《The Sorcery Academy: I am Invincible After Getting Treasure Chests Everyday》 Chapter 1 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios ¡°Did I transmigrate? What¡¯s going on?¡± Linley Bart clearly remembered that he had skipped class today and the last he recalled, he was sleeping in his room. Who knew that he would end up in such an unfamiliar place when he woke up? This place was definitely foreign to him. The interior of the house was decorated in a traditional style. He thought that he was being pranked and was moved to a set in Hollywood. There might be a camera coming out later to take a photo of his face, right? Linley told himself that he wasn¡¯t going to fall for it. He began to shout loudly, ¡°Everyone, come out! Stop with the prank!¡± However, no one responded to him. After that, he realized something terrifying. His tattoo was missing. Without the tattoo, he was sure that this body wasn¡¯t his. Also, he never ever had such tender skin. Linley Bart suddenly thought of a possibility. Could he have transmigrated? He liked to read novels and often had dreams about such a thing happening to him. However, he found it hard to accept when he had really encountered such an incident. The environment here was much like that of the medieval era. There were no traces of the modern buildings in sight. Suddenly, he felt a splitting headache. It seems that I¡¯m still hurt. There are still some bruises on my arm. Not quite believing it, he went to touch his wound. The moment he touched the wound, the intense pain proved to him that this was reality. He no longer doubted that he had transmigrated! At this moment, a piece of memory was suddenly inserted into his mind. Linley Bart. This person had the same name as him. However, in this world, he was the son of a Duke in the Raymond Empire, a hereditary noble! He was currently still a student and was a freshman at the only sorcery academy in the empire. His father was Duke Bart. Given Linley¡¯s poor talent in magic, there was no way he would have had the chance to join the sorcery academy in the Raymond Empire. But because of his father¡¯s contributions to the Empire, Linley had been allowed to join the sorcery academy to study. In this world, it was a great honor to become a sorcerer, no matter whether one was a noble or a commoner. Once a commoner became an official sorcerer, they would be promoted to a noble very quickly, but such an opportunity was a rarity for commoners. It was only at the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy that commoners saw hope in becoming a mage. As long as they passed the examination, whether they were a commoner or a noble, they could study magic at the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy. This gave hope to countless commoners. If one wanted to become a mage in the past, one had to be a noble. The magic knowledge passed down from ancient times was monopolized by the nobles and the Church. Some noble families had become sorcerer families because their family had studied sorcery for generations. The magic books and experiences passed down by such sorcery families could lower the threshold for their descendants to become sorcerers. Only those who were considered pure-blooded nobles were qualified to learn the secrets of sorcery. Until now, sorcery was synonymous with nobles. Although sorcery was powerful, it was also accompanied by danger. If one was not careful, they would lose control of the power. In the past, it was only passed down through word of mouth, causing it to be very easy for it to lose its heritage. Wars happened frequently on the continent, and sorcerers often participated in the war as weapons of the country. Once a precious sorcerer died in battle, the heritage of that sorcerer would be lost forever. To prevent the end of the magic era, every country signed the ¡°Sorcery Covenant¡±. It forbade high-level mages from participating in the war, and at the same time, a ¡°Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy¡± was established to pass on magical knowledge to the later generations. The importance of this sorcery academy was self-evident. The college had taught almost all the sorcerers on the continent and had the most perfect sorcery education system. According to their strength, sorcerers in the academy were divided into the following ranks: Apprentice Sorcerer. Elementary Sorcerer. Intermediate Sorcerer. Advanced Sorcerer. Grand Sorcerer. Magister. Great Magister. Holy Magister. ¡­ Among these eight ranks, Magisters and above were forbidden from participating in the Empire War in any form to prevent them from unleashing world-destroying magic that would result in irreversible major damage. This also showed how powerful sorcerers were. However, ever since there was a sorcery academy, magic had slowly spread to the commoners. Although most people did not have talent sorcery, the whole world was enthusiastic about practicing it. However, compared to the sorcery academy, the sorcery knowledge that the commoners knew was too insignificant. In this world of sorcery, as long as one had the strength, they would have everything. The larger kingdoms swallowed the smaller kingdoms, and the wars that relied on sorcery became cruel and bloody. Whoever could control more sorcerers would have a higher chance of winning on the battlefield. Under the influence of sorcery, the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy became the key to influencing the power structure across the continent. After the students had graduated from the academy, they would choose the Empire they would like to go to. Whichever Empire that managed to attract the most sorcerers would definitely become the overlord of the continent. Linley Bart was a member of this academy. He had a vague understanding of what had happened in his memories. He hadn¡¯t imagined that this was actually a world of sorcery, but based on what he had seen in the previous Linley Bart¡¯s memories, this seems to be the case. He was merely a noble who only knew how to eat, drink, and play all day long. He had relied on his father¡¯s reputation to come to the academy and had a very low sorcery talent. It could be said that with his talent in sorcery, he might not be able to become an Advanced Sorcerer even if he spent his entire life practicing hard. The new students who just entered the magic academy were not even an Apprentice Sorcerer. They could only be considered Trainee Apprentice Sorcerer. Even if one failed the sorcery test, one would not be expelled. However, one would remain as a Trainee Apprentice Sorcerer until one quit voluntarily. But who would be willing to be a Trainee Apprentice Sorcerer for the rest of their lives? The glory of becoming a sorcerer would be passed down from generation to generation. This was because as long as there was a sorcerer among one¡¯s ancestors, one would definitely have a talent for sorcery in one¡¯s bloodline. However, whether or not it could be triggered depended on one¡¯s own efforts. The Bart clan had indeed produced quite a few sorcerers, but when it came to Linley, he was completely unable to sense the existence of magic power in him. This was an extremely cruel reality, and it showed that Linley was not suited to be a sorcerer. ¡°What should I do?¡± Linley Bart had a bad feeling. As if in response, a voice reached his ears. ¡°Ding! Treasure Chest System bound!¡± Chapter 2 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios ¡°Treasure chest system?¡± Linley Bart was momentarily stunned. ¡°Ding¡­ Super Treasure Chest System has been successfully activated. It¡¯s an honor to serve the host.¡± He did not expect the system to respond to his question. ¡°What functions do you have?¡± ¡°The system can help you obtain treasure chests. If a treasure chest is nearby you, I will notify you.¡± ¡°The Treasure Chest System will randomly give you treasure chests all over the world.¡± ¡°The treasure chests are divided into Bronze Treasure Chests, Silver Treasure Chests, Gold Treasure Chests, Diamond Treasure Chests, Supreme Treasure Chests, Super Supreme Treasure Chests, Saintly Treasure Chests, and lastly, Special Mysterious Treasure Chests.¡± ¡°According to the level of the treasure chest, there will be random rewards of different treasures. The rewards include weapons, abilities, sorcery books, sorcery materials, magic crystals, magic contracts¡­¡± ¡°What is a magic contract?¡± Linley Bart interrupted the system¡¯s introduction. He wanted to understand what these items were, to avoid losing out if he didn¡¯t understand their value. ¡°The magic contract allows one to establish a contract between two parties. After signing the magic contract, the other party will completely obey your orders!¡± ¡°So powerful! Then which level of treasure chest do I need to open to get it?¡± ¡°The contract can be found in a Golden Treasure Chest.¡± ¡°Do I need a key to open the treasure chest?¡± ¡°All treasure chests do not need any keys. The system will automatically open for you. The higher the quality of the treasure chest, the better the item. As for the Special Mysterious Treasure Chest, you will randomly obtain items or abilities from other worlds when you manage to open it.¡± Linley Bart was extremely excited. Even if he found the most basic Bronze Treasure Chest, he would still be able to increase his magical power by a notch. As long as he picked up enough treasure chests, it was not impossible for him to become a Holy Magister one day. This way, there was no need to worry about this body that had no sorcery talent. ¡°Then where is the nearest treasure chest?¡± Linley Bart couldn¡¯t wait to open a treasure chest. ¡°Ding, searching for the nearest treasure chest¡­¡± ¡°Search successful. There is a Bronze Treasure Chest ten meters in front of the host?¡± ¡°Ten meters?¡± Linley Bart looked around, but there was no sign of any treasure chests. He then looked outside the door. The only possibility was that the treasure chest was outside the room. Just as Linley Bart was about to get up from his bed, another wave of pain from his body reminded him that he was still injured. Another piece of memory flooded into his mind. This memory was not so pleasant. It was the memory of him fighting with a group of people three days ago. Although it was called a fight, it was actually a one-sided bash because the difference in strength between him and his opponents was too great. The opponent was a senior student who was bashing up ¡°Linley Bart¡±. He was beaten without any chance to retaliate at all. After which, he fainted and when the body woke up again, he was no longer the old Linley Bart. The senior student was called Otto. He was the prince of the Wind Crow Empire. He was extremely talented in sorcery and was the most talented person in the royal family in the past hundred years. The reason why Otto wanted to cause trouble for Linley Bart was very simple. His country had been defeated by Linley¡¯s father, Duke Bart. His family had suffered a defeat. No matter how Otto thought about it, he could not take this lying down. When he remembered that Duke Bart¡¯s useless son was still in the academy, he had decided to beat him up to vent his anger. Linley Bart was famous for being a hedonistic son of a wealthy family and his talent in sorcery wasn¡¯t the slightest bit outstanding. Even casting a small spell took him a long time. Furthermore, even after learning for so long, he was still only a Trainee Apprentice Sorcerer. Even the people of his own country looked down on him as he was someone who had relied on his father¡¯s reputation to come to the academy to waste time. Linley Bart himself didn¡¯t really care. He was used to doing as he pleased. After all, his family was rich and had a hereditary noble title. If anything happened, his father would help him. He could do whatever he wanted. However, after coming to the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy, this personality was much more restrained. This was because the students here were basically all descendants of aristocrats from all over the world. The lineage of some students¡¯ ancestors could be traced back to the nobles thousands of years ago, and the Bart family was only a noble that was conferred three hundred years ago when a sorcerer had appeared in the family. Compared to those noble descendants who could be traced back thousands of years, Linley Bart was considered a complete nouveau riche. His father had many outstanding military achievements, but he was not a sorcerer after all. Everyone knew that the war in the future would belong to the sorcerers. Old Bart had also thought for a long time before he decided to send his son to the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy. But upon entering the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy, his status and position were no longer worth mentioning. Besides, Linley¡¯s talent in magic was very poor. For a spell that was easy for others to cast, Linley Bart needed to spend ten times the time as them to cast it. He knew that it was very difficult for himself to become a qualified sorcerer and had hence given up on it, deciding to spend his days drinking and playing around instead. Initially, this was not a big deal. Many nobles in the school had merely come to school to mingle around. After all, as long as one entered the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy, even if one did not become a qualified sorcerer in the end, as long as they had graduated from this school, they would be respected and looked up to by others on the continent. However, this time, Linley Bart had unluckily bumped into Otto. Because of the war between the Wind Crow Empire and the Raymond Empire, Otto had decided to vent his anger on Linley Bart. He and a group of friends surrounded Linley and gave him a beating to vent their anger, knocking him out unconscious. Until this ¡°Linley Bart¡± transmigrated and became the new Linley Bart. After obtaining the Treasure Chest System, it would not be easy for them to bully him anymore. However, if he wanted to become stronger, he had to obtain the treasure chests. Otherwise, his future life would definitely not be easy. Ten meters. As long as he could open that door¡­ After spending all his might to crawl towards the door and open the door, Linley Bart was relieved that the system indeed hadn¡¯t lied to him. The Bronze Treasure Chest stood at the entrance. He could not wait to open it. ¡°Bronze Treasure Chest discovered. Do you want to open it?¡± The system¡¯s sweet voice reached his ears. Linley didn¡¯t hesitate at all. ¡°Open!¡± Chapter 3 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios ¡°Bronze Treasure Chest opened. Constitution enhancement received! Constitution+3!¡± The system interface appeared before his eyes. Name: Linley Bart Occupation: Trainee Apprentice Sorcerer Constitution: 11 Strength: 7 Intelligence: 9 Magical Power: 3 Elemental affinity: 0% Magic Mastered: None ¡°Ding! The average ability of an ordinary person is 10. Current host¡¯s ability rating: Weak.¡± The system gave such an evaluation. ¡°The system suggests that the host looks for more treasure chests as soon as possible to increase your strength in case the host encounters danger.¡± This information on the interface confirmed that Linley was indeed a weakling. He hadn¡¯t expected his original body to be so weak. But since opening treasure chests could increase his stats, it was only a matter of time before he became stronger. ¡°System, are there any more treasure chests nearby?¡± ¡°Ding! There is a Gold Treasure Chest 380 meters to the east! However, there is a possibility of encountering danger. Advised to proceed cautiously!¡± Golden Treasure Chest! Hearing that it was a Golden Treasure Chest, Linley knew that it was definitely something valuable. He really wanted to know what was inside the Golden Treasure Chest. Right now, he really needed to improve his strength. And 380 meters to the east¡­ that seemed to be the senior students¡¯ dormitory. They definitely wouldn¡¯t welcome a lower-grade student to their territory. What¡¯s more, Linley Bart had recently been beaten up by Otto. The others were definitely not any kinder than Otto. This academy worked like this. Strength reigned supreme here. In here, no one would care if your parents were an empire¡¯s king or emperor. As long as your sorcery talent was low and you were a low-grade student, you had to be humble. As long as the talented students were not killed, the college would accommodate them to the greatest extent. This was because these people were all future high-level sorcerers who would hold great powers in this world! And when they graduate, they would repay their alma mater with enormous resources. For low-level sorcerers, their contribution to the school was insignificant. This was also the reason why the upper-grade students could be so arrogant. If one did not have enough talent, they would never be able to advance to the upper grade. The strength between each grade was an insurmountable gap! Although Linley Bart had strengthened his body by 3 points, he was only able to heal his wounds and return to his normal state. His combat abilities were still very weak. Going to the senior students¡¯ territory now was obviously not a wise choice. But Linley Bart was a person who dared to take risks, someone who sought wealth from danger. He did not want to remain weak and hence decided to give it a try. After all, he was no longer that hedonistic son of a wealthy family, Linley Bart. He wanted to rewrite his life. Linley didn¡¯t act rashly. He carefully made his way towards the treasure chest. Perhaps it was because he was lucky, he did not see anyone along the way. However, when he finally arrived at the location, he did not see any treasure chests. ¡°System, where¡¯s the treasure chest?¡± ¡°Ding! The treasure chest is not necessarily on the ground. Some treasure chests are buried underground. You have to dig them out to open them.¡± ¡°If I do so, won¡¯t the others see me digging here?¡± ¡°Only the host can see the treasure chest.¡± ¡°Then I¡¯m relieved. Time to start digging!¡± Linley Bart didn¡¯t have a shovel. However, he vaguely remembered that an earth-style spell could dig a hole in the ground, but with his magical abilities, it would take some time before he could unleash it. ¡°Spirit of the Earth God, listen to my call. Please help me, return dust to dust, return earth to earth¡­¡± This simple incantation only worked after Linley Bart chanted it a dozen times. Only then did the ground begin to loosen a bit and then a small hole appeared in front of them, from which a golden light began to shine. ¡°Golden Treasure Chest!¡± Linley Bart let out a startled cry. This Golden Treasure Chest was indeed beautiful! He was desperate to know what was inside the treasure chest. ¡°Ding! Discovered Golden Treasure Chest, open?¡± ¡°Open it!¡± The Golden Treasure Chest slowly opened and a golden light began to shine from within. There was nothing inside, but a series of complicated patterns began to emerge from the chest, boring itself into Linley¡¯s mind. He felt unprecedented clarity in his mind! The magic power that had been sleeping in his body began to flow. ¡°Congratulations, host! Magic power+5! Received the ability, ¡°Instant Casting¡±!¡± ¡°Casting instantaneous spells, no matter what kind of magic it was, required no need for incantations or prerequisites, no need for ritualistic magic, and even no need for materials! One could directly cast the spell!¡± Linley Bart was so excited that he wanted to jump up and down. This solved the problem of him having a difficult time chanting the incantation. In the future, he wouldn¡¯t have to chant the incantation more than ten times! He wouldn¡¯t have to worry about not being able to use his spells! He thought back to the spell earlier and a hole appeared on the ground. He had instantly cast the spell! As long as he had enough magic power, he could cast unlimited spells! This was unimaginable for ordinary sorcerers. This was equivalent to having no cooldown time for using skills in games! Who would have thought that merely a Gold Treasure Chest would contain such a powerful ability? This caused Linley Bart to begin to fantasize about what sort of treasures chests of higher quality would have? At this moment, a voice that made him feel disgusted sounded from afar. ¡°Well well, look who it is. I was still wondering who dared to use magic in our territory and turn our land into a pothole.¡± Otto walked over with a group of seniors. ¡°Have you forgotten your lesson? How dare you appear before me?¡± ¡°He¡¯s probably beaten silly, right?¡± The others echoed. ¡°Look, he destroyed our land!¡± Said a girl in an angry voice. ¡°And all the flowers I planted here! Those are precious magic materials!¡± ¡°I¡¯ll pay you back.¡± Linley Bart said to the girl. ¡°This isn¡¯t about paying money.¡± Otto¡¯s face was already filled with anger. ¡°You still dare to appear here and destroy our land? You¡¯re looking down on me. I was thinking that I had used too much strength last time. Looks like your bones are pretty tough. I must teach you a good lesson this time.¡± ¡°Heh.¡± Linley Bart let out a calm laugh. In his eyes, these people were all children, no more than fourteen or fifteen years old. Who would argue with a group of children? He didn¡¯t want to tangle with these people either and turned around to leave. ¡°You want to run after causing such a commotion? It¡¯s not that easy.¡± Otto took out his wand and accumulated some magic power. ¡°Wind Blade!¡± A green wind blade shot out from the magic staff. This was a rather lethal spell and one¡¯s skin would be torn apart if the spell touched him. If the magic power of the sorcerer casting it was strong enough, it could even cut a person in half. Otto was enraged and hence used his full magic power. Linley didn¡¯t even bother to dodge, not even turning his head to look at Otto. Some of the girls covered their eyes, not daring to look, thinking that Linley Bart would be cut in half. Just as the wind blade was about to reach Linley¡¯s back, suddenly, an earthen wall rose up from the ground, blocking the wind blade! No one understood what had happened. Even Otto did not know what had happened. How did this earthen wall appear? No one had chanted any incantations. It was impossible for anyone to cast such a spell in such a short period of time. They simply didn¡¯t believe that a trash like Linley Bart would be able to use a spell. ¡°Who had cast the spell?¡± Otto subconsciously suspected that it was someone else. At this moment, Linley Bart slowly turned his head. ¡°It¡¯s me.¡± Chapter 4 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios Linley Bart¡¯s voice was calm, as though he had no interest in a minor character like Otto. ¡°How is that possible? You didn¡¯t even chant any incantation. How could you be the one who had cast the spell?¡± Otto exclaimed. ¡°This is called strength!¡± As Linley spoke, he stretched out his right hand and a flame appeared in his palm. He still did not chant an incantation. This was his ability, instant casting! ¡°This is¡­?¡± When Otto saw the flame appear in Linley¡¯s palm, he was stunned. This person could cast spells without chanting any spells? However, the reality was right before his eyes. A powerful attack like his was actually blocked by such a publicly recognized trash. How did he cast the spell? ¡°How could this be? How could this be? How could someone possess such power?¡± Otto and the others did not want to believe what they saw. ¡°You¡¯re lying,¡± Otto said angrily. ¡°That¡¯s impossible!¡± Linley Bart shook his head. ¡°You really are childish and naive. I won¡¯t argue with you. You are the one that had ambushed me. As long as you apologize to me, I¡¯ll forgive you.¡± ¡°Apologize?¡± Otto could not believe his ears. This good-for-nothing who had been beaten up by him for a day¡¯s worth of money actually dared to ask him to apologize? He was simply looking down on him! ¡°Who do you think you are?!¡± Otto was really angry. All the magic power in his body was accumulating. He chanted an incantation and countless wind elemental essences gathered towards him. ¡°This is¡­ the Violent Wind Spell!¡± The students at the side were all very surprised. ¡°No, this isn¡¯t just the Violent Wind Spell!¡± Some of the more sensitive students had already noticed that besides the strong wind, there was also hail brought by the strong wind. ¡°Fusion magic!¡± Unexpectedly, Otto had already learned fusion magic. It was a publicly known fact that combining spells of two different elements was extremely dangerous. Ordinary people could barely grasp and handle the magic power of just one element. Let alone two completely different elements, wind, and ice! When these two elements were mixed together, the strong wind swept up the ice. Not only did it bring about extreme cold, but it also brought about the power of the wind, making the hailstones seem even harder than rocks. If these hailstones fell from the sky, even a castle would be smashed to pieces. This was no different from meteors falling from the sky. Not to mention a person, he would definitely be smashed into meat paste. Sensing the changes in these elements around him, Linley Bart frowned. According to his memory, he only grasped basic elemental magic. In the face of such advanced magic, he might not be able to withstand it. ¡°It¡¯s too late to regret. Go to hell and repent!¡± Otto¡¯s face was full of anger as he raised his hand and pressed it down. The hail rained down upon Linley! There was no way for Linley to dodge. His brain worked furiously. Given his current level of magic, there was no way he would be able to fight against this opponent. However, he could cast spells in an instant. As long as he cast his spells fast enough, it was enough! He might be a match for Otto! As he thought of this, he began to quickly cast his spell. More and more wind elemental essences began to gather around Linley Bart at an inconceivable speed. He was like the small eye of a tornado, with an enormous gust of wind surrounding him. This was also his greatest advantage! He did not need to chant an incantation to cast magic! This also meant that he could cast spells countless times if he wanted to! Although each spell¡¯s effect was very small, as long as he cast it repetitively, it could suppress Otto¡¯s hurricane. He used all the magic he could think of. ¡°Acid splatter!¡± ¡°Burning Hand!¡± ¡°Multi-colored ball!¡± ¡°Rainbow Ray!¡± ¡°Magic Missile!¡± ¡°Thunder Wave!¡± ¡°Sorcerer¡¯s Arrow!¡± ¡°Earthquake!¡± ¡°Ice Blade!¡± All sorts of magic spells began to appear around Linley. The spectators widened their eyes. These spells were not advanced. But there was definitely no one who could use it so quickly. Linley didn¡¯t chant any incantations, and in the blink of an eye, he had cast so many spells! Unbelievable, this was too unbelievable! Could it be that Linley had always been hiding his power? This hedonistic young master actually had such strength. But yesterday, he was clearly defeated by Otto so easily. How did he become so strong today? Even Otto was surprised. Although his Violent Wind technique was very powerful, it couldn¡¯t compare to Linley¡¯s magic. He instantly released all kinds of magic and threw them at Otto¡¯s violent wind. Otto¡¯s spell gradually became smaller, to the point he could not hold on anymore. It was already difficult enough for him to use the Violent Wind Spell. Coupled with the hail spell, it was extremely draining for him. The combination of these two types of spells required an enormous amount of concentration. Besides, he was no longer able to withstand the wild, chaotic explosions from the spells caused by Linley Bart. His magic was broken! The wind had dissipated instantly! No one present could have imagined that a mere Linley Bart could actually break Otto¡¯s attack! Otto spat out a mouthful of blood on the spot. He had been devoured by his own magic, which would cause irreversible damage to his magic power. ¡°This is impossible¡­¡± Otto could not believe that he had lost. As for Linley Bart, he still had plenty of energy left. Around him were all sorts of magical balls of light, and he said calmly, ¡°Can you apologize now?¡± Otto raised his head, staring at Linley Bart in disbelief, his eyes filled with rage. ¡°No! That¡¯s impossible! You must have cheated! You¡¯re just a piece of trash who only knows how to rely on your father. Don¡¯t even think about making me apologize!¡± ¡°Then don¡¯t blame me!¡± Linley Bart was just about to raise his hand and use magic. ¡°Stop!¡± A dignified voice sounded from afar. All the students looked over with respect on their faces. ¡°Teacher Atais!¡± The famous teacher Atais was also the dean of the school. He had the authority to punish any student who violated the rules. Therefore, every student respected this teacher. Chapter 5 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios After Teacher Atais came, this matter came to an end. Those students who were watching the fun dispersed. Teacher Atais had promptly stopped Linley Bart and Otto¡¯s fight and made the two of them go back to their room to reflect on their actions. He did not punish them too much. This was because Linley Bart had only used low-level spells which didn¡¯t contain much threat. On the other hand, Otto who had used a high-level spell had suffered a backlash. This caused Atais to feel rather surprised. He had often heard of Linley¡¯s reputation. He was a famous playboy with extremely low sorcery talent. Logically speaking, it was impossible for him to defeat Otto. Yet he had managed to do so? Perhaps Linley had some sort of special magical item on him. However, he did not think that it was a big deal. It was useless for a person to rely on magic equipments which were not part of his own strength. Hence, he decided to let the two children go back separately and did not think much of it. However, when he returned to the school office, he realized that there were already some teachers gathered there. They were teachers from various departments, and they were also puzzled. ¡°Dean Atais, you¡¯re finally here,¡± a middle-aged man said angrily. He waved his arms in a comical manner. This person was the associate dean of the academy, Wilson. ¡°Our honorable prince, Otto is injured! This matter must be dealt with seriously!¡± Wilson said. ¡°I already know about this. I just came from the scene of the fight.¡± Atais nodded. He didn¡¯t expect this matter to reach Wilson¡¯s ears so quickly. Atais didn¡¯t like Wilson very much. He was like an annoying man who liked to stir up trouble. Moreover, he liked to favor students with high statuses and looked down on commoners with low statuses. This disgusted Ataiss. For Atais, he felt that the original intention of establishing this academy was to give both nobles and commoners a chance to learn sorcery. His ancestor was once a commoner sorcerer who passed on his title down to his generation. Although he had a minor title, Atais was more inclined towards the commoner students. ¡°We must punish the person who injured His Highness Otto severely! According to the laws of the Empire, those who injured the royal family will be executed!¡± Wilson said. ¡°But we are at the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy. They are just children. It is normal for young people to have conflicts. Furthermore, Otto¡¯s injury was caused by his own magic backlash, not by injury.¡± ¡°What? Magic backlash?¡± Wilson was shocked. ¡°Who could have caused His Highness Otto to suffer from magic backlash!¡± Magic backlash was a serious injury. Most of the time, it occurs when sorcerers who were unable to control their magic gets devoured by their own magic powers when casting a spell that is over their limits. It could only be avoided after fully mastering magic. ¡°Linley Bart.¡± Atais said his name. ¡°That Linley Bart who relied on his father to enter the academy?¡± ¡°Yes, that¡¯s him.¡± ¡°How is that possible? He¡¯s just a Trainee Apprentice Sorcerer! You¡¯re not kidding right, Atais.¡± ¡°Absolutely not. It¡¯s definitely this student.¡± Atais pondered for a moment. ¡°This child managed to instantly cast many spells without recitation and relied on his overwhelming number of low-level spells to defeat Otto.¡± ¡°He didn¡¯t chant any incantations? You must be mistaken, Atais.¡± Wilson laughed. ¡°It¡¯s impossible for a Trainee Apprentice Sorcerer to have the ability to cast spells without chanting! Don¡¯t be biased towards him.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not siding with anyone. I¡¯m just stating the facts,¡± Atais said. ¡°Even if you want to punish Linley Bart, don¡¯t forget that his father, Duke Bart, is one of our academy¡¯s sponsors. If this matter were to reach the principal¡¯s ears, he wouldn¡¯t agree with your actions.¡± ¡°Hmph!¡± Wilson snorted coldly. Atais was right. The reason why Linley Bart was able to enter the academy was all because of his father. No matter how low his talent in sorcery was and whatever he did, the academy wouldn¡¯t expel or punish him. This was all because of his father, Duke Bart. Duke Bart was like a god of war in the Raymond Empire. He was a living legend, the pinnacle among warriors. He led the Raymond Empire to expand its territory and took over large plots of land for the empire. From there, he was rewarded by the emperor and established a dukedom, becoming the duke with the most military strength in the empire. Everyone on the continent feared this duke¡¯s strength. Although the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy trained in magic, they still respected this legendary warrior. Thus, they had reluctantly accepted his son into the academy. But who would have thought that Linley Bart was a typical hedonistic son of a wealthy family? His talent in sorcery was extremely low and it would be very difficult for him to even become an Apprentice Sorcerer. It wouldn¡¯t be a big deal if he just wasted his days in the academy. However, Linley Bart loved to stir up trouble. This time, after he had offended Otto, everyone had thought that he would restrain himself a bit. Yet unexpectedly, he managed to defeat Otto. The teachers were all puzzled by Linley¡¯s strength. How did he manage to defeat the powerful Otto? ¡°Cheating! He must be cheating. Otto is our best student. There¡¯s no way he would be defeated by that useless Linley¡­¡± Wilson wanted to say that Linley was a good-for-nothing, but with so many teachers present, he changed his words. ¡°It¡¯s impossible for a lower grade student like him to defeat a higher grade student!¡± The Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy was divided into six grades. The first graders were all Trainee Apprentice Sorcerers. Only after advancing to Apprentice Sorcerers could they promote to the second grade. The third grade required one to become an Elementary Sorcerer. The fifth grade required one to be an Intermediate Sorcerer. The sixth grade contained only Advanced Sorcerers. Once one became a Grand Sorcerer, one would be able to graduate. This was because, at this level, the school had nothing more to teach. ¡°This is just a small conflict between two students. I¡¯ve already asked them to go back and reflect on their actions. This matter will end here.¡± Atais waved his hand. ¡°You can all disperse.¡± Although Wilson was still unconvinced, he had nothing to say and could only leave in a huff. After the teachers left, a black shadow suddenly appeared on the wall. The dean immediately looked over respectfully. ¡°Greetings, vice-principal.¡± Atais faced the black shadow respectfully. ¡°What can I do for you?¡± The black shadow spoke slowly. His voice was incomparably ancient, like the sound of a bell from the void. ¡°One month from now, it will be the day of the Continental Sorcery Academy Competition. Yet, these people are still arguing over these ridiculous matters!¡± Chapter 6 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios There were a total of five sorcery academies on the continent, located in the central, north, south, east, and west of the continent respectively. The Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy was in the center and was also the earliest sorcery academy established. As the other empires were afraid that the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy would monopolize the knowledge of sorcerers, they also began to nurture sorcerers themselves. These sorcerers gradually formed an academy and passed down the sorcery knowledge they piled together. As a result, the White Sorcery Academy, the Grand Ridge Sorcery Academy, the Wind Spirit Sorcery Academy, and the Moon Dawn Sorcery Academy were also established. The four great academies and the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy were collectively known as the halls of sorcerers. Almost all of the sorcerers came from these five great academies. Every four years, the five sorcery academies would hold a gathering. At first, they would only discuss magic theories together, but later on, the differences between different magic theories became greater and greater. As a result, the sorcerers of different academies looked down on each other. A verbal exchange then turned into a real fight. As it was very easy for a battle between sorcerers to turn into a destructive war, to prevent the situation from expanding, the five major colleges made an agreement. Every five years, a magic competition would be held to verify who was the strongest sorcery academy. Once that academy won the championship, he would become the number one sorcery academy on the continent for the next five years. Such a great honor made the five great magic academies desperately prepare for the competition every five years. They had to fight for this honor. After all, it was once every five years, and most people could only participate once in their academy life. This was also an opportunity for an ordinary sorcerer to make a name for himself. Even if he was not the champion, as long as he could participate in the sorcery competition, it would mean that he was an elite of this school. During the competition, countless nobles would also come because of the fame. As long as they performed well in the competition, they would be invited by other nobles after graduation or directly join the royal court. Therefore, this was an opportunity, the most important opportunity for every sorcerer. Once one obtained a ranking, it would be his lifetime honor. Although there had been many instances in history where the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy had won the championship, they had lost to the Wind Spirit Sorcery Academy the previous round. This made the entire academy feel extremely humiliated. Thus, the academy attached great importance to this year¡¯s sorcery competition. They had to win back the championship. ¡°There can be no mistakes in this sorcery competition. Three days later, the school will hold an internal competition, and the winner will represent our school in the sorcery competition!¡± Atais knew the importance of this competition. With a heavy expression, he immediately replied, ¡°Understood!¡± Then, the shadow gradually disappeared. Atais¡¯ expression gradually turned solemn as he turned to look out the window. On the other side, Linley Bart was planning to return to his room. He had already dug up a treasure chest today and he had gained quite a lot. However, the system¡¯s voice sounded again: ¡°Ding! There¡¯s a Diamond Treasure Chest 600 meters southwest of the host!¡± Just as Linley Bart was about to head back, he suddenly stopped. He looked towards the southwest direction, where there was a tall building. There was actually a Diamond Treasure Chest there! The Golden Treasure Chest had already given him such a powerful ability. What would appear in a Diamond Treasure Chest? Linley Bart really couldn¡¯t hold back his curiosity. He ran towards the direction indicated. When he reached the tall building, he realized that it was a female dormitory. If he was discovered, it would be hard to explain. He had to find a better opportunity to enter. But just as Linley Bart turned to leave¡­ The system suddenly said, ¡°If the treasure chest is not opened within an hour, it will disappear.¡± Hearing that the treasure chest would disappear, Linley Bart felt extremely reluctant. After all, this was a Diamond Treasure Chest. If he missed it this time round, they might never meet again. Furthermore, he had just offended Otto. Otto would definitely not let the matter rest so easily. Linley Bart had to improve himself! Otherwise, his life might be in danger at any moment. Since he had gotten his hands on this system, he should open all the treasure chests available! After making up his mind, Linley Bart looked around, then quietly slipped inside. Following the system prompt, he walked into the female dormitory. The treasure chest was in one of the bedrooms. He quietly pushed open the door of the room the treasure chest was in. Thankfully, there was no one in the bedroom. In the room, he found the treasure chest that was shining with diamond light. ¡°Open the treasure chest!¡± ¡°Ding, the Diamond Treasure Chest is opened!¡± ¡°Congratulations to the host for obtaining a B-rank spell, [Fire Tongue]!¡± ¡°Congratulations to the host for obtaining an A-rank spell, [Flaming Storm]!¡± ¡°Congratulations to the host for obtaining an S-rank spell, [Spirit Control]!¡± These spells were in the form of strange characters which instantly drilled into Linley¡¯s mind. The names of these skills appeared on his system interface like a game button. He did not need any time or effort to learn it. All he needed to do was press the button and he would be able to cast these high-level spells! These spells were not simple. Magic spells were divided into different ranks. Starting from E, D, C, B, A, S, SS, and lastly, the SSS-rank. There were a total of eight ranks of magic spells that corresponded to the magic that could be mastered as an Apprentice Sorcerer to a Holy Magister. Low-level magic powers could not control high-level magic spells. If a low-level sorcerer forcefully used high-level magic spells, it would cause the magic to go out of control and result in a backlash on themselves. Therefore, no one dared to use magic that was beyond their levels because these were experiences that predecessors had accumulated through trial and research. Just as Linley Bart was feeling smug about having acquired these spells¡­ Footsteps could be heard from behind. Linley Bart became startled. Oh no, someone was coming back! He was currently in the female dormitory! Furthermore, he was squatting in front of a girl¡¯s bed and touching her bed! There was no way to explain himself out of such a situation. Chapter 7 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios Linley Bart thought to himself that he was finished. He desperately hoped that he could acquire an invisibility spell now and be able to hide. Unfortunately, there were no treasure chests around. Thus, he had to think of other ways. While he was thinking, the other party¡¯s footsteps were getting closer and closer. If he didn¡¯t hide immediately, the outcome would definitely be terrible. Linley Bart looked around and found that there was a large wardrobe in the room that could fit a person. Linley Bart had no choice but to quickly open the wardrobe and hide inside. He then left a small opening on the door of the closet to observe the situation outside. After the door to the room clicked open, a little girl walked in. She looked to be about 16 or 17 years old and was wearing a pink dress. This girl was called Alice. She was a princess of a kingdom. There were many kingdoms and princesses on the continent, but Alice was different. Her father managed to become a king despite not being a noble. Almost all the kings on the continent were descendants of their ancestors¡¯ bloodlines and each royal family had at least a thousand years of history. Only people that came from such families could become kings or nobles. Commoners would not gain the approval of the other kings even if they wanted to become kings. If such a situation happened, they would attack the king together with the excuse that he was not a noble. Therefore, the nobles on the continent were all related by blood. These blood relations were stabilized through generations of inter-marriages across different families. Alice¡¯s father, on the other hand, became the king through his own strength and army. Her father¡¯s name was Jolon. He used to be the leader of a mercenary group and fought for the other kings. There were often wars on the continent. Thus, it was very common for kings to hire mercenaries to fight for them. However, even the king¡¯s treasury could not handle the long years of war. There were many cases where kingdoms suffered continuous losses and debts which caused mercenaries to defect. Jolon was a legendary mercenary. His battle achievements were unrivaled on the continent. As the number one mercenary group on the continent, he had served many kings. He kept his word and thus hated those kings who didn¡¯t keep to their word and refused to pay. Faced with such a king, he only had one choice, and that was to conquer his territory and get back the money. As a result, Jolon took over a territory and proclaimed himself king. Although he was not recognized by the nobles, he was much stronger than some of the kings from smaller kingdoms. Moreover, he had an extremely powerful army. The emperor himself also wanted to make use of this unique ¡°Mercenary King¡± and thus tacitly allowed him to call himself a king. Alice was Jolon¡¯s daughter. Her father had sent her to the sorcery academy. As she did not come from a noble family, she was not recognized as a princess. However, she cared very much about other people¡¯s opinions. Alice had been practicing magic and was hoping to prove herself through her efforts. However, the harder she tried, the more the girls around her looked down on her and often mocked her for being a ¡°mercenary princess¡±. This made Alice feel extremely humiliated. She felt that no matter what she did, she could not change the opinions of others. She was bullied in class again today. A group of people had dirtied her dress using magic, making her extremely furious. She then started a fight with them. Although she was stopped by her teacher, her teacher was not on her side. They thought that Alice had made the first move, so they asked Alice to apologize to them. Alice didn¡¯t apologize. She skipped class in a fit of rage and returned to her dormitory. Now, her clothes were still dirty. Those hateful girls used magic to create black ink and poured it on Alice¡¯s pink dress. Alice was very angry, but there was nothing she could do. She could only change out of her dirty clothes for now. She walked towards the wardrobe step by step, wanting to change into a new set of clothes. But the moment she pulled open the closet, Alice found a man hiding in her closet. Alice was so frightened that she wanted to scream. Linley didn¡¯t expect Alice to open the wardrobe as soon as she returned. He had been discovered! He definitely couldn¡¯t let her shout or else it would attract more people. ¡°Spiritual Control!¡± Linley Bart immediately used the magic he had just acquired from the treasure chest. He could only try to control Alice¡¯s mind for now. However, he didn¡¯t expect that Alice merely became a little dazed and did not become under his control. Linley Bart felt that controlling her was a bit strenuous. This was because he was currently only a Trainee Apprentice Sorcerer. Furthermore, he had already used many spells today. Using an S-rank spell was already very difficult and draining for him. Not to mention that Alice was an Intermediate Sorcerer. Her strength was already very powerful and she had a resistance to spiritual magic. Linley Bart was unable to completely control her and he had discovered that Alice seemed to have a piece of magical equipment protecting her. If he forcibly controlled Alice, it would definitely cause a reaction from the magic equipment. There seemed to be a mysterious person controlling the magic equipment. Linley Bart didn¡¯t dare to act rashly. All he could do was temporarily make Alice lose focus and forget about this part of her memories. Only then would he be able to escape. ¡°Go to sleep. Go to sleep. Forget everything.¡± Linley Bart said. When Alice heard this voice, she immediately felt drowsy. She did not know what had happened. It was as if she was having a dream. Something terrible seemed to have happened in her dream. A man was actually in her own closet! This gave her a huge scare. But when Alice woke up again and opened the closet to check, she realized that there was no one inside. This was indeed a dream. However, Alice felt a lingering fear. This dream was way too real, but thankfully it was just a dream. Alice felt that this might be because she had been too nervous recently. However, she could not give up. As long as she could participate in the sorcery competition and prove herself and as long as she became the champion, no one would laugh at her for being the ¡°princess of mercenaries¡± anymore. At that time, she would be called the ¡°champion of the sorcery competition¡± and the ¡°best sorcerer on the continent¡±. Not only herself, but even her father would be gratified. Thinking of this, Alice worked harder to practice magic. Linley Bart, who had escaped from the girl¡¯s room, also quietly left the female dormitory. However, when using the spiritual control skill, he had gotten hold of some of Alice¡¯s memories. This gave Linley Bart some impression of Alice. She was a girl who worked hard to prove herself and thus wondered if he could help her in any way. Chapter 8 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios The Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy quickly announced that it was going to hold an internal academy tournament to select students to participate in the Five Great Sorcery Academy Competition. This news was like a sudden clap of thunder, causing all the students to become restless. Who wouldn¡¯t want to be the champion of the sorcery competition? Students of any age could participate in this competition. This was because the actual battle did not depend on whose grade was higher but on who had the greatest capability and talent to use magic to fight. This kind of talent was innate. Even though some people had high magic power and had grasped a variety of spells, they were unable to even display 10% of their strength once they were put on a battlefield. It was the same for the sorcery competition. It was a place where parties used magic to determine the victor in a fight till death. Some students who lacked mental fortitude would inevitably be nervous and have their performance affected. The success rate of using magic spells was closely related to the individual¡¯s mental state. This was also why sorcerers often meditated. This was because meditation could allow one to maintain a stable mentality. The calmer a sorcerer was, the easier it was for him to use magic. Only the untalented sorcerer rookies would think that they could use magic as long as they chanted the right verse. Sorcery was not as simple as it seems. Mastering it required painstaking learning and hard work to grasp its principles and understand its composition. A fool could not learn sorcery. This was also a famous saying passed down in the sorcery academy. Those who could enter the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy were unwilling to admit that they were mediocre. Therefore, when the news came out, countless people intensified their studies and practice in magic. They all hoped to be able to showcase their skills in the competition and obtain the qualifications to compete in the Five Great Sorcery Academy Competition. There was only one exception while all the students in the entire academy were working hard to practice magic. That was Linley Bart. He didn¡¯t have to worry about learning any spells at all. As long as he searched for the treasure chests located around him and opened them, he would be able to increase his magic power, spiritual power, and even his elemental affinity. This allowed him to obtain powerful attributes without training or meditation. He had also obtained some strange spells while opening the treasure chests. For example, a spell that could expand and shrink a certain part of his body, a spell that could help him see further, a spell that could make his fingers shine¡­ These spells were very special, but they were not very useful. However, opening the treasure chests was always a pleasant surprise. ¡°Congratulations to the host for successfully opening a Bronze Treasure Chest and obtaining a pair of magic gloves.¡± ¡°Congratulations to the host for successfully opening a Silver Treasure Chest and obtaining a source of magic power.¡± ¡°Congratulations to the host for successfully opening a Golden Treasure Chest and obtaining the magic skill: Reaper¡¯s Smile.¡± These items and skills were all very useful to Linley Bart. The magic glove could ignore any obstacle and allow his hands to pass through them, allowing him to obtain the items he desired even if it was blocked or out of reach. For example, he could reach into other people¡¯s treasure chests. This treasure chest wasn¡¯t the one only Linley could see. It was their safe where they kept their valuables. No matter how strong the safe was or how many locks there were, he could reach in and take the items he desired using the pair of magic gloves. As for the source of magic power, it was even more powerful. It was capable of allowing Linley Bart to quickly recover his magic power. No matter how many times he used it, he would be able to quickly recover. Coupled with his ability to instantly cast spells, Linley Bart didn¡¯t have any restrictions at all. He could use magic indefinitely. Of course, the upper limit of his current magic power was not enough, thus he could only use low-level spells. If he used advanced spells, his magic power would still be consumed very quickly. But because he had the source of magic power, he could recover faster. ¡°Magic Skill: Reaper¡¯s Smile.¡± This ability was activated by making a mere smile. When the opponent saw the smile, it would cause them to feel like they were looking at the Grim Reaper. There was a 1% chance that the opponent would die immediately. If he did not die immediately, he would also lose his mobility due to the terror of death. Reaper¡¯s Smile could only be activated once a day. This was the result of Linley¡¯s continuous search for treasure chests. These treasure chests were randomly distributed all over the academy. The other students all felt that Linley Bart was a bit strange. He just ran around all day without attending any classes. Sometimes, he would be very happy. However, sometimes, he would be digging the ground. Anyone who saw Linley would think that he was a very strange person. But after hearing that he had defeated Otto, no one dared to provoke him. The day before the school tournament, Linley Bart was still searching for treasure chests. But this time, he met two unexpected people. One was Otto, and the other was Otto¡¯s brother, Olin. Otto was a first-year student and had the strength of an Apprentice Sorcerer. On the other hand, Olin was a third-grade student and already had the status of an Elementary Sorcerer. His strength could not be underestimated. Otto felt extremely aggrieved. Not only was he had been defeated by Linley Bart, he even suffered a magical backlash, causing his ability to use magic to be greatly reduced. It was certain that he would not be able to participate in the upcoming internal school tournament, much less the Five Great Sorcery Academy Competition. His heart was filled with resentment. He had never been so angry since he was born. He could not bear it anymore and thus told his brother, Olin, about his loss. When Olin heard that his younger brother was being bullied, he wanted to avenge his younger brother. They had heard that Linley Bart, this hedonistic son of a wealthy family, had been roaming everywhere in the academy. Thus, they had come looking for him, wanting to avenge Otto. ¡°You were the one who injured my younger brother, Otto?¡± Olin¡¯s voice was extremely stern. He wanted to scare Linley Bart. But Linley Bart merely glanced at him and ignored him. He continued to dig for the treasure chest. Olin, who had been ignored, was even more furious. ¡°Are you digging your own grave? Rascal!¡± Olin arrived in front of Linley and used magic to fill the hole he had dug. ¡°Don¡¯t block my way!¡± Linley Bart frowned. He just wanted to dig out the treasure chest. Why are these people always so annoying? ¡°You have to give my brother an explanation today.¡± Olin pushed his brother out from behind him. ¡°Did he hit you?¡± ¡°Yes, that¡¯s him!¡± Otto nodded. ¡°Brother, you have to teach him a lesson for me. He¡¯s that Bart¡¯s son. If it weren¡¯t for his father, our country wouldn¡¯t have lost the war.¡± ¡°What? You¡¯re Bart¡¯s son?¡± Olin was shocked. ¡°That¡¯s right. It¡¯s me, your father.¡± Linley said. ¡°Why are you looking for your father?¡± Chapter 9 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios The two brothers, Olin and Otto, were extremely powerful at their age. Coupled with their royal status, they were considered the cream of the crop among their peers. No one had dared to speak to them like that before! They were stunned by Linley¡¯s words as well. It must be understood that their father was a king. If this was their country, he would have been beheaded immediately. This was already considered a very serious insult. During these past few days of not seeing each other, Linley Bart had become even more arrogant, completely disregarding these two. Olin was furious. ¡°You¡¯re courting death!¡± Then, he cast a fireball. The raging flames contained a powerful magic power that could even dry a pool. Olin was a fire magic caster, and his proficiency in fire magic was no less than that of an advanced magic caster. Even his mentor said that he was a rare fire magic genius. As long as he continued to train hard, it was not impossible for him to become a Magister. To be able to participate in the Five Great Sorcery Academy Competition, he had trained diligently in fire magic. Even if he encountered water magic that countered him, he would not be at a disadvantage either. This was his strength! It was also the reason why he was respected in the academy. Even some seniors would avoid him when they saw him. This was not only because of his family background but also because of his strength. Ordinary mages would not dare to provoke him. He was also one of the students who had high hopes of representing the academy to participate in the Five Great Sorcery Academy Competition. Fire magic was what he was proud of. His greatest talent was that he could quickly gather fire magic in his palm. Although it was only a fireball, the power of this fireball was even stronger than the Pyroblast spell. The fireball contained huge amounts of fire magic. If it hit a person, it would easily burn them into ashes. He had expected that even if Linley Bart didn¡¯t have any talent, upon seeing such a terrifying fireball, he would be so terrified that he would beg for mercy and admit defeat. As long as he obediently kneeled to apologize, his younger brother¡¯s dignity would be considered to be regained. After all, this was a school, and with Linley¡¯s father¡¯s background, he couldn¡¯t just casually kill him. As long as he admitted his mistake, this matter would be over. But what he didn¡¯t expect was that Linley Bart merely glanced at it, then gently blew at the fireball in Olin¡¯s hands. Olin¡¯s magic was instantly blown away! This was simply unbelievable! When Olin¡¯s magic was broken, he stared blankly at his hands, unable to believe what was happening. Any magic could be broken. However, it was impossible for even a Magister to break his magic with just a breath. How in the world had Linley Bart done it? ¡°Your fireball is too small. Daddy will give you a big one!¡± Linley Bart stretched out his hand, raising it towards the sky. The air was silent. Nothing happened. ¡°What are you doing?¡± Olin did not understand, but he suddenly felt very hot. A wave of heat that exceeded his imagination quickly dried up the surrounding trees and some branches even started to burn. Steam rose from the water in the pond. Massive amounts of red magic elements were gathering. The spell was constantly becoming stronger and the flames were bright. Countless fire elements were colliding fiercely, converging and dispersing before forming a perfect sphere! A spell with pure fire elements! In the magic tower of the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy, an old man suddenly exclaimed, ¡°pure elemental phenomenon!¡± The pure elemental phenomenon was a magical phenomenon that occurred when only one pure element was present within an area. There were four elements in this world, wind, thunder, earth, and fire. These four elements more or less existed in every corner of the world. Only very few places had only a single element. And in the domain of that single element, the magic power of that element would become extremely terrifying. This was the pure elemental phenomenon. Only people with 100% magic affinity could arouse such a phenomenon. Could there be such a genius in the academy? The old man felt that it was inconceivable and muttered, ¡°There¡¯s hope of winning the championship this time.¡± On the other hand, Olin and Otto, who were in the pure elemental phenomenon, felt very uncomfortable. In the domain of pure fire elements, sorcerers who did not have high elemental affinity would feel the magic power eroding them. Such continuous intense flames were enough to kill. The fireball in Linley¡¯s hand slowly expanded, but he hadn¡¯t used his full power yet. Seeing his two brothers slowly being burnt, he stopped. ¡°What do you think? Is Daddy¡¯s ball big?¡± Linley Bart asked. ¡°Big¡­ Big¡­¡± Olin was scared silly. They were in an extremely sorry state. Their faces were burnt black and their clothes were on fire. And had merely cast the fireball spell, not even attacking using it yet. If the fireball that had caused a pure elemental phenomenon crashed down, half of the academy would be destroyed. They had never imagined that Linley Bart, would have such terrifying power. They were so terrified that they were stupefied. ¡°Then is there anything else?¡± Linley Bart laughed. ¡°Nothing, nothing.¡± Right now, Olin and Otto only wanted to stay away from this monster. They did not want to find trouble with him anymore. Just as they were about to leave, Linley Bart called out to them. ¡°Wait. You haven¡¯t apologized for what happened last time, Your Highness Otto.¡± ¡°Apologize¡­ This¡­¡± Otto¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°Apologize! Hurry up and apologize to young master Linley!¡± Olin slapped his little brother on the head. ¡°Do you want to die?¡± Otto hadn¡¯t expected that his big brother would ask him to apologize to Linley. This was simply too ridiculous! Otto felt humiliated, but when he saw his brother¡¯s fierce eyes and remembered the terrifying fire magic, he had no choice but to yield¡­ ¡°I¡¯m sorry¡­¡± Otto lowered his head. ¡°Alright. This father here forgives you.¡± Linley Bart said calmly. ¡± Now scram.¡± Chapter 10 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios The internal competition of the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy was about to begin. ¡®This was a competition for all the students in the academy to choose the students who would represent the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy to participate in the Five Great Sorcery Academy Competition. All the students were eager to try. Aside from one person, Linley Bart. All he wanted to do now was to dig for treasure chests everywhere. The treasure chests he had dug up over the past few days had been very rewarding. Originally, Linley had no intention of participating in the competition. Compared to digging treasure chests, participating in the competition was nothing. But at some unknown point in time, someone had begun to spread the news that Linley had defeated Olin and Otto in the academy. This shocked the entire school. This useless student who relied on his father to get in actually defeated this pair of genius brothers. Ever since they had been defeated by Linley Bart, they had become extremely nervous. The reason for this was because they had been frightened by Linley¡¯s strength. That day when Linley had used the Great Fireball spell, it had been seen by almost all the teachers and students of the school. However, most people believed that it was an experimental spell by the vice-principal or principal. But when the teachers went to inquire, they found that the spell was not from the principal, which puzzled them. Only after Olin and Otto had been defeated did everyone start to realize and think whether it was Linley who had cast the spell. Some of the teachers didn¡¯t dare to believe it, because Linley¡¯s results were simply too poor. He was ignorant, incompetent, and didn¡¯t have any talent in magic. There was no reason for him to be able to use such a powerful spell. Could it be that this hedonistic son had a separate persona? He was actually very powerful? A sorcery genius that was hard to come by in a thousand years? Although this possibility could not be ruled out, most people still did not believe it. Thus, everyone was looking forward to seeing Linley¡¯s true power. The day of the competition soon arrived. This time, the internal school tournament was held in a very grand manner. All the students of the school were gathered in the sorcery academy¡¯s central square. The entire academy would select a total of ten students to represent the academy at the Five Great Sorcery Academy Competition. Five of them were official members, and five were reserve members. In other words, one had to be ranked in the top ten in the academy tournament to be able to participate in the Five Great Sorcery Academy Competition. Only the top five were qualified to become official representatives. In the school square, the younger students were also very confident. Perhaps they were not as strong as the older students in terms of magic power, but this competition would have a special handicap for them. This was also a rule of the Five Great Sorcery Academy Competition. Everyone¡¯s strength would be restricted and balanced to a certain extent before they could slowly recover to their original level over time. Firstly, it was to ensure that the junior sorcerers had the chance to challenge the senior sorcerers. Secondly, it was to prevent sorcerers from directly using high-level spells. In the past, many sorcerers would gather all their magic power in a single attack to attack, so that they could win purely by the strength of their magic power. Not only was this not enjoyable, but it was also prone to magic backlash. Hence, with the magic-balance mechanism, everyone had to use magic to fight. Compared to pure magic power, this rule placed more importance on the techniques and mastery of one¡¯s spells. Under such rules, it was not impossible for the weak to defeat the strong. However, this required extremely high proficiency in magic. However, the upper-grade students would definitely have an advantage over the lower-grade students. This advantage would grow the longer the match was. In the lower grades, the most famous person currently was Linley Bart. Many pairs of eyes were looking at him. However, he seemed to be completely uninterested in the competition. His eyes kept looking left and right as if he was looking for something. Did he drop something? Even the principal on the podium noticed Linley Bart. This was because while all of the students were respectfully listening to him, only Linley Bart was constantly looking around distractedly. The principal felt that this kid was too arrogant. However, as the principal, it was not appropriate for him to pull a long face. The competition was about to begin. Hopefully, Linley wouldn¡¯t embarrass himself in the competition! After the principal announced the start of the competition, countless magic arenas appeared in the square. Those who were chosen to go on stage by the magic ball would have a magic duel until the final ten were decided, and then the finals would be held tomorrow. Linley Bart was guided by the magic sphere to a magic arena. On that platform, there was already a person. Looking at the armband on his school uniform, he was a third-grade student who already had the strength of an Elementary Sorcerer. In his eyes, Linley Bart was merely an apprentice magus. In fact, Linley had no idea what level he had reached. This was because he didn¡¯t follow the traditional teachings of magic and it was very hard for him to gauge his strength based on the normal standards. Every month, the academy would arrange a test for the students. Those who passed the test would be able to advance to the next level. The higher the level, the more rights they had in the school. This month¡¯s magic test happened to be held at the same time as the school¡¯s internal competition. Linley Bart didn¡¯t have time to take the test. Therefore, in the eyes of others, he was just a Trainee Apprentice Sorcerer. ¡°You¡¯re the one who defeated Olin?¡± The third-year student also heard the rumors that were spreading around the academy. ¡°I¡¯m different from that kid. I won¡¯t let you win. It¡¯s not too late to surrender now.¡± Linley Bart didn¡¯t say anything. He only smiled. ¡°What are you laughing at?¡± The third-grade student was very puzzled. Could it be that this kid was stupid? By the time the referee announced the start of the match, Linley Bart still had no intention of attacking. He was still smiling. This made the third-grade student very puzzled, but after thinking for a while, he had thought that this kid Linley was provoking him! The more he thought about it, the angrier he became. The more he thought about it, the more he felt that Linley¡¯s smile was very despicable. ¡°Try laughing again!¡± The third-grade student was furious and was just about to launch an attack. However, all of a sudden, he couldn¡¯t move at all. A sense of fear welled up in his heart. He felt his surroundings turn cold as if something was crawling into his head. He suddenly felt that someone was standing behind him, but when he looked back, there was nothing. When he turned back to look at Linley, he was so frightened that he began to scream¡­ He saw¡­ The grim reaper! Linley Bart was still smiling. This was his magic technique: Reaper¡¯s Smile. Chapter 11 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios Magic Skill: Reaper¡¯s Smile In terms of effectiveness, this skill was extremely terrifying. It could be activated with just a smile. Furthermore, there was a 1% chance that those who saw the smile would die immediately. Even if one did not die immediately, they would be still frightened by the sight of the grim reaper. If one¡¯s mental strength was not firm enough, there was a high chance that they would flee immediately as if they were facing a real grim reaper. On the arena, Linley Bart had used the Reaper¡¯s Smile, causing the third-grade student jump off the stage in fright the moment his eyes met with Linley¡¯s face. The people below the stage, including the teacher who was the referee, did not understand what had even happened. They only saw Linley¡¯s opponent suddenly jump off the stage as though he had lost his mind immediately after the match had begun. After that, he then started wildly shouting, ¡°I saw the grim reaper! Help! I saw the grim reaper!¡± Even the group of students who came over to watch were very surprised. What was going on? None of them saw Linley use any magic at all. He had merely smiled. However, Linley¡¯s smile wasn¡¯t directed at them and hence they were not affected. Only those who were facing Linley¡¯s face were targeted. However, this was enough to shock them. This was because the others had no idea what had happened. In their eyes, the third-grade student had run away by himself. According to the rules, as long as the competitor left the magic arena, the competitor would have automatically lost. The referee would still judge as such even if he did not understand what had happened. just like that, Linley Bart won his first battle. This was a complete victory. What was even more peculiar was that no one knew how he had won. Maybe it was just a coincidence, some of them thought. Or perhaps, the other party had accepted some money and lost on purpose. Some of the higher-grade students thought that this was the truth. At the later matches, Linley Bart would lose anyways. This was because later on, the rules would become stricter. If the other party lost on purpose, the referee would definitely investigate the incident thoroughly. But to everyone¡¯s surprise, Linley Bart won the second time as well¡­ And then the third round¡­ And then the fourth round¡­ After several rounds, he had already entered the top ten! This could not be explained by luck or bribery. Some of the people who had looked down on Linley Bart had no choice but to take him seriously, but none of them understood his techniques. He just smiled. This same smile had caused all of his opponents to feel extreme fear before quickly fleeing away from Linley. All those in the top 10 dared not look down on Linley anymore. For Linley to be able to reach this stage meant that Linley was definitely powerful enough. Linley Bart¡¯s reputation had gone from ¡°lucky¡± to ¡°mysteriously powerful¡±. Although the others in the top 10 had also defeated all their opponents to reach this stage, they did not do it in such a relaxed manner. Perhaps his magic was too mysterious. Everyone was looking forward to seeing his next opponent. Would he flee or defeat Linley Bart? In the top 10, there were no weaklings left. After the draw, Andrew became Linley¡¯s next opponent. He was a very cautious person. When facing Linley, he didn¡¯t underestimate his opponent like the others. He knew that Linley Bart had to have some sort of special ability to be able to defeat so many opponents. Linley¡¯s smile must be some sort of mysterious magic, but he wasn¡¯t afraid. He had his own trump card! The matches between the top 10 were the focus of attention. Although they could all participate in the Five Great Sorcery Academy Competition, only the top five were official members, while the other five were mere substitutes. This difference was huge. This was because the Five Great Sorcery Academy Competition was a team competition, and a team needed to work together. And once the official members were decided, they would definitely have a focus group training. There was only a very small number of situations that would allow the substitutes to be put to the match. Even if they had won the championship as a substitute, they would not have the same glory as those in the main team! Therefore, everyone wanted to fight for the position of an official member. By the time Linley and Andrew began their duel, countless people had come to watch. The number of people here was much greater than the other battles. This was because everyone wanted to see if Linley Bart would be able to continue winning. Seeing Linley Bart, Andrew smiled. ¡°I know your secret.¡± Linley Bart was startled. Did he know about my treasure chest system? ¡°Only the host knows about the system. No one else knows about the existence of the system or the existence of the treasure chests!¡± The system¡¯s voice rang out, reminding Linley. Linley Bart let out a sigh of relief. He then started to wonder what secret his opponent knew about him. Or was he trying to trick him? ¡°You used a form of spiritual magic, using your smile as a medium to cast it. Although I don¡¯t know what spell it is, I will lose my mind when I see your smile, right?¡± Linley Bart was somewhat surprised. Although the other party didn¡¯t know that he had a system, he had been able to see through the Reaper¡¯s Smile through mere observation. However, he¡¯d fought so many rounds in a row and had done nothing but smile. Thus, it was easy for the others to guess the fact. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± Linley Bart openly admitted it. The audience, including the teachers, were all shocked. This was because spiritual magic was the hardest magic to learn among all forms of magic. It had nothing to do with elemental abilities but required a very high talent for magic. It was almost another magic system apart from the existing system of elemental magic. In short, one had to learn a new set of magic theories in order to learn spiritual magic. Moreover, everyone had resistance to spiritual magic. It depended on whether a person¡¯s willpower was strong. Furthermore, if one used spiritual magic on the same person multiple times, the other party would also develop resistance towards it. Therefore, very few people learned spiritual magic as it was not practical. However, no one dared to offend a Sorcerer who knew how to cast spiritual magic because no one knew when he might control one or what kind of spiritual attack he might cast on one. ¡°Just as I thought,¡± Andrew said. ¡°Since I¡¯ve seen through your magic, I won¡¯t be unguarded.¡± Andrew took out a necklace from under his neck. ¡°This magic talisman can greatly increase my spiritual strength. Your spiritual magic spells are ineffective against me!¡± Chapter 12 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios Everyone in the audience suddenly realized that Linley had been using spiritual magic all along. It was no wonder those people suddenly lost their minds. However, although spiritual magic was powerful, it was very only in certain situations where the opponents were unprepared. Once the opponent had protective measures in place, it was almost useless. This was also one of the reasons why very few people chose to be spiritual magic sorcerers. This applied to the Reaper¡¯s Smile as well. Now that the opponent knew of the existence of spiritual magic spells and had with him a magic talisman, the effectiveness of his technique wasn¡¯t as great as before although he was still able to use it. At most, it could only slow the opponent down a little, making it pretty useless. Andrew wasn¡¯t just showing off his talisman. The moment he took out the talisman, he had already activated it using his magic. This was his tactic. After he revealed the opponent¡¯s magic spell, he would immediately attack before the opponent could react, catching him off guard. If the opponent he was facing was a sorcerer with little experience, he might have already won the battle. However, Linley didn¡¯t panic. This wasn¡¯t his only technique. He had been using it only because it was very useful and required the least effort. However, Andrew¡¯s ability to use magic was not to be underestimated. He quickly cast a spell, creating a spike that emerged from the surrounding ground. This was an earth magic, Earth Splitting Spike! The speed of earth magic was not fast compared to other magic, but its range was very large. Andrew was good at strategizing. This spell was merely part of his plan. ¡°Earthen Wall!¡± This spell would change the original appearance of the ground, making earth walls rise up to force the opponent to move. Because the terrain had changed, the originally flat arena had become very steep. Although Linley Bart had acquired quite a few treasure chests over the past few days, he didn¡¯t have an easy way to deal with earth magic. He could only rely on some basic small spells to avoid attacks, and the attacking spells he cast would be blocked by the earthen wall. Andrew was an earth-type sorcerer. He was best at both offense and defense. He would exhaust his opponent before finding an opportunity to defeat his opponent. No matter what level of sorcerers he faced, he always managed to find their flaws. Andrew had a calm personality. He was not in a hurry to end off his opponent in one move. Instead, he was dragging out the match, making his opponent more anxious before making mistakes. The magic that Linley Bart had mastered did not have much of an effect on Andrew. He could cast spells in an instant, but the magic spells that he had mastered did not have much effect on the earth magic Andrew was using. He had the Fire Tongue skill and the Flaming Storm skill, but earth magic countered fire magic. His fire magic did not have much impact on earth magic. Andrew wasn¡¯t an ordinary sorcerer. If Linley Bart were to rashly use magic, he would definitely be able to find a flaw and opportunity to end the match. This was the most powerful opponent Linley had ever encountered. He was far more powerful than Olin and Otto. This was a true sorcerer. Andrew was also very experienced in fighting. He was very patient. If he kept delaying, he might win. But just then, Linley Bart suddenly discovered a treasure chest on the dueling arena. This treasure chest had randomly appeared in the middle of the arena. ¡°Bronze Treasure Chest discovered!¡± The system¡¯s voice sounded. Linley Bart knew that the only way for him to reverse the current situation was to open this treasure chest. It did not matter what was inside the treasure chest! This was his only chance of gaining an opportunity to win! He began to run recklessly towards the center of the arena. The audience realized that Linley Bart didn¡¯t plan to continue fleeing. Instead, he had ran in Andrew¡¯s direction. ¡°Is he going to attack? Why is he running there? Isn¡¯t that a trap?¡± ¡°Linley Bart is getting impatient!¡± ¡°Hai, there¡¯s nothing he can do even if continues fleeing. If this drags on, he will also lose!¡± In the eyes of the others, Linley Bart¡¯s actions were extremely foolish. He no longer bothered to dodge and was instead running directly towards the center of the spike trap. Wasn¡¯t this as good as stepping into a spell? ¡°I thought you would be able to hold on a bit longer.¡± Andrew, seeing Linley Bart charging towards him, revealed a smile. ¡°You¡¯ve already lost!¡± Andrew pressed down with his palm, activating even more magic. All of the spikes on the ground were revealed as they stabbed towards Linley! This was his final attack. It was time to end this battle. ¡°Congratulations to the host for successfully opening a Bronze Treasure Chest and obtaining the magic skill [Earth Disintegration]!¡± Earth Disintegration! Linley Bart was overjoyed. The system was simply too good to him! The moment he opened the treasure chest, he had already completely learned this spell. There was no need to process the information. Opening the treasure chest meant that he had mastered the spell! This was the superpower of the system! Even though the spikes were about to reach Linley, he wasn¡¯t worried at all. This was because he had another ability, Instant Casting. No matter what kind of magic it was, it could be used instantly in his hands. ¡°Earth Disintegration!¡± Linley Bart merely stretched out a single finger. When those spikes touched Linley¡¯s body, they instantly stopped attacking. It was as though the waves of the sea had been forcibly halted, unable to advance any further. All of the attacks were blocked by Linley¡¯s fingers, and the earthen walls that followed were instantly destroyed. At a speed visible to the naked eye, the earthen walls turned into sediments. ¡°Impossible! This is impossible!¡± Andrew¡¯s mouth was wide open. He could not believe what was happening. He was already confident of his victory. He was about to win! Soon, he would be an official member of the team and represent the school to participate in the Five Great Sorcery Academy Competition! Andrew thought that he would defeat everyone in the internal academy competition and win glory. But now, the reality was that all of this had been shattered, just like his magic. Andrew¡¯s eyes widened. His magic was useless at this moment. He didn¡¯t know what Linley had done, but he could sense that Linley was far, far more powerful! Even the teachers in the spectator stands, including the principal, the vice-principal, and the dean, stood up and watched the comeback on the arena. No one expected that Andrew who was about to win¡­ Had lost. Chapter 13 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios This was an unexpected result. Many people were waiting to see how embarrassed Linley Bart would look after losing. After all, he was just a playboy. Not many people in the academy had a good impression of him. Even the teachers did not think highly of him. Andrew, on the other hand, was a sorcery genius. He had no chance of losing the competition. But the truth was laid before them. Andrew had lost. Andrew couldn¡¯t believe that he had lost just like that. The earth element magic that he was so proud of was instantly destroyed. Even if he were to lose, he shouldn¡¯t have lost in such a manner. He could accept the defeat if the opponent had used a stronger magic spell to defeat him, but he could not accept losing without even understanding why he had lost. This was too humiliating for him. Andrew couldn¡¯t believe what had just happened. He was beginning to even doubt whether he was even a good sorcerer. The audience below the stage was speechless. They were confused at what they had just seen too. A second ago, Andrew was still in a dominant position, with his spells covering the entire arena. As long as Linley Bart took one more step forward, his magic spell would have defeated Linley Bart. However, at this moment, Andrew¡¯s magic spells were rendered ineffective and useless. Linley Bart seemed to have effortlessly dispelled Andrew¡¯s magic. Perhaps not even a magister was able to do this. The audience couldn¡¯t believe their eyes. The referee in the arena was stunned as well. Only now then did he realize what had happened. ¡°Linley Bart is the victor!¡± He had originally been prepared to use his own magic to help Linley Bart to prevent him from suffering from heavy injuries. But in the blink of an eye, Linley had broken Andrew¡¯s magic and even took him down. Many teachers were still in a daze. Linley had won just like that? If his previous wins were attributed to luck, this win against Andrew solidified the fact that he was a capable sorcerer. Some of the teachers began to whisper to each other, thinking that they might be able to win the championship again in this year¡¯s Five Great Sorcery Academy Competition. The Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy was a school for genius sorcerers. Linley Bart might become the genius amongst the many geniuses! He was probably just pretending to be a hedonistic son. This kid was too low-profile. ¡°Good, good.¡± In the spectators¡¯ room, even the principal started clapping. He did not say much, only saying a few words of praise before walking out. The other teachers also rarely saw the principal praise a student like this and thus they paid even more attention to Linley Bart. A sorcerer acknowledged by the principal of the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy would definitely become one of the top sorcerers in the continent in the future. At the end of today¡¯s internal academy tournament, although the ten students representing the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy had been selected, they would still need to fight against each other to decide who would be the official team members and who would be the substitute team members. And, most importantly, who was the champion. Only the champion was qualified to become the captain. Those who could be ranked in the top ten were all proud sons of heaven. No one felt that their strength would be below others. Everyone wanted to be the champion. When it came to the Five Great Sorcery Academy Competition, as the team leader, he would definitely be the one who received the most attention. Once he won the championship, he would definitely be the center of attention. No one wanted to give up this honor. The academy¡¯s top ten ranking competition would be held in three days. After the rankings of the top ten students of the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy were announced, it was quickly spread across the continent. After all, the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy was the most prestigious academy on the entire continent. The other academies also paid close attention to news from this academy. The royal family and the aristocrats were well-informed as well. They had their own sources within the empire and were also paying attention to the movements of the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy. When the top ten were confirmed, their names were sent to the nobles. They wanted to see if their sons or daughters were on this list. However, it was clear that most people were disappointed. However, there was a common thing amongst all of them. They had realized that there was an unexpected name on the list. ¡°Linley Bart.¡± Many people wondered if they had seen it wrongly or if the name list was wrong. How could Linley Bart possibly appear on the list of the top ten students of the academy? This was the list for the representatives of the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy for the Five Great Sorcery Academy Competition! Linley Bart was a famous hedonistic son of a wealthy family. He was known to be ignorant and incompetent. How could this person become one of the top ten students in the academy? There must be a mistake somewhere. Linley Bart was a person with little to no talent for magic. This was a secret that had been made public within the empire. He had relied on his father to enter the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy. On the first day when he had entered the academy, he had already been tested for his potential. The results showed that he was destined to be a useless sorcerer. Many people were waiting to see him make a fool of himself in the academy. No one could deny the accomplishments of Linley¡¯s father, Duke Bart. However, when it came to his son, no one believed that he would be able to inherit his father¡¯s position as a duke. If he succeeded the nobility, in less than three years, his father¡¯s savings would be entirely gone. However, the name list gave them a huge slap in the face. Linley Bart had actually reached the top ten of the entire academy. Even their son hadn¡¯t made it to the top ten. How could Linley Bart possibly make it to the top ten? No one believed what was on the list. They felt that it was a mistake and immediately asked their subordinates to check it again. This was except for one person, Duke Bart. Linley¡¯s father. Chapter 15 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios Three days later, the competition to determine the champion of the internal competition began. Everyone on campus had arrived early. No one wanted to miss such a match. The teachers¡¯ seats were also fully occupied. Before the competition even began, there was already a sea of people. The top ten students all stood on the stage. Most of them were senior students, in the fifth or sixth grade. The only person in the lower grades was Linley Bart, whom everyone believed to be a hedonistic son. But for him to have reached his current position meant that he definitely had the strength and capability. But how strong was he? This had always been a mystery. However, some had been studying him and they had managed to obtain a few basic pieces of information. He excelled in spiritual magic and could unleash a spell through his smile. On top of that, his casting speed was extremely fast. He also had a mysterious way to break other people¡¯s magic. These were all the information that was known at the moment. As for the other candidates, they were all pondering over each of their opponents. Linley Bart was one of them. Soon after, it was time to draw lots to decide the fighting order. Most people actually hoped to be able to fight against Linley. No matter what tricks he had, nothing could change the fact that he was just a first-grade student and was still a Trainee Apprentice Sorcerer. He was not even a proper Apprentice Sorcerer yet. The other candidates were all senior students. Their magic power and experience were not easy to deal with. Thus, most of them were staring at Linley Bart, looking forward to battling this junior student. One had to know that winning one more match would increase one¡¯s chances of becoming an official member. The difference in treatment between an official member and a reserve member was like the difference between heaven and earth. Linley Bart could feel his hair stand on its end from the stares all around him. The drawing of lots began! It was decided by a magic hat, which was absolutely fair in terms of probability. Linley Bart quickly realized who his opponent was. He hadn¡¯t expected this opponent to be a familiar face. Alice. Linley Bart had a keen memory of her. When he had been searching for a treasure chest in her room, he had almost been discovered. Fortunately, he had used the Spiritual Control skill to escape. But¡­ the skill didn¡¯t seem to work that well on Alice. She also had some sort of mysterious magical talisman on her body that was resisting Linley¡¯s spiritual control. As soon as the match began and Alice had once again seen Linley¡¯s face, memories from before seemed to flood back into her mind. Alice had remembered what had happened before! Upon seeing Linley¡¯s face, she had recalled the incident that day! ¡°It¡¯s you!¡± Alice exclaimed. She remembered that Linley Bart was an expert in spiritual magic. This was already a piece of information that had spread around the academy. This meant that on that day, she must have lost her memories under Linley¡¯s spell. This made Alice feel terrified. She had been controlled by a spiritual magic sorcerer! And this person was even in her room, hiding in her closet! Linley Bart could also sense that his spiritual spells had lost their effectiveness. Things seemed very awkward for him currently. After all, he had barged into Alice¡¯s room at that time and there was no legitimate reason for him to do so. He could not possibly tell her that he was looking for a treasure chest. The other party obviously wouldn¡¯t believe it either. ¡°Pervert!¡± Alice¡¯s face turned red. Although she didn¡¯t know why Linley had hidden in her closet, she knew that he was definitely up to no good! The wardrobe was filled with her clothes and underwear! Who knew if he had taken anything away! At this thought, Alice became even angrier. However, she was too embarrassed to say it in front of so many people and could thus only focus on the duel at hand. Because of her anger and shyness, Alice¡¯s control over the magical elements became more violent and unstable. She could not even maintain a calm mind and cast her spells properly. For sorcerers, casting magic spells with the most stable mentality was the most important. However, it was also possible that a sorcerer¡¯s emotions would affect the effects of the spells cast. When angry, it was more suitable for the sorcerer to use offensive magic. However, the consumption of magic power would increase too. When one was sad, it was easier for the sorcerer to cast large-scale magic, with a quicker cast time. Alice was a water magic sorcerer and was well versed in controlling water elemental magic. She was known as the ¡°princess of mercenaries¡± in the academy, so she trained diligently every day, determined to win the championship. Her sorcery talent was very high, and her affinity with the water element was even as high as 90%. She was also more proficient in using magic compared to others, and her casting speed was also faster than others. This was also why Alice was able to enter the top ten. She was also the youngest student besides Linley Bart and was currently in the third grade. However, she was already an Intermediate Sorcerer that specialized in water magic. It could be said that there was no one in the entire academy who worked harder than her. Alice wanted to prove that she was stronger than others, stronger than anyone else so that no noble would look down on her! Those despicable nobles would only bully her. Alice had heard long ago that Linley Bart was a profligate son. He must be trying to bully me, that¡¯s why he¡¯s hiding in my room! Who knows what he¡¯s done after using his spiritual magic to control me! At the thought of this, Alice felt even more ashamed and angry. Killing intent started to fill her eyes. She did not want to let this man off. In her eyes, none of these aristocrats were good people! Chapter 16: Ice Magic Chapter 16 Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios The moment the fight started, the surrounding audience erupted into cheers excitedly. Many people were paying close attention to who would win this match. As a water magic sorcerer, Alice did not belong to the aggressive category amongst the sorcerers. The water element was commonly used for healing and enchantment. It was a type of element that had higher defense and lower attack power. Of course, this was only limited to low-level water magic. When water magic was cultivated to a higher level, the offensive power of water magic was similar to the strength of other elements. It could even be more destructive. However, at the earlier stages, water magic sorcerers would learn how to manipulate water to become ice and using ice magic to act as their attacking power. Ice magic was an advanced version of water magic. It could also be said that it was a mutation from water magic. However, in essence, it was still water magic. The advantage of the ice element was that it could shape water into a certain form. This was similar to earth magic. It could create obstacles or launch icicles at the opponents. However, the disadvantage was that the magic power consumed by ice-type magic was much higher than that of ordinary water-type magic. The amount of magic required to change the form of the magical elements from their original form was definitely huge. But for Alice, casting ice magic would not consume too much of her magic power. First of all, Alice¡¯s magic power was incomparably huge. Even when her magic power was compared to that of an Advanced Sorcerer, she was not inferior. Secondly, her affinity with the magic element was much higher than others. The higher the magic affinity, the lower the magic power consumption. This was also Alice¡¯s talent. She only needed 10% of the magic power others needed to cast a spell. On top of that, the power of the spell was even 20% higher than the others. This was also the reason why Alice was able to defeat all her opponents from before. ¡°Ice Domain!¡± Alice took out her staff and drew a magic circle in the sky. Her casting speed was extremely fast and in a very short time, a magic formation was complete. Countless snowflakes began to emerge from the magic formation, and the ground began to freeze. ¡°Impressive.¡± The other teachers on the spectator¡¯s stand exclaimed. ¡°I didn¡¯t expect that she could already use magic to change the surrounding environment.¡± The vice-principal nodded and said, ¡°A sorcerer will have a corresponding enhancement in whatever environment they use magic in. Using ice magic in a snowy environment will definitely be simpler and faster.¡± The magic that Alice used immediately after the match started was not an attack. She first changed the surrounding environment and turned the arena into a world of ice. By doing so, it would be more beneficial for her when she was casting her spells later on. Furthermore, the Ice Domain would also reduce the enemy¡¯s speed. The range of the Ice Domain Spell was not big. If this was not a competition, the opponent could have escaped from the arena unscathed and unaffected. However, this was a competition. His opponent could not leave the stage. Otherwise, he would be judged as the loser. Alice could also be said to have taken advantage of the rules. The other party could not escape her Ice Domain. This way, she was already at a higher ground before she even started fighting. Meanwhile, the other party would always be within the range of her Ice Domain technique. Because of the cold, the other party¡¯s movements would also become slower and slower. Because the Ice Domain also overpowered the other elements within the range, the other elements would also be weakened to a certain extent. On the contrary, if the opponent also used ice magic, both the opponent and herself would be strengthened. However, Alice was certain that Linley Bart wasn¡¯t capable of using ice magic. She had always studied her opponents. She had seen Linley Bart use many spells, but she had never seen him use ice magic before. In other words, Linley Bart was unable to gain any sort of boost from the Ice Domain. He would only be weakened by it. While she became stronger, her enemy had become weaker. The strength gap was instantly widened. This was also the reason why the other teachers and the vice-principal were impressed. Alice was an excellent sorcerer. She was good at calculation and studying the rules. She also had a high affinity with the water magic element. In this battle, quite a few people felt that Alice had a 90% chance of winning. There was no reason for her to lose to Linley. As for her opponent, what was Linley Bart doing? Linley Bart was constantly looking left and right, as though searching for something. Every few seconds, he would change the direction he was facing. However, he never attacked nor did he attempt to interrupt Alice¡¯s magic. It had to be known that setting up a magic formation required a certain amount of time. It was best to interrupt the opponent at this stage before the formation was drawn finish. But Linley Bart didn¡¯t care at all. He just walked around the arena, watching Alice use the Ice Domain technique. When Alice¡¯s Ice Domain changed the environment of the competition arena, the battle would be too advantageous for Alice. ¡°Idiot. Idiot.¡± The teachers couldn¡¯t help but shake their heads at Linley. They had originally thought that Linley was pretty strong. However, they didn¡¯t expect that he didn¡¯t even understand this basic principle. No one knew what he was doing. He didn¡¯t even bother to counterattack or interrupt his opponent when his opponent was casting a spell. Indeed, in this world, aside from Linley Bart himself, no one knew what he was doing. This was because just a few moments ago, the system had prompted him that a Special Mysterious Treasure Chest was found nearby! ¡°Attention: The Special Mysterious Treasure Chest will only appear for ten minutes. If it isn¡¯t opened within ten minutes, the Special Mysterious Treasure Chest will disappear.¡± Hearing that it was a Special Mysterious Treasure Chest, Linley no longer cared about his opponent. Ten minutes. Linley Bart had to find the Special Mysterious Treasure Chest within ten minutes. The treasure chests he had dug up over the past few days were all Bronze or Gold Treasure Chests. They merely contained some basic items and some extremely useless abilities. It was not of any help to Linley Bart. For example, he had gained the ability to cook better, the ability to pronounce the other party¡¯s name perfectly, the ability to automatically tie the shoelaces on the shoes, etc. Although such abilities made life more convenient, it was useless when it came to combat. Linley Bart desperately wanted to acquire more powerful abilities and magic. However, he had never been able to find them. The appearance of this Special Mysterious Treasure Chest made Linley feel extremely moved and excited. So what if he was in a competition? Finding the treasure chest was more important! But right now, he couldn¡¯t leave the arena either. This made things very difficult for Linley. Chapter 17 - Special Mysterious Treasure Chest! Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios ¡°System, where is the Special Mysterious Treasure Chest? Why don¡¯t I see it?¡± Linley Bart looked around himself but still couldn¡¯t find any traces of the Special Mysterious Treasure Chest. In the eyes of the others, Linley Bart was simply walking around the stage, occasionally glancing at the ground. Could there be gold coins on the ground? His actions were too strange. Even Alice was surprised. She didn¡¯t know what Linley was planning to do. Was he planning to use some form of magic to break her Ice Domain? However, there were no waves caused by the magic elements. It did not look like he was going to use any magic. It looked more like he was walking around. Alice looked at him strangely, but she thought of something instantly. Was this an illusion? It was said that spiritual magic spells were good at making illusions, allowing others to see illusions instead of reality. Could it be¡­ Alice slowly thought. Had she already been trapped under the spell? She looked around and examined the audience and Linley Bart, who was walking around. None of this seemed like an illusion but Linley¡¯s actions were just too abnormal. He didn¡¯t use any magic, nor did he launch an attack. He was just circling the arena. It didn¡¯t seem like she was under an illusion spell, and Alice didn¡¯t feel any other forms of spiritual attacks. If it was not an illusion or a spiritual attack, what kind of magic would it be? Alice couldn¡¯t figure out what Linley was thinking and thus didn¡¯t dare to act rashly. The people below the stage were watching with even more curiosity. It was one thing for Linley Bart to be randomly walking around on the stage. However, Alice also seemed to be cooperating with him. She had only used an Ice Domain Spell to change the environment. After which, there were no more follow-up actions from her. This was completely different from what the audience had expected. They had thought that they were going to witness an intense duel, one where spells were constantly being thrown at each other. Unless they were preparing for another big move? The surrounding audience was very confused. This included the teachers and the principal. One of the teachers even asked, ¡°What¡­ are they doing?¡± The vice-principal was also very confused as to why the two of them had yet to make a move. He seemed to be deep in thought as well. Then, he said, ¡°Perhaps they are still observing each other.¡± ¡°But they have been observing each other for way too long already.¡± The battle between mages was not as intense and fast as that of the battle between swordsmen. However, every spell had its traces, of which the opponent could make use of it to fight back. Thus, sorcerers did not need to wait for the opponent to move before he could move after finding the weakness. Sorcerers had to predict the enemy¡¯s moves and attack first. The latter had to think of a way to deal with the opponent¡¯s magic and use stronger magic to break the opponent¡¯s magic or engage in a pure magic confrontation. This was how normal sorcerers fought. No one had ever seen a fight between sorcerers where both the sorcerers merely stood still and rooted at their positions! This also stunned the people below the arena. However, this was a battle that ranked in the top ten of the school tournament after all. Those who could not even enter the top ten felt that it was somewhat unfathomable. Could this be how genius sorcerers battled? ¡°Hurry up and fight!¡± Finally, someone shouted. ¡°Fight!¡± ¡°Why are you two still standing there?¡± Quite a number of people were also shouting from below. Alice, however, did not care about the disturbances from outside the arena. She just continued staring at Linley Bart. As the other party was a spiritual magic sorcerer, she maintained her mental vigilance at all times, not letting the other party have any opportunities to enter her mind. One had to know that the key to a spiritual magic sorcerer¡¯s spell was whether or not he could invade the other party¡¯s mental state. If one relaxed the mind, one would be easily controlled and hallucinated. Alice had done her homework before the battle. She was known to be a top student. She was talented in magic theory and magic battles and had never looked down on any opponent. As a result, Alice was very cautious when facing every opponent. If she did not fully understand the other party¡¯s attack methods, she would keep observing until she found the other party¡¯s weakness and then end the opponent off in one strike! This was also Alice¡¯s method of victory. As a third-grade sorcerer, she was able to continuously defeat senior sorcerers in the competition and obtain victory because of this. She was good at analysis and theoretical battles. Because she had little experience facing spiritual magic sorcerers, she didn¡¯t have much knowledge about fighting them. Thus, Alice felt a little more nervous and was more passive during this duel. Furthermore, Linley Bart¡¯s actions were especially strange. What was he actually doing? What was he planning? Such thoughts had been running through Alice¡¯s mind all along. She even wondered if she¡¯d fallen under an illusion. But that didn¡¯t seem to be the case. Could it be a trap? Or was the other party trying to lure her into attacking first? Yes, that must be it. If he doesn¡¯t strike first, I will not strike. Alice seemed to have made up her mind as she stared at Linley. Although she hated this man very much, she tried to maintain her cool. The more she looked at his face, the more she thought about how she had been mentally controlled that day in the dormitory. What had Linley Bart done that day? What did he do to me after he had cast the spell on me? Did he take anything from my room?¡¯ Why did he want to control me? As Alice was thinking, she suddenly felt that her mind seemed to be more distracted! She was enlightened. Was this his scheme? It turned out that he was using this method to distract me. He must be trying to attack me while my mental power was empty! No, I have to concentrate. I can¡¯t relax anymore! However, Alice still felt that her spiritual force was gradually becoming exhausted and empty. Her forehead was also sweating. After all, it was impossible for a person to not feel tired after focusing on something for a long time. Alice felt that her control over magic had dropped. Was this the power of spiritual magic? How powerful! It seemed as though those rumors that Linley was a prodigal were all false. This person¡¯s true power was truly terrifying. Alice became even more focused, watching Linley¡¯s every move. However, Linley Bart, on the other hand, sighed helplessly. This was because he had heard the system say. ¡°The system can¡¯t determine the exact location of the Special Mysterious Treasure Chest. It will only appear after specific actions are made by the host!¡± Chapter 18 - Can I Kiss You? Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios ¡°A specific action? What¡¯s that?¡± Linley Bart asked the system. This was the first time he had encountered something like this. For example, the Bronze Treasure Chests and Gold Treasure Chests were all fixed to a certain place. The conditions for this Special Mysterious Treasure Chest to appear were really strange. ¡°The precondition for the appearance of the mysterious treasure chest is: to kiss a girl.¡± Linley Bart¡¯s jaw dropped, as though he had been scared silly. ¡°System, are you messing with me?¡± The system did not respond. Instead, it said, ¡°Countdown to the disappearance of the Special Mysterious Treasure Chest begins; 9.59¡­ 9.58¡­¡± Linley Bart didn¡¯t know how to react to this. This Special Mysterious Treasure Chest was too¡­ He had to kiss a girl to get the treasure chest! Furthermore, he was in the middle of a competition. He couldn¡¯t step down from the arena to find a girl¡­ Wait¡­ Linley Bart turned to look at Alice. Does that mean that if he wanted the Special Mysterious Treasure Chest, he could only kiss this girl in front of him? She was now his opponent. To kiss her was no easy task. This was truly a difficult problem. If a treasure chest appeared in the arena like before, Linley Bart would be very happy. But this ¡°Special Mysterious Treasure Chest¡± just had to be so strange. It would only appear after Linley had completed something. This made things very difficult for Linley. What should he do? Furthermore, the Special Mysterious Treasure Chest also had a time limit. He could not possibly wait forever. ¡°What¡¯s inside the Special Mysterious Treasure Chest?¡± ¡°The contents of the Special Mysterious Treasure Chest cannot be known before it is opened. However, it would definitely consist of a special item or ability or even a character!¡± ¡°Characters?¡± Linley Bart asked curiously. ¡°Can people come out from the treasure chests?¡± ¡°Yes, the Special Mysterious Treasure Chest might summon a certain spirit for the host. Every spirit has powerful and unique abilities and they will be absolutely loyal to the host. They will obey any of the host¡¯s orders and can be regarded as the host¡¯s servant!¡± ¡°That sounds pretty good.¡± Linley Bart felt that the items from the Special Mysterious Treasure Chest shouldn¡¯t be any worse than those from the Diamond Treasure Chest. At least, it definitely wouldn¡¯t give him anything worse than the strange ability of ¡°tying shoelaces automatically when wearing shoes¡±. If it was this sort of ability, then in the future, even if Linley Bart was beaten to death, he would never believe in the system again! ¡°Don¡¯t worry, host. I promise you that it won¡¯t be a useless ability.¡± The system saw through Linley Bart¡¯s thoughts and replied. ¡°All the contents in the Special Mysterious Treasure Chests are super gifts!¡± ¡°With your promise, I¡¯m relieved.¡± Linley Bart quickly made up his mind. He had to get this Special Mysterious Treasure Chest! Linley Bart turned his gaze towards Alice. No matter how one looked at it, she was a beautiful girl, even if everyone called her a ¡°mercenary princess¡±. However, in terms of appearance, she was definitely as beautiful as a princess. Her golden hair, fair face, and cherry pink lips were all very charming. Alice could sense Linley¡¯s gaze. She had a strange feeling that Linley¡¯s gaze was very strange¡­ It was a feeling that was hard to describe as if she was being seen through. But it still felt very strange! Linley Bart was slowly walking towards Alice. Alice suddenly felt her heart pounding. He was coming over¡­ Coming over¡­ He was getting closer and closer! Was this an illusion or not? Alice was momentarily confused. Linley Bart, who had been walking around the competition stage, was now walking towards her! For a sorcerer, the most important thing was distance. This was because the casting distance of every mage might not be the same. It all depended on talent. Some fireballs might have a further range, while others might be shorter. This was also determined by one¡¯s own practice and feel. Sorcerers were not swordsmen. All their attacks had to be released when they were safe. Most of them were long-range. For long-range sorcerers, the most important thing was to gauge the distance. A powerful sorcerer could constantly control the distance from the opponent such that the opponent could never hit him but he could hit the opponent. When the opponent wanted to hit oneself, one would pull away immediately. When the opponent could not hit oneself, one would then attack the opponent. This was a great test of a sorcerer¡¯s judgment and consciousness. It was not something an ordinary person could do. However, almost every sorcerer could understand the principle of controlling distance. This was because sorcerers rarely fought in close combat. Of course, close combat sorcerers were exceptions. Usually, the sorcerers would stay far away from their opponents and use their magic to make the opponents lose their ability to use magic. This would also avoid letting the opponent¡¯s magic spell from hitting them. But Linley Bart was different. He merely walked over. Without any protective magic spells active, he walked towards Alice. ¡°Is he finally going to attack?¡± The audience below the stage finally cheered after watching for so long. They were finally going to fight! ¡°Is Linley using some sort of magic? I can¡¯t tell if he¡¯s using magic.¡± ¡°Yes, it¡¯s definitely spiritual magic. He must be preparing to use spiritual magic!¡± Alice¡¯s heart clenched. It seemed as though Linley was preparing to attack. The closer one was to spiritual magic, the stronger its control! Alice finally thought of this point. She began to use a new spell to protect herself. She could not let Linley Bart come near her! However, Linley Bart did something no one had expected. He scratched his head awkwardly as if hesitating whether or not to say something. But in the end, he took a deep breath and asked, ¡°Miss, can I kiss you?¡± This sentence shocked everyone on and off the arena, including the teachers. No one expected that someone would dare to say such words in the competition arena. But when they thought back to Linley¡¯s past self, they realized that this kid really was a prodigal! Chapter 19 - Flaming Stor Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios Hearing this, Alice seemed to have suffered a fatal blow. She had thought that Linley Bart was preparing to use some special spell against her. Never had she expected him to say such a shameless thing in front of an entire crowd. Did he not have any sense of shame? This made Alice feel even more certain that Linley Bart was a rogue. He had probably said this to every girl he met. Alice felt incomparably angry. She finally understood that Linley Bart was certainly not preparing for some sort of powerful spell. He was just a pure playboy. Thus, Alice decided to teach Linley Bart a lesson so that this detestable noble would know that she wasn¡¯t someone to be trifled with! ¡°World Of Ice and Snow!¡± said Alice, waving her wand. This was the most powerful spell she could currently use. She didn¡¯t plan on wasting any more time with Linley Bart and decided to end him off in one blow. This was to make him pay for what he had said. The World Of Ice and Snow was an extremely powerful magic spell among ice-type sorcerers. On this stage filled with ice and snow, this spell¡¯s prowess was further enhanced. Immediately after the spell was cast, snowflakes started to fall from the sky. However, before those snowflakes hit the ground, they had already turned to ice. Snow filled the sky and a hail storm was starting to form. If this battle wasn¡¯t on the magic arena, the snow would have covered the entire academy. This was an incomparably powerful spell, a truly lethal spell when used on the battlefield. If this spell was used by a powerful sorcerer, it would affect the entire opponent¡¯s army. Just like the name suggests, when the World Of Ice And Snow was cast, the entire world would be covered in ice and snow. Anyone within the range of this spell would be affected. Endless hail would fall from the sky and hidden icicles would take one out if unprepared. Ice walls would rise from the ground, impeding one¡¯s path of escape. The thick fog of snow would cause one to lose one¡¯s sense of direction, causing one to be unable to even see the sky nor the earth. One could only see snow when in the field of the spell. The cold would also erode one¡¯s will and gradually freeze one into an ice sculpture. Linley Bart had instantly been trapped into the World Of Ice and Snow. This was an extremely powerful spell and the moment it was cast, all he felt was extreme cold. The countdown for the Special Mysterious Treasure Chest continued. He had to defeat Alice within ten minutes, or the mysterious treasure chest would disappear. However, it was easier said than done to defeat an ice magic genius in ten minutes. Even a Magister might not be able to do it. However, although Linley Bart wasn¡¯t a Magister, he had an insanely strong system. Linley Bart was lacking in terms of his ability to fight against ice magic spells. However, it wasn¡¯t as though he couldn¡¯t fight at all in this icy world. Linley Bart suddenly recalled that when he had opened a treasure chest previously, he had acquired an A-rank spell, Flaming Storm. This was a spell that was similar to the World Of Ice and Snow. If the World Of Ice and Snow was a spell that made the entire world be filled with ice and snow, then Flaming Storm was a spell that made the entire world seem to be filled with fire. Ice could extinguish flames, but flames could also melt solid ice! With his instant casting ability, Linley Bart was able to instantly unleash the Flaming Storm. This was a powerful spell on the same level as the World Of Ice and Snow. In the instant that Linley used the Flaming Storm, the temperature around him which had been below zero celcius, began to rise rapidly. The icy mist began to dissipate, and a ball of fire began to swirl around Linley Bart, rising up from beneath his feet. The flames began to gather, and the magic elements of fire began to gather from the arena filled with ice and snow. The moment the flame appeared, Alice, who was the first to sense it, was very surprised. This was because logically speaking, there should only be ice and snow magic elements under the influence of the World Of Ice and Snow. The fire magic element should have been squeezed out of this space. To use fire magic would consume a lot of magic power. If one¡¯s elemental affinity was insufficient, they would not even be able to sense the fire element and could therefore not be able to use fire magic. But Linley Bart had completely ignored all of this. For him to be able to use fire magic in this World Of Ice and Snow was simply inconceivable. Could it be that Linley¡¯s magical affinity had reached 100%? Only a sorcerer with 100% magic affinity could use any magic under any circumstances. But wasn¡¯t Linley Bart just a spiritual magic sorcerer? Was her own judgment wrong? Linley definitely mastered other forms of magic! But in Linley¡¯s previous matches, he had never used any other spells. He had always used spiritual magic spells. Never had he used any fire magic spells. Alice began to think of Linley Bart as a stronger opponent. But when Alice saw Linley Bart once again, she sighed in amazement after she had realized something. ¡°He didn¡¯t use a wand!¡± Alice was shocked. Yes, Linley Bart had directly used magic. Not only did he instantly cast a fire magic spell, but he did not even use a wand to do so! For sorcerers, wands were the medium between humans and the magical elements. They could also enhance one¡¯s magic power. Most sorcerers would be equipped with a wand. This was also a sorcerer¡¯s weapon. As Alice had always thought that Linley was a spiritual magic sorcerer, she didn¡¯t notice that he didn¡¯t have a wand in his hand. Spiritual magic sorcerers used a special form of medium to cast their spells. Their mediums could be pocket watches or gyroscopes, or something with circulatory properties. It did not necessarily need to be a wand. From the start to finish, Linley Bolt didn¡¯t have a wand! Yet, he could still cast magic spells under such a strict environment condition. This meant that his magic affinity was at a very high level, at a stage where he no longer needed a wand to use magic! ¡°Hmph, even if you can use magic without your wand, you¡¯re still no match for me in my World Of Ice and Snow!¡± Alice still had the advantage at the moment. She was still in her World Of Ice and Snow. In this domain filled with snow and ice, her magic would become extremely powerful. In contrast, fire magic would become very weak in the arena. ¡°Using fire magic is your mistake!¡± Alice sneered. If it had been any other magic, perhaps Alice would have thought more highly of Linley Bart. Yet, he had chosen to use fire magic, the one that supposedly has the least power under the influence of the World Of Ice and Snow. This made Alice feel that Linley Bart didn¡¯t understand magic at all. He was only throwing out all the spells he knew. Using fire magic in the domain of ice and snow was a foolish thing to do. Chapter 20 - The Elements of Ice and Fire Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios This was a theory that was written in textbooks. No one could break it easily. But to Linley, the fundamental theories in this world were completely useless to him. This was because he did not rely on the magical elements of this world to use magic. He relied on the system. As long as the system said that he would be able to learn a particular magic spell, it meant that he would definitely be able to learn it. As long as the system said that he could use a form of magic, no matter where he was, even if the place didn¡¯t have any magical elements, the system would help Linley Bart use that form of magic. This was the superpower of the system! It could overwrite everything in this world, ignoring the logic and laws in place. In that instant, Linley Bart used the Flaming Storm. The fire elements naturally formed around him, and the temperature also suddenly increased. He seemed to become a fire hero unaffected in the snow world. The ball of flames quickly became a storm. If the World Of Ice and Snow was described as the sky falling onto the academy, making the surroundings extremely cold. Then the Flaming Storm would be as if raging flames spewing out from the ground, devouring everything in its way like an explosion of flames. These were two very different elemental abilities, one fire, and one ice. The flames underground collided with the ice in the sky. Due to the collision of water and fire on the magic arena, the thick white fog dispersed. The audience below the arena was stunned. This was a direct collision between ice and fire, a clash between two different magical powers. Nowadays, mages rarely used large-scale magic when dueling with each other. They all used simple and fast combat magic. After all, the enemy only consisted of a single person. There was no need for large-scale magic. The World Of Ice and Snow and Flaming Storm were spells meant for the battlefield. Once these spells were used, they could destroy thousands of soldiers and horses from the opponent¡¯s army. This was a rare scene in an ordinary magic showdown. Powerful area-of-effect magic clashing against each other was something that could only happen in a battle between great mages. Some of the teachers sitting in the spectator stands quietly left. They came to the side of the competition stage and reinforced the magic barrier to prevent the magic powers from leaking out and affecting others. Ice and fire had always been the two most aggressive and powerful magical elements since ancient times. The force of the two spells colliding stunned all the spectators. A merciless snowstorm came from the sky while raging flames bloomed from the ground. Even the other top ten students from the academy felt that they were unable to cast such powerful magic. Under such powerful magic pressure, the people inside were under even greater magic pressure. As the spells were large-scale magic spells, apart from attacking the enemy, it would also affect oneself. Therefore, other than on the battlefield, very few people would use large-scale magic in a competition to avoid accidentally injuring themselves. If it was just one person using area-of-effect magic, it was still within one¡¯s control range. However, if two people were to use area-of-effect large-scale magic spells at the same time, it would be difficult for them to control their magical elements and spell accurately and precisely with the constant clashing between the two very different magical elements. It was also very easy to lose control of the magic power and the consequences of losing control of magic power were very terrifying. This was because magic itself was extremely unstable. The essence of sorcery was to use the instability of the magical elements to drive, control and gather magical elements with spiritual affinity to cast a spell. Many factors could affect a successful use of a spell. Throughout the past thousands of years, countless talented sorcerers had been training and inheriting various knowledge about magic, allowing for there to be an established magic system in place now. These systems and theories minimized the risk of using magic. This was also why magic could become widespread and be taught to everyone. This was because generations of magic geniuses had already thoroughly studied the principles and theories of magic and further refined them. Using the experiences from the past generations of geniuses and the learning experiences from failed experimentation, people were then able to craft and refine magic spells to be used and taught. However, magic would still be affected in many ways, even if countless people had used it successfully before. In a certain person, it might not be successful, and it was hard to find the reason. This was also the mystery and uncertainty of magic. In this world, no one could use two identical spells, just like no one could find two completely different leaves. This was the situation in the competition arena. Even though such large-scale magic was very common on the battlefield, and they fought each other. However, that was a battlefield after all. There was a vast space. No one had to consider the stability of magic as long as magic could be cast. Regardless of whether it was an explosion or not, as long as it killed the enemy, it would be considered a successful spell. Therefore, no one had ever delved into what would happen when the two elements collided in a small area. The current situation was very unstable. Some teachers who were more sensitive to magical elements had noticed. On the dueling platform of the magic competition, the elements of ice and fire clashed fiercely. These two elements had become extremely unstable. Stability meant that one could control the magical elements however they wanted, to the effect they desired. Instability meant failure. Failure would have many effects, but more than likely, there would be the following result. An explosion. The explosion of a spell did not signify success. An explosion is caused due to the dislocation and instability of the arrangement of magical elements. No one could be sure of the terrifying damage caused by the explosion. Therefore, some teachers immediately came to the dueling arena and started to use magic to strengthen the barrier in an attempt to prevent the explosion from affecting the audience. Also, if anything happened on stage, they would step up to stop it. Chapter 21 - Close Combat Sorcerer Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios Alice hadn¡¯t expected that Linley Bart was proficient in using fire magic! Not only was he good at spiritual magic, but he was also good at fire magic! Fire magic could be said to be the most common among sorcerers because fire magic was easy to learn. However, it was very difficult to master it. This was because the higher the level of fire magic, the harder it was to stabilize the fire element. The fire element itself was harder to control and stabilize than any other elements. Even a Holy Magister could not be certain that he could completely control the fire element. There were too many uncertainties about the fire element. Sometimes, it was very easy to control but sometimes, it was extremely volatile. Therefore, there were many basic fire magic sorcerers but very few advanced fire magic sorcerers. But Linley Bart was completely different. When he used fire magic, all of the fire magical elements were tightly grouped, just a general commanding a tight-knit army. There was no trace of instability. In Linley¡¯s hands, the fire magic elements were completely under Linley¡¯s control. Therefore, the Flaming Storm displayed a power that far exceeded its original level! At that moment, the flames on the magic dueling arena had turned into lava. The place which was originally filled with snow and ice had been completely changed after Linley Bart had cast the Flaming Storm. The ice quickly melted, turning into white vapor before rising into the sky. Although hail continued to fall to the ground, it could not extinguish the raging fire. The red flames were gradually covering the entire magic arena, and the magic power of the ice element was slowly decreasing. Anyone could tell that Linley¡¯s Flaming Storm was far superior. Although the two spells seemed to be evenly matched and seemed to be in a stalemate, one must not forget that the Flaming Storm was originally ignited within the World Of Ice and Snow. The level of difficulty for doing this was extremely high. If it was an ordinary mage, they might not even be able to use magic in the World Of Ice and Snow. But not only had Linley Bart used fire magic, he had even completely melted away the ice magic that was originally overpowering in the arena. Fire magic occupied the ground while the ice magic occupied the sky. However, experienced mages could tell that Alice¡¯s magic power was gradually weakening. If this continued, Linley Bart would be able to easily win. Alice also understood this. She understood her current situation better than anyone else. She could already feel that her control over magic was gradually decreasing and her magic power was depleting rapidly. Linley Bart, on the other hand, was as stable as ever. His magic power was still surging and it didn¡¯t seem to be weakening at all. The raging flames were about to even force Alice out of the arena. However, Alice was unwilling to fail. She did not want to lose. She wanted to win. She wanted to keep winning. She wanted to defeat everyone! Her eyes were fiery and her long golden hair was floating in the air. The surging flames were closing in on her as if they were gradually devouring her. The snow in the sky also stopped. Alice¡¯s magic had lost! Her World Of Ice and Snow hadn¡¯t been able to cover Linley¡¯s Flaming Storm. This was her defeat. However, she had already done her best. But Alice couldn¡¯t accept that Linley managed to defeat her in such a relaxed manner. She had always thought of herself as a genius at using magic. How could she be willing to lose this match? Alice closed her eyes and clenched her fists. She still had one last move. She had planned to hide it and only use it at the Five Great Sorcery Academy Competition. She did not want to expose her full strength so quickly. However, Linley was simply too powerful. If she didn¡¯t use this technique right now, she definitely wouldn¡¯t be able to win. If Alice lost this match, there was a chance that she might become a substitute member. This was something that she could not accept. It wasn¡¯t easy for her to get to where she was now and gain the recognition of others. She could win this match. She wanted to win everything. This victory was right in front of her. She would not allow herself to fail. The Five Great Sorcery Academy Competition was held only once every five years, and there were a total of six grades in the sorcery academy. The best geniuses could even cross a grade every year. If she lost this match, she might very well lose this opportunity to show her talent at the Five Great Sorcery Academy Competition. This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for every sorcerer. No one would want to lose such a chance! Alice dropped her wand. The audience below the stage was somewhat surprised. This was because throwing down one¡¯s own wand on the magic arena was equivalent to admitting defeat. It was equivalent to throwing down one¡¯s own weapon. The other party could not hurt a sorcerer who had thrown her weapon away. But just as the teacher was about to end the match, Alice did something that shocked everyone. She bit her finger and blood started oozing out from the wound. She then drew a magic array in the air with her blood. Many teachers were surprised. This was a summoning magic array¡­ A third-grade student actually knew this magic array! This should be something that could only be learned at a higher grade. Alice was a magic genius. She had already learned advanced magic spells beyond her grade! In the magic array, a black hilt gradually appeared! It was a blade! It was a long, thin blade that was covered in frost. The moment the blade appeared, the surrounding flames disappeared, leaving only cold frost surrounding Alice. Alice then pulled out a long blade from the void! This was a sorcery academy. Even Alice¡¯s mentor did not expect her to pull out a blade on the competition arena. Only the principal on the spectator stands understood. ¡°She¡¯s a close combat sorcerer!¡± Close combat sorcerer! It was a profession where one used elemental magic to strengthen oneself or one¡¯s weapons. They were known to be able to use both magic and weaponry However, because close combat sorcerers needed to practice magic and martial arts at the same time, it was a very difficult profession. Most people would choose to be proficient in martial arts or magic. However, as the ultimate profession in fighting, a close combat sorcerer was always the best choice for someone proficient in both magic and weaponry! The moment Alice obtained the ice blade, her strength erupted once again. This was Alice¡¯s true strength! Chapter 22 - Frost Blade Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios When Alice held the frost blade, her hand that held the ice blade also turned into ice. The frost condensed by the cold continued to spread along Alice¡¯s arm and gradually covered her body. A pair of frost wings gradually appeared on her back. If Alice was described to be gathering the magical elements to cast a spell before, then she was now gathering the elements of magic onto herself. Frost gathered on Alice¡¯s body, making it seem as though she was wearing armor. All the water elements would become Alice¡¯s weapon and be controlled by her. This was a forbidden spell! Alice was a diligent student. Not only did she study hard every day, but she also searched for the mysteries of magic in the library by herself. She wanted to learn any magic that could be used. She didn¡¯t want to miss any information regarding sorcery. However, the periphery of the library was filled with only ordinary and low-level spells, which did not satisfy her interest. This was until one stormy night when Alice was still reading in the library and a magic door had opened in the library. A magic door that did not usually open was hidden in the library. However, on a stormy night, due to a sudden gathering of magical elements, it triggered the magic door to open. When the magic door had been opened, Alice stepped into the magic space unhesitatingly. The magic space was filled with an abundance of magical elements and also contained the secrets of the magic elves. Alice then spent her time searching for the deeper secrets of magic in the space. When she had just stepped into the magic space, the immense amounts of magical elements soaked Alice¡¯s body, making her feel as if she was in a different world. She could see more magical elements, and those magical elements were easier to use. In the magic space, Alice kept learning and became stronger. Before she came out, she even learned a forbidden spell. The spell allowed her to possess a blade filled with frost aura. This blade was condensed from pure magical elements. After gaining control of this blade, Alice was no longer just a sorcerer. She had become a close combat sorcerer. However, the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy was an academy that specialized in training pure sorcerers. Warriors here were not easily accepted, and it was rare to hear of a close combat sorcerer in the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy. Thus, Alice decided to hide her identity and her secret. Alice had never used this frost saber in front of anyone else as it would consume her magic power greatly. If she used it inappropriately, her life would even be in danger. However, Alice didn¡¯t want to lose this match. She had already risked everything. Right now, all she could think of was to win. She didn¡¯t want to be defeated by Linley Bart. Also, she couldn¡¯t believe that her ice magic had been defeated by Linley¡¯s fire magic. She believed that with her power, she wouldn¡¯t lose to anyone in the academy. But Linley Bart¡¯s performance today had dealt an enormous blow to Alice¡¯s confidence. She couldn¡¯t believe that she was about to be defeated by a playboy in a duel. She wanted to defeat him with her strength! This was also due to Alice¡¯s competitive nature, as well as her deep disdain for Linley. How could such a shameless and lecherous man possess such strength? He would never understand how hard it was for one to become a powerful sorcerer. Usually, there was no time for her to even rest at all. Even when she was free, she could only spend the time reading in the library, practicing magic every day, and studying the formulas and theories of magic over and over again. It took everything Alice had just to decrease her spell casting time, even if it was only for a fraction of a second. She had put in an immense amount of effort. She did all this with the objective of becoming a skilled sorcerer so that she wouldn¡¯t embarrass her father so that she wouldn¡¯t be laughed at by anyone else in the academy. Alice knew she wasn¡¯t exactly a genius. She was just hardworking and had a strong will. While Linley Bart was flirting with the girls, Alice was working hard on improving her skills. While the other girls were putting on their new dresses for the ball, she was reading all the books she could in the library. Alice hadn¡¯t attended any of the events at the academy and had no friends at all. She felt that she was independent and never needed friends. She had sacrificed a lot and devoted all her energy to sorcery. Alice felt that she shouldn¡¯t lose here. She thought that she could win! After Alice summoned the Frost Blade, she only had one ability. This was Alice¡¯s most basic and most powerful ability. She would be able to control all the water elements in the domain! Even the raging Flaming Storm could not suppress the birth of the water element. The evaporated water vapor condensed together again, forming countless streams of frost energy that surrounded Alice. The frost energy was then absorbed into the blade. This frost energy then transformed into a giant dragon! A giant dragon condensed from frost. This dragon nearly covered the entire sky. Behind the frost dragon was snow, causing the entire academy to be covered in a field of snow. Even though the spectating students were protected by the magic barrier of the arena, they still felt a peculiar chill. Alice¡¯s frost magic had broken through the magic barrier and was beginning to affect the outside world. The cold corroded the world as snow and hail fell. Those students with weak magic power were frightened. They didn¡¯t even dare to stay in the spectator stands anymore and wanted to escape. ¡°Stop!¡± The teacher shouted at them. ¡°Right now, the entire academy is in great danger. Staying here is the safest option! Before the competition ends, no one is allowed to leave their seats!¡± The principal used voice transmission magic to warn all the students. The students were all shocked. Wasn¡¯t this just an internal competition? Why did it become like this? It was not that there was no magic that could affect the weather, but it was also not this exaggerated. She had used magic to create a dragon. Even in the eyes of the teachers, it was as if they were facing a formidable enemy. No one knew what was going to happen in the arena. The situation was slowly spiraling out of control. The principal even went up personally and reinforced the magic barrier. He did not stop the match, because it was extremely dangerous to try to make them stop now. No one could guarantee that the students¡¯ control over the magic elements was stable enough to stop the casting of the spell halfway. He could only let them continue. Otherwise, once the sorcerer lost control of the magic elements, the violent magic elements would become extremely chaotic and perhaps even destroy the entire sorcery academy. Chapter 23 - Phoenixs World Extinguishing Forbidden Spell Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios ¡°Ding! High energy source detected!¡± ¡°The host has triggered a mysterious mission!¡± ¡°Defeat Alice in her Frost Possession state!¡± ¡°Temporary Ability Enhancement obtained ¡ª fire magic forbidden spell, the Phoenix¡¯s World Extinguishing Forbidden Spell!¡± ¡°Special Mysterious Treasure Chest countdown; 5.27¡­ 5.26¡­ 5.25¡­¡± These two missions were simultaneous and the countdown for the Special Mysterious Treasure Chest mission continued. The phoenix was known as the legendary animal amongst fire magic users. Since ancient times, the phoenix was the symbol of fire magic. The ultimate badge of any fire magic caster was the phoenix. The phoenix was born in flames. Even if it died, it would be reborn as long as it was bathed in flames. It could be said that the phoenix itself represented the ultimate fire element. Linley Bart felt that the system was still quite powerful. When he saw Alice transform into a different form, and then pull out a long Frost Blade, Linley Bart felt as though his Flaming Storm had been completely suppressed. His raging Flaming Storm was immediately covered by the violent snowstorm. He had no doubt that if the flames could freeze, the flames would have already been frozen. There wasn¡¯t much enmity between Linley and Alice. He could already sense that Alice was losing her life force to replenish her magic power. Her magic power was depleting at an extremely quick pace. Although she could use such powerful magic, the high consumption of magic power was indispensable. The more powerful a spell was, the more magic power it would consume. This was the most basic principle. If she wanted to use the long Frost Blade, she would need to have the magic power of a Magister, but Alice was only an Intermediate Sorcerer. She had forcefully used magic that she should not be able to master at this stage. This made her forcibly consume her magic power. Magic power was recovered through meditation and self-recovery. When one¡¯s magic power was fully exhausted, one naturally could no longer use magic. However, some spells were different. Once they were activated, they would not end easily. Even if the magic power of the caster was depleted, it would still be continued forcefully. Such magic spells would then consume a person¡¯s life force greatly instead of the caster¡¯s magic power. Once one¡¯s life force was exhausted, there would only be one outcome¡ªdeath. Linley Bart didn¡¯t want to see Alice die just like that. He felt that Alice was a cute girl and it wasn¡¯t worth it for her to lose her life just for a mere victory. Perhaps even she did not know herself how great an impact such a spell would have on herself. Every second Alice used that blade, more of her life force would disappear. In five minutes, the blade would have absorbed all her vitality. This was the result of using a spell that was far beyond one¡¯s capabilities. But she knew that she had to use it to defeat Linley Bart. To Linley Bart, this was just a competition. But to Alice, she was already betting her life on this match. Linley Bart felt that he had to stop her, or she might die. If Alice were to lose her life because of this match, Linley Bart would feel extremely guilty. He couldn¡¯t watch this happen. Thus, Linley Bart had decided to stop Alice. To do so, he had to defeat her! ¡°Phoenix¡¯s World Extinguishing Forbidden Spell!¡± Linley Bart chanted this forbidden fire magic spell. Because of the effect of his instant casting, this incantation did not need any prerequisite or ritual before it appeared on the arena! A magic array appeared on the ground of the arena. It was an elemental incantation of countless flames. In the center of the magic formation, the insignia of the phoenix could be seen. It represented the extreme limit of the fire magical element! Many teachers were shocked. ¡°How was this possible!¡± ¡°It¡¯s the fire magic of the phoenix!¡± ¡°He¡¯s just a Trainee Apprentice Sorcerer. How could he use the fire magic of the phoenix?¡± Any fire magic with the phoenix would have the imprint of it. The imprint was a huge firebird with nine tails with each of the tails overflowing with magic power. However, never would the teachers realize that this was the Phoenix¡¯s World Extinguishing Forbidden Spell! Just like the name of this spell, it was a world-destroying spell. When this spell was successfully cast, the entire world would turn into flames. The earth would split open and magma would start emerging from the ground. All the volcanoes that were originally extinct or were dormant would be awakened. The seawater would evaporate and the ground would dry up. All the plants and creatures would also be roasted dry. No one could survive in a world of pure flames. Therefore, this was said to be a world-destroying fire magic. However, to cast the full world-destroying fire spell required almost all the magical elements in the world. This was something that Linley Bart did not possess and was something way beyond his current reach. Even if Linley Bart¡¯s current level of magic power far surpassed that of others, he still did not possess enough to cast the full spell. Logically speaking, if Linley didn¡¯t have enough magic power, he wouldn¡¯t have been able to successfully use this fire magic spell. But Linley Bart was a man with a system. As long as he wanted to use this spell, in addition to his ability to instantly cast spells, he would be able to use any spell! And just like that, the Phoenix¡¯s World Extinguishing Forbidden Spell was successfully cast. Due to Linley¡¯s lack of magic power, it was impossible for him to achieve the ultimate ability of this spell. To destroy the entire world! However, the effect of this spell was still terrifying. Although it might only have one in ten thousand abilities, it was enough to make fire magic explode with the strongest power! Chapter 24 - Admitting Defeat Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios The teachers of the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy were so angry that they almost vomited blood when they saw the fire magic array that had the imprint of the phoenix. They had just maintained the influence of the ice magic brought about by the frost dragon on the magic barrier. However, just when they thought that they had it all under control, the other student had unleashed the fire magic of the phoenix. Fortunately, the dozen or so teachers instantly reacted and barely maintained the barrier. On the spectator stand, the principal and vice-principal directly flew into the sky. They used their immense magic power to prevent the barrier from shattering. Right now, the two extreme magic spells were colliding with each other. This was on a level far superior to the clash between the World Of Ice and Snow and the Flaming Storm previously. This was close to the limit of their control. Within the barrier, Linley and Alice, who were continuing their battle, had no idea how much of an impact their magic had on the outside world. They were already fully immersed in the battle. Alice leaped into the air, and with every step she took, the ground was frozen, and the flames could not approach her. That being said, Alice¡¯s frosty aura was also unable to extinguish Linley¡¯s flames. The flames and frost merged, melting before colliding again. Alice herself could not control such a powerful frost power. She completely relied on the blad. As long as she held the frost blade in her hand, she felt that she could use the heartless and endless frost power. She felt that no one would be her match. This was the result of coming into contact with a power that far exceeded her cultivation level. The inflated power gave her endless confidence. She felt that if she slashed down her, she would instantly destroy her enemy! Alice¡¯s eyes became redder and redder, and some blood vessels appeared in her eyes. This was also a sign that she was overdrawing her life force. In her current state, she was completely unable to feel any abnormalities in her body due to the endless power. Even her sense of pain was completely blocked. As a warrior who only cared about fighting to the death, she did not need to feel any pain. Her only focus now was to charge on bravely! Alice brandished her frost blade. Wherever her blade went, it would leave an ice mark. Behind her, the pair of ice wings grew even larger but a trace of blood had appeared within them. Countless icicles shot towards Linley Bart! The icicles were enormous, and the Frost Dragon breathed out from Alice¡¯s back. This was the first time Linley Bart had felt the threat of death. This was also the first time since he had acquired the system that he felt as though his magic power was going to be fully drained. Linley Bart could sense that after he had used the Phoenix¡¯s World Extinguishing Forbidden Spell, a fiery magic array had appeared on the ground and his magical power was starting to be infused in it. But no matter how much magic power he had infused into the magic array, he was unable to fill it up fully. ¡°Forget it. There¡¯s not enough time.¡± Linley Bart felt as though his magic power was about to run out and thus didn¡¯t continue to fill the magic array with more magic power. Thus, he decided to just cast the spell as it is. The moment he used it, all the magic power in his body was drawn out to complete this forbidden spell. Then, endless flames spewed out from the magic array. It was like flames from hell. Red, yellow, purple, and blue flames all appeared. A pillar of fire suddenly appeared from the magic array and pierced through Alice¡¯s ice wings. Alice had read countless books in the library, but she had never seen such powerful fire magic! It was like magic used by a god. Alice could feel the immense magic power contained in this flame magic. She knew that her magic power was inferior to the flames in the magic formation. Alice then smiled. She knew that she might lose this time. This was because that was the phoenix. Any water or ice magic would be burnt up in front of the fires of the phoenix. Even if it was the sea, it would be no exception. Not to mention Alice¡¯s magic. She wasn¡¯t willing to lose Linley Bart but she had to admit that Linley¡¯s magic was stronger than hers. Furthermore, it was much stronger. She had not expected such a powerful sorcerer to exist in the academy. However, Alice still did not want to lose and she was not willing to lose. Thus, she gripped her blade tightly. Even if she lost, she would not admit defeat. She wanted to fight it out with the other party until the very last moment so that she wouldn¡¯t lose the face of her father. She didn¡¯t want anyone to laugh at her for being a ¡°mercenary princess¡± anymore. Alice only wanted to prove herself. No matter how powerful the enemy she had encountered was, she only wanted to prove that she could face him! Alice then let out a shout and spread her frost wings like a swan¡¯s death song. She did not hesitate to expend even more of her life force to maintain the magic spell and did her best to slash down this blade! Even though the snow was melting and the flames were burning, Alice charged into the flames without hesitation. Linley Bart looked at Alice¡¯s face. All that he could see was her resolution and unwillingness to give up. This was a face he had never seen before. This was only seen in someone who would give it all one had to achieve what one wanted, regardless of one¡¯s life. Regardless of whether she would succeed or fail in the end, as long as there was a chance, she was willing to risk her life to complete it. Linley Bart merely wanted to use magic to defeat Alice and make her admit defeat. But Linley Bart now knew that there was no way he could defeat Alice. Even if he had defeated Alice in terms of magic, he would never be able to defeat Alice in terms of spirit and will to live. ¡°I admit defeat.¡± Linley Bart sighed. He withdrew the release of his magic. The flames were like a painting that had been casually erased. They vanished without a trace as if the monstrous aftermath had never happened. When Alice heard that Linley Bart had admitted defeat, she hurriedly retracted her blade. After all, with her honor, she wouldn¡¯t slash her blade at someone who had already admitted defeat. ¡°Why did you admit defeat?¡± Alice couldn¡¯t believe she¡¯d won just like that. After she asked this question, she did not manage to hear the answer in time. Instead, all she felt was exhaustion before she fell from the sky. Chapter 25 - Treasure In The Treasure Chest Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios The instant Alice landed, Linley Bart caught her faster than anyone else. The abnormal weather caused by her magic had returned to normal but there was still a large snow fog on the competition arena. Linley Bart caught Alice without much effort. Her body was very light. Like all young girls, she didn¡¯t weigh much. Or rather, Alice was much lighter than all the other girls. Although she was a princess, compared to other princesses, she did not like luxurious items or attending banquets and eating desserts. For Alice, her greatest interest had always been reading and studying in the library. Only magic could interest her. Hence, she was much lighter than the other girls. When Linley Bart caught Alice who had fallen from the sky, he had thought of something. Although his mission to defeat Alice had failed, the countdown for the Special Mysterious Treasure Chest had yet to disappear. ¡°Special Mysterious Treasure Chest countdown; 7¡­ 6¡­ 5¡­¡± No one was able to see the competition arena yet. If Linley Bart wanted to complete his mission, he had to seize this opportunity. Linley Bart quietly tapped Alice¡¯s lips with his own. He could only blame this damned system for giving him such a strange mission. Ding, failed the mission of defeating Alice. You have lost the Phoenix¡¯s World Extinguishing Forbidden Spell! ¡® ¡°Ding, Special Mysterious Treasure Chest mission completed!¡± ¡°Opened the Special Mysterious Treasure Chest!¡± ¡°Obtained the Spring of Life!¡± ¡°Obtained the feather of the phoenix!¡± ¡°Obtained the Wand of the Eternal Spring Tree!¡± ¡°Obtained the Robe of Wind and Thunder!¡± ¡°Obtained S-Rank spell, [Prophecy]!¡± Five items appeared in a row! As expected of a Special Mysterious Treasure Chest! It was indeed different from the other treasure chests. After opening the treasure chest, the attributes and abilities of these items appeared in front of him. Spring of Life ¨C The spring water from the Spring of Life can heal any damage and increase vitality. As long as one is not dead, one can be saved. Feather of the phoenix ¨C A chance to revive! Wand of the Eternal Spring Tree ¨C Using this wand will greatly increase the recovery rate of magic power. On top of that, one can summon at least two treants every day. When the output of magic power increases, the number of treants for summoning will also increase. Robe of Wind and Thunder ¨C After wearing this robe, you will be immune to wind and thunder magic that has yet to reach the advanced level. Using wind and thunder magic will also greatly increase its power. S-Rank spell, [Prophecy] ¨C Find out something that will happen within the next three days. After Linley Bart received these items, he felt extremely satisfied. These were the best items he had gotten from the treasure chests in the academy. The most precious one was of course the feather of the phoenix. It could revive someone once, which was equivalent to giving him a chance to rise back from the dead. With this treasure, Linley Bart wouldn¡¯t have to worry about anything unexpected happening. The Spring of Life was a top-notch healing medicine. As long as he didn¡¯t die, he could be saved. This was equivalent to a second life. These two life-saving treasures were extremely effective for Linley Bart. Adding both of these items, he could be said to have three lives. No matter what kind of danger he encountered, he was allowed to make two mistakes. The wand of the Eternal Spring Tree also solved the problem of him not having a weapon at the moment. Although it focused mainly on helping him recover his magic power, it was still better than nothing. Having the Robe of Wind and Thunder also meant that he could completely restrain the wind and thunder magic sorcerers. From what he recalls, he remembered that one of the top ten students was a wind and thunder magic sorcerer. The last was the Prophecy spell. Linley Bart was rather curious about this spell. Could this spell really be considered as an S-Rank? From what he knows, divination and prophecy were taught in sorcery academies too. Some of the simplest divinations were not difficult at all. Linley Bart didn¡¯t understand why this Prophecy spell was considered an S-rank spell by the system. But none of that was important. Just the things he had acquired so far were enough to make him satisfied. The magic barrier of the arena was opened immediately after and the competition arena could be said to be basically destroyed. Flames and frost mixed together to form a very strange scene. The arena was sometimes cold and sometimes hot. The medical teacher rushed on stage and began to treat Alice. She had used magic beyond her own level. She had overdrawn her magic power and her life. There were even some white strands of hair seen among her golden hair. This was the result of forcefully overdrawing her vitality. If Alice wasn¡¯t young, she would have died after using that magic. None of the teachers had expected that the battle between these two juniors would be so intense. Even if they went on stage themselves, they did not have the confidence to win this battle. The remaining magical elements were still lingering around, and the energy of ice and fire was still affecting the people on the stage. Those with low magic affinity did not dare to approach this place. They could only wait for the magical elements to dissipate before they dared to approach. At this moment, the principal walked up and said, ¡°This is an unprecedented match since the opening of the Holy Dragon Sorcery Academy. It¡¯s extremely exciting and can be recorded in the academy¡¯s history. Regardless of the outcome of this competition, the two contestants are respected, powerful sorcerers!¡± ¡°However, since this is a competition, the victor has to be decided. In this competition, Linley Bart had voluntarily admitted defeat. Thus, I announce that the victor is¡­ Alice!¡± Even though Alice was unconscious, the surrounding audience still cheered like a tsunami. This was because this match was too brilliant, one that had far exceeded their imaginations. They were not stingy with their praise and appreciation. The principal stroked his white beard. When he saw this match, he was full of confidence in the strength of this batch of students. Even the lower-grade students had such strength, let alone the higher-grade students! It seemed that the champion of the Five Great Sorcery Academy Competition this year was destined to be theirs! However, some people began to question the results of this match. Alice was clearly the one who had fainted and Linley Bart hadn¡¯t suffered many injuries. Logically speaking, it should have been Linley who had won. However, the victor was Alice, which made people¡¯s imagination run wild. Chapter 26 - Suspected Of Cheating Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios The final result didn¡¯t change. Alice won, while Linley Bart had lost. Although Linley Bart had lost, he was still one of the top ten students in the academy. He could still represent the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy to participate in the Five Great Sorcery Academy Competition. Although Linley Bart hadn¡¯t won, his name had already spread throughout the empire. This was because he had suddenly become one of the top ten competitors for the academy despite being known as a hedonistic son of a wealthy family. Furthermore, unlike what others had guessed, he had fought a tough battle to prove his strength. No matter his spiritual magic or that incomparably powerful fire magic spell, it left everyone in awe. How much magic did this kid know? This had caused the outside world to constantly speculate as to how many surprises Linley Bart still had. It was also because of the intense competition today that the other matches were pushed back by a day because the academy needed time to repair the stage of the magic competition. This caused this match to become even more popular. Many people were constantly discussing this match. Generally speaking, the boys were more supportive of Linley while the girls were more supportive of Alice. Gradually, it became a question of whether the boys or the girls were stronger. The students were arguing non-stop, and so were the teachers. In the magic tower. A meeting with the principal was being held. They were all seated around a very long magic round table with magical flames burning in the middle. ¡°Is Linley Bart really that powerful? Isn¡¯t he just a Trainee Apprentice Sorcerer?¡± A teacher began to doubt Linley Bart¡¯s abilities. He had originally been Linley¡¯s teacher, but he didn¡¯t believe that Linley had such tremendous power. This completely went against common sense. ¡°Anything can happen in the sorcery world. In addition, Linley Bart isn¡¯t necessarily a Trainee Apprentice Sorcerer right now. It all depends on the rankings of each person. After the competition is over, Linley Bart will be given a new rank.¡± Atais, the dean of education, thought well of Linley Bart and thus said some words for him. ¡°But could he have cheated in this competition?¡± Wilson hadn¡¯t forgotten what Linley had done. In his mind, this noble, who was only the son of a duke, couldn¡¯t compare to other nobles. From the very beginning, he shouldn¡¯t have defeated anyone to get into the top ten of the academy¡¯s internal competition. Thus, Wilson had always felt that Linley had cheated in order to win. ¡°Under the watchful eyes of all the teachers, how could he possibly cheat?¡± Dean Atais said. ¡°Teacher Wilson, you are too biased against Linley Bart. I personally think he¡¯s a good student.¡± ¡°Really? A good student? I don¡¯t think so.¡± Wilson took out a file and gave it to the other teachers, including the principal and vice-principal. ¡°This is the record of what Linley Bart had done in the past. He could be considered to have done many bad deeds. He had also been tested before and is known to not have any talent for magic. In addition, he had committed all sorts of atrocities, skipped classes, and squandered his money away. It could be said that he isn¡¯t a qualified sorcerer at all.¡± ¡°However, before this competition, he had suddenly become very strong and defeated the two princes, Olin and Otto. You should all know that these two princes were originally the most powerful candidates for this competition, but because of Linley, they had to give up on the competition.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t help but wonder what sort of secrets Linley Bart has.¡± ¡°Teacher Wilson, what are you trying to say?¡± Dean Atais frowned when he saw the file. Indeed, prior to this, Linley Bart had only been a wastrel. Relying on his father¡¯s reputation, he did evil in the academy and bullied the good. But all of a sudden, he became very strong. His personality had also changed drastically from before. Nowadays, he kept going around the academy to look for something in particular. Furthermore, they had never seen him cultivate before. How did he become so powerful? Or could it be that Linley Bart had always been hiding his true power? Only when the competition began did he truly reveal his true power to fight against the other students. This was too puzzling. If he was so powerful, there would be no reason for him to be injured by Otto. Yet, after being injured by Otto, Linley had suddenly become much stronger. Even the senior Olin was defeated by him. ¡°There¡¯s only one possibility left. Linley had cheated!¡± Wilson¡¯s voice was very loud. Some of the teachers felt the same way too. However, they couldn¡¯t explain how Linley Bart had cheated. After all, he had used magic on the stage. Everyone had seen it with their own eyes. No one could deny the fact that such powerful magic spells had come from his hands. ¡°Everyone has seen Linley Bart¡¯s performance in the arena. He couldn¡¯t have cheated, right?¡± Atais said. ¡°On the arena, regardless of whether one uses magic equipment or other magical techniques, as long as it is within the rules, one will win. What¡¯s more, Linley Bart had lost. Does it make sense to say that he had cheated?¡± ¡°Indeed. Linley didn¡¯t cheat on the arena.¡± ¡°Then why did you say that Linley was cheating?¡± ¡°Although Linley Bart didn¡¯t cheat on stage, that doesn¡¯t mean that he didn¡¯t cheat. It must be understood that the difference between the current Linley Bart and the past Linley Bart is simply too great.¡± ¡°What do you mean, Wilson?¡± The principal suddenly asked. ¡°What I mean is that perhaps one day, the real Linley Bart might have already disappeared¡­ The current Linley Bart might be fake!¡± Many teachers were surprised by Wilson¡¯s words. They had never thought of this possibility before. In the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy, there were countless powerful sorcerers, countless sentry posts and it even had the secret surveillance of animal spirits. Therefore, no criminals dared to come here. Thus, this could be considered the safest place on the entire continent. No one would be willing to come here to be caught. Hence, everyone¡¯s first reaction to what Wilson suggested was that it was impossible. Chapter 27 - Orb Of Truth Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios ¡°Are you saying that the real Linley Bart has been replaced?¡± Atais understood what Wilson meant. ¡°That¡¯s impossible. Under the surveillance of the crystal ball, the sorcery academy hadn¡¯t discovered anything unusual. Although Linley Bart had changed greatly, it¡¯s impossible for him to become another person without being discovered.¡± ¡°With magic, anything is possible,¡± Wilson said. ¡°Please do not forget that just a month ago, Linley Bart was a piece of trash who couldn¡¯t even use basic magic spells. Yet, out of nowhere, he had instantly become a genius sorcerer. No matter how you think about it, this isn¡¯t normal!¡± ¡°This¡­¡± ¡°What Wilson said is not completely unreasonable.¡± The principal pondered for a moment. ¡°Take the Orb Of Truth and let¡¯s have a look.¡± ¡°Yes!¡± After a teacher heard the principal¡¯s order, he then went to a room to take out a purple crystal ball. This crystal ball was called the ¡°Orb Of Truth¡±. This was an orb that could reflect one¡¯s true nature. Anyone who was observed by this crystal ball would reveal his true appearance. The principal gently stroked the orb and Linley¡¯s figure appeared within it¡­ ¡°Is this person Linley Bart?¡± The principal asked the Orb Of Truth. The Orb Of Truth let out a purple glow in response. The purple glow from the Orb Of Truth meant that what was asked was the truth, which meant that Linley Bart was the real Linley Bart. ¡°He¡¯s real,¡± the principal said grimly. ¡°How is this possible¡­ My guess can¡¯t be wrong¡­¡± Wilson gaped. He had been searching for information regarding Linley Bart the entire time and had gradually come to the conclusion that the current Linley was definitely not the same as the one in the past. However, the Orb Of Truth would never lie. What it revealed meant that Linley was real. No one could doubt the authenticity of the Orb Of Truth because it represented only the truth. Wilson did not dare to question the principal¡¯s magic power. The principal let out a sigh of relief. He had been hesitant when he had first heard what Wilson had suggested. Although the academy had its own geniuses, the numbers were not that big of a deal when compared across the entire continent. Across the continent, as long as one had a good potential to become a sorcerer, one would be classified as a genius. And in a place where geniuses gathered, if everyone was a genius, then there would also be ordinary geniuses as well as the geniuses amongst geniuses. As the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy was no longer the only sorcery academy on the continent, students had more choices. The other academies had also put more effort into recruiting geniuses and offered better treatment. They even directly poached students from the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy. The scholarship they gave was ridiculously high. The benefits thus attracted a large number of people to other magic academies. The Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy did not have that much of an advantage. This also resulted in the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy not having a good ranking in the recent Five Great Sorcery Academy Competition. If their ranking was not good, fewer people would come to the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy which would then result in poorer quality students. Such a vicious cycle made the principal extremely anxious. He was determined to revive the heydays of the academy but he also suffered from the lack of a true sorcery genius. Becoming a good sorcerer was highly dependent on one¡¯s talents. To some people, it was as simple as using their feet to walk. However, to those without talent, they were not able to cast magic spells no matter how hard they were taught. This year, the academy administration was more diligent in sourcing for highly talented students compared to the previous years. Hence, they even managed to snatch some students from other academies. The principal was determined to win this year¡¯s competition among the five academies. Even if his academy was not the champion, he wanted to get at least a good ranking. He did not want the reputation of the Sacred Dragon Magic Academy to be tarnished by him. Perhaps it was because this was his last year as the principal of the magic academy, he wanted to end it on a good note and do something for the academy. He wanted to nurture a genius, a true genius. Before the competition began, the principal had already heard of Linley Bart¡¯s reputation. He was known as a hedonistic son of a wealthy family. If it hadn¡¯t been for his father¡¯s request, given his talent, he wouldn¡¯t even have had the chance to join this academy. No one had expected that this hedonistic son of a wealthy family would ever become a sorcerer. He had allowed him to enter the academy just to return a favor. But now, Linley Bart¡¯s power had far surpassed his expectations. This was perhaps the rare opportunity that the principal had been waiting for. Initially, he had been worried by the suggestion that Linley Bart was in fact someone else in disguise. If that was the case, it would be too embarrassing for the Sacred Dragon Institute. Not only would he have lost a genius sorcerer, but he would also become the laughing stock of other sorcerers. But Linley Bart¡¯s identity had been proven through the test of the Orb Of Truth. This had also finally made Wilson make a fool of himself and shut his mouth. ¡°How rare. A true genius has indeed appeared in our Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy!¡± The principal laughed heartily. ¡°No one has any more doubts, right?¡± The other teachers didn¡¯t dare to speak. This sentence was mainly meant for Wilson. After being slapped in the face, he naturally retreated to the side. However, he still said bashfully, ¡°Although Linley Bart is real, he didn¡¯t win the duel. Didn¡¯t he still lose to Alice?¡± ¡°Alice¡¯s condition might not be good¡­¡± the vice-principal said. ¡°Why is it so? She is after all a princess of a kingdom. Could anything happen to her?¡± The principal asked with a frown. Although Linley Bart¡¯s identity had been resolved, Alice was still a problem. The reason was that she had used a forbidden spell. Ordinary students might not be able to tell, but teachers who had reached the Magister level could tell that Alice¡¯s blade was in fact a forbidden spell! This was because, in the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy, there were no lessons that taught one to become a close combat mage. This was a very traditional sorcery academy and it only taught one to become an orthodox sorcerer. Any other fighting styles would be considered taboo. This was the case for close combat sorcerers. As they did not conform to the tradition of orthodox sorcerers, where one fought with their enemies using their wands instead of other forms of weapons, they were not recognized as proper sorcerers. This was in fact against the rules of the academy. Thus, this put the principal in a dilemma. Chapter 28 - Xibolai Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios The principal of the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy, Xibolai. He was a well-known figure in the sorcery world. Otherwise, he would not have been able to become the principal of the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy. Xibolai would sometimes feel that he was at a loss at whether the decision he made was right. Xibolai¡¯s reputation was not undeserved. He was a Holy Magister and there was almost no one who could match him in the sorcery world. Everyone treated Xibolai with the utmost respect. He was considered an authority in the sorcery world. It was even rumored that there was no magic that he did not know. But now, Xibolai was not the authority of the sorcery world. He had another role, the principal of the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy. His name changed from Xibolai to Principal. As time passed, he even started to forget his name. Ever since Xibolai became the principal of the academy, he did not have time to study any magic theories or read up on sorcery books. All he did was read through the piles of files meant for him and do his daily tasks. He had to finish these trivial matters. Even if he had some free time, he could only meditate. There was no time for him to do more than that. He had not used powerful magic spells for a long time. Although he felt that he could still control the magical elements, he felt that the magical elements were getting further and further away from him. One must know that he was once known as a genius among the geniuses. Occasionally, he would still use magic spells. However, he no longer used those dangerous ones. Others only saw him as a symbol for the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy. What made Xibolai feel the most regretful was that he did not have the time to read those sorcery books anymore. He was no longer able to voice his opinions to the younger generation of sorcerers. Xibolai had realized many years ago that the most ancient magic was not necessarily the most powerful. As the theory behind magic was constantly being perfected, modern magic had more stable spells and power and was easier to control. One had to know that in the past era, losing control of magic was very common. However, at this point in time, losing control of magic was already very unlikely. This was the progress of the sorcery world, and also the reason for the existence of sorcery academies. There were far more people who knew magic than before and there were more and more children becoming geniuses. Xibolai admired the children and hoped that the academy he represented would be able to achieve glory on the continent. The Five Great Sorcery Academy Competition was his last chance. He wanted to end his principal career after this competition. However, before he ended his career as a principal, he wanted to have an achievement. Perhaps it was a form of commemoration, Xibolai wanted to win the championship for the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy once again before he left. However, the students these days were full of vigor and the magic they learned was far more powerful than what he understood. Xibolai began to wonder if it was because the students were too strong and he was the one who could not keep up with the times. When he found out that Linley Bart had not cheated after using the Orb Of Truth, Xibolai was extremely happy. But he had another problem. That was Alice. Xibolai knew that she was a hardworking and studious girl. However, she had touched a taboo, causing the teachers to quarrel with each other. This was because it was a question about the roots of sorcery. After all, on one end, some people still believed in the idea of a traditional sorcerer. Only by wearing a deep magic robe and using a wand could one be called a sorcerer. On the other end, others considered close combat sorcerers with enchanted weapons as proper sorcerers too. Close combat sorcerers were accepted in other academies. However, in the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy, the oldest and most traditional sorcery academy, this was not necessarily the case. There were still a bunch of old-school teachers and elders who still lived in the magic tower. Xibolai was not considered the oldest person in the sorcery academy. He was very hesitant and unsure if he should break the boundary this time. ¡°Alice used a forbidden spell! Principal, she must be expelled from the academy!¡± Wilson had long looked down on the daughter of the mercenary king. He had long wanted to drive Alice out of the academy. However, he had no proper reason to do so originally. Now that he had finally found an opportunity, he spared no effort to attack Alice and try to kick her out of the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy. This was because to Wilson, the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy was a sacred place in his heart. It would be best if there were only pure-blooded sorcerers here. Any other sorcerers who were offspring of ordinary people would not be qualified to join the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy. He believed that the reason why the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy had performed so badly in the Five Great Sorcery Academy Competition was that more and more mixed-blood sorcerers had joined the college. These mixed-blood sorcerers polluted the environment. Their impurity made their magic impure. Thus, they had to leave the academy! This was a very good opportunity. Although Wilson hadn¡¯t proved that Linley Bart was a fake, he was still able to make use of this opportunity to get rid of Alice. Xibolai also understood that Alice had used a forbidden spell. However, Alice was an extremely talented child. He could not bear to expel a sorcery genius from his academy. Furthermore, the Five Great Sorcery Academy Competition was about to begin. Xibolai could not and would not fire a child who might help the academy win the competition. ¡°Although Alice¡¯s magic isn¡¯t taught by the Holy Dragon Sorcery Academy, it also isn¡¯t considered an evil forbidden spell,¡± Atais said. ¡°There¡¯s no need to expel a victorious student. If we expel her for this reason, we won¡¯t be able to answer to her father.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t this very suspicious? In the arena, Linley Bart was clearly about to win. Yet, he chose to admit defeat at the last moment.¡± Wilson used this as an excuse to make a fuss. ¡°I very much suspect that these two are cheating!¡± ¡°Teacher Wilson, why do you keep mentioning cheating? Don¡¯t you trust the integrity of our students? This is a competition based on strength. Victory and defeat are both possible.¡± Xibolai could no longer tolerate Wilson and waved his hand. ¡°Enough. There¡¯s no need to speak any further. I¡¯m willing to trust these children. There¡¯s no need to speak of this matter any further. As for the reason why Linley had admitted defeat, I will personally ask him. The meeting shall end now.¡± After Xibolai said that, he vanished. Everyone sensed that the principal was getting angry and thus left respectfully and quietly. Chapter 29 - The Princi Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios As Wilson did not achieve his goal, he still felt resentful. However, since the principal had already left, he could only vent his anger on Dean Atais, who had been opposing him. ¡°The students may be strong this year, but they are neither noble nor elegant as sorcerers,¡± Wilson said. ¡°Without the grandeur when using magic, they can¡¯t be called sorcerers. They are just like two beasts fighting in the arena.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think so. The essence of magic depends only on the user. If the user is kind-hearted, then he is using kind magic. If the user is evil, then the magic he uses will also be very evil, right?¡± ¡°Humph, wait and see. Alice had forcefully overdrawn her magic power. Her life is like a candle in the wind.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry about that.¡± Wilson and Atais glared at each other before leaving in opposite directions. After the competition ended, Linley Bart went home for a nap. When he woke up, he realized that Xibolai had appeared before him. Linley Bart was very surprised. In his memory, this principal of the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy was an extremely powerful figure in the sorcery world. Although he did not know the principal, he was filled with an inexplicable sense of awe and respect for him. In addition, Linley Bart could sense that the principal¡¯s magic power was simply too powerful. In front of him, the magic power he had acquired from the treasure chest was nothing. This made Linley Bart feel very envious. He didn¡¯t know when he could become as strong as Xibolai. Xibolai looked at Linley, who had just woken up and asked directly, ¡°Where did you learn your magic?¡± This was a difficult question to answer because he had performed too well in the magic competition arena. Furthermore, a month ago, he was still a piece of trash. His sudden rise in power would definitely rouse everyone¡¯s suspicion. ¡°I read books¡­¡± Linley Bart couldn¡¯t think of a better reason. Reading books was indeed a way to learn magic and a good excuse for him in his current situation. ¡°Where did you read the book?¡± ¡°The library! I read it in the library.¡± The library of the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy indeed had countless books on magic. One could basically learn any magic on the continent there. There weren¡¯t any flaws in Linley Bart¡¯s words if he said that he had learned the magic from the library. Xibolai was rather surprised. He looked at Linley Bart with an astonished look. ¡°You can learn magic just by reading books in the library?¡± ¡°Right.¡± Linley Bart nodded. He could not possibly say that he had obtained the ability to pick up treasure chests. Even if he had told the principal that, the principal would also not believe him. This was because he was the only one who knew about the system and he was the only one who could see the treasure chests. ¡°What book did you read?¡± Xibolai asked with interest. Xibolai was a philomath. His greatest hobby in life was reading and writing books. But sorcerers reading books was a rare sight nowadays. With the increase in the number of scrolls, spells, theories, and knowledge that was being recorded, the content in the sorcery books was also increasing. Ordinary students would not take the initiative to read more books after being forced to read the textbooks in class. The Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy had the largest magic library and storage room in the entire continent. However, there were very few students there every day. Alice was one of the regular customers, so Xibolai had a good impression of her. But Xibolai hadn¡¯t expected that Linley Bart, who had always been known as a hedonistic son of a wealthy family, would also read by himself in the library. ¡°I have been reading¡­ The Complete Record Of Phoenix¡¯s Magic.¡± Linley Bart seemed to have been prepared for this. This was because he had used the spell Prophecy a few days back. The prophecy told him that the principal would come to his room tonight to ask him how he learned magic. Linley Bart knew all of this long ago, which was why he was well prepared for his answer. ¡°¡®The Complete Record Of Phoenix¡¯s Magic? Did you like this book? Oh right¡­ You used the Phoenix¡¯s fire magic today.¡± Xibolai smiled. In fact, Xibolai was the one who wrote the book. He had always loved creatures like the phoenix when he was young, but such legendary magical creatures were extremely rare on the continent. In order to find the phoenix, Xibolai had even traveled around the entire continent in hopes of finding traces of it. He had traveled for many years and learned a lot of magic. In the end, he managed to find an egg that belonged to the phoenix. Later on, he brought the egg back to the academy to take care of it and successfully hatched the egg. And thus, Xibolai had become the only one in the world to own a phoenix as a pet. Most of the magic pets of other sorcerers were cats, owls, or mice, but Xibolai had a phoenix. It was obvious how much attention he received. He had also obtained many benefits from the phoenix. After his research on the phoenix, he had written the book; The Complete Record Of Phoenix¡¯s Magic. This was the book he treasured the most in his life because it was a book that he had written after experiencing countless exciting adventures. The book contained his youth. Xibolai knew that he would never be able to write such a book again. This was because he was the principal of the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy and no longer had time to travel. He missed that period of time but he would never have the same chance again. ¡°I really like this book!¡± Linley Bart nodded. ¡°With this book, I¡¯ve managed to learn many spells.¡± He had just finished reading the book today and because of the prophecy spell, he knew that the author of the book was Xibolai himself. As Xibolai was still young then, he had used an alias as the author of the book instead of his real name. Hence, not many people knew that the real author of the book was Xibolai. Xibolai was rather pleased with the answer. It turned out that Linley Bart had only become so powerful after reading the book that he had written. That was only natural. The book was his masterpiece. Chapter 30 - Disciple Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios If Linley Bart had only become more powerful because of his book, then Xibolai felt that it was perfectly normal for Linley Bart to have such power. After all, he was a Holy Magister. The book he had written had allowed a useless Trainee Apprentice Sorcerer to suddenly possess incomparably powerful strength. This made Xibolai feel as though he was a successful teacher. Ever since Xibolai became the principal of the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy, he had never really taught a disciple. And this time, he had the urge to accept Linley Bart as his disciple. ¡°Linley Bart, your talent in sorcery is very good. Although you lost the competition, you are progressing very quickly. I can also be considered friends with your father¡­¡± ¡°I know. If it wasn¡¯t for my father, I might not even be able to get into this academy.¡± Xibolai was stunned for a moment. Although that was the truth, it was difficult for Xibolai to continue the conversation. Although the academy did allow some noble children to enter directly, this was also considered an unspoken rule. No one would say it out loud. ¡°I didn¡¯t recognize your talent back then and didn¡¯t expect you to improve so much in such a short time. Not bad.¡± ¡°Thank you, principal.¡± Linley Bart said very humbly. Fortunately, he had long known the question the principal had asked him and went to read up on it. Otherwise, he might have already been exposed. Linley didn¡¯t dare to imagine what would happen if his system was exposed. ¡°Ahem¡­ Are you interested in becoming my disciple?¡± Xibolai hesitated for a long while before saying. This was something that Xibolai had been thinking about for a long time. He felt that his knowledge had to be passed down. In the past, he was just a principal, an icon for the school. The only thing he had to do was provide magic power for the magic barrier of the academy and deliver his speech during the students¡¯ welcome ceremony and graduation ceremony. Even the speech was not written by him. Xibolai was already sick of such a life. He wanted to change and thus had an idea. That was to accept a disciple. Linley Bart was a very suitable candidate. Not only was he talented in magic, but he also liked his books. This meant that he could accept his legacy. ¡°You want to take me in as your disciple?¡± ¡°Yes, but not now. It has to be after the Five Great Sorcery Academy Competition. If you become my disciple before participating in the competition, it¡¯s inevitable that the others will say that it¡¯s unfair.¡± ¡°I understand.¡± ¡°However, I still hope that you can achieve a good result in this competition. Doing so will then make you worthy of becoming my disciple.¡± ¡°Yes, I will do my best!¡± After speaking these words, Linley suddenly heard a system notification. ¡°A Diamond Treasure Chest has been discovered!¡± A Diamond Treasure Chest had suddenly appeared behind Xibolai. As expected of the principal of the sorcery academy, who would have expected that a treasure chest would appear beside him. Based on Linley Bart¡¯s observations, treasure chests were more likely to appear in places where magical elements were abundant. The more magical elements there were, the higher the level of the treasure chest. Xibolai was a Holy Magister and thus naturally had plenty of magical elements around him. Unexpectedly, he had dropped a Diamond Treasure Chest within this short period of time. This caused Linley art to be overjoyed. Linley¡¯s joyful mood was also seen by Xibolai. He could understand. After all, becoming his disciple was something worth being happy about. He patted Linley Bart¡¯s shoulders. ¡°Since you are so hardworking and studious, I¡¯ll give you a present.¡± ¡°Present?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you like to read? I¡¯ll give you the key to the inner door of the library. With this key, you¡¯ll be able to enter the top floor of the library. There are more advanced magic books there. Before the competition, you can freely read and learn in the library.¡± ¡°Thank you, principal!¡± There were a total of ten floors in the library and each floor required a level key. Getting the key was determined by one¡¯s performance and magic level. Alice had only reached the seventh floor at most, yet she had already learned such a powerful ice magic spell. With the principal¡¯s key, Linley was able to enter the tenth floor! ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll leave now.¡± Xibolai patted Linley on the shoulder once more. Then, his figure turned into a blue light and disappeared. Linley Bart sighed in amazement. This was the power of a Holy Magister. Xibolai could go anywhere he wanted, and didn¡¯t even need to walk. But right now, Linley Bart was more concerned about the Diamond Treasure Chest that was originally behind Xibolai. ¡°Open the Diamond Treasure Chest!¡± ¡°Acquired ritualistic magic, Array Of Magic Disruption!¡± Effect Description; This is a ritualistic magic array that needs to be set up in advance. When the enemy enters the range of this ritualistic magic, all their magic spells and abilities will be disrupted and broken! Linley Bart¡¯s eyes widened. This was a bit too powerful. This was the world of sorcery and this spell could directly destroy spells of other sorcerers. This was equivalent to directly disarming them of their weapons. Could a sorcerer who couldn¡¯t cast spells be considered a sorcerer? As long as Linley Bart set up this magical array somewhere in advance, then no sorcerer would be able to defeat him. If he had obtained this ritualistic magic earlier, he would have been able to deal with Alice¡¯s suicidal magic attack. He just did not know if he could use this spell in the competition. If he could, the other sorcerers would definitely surrender immediately! Linley Bart had once again acquired yet another powerful weapon against sorcerers. It seemed as though this year¡¯s Five Great Sorcery Academy Competition would be a guaranteed victory for him. Chapter 31 - New Treasure Chest Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios Now that he had such a powerful killing technique, Linley Bart was even more confident in his chances in the Five Great Sorcery Academy Competition. But now that Linley Bart had met a powerful sorcerer like Principal Xibolai, Linley felt that there should be quite a number of powerful people on the continent. Although he could be invincible among his peers by relying on the Treasure Chest System, he could not fight against the more powerful sorcerers. No matter what, he had to become stronger. Only by becoming stronger could he gain a foothold in the continent. Since he currently had the principal¡¯s key and could freely go everywhere in the library, he should take this time to learn more magic spells. After he left the academy, he was not certain how many treasure chests he would be able to find. Therefore, he had to learn more magic spells before the competition! The Magic Library was a good choice. However, no matter how much he loved studying, it was good to wait until tomorrow. It was time to sleep. Even if there was a huge matter, it would have to wait until tomorrow. Just as Linley was sleeping soundly. His reputation had spread to all the academies in the entire continent almost overnight. The magical battle between Linley Bart and Alice was also known by the people of other academies. The two lower-grade students actually used forbidden spells. A month ago, Linley Bart had still been seen as a hedonistic son of a wealthy family. Now, he had become a sorcerer who could use extremely powerful spells. Many people definitely wouldn¡¯t think that Linley¡¯s talent was that great because his talent had already been tested before entering the school. It had been shown in the test that his talent in magic was very low. However, his current results were extraordinary. No weaklings who could reach the top ten in the internal competition. If an academy wanted to win the Five Great Sorcery Academy Competition, it would have to research and find out everything about the other academies. The battle between Linley and Alice had revealed magic that shocked the other sorcery academies. The matches this year would be very intense. Some sorcery academies were also secretly training harder when they had heard of this. After their research, although Linley Bart had some power, his talent was still too low. In addition, his ancestor¡¯s sorcery lineage was not really pure. His father didn¡¯t know any magic at all. In other words, he was not from a family of sorcerers and did not have a deep magic heritage. No matter how powerful he was, the magic he could master was limited. In comparison, although Alice¡¯s father was a king who started out as a mercenary, he was still a king after all. He had enough power to make Alice a powerful sorcerer. However, the news that Alice¡¯s vitality had been damaged because she had forcefully overused her magic had spread. If they could confirm that Alice could not fight, the pressure on the other academies would be much less. On the second day, Linley Bart woke up from his bed. The first thing he did was ask the system, ¡°Are there any treasure chests nearby?¡± This had already become a habit of his. The first thing he did after waking up everyday was to ask where the treasure chest was. ¡°Treasure chest found 1,789 meters to the east-west direction!¡± After learning the location of the treasure chest, Linley Bart was clearly very excited. However, the treasure chest was really far this time. In the past, it was never this far away. Perhaps his increase in magic power had allowed the system to extend its range of search. Thinking of this, Linley Bart felt happy for his own growth in power. Based on the system notification, Linley Bart continued to search for treasure chests. The location of the treasure chest was actually the hospital? There was indeed a hospital in the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy. Strictly speaking, although the sorcery academy was an academy. It was more like a small city by itself. There were shops, taverns, and hospitals in it. Anything that could be bought outside could also be bought inside the Sacred Dragon Institute. In the past, Linley Bart loved to spend money. He would buy all the things he liked at the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy and drink in the bar. Thus, Linley Bart was a regular customer of the restaurant. It was permitted for sorcerers to drink in small quantities. Drinking before meditating would increase one¡¯s affinity for magical elements. However, some sorcerers used this as an excuse to drink more than they should. The result was that they became drunk. When he arrived on the street, quite a few people recognized Linley Bart. Those who originally despised him all had admiration in their eyes. Right now, Linley Bart was considered quite a celebrity in the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy. ¡°Yo, it¡¯s Young Master Bart again. Is there anything you want to buy? I¡¯ll give you a 30% discount!¡± ¡°Bart! Are you coming to our tavern today? Everything is free for you today!¡± ¡°Too powerful. Is this Linley Bart? I don¡¯t even dare to look at him straight.¡± Everyone around was talking about Linley Bart, but Linley wasn¡¯t in the mood to care. All he wanted to do was to find the treasure chest. He walked till he reached the entrance of the hospital. Normal people would not come to the hospital. Only patients or patients would enter the hospital. Right now, Linley Bart wasn¡¯t injured at all. His visit to the hospital drew the attention of others. ¡°It¡¯s Linley Bart!¡± ¡°The sorcerer who dueled with Alice?¡± ¡°That¡¯s amazing, but why did he come to the hospital? Is he injured?¡± Linley Bart completely ignored all of their idle chatter. He followed the system¡¯s instructions and arrived in front of a ward. The door to this room was locked. But this wasn¡¯t a problem for Linley because he had once obtained a spell, Lock Picking, from the treasure chest! With this spell, no matter what sort of lock it was, it wouldn¡¯t be able to block Linley¡¯s path. Just like that, Linley Bart entered the room and locked the door. Inside, he found a Silver Treasure Chest¡­ And¡­ Alice? He then realized that this was Alice¡¯s ward. She had been unconscious since the duel with him. It should be the result of overusing her magic power. She slept peacefully, wearing a white hospital gown. Her long hair was draped over the blanket, and her breathing was even. Chapter 32 - Spring of Life Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios For now, Linley Bart didn¡¯t care about Alice. All he wanted was to get the treasure chest. ¡°Open the Silver Treasure Chest!¡± ¡°Congratulations to the host for obtaining a Grade B spell, Shadow Clone Technique!¡± The Shadow Clone Technique could make the user¡¯s shadow become a clone that looked similar to the user. The user would temporarily lose his shadow. When the shadow clone suffered a certain amount of damage, it would turn back into a shadow and return to the host. The shadow clone and the main body were independent. No matter which of them was injured, it would not affect the other party. The main body could completely control the shadow clone. This was a good spell. Linley Bart nodded, feeling very satisfied. Just as he was about to leave. A voice suddenly stopped him. ¡°Hey¡ª¡± Linley Bart turned his head awkwardly. Alice had woken up. The first thing she saw when she woke up was Linley Bart. ¡°You woke up?¡± Linley Bart sincerely expressed his concern. ¡°Since you are fine, I¡¯ll leave now.¡± ¡°Why are you in my ward?¡± After Alice woke up, she had realized that she was in the hospital. The first thing that caught her eye after she woke up was Linley Bart. ¡°Do you believe that I just happened to pass by?¡± Linley Bart said. ¡°Have you been here all night?¡± Alice looked suspiciously at Linley Bart. A thought suddenly occurred to her. ¡°Do you like me?¡± Linley Bart was extremely surprised, not knowing why Alice would think this way. Seeing the look on Linley Bart¡¯s face, Alice was certain. ¡°Why else would you come to my room? And why are you at the hospital only when I am here? You¡¯ve always wanted to be by my side, right?¡± ¡°It¡¯s just a coincidence.¡± ¡°You¡¯re lying.¡± Alice had her own speculations. ¡°You want to attract my attention, right? Be it sneaking into my room or losing to me in the competition, you just want to attract my attention¡­¡± ¡°I really did not want to do that.¡± ¡°Then why did you admit defeat when you were clearly going to win?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t want you to die.¡± ¡°You still care about me.¡± Alice could sense and thought that Linley Bart definitely liked her. Otherwise, he would not appear in front of her so many times. Moreover, when she woke up, she only saw him and no one else. Did he accompany her here for a long time? Alice blushed at the thought. ¡°You¡¯re amazing, but I don¡¯t like you right now, so stop sneaking around,¡± Alice said. Linley Bart felt that there must be some sort of misunderstanding between them, but it was hard for him to explain his way out. He was also someone who did not like to explain too much. ¡°Forget it, you can think whatever you want. I¡¯m leaving.¡± ¡°Wait¡± ¡°Is there anything else?¡± ¡°We could be friends.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Friends. In other words, I acknowledge you as my friend¡­ In the future, we might even become lovers.¡± Alice said the last sentence very quietly. ¡°I don¡¯t mind being friends, but let¡¯s not be lovers.¡± ¡°Hmph!¡± Alice seemed to be looking at the window angrily. After a moment of silence, Alice suddenly said, ¡°I might not be able to go to the competition this time¡­¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t you win? We¡¯re all in the top ten. We should all be able to go compete there.¡± ¡°But as you can see, my situation is pretty bad now. In order to use that magic, I had overused my magic. In the following matches, I would have a hard time defeating my opponent. To defeat you, I¡¯ve already used everything I have.¡± ¡°Are you giving up?¡± Linley Bart was a little surprised. This was different from Alice¡¯s powerful will in the arena. She had a very strong will to fight in the arena and didn¡¯t want to give up. She only wanted to win. She wanted to defeat all the enemies in front of her. It was also due to her strong fighting spirit that she recklessly used magic beyond her current level. Although Linley Bart had admitted defeat in order to prevent Alice from continuing to use the forbidden magic spell, it could be said that Alice¡¯s fighting spirit was also the one that caused Linley Bart to admit defeat. But now, this girl said that she was not going to participate in the following matches? Didn¡¯t this mean that she was prepared to admit defeat? ¡°You can do it. Don¡¯t admit defeat so easily.¡± Linley Bart felt that Alice¡¯s current state was perhaps also due to him. He felt more or less guilty. In the competition, the spells that Alice had used were her hard efforts that she had put in throughout the years. Linley Bart had merely relied on the treasure chest to acquire magic spells and had easily surpassed her. She did not do anything wrong. She was only fighting with all her might. Linley Balt then took out the water from the Spring of Life. ¡°Forget it, let¡¯s just treat this as me doing something good. This is for you.¡± Linley Bart placed the spring water from the Spring of Life in front of Alice. This could help her recover her vitality and make up for the damage she had suffered due to overusing her magic power. ¡°This is?¡± ¡°It¡¯s just water.¡± ¡°But why do I feel magic power coming from the water?¡± Alice was a water magic sorcerer. She could feel that there was a very powerful magic power in this bottle of water. This type of magic was very gentle and would be very helpful to her. ¡°You can recover if you drink it.¡± ¡°This is precious, isn¡¯t it?¡± As a sorcerer, Alice knew that magic medicines that could quickly restore magic power were very expensive. ¡°It¡¯s alright, aren¡¯t we friends?¡± Linley Bart said. He didn¡¯t know how long it had been since he last said the word ¡®friend¡¯. Alice stared at Linley Bart for a long time before she drank the bottle of Spring of Life. After she drank it, the vitality from the spring water started repairing the damage in her body she had suffered from overusing magic. The Spring of Life was known as the source of all life. Thus, it could naturally repair all damage. Alice had originally thought that it was just an ordinary healing potion. However, after drinking the spring water and feeling the changes in her body, she realized that almost all her magic was restored in an instant! The effect was too amazing! Chapter 33 - Elizabeth Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios After Alice fully recovered, she even felt that her magic power was stronger than before. ¡°What exactly did you give me to drink?¡± ¡°Spring of Life.¡± Since she had already drunk it, Linley Bart then told the truth. Alice was shocked. She knew what the Spring of Life was. It was something that all sorcerers dreamed of. It was the closest to the Philosopher¡¯s Stone, a precious alchemy material. Anyone who didn¡¯t die would be able to come back to life after drinking a mouthful of spring water from the Spring of Life. The price for this spring water was insanely high on the market. Yet, he had actually given it to her to drink so easily? Alice no longer knew how she felt. She was filled with gratitude towards Linley Bart, but she was too embarrassed to say words of thanks to him. ¡°Thank¡­ thank you¡­¡± Alice lowered her head and whispered. But no voice ever responded to her. By the time she looked up again, Linley Bart was already gone. Linley Bart didn¡¯t want to stay here and cause trouble. He asked the system again, but this time round, he did not find any treasure chests in the school. Almost all the treasure chests from the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy had been dug up by him and the chances of the treasure chests being refreshed were decreasing. He could not stay in one place. He had to leave the sorcery academy and go somewhere else to find new treasure chests. However, as it was soon time for the Five Great Sorcery Academy Competition, the academy did not allow students to leave on their own. This was to prevent the people from the other academies from secretly plotting against them. One had to know that this was a matter of the highest honor of a mage. It would not be an exaggeration to say that the other party was willing to play any underhanded tricks just to win. Linley Bart realized that he now had nowhere else to go. Remembering that he still had the library key which the principal had given him, Linley Bart decided to go study magic in detail. In the library, Linley Bart had set his eyes on his next target. Perhaps the instant Linley Bart had decided to go to the library, the gears of fate began to turn. The library of the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy was very tall. It was a tower with a total of ten floors. Only those with corresponding strength were qualified to go up one floor. The higher the level, the better the magic spells stored. At the lowest level, there were basically only some low-level magic spells. Linley Bart didn¡¯t bother about those low-level spells. He had the key given to him by the principal and wanted to go to the top floor to see what powerful spells there were to learn. The route to the top of the library was a spiral staircase that was extremely long. One would never reach the end of the stairway if one did not have any magical talent, even if one forced himself to go up. However, if one had enough magic talent, the stairs will automatically let you up. Therefore, this staircase was also regarded as a symbol of strength. In the history of the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy, there were only a handful of people who could reach the tenth floor. Linley Bart had the principal¡¯s key and thus wasn¡¯t in a rush. Just as Linley Bart was about to walk upwards, something unexpected happened. A girl had suddenly descended from the sky. She was a girl with purple hair. To be honest, she did not descend from the sky. She had fallen off the tower because she had accidentally lost her footing. Linley Bart was able to avoid her if he wanted to. However, he had already caught the girl¡¯s body in his arms while he was thinking. Compared to avoiding it, this should be the correct judgment. Immediately after, he regretted his decision. He had made a wrong choice. One would understand the reason once one caught this girl. Her body was very light, unreasonably light. It was like a joke. It was inconceivable and extremely terrifying! It was as if she wasn¡¯t here at all and he was holding a transparent person. It could be said that she had no weight at all¡­ Even scarier, she shouted out his name. ¡°Linley Bart?¡± Yes, he knew her. To be more precise, the previous Linley Bart had known her. Elizabeth. She was known as a sickly girl in the entire academy. But no one knew if she had any illness. They only knew that her body was very weak. Everyone in the academy knew of this. Hence, she naturally wouldn¡¯t participate in any extracurricular activities. She didn¡¯t even attend Linley Bart¡¯s duel with Alice, even though it was a match that shook the entire academy. Actually, Linley and Elizabeth had known each other since they were young. She seemed to have a disease since she was young and looked very weak. It could be said that she was weak, but she was definitely not frail at all. She gave people the illusion that she was so thin that she could be injured even with a light touch. Therefore, many boys joked in private that she was the ¡°princess in bed¡±. That¡¯s right, Elizabeth was also a princess. In addition, she was the princess of the Menglei Empire, where Linley Bolt was located. Their clan served the Menglei Empire. It could be said that the King was Linley Bart¡¯s father¡¯s direct superior. Elizabeth could also be said to be Linley Bart¡¯s superior. When they were young and Elizabeth was still at court, they were considered friends. However, Elizabeth always liked to read books alone. Sometimes, she would read books that had very deep content. It could be said that Elizabeth had been a genius in magic since she was young. Furthermore, she was the genius among geniuses. Linley Bart had relied on his father¡¯s reputation to enter the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy. Princess Elizabeth, on the other hand, was invited here by the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy. The difference between the two was obvious. The treatment she received after entering the school was also vastly different. She didn¡¯t even need to attend classes. Yet, she was still considered a student here. Perhaps Linley Bart and Elizabeth could be considered friends when they were young. However, when Elizabeth grew up, her attitude towards Linley Bart had become extremely vile. In fact, it could even be said that she hated him. After all, Linley Bart¡¯s reputation was very poor. In everyone¡¯s eyes, he was a profligate son who only knew how to spend money. Such a person would not be liked anywhere. After arriving at the academy, Linley Bart and Elizabeth had barely met each other. However, they were still considered childhood friends. However, their reunion had allowed Linley Bart to discover Elizabeth¡¯s secret¡­ She was weightless. Chapter 34 - Needle In The M Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios ¡°Elizabeth?¡± The instant Linley Bart said these words, a small knife stabbed into his mouth. It was a very cold knife. It pressed tightly against Linley¡¯s mouth. Furthermore, it came at an unimaginable speed. Linley Bart didn¡¯t even have any time to react. Before he could act, the knife had already reached Linley Bart¡¯s mouth. She didn¡¯t hesitate, nor did she use much force. The knife just so happened to be right next to Linley Bart¡¯s mouth, with the blade of the knife touching the insides of the mouth. Linley Bart¡¯s jaw dropped and he didn¡¯t dare to move. This was probably an experience even closer to death than when he was in the duel with Alice. Linley Bart completely believed that as long as he moved, or did anything offensive, Elizabeth would swing her knife down without hesitation. Linley¡¯s intuition told him not to act rashly. Terrifying. Linley Bart thought to himself. He was not afraid of the knife in his mouth. What he was afraid of was Elizabeth herself. As a normal person, one would not easily put a knife into someone else¡¯s mouth. Besides, Linley Bart had caught her from upstairs. Although he had also discovered Elizabeth¡¯s secret that she had no weight. Elizabeth¡¯s gaze was as sharp as a blade. Linley Bart thought to himself. He was convinced. With a knife in his mouth, Linley Bart saw neither hesitation nor pity in Elizabeth¡¯s eyes. He was now convinced. Elizabeth would kill him. ¡°I remember you, Linley Bart. You are a creature as disgusting as a cockroach. You should have felt it, and you should have known. You shouldn¡¯t have done that the moment you hugged me.¡± ¡°Ah, this¡­¡± ¡°What? Do you feel lonely on the right? How about this?¡± Elizabeth raised her left hand again. That quick movement made Linley Bart feel as though he was about to be slapped. But it wasn¡¯t like that. Elizabeth held a needle. Before he could see it clearly, she had already inserted the entire needle into Linley¡¯s mouth once again. Then, she slowly pushed it forward, and the tip of the needle pierced into his flesh. He couldn¡¯t talk any more now. Seeing Linley Bart¡¯s reaction, Elizabeth let out an exaggerated sigh. ¡°I was really stupid. I was very careful when I went upstairs, yet something like this had still happened. I didn¡¯t expect there to be water in such a place.¡± Water? Did she step on water and slip? Why was there water on the stairs of the library? Who dared to casually use magic in the library? ¡°Did you find out?¡± Elizabeth asked him. Her fierce gaze was like that of a lion cub. ¡°I have no weight.¡± Right. No weight. ¡°Even so, it¡¯s not completely weightless. Based on my height and build, my average weight should be more than forty kilograms.¡± Linley Bart thought that she looked about fifty kilograms as she didn¡¯t look so thin. Suddenly, the inner left side of his mouth blocked by the knife had more pressure exerted on it, while the needle on the right went into his mouth even deeper. Pain! Intense pain! ¡°Don¡¯t let your imagination run wild. Were you thinking about my naked body just now?¡± Her guess was wrong. ¡°About forty kilograms.¡± Elizabeth reiterated. It should have been the case. ¡°But my actual weight is only five kilograms.¡± Five kilograms? It was almost the weight of a newborn baby. He thought about the dumbbells that weighed five kilograms. He could not say that they weighed close to zero. However, if a person only weighed five kilograms, it would be a problem of density. It was also easier to catch one when one was light. ¡°Sigh¡­ Actually, it¡¯s just that my weight is only five kilograms. However, I can¡¯t sense it myself. Personally, I still feel like I¡¯m weighing forty kilograms.¡± Was it because the effects of gravity had decreased on her? Disregarding mass and volume and assuming that the weight of water is 1. Humans could be said to be made up of water and thus their weight should also be about 1. Elizabeth, on the other hand, only weighed a tenth of her weight. If the density of the bones was also this number, she would probably experience osteoporosis in the blink of an eye. Be it her internal organs or her brain, they would not be able to function normally. Thus, that definitely wasn¡¯t the case. From the memories of Linley Bart as a child, she didn¡¯t merely weigh just five kilograms. However, she was like this now. Then there was only one possibility. She had been cursed. Magic could make something defy logic and change it from the original form but not for long. However, a curse would remain forever. The princess was really an easy target to curse. ¡°I know what you¡¯re thinking.¡± Can you read my mind? Linley Bart didn¡¯t dare to speak. ¡°You kept staring at my chest. It¡¯s a really unpleasant feeling. Although I¡¯ve heard that you¡¯re very lecherous, you were clearly not like this when you were young. The older you grew, the less adorable you have become.¡± This was definitely not the case! Elizabeth was a girl with a strong sense of self-importance. It was natural for her to think that she was pretty. ¡°I hate people without character.¡± Under such circumstances, misunderstandings were impossible to be rectified. No matter what, what Linley Bart needed to consider now was how to escape this predicament. His life was still in Elizabeth¡¯s hands. He really hoped that the system would give him a treasure chest. However, the system did not seem to have heard his prayers. There was no response. ¡°This happened before I came to the magic academy.¡± Elizabeth said. ¡°I had met with a demon.¡± Chapter 35 - System Mission Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios Devil? ¡°My weight was taken away.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter if you can¡¯t understand it. I know that with your tiny brain, you wouldn¡¯t be able to understand such a complicated matter. Thus, Linley Bart¡­ Linley Bart¡­¡± Elizabeth kept repeating his name. ¡°I don¡¯t have any weight at all. However, I¡¯m not really in a difficult position as no one knows my secret. Not even the principal, Xibolai, the dean, Atais, or even my mentor, Wilson knows about it. Thus for now, only you know of this secret, student Linley Bart.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Then, in order for you to remain silent, what should I do? For my sake, what should I do? Should I tear your mouth apart? Or should I make you swear to keep it a secret? Student Linley Bart?¡± A knife. A Needle. Calmly using such a method to deal with her childhood sweetheart and her childhood friend. He couldn¡¯t believe that there was actually had such a person. Linley Bart felt that when he was young, he was lucky to even be able to survive under her hands. ¡°The doctors said that the reason why I am like this is unclear. Rather than saying that, it¡¯s better to say that there¡¯s no reason for it. Even though I had disregarded the humiliation of letting others examine my body, I did not manage to find the solution to my problem. All the doctors merely named the possibilities, but never a proper solution.¡± Elizabeth mocked herself. ¡°Don¡¯t you think it¡¯s too stupid? When I was young, I was still an ordinary and cute girl.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Let¡¯s not talk about whether she was cute. But Elizabeth had never been an ordinary child. She was too talented in magic and had been regarded as a genius since she was young. She was even thought to have the potential to become a Holy Magister. But for a genius sorcerer like her to become like this was something which Linley Bart had never imagined. These memories came from Linley¡¯s memories. Speaking of which, there was no deep hatred between them. At most, they had some conversations when they were young. But¡­ Linley Bart suddenly remembered that Elizabeth was not on the list of the top ten students. It should be said that she did not participate in the internal competition at all. But with her strength, it should not be a problem for her to get first or second place. Did she not participate in the competition because she lost her weight? Was there any connection between losing weight and using magic? This had even made her give up such an important opportunity to participate in the Five Great Sorcery Academy Competition. After all, the event was the highest honor for sorcerers. If one didn¡¯t have sufficient a reason, one wouldn¡¯t readily give up the chance. No sorcerer could give up so easily. ¡°Sympathy? How gentle.¡± Elizabeth said as though she had thrown away Linley Bart¡¯s pity. ¡°But I don¡¯t need any gentleness.¡± Elizabeth made such a declaration. ¡°All I want is silence and no concern, just the way it was previously. I do not need other people¡¯s pity and care.¡± Elizabeth smiled. ¡°If you can remain silent and not care about what you have just found out, nod twice. Student Linley Bart, if you make any other actions, you will be viewed as having done an act of enmity, and will be immediately attacked.¡± Wasn¡¯t there no other choice? Linley Bart believed Elizabeth¡¯s words. This wasn¡¯t just a threat. The needle and knife were still in his mouth. Cold sweat filled his back. He nodded twice. ¡°Understood.¡± Elizabeth seemed relieved. There was no other choice given and no room for negotiation. The only way was to agree with the other party¡¯s request. ¡°Thank you.¡± Elizabeth held her knife tightly and slowly pulled it out carefully without doing anything funny. Next was the needle. ¡°Ah!¡± There was nothing to say. All he felt was pain. Elizabeth had stabbed the needle with all her might into his mouth previously. Linley Bart used his hand to cover his mouth which was now in deep pain. ¡°Not bad.¡± She pretended as if nothing had happened. Elizabeth lowered her head to look at Linley Bart as she spoke with contempt. ¡°I¡¯ll let you off this time. Don¡¯t overestimate yourself. If you don¡¯t show your sincerity, this is the result.¡± ¡°Ah, you¡ª¡± Just as Linley Bart was about to say something, Elizabeth brandished the knife. ¡°Then Linley Bart, from today onwards, just ignore me. It would be best if you could forget what happened today. Just treat today as a painful memory.¡± After saying this, without looking at Linley Bart¡¯s reaction, Elizabeth turned and left in a hurry. By the time Linley Bart had managed to get to his feet, she had already turned a corner and was out of sight. ¡°What a devilish woman.¡± She dared to do what she had said and didn¡¯t care about Linley Bart at all. In order to confirm the condition of his face, he touched his face despite the continuous pain from earlier. Fortunately, it was fine. It was not pierced. However, it seems that it was bleeding. This was only natural. Luckily, it was not that serious. He could feel the pain but there was not much injury seen. What a terrifying woman. Had she calculated to this extent? Elizabeth. His childhood playmate had become so terrifying. ¡°Ding! Mission: Save Elizabeth!¡± ¡°Reward: As long as you do not die, you will be able to recover to your optimal state within 100 seconds.¡± The system¡¯s voice sounded. This was not some kind of magic, but a special ability that could be regarded as a miracle. He could fully recover within 100 seconds as long as he did not die. It did not matter what injury he had sustained or what weakness he was suffering from. In other words, as long as he did not receive fatal damage, he would not need 100 seconds to recover before he could move. Instead, it was a continuous recovery that lasted 100 seconds. In other words, if it was just a slight injury, he would basically recover in an instant. It was a very useful ability. However, the difficulty of this mission¡­ Elizabeth was not a girl with a good temper. He could feel it from when he had come into contact with her. It might be a dangerous mission. Should he accept it? Why not? It would be good to give it a try. What if he managed to succeed? It wasn¡¯t Linley Bart¡¯s style to admit defeat before doing anything. It was time to chase after her. Linley Bart made his decision in a split second. Elizabeth must not have gone far. He decided to continue walking up the stairs to find her. Elizabeth could easily reach the eighth and ninth levels. However, she stopped on the ninth floor. And found Linley Bart. Although her back was still facing Linley Bart, she turned her head around. She let out a cold gaze towards him. ¡°I have never thought that you will still come to find me.¡± Elizabeth said. ¡°No, perhaps you are thinking of taking revenge on me after what I had done to you earlier? Well well, you are the first who dared to do so.¡± ¡°The first?¡± In other words, she had done similar things to others before. Chapter 36 - Prophecy Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios It seems that she had done this a number of times before. Terrifying. ¡°Alright, I understand. I understand. Student Linley Bart, you merely want to retaliate after being subjected to the sudden attack previously. Thus, I am in fact prepared for it.¡± Elizabeth said. She waved her hands. ¡°Let¡¯s fight!¡± Wind, lightning, earth, and fire. The magic circle representing the four elements appeared under her feet. There was even the Seven Luminaries Magic Array circling around her. Flames, lightning, hurricanes, ice cones, sunfire, moonwater, treants, bows, spears, light swords. This was not just a simple knife and a simple needle, but real magic. In that instant, he felt a heavy pressure coming from the elements of magic that had surrounded Elizabeth. Genius, a true genius. In an instant, she had used almost all the magic she knew. Just as she said, it was a fight. Without any hesitation or mercy, she unleashed all of her attacks as soon as the battle began. All the other students regarded as geniuses in the academy were nothing in front of Elizabeth. Even Alice couldn¡¯t help but admire her if she had met her. Danger. Extreme danger. ¡°Ah, no. I¡¯m not here to fight.¡± ¡°Not here to fight?¡± She sounded very regretful. However, she did not retract her arms. The magic still swirled around her, glittering. ¡°Then what¡¯s the matter?¡± ¡°Perhaps¡­¡± Linley Bart said. ¡°I can help you.¡± ¡°Help me?¡± Elizabeth whole-heartedly jeered. Angry? ¡°Don¡¯t be ridiculous. I don¡¯t want cheap sympathy. What can you do? Keep quiet. Ignoring me is the best way to help.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°I will view any gentleness as hostility.¡± She went up a flight of stairs. She was serious. Her decisiveness had been clearly evident from before. How annoying. So. He had to do something to gain her trust. ¡°I like you.¡± Linley Bart said. This was the first time he had confessed to a girl since he was young. He could not find a more suitable excuse to help Elizabeth through his identity. A confession. This was the only solution Linley Bart had. Only through this method could they subtly close the distance between them. ¡°Oh?¡± Elizabeth didn¡¯t have much of a change in expression. She simply said casually, ¡°When did you start liking me?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure¡­ Perhaps it started since we were young.¡± Linley Bart could only say this because in his memories, the two of them had only interacted when they were young. He couldn¡¯t possibly say that he had just fallen in love with her. Who would fall in love with her just now with what she had done? Only people who liked being tortured would like it under those circumstances. In conclusion, Linley Bart was just making it up. He never had the slightest bit of feelings for Elizabeth. However, Elizabeth looked disgusted. ¡°Disgusting! I didn¡¯t expect you to have a lolita complex!¡± Linley Bart remembered that when they had met in the castle as children, they had only been six or seven years old. ¡°Initially, I thought that you were merely as disgusting as a cockroach. I didn¡¯t expect you to be a scumbag too.¡± ¡°No, I didn¡¯t mean¡ª¡± ¡°I already understood what you¡¯re thinking. I think the choice to make you ignore what had just happened was a mistake. You should go and die for the betterment of mankind¡­ I suggest you to go out and find a tree. After that, hang a rope on it, put your neck in it and hang yourself.¡± How heartless. ¡°Forget it, I just wanted to help you.¡± ¡°I just told you I don¡¯t need any help.¡± Elizabeth did not trust Linley Bart. Come to think of it, who would believe a person with a terrible reputation? Linley Bart could be said to be a hedonistic son of a wealthy family. He had to do something to convince her. ¡°You¡¯ll get hit in the head with a book.¡± Linley Bart suddenly said this. ¡°Hmm? This is really¡­¡± Before Elizabeth could finish, a book had hit her on the head. She looked incredulous. ¡°What did you do?¡± ¡°Prophecy.¡± Linley Bart spoke the name of this spell. ¡°Are you kidding me? You know the spell Prophecy?¡± Elizabeth¡¯s expression changed from cold to disbelief. Prophecy was not something that could simply predict the future. It was magic that could influence the future to a certain extent. As long as one used the spell to dictate something that would happen in the future, there was a chance that it would succeed. Of course, the greater the prophecy, the greater the magic power required. That was for sure. If anyone ever said that the world was going to be destroyed. That was probably something only God could do. But predictions that are specific such as the fall of a book which will not have a significant impact on the present and the future, could be easily achieved. It could be said that the fewer people it affected, the more accurate the prophecy and the higher chance of it succeeding. This spell could be said to be the closest to the language of the gods. It was lost centuries ago. ¡°How did you learn Prophecy?¡± Elizabeth said. ¡°It¡¯s a secret.¡± ¡°You can really help me?¡± ¡°Of course I can. With my Prophecy spell, I can help you.¡± ¡°You know the consequences of lying to me, don¡¯t you?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve already experienced it.¡± ¡°However, I still can¡¯t believe you. But since you¡¯ve already predicted something once, I can reluctantly see what you want to do. If you make an excessive request, I¡¯ll definitely take revenge on you.¡± ¡°I just want to help you. I won¡¯t make any outrageous demands.¡± ¡°What about your reward? I don¡¯t believe you would be so kind as to help me for free.¡± ¡°Reward?¡± To be honest, the system had already given it to him. But since she said so, Linley Bart turned to look at Elizabeth. Chapter 37 - Curse Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios ¡°Despicable.¡± Elizabeth¡¯s unfriendly gaze suggested that she had misunderstood him once again. ¡°I just want you to teach me to learn magic.¡± ¡°Can¡¯t you learn from your teacher? Or are you just trying to get close to me using the excuse of learning magic?¡± ¡°I mainly want to treat you. It won¡¯t be too late to talk about remuneration after I have successfully treated you.¡± ¡°Are you a healing magic sorcerer? If you only know trivial magic, then I advise you not to be delusional. This is a curse from a demon. It can¡¯t be removed easily.¡± ¡°I¡¯m confident.¡± In truth, Linley Bart¡¯s confidence came from the system. While opening the various treasure chests, he had once picked up a spell, Expelling Curse. Curse was a magic that brought bad luck. It was also one of the oldest spells that existed. There were only two kinds of the oldest magic, and they were all prayers to God. There were only two outcomes. One was a curse while the other was a blessing. Those who were blessed by the gods could easily become heroes. However, if one was cursed by the gods, one would have to live his entire life under misfortune. A curse was a terrifying spell. Yet, it could also be said to be one of the most basic spells. However, there were not many people who could master curse magic because curse magic did not rely on the magical elements. It was a spell that relied solely on one¡¯s mental strength. Hence, those with weak mental strength were eliminated right from the start. Curse was also an extremely evil magic and was not taught directly in the various academies. Most curses were sealed in ancient books or some evil parchment. All in all, curses were not usually seen. However, there were many ways to attract curses. Examples include disrespecting the gods or angering the elves of the magical elements. The most direct way was to make a deal with the demons. Demons usually bestowed great power upon one, but at the same time, they would take something from one in exchange. Such evil deals were prohibited in the sorcery world. However, there was still a steady stream of sorcerers making deals with demons because the powerful evil magic was a strong attraction to every sorcerer who was keen on exploring the mysteries of magic. On top of that, the demons had many ways to entice sorcerers who were not mentally determined to sign contracts with them¡­ Once they signed the contract, they would immediately be cursed. If the contract was not nullified, then the curse was almost impossible to remove. But Linley Bart was different. He had a system. However, it was difficult to convince Elizabeth. If she used the power of the system directly, she would definitely be suspicious. ¡°How are you going to help me?¡± Elizabeth asked the most crucial question. ¡°Only you can help yourself.¡± Elizabeth gave a look of skepticism. ¡°Up until now, there have been five charlatans who have said the same thing to me and they are all liars. Are you one as well, Linley Bolt?¡± ¡°At least tell me what happened to you.¡± This was out of Linley Bart¡¯s own curiosity. He really wanted to know. After all, she was once his childhood friend. What had happened to Elizabeth? She seemed to hesitate. After a long period of silence. Elizabeth let out a long sigh. ¡°If you dare to say this to anyone else, you¡¯re dead.¡± She said this very seriously. This was a very explicit threat to Linley Bart. After that, she started to explain her story. ¡°I¡¯m a genius, and my life is completely different from a foolish person like you. Geniuses have their own troubles, but I don¡¯t think you¡¯ll ever understand¡­¡± Linley Bart was speechless after hearing what Elizabeth had said. Why must you scold me? Elizabeth was a genius among geniuses. Not only was she a genius in magic, but she was also an all-rounder genius. No matter the difficulty, Elizabeth could learn anything easily. Art, literature, riding, swordplay, magic¡­ The skills that other people took their entire lives to practice and master could be easily grasped by Elizabeth. All geniuses would feel ashamed in front of her. As the princess of an empire, she had the best teacher and the best talent. No matter what she was doing, she was made to do her best and Elizabeth had the ability to do it. Just like that, Elizabeth grew up under everyone¡¯s expectant gazes. She was simply a perfect incarnation. No matter what was put in front of her, she could easily learn it and quickly surpass even her teacher. However, the mysteries of magic were endless. Elizabeth could master everything fully except for magic. Elizabeth was a well-known genius in magic. However, the ultimate mystery of magic was something that no one had been able to comprehend since ancient times. Elizabeth was almost at the end of her pursuit of magic. It was not that her talent had reached its end, but that magic in the mortal world had reached its limit. She had read all the books in the libraries and learned everything there was available for her to learn. She had even developed and uncovered lost magic spells that originally only existed in books. However, this still did not fully satisfy Elizabeth¡¯s desire to pursue magic. She kept studying and studying until one day, she had finally found a demon contract in an ancient book. Devil¡¯s magic. This was a domain that was less explored. This was because demons symbolized evil and were considered taboo. Furthermore, it had a very strong power to corrupt people. Thus, it had been classified as a form of magic forbidden to be touched in the sorcery world. Elizabeth had already researched all the magic that was made available to her. However, through her research, she had also found out that there were other forms of magic that were more powerful. This was extremely attractive to a genius like Elizabeth. How could she allow herself not to learn such magic? This was the arrogance of a genius. She felt that everything should be under her control. Demons were merely part of magic to her. Thus, Elizabeth began to study the magic of demons through the ancient books. Soon after, she found an ancient ritual in the books and managed to summon a demon using it. However, summoning a demon also came with a price. Chapter 38 - The Price Of Becoming A Genius Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios Her weight and mass had been traded away. In exchange, the demon taught Elizabeth evil magic. Evil. The dark side of magic. This was real black magic. It was something that a black magic sorcerer focused on researching in his entire life. At this point, Elizabeth had mastered all types of magic, no matter good or bad. She was almost proficient in nearly all types of magic, but as a price, Elizabeth lost her weight. Only then did Elizabeth realize that she wasn¡¯t perfect anymore. Although it was not obvious from the outside that she was incomplete, the fact was that she had lost her weight. It could be said that she was no longer a normal person. Anything heavy placed on her was a huge burden, including her clothes. Those clothes were very heavy on her body, and even a slight breeze of wind could blow her away. She could even float on water. Thus, Elizabeth decided to hide from everyone¡¯s view. She could not let anyone find out about her abnormality. As her loss of weight and mass was due to the contract with the demons, it was nearly impossible for her to get rid of the curse. Elizabeth could not leave the house. This was because once she did, any slight wind would make her feel full of discomfort. A single leaf could easily crush Elizabeth. This was the price of losing her weight, one that was very heavy. She had cast many spells on herself, but even so, she could only barely reach the constitution of an ordinary person, allowing her to not be blown away by the wind. Elizabeth finally realized what she had lost. That was something important to a person. The concept of weight and mass. If it had disappeared from a person¡¯s body, it would be difficult for one to remain as a human. Just like how a person cannot lose one¡¯s own shadow, weight was something that accompanied one throughout one¡¯s life. This was the cunning aspect of all demons. They would take things that one thought were insignificant, whereas in actual fact they were very important and dear to one. And if one wanted what one had lost back, one would have to pay a bigger price until the demon took control of one¡¯s entire soul, causing one to fall into hell and be under the control of the demon forever. Elizabeth didn¡¯t step into the demon¡¯s trap. She didn¡¯t choose to continue making deals with the demon. Instead, she continued to study magic, hoping that she would be able to lift the curse one day. Hence, Elizabeth went to the Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy and entered its library. The library in the academy was known as the most comprehensive magic library on the entire continent. She wanted to find a spell that could break the demon contract and remove the curse that was placed on her. However, her search was fruitless. That was until today when she had met Linley Bart. ¡°That¡¯s my story, what do you think? How¡¯s the feeling of prying into a young girl¡¯s privacy, Student Linley Bart.¡± Linley Bart didn¡¯t expect Elizabeth to be such an extreme person. However, geniuses had their own character. He didn¡¯t expect Elizabeth to have the courage to make a deal with a demon. However, she still lost to the demon in the end and was subjected to the curse. Therefore, it could be seen that geniuses were not omnipotent. ¡°I can think of something.¡± ¡°Oh?¡± ¡°However, this requires a ritual.¡± Actually, there was no need for a ritual. It was merely added to make Elizabeth believe in it. Otherwise, with her wariness and vigilance, she might retaliate the moment he had cast the magic spell. That was why he had to act a bit to make it more convincing. ¡°What should I do?¡± ¡°You should at least take a shower first and then change into a clean set of clothes. You don¡¯t need a new one, just a clean one. That¡¯s about it.¡± Actually, Linley Bart didn¡¯t know what to prepare for ritualistic magic and thus just randomly named some conditions. ¡°Clean myself?¡± Elizabeth thought for a moment, then looked at Linley Bart. ¡°Come with me.¡± Half an hour later. They had left the library and went to Elizabeth¡¯s house. Her house was a castle. This castle was very luxurious. It could be said that it was completely built according to the requirements of the royal family. However, this was only natural. This was because Elizabeth was in fact a princess. However, there was no one in this castle, not even the most basic servants. Thus, it seemed very empty inside. But then again, it made sense as Elizabeth was a maniac in magic research. She had even made a deal with demons for her magic research. It would be best if there was no one at home. In case anyone found out her secret. In short, after arriving at home, Elizabeth became a bit different than when she was outside. As though she had become a princess, she even poured a cup of tea for Linley. It was considered the most basic etiquette for entertaining guests, but it was usually done by maids. Thinking of this, Linley Bart looked at Elizabeth. If she could wear a maid costume, it would be quite an interesting sight. ¡°Are you thinking about something extremely disgusting? Linley Bart?¡± He had been seen through. ¡°Your gaze is too direct.¡± ¡°No way.¡± After pouring the tea, Elizabeth completely ignored Linley Bart and entered the bathroom to take a bath. The bathroom was in her room with only a curtain separating her and Linley Bart. She didn¡¯t plan on chasing Linley away either. Instead, she started bathing. She was not shy at all. Was this the royal family? ¡°The tea is really quite good.¡± The atmosphere was rather awkward. Linley Bart wanted to try and break the ice. If there was a treasure chest in front of him, it might be even better. Unfortunately, there was not a single treasure chest in this castle. Perhaps it was because there was usually no one here, nor was there any gathering of magical elements. ¡°I didn¡¯t expect you to know the art of tea brewing as well.¡± ¡°I know a little about the art of brewing tea.¡± ¡°The skills of the tea-brewer also play a crucial role, no?¡± ¡°Do you want me to praise you?¡± ¡°Your praise will only make me feel disgusted, so I¡¯ll pass.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Tell me, how are you going to help me?¡± ¡°As I said, you have to save yourself.¡± Linley Bart thought for a moment before he said, ¡°Let me tell you a story, Princess.¡± ¡°Although I¡¯m not very interested in the story you¡¯re telling me and there¡¯s a high chance that it¡¯s some obscene story, I don¡¯t have any other means of entertainment at the moment. Thus, it wouldn¡¯t hurt for me to listen for a while.¡± Chapter 39 - A Story Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios ¡°This is an ancient story. Legends say that there existed a kind young man. One day the young man met an incredible old man on the street and the old man asked the young man to sell his shadow to him.¡± ¡°Shadow?¡± ¡°Yes, the shadow that comes out when the sun rays hit us. He had wanted to buy it at the price of ten gold coins. The young man sold it to the old man without any hesitation.¡± ¡°What happened after that?¡± Elizabeth seemed drawn to the story. ¡°If it was your highness, what would you do?¡± Linley Bart didn¡¯t want to tell the story and thus he threw the question to Elizabeth. She then thought for a while before answering. ¡°If I didn¡¯t encounter such a situation, I wouldn¡¯t know. Perhaps I would sell it, perhaps I won¡¯t. It depends on the price offered.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. In fact, questions such as whether life or money is more important are actually laughable.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°The value of one yuan and the value of one hundred million yuan are completely different. Even the value of life varies from person to person. It¡¯s completely fake to say that every human being is born equal.¡± ¡°It is just like the difference in the value of my life and yours. I am a genius, whereas you are mediocre.¡± ¡°Anyway, the young man thinks that ten gold coins are worth much more than his own shadow. Isn¡¯t that so? Even if one had no shadow, he wouldn¡¯t face any trouble or discomfort. Also, it wouldn¡¯t constrict him in any way.¡± Elizabeth seemed to sense something but said nothing. ¡°However, guess what happened next? The young man was persecuted by the villagers and his family. He became incompatible with those surrounding him. People started saying that the young man who had lost his shadow was very scary.¡± ¡°You¡­¡± Elizabeth seemed to have something to say, but she was quickly silenced by Linley Bart¡¯s voice. ¡°Of course it¡¯s scary. Although there are certain instances where shadows are scary, people who lost their shadows are even scarier. The most common thing he had with others had disappeared. In other words, the young man sold something that was important to him for ten gold coins.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°In order to retrieve his shadow, the young man searched everywhere for the old man. No matter how long it took and no matter how many methods he used, he was still unable to find that inconceivable old man.¡± ¡°So what¡¯s next?¡± Elizabeth replied to Linley Bart¡¯s question calmly. ¡°What exactly happened?¡± ¡°En, nothing happened after that. I¡¯m just thinking, do you have any sympathy for the young man who sold his shadow in the story?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t sell away my weight!¡± Elizabeth sounded angry. ¡°Yes, it¡¯s not a sale. It¡¯s an equivalent exchange. Losing one¡¯s weight is a greater loss than losing one¡¯s shadow. Even so, the discord between the two is the same, but is that all?¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°I mean, is that all?¡± Linley Bart acted as though this was the end of their conversation, clapping his hands against his chest. ¡°I¡¯ll help you if you want to regain your weight.¡± ¡°Can you save me?¡± ¡°I can¡¯t save you but I can lend you my strength.¡± ¡°I understand.¡± Then there was silence again. The young man who sold his shadow. She who had lost her weight. How did one survive a life where one treated gentleness as hostility? Linley Bart didn¡¯t understand. This wasn¡¯t something he could understand. ¡°I¡¯m done showering.¡± Elizabeth emerged from the bathroom. Naked. ¡°Your highness?¡± ¡°Leave that place. I can¡¯t take out the clothes if you stand in front of the wardrobe.¡± Elizabeth calmly fiddled with her wet hair while pointing at the wardrobe behind Linley Bart. ¡°Clothes! Put your clothes on!¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t I going to start wearing them now?¡± ¡°Why are you only wearing it now!?¡± ¡°Do you want me not to wear it?¡± ¡°I said, quickly put it on!¡± ¡°I forgot to bring it in.¡± ¡°You could still use a towel to cover your body!¡± ¡°Of course not. That¡¯s just too tiring.¡± She said it in a serious manner. ¡°Because I¡¯m a princess.¡± Being a princess had nothing to do with wearing clothes¡­ Yet, she had said it as if all the princesses in the world were naked. Clearly, there was no point in discussing this topic any further. Linley Bart left the wardrobe. It was the first time he¡¯d seen a girl naked. But something was wrong. It was different from what he had imagined. Although Linley Bart strongly believed that he didn¡¯t have any fantasies about her at all, he was still quite expectant at seeing a girl¡¯s naked body. ¡°Is white okay?¡± ¡°Anything is fine.¡± ¡°Can the lingerie be patterned?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t need to tell me all that.¡± ¡°I¡¯m just asking for your opinion. Why are you shouting so loudly? I really don¡¯t understand.¡± He could hear the sound of the closet opening and the sound of clothes rubbing against each other. It was indeed a little unbearable. The flames in Linley Bart¡¯s mind refused to go away. ¡°Did you have evil thoughts after seeing my naked body?¡± ¡°Even so, it¡¯s not my responsibility.¡± ¡°If you dare to touch me, I¡¯ll bite my tongue immediately.¡± ¡°How chaste.¡± ¡°It¡¯s biting off your tongue.¡± ¡°You really are scary.¡± How should he put it? It was impossible for a normal man to understand this woman. ¡°Alright, turn around.¡± ¡°Got it, seriously¡­¡± Linley Bart turned around. What he saw was Elizabeth who was only in her bra. She did not even wear her socks. She had even put on a sexy pose. Chapter 40 - Ritualistic Magic! Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios ¡°What are your intentions?¡± ¡°What? This is just to express my gratitude. Be a little happier.¡± ¡°¡­¡± So this was to express her gratitude? Linley Bart really didn¡¯t understand. No matter what, compared to thanking him, Linley Bart was more eager for her to apologize. ¡°Be a little happier!¡± ¡°You should express your thoughts as part of etiquette!¡± ¡°Uh, thank you?¡± Etiquette? Had there been such an etiquette? But what should he say now? It was the first time he¡¯d seen a girl naked. They could also be considered childhood friends. This was also not something an ordinary person could easily see. Then¡­ ¡°Your body, your body is not bad¡­?¡± ¡°That sucks.¡± He was despised by her like trash. It could be said that there was some sympathy mixed in her voice. Why was there sympathy? Did she think that he would never see a girl naked again? She was the one who asked for an evaluation, yet he was despised once again. ¡°It¡¯s because you¡¯re destined to be a virgin boy for the rest of your life.¡± ¡°The rest of my life? Do you have magic that can predict the future?¡± ¡°Can you stay away from me? Being a virgin boy is contagious.¡± ¡°How can a woman be infected? Our gender is different!¡± No, even men don¡¯t get infected with each other over such things. ¡°Wait, why did the conversation lead to me staying as a virgin?¡± ¡°Is that untrue?¡± Elizabeth put on a very puzzled look. ¡°But what I said just now was indeed biased.¡± ¡°If you can understand that, then I would thank the heavens and gods.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t sputter, inexperienced virgins are contagious.¡± Elizabeth repeated herself and took a step back. ¡°Alright, I admit it. I¡¯m a virgin.¡± This forced Linley Bart to confess his shame. Elizabeth then nodded in satisfaction. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you just admit it from the start?¡± Why did he have to admit it? Although up until now, Linley was indeed a virgin. However, this wasn¡¯t something worth bragging about. ¡°Don¡¯t worry.¡± As she spoke, Elizabeth took out a white shirt from the wardrobe and draped it over her light blue bra. ¡°Actually, I didn¡¯t even believe half of what you said. I¡¯m afraid I¡¯ve been cheated countless times since I easily believed what others said.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°I¡¯m already used to it. To be honest, I¡¯ve almost given up on this physique.¡± ¡°You¡¯ve given up?¡± ¡°In this strange world where there are all kinds of magic, the gods do not help us easily. Only demons appear because of human desires.¡± Elizabeth said with all her unhappiness. ¡°Perhaps it was due to fate, Linley Bart, that I was caught by you when I had accidentally slipped on the stairs. Although you are considered pretty useless, you are still willing to help me. This is indeed a surprise for me.¡± As she spoke. Elizabeth began to remove the clothes she had just put on. ¡°You had finally just put it on. Why are you taking it off again?¡± ¡°It¡¯s worn backward.¡± ¡°Are you a fool?¡± ¡°Please don¡¯t say such rude things. What if you hurt my feelings?¡± Linley Bart said to himself in his heart, ¡°It would be very strange if someone could even harm you.¡± From the looks of it, Elizabeth¡¯s undergarments looked rather fashionable. ¡°Are you actually trying to show off your proud body to me?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not that arrogant. I¡¯m just wearing the wrong clothes.¡± ¡°What a high-level mistake.¡± ¡°But I¡¯m really not good at wearing clothes.¡± ¡°You¡¯re like a kid.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not like that. It¡¯s just too heavy for me.¡± ¡°Ah?¡± It was indeed an oversight. Without weight, even clothes would be a heavy burden. ¡°En, I¡¯ve decided.¡± Elizabeth said as she slipped a clean dress over her. ¡°If everything goes smoothly, I¡¯ll treat you to a royal banquet.¡± ¡°Where?¡± ¡°In my castle.¡± ¡°There¡¯s no one in your castle. Please don¡¯t tell me that you want to be the cook.¡± ¡°You¡¯re right. Actually, I really like to cook.¡± The Sacred Dragon Sorcery Academy was a very disciplined school. At night, lights in most of the buildings were turned off. Hence, it was already very dark around them, making the room indistinguishable from the outside. In the basement of Elizabeth¡¯s castle. Here, no one could disturb them. Casting ritualistic magic required a long period of time. If one was disturbed in the process, the entire spell would fall apart and fail. This was the commonality of all ritualistic magic. Hence, Elizabeth chose her home as the location for the casting of magic. This was also to prevent Linley Bart from having any bad intentions and tricking her into other unfamiliar places. Elizabeth was still very cautious. She was an expert in magic herself and was thus very familiar with the process of how ritualistic magic went. Even Linley Bart was dressed in the robes of a priest. His messy hair was also combed neatly, and his appearance was much cleaner. People relied on clothes to portray a different image of themselves. ¡°The most important thing about ritualistic magic is the atmosphere. The key lied in the ritual and the preparations.¡± Elizabeth said as she pointed at Linley Bart. ¡°Although you¡¯re the one executing the ritualistic magic, I still have to remind you of this because I feel that you have no experience in performing ritualistic magic.¡± Although she was right, it was still awkward for Linley Bart to be exposed. ¡°Start praying.¡± ¡°Pray?¡± It was Linley Bart¡¯s idea to let Princess Elizabeth do something. When the mood was right, he would then use the system¡¯s powers to help Elizabeth remove the curse. Linley Bart was in fact quite nervous. Was it because of this solemn atmosphere? He felt that the atmosphere here had become very strange. ¡°Linley Bart.¡± Elizabeth said suddenly. ¡°You must protect me well.¡± ¡°Why did you suddenly say something so princess-like!¡± ¡°Of course, I won¡¯t let you do it for nothing.¡± ¡°Will you still pay me?¡± ¡°Asking for compensation is really superficial. Indeed, your true nature has been exposed by your pathetic words.¡± ¡°Then¡­ what will you pay me with?¡±