Chapter 388 Reception and Experiment

Lan Wei'er, who had become an Eighth-tier Mage, did not choose to become a Star Mage but instead took on the ancient Command Mage class. This type of mage does not possess special spells, but they are the fastest among all spellcasters in terms of casting speed. Often, a spell only requires uttering its name for it to succeed. Of course, its power is also formidable, but it is too monotonous, and the transition is extremely difficult, so very few mages choose this profession. However, with the help of the White-robed Cleric, Lan Wei'er made a smooth transition.

For Lan Wei'er's class change, Shaoke took out almost all the magic materials he had stored and made several promises and borrowed many precious materials from the Blue-robed Mage and other Ninth-rank Professionals, thus enabling her successful transition. However, Lan Wei'er was unaware of all this, but Mage Roman and the White-robed Cleric knew.

Although Lan Wei'er had met Moyu'er many times during her secluded cultivation, they spent little time together. This time, right after her promotion, Lan Wei'er, without stabilizing her realm, picked up Moyu'er and cuddled her affectionately; she loved this little girl dearly.

"You should go back and fully comprehend the changes after your promotion," Mage Roman scolded Lan Wei'er sternly. After consulting with Shaoke, she once again confined Lan Wei'er to her room, only releasing her a year later. With a mysterious aura enveloping her, Lan Wei'er pouted and returned to her room for cultivation; she had neither the qualification nor the ability to defy her mother. Of course, everything her mother said was for her benefit, and she had to accept it. Moyu'er was very reluctant to let Lan Wei'er leave, but she could do nothing about it.

"Father, I want to wear clothes like my sister's," Moyu'er said, pointing at Lan Wei'er's gorgeous blue robe and reaching her little hand to Shaoke, demanding one. She envied the ornate patterns and runes on the robe. However, Shaoke refused and scolded her instead.

"Remember, never ask others for things, because it means you will have to pay for them. Many things are earned by yourself." With that, Shaoke touched the little girl's head and walked outside. Moyu'er clung tightly to the edge of Shaoke's cloak, trotting along behind him.

After Lan Wei'er once again entered secluded cultivation, the atmosphere of the Barbarian Empire subtly changed. High-order Practitioners frequently flew across the sky; as time passed, the skies above the empire were almost filled with Eighth-tier professionals and above. They flew in groups, apparently searching for something.

"Mage Snow Night, I think it's time we took some action," the Blue-robed Mage said to Shaoke after they had finished watching Moyu'er study. "A young adventuring team discovered some items in a remnant ruin, and these items have been leaked. All the major alliances in the empire are vying for them. We must get involved in this affair." With that, the Blue-robed Mage took out a silver-white scepter from her bosom. The scepter was only the size of an infant's arm, but it was covered with a faint layer of light, appearing very charming. It also felt warm when held.

"According to some books, the material used to make this scepter is said to be the bones of a naturally-born deity. Those who wish to become gods often use such items and other materials to ignite their divine fire and ascend," said Shaoke, recognizing the material after examining the scepter. "I think you should keep this item hidden, or else we cannot guarantee that higher-ranked beings will not come to plunder it." With that, Shaoke handed the scepter back to the Blue-robed Mage, pulled his cloak tighter, and asked, "What do you need me to do?"

"Don't worry. Now that dozens of such materials have appeared in the Barbarian Continent at once, I only acquired one from a wealthy merchant. No one will know it's with me." Even so, the Blue-robed Mage stored the jade bone scepter in her ring. "Find that adventuring team. They must have more precious materials. We need to seize a share," said the Blue-robed Mage as she turned, looking askance at the dark clouds in the sky, which had lingered in that area for a long time, making her uneasy. Although she had probed there, there were no results.

Shaoke nodded. Although he felt the Blue-robed Mage had not revealed everything, he did not ask. Some people always have things they don't want others to know.

Gathering twelve Ninth-order beings, the group followed the Blue-robed Mage away from the compound, heading toward the barren lands. Their target was to find those wandering adventuring teams. The compound was left to be checked by the Eighth-tier professionals. Of course, this checking process was very strict; every outsider had to undergo probing and inspection, and even family members had their spatial equipment turned over for inspection.

The mages acted separately. Shaoke forcibly detained hundreds of adventuring teams for inspection but found no special or strange items, which frustrated him. Although no one dared to resist the high-ranking professionals, this prolonged harassment caused complaints among the adventurers around the compound. If it continued, it would lead to greater resistance. The Blue-robed Mage noticed this too but, to obtain the precious materials, she still ordered Shaoke and the others to continue this behavior. Of course, this was also because professionals from other organizations were doing the same thing, so it was unavoidable.

One day, Shaoke was inspecting adventurers. As he was about to inspect a small team, a group of ten Eighth-tier professionals arrived and stopped him. "Mage, I believe this area belongs to us. You have no authority to probe these young people," said a warrior brandishing his weapon at Shaoke. To express his displeasure, he released his fighting aura and carved a deep line on the ground, warning the mage.

"Wandering Practitioners of the Yisage Empire?" Shaoke asked suspiciously. He hadn't expected to meet people from the Yisage Empire here. They had once completely destroyed their wandering forces here, and during the battle with the Mage Guild, he hadn't noticed any of their imperial wanderers. "Who allowed you to establish a compound here? Do you have the qualifications?" Shaoke slowly rotated his staff, intending to kill these people.

The warrior looked at Shaoke with suspicion and replied calmly, "We participated in the war against the Mage Guild, so of course we have the right to establish a compound here. Do you have any doubts? Even if you do, do you have the right to govern us?" With that, the warrior turned his gaze to the nearby adventuring team and suddenly snatched a young warrior's spatial ring.

As his belongings were taken in an instant, the young adventurer shouted and lunged at the warrior, his weapon—a golden longsword—wreathed in thick aura as he slashed. The warrior, not expecting such a reaction, blocked the attack but was still knocked back a few steps by the force.

This Eighth-tier Warrior did not check his attacker but quickly examined the stolen items, tossing some loose ones aside. The others restrained the young warrior. The warrior held up a mirror inlaid with countless patterns. "Leave here!" he shouted, then quickly flew away, but Shaoke blocked him with a Blink.

"Decree of Eternal Years," a spell Shaoke had learned from the gods' memories, taking him three or four years to fully master. A ball of milky white light instantly appeared on the fleeing warrior. Despite the warrior activating his aura and a protective scroll, they couldn't withstand the attack. He rapidly aged and crumbled into a pile of bones on the ground. The inlaid mirror fell, prompting everyone to scramble for it. The young warrior with the golden sword roared, tore a gem-studded headband from his hair, and threw it at Shaoke. The headband erupted with milky white light, forcing the mage to close his eyes briefly.

Without hesitation, Shaoke activated his defensive spells and blinked away from his original position, hovering in the air. The Eighth-tier professionals did the same, but Shaoke attacked them. Death Will appeared once again. Meanwhile, the milky white ball exploded at his previous location, creating a pit over a person's height deep and vitrifying the ground.

Two black rays shot from Shaoke's eyes, splitting into dozens of beams that struck the people on the road. Both Eighth-tier professionals and ordinary adventurers instantly turned into stone statues. However, one exception was the young warrior holding the golden sword.

When Death Will enveloped him, the golden sword emitted a golden light, blocking the attack. Surprised but undeterred, Shaoke continued his assault, unleashing a scarlet beam that struck the young warrior, tearing his body apart. A ball of milky white light emerged from his remains, hovering silently in the air.

Everything happened abruptly and ended just as quickly. Shaoke stared at the milky white light, puzzled. It felt familiar, but before he could investigate, a small spatial rift appeared before the light. An aged Divine Archer stepped out, gently touched the light, then tossed it to Shaoke. However, he took the inlaid mirror.

"Keep the rest for yourself. They will be of use to you. Remember, keep this to yourself and don't tell anyone else," said the Divine Archer before tearing open the space again and vanishing. Shaoke collapsed to the ground, the pressure from the earlier figure had been immense; if not for his willpower, he would have collapsed sooner.

Panting for about half a magic hour, he finally stood up with the help of his staff. The road was now deserted due to the battle. Shaoke quickly picked up the ring and the milky white light, intending to leave. But some unexpected arrivals intercepted him, demanding he stay, as the recent large magical fluctuations needed investigation. Of course, they hadn't expected anyone to be still here.

"Did you kill these people?" asked a mage in the garb of a Desasi Empire wanderer. "Are you Mage Snow Night?" Recognizing the statues, the wandering mage of the Desasi Empire bowed and added, "Honorable Mage, I didn't realize it was you earlier. Please forgive my ignorance." With that, the mage and the other practitioners offered their respects and waited for Shaoke's response. Shaoke simply nodded and told them a Divine Archer had been here, possibly of the Twelfth or Thirteenth Tier, and advised them to prepare for unexpected incidents.

After hearing this, the Desasi Empire people didn't press further but quickly left. Shaoke then realized he had strayed near the Desasi Empire's encampment. After resting briefly and collecting the stone statues of the Eighth-tier professionals, he quickly returned to his own compound.

Upon contacting the Blue-robed Mage, Shaoke examined his gains: a golden longsword, a ring engraved with intricate patterns, and the milky white light. He ignored the longsword, knowing it to be a powerful magic item, and focused on the light.

It felt very familiar. After a long while, he realized this was the unique light left behind by a deceased Divine Avatar. This discovery shocked him. Since the destruction of the Luanyun Empire, the gods had vanished; seeing something similar again was unexpected.

After a full magic hour, the Blue-robed Mage returned. By then, Shaoke had stowed the light away and began inspecting the ring's contents.

Inside were many precious items, some he had only heard of but never seen. The Blue-robed Mage was equally astonished. She pressed him for details.

Shaoke recounted the events, then, after some thought, brought out the milky white light for her to examine.

Like Shaoke, the Blue-robed Mage stared in shock. Frowning, she said, "Haven't the gods all disappeared from this world? Why is this happening?" She then stopped asking about the mirror and other precious materials, standing there, lost in thought. Shaoke broke the silence.

"We don't need to worry about such things. There are many practitioners stronger than us. This is not our concern. We just need to know we've gained these items," said Shaoke, toying with the golden sword. Its patterns, according to the knowledge from the gods, were powerful magic runes from another plane, but he didn't delve deeper, as even powerful runes would be heavily suppressed in this world—though legends might use them without restriction.

The Blue-robed Mage sighed, advised Shaoke to absorb the white light quickly, and left. Shaoke gave her the materials as compensation for the favor he owed her. The Blue-robed Mage didn't refuse, as these materials were invaluable to her and the compound. Still, she selected some precious ones for Shaoke as his share. After this, Shaoke returned to his room.

His arrival brought some activity to the mage's tower. Mage Roman and the White-robed Cleric set aside their work and joined him. After a period of intimacy, Shaoke detailed his adventures and handed the materials to Mage Roman, who, as an Alchemist, could best utilize them.

As they conversed, a knock came at the door. It was Lan Wei'er. The mages temporarily paused their intimacy, invited her in, and asked what she wanted.

Lan Wei'er glanced at Shaoke with some displeasure, then handed him a scroll. "Father, while you were... occupied, someone came to see you. I let him go but kept his identity mark and name. If you wish to see him, he'll return tomorrow," she said. With Mage Roman's permission, she sat, awaiting Shaoke's response.

"I understand," Shaoke said after reading the scroll, then dismissed Lan Wei'er, but she refused.

"I need to talk with mother, and I haven't spent time with father in a long time. May I stay a while?" she argued, adding, "I won't disrupt my progress. I've stabilized everything after my promotion, so I think I'm allowed some time here."

Faced with this, Shaoke agreed. Mage Roman and the White-robed Cleric laughed and prepared food and wine, turning Shaoke's room into a simple feast. Shaoke took turns dancing with each of the three female spellcasters. They continued until late, when Lan Wei'er happily departed.

"Lan Wei'er has a crush on you," the White-robed Cleric said, sipping honey. "She's liked you for a long time; that's why she hasn't found a partner." She sighed, feeling that Shaoke sometimes neglected her.

Mage Roman gently patted the White-robed Cleric's head and pulled her close, saying to Shaoke, "Maybe you haven't noticed, but we have." She seemed to recall something and smiled, but under Shaoke's stern gaze, she quickly stopped, knowing he disliked such topics.

"You should guide her properly. She's your daughter," Shaoke said, rubbing his head in irritation. He sensed Lan Wei'er's feelings but couldn't accept such a relationship with his daughter—though he had forgotten she was not related to him by blood. Mage Roman soon reminded him that Lan Wei'er's lineage came from her uncle.

The three chatted casually, eventually falling asleep in each other's arms. That night, Shaoke forgot the strange events of the day, the worries of advancement and family, and slept peacefully holding the two women. They awoke when the sky was fully bright to Lan Wei'er's visit.

"Father, the guest from yesterday came again and wishes to see you," Lan Wei'er said, sneaking a glance at her mother and the cleric, still unclothed. She stuck out her tongue, handed Shaoke a scroll, and left to care for the young Moyu'er.