Chapter 214: Magic / 6.1 : This Atlas is a mage
When Atlas opened his eyes he was laying at the bottom of a ravine bleeding out. His entire body ached and the smallest movement made him want to die. Atlas deactivated the pain sensory and blinked to receive this universe’s information.
This Atlas is a 15 years old mage. In this universe everyone is born a magian meaning they have the potential to become a mage or an archmage.
Every magian has a nucleus and when it’s fully formed at 12 years old they can test if they can become a mage or an archmage. Mages use the main four elements abilities: air, earth, water, and fire.
The fifth element ability is darkness but only the archmages can harness that power. Once a magian is 12 they try to harness the power of the elements around them and if they can an opaque light will form around them.
If they can’t the light will be very faint. Every mage’s nucleus is a different color ranking them. It is Flaxen, Saphire, Helio, Maya, or Royal. Each of those nuclei has two stages besides Flaxen.
Flaxen can reach three different stages because it’s the most powerful type and the rarest. It’s only seen once every 300 years. Flaxen can reach the stage of miasmic, hydrous, or the best Cogent.
The other nucleus on the other hand can only reach miasmic or the best hydrous. Mages can become stronger by cultivating esse which is fundamental to magic.
Esse exists in the atmosphere and it’s divided into the atom of all the different elements. Mages can cultivate the four elements’ abilities but each mage is originally apt for one specific element.
Focusing on one allows you to reach a higher stage and make you more powerful. Atlas’ nucleus was the rare flaxen type allowing him to cultivate the water element faster and store more esse in his nucleus.
As soon as Atlas found out he was a mage he worked extremely hard since from that point on he was considered his family’s protector. As soon as someone becomes a mage he is seen as the protector and voice of his family.
Atlas’ family was already well respected with his grandfather and father being ministers. Atlas’ father Sheng Zihang was the minister of officials and a dear friend of the emperor.
The emperor took a liking to Atlas when he saw how talented and smart he was. By the time he was 15, he had already reached the hydrous stage and working hard to reach the cogent stage to be the best.
He would often cultivate with his best friend Bei Yan the son of Bei Huang the minister of justice. Bei Yan was a fire element and was still at the miasmic stage and couldn’t reach the hydrous stage even after trying for a year.
Bei Yan decided to go to the beast valley to kill an esse beast. Esse beasts were animals who had the power to cultivate and absorb esse which allowed them to create an esse nucleus otherwise known as beast nucleus.
Esse beasts were categorized under three rankings: S, SS, or the strongest SSS. Mages could kill an esse beast and absorb their nucleus to reach a higher stage or just become stronger.
Atlas thought that it was too dangerous especially since Bai Yan wanted to go alone in secret. Despite Atlas’s warning, Bai Yan was determined so Atlas decided to accompany him to make sure he would be okay.
Once they reached the beast valley they came face to face with an ox humanoid ranked SS. Atlas told Bai Yan to look for another one since those animals were famously difficult to kill but Bai Yan refuse and started to fight with it.
Atlas watched from the side as the ox almost killed Bai Yan since he refused his aid. When Atlas saw that there was no way he would make it out alive he jumped in and managed to kill it.
Bai Yan who was knocked out against a tree woke up and saw Atlas walking toward the dead beast to grab his beast nucleus and was afraid that he was going to absorb it for himself and become even more powerful.
Bei Yan considered Atlas his best friend until he became powerful and his name was known in the entire Liao Empire as genius. He became jealous then his jealousy turned into resentment.
Before Atlas could bend down to grab the beast’s nucleus Bai Yan pulled out one of the sharp giant claws of the ox off of his leg and used fire to make sure that with the momentum he would fall off the cliff into the ravine.
Bai Yan’s shot hit Atlas’ nucleus and he fell off into the ravine. Once his body hit the ground he instantly died. Bai Yan grabbed the beast’s nucleus and absorb it allowing him to reach the hydrous stage.
When he went back to the imperial city he told everyone that Atlas was the one who insisted on going and that he was obsessed with reaching the cogent stage.
Since Bai Yan had a lot of wounds and it was clear that he had been fighting for his life everyone believed that he did everything in his power to save Atlas.
Sheng Zihang and his daughter were heartbroken, and not being able to get the body back of his son made it that much more painful.
During the following three years Bai Yan became one of the most powerful mages and was allowed to be part of the ministry. The two most powerful mages were allowed to attend court since they were considered wise.
Once the emperor died and his son Ling Yitian took the throne Bai Yan and his father Bai Huang decided that it was time to get rid of the Sheng family for good.
Bei Huang hated Sheng Zihang because he dreamed of becoming the minister of officials but he knew that the previous emperor would never accept it.
He believed it was the perfect time because he knew that his son was close to the emperor and the great general of the army since they had fought side by side.
The imperial city had been sealed because they were words that a dark mage was trying to take over and had an army of esse beast under his command. Someone from the imperial city was feeding him information.
The Bei were the ones to do it, over the years they would create disastrous situations then they would have Bai Yan fix it to show how valuable he is and it would always work.
Bai Yan had already met the dark mage and managed to poison him without his knowledge.
A day before the dark mage was to invade the imperial city there was a search at the Sheng’s house and they found letters between Zihang and the dark mage in which he stated the date of the attack.
Zihang and his daughter Yun’er were thrown in prison and the great general and all the mages led by Bei Yan went to ambush the dark mage’s army and won. Once they came back Zihang and Yun’er were publicly killed.
The entire empire clapped as they were hanged. Bai Yan was rewarded by being titled the leader of all the mages by the emperor for his bravery and for finding out that the Sheng were traitors.
The Emperor decided to make their relationship official and Bai Yan sat next to him on the throne. For generations to come Bai Yan was known as the best mage of all time.
When Atlas had received all the information his eyes darkened. He scanned his body to check his state. His nucleus was perforated which means even if he was to cultivate esse it wouldn’t stay in for long.
After making some calculations he frowned. He can repair it but it will use a lot of power and time.
In the long run, it will be worth it because this universe has a strong concentration of power but he’s gonna have to stay at the beast valley for the next three years.
He can do that, as long as he goes back to the imperial city before Bei Yan and Bei Huang are ready to deal with his father and little sister.
Atlas patched his body as best as he could. He need to save as much power as possible so he stopped the bleeding and only closed the wound.
Atlas closed his eyes and bit his lips tightly as his nucleus was being repaired and updated. It hurt like hell but he can’t scream or he might attract other esse beasts. It took Atlas a month for his nucleus to be whole again.
The entire time he couldn’t stand up. Thankfully he had Versem and had to result to using cleansing tokens. Atlas used the system to heal his broken legs and sat up.
He crossed his legs and thought. He doesn’t just want to be a mage he wants to be above. He wants Yan to feel what it’s like to be under him again. Atlas closed his eyes and started to cultivate.
At least he knows that in this place it’s safe and that no one or any esse beast will bother him. No matter the weather Atlas never stopped to cultivate and only opened his eyes a year later.
He stood up and stretched his legs. He used a cleansing token and got new black robes from Versem.
He was satisfied enough and walked around the valley to find a place he could live unbothered.
After finding a cave Atlas sealed it and resumed cultivating. He opened his eyes again a year later when he heard sounds of people trying to get into the cave. He stood up and went to check.
