Finals In The Secret Plane
“He actually used up all his spiritual force and formed a corrosive attack able to cover the entire area of the stage!”
The old Magus beside Leylin was astonished as he touched his beard, “Looks like Carl has improved quite a bit! It’s a pity that with this method, too much spiritual force is consumed. He’s destined not to succeed in the next selection battle!”
“That might not be so,” Leylin laughed and pointed in a direction, “Look!”
“Oh?” This rank 2 Magus looked in that direction and laughed, “He actually used a precious spiritual force restoring potion? Such a thing could save his life at a crucial moment!”
In a corner, Longbottom’s hands trembled and he almost flung out his potion bottles.
“Again! Again!” His expression darkened.
Leylin snickered in his heart. His own gaze was now at a stage where Longbottom could not discover it, so he constantly attracted the attention of the rank 2 Magi beside him to the fellow, giving him a lot of stress.
Having teased him enough, Leylin did not want to shoot himself in the foot and directed the attention of the rank 2 Magi away. “By the way, are you interested in visiting my laboratory after the competition ends? Nature’s Alliance’s special fish is somewhat effective for rank 2 Magi…”
At another end, Longbottom sighed, “Then again, Green-robed Carl’s original strength loses out to that of Fire Scorpion. Though I tried to conceal it, I still attracted attention. I’ll need to be more careful in the future…”
“My apologies, please let me pass!” At this moment, a Magus squeezed in, looking hurried.
“What are you doing?” Longbottom pushed the other person away.
The two were suddenly caught in a daze.
Though they had disguised themselves, Longbottom was still able to recognise Baelin at first glance, while Baelin had also recognised his former buddy.
The two of them stared at each other, but because of some unspeakable reasons on both ends, they silently swallowed their words. They did not attempt to expose each other’s identities.
“Number 188! Number 188!” At another end of the stage, the judge was starting to get impatient.
Baelin’s body trembled and he hurried on. “I will stop you!” he said softly when passing Longbottom.
“I’ll wait and see!” was the immediate reply.
As match after match went on, a few geniuses made a name for themselves, resulting in the adulation of the audience.
Leylin had also picked out a few people. “Lilina from the western region, Haylon of the voodoo marshes, and then Baelin as well as Longbottom and their friends and subordinates will take up the top few spots in this genius Magi competition.”
With his knowledge as a rank 2 Warlock, he easily found those so-called ‘geniuses’.
Usually, these geniuses would be considered the ‘main characters’ of the era and were important figures in history. However, such influence was nothing compared to Leylin!
“The champion should be either Baelin or Longbottom.” Leylin concluded.
“They really are the converging point of Twilight Zone’s forces of destiny. Their strength has risen by so much, and I believe these two have even touched the boundary of the rank 2 realm.”
Leylin sighed in awe. With this rate of improvement, even Aaron and the other ‘fake’ geniuses he had made with his grandpas, leave alone Lilina and Haylon, were left in the dust.
The preliminaries were very quick.
By nightfall, about half out of the numerous contestants who had signed up had been eliminated. Numerous Magi became familiar with some of the great battles here, and some were even turned into videos and supplied to large-scale guilds to pick from.
Baelin and Longbottom, as well as the other contestants that Leylin had thought highly of, had not failed their missions. They passed through the preliminaries, and even earned themselves a reputation.
Amongst the Magi at the competition area, they had become somewhat famous.
“Haylon!” “Lilina!” Carl!” and the like finally reached the ears of rank 2 Magi.
……
“The forces of destiny have converged further!”
While resting that day, Leylin proceeded to a luxurious room that was especially prepared for him and looked out the window at the sky.
In this short period of rest, many events were unfolding.
In a contestant’s room, a few black-robed Magi were threatening Haylon from the voodoo marshes, “If you see our young master tomorrow, you must forfeit! If not…”
“Scram!” Haylon raised his eyebrows.
“What did you say?” The few Magi were instantly enraged.
“I told you to scram! Didn’t you hear clearly?” Haylon stood up, his eyes now completely red.
Black and red rays of magic exploded from his body.
“There are Magi from large-scaled guilds monitoring this area. You dare-”
These Magi evidently did not expect him to be so stubborn and irritable. The moment there was a difference in opinion, he attacked without hesitation.
*Rumble!*
Several rays of magic burst in the rooms, the stray ripples surging and shaking the surrounding walls till they turned to powder.
“What’s going on?” A group of Magi wearing the patrolling uniform rushed over. They represented the dignity of the organisers and were backed by many rank 2 Magi. Since they had such powerful backers, they naturally confident.
The few black-robed Magi exchanged glances and everyone saw the helplessness in their eyes, “Please!”
Meanwhile, they had a deep hatred for this person who was ruining their plans and could not understand the situation.
The youth seemed to sense something and gazed into the distance, revealing for the first time a hint of grief within.
“Seizing the championship is Master’s dying wish. Anyone hindering me from achieving it will die!”
……
Under the dim yellow light, Lilina looked at a blue pearl in her hands, seeming undecided.
The light blue pearl was smooth, round and beautiful, with little flecks of gold that formed the image of a palm at the heart of the pearl.
This was the last treasure of her family. However, it also held within it horrific side effects, which was why Lilina was feeling hesitant.
She then thought about the sacrifice of her family, and their current condition.
Though their family was a Magus family, resources were not so easily obtained in the Magus World. With all hopes of revival left to her, her shoulders were weighed down by far too much pressure.
“I must become the champion and lead my family on the road to revival!” Her expression turning resolute under the lights, she pressed the blue pearl to her forehead.
*Sssii!* The pearl merged into her forehead.
A smear of deep blue began to flicker on Lilina’s body.
……
“My lady!” Longbottom removed his disguise and gazed at the human figure within the black mist, kneeling deferentially.
“En! Little Longbottom, though you are beginning to carve your own route and have almost reached rank 2, the accumulation that happens with time cannot be overcome so easily.” A charming female voice sounded from within the black mist.
“I will now condense all the life force essence of my race onto you in order to help your Life Absorption meditation technique truly break through to the second level.”
“Many thanks, my lady!” Longbottom looked ecstatic.
In his mind, he instantly recalled the figure sitting on the platform. “I’ve finally, finally caught up to you! I really want to see the expression you’ll have on your face… Leylin!”
……
“What are you thinking about?”
Aaron watched Baelin, who was standing aside.
“No… It’s nothing. I saw Longbottom, and he’s changed so much…” Baelin sighed, looking worried.
“Listen to me, Baelin! Longbottom has now completely sided with the dark elves and will cause bring chaos to the human race. Your mission is to stop him. You cannot forget this!” The expression on Aaron’s face became serious.
“Yes, I will stop him!” Baelin repeated, strengthening his tone of voice.
Days later.
With the Eternal Light spell as well as strength of the Sun Stones, the area was illuminated.
A Magus wearing the attire of a host first bowed towards the platform, and then announced the schedule for the competition.
“All of you are the best who have gone through round after round of selection! A victor will appear amongst you today, and the top thirty will have the opportunity to choose a guild to enter! This includes any large-scaled guilds…”
The moment these words left the host’s mouth, the area was filled with an uproar.
The hundred or so remaining contestants’ eyes revealed different emotions. There was passion, contemplation and excitement.
*Cough!* The host coughed lightly, and the area fell silent.
“The competition shall be held here!” He pointed at the stage right in the centre.
A giant spell formation had been set up atop the stage, while crimson runes were spread around. They emanated a strange light that caused one to shudder in fear.
“The finals of the competition will be held in a secret plane. You will be sent to a random location in the secret plane, and there is only one way to win. Defeat your opponents and obtain the points on their amulet!”
The host raised a milky-white amulet that was only the size of a finger with a simple number written on it.
“In the secret plane, there are no rules. Besieges and usage of external items is allowed.”
“I would like to remind all of you that even though we will install a spell pattern that will teleport you out the moment you are at the brink of death, there are always accidents. Hence, there is the real possibility of death in the secret plane, and I want you to consider this carefully.”
The host spoke indifferently, and a bloody smell assaulted the nostrils. Baelin was surprised. With this lack of rules, it was easy to slip up. Even with the aid, it would be difficult to keep one’s life.
After all, the mysteriousness of magic could not be surmised by the regular person. Perhaps there were methods that could forcefully break the life-saving methods the organisers had set up and cause a large number of deaths.
