Warlock Gathering
Bloodline Warlocks could make use of their bloodlines to advance rapidly, experiencing no real bottleneck at ranks 1,2, or even rank 3. All they had to do was wait for their bloodline to mature. They left regular Magi far in the dust, their rate of advancement extremely terrifying. However, there was an obvious disadvantage.
Bloodline shackles! This curse hounded bloodline Warlocks eternally, causing them to be forever unable to surpass the power of the source of their bloodline!
It was impossible to notice this disparity at the lower ranks, and wasn’t especially obvious even at the Morning Star realm. However, once one entered the circles of the Radiant Moon realm, there were few Warlocks who had the bloodline to advance that far. Hence, Magi were superior to them at that point.
Once the terrifying Breaking Dawn Magi came into the picture, the gap between the two was made even more apparent.
Due to the emotional instability from their bloodlines, they were rash and quick-tempered, often offending many Magi. On top of that, many of their bloodline experiments were considered taboo, which resulted in the discontent of many.
As a result, when the Warlocks fell, the Magi joined forces and held them down.
Under these conditions, the original Warlocks in the south coast and Twilight Zone died out.
The situation was slightly better in the central continent. Just as the Warlocks were pressured to the point that they were practically at death’s door, the reopening of the astral gates helped the Warlocks bring in new blood.
In the ancient era, the splendour of Warlocks had come from the support of bloodlines from other planes.
Though they had not completely regained the glory from the past, there were a few Warlocks who had successfully reached rank 5 and therefore preserved the inheritance of Warlocks.
Creevey City had been built under those circumstances.
Even the core region was made of buildings passed on from ancient times, and had not been altered. It held traces of the progress in its history.
“The glorious efforts of every bloodline ancestor should be studied and revered…” Leylin couldn’t help but praise from the bottom of his heart.
If not for the perseverance of the high-ranked Warlocks in the past, all of these traditions would have been destroyed. His environment would be millions of times more difficult to endure than it was now. Hence, Leylin was full of sincere gratitude towards them.
*Click!* While they were in the middle of their conversation, the three concrete slabs landed in a depression within the square of a simple castle, setting themselves inside steadily. They seemed to fit perfectly, with no gaps at all.
“This is the core of power in Creevey City— The Blood Stronghold!” Paul presented to Leylin. The three Morning Star Magi left the square, approaching the gate to the castle.
Leylin naturally began to size up this ancient castle. Its black walls were mottled, bringing about with it the aura of ancient times. Though it looked shabby and was not even comparable to his previous Onyx Castle, the powerful energy undulations and the ancient aura was something that his castle lacked.
“Haha… welcome, welcome! Lord Leylin, we’ve been waiting for you for a long time!”
Outside the gate to the castle, a middle-aged Caucasian man with silver hair had been waiting for a long while. After seeing Leylin, his eyes gleamed as he immediately went forward to shake both of Leylin’s hands.
His palm was extremely thick and warm, full of power. It was akin to the stream of water under a layer of ice, the strength buried within the depths by the layer of ice.
His starry eyes seemed as clear as spring water, and there seemed to be a sense of affinity between them that affected even Leylin.
‘Is he really taking me in sincerely? Especially since we’re meeting for the first time?’ Leylin revealed a smile, looking extremely touched, while he was astonished. Though he was also a Morning Star Warlock, the other party was probably overdoing it by being so enthusiastic.
At this thought, he silently commanded the A.I. Chip, ‘Scan!’
With the bonus from his attaining soul force, the A.I. Chip’s capabilities at energy scanning had become even more outstanding. It could even catch hold of some information from Morning Star-ranked Warlocks.
Under the scanning of the A.I. Chip, the human form before him turned into a 3D image and was projected in front. Data constantly updated itself at the side.
As expected, even if the other party was a Morning Star Warlock, they were still unable to discover the undulations from the A.I. Chip. Leylin, who saw this, could now completely relax.
[Target is a Morning Star Warlock! Determined affinity to be with illusory elements.]
The A.I. Chip’s first conclusion allowed Leylin to make some guesses.
[Beep! Energy undulations have been discovered, determined to be passive illusions. Target can automatically form an illusory force field around his body, causing all beings in the vicinity to develop favourable opinions of him.]
‘As expected. An illusory ability due to his bloodline? It’s even able to affect Morning Star Magi. how terrifying…’ Leylin silently put up his guard even as he put on the sunniest smile he could. He acted as if he now had an even better impression of the burly man.
Upon seeing this, Paul and Philip exchanged a glance, laughing as if they had reached a tacit mutual understanding.
This burly man had inherited the bloodline of the ancient Illusory Crystal Scorpion, a creature whose formidable illusory abilities entered the realm of the terrifying. Even Radiant Moon Magi had previously been affected by his illusions.
Besides, he hadn’t even unleashed all his abilities, merely his automatic force field. Even if Leylin did discover this, he still had an excuse.
It was impossible to use just these illusions to manipulate a Morning Star Magus, but if he could influence someone secretly and give hints to the other’s mind once in a while, the other party would unknowingly work in his favour. That was very much possible.
At this thought, the grins that Paul and Philip had on their faces became even brighter.
For young Warlocks, this was a test to enter the core area. At the same time, it was a test of loyalty. It couldn’t be helped, since after the attack by the Magi, these Warlocks were now paranoid.
“I’m Leylin. Leylin Farlier. It’s an honour to be able to meet you!”
Leylin snickered in his heart, though his expression looked strangely sincere as he bowed with a noble’s etiquette.
“Haha, we’re all bloodline brothers. Just call me Jalon.”
Jalon and Leylin began to discuss things affectionately, and he secretly sent Paul a gaze that told him he could relax. After the assurance, Paul and Philip could put their hearts at rest.
“You were the only ones left for the gathering. Come in!” Jalon stood by the gate and invited them. The three immediately entered.
*Po!* As if having passed through a formless layer of water, Leylin immediately felt the excitement boil in his blood once he entered the ancient castle. It was as if he had reached a very comfortable area, his body unconsciously relaxing.
“This…” He revealed a look of astonishment. This was practically a heaven for bloodline Warlocks!
“You must be surprised,” Jalon said with pride. “The bloodlines of all Warlocks will resonate with the Blood Castle, to the point that their bloodline will even mature faster when here!”
There was no need for any more words. Leylin immediately understood how important this place was for lower-ranked Warlocks. It was a godly place that could halve the time one needed to advance!
The Blood Castle was huge, but there was no such thing as a servant here. It seemed rather empty, with at most a few puppets and shadow servants. The barrenness surprised Leylin.
Jalon brought Leylin and the other two deep inside the castle and opened a giant golden door. He then loudly informed the many Warlocks inside, “Come! Let us welcome our newest comrade— Leylin Farlier of the Ouroboros Clan!”
“Welcome! Welcome!”
“Come on. Cheers!”
Behind the giant golden door was a large ballroom. There were giant crystal chandeliers all along the ceiling, gemstones glittering with kaleidoscopic light.
The many Warlocks in the ballroom were separated into their own little cliques as they spoke in low voices. Occasionally, one of them would go and lead a few dances.
A few musicians that had been summoned as slaves through necromancy were seated in a corner, performing elegant and graceful music.
When Jalon interrupted them, the ballroom first lapsed into silence. It was short-lived, however. The Warlocks’ gazes flitted over to him, and they began to cheer for the entrance of another comrade.
Leylin immediately felt a twinge of fear, but ultimately relaxed. ‘The number of Morning Stars here nearly exceeds the total number I’ve ever met before. Looks like this is a circle that one can only enter once they have a certain amount of power…’
Leylin returned greetings every once in a while, and he couldn’t help but sigh ruefully when looking at the number of Morning Star Warlocks here.
Warlocks who could advance to the Morning Star realm clearly had bloodlines that surpassed the bloodlines of ancient creatures of the Morning Star realm. This fact was pretty obvious.
Leylin carefully distinguished between the mess of tyrannical auras in the hall.
‘The Savage Rhinoceros, Water Monkey, Ancient Velociraptor… There are too many. There are still many completely foreign bloodlines as well! These must be bloodlines of Morning Star creatures from other planes.’ Leylin looked around politely, but he was completely startled inside.
Like every other Warlock, most of those present here looked incredibly stunning. Even the unique characteristics of their Morning Star bloodlines had no effects on their external appearances, and instead added a feeling of natural strength.
“Come, Leylin, let’s go sit! We need to discuss Jupiter’s Lightning.” Paul brought Leylin along to greet each circle individually, and then pulled him into a corner.
Jalon had long since taken his leave. Here, multiple long sofas had been shifted to form a circle. The Morning Star Warlocks seated her had frightening energy waves coming off their bodies.
These Warlocks had very distinct features.
Among them, some had octopus heads, clearly Warlocks of the Spirit Circle. Besides them were a thin old man and young girl, who had the traits of ancient Wind Wolves.
