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Chapter 263: I Am a Grand Magus!
🕑 Added 2024-09-29 08:04:43 +0000 UTCTuck remained confused, as he was usually careless and didn't fully understand what was being discussed.
However, upon hearing Rhett's mention, Taylors suddenly fell into deep thought, uncertainly saying, "I do remember something—those people mentioned that strange things have been happening in Withered Vine Town recently. Apparently... some people have been having the same nightmare? In the dream, everything seemed to be devoured, leaving only endless darkness..."
That might have something to do with the Arcane of Deprivation, Rhett mused, casting his gaze toward the bat-like shadow floating above Taylors' head. Its abilities indeed seemed related to the Arcanes of ‘Deprivation’ and ‘Devouring.’
It was the first time he had encountered a sprite that possessed two types of Arcane abilities. Previously, all the sprites he had come across or heard of either had no connection to Arcane powers, or, at most, only one.
This particular sprite, being of the dark element, piqued Rhett's interest. He couldn't help but recall a passage from the notes of the Saint Magus Timus, which mentioned that the influence of the Underworld seemed to be strongest in this world, even allowing dark mages to summon undead creatures. Thus, Rhett began to wonder if dark sprites might be more powerful than their counterparts. The current phenomenon certainly supported this hypothesis.
Rhett took another look at the sprite, realizing that Taylors couldn't exploit it as he had hoped. Despite the sprite's connection to two Arcanes, it was an opportunity they would have to pass up.
"So, I suspect that those strange occurrences might be linked to the sprite," Rhett continued, deep in thought. "From this, we can infer that the sprite's ability to devour might require the target to be in a dream state or engaged in meditation."
Combining this with previous simulations where many had similar experiences, Rhett surmised that, for transcendent beings, the sprite's devouring ability might not be lethal. However, he was unsure how it would affect ordinary people.
Taylors nodded in sudden understanding. "That makes sense, Father. I used to think those were just rumors—after all, how could such strange things happen in the world? But if it was the sprite's doing, then it all makes sense."
"It’s fascinating—how does it even accomplish that?" Tuck muttered as he scratched his head, still perplexed.
Rhett knew a bit about it, but not much more. It seemed related to the Arcanes of ‘Devouring’ and ‘Deprivation,’ but most likely, the sprite's unique nature played a bigger role. After all, while humans could master Arcanes, they couldn't achieve the same level of control as the sprite. Rhett speculated that it might involve abilities from another world, fundamentally different from those of this world.
"Father, shall we find a few sleeping beasts later and give it a try?" Taylors suggested, his eyes gleaming with curiosity.
"Sure, we can give it a shot," Rhett agreed with a nod.
The strange occurrences of the evening dampened everyone's mood to enjoy the lake's scenery. After briefly tidying up their surroundings, they ventured into areas they hadn't yet explored.
The winter wind howled, and snowflakes drifted down. As deep winter set in, the Dark Forest was cloaked in white, losing some of its eerie atmosphere and gaining a sense of tranquility.
The reflection of the snow made the forest's light even brighter.
A week had passed since Taylors had tamed the Nightmare Devouring Sprite. The group walked along a snow-covered forest path, perfectly aligned, with only the howling wind and the crunching of snow underfoot to break the silence.
Taylors had named the bat-like sprite the Nightmare Devouring Sprite. After some testing, they found that it could indeed affect beasts, but since beasts didn't meditate, slept lightly, and lacked the mental strength of mages, they were not ideal targets.
"Strange, it's getting quiet again—why aren't there any beasts around?" Taylors muttered under his breath.
Tuck scratched his head. "Could we have run into another high-level magical beast?"
"Unlikely. There are still plenty of ordinary animals in the forest, and I've seen large eagles in the sky. This isn't the territory of a high-level magical beast," Taylors said, glancing around.
Rhett, however, kept his gaze calmly fixed ahead, a slight smile on his lips. He was emitting the aura of a third-level mage, common enough to blend in among the transcendent beings of the Dark Forest.
But his mental power had detected three transcendent beings five hundred meters away—two fourth-level Earth Knights and a third-level mage.
“Boss, when do we strike? They’re getting closer,” the third-level mage, an old man with a face full of wrinkles, whispered. He was crouching in the snow, his gray mage's robe blending in with the surroundings.
"Wait until they’re within two hundred meters for a safer move," one of the knights, also an old man, replied cautiously. Though aged, he was still very muscular, so much so that the bushes barely concealed him.
“They’ve got a magic pet with them too, which means they must be loaded. If we pull this off, it could be worth a month’s haul!” The other knight’s eyes gleamed with greed.
“A month? I’d say two.”
They whispered among themselves, their presence so subtle that neither Tuck nor Taylors noticed. However, Rhett heard every word, and a look of disdain flashed in his eyes.
Half a minute passed, and they were now only three hundred meters from the ambush site. Rhett could even feel their excited heartbeats and see the cruelty on their faces, as if they were preparing to strike.
But Rhett wasn't one to wait for an attack. He acted, using his mental power to gather earth elements and cast a spell.
Suddenly, two earthen spikes, glowing with a yellowish hue, shot up from the snow-covered ground, aiming directly at a vulnerable spot.
Thud Thud
The three men crouching in the snow were caught off guard. The third-level mage watched in disbelief as his two companions' faces twisted in agony, emitting blood-curdling screams.
“Agh!”
“Agh!”
Their bodies convulsed and twitched violently before losing all signs of life, yet they didn’t collapse—the spikes had impaled them, holding them up like skewers.
The surviving third-level mage trembled in terror, his eyes wide with horror. He instantly realized what had happened and turned to flee. A green light surrounded him as wind elements boosted his speed.
But just as he started running, he felt something pull at his feet. Looking down, his face turned ashen and hopeless.
The ground beneath him had turned into a swirling vortex of earth, the familiar flow of a Binding Quicksand spell. The mage's eyes lost all hope, realizing they had underestimated their target. The irony of thinking they were the hunters, only to find themselves the prey, was not lost on him.
“There’s trouble ahead!” Tuck called out as he dashed forward, using his Phantom Rewind to cover the distance in a few quick bursts.
He saw the old mage trapped in the quicksand, pleading for mercy, and was filled with curiosity.
When Rhett and Taylors arrived, Taylors was surprised to see the bodies on the ground and the captive mage. “So there were three people lying in ambush here? I guess Father had noticed them long ago.”
Tuck’s expression turned cold. “Hmph, you’re pretty bold, ambushing us like this. Were you planning a sneak attack?”
“I… I don’t know anything! It was all their idea!” the old man cried, his eyes wide with terror as he begged for his life. The ease with which Rhett had dispatched his companions made it clear he was facing at least a fifth-level Grand Magus, a foe far beyond his ability to contend with.
Rhett’s expression remained calm. “Do you want to live?”
“Yes! Yes! Whatever you want, just say the word, and I’ll do it!” The old man nodded frantically, grasping at this last chance for survival.
“Then start meditating.”
“M-Meditating?!” The old man was taken aback but, fearing for his life, didn’t dare question further. He sat down and began to meditate as instructed.
“Whatever happens, don’t stop meditating, understood?” Rhett ordered.
“Understood!” The old man closed his eyes, responding quickly, though his heart was filled with fear. He had no choice but to comply.
Rhett then turned to Taylors and said, “Let it out and give it a try.”
The “it” referred to the Nightmare Devouring Sprite. Taylors was thrilled—over the past week, they had learned that some of the strange occurrences in Withered Vine Town and other areas of the Dark Forest were related to mages falling into a state of darkness during meditation, as if trapped in a nightmare.
Taylors understood what his father meant—he wanted him to see if the sprite could devour the old man’s mental power. Thus, he summoned the Nightmare Devouring Sprite and instructed it to target the old man.
This time, the sprite didn’t hesitate, darting towards the old man’s head at lightning speed and disappearing into his mind like a shadow.
Immediately, the old man’s expression twisted, his forehead creasing as if he were having a nightmare.
Soon, large beads of cold sweat began to drip from his brow.
Taylors watched the scene with fascination, marveling at the strange phenomenon.
An hour later, the Nightmare Devouring Sprite emerged from the old man’s head. Its shadow appeared slightly thinner, indicating a bit of weakness, before it quickly returned to Taylors' body.
“Whew!”
The old man opened his eyes simultaneously, gasping for breath as if he had just been pulled from drowning. His face was filled with terror, and he trembled as he pointed at the bat-like shadow. “A demon, a demon…”
Rhett shook his head with a slight smile. “It’s not a demon. It won’t take your life. If you need to call something a demon, that should be me.”
As he finished speaking, a spike suddenly shot from behind, piercing straight into the old man’s skull.
Knowing his secret, Rhett couldn’t afford to let the man live.
Afterward, Dick walked up, holding the dropper-like Black Crow’s Death in his hand, and easily finished the job.
【Family member slays an enemy four ranks higher. Fate points +4】
"It's always more satisfying when it's done by a commoner..." Rhett thought to himself with a sigh.
Since the bat entered his body, Taylors had fallen into silence, closing his eyes as he carefully absorbed the experience.
After a moment, he took a deep breath, opened his eyes, and said, “It did help a bit, but this time the bat’s return brought only a slight improvement. It’s nowhere near the boost I got the first time.”
Rhett thought for a moment and said, “Perhaps it had already devoured many times before recognizing you, so it had accumulated a large amount of energy.”
“That’s likely, which means I don’t need to worry about the sprite’s devouring capacity being filled up after just a few uses. It seems its capacity is quite large,” Taylors said, his eyes bright with excitement.
“When we return to Dark Eagle City, I’ll help you gather a batch of death row prisoners, lock them in a secret prison, and provide you with some nourishment,” Rhett suggested.
“Huh? Isn’t that... a bit too cruel?” Taylors hesitated. He wasn’t afraid of death but was concerned about the possibility of capturing innocent people. That was something he couldn’t accept.
“Don’t worry. We won’t capture any innocents. I’ll make sure we only select those who are truly evil,” Rhett reassured him, patting Taylors on the shoulder to ease his concerns.
“Alright then, when will we head back?”
“In another two months. Let’s focus on hunting more magical beasts in the meantime,” Rhett replied, glancing at the system panel, where the Fate Points read: 【821】. These were all from recent kills, but it was still far from enough to achieve the Grand Magus breakthrough.
Time passed quickly as they hunted magical beasts.
Three months later.
Winter had turned to spring, and now spring was nearing its end. The earth had awakened, vibrant with life, and the world was full of color and energy.
In a cave halfway up a mountain in the Dark Forest.
Rhett quietly opened his eyes. A vast surge of mental power radiated from him, like the crashing waves of an ocean, incomparable to the power of a regular Magus.
He softly murmured, “So, I’ve finally become a Grand Magus. This power… it’s overwhelming…”
The mental power extended beyond his body. Under Rhett’s control, it condensed into a long spear, which he thrust into the cave wall like a drill, creating a deep hole. Both the quality and quantity of his mental power had reached a level far beyond what he had before. Even with advanced magic, he could now wield far greater power!
Still within the simulation, Rhett had spent over four thousand Fate Points to achieve this breakthrough. He was about to explore the changes in his Earth Armor when suddenly, his expression changed. The newfound state of his breakthrough allowed him to perceive a deeper aspect of the world, and even the earth elements around him seemed different.
Rhett felt a surge of excitement. He closed his eyes again, focusing on the earth elements like grains of sand. They would sometimes leap, sometimes overlap, and sometimes vibrate and blur, shifting in countless mysterious ways.
As they overlapped, Rhett seemed to catch sight of a more intricate pattern, making the merging process smoother and quicker…
He became deeply immersed in this unique state, fascinated by his insight into the Arcane of Convergence, and lost himself in it.
It wasn’t until half an hour later that he reluctantly opened his eyes, feeling both joy and regret.
“Such a pity... If I had just a little more time, I could have gained an even deeper understanding!” Rhett sighed. He activated the Arcane of Convergence, and his entire body first turned to sand before transforming into a diamond-like solid mass. It appeared as if he was an indestructible ancient stone, unyielding and impervious.
“Not bad. I can now fully coat my entire body with the Arcane of Convergence. The next step will be to apply it to my magic!”
Rhett evaluated his progress with satisfaction. Then, to test his newfound resilience, he cast an Earth Spike spell, condensing a sharp spike directly in front of him. The spike shot forward with tremendous force, piercing the air and slamming into his chest.
Clang!
A clear, ringing sound echoed through the cave. The sharp and sturdy spike barely made a dent when it struck Rhett’s chest.
Rhett felt no pain at all, as if someone had simply tapped his chest lightly—it didn’t hurt at all.
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