Chapter 103: The Strange Stone

Dropped back to eleven again.

Third watch, please recommend! Charging back!

———

Unexpected complications arose. Xu Wen had no heart to continue investigating the information given by the young boy with the green cap. He quickly destroyed the corpse and traces, then summoned his Black Wind Eagle to swiftly leave this troublesome place.

He could handle a wounded six-star swordsman, but a group of six or seven-star mercenaries was far beyond what a few skeleton warriors and his own four-star fire mage could manage.

Back inside the city, he didn’t bother explaining to the still sulking Aileen, only saying that the scene was completely destroyed before pulling her along. They boarded the cat eagle waiting at the courier station without a moment’s delay, leaving Joseph’s territory immediately, heading straight for the imperial border fortress—Bloodstone City.

Although Aileen noticed Xu Wen’s hurried and unusual behavior, she couldn’t extract any valuable clues from him. After a moment of silence, the two resumed their daily training.

During this time, Xu Wen used his mental power to examine a storage ring taken from the corpse of the six-star swordsman.

The ring contained many items, mostly wind-element swordsman equipment, two fairly ordinary advanced combat technique manuals, some magic cores and raw materials. Although it could equip two more skeleton warriors, compared to the mission’s purpose, it was too insignificant and left Xu Wen feeling frustrated.

Fortunately...

There was another storage ring inside, belonging to the person who had been killed earlier. It seemed the treasure the swordsman had mentioned was in this ring.

After searching repeatedly, Xu Wen found nothing precious or recognizable.

Inside were only an earth-element magic manual, an execution manual, some coins and everyday items—and... a large stone.

The most eye-catching was that stone.

Irregular in shape and extremely hard, it was certainly not a rare mineral. Strangely, it emitted a faint, peculiar aura, almost like a subtle magnetic pull.

“Could this be the treasure they fought over? What a look they gave me...” Xu Wen racked his brains but found no information about the stone. He finally decided to study it properly alone when the opportunity arose.

Something that could make a group of elite mercenaries turn on each other couldn’t be so simple!

After a full day and night, Xu Wen finally calmed down and immersed himself in the comprehension of the three-star Earth Emperor-level magic, the ‘Black Flame Whip.’ After several days, he made a breakthrough. A black whip of flame, solid and tangible, howled and whipped atop the cat eagle. Though its range was limited, its attack frequency and speed far exceeded expectations.

Within a single breath, the Black Flame Whip could strike any target within twenty meters more than four times, its speed even surpassing ordinary wind-element magic.

The whip could also be used as a sustained attack method. Although it consumed a fair amount of mana, it was far more economical than four-star magic. At Xu Wen’s current cultivation level, he could maintain it for over thirty minutes, even without the amethyst pendant.

During Xu Wen’s training, the beast tamer riding the cat eagle and Aileen were amazed!

From the initial study of black flame, condensation, control, to mastery, Xu Wen’s progress was nothing short of a leap. For Aileen, this was the first time she had witnessed the entire process of a mage mastering Earth Emperor-level magic firsthand.

This was her first close encounter with Earth Emperor-level magic. The powerful magical fluctuations and attack frequency attached to the Black Flame Whip made her keenly aware of the gap between herself and Xu Wen.

Though both were labeled ‘geniuses,’ Xu Wen was clearly more deserving of this title.

In just over half a year, he had risen from a two-star eighth-rank fire mage to a level that left everyone stunned, his combat power rivaling that of a five-star mage.

In contrast, she, who had been a three-star magic swordsman six months ago, still hadn’t fully entered four-star!

While Aileen felt disheartened, the five-star beast tamer tasked with escort duty remained in a low mood, eager to send Xu Wen to the destination and then find a place to hide and meditate.

He had never seen anyone learn an Earth Emperor-level magic in such a short time—an arcane spell that an ordinary mage might exhaust a lifetime trying to master!

Xu Wen made it look as simple as peeling cabbage leaves... absurd.

If it weren’t for his young age, he almost suspected Xu Wen had learned this magic long ago, deliberately trying to humiliate him, a ‘hopeless senior’!

Finally...

Bloodstone City was in sight. Xu Wen and Aileen stopped training simultaneously. The beast tamer seized the opportunity to ask, “Young Master Xu, how many Earth Emperor-level magics have you mastered?” His tone mixed curiosity, helplessness, and hope.

“...” Xu Wen stared blankly at the middle-aged tamer and for the first time smiled: “Two. Actually, I was just playing around. I learned this magic in my clan before, just wanted to feel it again from the beginning to see if I could add some variation and transform it into a Xuantian-level magic. Ha, turns out Earth Emperor-level magic lives up to its reputation; without deep magical foundation, it’s impossible to modify.”

“Oh?”

Though Xu Wen’s tone was innocent, the tamer dared not underestimate him and looked much better.

Only Aileen didn’t believe Xu Wen’s nonsense.

The tamer came from a prominent family in the western city and was understandably ignorant of the situation. Aileen had long learned from Xie Zhan that Xu Wen had only undergone three months of intensive training before being sent directly to Qingyun Academy. How could the Hortonklin family allow a novice disciple to carry away their most precious Earth Emperor-level magic?

Xu Wen had only stayed at Qingyun Academy for a few months...

Learning at least one Earth Emperor and one Xuantian magic in such a short time was already astonishing; adding another Earth Emperor-level magic was even more terrifying. She’d rather believe Xu Wen learned this magic during the journey.

Of course, she wouldn’t be foolish enough to expose his lie face-to-face...

When the tamer escorted them to the Bloodstone City aviary station and left, Aileen found a chance to ask Xu Wen secretly. Xu Wen thought about Aileen’s cooperation along the way, pondered, then raised four fingers.

“Four.”

Upon hearing the answer, Aileen could not feel joy. Watching Xu Wen’s figure ahead, she was filled with a sense of defeat, as if the youth half a year her junior was an insurmountable mountain.

———

Meanwhile, thousands of miles away in Joseph City, inside an empty alley.

Two figures moved in single file, voices hushed.

“You’re sure?”

The first spoke with slight authority, eyes cold as ice.

“Confirmed. That kid’s the most well-informed rogue around here. Most of the city adventurers’ ordinary mission info is bought from him... He said that on the day of the attack, a pair of young men and women bought information from him; one of the places was exactly where the deputy captain last fought that magic swordsman.”

“Oh! What a coincidence! How old are those two?”

“No more than sixteen...” The responder’s words were instantly met with a fierce murderous aura from the leader ‘Mitsui Yaba.’ His expression tightened, and he quickly added:

“There’s an even bigger coincidence. After that kid left the city, he summoned a contracted beast—turns out he’s a beast tamer, and seems to be the one we sensed when chasing Wang Xiaoshuai.”

“Indeed a coincidence, but... do you think a sixteen-year-old can snatch that thing from a six-star peak swordsman?” Mitsui Yaba’s eyes sneered coldly. The lackeys who killed Wang Xiaoshuai had failed to find that treasure, which infuriated him. Now the deputy captain and Wang’s cousin had vanished without a trace; the situation was as clear as day.

The responding archer lowered his head, agreeing with this view:

“No, that boy hasn’t reached four-star level yet. And with the deputy captain’s strength, they wouldn’t both end up badly wounded unless there was a stronger third party passing by.”

“A stronger third party? With his strength, couldn’t he outrun or call for backup?!” Mitsui Yaba’s face twisted into a feral grin. “The treasure must have been handed to Wang’s cousin... If it were me, I’d keep it for myself too. Heh... I won’t let him off! Let’s pay his family a visit!”

“What about that kid? He supposedly left Joseph City that day. He might know something.” The archer looked up and asked.

Mitsui Yaba frowned. Neither the treasure information nor the mercenary group’s internal affairs could be leaked:

“Find out where he went. Send ‘Poison Blade’ to silence him.”

“We know the place—it’s Bloodstone City. But the identities are complicated. That pair seems to be students sent from Qingyun Academy to the Scarlet Alliance.” The archer hesitated, glancing at Mitsui Yaba, whose expression turned troubled:

“People from Qingyun Academy?”

Mitsui Yaba took a deep breath, muttering: “This is trouble. They say there are many mages and warlords among the escort personnel...”

“And the deputy dean of Qingyun Academy, ‘Notting,’ a mage’s cultivation level! Leaving for the Scarlet Alliance in five days!” The archer added.

“Trying to kill their students under the watchful eyes of those old perverts? Only the Dark Empire could pull that off. Forget it, with the strong personalities at Qingyun Academy, they won’t deign to care about us. First, find his family and search his whereabouts.”

Mitsui Yaba finally gave up the idea of hunting down the unknown beast tamer and focused all his attention on the missing deputy captain.

“Yes, sir!”

The archer took the order and was about to leave when Mitsui Yaba called him back. After a moment’s flicker in his eyes, he said:

“Keep a close watch on Wang Xiaoshuai. He might still be useful.”

“Are you worried the other one isn’t dead?” The archer was shocked.

Mitsui Yaba nodded slowly.

“We didn’t get the treasure, our plan can’t proceed smoothly. Nothing can be allowed to slip... Wang Xiaoshuai’s flying dragon spear wasn’t on him—that’s suspicious. So, we must find those two at all costs! Wang and his cousin are like brothers; if his cousin’s alive and knows Wang survived, he won’t stay indifferent.”

“But...” The archer looked embarrassed.

“Lord Shadow instructed us earlier—all captured seven-star or higher elites must be handed over to the Scarlet Alliance. The day after we seized him, our subordinates saw him crippled and the treasure’s whereabouts confirmed, so they sent him off. He’s probably already en route to the Scarlet Alliance.”

Mitsui Yaba’s face darkened in rage:

“You idiot! Chase after them! What are you waiting for? Bring them back!”

“Yes, captain!”

The archer fled in haste.