Chapter 499: Chapter 497: Fame Spreads Far and Wide
While Ivan was engrossed in exploring the Whale Binding Chain, news about the return tower had already spread far and wide, reaching many places within and outside the walls of Truth City, stirring up fervent attention.
“Have you heard? There’s been a breakthrough with the teleportation array.”
“What teleportation array?”
“The Space Transmission Array, what other teleportation array! Do you know whose work it is? Ivan Marichardon, the Enchantment Master who invented the Black Magic Wind Fire Array, the Black Demon Fire Silk Array.”
“That’s not right, isn’t that master from the School of Energy Shaping?”
“Who said that! Master Marichardon has always been one of ours at the School of Space. It’s just that his scholarship is broader than an ordinary Enchantment Master, which is perfectly normal for someone so uniquely talented.”
...
“Ah! So he is from the School of Space; I had thought that someone who could create such extraordinary arrays must be from the School of Energy Shaping. Seems my perspective was limited.”
“Don’t put it like that, if anything, blame Master Marichardon for being too learned, achieving what ordinary people think impossible. Oh, there’s also another piece of news, I heard that the King of the Long Sky has promised his sorcerer daughter, Tanaya Fitzgerald, to Master Marichardon.”
“Is it true?”
“I’m just repeating what I’ve heard, I can’t confirm whether it’s true or false.”
“That being said, they really are a good match, both are outstanding figures, shining stars of our sorcerer world.”
“That was before. Now, Sorcerer Tanaya—ah! What a pity.”
“——”
As everyone knows, teleportation arrays have always been a tough nut to crack for the sorcerer world.
One could easily imagine, once the teleportation array was figured out, sorcerers would no longer be confined to one place; the vastness of the world couldn’t hinder their stride.
With more territory, various resources would naturally increase.
With the teleportation array, sorcerers would be even more agile, able, if necessary, to move their bases of operation with ease.
Such a profound impact from the teleportation array meant that, once news came out, the attention and discussion it sparked inside and outside Truth City were extraordinary, the fervor unprecedented.
After the news was confirmed through various channels, all sorcerers were elated.
And for the other piece of news, the marriage arranged by the King of the Long Sky himself, sorcerers were happy to join in the excitement, mostly offering congratulations and jokes.
Don’t say sorcerers aren’t gossipy; in fact, they’re all the same.
No sooner had the news broken than several versions emerged, most of them concerning the love story of Ivan Marichardon and Tanaya Fitzgerald.
There were tales of mutual admiration between geniuses, heroic rescues during moments of crisis, and love that blossomed over time from constant companionship, and so on.
Once the gossip started, it even made the news of the teleportation array ripple more intensely, growing like fire in oil. The name Ivan Marichardon skyrocketed in fame, reaching an exaggerated point where almost no one in Truth City didn’t recognize the name.
Apart from the latest breakthrough with the teleportation array and the love story between two geniuses, there emerged some discordant rumors that circulated in smaller circles.
Stories of a certain master who abandoned his wife and child, just to marry a belle from a top-tier family.
Tales of a young lady from the Gardner family also enamored with a certain master, willing to forsake everything for love, just to stay by the master’s side.
Compared to the uplifting news, these discordant rumors obviously didn’t have as big a market. Sorcerers would often just laugh them off; no one took them seriously.
Of course, that didn’t stop some from glaring in anger, leaving the speakers unable to continue.
“Scoundrel! Rascal!”
“This is outrageous!”
“Ivan Marichardon, I will never reconcile with you!”
In a private room of a tavern in the inner city of Truth City, a voice mixed with the strong smell of alcohol roared, the hatred in the roar almost solidifying into substance.
He cursed for a while, and only then did his voice gradually subside.
“Beiluo, as things stand now, the situation is beyond our control, and no one in the family can do anything about it. The higher-ups have spoken, there won’t be a second voice in the future.”
Inside the room, there were two people. Seeing that his mood was much more stable, the other person spoke.
These two were none other than Beiluo Gardner and Tewu Fitzgerald. Several years ago, both men returned from Sky Flow Valley in a sorry state. Instead of drifting apart, their relationship had become closer due to a shared goal.
In recent years, they had been keeping an eye on the movements in Sky Flow Valley, trying to find an opportunity to regain their honor.
They never expected that things would turn out this way.
The marriage arrangement agreed upon by the two major families had been directly replaced with another person, and it was the very individual Beiluo Gardner had always suspected. This confirmation undeniably proved the worries in his heart—betrayed by his fiancée—which inflamed his anger.
“Do you expect me to just stand by and watch those two get married?”
“It’s been decreed from above, probably some foul request someone took the opportunity to make. After all, he’s made quite a name for himself; he and Tanaya from back then are very much alike, basking in their prime in the younger generation.”
“So many people are aware of my engagement, am I to become a complete laughingstock as Beiluo?”
“Unless there’s an accident, that’s probably how it’ll be. As your good brother, I suggest you find a place to lay low for a while and wait for this storm to pass.”
“Hide away somewhere?”
“The situation is too heated right now.”
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Hearing his ‘good brother’s’ advice, anger intensified on Beiluo’s face, and a thread of murderous intent flickered in the depths of his eyes.
Tewu seemed completely unaware of this.
“Beiluo, where’s your sister, Mara? What exactly is happening with her? Has she returned to the Gardner family? I heard she has already followed them back to Truth City. Have you got any detailed news from Mara?”
“She—don’t talk to me about Mara. I don’t have such a disgraceful sister.”
The moment his own sister, Mara, was mentioned, Beiluo thought of the latest rumors—about a young girl falling for a certain master—and he became so enraged that his chest felt like it was blocked with a stubborn stone.
“Could it be… is that strange piece of news true?” Tewu asked with a peculiar expression on his face.
“I don’t know, but Mara hasn’t come back.” Beiluo gritted his teeth as he spoke, thinking of his sister’s past excuses and all her strange actions, he increasingly believed the rumors to be true.
His dear sister indeed!
Not only did she not help her own brother but also shamelessly entangled herself with that man, such behavior was infuriating!
“Stop thinking about it. With things as they are, it’s better to let go.”
Seeing his face become increasingly twisted, Tewu decided it was enough, fearing it would be counterproductive to push further.
At this point, there really weren’t many ways to reverse the situation, except for an accident to happen, even if it was an accident orchestrated by someone.
Otherwise, the item that everyone was coveting would likely end up in the hands of that person.
What a pity. With clear orders from above, as a member of the Fitzgerald family, they couldn’t take any further action, only hoping for some driven mad by hatred.
Thinking this, Tewu looked at the person opposite him with some expectation, Beiluo brother, you must fight for justice. The hatred of having one’s wife stolen, the feelings of betrayal, must not go unavenged.
Elsewhere.
Inside the Golden Rock Tower on Truth Peak, Ivan Marichardon was busy researching the Whale Binding Chain.
He was, of course, aware of the recent news. He knew his fame had skyrocketed and that he most likely became a target for many.
As for the teleportation array, any Alien Race holding a grudge against sorcerers would probably see him as a thorn in their side after hearing the news, possibly even staging an incident similar to what Tanaya experienced, striking a blow against the sorcerer world.
Regarding the soul gems, he believed that what he could think of, the people of the Fitzgerald family could also think of, probably looking to stab him in the back.
Without a doubt, his current situation was more dangerous than when he was in East Capital. Based on this, he resolved to stay on Truth Peak until he left with President Hardy, never venturing out carelessly.