Chapter 184: The Synonym for Invincibility

Chapter 184: The Synonym for Invincibility

Year 1269 of the Starlight Calendar, the month of Blazing Fire (July).

War erupted once again. The day after the Starlight Alliance declared war, they launched a fierce assault on the Azure Gold Empire.

Despite having over two years to regroup, the Azure Gold Empire, which had lost vast territories, had barely managed to rebuild its strength. As the Starlight Alliance's forces advanced, the empire suffered defeat after defeat from the very beginning.

Azure Gold Empire, Holy Flame City.

The month of Blazing Fire was traditionally the time for the annual Flame Festival in the Azure Gold Empire.

However, as the capital of the empire, Holy Flame City now bore no signs of festivity. Instead, it was eerily quiet.

Imperial Palace, Study.

The Azure Gold Emperor, having just concluded his council meeting, returned to his study. As he pushed open the door, he saw the Scepter standing by the window, gazing out at the sky.

"You finally decided to see me," the Azure Gold Emperor said, his face grim.

The Scepter turned around, his eyes dark and weary, and sighed.

"I told you, I won't interfere in the war between the empire and the Starlight Principality."

"Are you going to stand by and watch the empire fall, its royal bloodline extinguished?" the Azure Gold Emperor demanded, his teeth gritted.

With defeat looming and the empire on the brink of collapse, he no longer cared about the Scepter's exalted status within the empire, adopting a confrontational stance.

However, the Scepter's gaze remained calm and unshaken.

"I have long repaid the empire's kindness. Our relationship is now one of cooperation, and I bear no responsibility for the empire's downfall. I thought you understood this clearly."

The Azure Gold Emperor's expression faltered, and he gritted his teeth. "Name your price, and I'll agree to anything, as long as you can save the empire!"

The Scepter shook his head, saying nothing.

Seeing this, the Azure Gold Emperor's face darkened even further. He said grimly, "Since you won’t intervene, at least do me a favor!"

"What favor?"

"Help me contact other wizard apprentices! I'll pay any price if they can help the empire deal with Su Nan."

The Azure Gold Emperor had resolved that if he could just eliminate Su Nan, he would empty the imperial treasury to do so.

With Su Nan dead, the Starlight Principality would be thrown into chaos and unable to continue the war. Without its core, the Starlight Alliance would crumble, and the empire would gain more time to regroup and perhaps rise again in the future.

The Azure Gold Emperor's thoughts raced, but then he met the Scepter's pitying gaze.

"It’s useless. Even if you gather every wizard apprentice on the continent, they won’t be able to harm Su Nan in the slightest."

The Azure Gold Emperor froze, asking instinctively, "Why?"

The Scepter sighed, his expression complex. "Su Nan has ascended to the rank of a wizard."

The Azure Gold Emperor was stunned for a moment before the meaning of the Scepter's words sank in. He felt as if struck by lightning, his eyes wide with shock.

"A w-wizard?"

"How is that possible?! How can anyone on the Starlight Continent ascend to the rank of a wizard?"

As the southeastern domain's overlord, the Azure Gold Emperor had more access to the secrets of wizards than most, and he knew the dire situation of the Starlight Continent. It was almost impossible for anyone to ascend to the rank of a wizard here!

In response to the Azure Gold Emperor's incredulous question, the Scepter replied calmly with just four words.

"The Starlight Tower."

These four words drained all the strength from the Azure Gold Emperor. He collapsed into a chair, his face pale, his eyes filled with despair.

The Azure Gold Emperor knew exactly what a wizard meant.

As the Scepter had said, all the wizard apprentices on the continent combined would be no match for Su Nan.

On this continent, the title of wizard was synonymous with invincibility.

The thought that he had been fantasizing about how to deal with a wizard just moments ago now seemed absurd.

"Surrender," the Scepter said softly. "Doing so might at least preserve a thread of the royal bloodline."

The Azure Gold Emperor was silent for a long while before he spoke in a hoarse voice, "Would the Starlight Principality allow the royal bloodline to continue?"

"Why not? What does the Starlight Principality have to fear now?" the Scepter countered.

The Azure Gold Emperor opened his mouth but found no words to refute the Scepter.

Indeed, with a wizard as its protector, the Starlight Principality had nothing to fear.

As long as Su Nan was around, no one could challenge the Yanezest family's position.

Leaving the Azure Gold royal bloodline intact would have no impact on the Starlight Principality.

"Very well, the empire surrenders."

As he said these words, the Azure Gold Emperor seemed to age visibly.

Stripped of his mantle as the southeastern domain's overlord, he now looked like a weary old man.

The staff shook slightly, and its gaze returned to the window, a contemplative look in its eyes.

The Starlight Continent is on the brink of a great upheaval. Should I make some changes as well?

Fifth Floor, Dragon Skeleton Tower.

Xie Man emerged from the workshop, heading towards the storage area.

Glancing at the ten sets of second-tier magical rune constructs lying in his spatial ring, a smile crept across his face.

These constructs, once converted into contribution points, should be enough to exchange for a bottle of Hyper Potion.

"Just one more step to complete the sixth star ring. With this Hyper Potion, it should be enough."

Xie Man's thoughts were filled with joy as he entered the central hall and teleported to the storage area.

As soon as he looked up, he saw Attila and Cole discussing something nearby.

Over a decade had passed, and now both Attila and Cole had surpassed their thirtieth birthdays.

However, from their appearances, they looked no more than twenty-two or twenty-three.

The long-term immersion and improvement from energy particles significantly slowed the aging process of wizard apprentices, keeping their bodies in peak condition until the very end of their lives, when aging would accelerate.

Thus, unless their appearance changed due to blood fusion or physical modification, it was rare for wizard apprentices to show signs of aging.

Xie Man was no exception.

"Attila, Cole."

At the sound of his voice, Attila turned around and saw Xie Man, her face breaking into a bright smile.

Cole nodded at him, his usual aloof demeanor unchanged.

Xie Man didn't mind and casually asked, "What are you two doing here?"

He glanced around, looking surprised. "Why are there so many people today?"

Attila's eyes widened as she stared at Xie Man, surprised. "You don't know?"

"Know what?" Xie Man was taken aback. "I've been in the workshop lately. I just came out. What happened?"

Attila's expression relaxed, and she smiled. "The teacher is back."

Xie Man was stunned for a moment, then burst into joy.

The teacher had been gone for over two years, and despite leaving a message to prepare them, the entire base had felt a subtle sense of aimlessness without the teacher's presence.

Before Xie Man could recover from his joy, Attila said mysteriously, "There's a rumor going around. Do you know what it is?"

Xie Man rolled his eyes. "Don't keep me in suspense."

Attila didn't mind and smiled. "Everyone is saying that the teacher received the inheritance of the Starlight Tower and has ascended to become a wizard!"

"What? Is that true?" Xie Man was shocked.

"It's likely true," Cole said. "Many people witnessed the teacher killing fourteen third-tier wizard apprentices from the Truth Council of the Northwest Region, all by himself, in just two or three breaths!"

"Who else could do that besides a wizard?"

Even the usually stoic Cole couldn't hide a hint of excitement and admiration in his expression.

Xie Man stood there, dazed.

He had thought about the possibility of the teacher becoming a wizard before, but the reality of it happening was still a shock.

After all, that was a wizard!

The realm all wizard apprentices dreamt of!

"You must be shocked," Attila said, her voice tinged with nostalgia. "I was shocked too when I heard the news. I never expected the teacher to take that step so quickly."

"The teacher's talent is beyond our imagination!" Cole added.

Xie Man's eyes flicked to Cole, a strange look in his gaze.

He had always sensed it. Cole, despite his cold and reserved demeanor, was a fervent admirer of the teacher, bordering on blind worship.

If the teacher were a deity instead of a wizard, Cole would be a fanatical believer.

"Hold on," Xie Man said, coming to his senses. "What does this have to do with you gathering in the storage area?"

Attila explained, "The mission hall has posted several new tasks and increased the contribution points for purchasing magical rune constructs, enchanted weapons, stone golems, and dual-bladed spiders. Everyone is here to take on new missions."

Xie Man's eyes narrowed, immediately understanding the deeper implications of these changes.

"Is the Star Alliance planning another expansion?"

"More than likely," Cole's eyes gleamed. "The Starlight Continent is about to undergo a significant upheaval."

Xie Man nodded thoughtfully.

Indeed, with a wizard at its helm, the Star Alliance was now capable of unifying the underground world, and perhaps even the entire Starlight Continent.

Given the teacher's usual style, he would undoubtedly take this approach.

The changes in the contribution points for equipment and golems are undoubtedly in preparation for launching a war.

"Actually, besides the mission, I heard a piece of gossip," Arthil whispered.

"I heard that the teacher plans to establish a wizard academy."

Wizard academy?

Xeman's eyes widened in surprise.

Cory also froze, as this was the first he had heard of it.

"Where did you hear this?" Cory asked quickly.

"Lord Amy said it."

Xeman and Cory's eyes flickered.

If Lord Amy said it, it was likely true.

"But if he's going to establish a wizard academy, how will he solve the problem of mentors?" Xeman asked, puzzled.

Even if the teacher were willing to teach them personally, a single mentor wouldn't be enough to run an academy.

"I don't know about that," Arthil shrugged.

Xeman felt both confused and hopeful.

If the academy were to be established, it would undoubtedly be a good thing for them apprentices.

Having mentors to teach them would significantly improve their learning efficiency.

In the future, they wouldn't have to struggle alone when they encountered difficulties.

On the sixth floor of the Dragon Skeleton Tower, in the experimental area.

In the spacious and well-lit laboratory, Su Nan stood before a workbench, placing bottles of lesser active potions into the magic cube.

After establishing a large magical plant garden in Zone 2 of the Dragon Forest, the supply of Silver Moon Flowers had greatly increased, so he no longer needed to worry about it.

Especially after the two years and more at the Tower of the Starry Sky, his storage room was piled high with an abundance of Silver Moon Flowers, enough to last for a long time.

As more and more potions were added, the text on the magic cube's synthesis interface kept changing. Finally, it flashed and the words "Tier 4" appeared.

[Crystal Soul Potion (Tier 4/Upper Quality): Consuming this potion significantly increases the speed of mental energy condensation and improves the absorption efficiency of energy particles. Duration: 182 days and 22 hours. No stacking effect. The consumer must be at least at the First Stage of Qi Condensation, and their mental energy must meet certain standards (Lower: 25.32%, Middle: 17.88%, Upper: 8.24%, Super: 1.02%)]



Su Nan nodded inwardly.

From the effect description, the Crystal Soul Potion was simply an upgraded version of the active potion, with better effects but no significant changes otherwise.

The levels mentioned at the end clearly referred to the grades of talent crystals.

The grade of a talent crystal has a significant impact on a wizard's subsequent development, which is also reflected in the potion's consumption restrictions.

Wizards with higher-grade talent crystals, while finding it more difficult to condense mental energy, face fewer restrictions from the potion. Additionally, at the same stage of mental energy condensation, their combat power is stronger.

Overall, the benefits outweigh the drawbacks.

"Based on this, my current condensation progress of 1.34% is roughly equivalent to 30% for a wizard with a lower-grade talent crystal."

Su Nan's face showed a satisfied expression.

This was why he was so eager to obtain high-grade talent crystals. Although the initial difficulty was high, the benefits in the long run were numerous.

Su Nan then tried to synthesize a Tier 5 potion, but the consumption restriction immediately shot up to the First Stage of Crystal Condensation (Super: 24.45%).

"It seems I'll have to use the Crystal Soul Potion for a long time."

Su Nan wasn't too disappointed. With the Crystal Soul Potion, combined with the elemental pool and divine energy, he could train like a normal wizard without being affected by the environment of the Starlight Continent.

This was already very good, and he couldn't ask for more.

He would continue to look for other ways to improve his training efficiency in the future.

Regaining his focus, Su Nan drank the potion on the spot and then returned to the top floor to the elemental pool to begin his training.

By the time his mental energy condensation progress increased by 0.01%, twelve days had already passed.

"At this rate, it will take about three hundred years to break through to the First Stage of Liquid Condensation."

Su Nan mused.

With seven hundred years left, he wasn't sure if it would be enough to reach the First Stage of Crystal Condensation.

If he could find more ways to improve his training efficiency, it shouldn't be a problem.

Shaking his head, Su Nan got up and left the top floor, teleporting to the fifth floor's workshop area.

The potion issue was resolved, and now he needed to focus on the problem of wizard tools.

After some thought, Su Nan had a preliminary plan.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end