LRAB Page 163
Page 163
[As you watched Zerris teleport away in an instant, you were stunned for a moment, cursing under your breath, "Shameless old thief." Then you took a deep breath, turned around, and looked at the tall, thin man with flames rising from his feet. He was hurtling towards you through the air like a fly.]
"Why didn't MiTu tell me about all the risk warnings I'd accumulated before going back to her hometown..." you complained helplessly, glancing at the man with the husky-like expression on his face, and then complained again:
"My dear readers, I'm going to fight against the censors for your sake. I hope I'm alright..."
Chapter 176 Young Taupite's First Love Affair
[Now you finally understand what it feels like to be chased and punished by the cyber police. Fortunately, you still have the spellbook. Although you haven't been a sixth-ring cleric for long, with the help of Ateliers, who has also advanced to sixth ring, you've already inscribed enough spells to handle combat.]
[Unfortunately, you don't have the magic network key from Andora, otherwise you would definitely make this guy in front of you experience what it feels like to be abandoned by your beloved magic network.]
[As for whose fault it is that so many risk warnings have appeared on you, you haven't said a word. Goddess above, you've only made a tiny contribution to the online novel industry; the novels you write are even suitable for your own children to read!]
"Yeah, right... I can't let my daughters' heads be filled with pornographic material! But I don't care about my son..." you muttered, watching the tall, thin man in front of you land leisurely and assume a fighting stance. You breathed a sigh of relief and murmured:
"It seems that although he is a mage connected to the magic network, he follows the path of a bloodline warrior, just like the locals of Andora... I won't reveal that I can also cast spells yet; let's see how the cyber police crack down on violators."
As you expected, the tall, thin man twisted his body, revealing snow leopard stripes all over his skin. Then, he stomped hard on the ice, letting out a high-pitched, husky howl, and pounced straight at you.
[“Holy crap!” Your understanding of the Bloodline Warriors' abilities was limited to Go Ying's dual nature of ice and fire, so you were caught off guard and momentarily disoriented by the snow leopard's roar. When you came to your senses, the snow leopard was already poised to pounce on you. You fell backward in shock, the jolt in your waist and abdomen causing you to instinctively activate “Advanced Posture Control.”]
[With a sudden contraction of your muscles, your upper body arches backward at the last second, narrowly avoiding the snow leopard's front paws. Then, your eyes sharpen instantly, and you thrust your hips forward, assuming a pyramid-shaped "one-legged stance."]
"I'll test you!..." The snow leopard was struck in the abdomen by the bullseye you'd practiced for months. The leopard was instantly struck as if by lightning; before it could even finish a curse, it was sent flying several times, rolling around in the air.
You straighten your upper body, returning to a normal posture. Seeing the snow leopard charging at you again, your eyes sharpen, your hind legs tense, preparing to twist your body at the moment of impact, unleashing "Liquid Shock" in a "sidecart" position to break through its flank in one fell swoop!
[However, the next second, a deep, bubbly roar made you lose your focus for a moment. When you came to your senses, a large foot was already pressing against your stomach, and a tremendous force blasted you more than ten meters away. With your stomach churning, you heard the triumphant howl in the distance and cursed, "Damn it... Snow leopard, shut up!"]
You take a deep breath, confirming you haven't lost your fighting ability, and gather your magic to cast a "Sixth Ring Spell - Disintegrate," ready to launch a surprise attack on the man.
The tall, thin man suddenly withdrew from his fighting stance. He patted his clothes, which you had torn to shreds, mumbled a curse, then walked to your side and stretched his hand out into the air.
[You feel the magic network reconnecting to your body. You are puzzled, but remain vigilant, ready to retaliate at any moment.]
However, the tall, thin man did not launch an attack, and the magical net gradually dissipated after circling for a while, without casting any spells as you might have expected.
"What the hell? How can that stop?" You watched the man run off like a strange creature, scratched your head, and stood up, utterly confused.
[“What exactly is this…” You connect to the magic network, look at your banned account, and fall silent.]
The comments section sprang to life very quickly. Feeling melancholy, you glanced at it and saw dozens of rapidly scrolling messages like "Offer incense" and "Made one 'Gouzi Bro' to win the revival match."
"Damn it, don't you have any conscience at all?" You took a deep breath, painfully raised your head, looked around at the desolate, icy plain, and cried out in sorrow, "Losing my beloved, surrounded by ruins!... It hurts, it hurts so much!"
After yelling for a while, you calmed down, went into the cyber police's backend, and turned off the prominent account ban switch.
"Kids, I'm back..." you murmured to yourself, watching the chat section suddenly change from "I miss you, Prisoner" to "I'm back!" and you couldn't help but burst out laughing.
[However, the next second, your expression changed again. With your account unbanned, a risk warning reappeared on your account page. You gasped, quickly looked around to make sure the snow leopard wouldn't attack again so soon, and immediately activated your "Flying" spell to speed up your journey, flying towards the location you had agreed upon with Zerris.]
[You didn't bring Jennifer or Slinger on this trip, but instead came to Andora alone with Zerris. The reason is that after you revealed your interest in the history of this continent, he planned to take you here first to find the wise men of Andora, and also let you experience what it's like to travel as a diplomat.]
[After all, diplomats at the UN in Yanium take great risks, while the Andora Kingdom's attitude towards the Norards is much more peaceful. However, Zerris really didn't expect you to be a fugitive from the Magic Network...]
After some twists and turns, you successfully found Zerris, who had built an igloo and was making a fire at the door. Zerris was stunned, not expecting you to escape from the cyber police so quickly. Without changing his expression, he stuffed the freshly skewered meat into the dimensional rift, laughed heartily under your unfriendly gaze, put on his magic cloak, and said:
"Shall we go?"
"What are you waiting for! We're already here, give me half of your meat skewers!" you shouted angrily.
Five minutes later, you're outside the igloo, grilling freshly killed monster meat skewers while trying to pinpoint your location.
"It looks like the Deep River Ice Valley in the northwest of the Murida Greenhouse." Zerris, having restored his magical connection, caught the spell-enchanted cloak that fell from the sky and was imbued with "Eagle Eye," and said:
"This area is still in the southern part of the Andora Kingdom, so the temperature isn't very low."
"So how do we find that wise man?" you asked curiously, stuffing the last skewer of grilled meat into your mouth.
"Follow the trail of the magic network." Zerris said, fastening his magic cloak to shield himself from the blinding light reflected off the icy plains.
"That wise man was commissioned by the Magic Network to spread it between the greenhouses. As long as we follow the Magic Network's signals and don't leave it, we can find the wise man's team wandering between the greenhouses."
[From Zerris's words, you learn that mages are still a rare profession in Andora, not only because of the tradition of bloodline warriors, but also because novice mages have such weak self-defense capabilities that they struggle to survive on the monster-infested icy plains.]
However, the wise man believed that the Magic Network was essential. The children of Andora could not grow up in such brutal fighting forever. If this continued, many children would eventually become inexplicably crazy freaks like the Snow Leopard Man. The colorful world and various abilities on the Magic Network were, in his opinion, crucial factors that could bring life to the Ice Plains.
[Therefore, the wise man made a pact with the magic network. He would spend the rest of his life continuously spreading the magic network across the icy plains in exchange for the magical aptitude of some children, and also to provide a "safe zone" for the magic network to exist for the mages who would come in the future.]
His constant confinement within the greenhouse was due to the fact that there were too few mages circulating within the Kingdom of Andora at the moment, insufficient to secure stable magical network links between roads; he needed to use his own body as a walking "signal tower."
"In short, although our starting points differed, our goals overlapped, so our relationship can be considered quite good." Zerris, sensing the signal strength of the magic network, adjusted his position as he flew, and said:
"The Magic Network is a boon to all humanity; it has many functions, and the creativity of its users is incredibly powerful. Returning to the matter of diplomacy, although the Magic Network's entry into the realm of Janium's gods directly impacts their very foundation of survival—the number of their followers—this is not a reason for me to stop."
You scratched your head and asked curiously, "The people of Andora need the magic network, but do the Anium people need it?"
Zerris laughed and said, "If you lived in the United Nations of Yanium for a while, you would know. Various professions, traditions, and followers of various gods have formed dozens or even hundreds of different interest groups. They infiltrate each other, hate each other, and attack each other. Chaos, intrigue, and killing happen every minute and every second."
"Although a group of righteous people formed the Adventurers' Guild, they are always dealing with trivial matters, such as running errands, catching cats, and finding lost items. Because no interest group is completely clean, they have to consider whether they are on the Adventurers' Guild's blacklist before using its power."
You gasped. Although you hadn't experienced it firsthand, from Zerris's description, you could easily imagine how miserable the lives of the people there were.
"Thinking about it now, I realize I haven't seen enough in the previous simulations, having only visited the border cities of Yanium..." you thought to yourself. "So how did Yashutia manage to survive in a place like this all by herself when she was little?"
"So, since you happen to want to ask about some past events, I'll show you how diplomats travel," Zerris said, pointing to the sky.
“When I went to Janium before, I was once trapped in a place. It wasn’t until I unleashed my magic at full power and spent two days setting up a magic network there that I was able to get out of trouble. Haha, you’d better prepare yourself!”
"Oh, speaking of asking about the past, I suddenly remembered I have something else to ask you." You scratched your head and asked under Zerris's questioning gaze, "Have you ever heard of the name 'Silver Moon'?"
"Uh... the elven Silver Moon worship?" Zerris thought for a long time before finally managing to utter a sentence.
"Tsk, you don't know?" You frowned, wondering if you were wrong. Just to be on the safe side, you hesitated for a moment before continuing to ask:
“Principal Zerris, have you ever met a woman who was just as zealous as you about diplomacy with other races, but who disappeared more than twenty years ago?”
"..." Zerris's flying figure suddenly stopped. A look of reminiscence crossed his face. He remained silent for a moment, gave you a strange look, and said:
“I do know such a woman; she is my student… no, to be precise, she is my ‘apprentice.’”
You scratched your head, just landing and intending to listen to the story properly, when unexpectedly, Zerris suddenly took flight again. He looked at you, puzzled, and said:
"Let's go? Is it really necessary for us to stop and talk about such a small matter?"
"Damn, what a heartless man!" you couldn't help but mutter, then chased after him again, shouting, "What's going on? Principal? Principal? Are you deaf?"
"Alright, alright, stop nagging!" Zerris shook his head in exasperation, sighed, and channeled his magic to block the oncoming cold wind, saying slowly, "Back then, I was still very young..."
[It turns out that, unlike the abstract old man he is today, Zerris was handsome and wealthy in his youth. Although he was only a newly promoted nobleman in the capital city and received income from the king at the time, he was considered one of the top mages of his generation.]
At the age of twenty-seven or twenty-eight, he built the Mage Tower in Lundia and planned to travel and research the path to becoming a Legendary figure. However, he didn't put too much effort into advancing, since for most people, becoming a Legendary figure requires time and accumulation.
Some people get stuck at this stage for twenty or thirty years, while others only take five or six years. But it's never something that can be achieved overnight. Zerris reached the sixth ring level, which most people reach in their forties or fifties, at the age of twenty-seven or twenty-eight, already far ahead of others. In his eyes, everything is progressing well, and there's no need to rush for a year or two.
During one of his travels, he unexpectedly rescued a noblewoman. According to her, she had been traveling with her family elders on a trade route, traveling by carriage from the capital to the Murida Greenhouse to sell supplies needed by the Ice People, and then transporting the goods back from Dirtmouth in Darkseid by carriage. However, along the way, they passed through several areas where the magic network was broken, and were ambushed by the Anium. The entire caravan was torn apart, and only she and a maid managed to escape in the chaos.
The maid, who was her personal attendant, perished on the icy plains of Andora due to old age and frailty, leaving her to struggle alone back to Norard. She was eventually rescued by Zerris when she was starving and freezing.
[Zeris couldn't stand idly by, but his goal for this trip was still unfulfilled, so after some thought, he continued his journey with the noblewoman.]
"My name is... Milut, Milut Grand." The only words the noblewoman uttered during that long journey were these self-introductions as Zerris admired the elven "Mildor" style ornaments.
Chapter 177 There's an old saying in the East: "You are what you eat..."
[Zeris immediately remembered the noblewoman's name, and once she remembered it, she took on a vivid image in his mind, no longer just a simple passerby.]
Without much thought, he led the silent Milut on a journey from the elven realms to the dwarven realms. To contemplate his legendary path, he sensed the interplay between elves and magic energy at elven gatherings and studied the dwarven methods of managing fluctuating magic energy in their towers.
During this time, he didn't treat Milute any special treatment, but Milute actually managed to accumulate capital through intelligence exchanges with various alien races. She then quickly converted this capital into portable collectibles during her travels, selling them in human towns to obtain a large sum of money.
[Zeris was completely clueless about the intricacies of this situation—the supply and demand market, added value, scarcity marketing. He simply watched as Milut's purse went from empty to 20 gold coins, then to 200 gold coins, and finally, when he returned to Lundia, Milut had over a thousand gold coins.]
"Damn it, I just can't understand it!" Zerris was still brooding over it, complaining to you, "It would take me over a year to earn that much by renting out the mage tower. Do you even know what that means?"
In short, the young Zerris gradually developed an unattainable awe for commercial activities. However, Milut, the source of his awe, did not stay in Lundia. Instead, she returned to Siyuanhua Castle via a teleportation array to take over the mess left behind by the destruction of the caravan.
After bidding farewell to Milut, Zerris began to seriously contemplate his legendary path. He had learned from the different ways elves and dwarves interacted with magic essence, resulting in varying degrees of affinity, that magic essence could produce a certain degree of feedback. So how could he "be kinder to magic essence"? He then thought of the magic network…
Six months later, on a very ordinary evening, Milut stood before Zerris's mage tower, carrying her luggage. She smiled at the astonished Zerris and said, "Do you remember me? I am Milut Grand, and I've come to find you!"
[In Milut's narration, she left the capital with regret because of the destruction of her family. In order to survive, she wanted to apply for an apprenticeship at the mage tower in Zerris until she was strong enough to protect herself, and then return to do what she was good at.]
"Regret leaving the capital?" Young Zerris looked at the various valuables Milut carried with her and the deed to the seaside manor in the capital, which she had given him as tuition. He was filled with the urge to complain, but looking at the girl's bright smile, he could only ask helplessly, "Do you know what an apprentice does?"
"I know, you sell yourself to learn magic, you have to do all sorts of chores and hard work!" Milut pushed aside Zerris and entered the mage tower, untied her heavy long skirt, took off her shoes and socks, picked up a mop barefoot, put her hands on her hips and shouted, "Teach me magic, Lord Zerris! No, Teacher Zerris!"
Zerris was deeply shocked. He had never seen anyone pay to become an apprentice. At that moment, he felt that the world itself was sometimes more magical than magic.
Time flew by, and Milut in the mage tower was a completely different person. She was constantly nagging and incredibly annoying, to the point that Zerris sometimes had to yell at her to go study. Each time, Milut would give a pitiful look, and only after seeing Zerris lower his voice in exasperation would she grin and run off with her homework, leaving Zerris standing there with a headache.
[This period of good fortune was short-lived. After rapidly ascending to legendary status, Zerris, as one of the newly promoted nobles, was summoned by the king to face the war against the Anium United Nations.]
Although the two countries are geographically separate, making a large-scale war unlikely, they reached an agreement to conduct armed exercises in a border city of Yanium to prevent various groups from Yanium from crossing the border and harming civilians in Norard. The reason Yanium was chosen was because a magic network had not yet appeared there, which would minimize the number of mages present.
This journey wouldn't be life-threatening for Zerris, but it would involve a long stalemate at the Yanium border. After thinking for a moment, he didn't tell Milut the specific details, only giving a brief overview before setting off.
However, when Zerris arrived at the Murida Greenhouse with the mage party, he was surprised to find Mirut already waiting there. She looked furious but said little. Instead, on the eve of Zerris's departure, she summoned him to the inn and gave him a severe beating. Finally, using some unknown method, she managed to knock out the legendary-level Zerris.
"Of course, that was just because I wasn't on guard!" Zerris retorted, trying to save face.
During his time in Yanium, Zerris would often recall his early travels in foreign lands. Although he wasn't particularly interested in matters concerning other races, the image of that quiet girl curiously watching the grand gathering amidst the elven songs would always resonate powerfully in his dreams.
After several treacherous schemes by the Janium and numerous near-death experiences, the war finally ended. Although many were killed, Norard achieved the result of peaceful communication with the Janium. The king was confident that if the Janium didn't overturn the table, then "the advantage is in my hands."
On his way home, Zerris passed the place where Milut had mentioned the caravan had been ambushed. He sensed the magic network there, which had no signal, and suddenly an idea struck him: he wanted to bring the magic network to the whole world.
This was not only the beginning of his research on his path to legendary status, but also something the king had hoped for, and it could also avenge Milut—in Zerris's view, it was killing three birds with one stone.
[But Milut didn't see it that way. When news of Zerris arrived, she initially expressed her support for his decision, but then she said, "Life is always different from what we imagine. Even a small difference is a world of difference to me, so I'm leaving, Teacher Zerris," and departed from the mage tower in Lundia.]
[Afterwards, Zerris heard that Milut's career quickly gained fame. She single-handedly promoted the integration of different cultures within the Norard territory. With such frequent exchanges, Norard's own strength, thanks to the various knowledge and specialties of different races, suddenly rose to a new level, directly overwhelming Yanium in terms of raw power.]
[Zeris was also proud of this. Although they hadn't seen each other again during the seven or eight years that Milut was active, Milut was still his apprentice, and he was completely satisfied with that.]
"It's a pity. We were too lenient with her back then. If we had been stricter with her during her time in the Mage Tower, she probably could have achieved even more," Zerris said with regret.
“However, as you said, after the alien race began to decline, Mirut disappeared without a trace. Some say she went into seclusion in the countryside, while others say she went to search for the lost ruins of the alien race. I also hope she is still alive. With my current strength, recreating a magical landscape of the elven silver moon for her wouldn't be difficult.”
You hesitated for a moment, still unsure how to tell Zerris the truth you knew, and could only sigh inwardly, thinking:
"These two clearly resemble each other, yet they're so dishonest..."
After waiting for the flight spell to cool down three times, you finally met the sage's group at a roadside camp.