Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Yang Ling wore a grave expression as he tried to think of a strategy. At the same time, looking at the Tarantula King that was frozen in the sky, seeing the Unicorn ready to attack, and then looking at the Withered Tree Warriors that were covered in thorns, the black robed elder remained silent, as if deep in thought.
Some time ago, Yang Ling’s Magical Beasts were not too different from the low level Magical Beasts found in the wild. But now, the Evil Eyes, Horned Bee Beasts and spiders had all made remarkable transformations, their battle abilities far superior to their wild counterparts.
Just what method did this lad use to cause the low level Magical Beasts to evolve this quickly?
The black robed elder could not understand. Under normal circumstances, it would be extremely difficult for a wild low level Magical Beast to evolve. Even evolving from level one to level two was extremely difficult, and evolving to level three was normally out of the question. He did not expect Yang Ling’s Magical Beast army to have all evolved to level three.
To be able to rapidly evolve tens of thousands of Magical Beasts in such a short span of time, the black robed elder wondered which family on the continent Yang Ling could have come from.
Even though he was a sage level, the black robed elder doubted that he would be able to evolve this many Magical Beasts. He could not help but recall the legend of the Ancient Wizard.
It was rumored that Ancient Wizards were powerful entities that could hold their own against gods. They not only had powerful physical bodies, but they could also control the souls of every single living thing. Legend had it that they could make a small sapling grow to several hundred meters tall in just a few days; they could make a chopstick-sized Arrowfish grow to several hundred meters long, evolving them into terrifying overlords of the underwater world!
The black robed elder had only thought that Yang Ling had hailed from a family of Ancient Summoners, but it was beginning to seem that it was not as simple as all that. According to the legends, the Ancient Wizards had split into two factions after the Great Battle of the Gods and Demons, creating the Ancient Summoners and the Tree Shepherds. Only an Ancient Wizard could summon many Magical Beasts and many Withered Tree Warriors at the same time.
Seeing Yang Ling, not flustered despite the crisis he faced, the black robed elder began to consider the possibility of forging an alliance with Yang Ling. Forging an alliance with a family of Ancient Wizards would be immensely beneficial to the Dark Association!
After a long pause, the black robed elder addressed Yang Ling. “Young man, are you the leader of Wissen Town, Yang Ling? I am the elder of the Dark Association, Klive. I am also Maryse’s teacher. Perhaps there is a small misunderstanding between us!”
Elder of the Dark Association?
Looking at the smiling black robed elder, Yang Ling’s heart pounded. The other party had powerful abilities, and an even more shocking identity. According to his intelligence, the Dark Association did not have a position like the Pope of the Church; instead the important matters were discussed and carried out together with its three elders. It was unimaginable how much authority even one of the elders held.
Could it be that they have also set their sights on the resources of Wissen Town?
He was a sage level powerhouse that was in full control of the situation, so there was no need for him to lie about his identity. Yang Ling began to deduce the intentions of the other party after understanding Maryse’s identity. Even though the Dark Association had deep roots in the southern area of the Tailun Continent, they would not usually act this brazenly, in case they attracted too much attention to themselves.
Without any special interests, they would not have sent out so many Dark Knights and Spellcasters, and even more so would not send out a sage level elder. Even though Wissen Town was close to the Terras Forest and had rich resources, it might not be worth such a large effort. The only explanation might be that they had come for the so-called treasure of the Giant Dragon!
Yang Ling was fairly certain he was beginning to understand the other party’s intentions. He glanced at Maryse, who seemed about to speak, and then at the black robed elder, who was serene in his control over the situation. Then Yang Ling spoke. “Elder Klive, I am indeed the leader of Wissen Town. You can call me Yang Ling. And you’re correct. There’s only a small misunderstanding between me and Miss Maryse!”
There were no eternal friends, nor were there eternal enemies in this world. All there was were eternal interests!
Thinking back to the things Maryse had done, even though there were still several points of confusion, Yang Ling could clearly deduce that she had not come to the Spider Valley to take his life, nor was she an assassin that Ymir’s father had employed. If there was no need, he was not willing to be the enemy of a massive entity like the Dark Association.
“Hehe, misunderstanding, it is just a misunderstanding!”
Picking up on Yang Ling’s flexible thinking and intelligence, the black robed elder Klive nodded appreciatively. He lifted his right hand and moved it through the air. In that instant, the petrified Magical Beasts regained their freedom.
In the face of a powerful sage level fighter, low level Magical Beasts were of no use at all!
After a moment’s deliberation, Yang Ling recalled all of his Magical Beasts except for the Heavenly Fox Yuna and the Unicorn. After all, if the other party had the intention to attack, he would have already done so. If Yang Ling’s death was his goal, there would be no need for these many words. The black robed elder hadn’t needed to give his Magical Beast army their movement back.
Indeed, seeing Yang Ling recall his Magical Beast army, the Dark Knights all lowered their weapons even without the black robed elder’s instructions. The tense atmosphere lifted in an instant. The two parties sat on the ground and began talking.
What was surprising to the group was that the black robed elder made no attempts to hide the Dark Association’s intentions. They had indeed come for the rumored treasures of the Giant Dragon. This knowledge further dispelled Yang Ling’s hesitation.
It turned out that all the time, Maryse and the rest had been searching for the rumored cave of the Giant Dragon and had unintentionally come to the Spider Valley on that day. They stumbled into the combined attacks of a large group of spiders before even setting foot in the valley; even more unexpectedly, they encountered Yang Ling by complete coincidence, who happened to be passing by.
“It is purely a misunderstanding!” Yang Ling did not attempt to hide anything either, after being convinced that the black robed elder was being sincere. “After taming the Tarantula King in this valley, I claimed this area as my territory. I did not expect to cause this much trouble for all of you. This is my fault, my fault indeed!”
Even though they still had their suspicions, the Dark Knights all swallowed with difficulty after hearing Yang Ling admit it. Yang Ling made it sound easy, but how difficult was it to be able to forcefully tame their champion in the face of the swarm of spiders?
“Yang Ling, since you are aware of your wrongdoings, how are you going to pay for our losses?” Her teacher might be able to forgive Yang Ling that easily, but Maryse still bore the weight of the injustices she had suffered. If not for the black robed elder beside her, she would have secretly cast a Dark Magic reduced Yang Ling to bones.
“Beautiful Miss Maryse, we have an old saying back in my hometown — no discord, no concord!” Yang Ling smiled. “It is fate that we managed to meet each other. Talking about money would spoil our relationship!”
Spoil their relationship?
Maryse fumed.
Elder Klive smile, not commenting, while Maryse almost levitated in fury. She glared at Yang Ling, her supple breasts moving with her breaths. Yang Ling suspected that she might burst out of her clothes if she was a little angrier.
“Yang Ling, may I know which family on the continent you hail from?” After a pause, the black robed elder asked. “According to what I know, there are fewer and fewer summoners that could battle by summoning such a large number of Magical Beasts. Many of the powerful families of the past have already been gone for thousands of years!”
There was another meaning to his words!
Hearing Elder Klive say this, Yang Ling had an epiphany, realizing why the black robed elder had let him go this easily. To think that the non existent family behind him had become his greatest trump card.
Yang Ling thought for a moment, feigning frustration to buy himself some time. He shook his head and said, “Elder, I’ll tell you the truth. My family has an ancient rule dictating that men have to go on trial in the outside world after they have come of age. Since I have not accomplished anything under my name, I am too ashamed to speak my family’s name, nor do I have the guts to return and face those old fashioned old fogeys!”
Old fashioned old fogeys?
While Yang Ling had been speaking nonsense, he had recalled the strict, old fashioned, female lecturer from his college years, who had always failed half of his buddies in every exam. They had called her the ‘ten thousand year old virgin’. But Yang Ling’s words had meant something else to Klive.
On the Tailun Continent, the lifespans of those who have reached the level of Sword Saint and Magical Tutor increased drastically. One could even live upward of a thousand years if one broke through the hurdles and achieved sage level. This meant that the more ancient the family, the more powerful fighters they had! It was clear that based on what Yang Ling had meant, there were not just one or two powerful fighters in his family.
According to the ancient legends, the battle capabilities of an Ancient Summoner would become more terrifying at the later stages of their training. They could not only summon many top notch Magical Beasts to do battle for them, they might even be able to challenge the authority of the gods just based on their abilities alone.
If he could forge an alliance with a family of Ancient Wizards, even if they did not directly join them in battle, would be a big advantage. Merely summoning a large number of high level dark element Magical Beasts to help the Dark Association set up a powerful Magical Beast army would be something to be happy about.
Additionally, Wissen Town was not far from the resource rich Terras Forest. There was an inexhaustible supply of wood, various premium mineral ores, a large variety of spiritual items, as well as the potential of hunting Magical Beast Essence Crystals…
It would be killing two birds with one stone if they could gain a following in Wissen Town and control the economy and resources there, in addition to forming an alliance with the family behind Yang Ling through friendship with him. They could not only obtain cheap resources, they would also cement a powerful ally.
After a moment passed, Elder Klive spoke. “Yang Ling, we are prepared to set up a branch in Wissen Town. It could bring you increased human traffic and more funds. We could also help you deal with powerful factions in secret. Do you have any objections to that?”
Set up a branch of the Dark Association in Wissen Town?
Yang Ling considered the proposal. Just as Elder Klive had said, they would attract quite an increase in human traffic and funds in the beginning. They would perhaps solve some of his difficult problems to some degree. But as an old enemy to the Dark Association, the Church wouldn’t sit idle while this kind of alliance blossomed. Yang Ling did not want two factions that he could not afford to offend doing battle nonstop on his territory, severely stunting its development.
Seeing Yang Ling’s troubled face, Klive did not pay much heed, and he retrieved a thick ancient book from his Space Ring. “Yang Ling, this is a Magical Beast Knowledge Guide that I got from an ancient divine temple many years ago. It might be quite useful to you!”
Accepting the book from Klive’s outstretched hand, Yang Ling flipped through it’s pages. He became very excited indeed. This so-called Magical Beast Knowledge Guide had was comprehensive. Rather than call it a Magical Beast Knowledge Guide, it might as well be an encyclopedia on Magical Beasts.
The sketches of Magical Beasts in the Knowledge Guide were lifelike. Its contents included the characteristics of Magical Beasts, and their weaknesses and lifestyle habits! What was more important was that there were records on comparisons of Magical Beast abilities and their paths of evolution. To an average person, this book might only be an introduction to Magical Beasts, but to Yang Ling, this was a treasure worth countries. It was even more precious than a crystal mine!
