Chapter 334: Rank Up (1)
Translator: Leo Editor: Frappe
It was noon. The hot sunlight shone across the land.
Angele and Lyn, who were right in the middle of the formation, were being protected by the archers as they traveled back to the mansion directly. Angele looked tired, adding to the fact that his black robe was completely in tatters.
He looked ahead towards the mansion and noticed someone in red standing beside the lake looking at them.
The red robe was eye-catching while beside the green lake under the golden sunlight.
"It’s Master Vivian." Lyn communicated through energy particles.
Angele nodded, not expecting Vivian to return from the battlefield just for him.
The captain of the archer company bowed to Vivian from the far side and activated the communication rune to report the situation.
The archers moved aside and cleared the way for Angele and Lyn.
The two hesitated for a moment before they directly came to Vivian quickly.
"Lyn, get some rest. Thanks for your service." Vivian’s voice echoed in the air.
Nodding in response, Lyn bowed to Vivian and waited at one side.
Angele stopped in front of Vivian and cleaned his robe.
"I have already told you to think twice before doing anything," Vivian reprimanded him in a calm manner, though it did not sound like she was blaming him.
She crouched by the river and scooped up some water with both of her hands. There was a four-legged, black fish swimming in the water slowly.
"I’m sorry for doing what I did." Angele was not sure how to explain the situation to her.
"Yeah, you should be sorry." Vivian rolled her eyes. "Doris is a renowned troublemaker in the Black Earth. Furthermore, his father never questions any action he makes. I do not fear their organization but right now is not the right time. Elemental Hand still needs to deal with the lords first."
She soaked her hands in the clean water thereby causing her sleeves to become wet. Angele noticed that there were two black bands around her ankles, but it looked like they were just normal accessories.
"I was only trying to save a good friend of mine, but it looks like Doris does not even care that I’m your son," Angele explained in a low voice as he shrugged. He knew he would have been successfully tracked down by the assassins of Black Earth had Vivian not come to his rescue.
Vivian shook her head looking a tad speechless. "How important was that friend to you? In any case, I know you regret your decision. That is a good thing." She stood up, and the water on her hands had been evaporated by the fire energy particles.
"All right then. Let me check your progress with the Molten Core River technique since I am here already. Just ask me if you have any question."
"Sure." Angele nodded then he started asking the questions he had in mind regarding the fourth and fifth stages of the technique.
Time continued to flow. The sun began to set and the orange light it released shone on the surface of the river.
They talked for several hours just standing beside the river.
"All right, that is enough for today. I still need to talk to Black Earth’s leader. Doris’s bodyguard did not hesitate when he tried to kill you, so I need to teach them some manners…" A golden glow surrounded her eyes. "Stay in the mansion, and do not leave until you completely master the fourth stage of the Molten Core River technique."
She rubbed Angele’s cheeks with both of her hands before pulling and kneading them into a strange shape.
Angele tried to escape Vivian’s hands, but she suddenly released her powerful mentality wave just to stop him from moving away from her.
‘That’s one way of utilizing mentality waves…’ Angele tongue-tied but there was nothing he could do about it.
Angele’s face should be covered with a thin layer of metal, but Vivian seemed to completely ignore his barrier.
"I have also learned of the portal to the fairy realm. Do not worry too much about it. Many portals have opened during the recent years but none of them stabilized."
"Got it."
Vivian continued to play with Angele’s cheeks for a short while before she turned away and disappeared into a ball of dark red flames.
There was a wry smile on Angele’s face. He himself knew Vivian was merely protecting him from any harm, but he did not want to stay put in the same place forever.
He shook his head and rubbed his chin. Angele soon walked to the mansion as he activated a red communication rune.
Lyn received his message and headed to the mansion as well. Under Vivian’s direct command, the archer company had already left.
The mansion was completely empty except for the two maids who were waiting for them in the living room. They were the only two wizards left here.
Angele entered the living room and sat down on a sofa.
"Lyn, pick any room you like. Thanks for attending the party with me."
"My pleasure." Although Lyn looked tired, she still replied to Angele in a courteous manner. She bowed after she finished speaking and went to check out the rooms.
Angele leaned his back on the backrest of the sofa and spread out his arms.
*CHI*
Suddenly, two communication runes flashed on the back of his hands simultaneously.
The one on the left looked like a white toad, while the one on the right was a green spider.
Angele tapped on the white toad rune. It was a message coming from Mincola.
"It’s me, Mincola. Thanks for the help Angele. I met Suman and Sella along the way to the party, but never did I expect for the situation to be so complicated. I apologize for bringing you into this. We have already left Rofo City. I will contact you later. We will repay you in the future."
Angele slightly nodded before he tapped on the green spider rune.
"Dear Angele, this message is sent in February from the aerial port city. Although I used the signal tower, it will still take several months for this to be delivered to you. I am glad that you wrote a letter to me. Master Arisma wishes to talk to you one day, thinking you are more talented than me. Also, please inform Master Henn that Master Arisma said she wanted to first track down the people who ambushed them before continuing their fight, but they have a powerful background. By the way, I have already advanced to rank 2. I hope you are doing well…"
It came from Stigma. The Wizard of Destiny, Arisma, was currently inhabiting in his body. He stayed in his family’s territory and wanted to gain control of the family when the time was ripe.
"She wants to work with me?" Henn heard Stigma’s message as well. Angele had deactivated the crystal scorpion since he knew that there would be information related to Arisma.
"It should be a real problem if that old bastard says those people have a powerful background…" Henn’s tone of voice sounded grim.
"It is way too early to think about it. If you want me to fight for your sake, I will have to rank up first." Angele deactivated the communication rune.
"You have already found the advanced meditation technique suitable for you. I am certain that you can advance to rank 3. Rank 1 is the hardest to surpass as a wizard but ranks 2 and 3 are relatively easy with the help of your meditation technique. Then things will become more difficult again once you attempt to advance to rank 4. But as long as you can progress in the Molten Core River technique and be given enough time, ranking up will not be too much of a problem to you," Henn explained.
"Does this rule apply to other wizards who possess advanced meditation techniques?" Angele asked.
"It depends on the resources you have and your talent level. Average wizards normally need one or two hundred years before they can rank up even with the aid of advanced meditation techniques. You will be able to rank up relatively easier if you know how to completely master each stage. But if you have trouble comprehending and mastering one stage of the technique, then it might take you forever to reach the next rank," Henn continued.
"So most wizards in the central continent can reach rank 2. Then, they will be considered elites in their respective organizations?" Angele narrowed his eyes.
"You are correct. Every time you fail to advance to the next rank, there is a possibility of losing your physical form and you will have to give up. There are many wizards who meet the requirements in order to advance to the next rank but are too afraid to attempt. Anyway, I still need more rest. I wasted way too much mana and mentality in that last encounter. Do not disturb me if you do not have anything of importance to say." Henn soon stopped talking after she gave an explanation.
Angele activated the crystal scorpion once again and started examining Zero’s analysis progress.
A maid brought him a hot cup of tea and desserts.
Just then, Angele realized that there should be more workers in the mansion.
"Wait, where are the other workers? They should have come here with you, right?" Angele took the teacup.
"Many of them died from the plague while you were away, and we buried them in the forest…Master Liv also had to ask several workers to leave," the maid answered sheepishly. "We are the last two maids remaining."
The adolescent woman was about 19 years of age. She was speaking with a shaky voice, seemingly afraid of talking to Angele.
"Plague?" Angele had not received any information regarding such situation. "Why are you still here, then? You might die too, you know."
The maid opened her mouth, seemingly a bit low-spirited, "We do not have anywhere else to go…"
"So Liv could not cure the plague…" Angele closed his eyes and sighed. "You may leave now. Talk to me immediately if you don’t feel well."
"Yes, master!" The maid raised her voice slightly. Angele was her final hope, and she believed that this master wizard could stop the plague if he wanted to. She bowed to Angele and swiftly left the living room.
Angele leaned back on the sofa again and rested for a while. He stood up after several minutes and returned to his room.
*KA*
The door was pulled open.
Angele stepped into the room and locked the door. With a flick of his finger, a flickering black rune was imprinted on the middle of the door. The rune looked like a twisted black snake.