Chapter 111: Spell Apprentice
Chapter 111: Spell Apprentice
“Yu Qian?” Zhangsun Shenji’s face darkened, his eyes cold like an unmelting iceberg.
The crowd parted, revealing a proud and sinister face. It was indeed Yu Qian.
His aura was steady, his gaze sharp, and deep within his pupils, waves of mana surged ceaselessly. Clearly, he had advanced to Spell Apprentice long ago, his Magic Vortex was stable, and his spirit was clear.
Seeing this face, Zhangsun Shenji couldn’t help but feel disgust.
“As a Heaven’s Pride, mingling among Outer Manor Disciples is beneath your status…” Zhangsun Shenji gave a cold, mocking laugh, his words filled with sarcasm.
“Me? I just happened to be here…” Yu Qian shrugged, speaking calmly. “Besides, which academy rule does this violate? On the other hand, that Li Yi hasn’t reached Spell Apprentice yet and still clings on. What’s the reason for that?”
He fixated on the word “rules,” and for a moment, Zhangsun Shenji had no way to refute him.
“What are you all standing around for? Get back to what you should be doing!” Yu Qian gave another cold laugh and ordered.
With his command, the others gained courage and waved their banners, protesting loudly.
“The Precipice is unfair! We are not convinced!”
“Li Yi’s realm is insufficient! He absolutely cannot stay!”
Yu Qian kept sneering, following closely at the tail of the group, while Zhangsun Shenji’s expression remained icy as he trailed behind.
“What exactly is this bastard trying to do?”
Zhangsun Shenji was sure that although Yu Qian was petty, he wouldn’t go to such lengths just for a bit of grudge. There had to be a scheme behind this!
“Is it for the Samsara Shroud? But he should think the Samsara Shroud came into my hands… If not, then what’s the reason?” Zhangsun Shenji pondered in his heart but was completely bewildered.
…
Inside the Meditation Chamber, Li Yi sat upright.
Above his head, green light spread, a Great Soft-Shelled Turtle loomed high, its might unfathomable!
At this moment, the Dragon-Turtle Qi, the Ancient Alligator Qi, and ordinary Mana were all refined and made his own.
Strangely, after refining the Mana, two more beastly shadows appeared within the splendid mountains and rivers on the Great Soft-Shelled Turtle’s back.
A Dragon Turtle hid in the heavenly pool, an Ancient Alligator swam in the black waters. The shadows of these two giant creatures were so tiny on the turtle’s back they were hard to see with the naked eye.
This was enough to show the Great Soft-Shelled Turtle’s immense grandeur, encompassing heaven and earth, was no mere boast.
Night and day of arduous cultivation finally brought him back to the half-step ninth layer.
Li Yi’s expression was grave. His body was filled with abundant Mana, his spirit serene. Forming the Magic Vortex was now the critical step!
“Heh! Heh! Heh!”
Three soft exclamations, like commands.
Pale blue Mana surged like a reversed tide, like rivers and streams, rushing into his chest and abdomen. The greenish light spread like sparks starting a prairie fire, gradually forming a mighty, overwhelming force!
For a moment, the small chamber glowed brilliantly, mysteriously.
The Mana swirled in his chest and abdomen. It started as a tiny strand, then more Mana joined in with each rotation.
“Hmm? This is…”
Li Yi frowned slightly.
Normally, with such refined Mana of this quality, forming a Magic Vortex should be easier, following a natural course.
But he found that his Magic Vortex was extremely complex, with an indescribable level of difficulty.
After a while, Li Yi caught a hint of the reason, his expression shocked and doubtful.
The reason it was called a Magic Vortex was simple: its shape resembled a whirlpool in the sea.
But what Li Yi was forming wasn’t a sea vortex—it was a magnificent starry river!
Perhaps, for the Great Soft-Shelled Turtle, only an endless starry river could serve as its Magic Vortex.
“Devouring mountains and rivers… perhaps this is what it means…”
Muttering to himself, Li Yi sank deep into meditation.
A hazy, glowing light drifted through the small chamber. Not only did the room shine with countless rays, but the light also seeped through the door crack and windows.
…
Outside the door, the rising and falling shouts stopped abruptly, like a duck being throttled.
Everyone wilted.
The dazzling brilliance illuminated Yu Qian’s livid face, his features twisted in anger.
They were all Mages, so how could they not see? This spectacle was clearly a sign of advancement!
Moreover, such a magnificent phenomenon indicated that the quality of his Mana was profound and unfathomable.
The light was brilliant, sometimes blazing like the sun, sometimes interweaving stars and moonlight. There was even a distinction between day and night, alternating back and forth, vaguely hinting at the passage of time, mysterious and ineffable.
“My apologies, it seems you came for nothing…” Zhangsun Shenji cheered inwardly repeatedly, but on his face, he feigned regret. “This kid, really… why did he have to advance now? Causing our Heaven’s Pride Yu to make a wasted trip.”
Yu Qian did not speak a word, his face shrouded in gloom.
At this moment, inside the room, a critical juncture was reached. The wildly fluctuating Mana waves were as deep as a mountain stream and as high as a great peak, surging and falling tumultuously.
Yu Qian’s face changed slightly. As the Mana waves reached his body, countless goosebumps erupted all over him.
Threat?
His Mage’s Intuition screamed wildly, sensing a direct threat!
This person could not be allowed to stay!
Immediately, killing intent flowed from Yu Qian’s eyes.
“A wasted trip? Not necessarily… Look, his advancement is clearly encountering a problem.” He smiled faintly, his voice suddenly turning sinister. “Never mind, let me lend him a hand!”
A dark glint flashed in his palm. Yu Qian flicked his finger, and a drop of emerald-green liquid, like a raindrop, shot out.
“What are you doing?”
With past experience as a warning, Zhangsun Shenji had been on guard all along. With an angry shout, his spiritual force transformed into an invisible large hand, grabbing for the droplet.
Bang!
“Hmph!” A sharp glint flashed in Yu Qian’s eyes.
Two spiritual forces collided in the Void, producing a thunderclap, while the liquid droplet slipped through the door crack and into the room.
“What was that?” Zhangsun Shenji’s face changed, and he spoke through gritted teeth.
“Green Carp Azure Blood!” Yu Qian calmly uttered four words.
“Green Carp Azure Blood?” Upon hearing this, Zhangsun Shenji was furious. “Have you forgotten? Harming a fellow disciple is The Precipice’s first commandment. The lightest punishment is expulsion, the heaviest is execution!”
“Harming? How am I harming him? Who all knoe, but he could o only that.
Inside the room, that drop of Azure Carp Azure Blood transformed into a green carp. It swam in the air for a few breaths before darting towards Li Yi, entering through his seven orifices.
“Ugh!”
A muffled grunt sounded.
The Magic Vortex inside his body, nearly formed and already swirling inward to stabilize, was suddenly flooded by this unexpected surge of Mana without pause. Instantly, it expanded by two-thirds!
Pfft!
A heavy feeling in his chest. Li Yi spat out a mouthful of blood fiercely.
What made his heart tremble even more was that the not-yet-fully-formed Magic Vortex showed signs of splitting apart, even exploding!
If it exploded and the Magic Vortex disintegrated, Li Yi’s fate would be the same as Wang Sheng’s now.
The Magic Vortex was the foundation of a Mage!
“Damn it!”
At this moment, Li Yi had no time to think about who was pulling strings behind the scenes. All his focus was on the Magic Vortex!
“Great Turtle Suppresses the Eight Directions!”
With an angry shout, the image of the Great Soft-Shelled Turtle descended from above his head, spanning his chest and abdomen. Its massive form pressed down on the continuously expanding Magic Vortex.
At the same time, Li Yi used every ounce of his strength to disperse the excess Mana bit by bit into the energy channels throughout his body.
But time was tight. It was already too late!
“Damn, damn, damn!”
Li Yi roared in fury but was at a complete loss.
He could only watch helplessly as the disaster of the Magic Vortex disintegrating quietly unfolded.
At this life-and-death moment, two deep roars from deep within his body sounded simultaneously, one after the other.
Two Bloodline Runes, one resembling a majestic Dragon Turtle, the other a sinuous Black Dragon, rose gracefully, their dark light spreading!
“Bearing the Stele” suppressed, with the force of ten thousand jun, it pressed down on the Mana, stabilizing its form.
“Lurking Abyss” coiled, with its pliant strength, it drew out the Mana, winding it around his body.
“You came just in time!”
Li Yi’s spirits greatly lifted. Immediately, his eyes focused on his nose, his nose on his heart. The Great Soft-Shelled Turtle covered the heavens as he concentrated on forming the Magic Vortex.
Gradually, the turbulent aura became steady.
The sound of tides rose and fell lightly, gradually filling the air.
A deep, faint light flowed like water.
“Lower-Rank Spell Apprentice… achieved!”
Li Yi opened his eyes; deep within his pupils, a sharp light flashed like lightning.