Chapter 165 Spell Control and Madness

After Mage Roman left, Shaoke took a short rest before starting to write a letter, meticulously recording all the events that had occurred since taking on the mission. Following Mage Roman's request, he mailed it to her. After all, he had promised the female mage he would do so when she departed.

The pristine elemental paper was densely covered in Ancient Magic Script. Finally, Shaoke placed the quill back into the inkwell, leaned back in the high-backed chair, and sank into deep thought.

The time of two meals passed quickly. With the maid's assistance, Shaoke quickly packed the necessary items and prepared to temporarily leave this place, returning to the military camp on the surface. Although he wasn't sure what he could possibly do back in that camp, where no familiar faces remained.

Several mages guarding the massive passageway soon halted Shaoke's progress. One mage pointed at the staff in Shaoke's hand and said, "If you wish to return to the surface, the flame atop your staff must not be extinguished." Having said this, the mage gestured for Shaoke to leave.

Shaoke nodded to the mage, then turned and left, returning to his own room. The maid who had remained in Shaoke's room was very pleased by his return, but she forcibly suppressed her joy, not wanting the mage before her to misunderstand.

For a period afterward, Shaoke once again immersed himself in the world of magic, temporarily abandoning the idea of returning to the surface.

One day, while Shaoke was searching for some materials in the vast space housing various books with the maid, an unfamiliar visitor interrupted his work. "Mage, I think you are now qualified to join us," said the stranger, his entire body wrapped in a black cloak, the wide brim obscuring most of his face, leaving only a gaunt chin visible to Shaoke.

Facing the unfamiliar mage, Shaoke merely shrugged. "I don't understand what you're saying, but I know you are currently disturbing my work." He pointed to a book nearby, indicating that the mage should leave so he could continue.

"Class change. Join us, and you will have the opportunity for a class change," the mage said, stepping aside to make way for the other's work. "If you wish to have a chance for class change in the future, you can seek us out." He then gave Shaoke an address, hoping he would come find him later. After nodding to Shaoke, he turned and left, quickly disappearing behind the towering bookshelves.

Although the maid couldn't comprehend what the mage was talking about, seeing the troubled expression on the face of the mage she served, she gently suggested returning to rest. Of course, once the required books were prepared by the maids, Shaoke turned and left. As for the words of the strange visitor, it seemed as if he had tossed them to the back of his mind.

A cluster of Green Flame continuously burst forth from the staff. The falling flames were gathered once more by the Spellcaster using a special technique with mental power, forming a new Fireball in the caster's hand. Under the caster's manipulation, a slender green flame shot from his hand, swirling in the air, morphing into various shapes.

As time passed, the caster could no longer maintain precise control for long. The green flames cupped in his hands suddenly burst apart, scattering and floating in the air. With a change in Meditation Method and mental manipulation, these floating green flames began to swirl rapidly in the air, finally forming a large Blue Rhombus Flower-shaped flame. Under the caster's control, it swiftly crashed into a massive black stone wall not far ahead.

A crisp sound rang out. Before the Spell attack reached the black stone wall, some black magic script floated out from its surface, meeting the green flame's assault. After the spell attack dissipated, the huge black stone wall remained undamaged, continuing to stand there, allowing the casters before it to attack.

"Mage Xueye, your control has improved compared to before," a mage who wasn't wearing a hood said with a smile to the caster who had just finished.

"And your Spellcasting speed has increased a bit as well."

"Hmm," the caster from earlier nodded lightly. "I won't be able to come here to practice spells for a while." He added, "In a few days, I must leave here to carry out a mission." The speaker, Shaoke, pulled his cloak tighter around himself and slung the staff from his back.

After finishing his spell practice, Shaoke soon bid farewell to the mage he had met at the practice grounds and, accompanied by the maid waiting outside, returned to his room.

A cluster of green flame burned quietly atop the staff, occasionally bursting off bits of flame that quickly, under their master's control, swirled and flew back to their original place. All of this made Shaoke appear somewhat eerie in the dimly lit room.

After completing his practice, Shaoke took the maid to the medicinal pool. They chose a relatively secluded corner and settled in to rest. Under the maid's gentle massage, Shaoke tried his best to relax his mind, making himself feel more comfortable.

After informing the maid, Shaoke slowly fell asleep in the medicinal pool. After all, practicing Spellcasting Technique and deciphering the spellbook during this period had consumed a great deal of his energy. Fortunately, this maid had prepared new medicines according to methods recorded in books for his use, and there were also those high-grade Third Rank medicines for him to take continuously, preventing his constitution from deteriorating further.

In his drowsiness, Shaoke suddenly sensed a violent surge of spell energy. An attack-type spell. Through perception, Shaoke quickly identified the type of fluctuation. He then forcefully shoved off the maid who was still massaging him. "Get dressed and leave here immediately." Ignoring the maid's confusion and panic, he swiftly jumped out, merely throwing on his robe and cloak, grabbed his staff, and activated all the Defensive Spells and auxiliary spells on it. After a moment's hesitation, he cast a Second Rank defensive spell on the maid, who was only wrapped in a white fleece cloth. He once again gestured for her to leave.

By this time, the other mages soaking in the medicinal pools had, like Shaoke, quickly prepared their own defensive spells. It turned out that shortly after the spell fluctuations erupted, violent sounds of spell collisions followed. "Boom..." Another loud explosion sounded, and several maids nearby were injured by the scattered spell remnants. One maid even had a crimson flame land on her arm, which rapidly began to burn. Fortunately, the mage she served was not slow in casting, quickly releasing a spell to save her from further burning agony.

After two collisions, everything fell silent. A mage enveloped in grayish-yellow mist hovered in the air, a ghastly pale staff in hand pointing at the two dueling mages. "If you truly wish to leave this world early, I don't mind borrowing your heads to serve as part of my staff." Having said this, the floating mage scanned the surroundings and ordered the other mages to leave, as the current situation was no longer suitable for resting here.

"Honorable Mage," one mage said, struggling to straighten his disheveled robe, stepped forward, and performed a formal salute. "I wish to witness how these two rule-breaking mages are punished." He pointed at the maid who had already fainted from pain. "I want to see them punished."

Seeing that nearly all the mages remained and showed no intention of leaving, the floating mage nodded slightly but still ordered the maids who remained to depart. The maid whose arm was nearly burned off was also carried away by her companions. He then looked at the two mages who had just been fighting here. "You still have the opportunity to state your reasons for casting spells here. This is your right." After saying this, the mage descended slightly from the air, closed his eyes, and quietly awaited their plea.

"Honorable Mage, he not only tried to mock me here but also killed the attendant serving me," a clear voice reached Shaoke's ears. "That's why I attacked him." The female mage finished speaking and adjusted her robe. Although she was only draped in a robe, it at least prevented her from standing completely naked before the gaze of the mages.

"Do you have anything to say in your defense?" The floating mage suddenly opened his eyes, glanced at a nearby pool, and spotted the corpse floating within. He then addressed the naked male mage. "I believe you have no right to take any life here. What do you think?"

"How can a lowly attendant be worthy of enjoying a female mage's body? All of that belongs to me," the naked Male Mage said with a ferocious expression, shaking his staff. "I merely wanted to enjoy myself before going on a mission. Is that wrong? But she refused my proposal. I cannot tolerate being refused." As he spoke, the mage clearly lost control of himself. A series of obscure, difficult-to-understand incantations rapidly spilled from his lips. As he chanted, a cluster of golden flame materialized on his staff and, under the caster's control, swiftly shot toward the female mage.

The chanting did not cause panic among the observing mages, solely because an Eighth Tier Mage was present. The golden flame had just taken form and left the staff when it was struck by a yellow beam of light and dissipated in the air. The floating mage then quickly chanted a few simple syllables. A black, shadowy form drifted from the tip of his staff and rapidly merged into the body of the clearly crazed mage, disappearing.