Chapter 264: Chapter 58: The Down and Out Merchant_2
The middle-aged man’s body was slightly trembling. He struggled to suppress his soaring anger; the power behind the Dark Magician was something he could not afford to offend. Even the Duke had to rely on them. He tried to keep his voice as calm as possible, saying, "The carriage is ready, you can leave now."
The Black Robed Magician casually said, "We’re leaving." and headed to the doorway first. Upon opening the door and being hit by outside light, he paused. His long shadow cast over the middle-aged man. He spoke without turning to face him, "In consideration of your affiliation with the Duke, I have a reminder for you. In the Mage Guild, there’s a young mage with exceptional martial arts ability who ruined our plan this time. I didn’t see his magic, but his martial arts were excellent. Moreover, I summoned a demon with magic in the Mage Guild, but we found out later in our information gathering that not a single casualty was suffered by the Guild from the forbidden demon summoning. You should think over it." After finishing, he left with four magicians and the remaining assassins. Slamming the door shut behind them, the room was left with just the middle-aged man, known as Viscount.
The Dark Magician’s last words extinguished the rage in the middle-aged man’s heart. He mumbled to himself: "Demon summoning? That guy actually used a demon summoning spell. Doesn’t he know how dangerous that magic is? And the Mage Guild managed to intercept it. A young Mage skilled in martial arts...Well, this operation wasn’t a complete failure. At least it helped us probe into Washington’s secrets. I didn’t know they too had hidden forces..." As he thought about this, a sinister look crossed his pale face.
"Someone!" The middle-aged man called out loudly. A slender figure slid into the room, barely opening the door. A pleasant, yet icy voice responded, "Master."
"Convey my orders. All previous plans are to be cancelled. Everyone is to return to their original positions and await orders. Meanwhile, command Hawk to infiltrate the Province of Light and inquire about a young mage skilled in martial arts. Report back immediately when he’s located. Also, have the scouts watch the movements of the gathered troops in Province of Light and report back immediately if anything unusual occurs."
"Yes, master." The shadowy figure vanished. An eerie smile played on the middle-aged man’s face as he too left the room, leaving it in utter darkness without a trace of life.
The sky had darkened as Ah Dai and his two companions found a wind-sheltered mound to stop at.
Yan Li sank onto the ground in discontent, complaining, "It would have been nice to stay at the soldiers’ camp overnight. Instead, we went on our way in the evening and now we’re in the middle of nowhere, forced to sleep in the wilderness again."
With an embarrassed smile, Ah Dai said, "I’m sorry, Brother Yan Li. But the generals were too enthusiastic, I was afraid if we didn’t leave, they would bug us all night without letting us sleep."
Yan Li burst into laughter, saying, "Don’t worry, I was just messing with you. Quickly, use your Fire Magic to light a bonfire. It’s still March and it’s very chilly." He pointed to the pile of leaves and tree branches they’ve gathered on the ground.
Agreeing, Ah Dai began to chant a spell he hadn’t used on a long time, "Elements of fire, pervading heaven and earth! Bestow upon me the warmth of your power, consolidate into a ball, and appear in my hand." Ah Dai could clearly feel the fire elements gathering towards him. The glimmers of red light converged, and with a ’pop’, Ah Dai’s hand was ablaze with a deep blue fireball of about ten centimeters in diameter. It seemed like something from hell, scorching and terrifying. Ah Dai was startled – had his spiritual power improved again? How had the fireball become so big, and the heat seemed to have increased tremendously too.
Ah Dai’s magic power had indeed increased—or rather, his control over his spiritual power had. For the past six months, every day, he had been using his consciousness to guide his Life-Transforming True Qi into a solid form and then transformed it into various shapes during his practice. This had exercised his spiritual power, and although he hadn’t intentionally meditated, his spiritual power had nonetheless made certain advancements. Now, when he manipulated magic elements, it was even more effortless. Ah Dai extended his left hand, activated his Life-Transforming True Qi, and his fingers sparkled with a faint white light. He lightly flicked the fireball, and immediately, a small blue spark flew off, dropping into the pile of tree branches. Even though it was just a tiny spark, it ignited the pile into a roaring fire that illuminated the dark night, and the trio could immediately feel the warmth. They warmed their hands beside the fire. Yan Li said, "Ah Dai, I’ll go find more branches. You lit quite a big fire, I am afraid these branches will not be enough for the night." After speaking, he headed for a nearby grove.
All three had eaten a lot that day and didn’t feel hungry, so Ah Dai and Yan Shi gathered some dried leaves left over from the winter to create a makeshift bed and prepared to sleep.
Yan Shi said, "Brother Ah Dai, seems like finding the Elf Clan won’t be easy this time. If we tried to cover every corner of the Empire of Sunset City, even two years would not suffice. Not to mention, we don’t know if Elves who had been abducted are in other countries—if they are, it’ll be even more troublesome."
