.
"Hmm? This?"
Suddenly, amid the ocean of web information, Leilin's sharp senses caught something unusual.
He clicked open a page and entered a forum that resembled an internet bulletin board.
"SHOCKING! Beautiful woman spotted in City A — I was absolutely stunned!!!"
A post had attracted a large number of followers, with an avalanche of replies. Still, most people were shouting things like "No pic, no proof…"
"I wanted to take a picture too, but I didn't have my communicator!"
"I had mine, but it broke! Didn't manage to capture anything. But that woman really was stunning. She even caused several car accidents on the street…"
"Right! That woman vanished mysteriously afterward. I heard lots of wealthy people in City A are offering sky-high bounties…"
"Could she be a ghost?"
Leilin scrolled down through the post. Most replies were the usual spam — "OP is trolling" or "Refuse to fall for clickbait." It wasn't until a smug-looking individual chimed in: "Haha… Everyone above is an idiot! I just happened to have the newest Swiftshadow model with me, and I used a recording spell to snap a photo…"
Even an eighth-tier existence, no matter how much they suppressed their aura and radiation, could not leave behind any electronic records. Their force fields were more than sufficient to distort everything around them. And if they allowed their true name or appearance to be captured, it could carry inconceivable power — even a curse!
On the post, that person had indeed left a blurry image. In the haze, one could just make out an impossibly alluring silhouette — even a single corner of her clothing was enough to leave viewers lingering in fascination.
"Show the front! We're begging for a front view…"
The hungry wolves below clamored with regret, but unfortunately there were no further responses.
"Hmm. City A? The Serpent Mother should relocate soon enough, though. I just hope she doesn't run into Lady Night…"
At this point, Leilin could only offer a silent blessing. After all, Wanxiong City and City A were practically on opposite ends of the world, separated by half the empire's territory.
Moreover, with such a massive target drawing attention, the probability of Lady Night focusing on himself dropped even further.
He and the Serpent Mother were merely cooperation partners. He would only consider lending her a hand if he had confirmed his own safety and she was putting something on the table.
As for now?
As a native of the Shadow World, even with all the drastic changes here, the Serpent Mother might have been caught off guard initially, but she would certainly have recovered by now.
If she couldn't even manage that, Leilin would turn around and leave without a second thought.
After all, incompetent allies were among the most terrifying creatures — practically synonymous with a total party wipe.
"The Serpent Mother is an eighth-tier existence after all… Have faith in her," Leilin said with a shrug. Then he drew open the curtains.
From his vantage point, he could clearly see the two-story villa of the Xavier family. The light in the study was still on — clearly, Xavier was still hard at work.
"Hmm. The Advanced Technician License exam is in three days?"
Leilin fiddled with his communicator and registered himself for the exam. Obtaining access to the Shadow Mana Web was one motive; the identity itself was another.
"With a mid-tier Swiftshadow in hand, even if I display some extraordinary abilities, the sentinel AI won't immediately flag me… There's a lot I can do…"
…
Three days passed in a flash. The day of the Advanced Technician exam had arrived.
"Phew…"
Xavier let out a long breath, gathered his belongings, and took a deep look in the mirror. Since that strange transformation, his once youthful face had matured considerably. His skin had become even smoother and finer, to the point of provoking Jiaer's jealousy.
"Alright! This time I have to succeed!" Xavier murmured encouragement to his reflection, then stepped out of the villa.
"Good luck, big brother!" Jiaer saw him to the front gate and called after his retreating figure. The little girl's gentle voice echoed up and down the street.
"Wow… so many people…"
Even though he had mentally prepared himself, when Xavier arrived in front of the examination venue, he was still overwhelmed by the sight of the massive crowd.
"The Advanced Technician License is one of the hardest certifications in the whole empire. Once you pass, you gain the right to use mid-tier spells — it's basically a permit to bear arms. Every major corporation will be fighting to hire you… A scene like this is perfectly normal…"
A familiar voice came from behind, making Xavier turn around.
There stood a bearded young man who looked remarkably like a middle-aged uncle.
"What's the matter? Don't recognize me anymore?"
The uncle-looking youth clapped Xavier on the shoulder and laughed heartily.
"Of course not! Wu— Wuyan!" Xavier recognized him — this was the guy who had been sitting next to him on the airship last time.
"I told you, don't call me 'uncle'…" Wuyan touched his cheek with a pained expression. "It's just that my beard grows in a bit thick. In reality I'm still very young… Only twenty-five! Twenty-five!"
"Twenty-five and you're not an uncle?" Xavier grumbled inwardly, but outwardly he smoothly switched to calling him "big brother" and struck up a conversation.
"Hmm! I recall that Wuyan already has his license and even bought the newest Swiftshadow model?"
Xavier remembered a lingering question and asked.
"Right! Which is why today I'm not a test-taker — I'm staff!"
Wuyan pinned a polished badge to his chest. "But even though we're friendly, don't even think about me going easy on you… The entire examination is under sentinel AI surveillance, and there's a final Mana Web certification at the end. There's no way to cheat your way through…"
Saying this, Wuyan made a deliberate show of scanning the crowd, taking in the anxious, uneasy, and jealous looks from the surrounding candidates.
"The authorization for mid-tier Mana Web access, and the use of spells, both require highly refined spiritual power control techniques and a resilient will as a foundation. Anyone lacking either of those can just go home now… Otherwise, if you end up as a vegetable, we're not liable — that's what the disclaimer you all signed before says…"
Unfortunately, this well-intentioned warning had absolutely no effect.
Wuyan sighed helplessly, exchanged a few more words with Xavier, and headed straight into the venue.
"Oh no…"
The moment Wuyan left, Xavier felt the gazes directed at him multiply tenfold. Those burning stares were enough to melt him.
Especially after the transformation brought on by the Serpent Fang Fist, this heightened mental sensitivity made his entire body feel uncomfortable.
"S-sorry!"
He muttered an apology and immediately ran toward the less crowded side of the area.
"Fewer candidates over there. Maybe they didn't hear what Wuyan said earlier…"
Thud!
With his head too low, Xavier crashed straight into someone. A supple, resilient force transferred back through the impact, sending him sprawling onto the cold ground.
"Are you alright?"
The person before him was a young man with black hair and dark eyes. His features were so handsome they rivaled those of superstars — especially the apologetic smile he now wore, which carried the warmth and brilliance of a hundred flowers blooming in spring. He extended a hand and pulled Xavier to his feet.
"I'm fine! Thanks!"
Xavier had to admit that the young man was so good-looking it almost made him jealous. He nearly wanted to land a punch on that perfect face.
"Wow… You're really strong…"
But Xavier quickly recovered, glancing at the other's well-built physique with a note of admiration.
He was currently in the complete mastery stage of the Serpent Fang Fist! Even though he normally controlled himself, the art's primary benefits lay not in raw strength — but Xavier still had a reasonable estimate of his own power and durability. He could probably ram headfirst into a maglev car without serious injury, yet he had been knocked to the ground that easily.
"I work out regularly!" The young man smiled, revealing a row of white, even teeth.
This was, of course, Leilin. His current appearance was not drastically different from his true form — in fact, it matched his ID credentials exactly. He wore a leather jacket over a plaid shirt.
Upon seeing Xavier, he had thought it over and decided to come "casually" introduce himself.
"My name's Lei! What's yours?" Leilin asked, already knowing full well.
"Xavier! I'm Xavier!"
Xavier brushed the dust off his clothes, checked his belongings, and only relaxed after confirming everything was in order.