The massive volcano roared and bellowed like a titan from myth, hammering fists of fire at the sky.
Huge amounts of lava spilled outward, forming a web-like network of molten rivers.
Black volcanic ash blotted out the sky and sun, cloaking the entire region like a blanket of dark clouds and plunging heaven and earth into gloom.
The vivid rivers of lava emitted a dark crimson glow, flickering between bright and dim, gorgeous and dazzling, carrying a strange beauty amid all the danger.
"It's been too long! Great Asura Volcano! My starting point when I arrived in the Central Continent…"
Linley's eyes held deep, unfathomable colors. Everything that had happened since he set foot in the Central Continent from this place, and the events that had unfolded in the Dark Crescent before that—all the figures who existed in his memory suddenly became vividly alive once more.
Yes! Linley was preparing to temporarily leave the Central Continent for a time and return to the Dark Crescent!
While it was a barren desert compared to the Central Continent, it held a treasure trove—one that only Linley knew about!
"The Scorpion Man's remains, and the blood of the Ice World Guardian upon them!"
Linley's memory lingered on his exploration of the Ice Cavern, on what he had witnessed within the bloodline memories of the Ice Scorpion Emperor.
That terrifying ancient war, even viewed through the lens of his current knowledge, was still unspeakably horrifying.
Even Morning Star powerhouses had been merely the minimum threshold for participation.
The remains of a Morning Star bloodline creature would be only somewhat valuable to present-day Linley—nothing extraordinary. But the bloodline of that bronze giantess was not so simple.
Above Level Seven—a bloodline that had touched upon the existence of laws! For Linley at his current stage, it still held a fatal attraction!
Whether it was for purifying ancient bloodlines to create bloodline imprints, or for attempting to absorb it directly, it would be immensely beneficial to Linley.
The hope of breaking through to Radiant Moon lay partly in it! Moreover, the bloodline and genetic fragments of a world's guardian would surely carry information about that world's coordinates!
That was an ancient Ice World! A powerfully formidable world that even the Mother of Ten Thousand Serpents had coveted yet ultimately failed to obtain!
It was countless tiers above the Lava World, and Linley would have it all to himself!
It was precisely with this confidence that he could casually give away the coordinates of the Lava World as a gift.
Even regarding the Ice World and the Giantess bloodline, Linley had other ideas.
The Giantess had been slain by the Mother of Ten Thousand Serpents. Could her remains possibly retain traces of the Infernal World's aura, allowing one to deduce the world coordinates?
Even if the Giantess's body did not, the entire Ice World had once suffered invasion by the Mother of Ten Thousand Serpents from the Infernal World. How could it not have left behind some traces?
Using the Ice World as a springboard would significantly reduce the difficulty of locating the Infernal World. And once he reached the Infernal World and found the Mother of Ten Thousand Serpents—the ancestral progenitor of the Komoya Giant Serpents' bloodline—breaking through the bloodline shackles would become simple.
Of course, the process couldn't possibly be so smooth sailing, but the general line of thought was sound and represented the best method for breaking through the bloodline shackles.
Naturally, Linley wouldn't dare face the Mother of Ten Thousand Serpents head-on like that. Otherwise, it would be no different from delivering a sheep into a tiger's maw. He didn't believe he would have any power to resist a rule-defying powerhouse who had surpassed the Dawn Day stage, so thorough preparations were essential. This path could only serve as a last resort; unless he reached a desperate dead end, Linley really didn't want to target the Mother of Ten Thousand Serpents.
His most basic plan was to first go to the Dark Extreme Region to lie low and bide his time, seeking an opportunity to break through to the Radiant Moon stage.
"The Asura Great Volcano enters a period of quiescence once every hundred years, the best time to infiltrate the underground world!" Linley recalled that even when he had seized the timing and made extensive preparations back when he descended from the surface, the process had still been incredibly perilous. He couldn't help but smile faintly.
He arrived at the edge of the volcanic crater, gazing into the terrifying lava channel.
"The volcanic passage is filled with scorching magma year-round; it only becomes exposed during the quiescent period. And now is clearly not the right time. If one were to force a descent, even a Third-Tier Crystallization
Of course, that was only for Third-Tier Wizards.
After entering the Morning Star realm, what were once terrifying natural barriers now appeared to Linley as safe and secure as his own backyard garden.
Boom! A layer of black flames surfaced over his skin, forming a spherical membrane of light that enveloped him.
Subsequently, the black bubble parted the magma, rapidly sinking down and disappearing from view...
The terrifying magma and scorching heat were all absorbed by the black flames. Inside, Linley couldn't feel even a trace of heat. As time passed, the black bubble withstood the gushing magma, plunging straight down!
Resisting a natural disaster single-handedly, even able to swim upstream against the flow of magma—the eruption of the Asura Great Volcano couldn't stop him. This was a Morning Star!
Boom!
In the underground world, within the magma lake, accompanied by earthquakes, vast amounts of magma flew wildly. The black flame bubble burst through the hard rock layer above and crashed onto the ground.
The flames receded, revealing Linley within.
Compared to back when he had to rack his brain and wait for the perfect opportunity, now that he had ascended to the Morning Star realm, he could come and go as he pleased with utmost convenience.
Looking at the dim sky and the oppressive layers of rock, Linley sighed: "The Extreme Dark Region! I'm back!"
"Such low particle density — no wonder the Morning Stars never bothered with this place!" Feeling the vast difference in particle density compared to the Central Continent, Linley shook his head.
Compared to the Central Continent, this place was a barren backwater — no, not even worthy of being called a backwater. Even casting spells here would see their power significantly reduced due to the limitations of particle density.
The Morning Star Wizards had no interest in the place. As for ordinary wizards, none possessed the means to traverse the magma passages. And so the Extreme Dark Region had retained its unique evolutionary process to this day, barely influenced by the outside world — until Linley's arrival.
His Soul Force swept outward, and everything in his surroundings was laid bare in his mind. Having once been the ruler of the Extreme Dark Region, he was fairly familiar with the general geography and immediately knew his current location.
"Back when I left, the Extreme Dark Region didn't even have a single Third Rank Wizard, did it?"
Linley stroked his chin. Here, even a Second Rank Wizard could reign as a king, and a Third Rank was an emperor. As for Morning Stars? Not one had appeared in countless years.
"Am I basically a high-level player rolling into a starter village for a steamroll run?"
Linley stroked his chin again, a faint smile playing at the corner of his lips: "Well! I like it!"
Knowing full well that an opponent was powerful and charging in headlong — that was the behavior of a fool. Even if one could win temporarily, a single defeat would be enough to bring eternal damnation.
Linley detested such an approach. He always preferred to act only when the odds were overwhelmingly in his favor, wishing that every wizard in the world was only First or Second Rank so he could manipulate them at will.
It was precisely this cautious mindset that had been the guarantee of his survival to this day.
"I wonder how the Natural Alliance Academy is doing? Whether Xiling can hold things together? And the Dark Elves, the Gnomes, and the other non-human races..."
After orienting himself, Linley's body transformed into a streak of light, hurtling northward toward the headquarters of the Natural Alliance Academy in the Northern Domain.
……
Northern Domain, the Natural Alliance Academy.
The light of the Everburning Bright Flame illuminated the study, casting its glow upon a black desk piled high with documents, alongside ink and quill pens and other writing implements.
A witch dressed in noble attire, her features exquisitely refined, extended slender fingers to rub her brow, looking thoroughly exhausted.
"Headmistress!" The door burst open and a witch clutching a folder of documents rushed in.
"Urgent report from the front lines! Porti City has changed hands again! All of our people there have been killed, and even the two professors..."
"I understand!" The beautiful headmistress seated behind the desk nodded and let out a long, weary sigh. "More than a hundred years ago, the fall of the Northern Domain also began with Porti City. I only wonder whether this time someone will step forward to turn the tide…"
She rose from her seat and drew open the curtains.
Beyond the window lay the vast academy square, and at its center, a statue of a young Wizard stood proudly aloft, bathed in a faint, ethereal glow.
"Leilin! Where on earth are you? But with your abilities, you'd be doing well no matter where you are, wouldn't you?"
This beautiful headmistress was none other than Xiling.
When Leilin had departed the Dark Extreme Domain all those years ago, he had left behind a series of measures that allowed Xiling to maintain control over the entire
The Dark Beast Tide had risen once more! And within this wave of darkness, several mutated Beast Emperors of Third Rank strength had emerged!
What was more, the goblins and the dark elves had joined forces in rebellion, breaking away from the underground human factions and even launching counterattacks against the Northern Domain.
The key northern fortress of Porti City had fallen under the combined assault of these three forces, and two Second Rank professors from the Nature's Alliance had perished in the process!
"Headmistress! We must respond to this, or Lord Bank will surely use it as grounds to make his move! The Academy Exchange is also about to begin, and I fear…"
The worry on the face of the witch who had entered was plain to see.
Upon hearing this, the helplessness on Xiling's face deepened.
The immense pressure came not only from the outside, but from within as well.
This Bank had previously been nothing more than an ordinary professor at the Nature's Alliance. However, he had stumbled upon a fortuitous encounter and obtained the inheritance of an ancient Wizard, causing his strength to skyrocket. He had now entered the Third Rank!
With such power, it was only natural that he would demand a corresponding position and status — and the seat he had set his eyes on was Xiling's.
Though his lingering fear of Leilin's existence kept Bank from going too far, a great number of Wizards had already defected to his side. After all, Leilin had vanished for over a hundred years.