Chapter 13: Secret Arts
Chapter 13: Secret Arts
Walking through the morning mist, the humidity was heavy, clothing got damp, and it felt wet and uncomfortable.
“Secret Arts? You want to know about Secret Arts?” Yan Zhao shook his robes and glanced sideways at Li Yi. “How is your practice going with Mana Missile, Misty Illusion, Wind of Perception, and Ink Earth Wall? Aiming too high is not good for you…”
These four were all Level 0 spells, the most commonly used spells for a Half-Step Mage, each with its own characteristics, playing to their strengths and compensating for weaknesses.
Mana Missile was about gathering elements into a missile shape to attack enemies from a distance.
Misty Illusion enveloped oneself in a hazy mist, a technique of concealment.
Wind of Perception used a gentle breeze as eyes and ears to secretly observe the surroundings.
And Ink Earth Wall raised an earthen wall to defend oneself.
Li Yi gave a resolute smile and didn’t explain. He raised his palm, his fingers moving slightly.
Buzz!
In his palm, three pale cyan light balls spun endlessly, their colors bright and lively, as if condensed with infinite power!
Especially one of them, its color nearly white, buzzed with a crisp hum as if alive, imposing and domineering, as solid as a physical object.
“You kid, you hid it really deep! Are you at Half-Step third layer, or Half-Step fourth layer?” Yan Zhao was stunned, his eyes shining as he stared at Li Yi, secretly surprised.
Without any strengthening from a Magic Gesture or any Metamagic Specialization enhancement, usually only two Mana Missiles could be condensed. How could he manage three? Moreover, even he felt a faint sense of danger from that third one.
“You kid, you must have gained a lot of benefits from Butian Pavilion…” He couldn’t help feeling a little jealous and sighed softly. “What equipment is it? Its effect, is it ‘Spell Potency’ or ‘Mana Surge’?”
Li Yi smiled without a word.
The extra missile was condensed from the power of the Dragon Turtle.
Its power was even stronger than the other two combined, truly formidable!
“Since that’s the case, then—” Yan Zhao snapped back to reality and, after thinking for a moment, decided not to dwell on it. “Anyway, learning a bit more isn’t a bad thing…”
“Exactly…” Li Yi looked forward eagerly.
“Secret Arts are a special kind of spell. In a word — the pinnacle of magic!”
This evaluation was extremely high, and Li Yi couldn’t help but feel surprised.
“Their greatest characteristic is that they are not bound by level, endlessly powerful, and exquisite to the extreme!”
“Bound by level?”
“For example, the Level 3 Fireball requires a Lower Mage to cast. But once advancing to an Upper Mage, the Level 3 Fireball becomes somewhat insufficient in power, needing to be replaced by learning the Level 4 Lava Burst. As for the Level 0 spells in our hands, once we become Spell Apprentices, we should throw them far, far away…”
Yan Zhao’s explanation was thorough yet simple, and Li Yi quickly grasped the general idea.
“But Secret Arts are the ultimate combination of an individual and a spell, never too early to learn, never outdated. No matter what realm you are in, once you cast one, it can unleash tremendous power!”
“As Confucius said, ‘A noble man is not a vessel,’ referring to Secret Arts not being restricted by rules, being changeable and agile, with profound and mysterious power!”
Li Yi listened with great interest, feeling slightly emotional and stirred up inside.
“Secret Arts, based on their power, are divided into five ranks and ten grades!”
“Divine, Sacred, Imperial, Emperor, and Sage ranks, each rank further divided into Upper grade and Lower grade!”
“Imperial rank and above are already rare in the world!”
“And the Divine rank has the saying ‘exceptionally gifted by nature.’ Unless the original practitioner dies, no new person can learn it. Every Divine Arcane Secret can only be possessed by one person! And around Divine Arcane Secrets, bloody killings and constant conflicts never cease!”
Listening to this, Li Yi was secretly alarmed.
Thunderclap Strike already belonged to the Emperor rank, even if it was Emperor Lower grade, it was absolutely rare!
“That guy Zhangsun Shenji, I haven’t seen him for three whole days. He must have a woman outside.”
Changing the subject, Yan Zhao snorted lightly.
But his tone, in Li Yi’s ears, somehow sounded a bit aggrieved.
Li Yi nodded. For close friends who always hung out together, if one suddenly became sneaky, appearing and disappearing unpredictably, unless they owed a huge debt, it was most likely they had found a new romantic interest.
With Zhangsun Shenji’s family background, the former possibility was unlikely; naturally, it was the latter.
“Zhangsun Shenji, are you home? A few days ago, you said you were sick. What exactly is your illness? Still not recovered?”
Yan Zhao never knocked with his hand. He kicked the door forcefully, the banging sounds loud and booming.
“Right, we haven’t seen you for days, we miss you a lot!” Li Yi showed a sly smile and spoke loudly through the door.
“Huh?”
The person inside seemed startled, their voice panicked, carrying a hint of hidden nervousness and helplessness.
“It’s just a minor illness. I’m… not really suitable to see people right now…”
Li Yi and Yan Zhao exchanged a glance, almost simultaneously catching the wicked smile on each other’s faces.
A strange sense of pleasure, like catching someone in the act, inexplicably rose in their hearts.
Thud!
Kicking sideways, the door bolt burst open with a loud noise as Yan Zhao’s loud laugh rang out. “Let big brother see what kind of beauty made our lofty Zhangsun Young Master fall as well—”
His voice suddenly went dry and then cut off abruptly.
Immediately after, a hurried, furious voice exploded in the room.
“You… you got beaten up? Who? Who has the guts to do this?”
In the room, Zhangsun Shenji looked panicked. In his hurry, he didn’t forget to use his sleeve to cover his face.
Even with just a fleeting glimpse, Li Yi saw clearly. His pupils seemed stung, slightly contracting. A flash of anger crossed between his brows.
Zhangsun Shenji’s graceful and elegant appearance was long gone. His face was bruised and swollen, dark circles under his eyes not yet faded, covered in injuries.
What was more infuriating was that on both his left and right cheeks, two shocking characters for “lowly” had been carved with a dagger. The handwriting was messy and scribbled, fierce and menacing, carrying deep malice!
Just one glance was enough to imagine the chilling scene when those characters were carved on Zhangsun’s face!
“Who did this?” Yan Zhao directly pressed down Zhangsun’s arm, examined it closely, his eyes red as if stained with blood. “Tell me, who did this?”
“I fell myself. I’m fine!” Zhangsun Shenji frowned, shook off Yan Zhao’s arm, and said awkwardly.
“And these two characters? Did you carve them yourself too?”
Yan Zhao grabbed his arm again, roaring fiercely like a raging lion.
“Yes, mind your own business!” Zhangsun Shenji was someone who yielded to softness but not force. At this moment, he was stubborn, refusing to say another word.
“Zhangsun, relax, tell us, it’s okay.” Li Yi didn’t want to provoke him. With one hand stopping Yan Zhao, he tried to persuade gently.
“Speak up!” Unable to contain his anxiety and anger, Yan Zhao actually flared up at Zhangsun Shenji. “Are you stupid? You don’t know who beat you up? What’s in your head?”
“These minor injuries will fade in a few days.” Zhangsun Shenji took a few steps back, sat down properly, regaining the air of a noble young master. “I’m fine. You don’t need to worry about me…”
“Are you even a man?” Zhangsun Shenji’s indifferent attitude completely enraged Yan Zhao. He rolled up his sleeves, rushed forward a few steps, ready to hit him.
Li Yi quickly stopped him. After some pulling and tugging, he finally managed to drag Yan Zhao out of the room.
“Sissy, I’m done with your business!” Yan Zhao’s anger still not subsided, he shouted loudly at the room. “Go die on your own, perish on your own!”
“Who needs you to care?” From inside the room, Zhangsun Shenji’s sharp voice pierced through.
“Zhangsun, calm down. We’ll come again tomorrow!”
Li Yi struggled to pull the big guy along, tugging and pulling, barely managing to leave.
…
The mountain wind rustled.
After a while, Yan Zhao stood by the cliff, his figure cold and stern, seeming to have calmed down from his anger.
Suddenly, he let out an angry shout and threw a punch sideways!
Where his fist passed, a long row of sharp stone spikes burst from the ground, like bamboo shoots sprouting after a rainstorm, tearing the earth, stabbing straight into the sky!
In an instant, the long, flat ground turned into a murderous forest of thorns!
One could imagine that anyone standing there would have been turned into a bloody skewer.
Secret Art — Earth’s Thorns!
“No matter who, no matter their background, I will make them pay!” Yan Zhao gnashed his teeth, each word seeming to be squeezed from between them.
He seemed to have completely forgotten what he said about not getting involved anymore.
“Li Yi, what do you say?”
At this point, what more needed to be said?
Li Yi narrowed his eyes and briefly uttered two words — “I concur.”
He didn’t need to waste more breath. He knew Yan Zhao could hear the firm determination in his tone.
“Good brother!” Yan Zhao patted Li Yi’s shoulder, a look of relief on his face. “I need to investigate first to find out exactly who did this. You go back first. Wait for my news…”