Chapter 1105: Chapter 858: Let Me Say It
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This was almost equivalent to placing one’s life completely in someone else’s hands; to be honest, the group of Mages from the Ancient Mage Tower didn’t know each other well. When it came to trust, there really weren’t many people who trusted anyone else. But no one dared to stand out. Compared to entrusting one’s life to someone else, holding the lives of five hundred people in one’s hand felt equally unbearable.
"I’ll do it!"
An elderly Mage stepped forward.
"You’ll do it? Are you confident?"
"What useful information do you have that can make Ai Lin trust you?"
"Exactly! What if everything you say is worthless; won’t that get us all killed?"
As one person stepped forward, what he first faced was doubt and distrust.
"Enough! Then you go!"
The old Mage shouted loudly.
Upon hearing that they should go, the vociferous people in the crowd immediately shrunk their necks and chickened out. They were joking—if they had the guts, would they still be shouting from within the crowd?
"A bunch of pretentious trash." The old Mage cursed, then turned around and strode toward Ai Lin.
"Damn it, this old bastard will surely get us all killed!" Another person cursed.
"Right? Look at his authority; it isn’t high at all, what can he do?"
"If you are so capable, why don’t you go over there?"
"Yeah, why were you hiding behind me just now? Say it to others’ faces!"
"You few bastards looking for trouble, huh? Say a few more words, and I won’t wait for Ai Lin to make a move; I’ll kill you myself!"
Internal strife had already begun among the crowd, but although their words were fierce, no one really lifted a hand to fight.
No one wanted to die.
The old Mage approached Ai Lin, gave a bow, and then slowly began to speak. The group of Mages from the Ancient Mage Tower watched from a distance, not knowing what he said. They only saw Ai Lin nodding continually, smiling, seemingly in a good mood.
"It should be, fine, right?" Someone whispered, but no one answered him because no one really knew the answer to that question.
A few minutes later, the old Mage finished speaking, took a few steps back, and watched Ai Lin anxiously. After some thought, Ai Lin finally spoke, "I am very satisfied with the information you have provided for me; you’ve earned my respect, so you are free."
With a wave of Ai Lin’s hand, the soldiers behind her instantly cleared a path for the old Mage.
"What about them..." The old Mage glanced back at the others, realized something, and then he dashed out without looking back.
"Yay, freedom!" The Mages from the Ancient Mage Tower cheered, and they too were about to leave. But what awaited them was a lethal spell.
A few of the Mages who had just cheered the loudest were almost instantly killed!
"What’s going on! Didn’t you say you would let us go free!" A group of people shouted.
"Did I say that?" Ai Lin asked with a smile.
Clearly, Ai Lin had only just spoken of letting that single old Mage go free.
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"You deceived us!" someone in the crowd shouted angrily.
"If you insist on thinking so, I won’t refute you, after all, I don’t care how a dead person views me," Ai Lin said.
The disparity in strength between the two sides was vast, with a thousand soldiers of The Divine Auffa Empire swarming fewer than five hundred Mages of the Ancient Mage Tower. It was almost a foregone conclusion, a battle without suspense. The Mages of the Ancient Mage Tower were quickly annihilated, and the battle was a resounding victory!
"Alright, I’ll leave the rest up to you, I’m heading back to The Divine Auffa Empire," Ai Lin said to her deputy, who actually used to be the commander of this troop, but had to reluctantly take on the role of deputy when Ai Lin suddenly parachuted in. Initially, he had some complaints, but once he knew that this newly arrived commander was Ai Lin, he immediately swelled with pride.
Serving as deputy to the great Master Ai Lin? That’s a fortune!
When Ai Lin returned to The Divine Auffa Empire, it happened that Long Yi had also arrived, and they exchanged the information they had gathered. They quickly drew a conclusion that Elma had truly transformed herself completely. Though they didn’t know what kind of transformation she had undergone, it rang an alarm bell for both of them—if Elma could transform herself, then she might well transform others too. The Ancient Mage Tower had occupied the pinnacle of Plane magic research for far too long, and no one could guarantee they wouldn’t develop something particularly special. Therefore, the enhancement of the military might of Sanctuary Empire and The Divine Auffa Empire must be accelerated further.
The good news was that the recent annexation of the two countries greatly benefitted Long Yi’s plans and would undoubtedly accelerate the build-up of the military forces of the two nations.
The news of the Ancient Mage Tower’s forces being driven out by military might from these two planets quickly spread across the entire Plane, causing a tremendous shock. The Ancient Mage Tower had long been a symbol of the pinnacle of this Plane; no one dared defy its orders, a status owed entirely to their vast number of Sanctuary Mages!
But now, both Sanctuary Empire and The Divine Auffa Empire had armed forces capable of contending with large numbers of Sanctuary Mages! If at the beginning, Long Yi’s activities between different planets were a pure demonstration of his personal strength, then the completion of these two recent battles made it clear that, for the first time, there was a nation on this Plane that dared to directly confront the Ancient Mage Tower head-on!
Moreover, this time, two nations had emerged!
The images of these two battles, produced by interested parties, were distributed to every corner of the Plane, and almost every Emperor of every nation saw them through various means.
The Divine Armor troops of Sanctuary Empire won with their astonishing defensive capabilities and powerful mana output, able to easily withstand even the most powerful strategic magic. In particular, at the end, one Divine Armor was even torn by Spatial Turbulence and still managed to unleash an astonishing amount of power, which was enough to shock everyone.
And the Mage army of The Divine Auffa Empire was more traditional, and more understandable to everyone. They were Mages, powerful Mages with Sanctuary powers. Compared to the Mages of the Ancient Mage Tower, they had faster casting speed, higher magic intensity, more agility, and better training!
With such a comparison, the original fear of the Ancient Mage Tower among the people was steadily decreasing. And the once swaggering Mages of the Ancient Mage Tower began to gradually become more restrained. Because no one knew where the armies of these two countries would appear next. If they truly emerged within their own nation, then being betrayed by those around them was a matter of seconds, so for a time, the Mages of the Ancient Mage Tower learned to foster good relationships with those around them and court some people to become their confidants.
Fortunately, at this time, a messenger from the Ancient Mage Tower appeared. He brought great news to all the mages of the Ancient Mage Towers across the plane: return to the Ancient Mage Tower, the plan to control other planets was immediately terminated!
When these people once again set foot in the Ancient Mage Tower with its artificial gravity, some were even moved to tears, for it felt like they had just walked away from the front lines of death.
Now, at the top floor of the Ancient Mage Tower, Zulal was reporting to Elma: "Master Elma, all of our people outside have returned. This includes everyone who fled during various battles, without exception."
Elma nodded and said, "Let them rest for a few days, then we will immediately start planning."
Zulal’s face showed a hint of caution: "Master Elma, aren’t we being a bit too hasty? After all, those people are not as strong and resolute as you, Master Elma. Even though it’s just the transformation into Semi-Crazy Demons, I’m afraid they won’t be able to withstand it."
But Elma let out a cold laugh: "Heh heh heh, my loyal friend Zulal, don’t worry. If they can endure, I will make them into truly powerful mages, and if they cannot, I will turn them into powerful Crazy Demons who will obey my commands! So now, follow my orders and let them rest for a few days. After that, they will welcome their own transformative rebirth!"
With the people of the Ancient Mage Tower gone, the plane once again became quiet, and it was an excellent opportunity for The Divine Auffa Empire and the Sanctuary Empire to recruit people. With the powerful forces of the Sanctuary’s Mage troops and Divine Armor troops, the envoys of both empires were treated with great honor. Although those smaller nations did not want to offend anyone, they still preferred the proposals from the two empires over the Ancient Mage Tower that intended to completely replace their own empires—they would provide resources for the two empires, and in return, the empires would offer them military assistance.
By taking advantage of this window of opportunity, the two empires settled deals with many heads of state who were usually difficult to talk to, and they obtained a tremendous amount of resources. Not just materially, but also in terms of technology.
This enabled the production speed of Divine Armor to advance to a new stage.
At the same time, Long Yi and Ai Lin’s exchange program officially began.
Long Yi believed that, although the Divine Armor of the Sanctuary Empire and the warriors of The Divine Auffa Empire were already quite powerful, no one would dislike becoming even stronger. Especially in the face of the unknown threat from the Ancient Mage Tower, it was necessary to further enhance their capabilities.
Not long ago, The Divine Auffa Empire had started on the construction of a series of factories with the help of the Sanctuary Empire, and these factories, using planets as units of resource, were quickly completed in record time. Then, with the addition of several experienced old technicians from the Sanctuary Empire, everything proceeded extremely smoothly. That is the benefit of magic equipment: no need to consider people or talent, just provide standard data, and production can start immediately.
Ai Lin also received a grand welcome in the Sanctuary Empire, after all, she was a beautiful woman with a good temperament, and very powerful too; it would be most strange if she, with her many Haloes, was not well received. (To be continued. If you like this work, welcome to Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for recommendation tickets and monthly tickets, your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please read on m.qidian.com.)
