Chapter 241: Traveling Wizard
He was completely baffled. The gray-robed person found himself in a precarious situation.
Just like earlier at the tavern, he had only cast a single spell, yet he had been noticed and targeted by the Star Alliance.
Could it be that the Star Alliance possessed some method to sense energy particle fluctuations over a wide area?
Thoughts raced through the gray-robed person's mind as he tried to figure out how to escape.
However, the two young women opposite him did not give him the chance. Upon seeing his silence and inaction, they launched their attack without hesitation.
Chi chi!
Countless dazzling silver rays burst forth, filling the space and descending upon him like a tidal wave!
The piercing sonic boom shattered the stillness of the late-night forest.
The gray-robed person flickered and vanished from his spot, reappearing hundreds of yards away.
Swiftly, the gray-robed person raised his hand and drew an illusory rune in the air. He then pushed it forward, and the rune shot out, colliding with the approaching silver rays, resulting in a thunderous explosion. The violent shockwave and flames shattered the rays in an instant!
But before he could catch his breath, two knightly longswords suddenly pierced toward him from both the left and right!
The two young women had closed the distance in an instant!
"Blink Technique!" the gray-robed person gasped in shock.
These two had used the same Third Circle spell, the Blink Technique, as he had. Could they also be wizards?
This suspicion was quickly confirmed as the battle unfolded.
Seeing the two women unleash one Third Circle spell after another left the gray-robed person utterly astonished.
The only puzzling element was that the innate ability of the two women, represented by the silver rays, seemed a bit weak.
Regardless, it was clear that they possessed wizard-level strength.
Seeing this, the gray-robed person dared not hold back any longer and unleashed his own innate ability without hesitation.
In an instant, countless pitch-black threads emanated from his body, rapidly spreading into the surrounding void.
The forest within four or five hundred meters transformed as if clear water had been tainted with dark ink, swiftly turning pitch-black at an alarming rate.
In the blink of an eye, the surroundings plunged into pitch blackness.
What they saw was darker than the night itself, so obscured that they couldn't even see their own hands in front of their faces.
The two young women found themselves engulfed in boundless darkness.
Their ability to see in the dark could not pierce this strange void; they could only extend their Spiritual Power in an attempt to locate the figure in the gray robe.
However, the surrounding darkness seemed to obstruct even their Spiritual Power, which could only reach five or six meters before faltering.
The two young women decisively leapt into the air, trying to break free from this suffocating darkness.
But in the next moment, the shadows surged around them.
It felt as if countless ferocious beasts hidden in the darkness were silently launching attacks from every direction!
In an instant, the two young women endured hundreds, if not thousands, of assaults, and the invisible protective barrier surrounding them was nearly shattered.
Fortunately, they managed to envelop themselves in a Magic Core just in time, warding off the subsequent attacks.
While the two were ensnared, the figure in gray quietly retreated.
The Wizard Faction known as the Star Alliance was clearly not someone to be trifled with, and he had no intention of provoking them fully. He wasn't aiming for a kill; rather, he aimed to delay them just long enough to make his escape.
However, after using a Levitation Spell to fly over two hundred meters, the figure in gray suddenly halted, shock and uncertainty visible beneath his mask.
From the darkness of the night, one young woman after another emerged from the forest, encircling him.
What was shocking was that all of them looked exactly like the two he had just fought; their features, height, and build were so uniform that it was as if they had been measured with a ruler—every detail was utterly identical.
Even the aura of danger they exuded was the same!
The figure in gray stood there, stunned and motionless.
At this moment, even he, with his dull senses, finally comprehended the truth.
These young women, including the two he had just confronted, were not human at all but rather puppets.
Wizard-grade puppets!
Realizing this, he immediately lost all will to resist.
To refine so many Wizard-Level Puppet Wizards from the Wizard Faction, his backing must be something even he, a Traveling Wizard, could not contend with. Moreover, his strange ability to sense Energy Particle Fluctuations made it clear that as long as he remained in this Plane, escape was unlikely.
Given this situation, it was better to simply admit defeat. Observing the other party’s conduct, it didn’t seem like they belonged to an evil Wizard Faction. If he surrendered willingly, perhaps he could still save his life.
"I surrender," the gray-robed figure sighed, raising his voice, his heart filled with helplessness and confusion. He wondered when such a Wizard Faction had emerged in the Multiverse and why he had never heard of it before.
At the top floor control center of the Starlight Wizard Tower, Su Nan sat cross-legged beside the Elemental Pool, his eyes tightly closed as he held an Elemental Crystal Core in his hand, concentrating on absorbing Divine energy. After years of cultivation, his Spiritual Condensation had long been on the verge of breaking through its limits. With over ten standard units of Divine energy gradually being assimilated and fused, he finally reached that pivotal moment.
Deep within his Sea of Consciousness, the gaseous Spiritual Power swirling gently around the Talent Crystal suddenly stagnated, and then, as if encountering frigid air, it condensed into droplets of water, scattering like rain. Soon, the gaseous mist vanished completely, replaced by streams of water resembling galaxy belts circling the Talent Crystal. The water was crystal clear, flowing slowly around the Talent Crystal, and it almost seemed like a pleasant splashing sound could be heard.
"It’s done!" Su Nan exclaimed, joy flashing in his eyes. After over two hundred years, he had finally broken through to second-level Liquefaction!
"The second-level Spiritual Condensation is far more challenging to advance than the First Order." Su Nan let out a long breath, calming the agitation within his heart, and focused on sensing the changes in his body. The higher the Wizard level, the more difficult it became to improve; however, each breakthrough resulted in a significant increase in power. As a second-level Liquefaction Wizard, even if he constructed an Inferior Talent Crystal, he would still be more than capable of easily defeating a second-level Vaporization Wizard who had constructed two Superior Talent Crystals.
High-level Talent Crystals can only make a Wizard a leader among their peers or even invincible at their level; however, they do not enable a Wizard to challenge opponents beyond that level. Of course, the Super Talent Crystal synthesized by Su Nan is an exception.
Currently, even without using his trump cards such as the Inscribed Gem, Wizard Tool, and Alchemy Imprint, he is capable of battling a Second Stage Crystallization Wizard with a good chance of victory. If he employs all his trump cards, he won't fear confronting a Tier 3 Vaporization Wizard. Once he breaks through to Second Level Crystallization, Su Nan is even confident he could defeat a Tier 3 Vaporization Wizard.
"But breaking through to Second Level Crystallization is not easy."
Su Nan had initially hoped to advance to Level 3 Wizard before the Plane blockade was lifted, but he later realized he had underestimated the difficulty of progressing from the second to the third level. It took him over two hundred years to move from Second Level Gasification to Second Level Liquefaction, so the time required to transition from Second Level Liquefaction to Second Level Crystallization would only be longer, not shorter.
It is now the year 1705 of the Starlight Calendar, and there are less than three hundred years remaining before the invasion of the Gloomy Throne. Within such a brief period, advancing to Level 3 Wizard is simply impossible. Even if he manages to break through to Second Level Crystallization, Su Nan does not have a one hundred percent certainty of success. Under normal circumstances, such an achievement is improbable.
However, the concentration of Energy Particles in the Starlight Continent has been steadily increasing. According to the Star Eye's detection, the current concentration is about 1.6 times what it was when he first advanced to Wizard. Furthermore, the number of Wizards in the Star Alliance has also grown; there are currently eighteen Level One Wizards, and this number will continue to increase.
This means that there will be more tools available for him to collect Elemental Crystal Dust, and the divine energy he can absorb will also rise. With these two enhancements, breaking through to Second Level Crystallization within three hundred years, though challenging, is not entirely impossible.
"That's right. If it were that easy to advance, Level 3 Wizards wouldn't be so rare."
Even in large Wizard factions like the Deep Blue Alliance and Wisdom Codex, a Level 3 Wizard is a prominent figure. In a third-rate Wizard faction like the Starfall Society, such a Wizard would be more than capable of assuming a core leadership role.
Such beings, even across the vast Multiverse, are exceptionally rare.
Shaking his head, Su Nan cast aside his superfluous thoughts, moved away from the Elemental Pool, and teleported to the Workshop.
With his breakthrough in cultivation, the Inscribed Gem, Wizard Tool, and Alchemy Imprint could all be further enhanced.
Starting with the Inscribed Gem, he found through experimentation that the upper limit for synthesis was set at sixty.
Lacking a suitable test subject, Su Nan could only perform simple tests. The final assessment showed that it could roughly inflict heavy damage equivalent to that of Second Level Gasification.
The cost had also skyrocketed to nearly sixteen thousand Gold Coins, but given its power, it still seemed like a bargain.
"It's a pity that using the Inscribed Gem requires sufficient Spiritual Power. Otherwise, if every Tentacle Puppet and Secret Puppet were equipped with one, their combat power would at least multiply several times," Su Nan thought with some regret.
Not to mention the Inscribed Gems synthesized in quantities of sixty; even those synthesized in quantities of twenty or thirty were unusable by the Tentacle Puppet and Secret Puppet. The consequence of forcibly using them would be that the puppets themselves would suffer the backlash of the Inscribed Gem, potentially being harmed even more severely than their enemies.
Wait a minute!
Su Nan suddenly had a flash of inspiration.
If they didn’t mind the backlash damage, couldn’t they forcibly use the Inscribed Gem?
For example, if every Tentacle Puppet and Secret Puppet were equipped with one Inscribed Gem, when facing an insurmountable enemy with no chance of escape, they could simply activate the Inscribed Gem and self-destruct against the enemy.
It seemed plausible!
Su Nan felt a surge of temptation and decided to include this idea in his upcoming research projects.
Ideally, he would modify the Inscribed Gem to ensure that when the puppet self-destructed, the damage would focus more on the enemy rather than being wasted on destroying themselves.
Having resolved the issue of the Inscribed Gem, Su Nan then proceeded to strengthen the Wizard Tool.
There wasn't much else to discuss. He quickly created new "Forbidden Zone" and "Black Thunder" spells, and further synthesized more powerful Second Order Wizard Tools.
Although he now possessed "Absolute Forbidden Zone" as an Innate Ability, Su Nan had not given up on the original "Forbidden Zone."
After all, Wizard Tools didn’t require the consumption of Spiritual Power, and they could still play a significant role in battles.
The last aspect that needed to be synthesized and strengthened was the Alchemy Imprint.
After advancing to the second level of Liquefaction, Su Nan's Spiritual Power and Physique still couldn't support a third Alchemy Imprint, so he simply focused on strengthening the Talent Specialization and Spirit Storage.
Having completed this, Su Nan left the Workshop, preparing to return to his cultivation. However, he received a message from Lize.
"Have you discovered a wizard from another plane invading?"
Su Nan was startled and immediately rushed to the Confinement Area, where he found Lize waiting.
"What's going on?"
Lize replied, "The Monitoring Network in Luo Xia City detected an unrecorded Energy Particle Fluctuation. The Enforcement Team went to investigate, and it turned out that the target was very likely a formal wizard. After I received the report, I immediately dispatched the nearest Witch Hunter Legion team to capture him, and it truly was a wizard."
The Witch Hunter Legion had been proposed by Su Nan—a newly formed Puppet Legion consisting entirely of Tentacle Puppets and Secret Puppets.
Since its purpose was to address future wizard invasions of the Starlight Continent, it was named the Witch Hunter Legion.
However, because it was still in the early stages of formation, the Witch Hunter Legion was not yet fully staffed, with the total number of puppets barely exceeding a hundred.
Even so, it was currently the Star Alliance's strongest trump card!
"What's his background?" Su Nan asked, raising an eyebrow.
"He claims to be a Traveling Wizard. While exploring the Netherworld before, he was attacked by a Nightshade Worm. In his escape from the Netherworld, he inadvertently arrived here."
A Traveling Wizard!
Su Nan's expression shifted.
A Traveling Wizard is neither a profession nor a race, but rather a general term for a specific type of wizard.
To gather resources more efficiently, wizards usually form factions or join established wizard groups, but there are always exceptions.
Some wizards dislike being bound. They are eager to explore various planes, relishing the unknown and the thrill of adventure.
These wizards are often quite powerful and possess various methods of traversing planes, constantly exploring or en route to new destinations.
The previous traveler, if he successfully advanced to wizard, would likely have also become a member of the Traveling Wizards.
Lize nodded. "According to him, the situation was too critical at the time. There may have been a mishap, which led to him mistakenly teleporting here from the Netherworld."
Su Nan's eyes flickered.
The Netherworld was a very unique realm.
There was no sun or moon, nor any stars; the sky was always shrouded in darkness.
No humans inhabited this place, only various bizarre shadow creatures, many of which had accidentally entered and been assimilated by the realm's properties.
For instance, there were Nightmare Beasts, Shadow Steeds, Twisted Treants, Nightshade Worms, and so on.
Even a wizard, if they lingered in the Netherworld for too long, would gradually be assimilated by the realm, eventually transforming into a shadow creature that had lost all reason, acting solely on instinct.
It is worth mentioning that the Netherworld is not a material realm like the Starlight Continent, but rather an Outer Plane, similar to the Elemental Plane.
The characteristic of these Outer Planes is that the barrier with the material realm is 'thinner,' making traversal easier.
Perhaps this is why that traveling wizard was able to breach the Dimensional Barrier and enter the Starlight Continent.
This also indicates that the Dimensional Barrier of the Starlight Continent has largely been repaired, and the blockade is gradually being lifted, which is why such a low-probability event has occurred.
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