Chapter 401: Steel Armor

Chapter 401: Steel Armor

"Lord Ren, it's good to see you again," Augustus said warmly.

Furthermore, the phrasing was different from their first encounter. This time, even Augustus, the actual second-in-command at the Swordsman Headquarters and the Vice Master, addressed Ren with the title 'Lord'.

Perhaps Claire and Beyons, the two young members, did not notice the subtle difference in the address.

But Tatyia and Olenna, among others, couldn't help but notice the glimmer in their eyes.

Apparently, this indicated that the young Lord Ren was held in even higher regard by the higher-ups at the Swordsman Headquarters.

"General Augustus, good day," Ren replied with a slight smile.

Claire and Beyons, meeting such a prominent figure for the first time, were quite nervous and quickly followed their captain in greeting him.

"Don't be nervous, please take a seat," Augustus said amiably.

After everyone was seated, Olenna quietly left the small conference room; her rank was not high enough to be present at such an important meeting.

"Lord Ren, please give us a detailed account of the unexpected situation during your mission," Tatyia said with a smile.

"Okay, at the foot of Blade Volcano, we encountered an attack from a wizard of the Tutkash Academy. Clawed Ghoul. Exploding Golem Legendary Stitchling."

Everyone in the room, including General Augustus, listened intently. Aside from Ren's narration, the only sound was the scratching of pens taking notes.

"The opponent's spirit seemed to be heavily injured due to the death of the Stitchling. He consumed Demon Blood and became an Incarnation."

Hearing this, Tatyia couldn't help but raise her head, looking at Ren with a hint of surprise. "Lord Ren, are you saying it was an Incarnation and not a Projection?"

"Yes, I'm certain it was an Incarnation," Ren nodded.

At this moment, sitting next to General Augustus, a middle-aged man with a pair of golden branches and two suns on his shoulder insignia coughed and said, "Lord Ren, you may not be aware, but for a deity to descend as an Incarnation, the requirements for the human vessel are very specific. Finding a suitable vessel for a deity's Incarnation is not an easy task."

"Moreover, dealing with a deity's Incarnation can be challenging, even for an Imperial Guardian." The man added.

However, Claire, who had already been impressed by her captain's strength, couldn't help but speak up at this statement.

After all, she hadn't been much help to her captain in direct combat.

She felt the need to contribute in some way during this investigation at headquarters. "Sir, my captain has made it clear, and we were all there and saw it clearly. The opponent was definitely an Incarnation, not a Projection."

"Yes, I can testify to that as well," Beyons agreed.

"Calm down, ladies, this isn't a hearing, just a situation report," the middle-aged man sighed and smiled.

Ren thought for a moment and nodded. "I believe that the possessed wizard from the Tutkash Academy was quite special."

"His name is Stavven, and he's quite formidable. Perhaps Lieutenant General Tatyia can look into it later; I think there should be a record of him at headquarters."

"Stavven?" General Augustus's expression turned solemn.

"Yes, sir," Ren nodded.

"No need to check, if it's him, then it must be a deity's Incarnation," Augustus waved his hand.

"I know Stavven. Thirty years ago, he was already a Tier 3 Crystallization Peak Wizard, and he's a rare genius in the Shadow School. He definitely qualifies as a vessel for a deity's Incarnation."

However, after speaking, Augustus carefully examined Ren, seemingly surprised that Ren could handle a deity's Incarnation.

At this moment, Tatyia suddenly thought of something and asked, "By the way, Lord Ren, do you know the deity's true name?"

"Yes, Stavven told me before his soul dissipated that the evil god was Spider God Naiyoubrekhan. I think these words are part of his true name."

Deities' true names are usually quite long and are considered a kind of top secret.

"What! It's the Spider Demon God Naiyoubrekhan?!" General Augustus, usually calm, exclaimed in surprise.

Everyone present, including Ren, was taken aback by Augustus's reaction.

After all, within the Empire's territories, evil cults were as common as mushrooms after rain, and there were numerous projections and even incarnations of evil gods.

Just a few months ago, an evil god's incarnation had even interrupted the Emperor's ascension to demigod.

General Augustus, as the second-in-command of the Empire's Swordsmen, should have been accustomed to such occurrences.

Could it be that this Spider Demon God was different from the other evil gods?

"My apologies, I lost my composure for a moment," Augustus said after a moment of reflection.

After a while, he continued, "Thousands of years ago, on the Seredil Plateau, there was a brutal and savage Spider Demon Empire. Its origins are lost to history, but they worshipped the Spider Demon God Naiyoubrekhan."

Action:

"Later, after the Spider Demon Empire was defeated by the coalition of several human kingdoms, it retreated deep underground."

"To avoid excessive casualties, the human kingdom coalition at the time did not continue the attack. Instead, they gathered a large group of wizards led by three Tier 5 Full Moon Wizards and used the artifact 'Radiance Staff' to thoroughly seal their entire realm underground."

"So, I'm worried that the appearance of the Evildom might indicate some problem with the underground seal, or perhaps they intend to break the seal."

"Lord Ren, thank you for reporting such important intelligence."

"Thank you, General Augustus. As an Imperial Swordsman, this is what I should do," Ren said with a slight smile.

"Lord Ren, is there anything else you'd like to add?" Tatyia paused in her writing and smiled.

After some thought, Ren spoke again, "Before Stavven's soul dissipated, he told me that the assassination attempt on me was actually instigated by the Isodrael Academy."

"Of course, this is merely Stavven's word, and I currently have no evidence."

"But I remain skeptical as to whether the Isodrael Academy, also located in the Seredil Plateau, has fulfilled its duty of surveillance."

"Also, I believe that Master Graham of the Tutkash Academy has already fallen. That's all."

"Thank you, Lord Ren. Headquarters will quickly assess and provide a corresponding reward for this intelligence," Tatyia said as she quickly recorded the information.

"Tatyia, please forward Lord Ren's report to Grand Wizard Dalien," General Augustus said solemnly.

"Yes, sir."

When the meeting concluded, Ren encountered Olenna, who was waiting at the conference room door. "Olenna, I have something to discuss with you."

"Lord Ren, please proceed," Olenna said, taking out a small notebook and quill to record his words.

"I'd like to know the latest developments and critical intelligence regarding the Cult of the Mother Tree in the region where Ferdinand Forest is located. Contact the local branch offices in those provinces."

"Also, check if there are any Swordsmen at headquarters who, due to special circumstances, have been sent on missions to the Elven Realm. If so, understand the specific process."

Due to historical entanglements, the elves maintained an unusually vigilant attitude towards humans.

Aside from maintaining a single embassy in the imperial capital of Tamriel for communication with humans, the elves were almost isolated from the world.

Therefore, even if Ren wanted to go to Ferdinand Forest to help Anna, it wasn't that simple, and he would also have to consider the attitude of the elves.

Additionally, as a race with a much longer history than humans, many elves had long lifespans and formidable strength.

Ren didn't believe that the Cult of the Mother Tree alone could cause significant harm to the elves. In other words, Anna would generally not face any safety issues.

"Alright, Lord Ren. I'll contact them right away."

When Ren returned to his mansion, his younger sister, Mint, quickly found him, looking dejected. "Brother, Anna left again. Do you know when she'll be back?"

"Don't worry! Anna should be back soon," Ren said, squatting down and gently rubbing Mint's head to comfort her.

"Last time, you said the same thing, but Anna didn't return for half a year."

"If Anna doesn't come back within a month, I'll go and find her, okay?" Ren continued, seeing that Mint was still unhappy.

"Yes, yes!" Mint smiled upon hearing her brother's assurance, her big eyes curving like crescent moons.

The next morning, Ren arrived at the residence of the Bishu Construct Academy.

In Master Mogaro's office.

"Huh? Ren, you completed your mission so quickly?" Master Mogaro was surprised that Ren had returned to the capital in just three days.

Normally, it would be considered fast for a Swordsman to return within a week of executing a mission.

"There was a slight change of plans, so I came back early. By the way, Master, I tested the Hellfire Golem in actual combat, and it performed well."

"Haha, that's great!" Master Mogaro was pleased with his prized disciple's words, stroking his red beard.

"By the way, did you bring the golem back? Tell me what needs improvement."

Master Mogaro's interest piqued when talking about the golem.

"Umm... it self-destructed," Ren said, feeling a bit embarrassed.

After all, his Hellfire Golem had consumed a significant amount of Master Mogaro's time and energy, and Audrey and Alicia had also provided a lot of help, which was why it could be completed so quickly.

"What? What exactly happened?" Master Mogaro stood up in surprise and asked.

"It's like this..."

When Ren described how the Hellfire Golem's self-destruction directly eliminated a Legendary Peak-level Stitchling, Master Mogaro's expression changed from one of shock to hearty laughter.

"Good! Excellent! Wonderful!"

"I never imagined that the golem I, Mogaro, created would one day be able to eliminate a Legendary Peak-level Stitchling."

Action: Mogaro's face flushed with excitement as he paced back and forth in the room. He fetched a bottle of Bordeaux vintage from a nearby cabinet, uncorked it, and took a generous swig directly from the bottle.

After gulping down a good portion of the bottle, he suddenly remembered something and said, "Ren, do you want a sip? Burp."

"Thank you, Teacher, but no," Ren replied with a wry smile, shaking his head.

"Well, since the golem self-destructed, we'll just make another one. By the way, after this real combat experience, what improvements do you think are needed for the Hellfire Golem?" Mogaro asked, trying to calm his excitement.

Ren had already thought about this before coming.

From the confrontation with the Stitchling, the golem was clearly at a disadvantage.

Ren had considered raising the tier of his spell, from Tier 1 to Tier 2, but this would mean a geometrically more challenging sigil. For Mogaro, who was only at the peak of Tier 1 Wizardry, it was simply too difficult.

The simplest way to enhance the golem's power was to make it thicker, taller, and larger.

As for the spell, he could consider adding more firing points.

"Teacher, can we add two additional cannons on the shoulders of the Hellfire Golem to cast Fireball and Shadow Arrow? Should we also consider preparing an extra small furnace device for this purpose?"

Mogaro pondered for a moment, then turned to Ren and said, "It's not impossible, but doing so would significantly increase the size of the Hellfire Golem. It might exceed six meters in height, and controlling it would be very challenging."

"Teacher, I can handle it," Ren said with a slight smile.

One of the main reasons for minimizing the golem's size was Ren's own limitations as a Tier 2 Liquidization Wizard. Despite his Super Metal Affinity, controlling the golem was already quite difficult for him.

Ren clearly remembered that controlling the Hellfire Golem had consumed nearly 50 points of his spirit energy in one go. At that time, he only had around 90 points.

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However, the situation was different now.

Currently, his spirit energy had reached an impressive 133 points, and the quality of his crystallized spirit energy was even better than that of liquidization. Controlling the golem would be much easier.

Mogaro eyed Ren suspiciously, and his expression suddenly turned to horror. "You wouldn't..."

Although Mogaro couldn't see through Ren's current strength, especially with Ren wearing the 'Concealment Robe', the calm smile on Ren's face gave Mogaro a hint of his hidden power.

Ren smiled slightly and nodded. "Teacher, I'll leave this matter to you."

At the same time, in the imperial capital of Tamriel, within a luxurious mansion located to the left of the palace.

A middle-aged man with a goatee stood respectfully beside a young man with a gentle and feminine appearance, who had blond hair.

The young blond man was sitting in a chair, casually flipping through some documents.

"Buchanan, so this young man named Ren should have some unknown dragon bloodline, right?"

"Your Highness, according to the documents, it seems so," replied the middle-aged man named Buchanan, bowing slightly.

"Good, go and invite him to join the Dragon Scale Brotherhood," said the Second Prince Everton, his face showing a mysterious smile, as he closed the documents.

"Yes, Your Highness," Buchanan said, slowly leaving the room.

Although Duke Dram had previously approached him, wanting him to influence the Second Prince to eliminate Ren, it seemed that the Second Prince was now more interested in this young man with dragon blood.

The Dragon Scale Brotherhood was a secret society established by the Second Prince, specifically for non-royals with various dragon bloodlines.

Upon returning to his mansion, Ren went to the training room and began to study the Tier 2 spell 'Iron Armor' and the Tier 3 spell 'Steel Armor'.

Before learning 'Steel Armor', he had read the description at the exchange counter of the sect and felt that there should be an intrinsic connection between the two spells.

After repeated attempts, Ren was certain that there was an intrinsic connection between the two spells.

However, he also felt that something was missing.

Ren began to cast the two spells consecutively in the room.

"Tier 2 Spell, 'Iron Armor'!"

"Tier 3 Talent Spell, 'Steel Armor'!"

A layer of dark iron armor was covered by an even thicker layer of silver metal, and the defense seemed to be additive. But Ren soon realized that this was only a superficial addition, not like a powerful skill that significantly increased power.

After casting the spells repeatedly, Ren felt that something was not quite right.

After much thought, Ren tried to add the Tier 1 Talent Spell, 'Metal Transformation'.

After casting it twice, a flash of insight appeared in Ren's mind. That's right, it should be Metal Transformation!

At that moment, a system prompt sounded:

[You have comprehended the combination spell. Do you want to spend 42 Golden Skill Points to perfect it?]



"As expected!" Ren clenched his fist in excitement.

Without hesitation, he eagerly chose "Yes"!

Instantly, a vast amount of wizardry training memories flooded Ren's mind, as if he had been practicing these three spells in some mysterious space for over a hundred years!

When Ren opened his eyes again, his understanding of these three spells had surpassed a certain boundary, and he now knew how to fuse them into one.

[Ding! Simulation successful! Host has comprehended the Tier 3 Metal-type Combined Spell, 'Steel Armor'!]



"Steel Armor?" Ren's face lit up with joy.

"The Tier 1 innate spell 'Metal Transformation', the Tier 2 spell 'Iron Armor', and the Tier 3 innate spell 'Steel Armor Spell' are cast in succession, forming the combined spell: Steel Armor!"

Just as Ren was about to test it out, a knock sounded at the door.

"Knock, knock, knock!"

"Lord Ren, there's a Count Buchanan outside who wishes to meet you. He claims to be the steward of Prince Eliot," Matteo, the short man, said with a hint of urgency in his breath.

"Hmm? The steward of Prince Eliot?" Ren's eyebrows rose slightly, clearly surprised.

No wonder Matteo had come to disturb him.

"Please invite him to the reception room," Ren said after a brief moment of thought.

A few minutes later, in the reception room.

"Lord Ren, I've come because I heard that you also possess the rare Dragon Bloodline. Prince Eliot has tasked me with inviting you to join the Dragon Scale Brotherhood," Buchanan said with a smile, getting straight to the point.

"This is a small gift from His Highness, Prince Eliot."

"This is a special potion developed by the Dragon Scale Brotherhood. It has a promoting effect on those with the Dragon Bloodline, and His Highness has named it the 'Dragon Vein Evolution Elixir'."

As Buchanan spoke, he took out a brown wooden box, opened it, and handed it to Ren.

"This..."

Ren clearly saw a bottle of dark red potion inside, shimmering with a bloody spell's glow.

Due to the matter with Anna's mother, Ren had already considered how to approach this Prince Eliot.

However, Ren never expected that the prince would personally come to invite him to join an organization he had never heard of.

Seeing Ren's thoughtful expression, Buchanan's face lit up, and he continued, "Lord Ren, Prince Eliot's original intention in establishing the Dragon Scale Brotherhood was to provide a platform for those who unexpectedly awaken the Dragon Bloodline, a chance to further enhance their abilities."

"For instance, you can imagine a group of like-minded individuals researching how to further develop their Dragon Bloodline's unique abilities, studying related special potions, and more."

"Additionally, this is a purely secluded order, which will not affect your current Swordsman identity, nor will it impose any mandatory tasks."

It was undeniable that Buchanan had excellent eloquence and tactics.

Most people would undoubtedly be tempted.

However, Ren was different; he was quickly weighing the pros and cons.

Firstly, based on his prior knowledge of Prince Eliot, it was highly unlikely that the Dragon Scale Brotherhood would be as pure and secret as Buchanan claimed.

Ren himself was a wizard and an alchemist; with a little thought, he could identify the problem's crux.

How would they research and develop the Dragon Bloodline? Bloodline research would require drawing fresh blood, and perhaps even a small amount of bodily tissue, to yield any results.

Moreover, if his bloodline were to be studied and something special discovered, it would be even more disadvantageous.

Additionally, Ren was well aware that his bloodline's improvement relied on the system, which meant that by systematically hunting and killing dragon-type creatures, he could continuously enhance and mutate his Dragon Bloodline.

As for Anna's mother, he could seek other methods.

"My apologies, Count Buchanan, please convey my gratitude to His Highness, Prince Eliot, for his kindness. However, as a Swordsman, I currently have no plans to join any secret organization," Ren said politely after some thought.

He also expressed his decision not to join any secret organizations, indicating that he held no prejudice against Prince Eliot.

"Hehe, Lord Ren, you may not be aware of how many people out there are eager to join Prince Eliot's Dragon Scale Brotherhood."

"Especially those with polluted or degenerated bloodlines, who are willing to pay a significant price for the opportunity."

Buchanan didn't seem to mind Ren's refusal and continued, "By the way, I heard you recently participated in the Dragon Knight Cadet selection process?"

"Yes."

"Then you should definitely join the Dragon Scale Brotherhood. Let me share a little secret—Prince Eliot is one of the examiners for this selection."

"It's about time; I've taken enough of your time, Lord Ren," Buchanan said with a meaningful smile, preparing to leave.

"I understand, Count Buchanan. I'll need some time to consider it," Ren said, standing up.

"Of course, if you decide to join, you can contact me anytime in the next few days."

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end