Chapter 379 Everything Normal for Now

After finishing some trivial matters, Shaoke returned to the underground to continue his experiments. As usual, he soaked the stone statues in elemental water. During this spellcasting, a black halo once again flew down from the crown and merged into the stone statues. Unfortunately, these halos appeared for only a very short time and did not last long. Even so, three to five stone statues developed strange runes on their surfaces.

Of course, it all happened too quickly for Shaoke to notice.

After this spellcasting ended, Shaoke selected a stone statue without runes and proceeded with his spellcasting work according to the arcane secrets he had obtained earlier. A six-pointed star magic array appeared beneath the stone statue as Shaoke chanted the spell. Before long, the six-pointed star magic array began to rotate slowly.

As the array turned, the stone statue gradually shrank. After a while, the entire statue turned into a mass of black powder mixed with golden specks, suspended in the air. Taking a short rest, Shaoke continued his work. He used a special vessel to collect the powder and evenly sprinkled it onto the other stone statues. By the time this task was completed, a day and a night had passed.

Over time, the powder mixed with golden light slowly merged into the stone statues. Under these circumstances, another statue developed a few eerie runes. Shaoke knew that if he continued, his experiment might succeed.

In the following period, the professionals in the entire station became busy. They patrolled in groups in the air or took teleportation arrays to other Wanderers Alliance stations. The busiest among them was the Blue-robed Mage. Of course, none of this concerned Shaoke. During this time, members of the Mage Guild came once, but Shaoke turned them all into stone statues as his experiment materials. This made almost all professionals who saw him walking outside the magic tower respectfully bow and keep their distance. Shaoke didn't care about any of this at all.

One day, after Shaoke had once again crushed a stone statue without runes and applied the powder to other statues, the Blue-robed Mage suddenly sent him a message asking him to come to the meeting hall. There were some matters that required his presence for discussion.

The meeting hall was at the top of the nearly hundred-story magic tower. All the Ninth-rank Professionals in the station had gathered there. It was worth mentioning that another Ninth-rank Professional had arrived. This brought the number of Ninth-order Beings in their station to twenty, signifying powerful strength.

"Everyone, the people from the Mage Guild have started attacking our allies. I think we need to do something now." The Blue-robed Mage didn't waste any words. She directly took out a map that detailed the distribution of Wanderers Alliance stations throughout the Luanyun Empire.

"Gather all the Wanderers Alliance and permanently drive the Mage Guild out of here," Shaoke said without looking at the map, quickly stating his solution. "I think they will understand what will happen if the Mage Guild controls this place." He sat there quietly, rotating his staff.

The female warrior with the horn looked at Shaoke with dissatisfaction. She was one of the few Ninth-order Beings in this station who didn't care about his power. "What benefit do they have to join the battle? No benefit. They can wait until after our conflict with the Mage Guild ends before making a move. That way, their losses will be much smaller." She picked up her wine glass and drank it dry.

The Space Mage frowned and said to the Blue-robed Mage, "Choose to join our great alliance, or be wiped out." His face twisted with cruelty. "We must crush any thought of trying to seize the fruits of victory later. No matter the cost, death or joining is their best option." He pointed to several stations on the map and added, "These Wandering Alliances are not far from us and our allies. We cannot allow them to remain neutral."

The Space Mage's words expressed the concerns of all Ninth-order Beings. If these alliances suddenly joined the Mage Guild during the battle, it would put them at a great disadvantage. Of course, if the other side were strong, they could join forces with the Mage Guild to destroy their families here. In that case, many families without Ninth-order Beings would permanently disappear from this continent.

For a time, everyone gathered around the map and began discussing. The Blue-robed Mage listened with a frown, while Shaoke closed his eyes and rested silently in his chair. After a long time, the discussion still hadn't ended, which made Shaoke very dissatisfied.

"Discussing here is pointless. Do you think any so-called schemes have value in this situation? Joining or perishing—that is the choice for those neutral organization leaders. Don't worry about them," Shaoke said discontentedly. "I don't have much time to stay here. Which alliance should we attack first? We must decide quickly." He pulled up his hood and activated his Mist Spell to conceal his form.

The Ninth-order Beings shook their heads helplessly. They knew Shaoke had a strange temper, but they hadn't expected it to be so extreme. The atmosphere fell into silence. Finally, the Blue-robed Mage broke the silence, saying, "Let's first meet with some other alliances, then together go discuss with these neutral alliances." A fierce expression appeared on her face. "As you said, destroy those who disagree." She named a few people to accompany her to meet other alliances and then carry out the so-called persuasion work. Among them was Shaoke.

With no delay, ten Ninth-order Beings remained at the station to guard against any surprise attacks from the Mage Guild. Shaoke and the others took the teleportation array to another alliance. This alliance's gathering point was the Wanderers Alliance of the so-called "Land of Beauties," the Hebrews.

This Hebrew Empire was one of the few large empires on the continent, and it had a large number of wanderers. One reason the Blue-robed Mage wasn't afraid of the Mage Guild was the support of this empire's wanderers. Of course, the Wanderers Alliance of the Maple Leaf Empire also supported her.

The Hebrews Wanderers Alliance station was many times larger than Shaoke's. Their station was a huge mountain, tens of thousands of meters high, with snow already accumulated on the top. Ordinary residents lived at the foot of the mountain. Only professionals above the Eighth Order had the ability and qualification to live at the top. When Shaoke and the others teleported in, they appeared directly at the peak of the mountain.

There were no protective spells on the mountaintop, but countless magic scripts and large arrays were carved into the ground. Nearly a hundred Eighth-order Practitioners hovered silently in the air, unaffected by the strong winds and snow. On the peak stood a huge, magnificent palace supported by countless hundred-foot stone pillars. Soon, a Ninth Tier Knight came to welcome Shaoke and his group.

"Everyone, welcome," the knight said, riding a fifth-tier Magic Bell Beast that hovered silently in the air. This beast had extraordinary endurance and could run at full speed for dozens of days and nights without tiring. As it ran, it emitted a clear bell sound that could be fatal to ordinary residents.

Although this magical beast was quite numerous, it was difficult to tame. Even powerful knights rarely managed to tame a Magic Bell Beast. Some had tried to snatch cubs for rearing, but domesticated beasts could not compare to wild ones. Thus, a knight who could ride such a beast as a mount demonstrated some special ability.

The group saluted the knight and, under his guidance, entered the grand palace. Just as Shaoke and the others entered, several figures appeared on the teleportation array outside. They were also Ninth-order Beings, but fewer in number—only four or five. Nonetheless, the knight warmly received them according to protocol and guided them inside, as this was his duty. Completing one's duty was a basic requirement for every knight.

The palace was huge, and they were now in its main hall. The hall, which could accommodate thousands of people, seemed empty. However, several hundred Ninth-rank Professionals were already there, sitting around a large round table. Under the hospitality of two Ninth Tier Knights, Shaoke and his group found their seats. They sat quietly, waiting for the meeting to begin.

Like everyone else, Shaoke began to survey the professionals present. He noticed many types he had only seen in books: Illusion Mages, Elemental Mages, Glory Warriors, Glory Knights, and some special professionals, such as Star Mages, Word Mages, Law Mages, Necromancers, and even seven or eight Prophecy Mages and some Star Curse Mages. Of course, there were more professions not listed here; they will be mentioned later.